This Is TASTE

Ham El-Waylly is a chef, recipe developer, and video creator based in New York City. You may know him from the NYT Cooking channel, where he shares ingenious tips and whips up opulent feasts from niche ingredients alongside his wife, Sohla. But you probably don’t know Ham’s rich history in food, from growing up in Doha, Qatar, with Bolivian-Egyptian parents in the food business to running research and development at Momofuku’s Ando. Today we dig into it all, plus his love of graphic tees and live music, and I hope you’ll enjoy it. And as you heard at the top, it's the return of TASTE Live, an IRL events series with our friends at Rizzoli Bookstore in Manhattan. Our next event is August 17 with authors Natasha Pickowicz and Claire Saffitz. Natasha and Claire will discuss what they are baking this summer, the making of their latest cookbooks, and much more. The event will be recorded live for this very podcast.MORE FROM HAM EL-WAYLLY: Chicken Stroganoff [New York Times Cooking] The World’s Smelliest Fruit? Sohla and Ham Try Cooking With Durian [Mystery Menu] What Happens When a Brown Chef Cooks White Food? [GQ]

Hillary Sterling is a longtime New York City chef who is currently the executive chef at Ci Siamo, one of our favorite restaurants in all the land. We’ve known Hillary for years, and it was really fun to dig into her history to find out about her early food memories growing up deep in Brooklyn and her many cooking jobs in Chicago and NYC. We talk about traveling around Italy for research and her friendly rivalry (more of a friendly meeting of the minds) with chef Missy Robbins. We also find out what she loves most about running one of NYC’s hottest (literally—it’s live fire, baby) restaurants.MORE FROM HILLARY STERLING: Rekindling the Flame at Danny Meyer’s Ci Siamo [NYT] Italian Passion Front and Center at Ci Siamo [Gay City News] How Chef Hillary Sterling Runs Her 120-Seat NYC Restaurant Using Live Fire [Eater] FOLLOW, FOLLOW, FOLLOW: instagram.com/chefhillarysterling instagram.com/mattrodbard instagram.com/taste

Dan Pelosi is the self-proclaimed “Italian American meatball" behind the popular social media account and home entertainment mood board GrossyPelosi. In this episode, we catch up with Dan to talk about his journey from working at a creative agency to running a megapopular online food community. We talk about some of his favorite summer and fall recipes and dig into his debut cookbook, Let’s Eat. We hope you enjoy this fun conversation.MORE FROM GROSSY PELOSI: Grossy’s Guide to Grilling [official] Summer Corn Tomato Pasta [official] Grilled Dumplings with Natasha Pickowicz [YouTube] FOLLOW, FOLLOW, FOLLOW: instagram.com/grossypelosi instagram.com/mattrodbard instagram.com/taste

Chef Eric Adjepong was a finalist on season 16 of Bravo's Top Chef and a contestant on season 17 of Top Chef All-Stars, where he earned consistent acclaim from judges and popularity among viewers. As a first-generation Ghanaian-American born and raised in New York City, Eric sources the flavors and influences in his cooking from many of the West African dishes he grew up eating. He is passionate about introducing diners to West African cuisine and the impact its diaspora has had on South American, Latin American, Caribbean, and American food, all in his elegant, artfully plated style. On this episode we talk about Eric's new children's book, Sankofa: A Culinary Story of Resilience and Belonging. We also talk about is forthcoming cookbook, as well as what it was like to compete on Top Chef. What a great conversation.Also on the show, Aliza and Matt continue to preview the exciting fall cookbook season, including early thoughts on new releases from Klancy Miller, Molly Baz, Nancy Silverton, Erika Council, Cheap Old Houses, Andrew Friedman, and Leah Koenig.MORE FROM ERIC ADJEPONG:  ReachTV Orders ‘Cultural Eats’ Starring Chef Eric Adjepong, From Chris Paul’s Production Company [Variety] Sankofa [Official]

Detroit Free Press restaurant critic Lyndsay C. Green discusses Detroit's diverse food scene built by immigrants. She shares insights on her top ten restaurants list, food writing process, and Detroit's vibrant neighborhoods. The hosts also talk about exciting food events like the Kreung Cambodian pop-up and Borscht Belt Festival.

We recently had the pleasure of sitting down with the founders of not one but two of America’s most exciting independent media brands, each working deeply in and around food. In 2013, former media and beauty executive Kerry Diamond founded Cherry Bombe as a response to the overwhelmingly male-dominated chef and restaurant world. The publication has grown into a serious player, launching podcasts and events that rival some of the major glossies. Kyle Tibbs Jones is a cofounder and director of media at The Bitter Southerner, an iconoclastic magazine and media brand that was founded as a response to the caricatured portrayals of Southern life in mainstream media. The Bitter Southerner has won multiple James Beard Awards and, like Cherry Bombe, is a favorite read for many—including the editors of TASTE. And as you heard at the top, it's the return of TASTE Live, an IRL events series with our friends at Rizzoli Bookstore in Manhattan. Our next event is August 17 with authors Natasha Pickowicz and Claire Saffitz. Natasha and Claire will discuss what they are baking this summer, the making of their latest cookbooks, and much more. The event will be recorded live for this very podcast. Reserve a spot now, first come, first served.More from Cherry Bombe and The Bitter Southerner: Happy Birthday, Cherry Bombe [Forbes] The Cherry Bombe Podcast Network [official] The Global Love of Boiled Peanuts [official] Blood, Sweat, and Tears [official]

Lior Lev Sercarz is the chef, spice blender, and owner of La Boîte, a world-renowned spice company located in New York City. On this episode, we catch up with Lior about his unique path from Israel to some of the most famous restaurant kitchens in New York. We talk about the culinary school he’s founding in Northern Israel and dive into his incredible new book, A Middle Eastern Pantry. For real, this is one of our favorite books of the year, and together we go over many of the spices and condiments that shape this amazing culinary history. Lior is a true original, and we hope you enjoy our conversation.Also on the show, Aliza and Matt give some very early thoughts on the upcoming fall cookbook season, including exciting new books from Yossy Arefi, Rie McClenny, Yewande Komolafe, Andrew Tarlow, Pierre Thiam, Jing Gao, Dwight Garner, and C Pam Zhang.FOLLOW, FOLLOW, FOLLOW: instagram.com/cheflior instagram.com/mattrodbard instagram.com/taste

Here are two classic conversations. Ayo Adebiri plays Sydney Adamu on the beloved FX show The Bear. She tells us about her real-life work in New York City restaurants, and we get into some behind-the-scenes talk about filming on location in Chicago. Also on the show is a fast and furious talk with cookbook author and food TV personality Molly Yeh. Molly is legitimately one of the funniest writers (and guests) that I’ve encountered in a long time, and we get into all sorts of topics on the show. We discuss what makes a great Hallmark Channel movie, and we theorize about how she will possibly star in one someday. We also talk about Little House on the Prairie (the TV show) and how Molly is living her best life in North Dakota. Check out her incredible book, Home Is Where the Eggs Are. FOLLOW, FOLLOW, FOLLOW: instagram.com/ayoedebiri instagram.com/mollyyeh instagram.com/mattrodbard These episodes originally aired on July 15, 2022 and October 25, 2022.

Nicole A. Taylor is a food writer, recipe developer, and master home cook. Her latest book is Watermelon & Red Birds: A Cookbook for Juneteenth and Black Celebrations. Now, we’ve known Nicole for a while, but this conversation was the first time we were able to sit down and talk about food in her native Georgia, her work as a writer and editor in New York City, and the meaning of Juneteenth. We also go behind the scenes at one of America’s most well-known food magazines, where Nicole has been working. What a great interview. Also on the show we have a great conversation with José R. Ralat. José is the current Taco Editor at Texas Monthly and the winner of multiple James Beard Awards for his deeply reported journalism. Check out his book American Tacos, a modern classic. We talk about the state of the taco in America, among many other topics.More From Nicole A. Taylor and José R. Ralat: A Juneteenth of Joy and Resistance [NYT] Hibiscus Snow Cones [Food & Wine] A Major Ingredient Is the Cook w/ Cal Peternell, Matt Rodbard, Nicole A. Taylor [YT] Defining ‘Guisado’ Is Just as Messy as the Dish Itself [Texas Monthly]

How cool was it to have Anya von Bremzen in the studio? In this fast-paced episode, we cover Anya’s tremendous journalism career, which has brought her multiple James Beard Awards and a handful of reported books that are considered modern classics. These include the memoir Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking and her latest, National Dish: Around the World in Search of Food, History, and the Meaning of Home. We talk about what makes (or doesn’t make) a culture’s national dish, and how food writing has undergone great change in the past two decades. Also on the show, Aliza and Matt catch up about the new SPAM® flavor, Cardamaro, a visit to the Albanese gummy bear factory store, goat butter ice cream, a great new book Imagine a City: A Pilot's Journey Across the Urban World, a great new movie Theater Camp, and a really smart sunburn recovery hack.  MORE FROM ANYA VON BREMZEN: How Do Certain Foods Become National Dishes? [NYT] The Problem with National Dishes [Saveur] Say Ciao to Roscioli NYC, Direct From Rome [Resy] People Love to Hate the Garlic Press [TASTE]