The Splendid Table: Conversations & Recipes For Curious Cooks & Eaters

Chetna Makan, Britain's queen of Indian home cooking, shares her recipe for Cheesy Potato Balls. Tiffany Derry talks about her family's enormous holiday feast and her Mother's Gumbo recipe. Matt Adlard discusses his family's competitive holiday cooking and shares his recipe for Chocolate Yule Log.

This week, we’ve got two legendary British cooks in the house. First, Prue Leith joins us to talk about her fascinating background in food as a restaurateur and cook, growing up in South Africa, and judging The Great British Bake-Off show. Her new book is, Bliss on Toast, and she leaves us with her recipe for Tomatoes with English Pesto on Toasted Focaccia. Then, the iconic Nigella Lawson joins Francis in the studio to talk about her love of simple ingredients, dinners, and the importance of having a reliable recipe. Plus, she leaves us with her Smoky Squid and Beans recipe from her latest, Cook, Eat, Repeat. Broadcast dates for this episode:December 2, 2022 (originally aired)December 1, 2023 (rebroadcast)Generous listeners like you make The Splendid Table possible. Donate today to support the show

In this episode, Kerry Diamond talks to Julia creator and executive producer Daniel Goldfarb about historicizing Julia and taking the French Chef to France. Chef Eric Ripert shares his origin story and reflections on his interactions with Julia. They explore the impact of Julia Child on cuisine and culture, the challenge of balancing fact and fiction in the show, and their passion for cooking and journey to Le Bernardin.

Guests Matty Matheson, Suresh Doss, and Melissa Clark discuss the excellence of Canadian cuisine, regional culinary identities, discovering unfamiliar places and cultures, thriving food ecosystems in city neighborhoods, O'Dane Davidson's tartar jerk chicken, playing Stump the Cook, writing cookbooks, feeding people with dignity, and creating social change.

Top Chef's newest judge, Kristen Kish, and other guests discuss Thanksgiving traditions, using citrus in cooking, enhancing vegetarian dishes with meat, making stuffed calamari, incorporating hazelnuts and chestnuts into Thanksgiving dinner, and tips for approaching Thanksgiving cooking without feeling overwhelmed.

This week, we have the dynamic duo, Sohla and Ham El-Waylly, hosts of the New York Times Cooking show Mystery Menu joining us to talk about working together, overcoming differences in their cooking styles, and the key to their success as a team. They stick around to answer your cooking questions. Then, restaurateur Will Guidara joins us with advice on how to be a great host. From the importance of “unreasonable” hospitality in the restaurant industry to being intentional in the home and turning thoughtfulness into practice. His new book is Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They ExpectBroadcast dates for this episode:November 4, 2022 (originally aired)November 10. 2023 (rebroadcast)Celebrate kitchen companionship with a gift to The Splendid Table today.

This week, we talk about the delicious and varied world of Asian vegan cooking. First, we talk to Hannah Che, author of The Vegan Chinese Kitchen, about becoming vegan and navigating her family’s eating traditions. She talks about exploring the history of plant-based eating in China and her process for creating vegan recipes inspired by everyday dishes using Chinese seasonings. She leaves us with her recipes for Braised Winter Squash with Fermented Black Beans and Fragrant Dressed Tofu with Garlic and Basil. Then, Chef Danny Bowien, author of Mission Vegan, tells us the charming story of why he started cooking vegan in his former restaurant Mission Chinese and walks us through his version of Mapo Tofu, and leaves us a recipe for Cold Buckwheat Noodles with Dragon Fruit Ice that captures the book’s spirit of rediscovering his Korean heritage.Broadcast dates for this episode:October 21, 2022 (originally aired)Ocotber 27, 2023 (rebroadcast)Generous listeners like you make The Splendid Table possible. Donate today to support the show

This week, we have the iconic musician Linda Ronstadt and her collaborator Lawrence Downes talking about her love of the culture and food of the Sonoran Desert. We hear about the different Sonoran foods and stories from their travels, and she leaves us with her grandmother’s albondigas recipe. Their book is Feels Like Home A Song for the Sonoran Borderlands. Then we talk to MacArthur Fellow, Professor Natalia Molina about the restaurant her grandmother ran in the 1950s in Los Angeles, El Nayarit, and how a restaurant can be the heart of a community. Her book is A Place at the Nayarit, How a Mexican Restaurant Nourished a Community. Broadcast dates for this episode:October 7, 2022 (originally aired)October 13, 2023 (rebroadcast)Celebrate kitchen companionship with a gift to The Splendid Table today.

This week, we visit the legendary Jacques Pépin at home to talk about one of his favorite subjects, chicken! First, we dive into some of the French chicken classics and talk about his latest book, Art of the Chicken. Then we move over to his kitchen, where he invites us to taste his mother's egg specialty dish, Eggs Jeannette, a pan-crisped deviled egg. Then, we turn to French homebaking with Aleksandra Crapanzano, author of Gateau: The Surprising Simplicity of French Cakes. She talks about how to elevate À la Français a basic cake recipe by using the spirits and pantry items in your cabinet, and leaves us with her delicious recipe for Almond Yogurt Cake, a cake the French teach in preschool! Broadcast dates for this episode:September 23, 2022 (originally aired)September 29, 2023 (rebroadcast)Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

This week, we dedicate the hour to rest and rice. First, we talk to Adeena Sussman about her Shabbat rituals, from cooking with a sense of spirituality, taking the time to unplug, and connecting with family and friends. She talks about iconic dishes she enjoys making and sharing during Shabbat, like her Jachnun Rolled Yemenite Sabbath Bread, and she sticks around to answer your cooking questions. Her latest book is Shabbat: Recipes and Rituals from My Table to Yours. Then, we enter the world of rice with Chef JJ Johnson, author of The Simple Art of Rice: Recipes from Around the World for the Heart of Your Table. He talks to us about the rice he grew up eating, his research in West African culture, and cooking rice professionally and making it the center of the table, and he sticks around to answer your rice cooking questions. He left us his recipe for Crispy Rice Salad with Quick Pickled Onion.September 22, 2023 (originally aired)Generous listeners like you make The Splendid Table possible. Donate today to support the show