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

If you love to eat, cook and travel, The Splendid Table is your weekly go-to source. Our public radio program has been connecting people through the common language of food for over three decades. Hosted by award-winning food journalist Francis Lam, each week we bring you fresh voices and surprising conversations at the intersection of cooking, people and culture. We cover all things food – from recipes and restaurants to history and science, farmer’s markets and of course, the Thanksgiving feast. Our wide-ranging, freewheeling guest list includes both world-class and rookie chefs, bestselling authors, scientists, poets, musicians, and even an astronaut in orbit!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter, The Weeknight Kitchen, to receive practical, delicious weeknight-ready recipes. Once a month, we also share a sweet treat or baking recipe. Sign up at Splendidtable.org/newsletter

Produced by American Public Media. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network

Copyright: © Copyright 2026 Minnesota Public Radio

Latest Episodes:

The Opposite of Locavore Apr 12, 2019

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We're traveling to eat this week, and looking at foods that have gone through international transformations. We hear from Dr. Lucy Long, director and founder of the Center for Food and Culture, about the difference between being a food tourist and a food pilgrim, and why it's important to consider cultural responsibility in either case. We learn about the amazing culinary scene in Dubai with Arva Ahmed of Frying Pan Adventures. Chefs Mourad Lahlou and Louis Maldonado talk about the intersection of Morrocan and Mexican cuisines. Writer and taco historian Gustavo Arellano comes to the defense of flour tortillas and provides us with an amazing history lesson. Plus, America’s Test Kitchen heads to Wisconsin to figure out what makes the spicy cheese bread at the Dane County Farmers' Market so addictive - and yes, there is a recipe! Plus, Francis takes listener questions about making extra-creamy feta cheese at home and how to "fix" an accidentally scorched Irish stew meat, or at least salvage the high quality sirloin steak.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

April 20, 2018 (originally aired)
April 12, 2019 (rebroadcast)

Cooking with Scraps Apr 09, 2019

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It's estimated that in the United States we waste up to 40 percent of our entire food supply; that equals out to about 150,000 tons of food being wasted each day. And food waste isn’t just an American problem, it’s a global epidemic. Mads Refslund and Tama Matsuoka Wong are doing their best to combat the issue by using the toss-away parts of food into ingredients with a new purpose. Mads is a Danish chef and a pioneer of New Nordic cuisine, possibly best known as the cofounder of noma in Copenhagen. Tama is a forager, weed eater and home cook who graduated from Harvard law school. Together, they wrote Scraps, Wilt and Weeds: Turning Wasted Food into Plenty. Contributor Melissa Clark spoke with both of them about their approach to ‘trash cooking.’ She also got their recipe for Seared Romaine Lettuce Bottoms, Coffee Grounds PannaCotta and Coffee Grounds Biscotti.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

April 9, 2019

Burrito Royalty, Kitchens in Palestine & the Food of Nigeria Apr 05, 2019

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This week, human rights advocate and award-winning food writer Yasmin Khan takes us inside the kitchens of Palestine, where she spent months talking to cooks for her book Zaitoun. We dive deep into the diversity of Nigerian food and cooking techniques with Philadelphia chef Shola Olunyolo. We are introduced to frozen burrito royalty in California, the Ruiz family. And, the Proof podcast from America’s Test Kitchen wonders how and why “bowl food” has taken over the culinary world.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

April 5, 2019

Essential Chinese Cooking Techniques Mar 26, 2019

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Splendid Table Selects is our podcast that highlights conversations that make us better, more worldly cooks. In this episode we hear from Kian Lam Kho, a self-described tech geek who transformed himself into a chef and food writer. Kho’s Red Cook blog features authentic Chinese recipes from his native Singapore. His first cookbook Phoenix Claws and Jade Trees is an wonderful introduction to Chinese home cooking organized by cooking techniques and methods. Contributor Melissa Clark met up with Kian in New York to learn more. Kian was also kind enough to share his recipe for Red-cooked Pork.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

March 26, 2019

Cooking Scallops Mar 12, 2019

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This is Splendid Table Selects, our mini-podcast about the stuff that makes us better cooks and eaters. There’s nothing better than a properly cooked scallop, but they have a reputation for being temperamental and hard to cook. And sourcing the right scallop is as important as how it is cooked. Molly Birnbaum and her colleagues at America’s Test Kitchen have very strong opinions about scallops, so Managing Producer Sally Swift went to her with some questions.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

March 12, 2019

Good News for Chicken & Post-Wildfire Foraging Mar 01, 2019

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For all the bad news in our world today, we're happy to report there is some good news on the food front. In this episode, we consider some of the positive things that are happening. In her book, Big Chicken, journalist Maryn McKenna says the chicken industry is largely to blame for our enormous overuse of and exposure to antibiotics. But, as she explains to Francis Lam, she's found real reasons for hope for the future. Forager Pascal Baudar talks with contributor Russ Parsons about the restorative result of recent destructive California wildfires on some of his favorite wildcraft spots. Barton Seaver is an award-winning chef whose work now focuses on sustainability in the fish and seafood industries. He talks with Francis about how certain species of fish come in and out of favor with fisherman and cooks. The increasingly popular beet salad gets an upgrade thanks to Molly Birnbaum from America’s Test Kitchen. And restaurant owner Alpana Singh was the youngest woman to pass the Master Sommelier exam when she did so in her mid-20s. She talks with Shauna Sever about the struggles going on in her life that made passing the exam essential to her livelihood.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

March 2, 2018 (originally aired)
March 1, 2019 (rebroadcast)

Vietnamese Food Any Day Feb 26, 2019

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Welcome to Splendid Table Selects, our podcast that features interviews that make us think more about the food we love to eat and cook. Our guest this episode is Andrea Nguyen, best-selling cookbook author and expert on Vietnamese cooking. Nguyen says, in the past, cooking Vietnamese food in America meant multiple shopping trips to specialized Asian markets or substituting ingredients that just couldn't be found here. Thankfully, times have changed and more authentic Vietnamese ingredients are more readily available in the U.S. Nguyen's newest book, Vietnamese Food Any Day includes recipes that can be made from these more ubiquitous ingredients. She talked with Managing Producer Sally Swift about three specific ingredients and also shared her recipes for Sizzling Rice Crepes and Turmeric Fish, Seared Dill, and Green Onion Noodle Bowls.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

February 26, 2019

Eating in the Instagram Era Feb 15, 2019

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In this episode, we're looking at food and identity. Francis Lam talks with Jenna Wortham and Wesley Morris, the duo behind the podcast Still Processing, about how social media is changing the way we look at and enjoy food. America’s Test Kitchen takes on the latest culinary cult, the Instant Pot. ATK's Hannah Crowley puts multicookers to the test to see if the Instant Pot is the best brand in the land. Jonathan Kauffman, author of Hippie Food, talks about the role that the counterculture movement of the 1960s and 1970s played in redefining bread in America. First-generation Asian-American chef James Syhabout takes us through the extreme feelings of regret and joy he discovered while emerging himself in the food of his homeland. Plus, psychologist and neuroscientist Rachel Herz researches the science behind our relationship with food in her book, Why You Eat What You Eat; she tells us about some very interesting conclusions on our eating -- and food shopping -- behaviors.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

February 23, 2018 (originally aired)
February 15, 2019 (rebroadcast)

The Power of Scent Feb 12, 2019

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Our Splendid Table Selects podcast spotlights conversations that inspire us to cook in creative ways. Mandy Aftel is an artisan perfumer with a deep knowledge of natural essential oils. Her book Fragrant: The Secret Life of Scent, co-authored by chef Daniel Patterson, features scent-crafting skills and perfume ingredients in cooking to highlight the difference just one drop of essential oil can make in a dish. Splendid Table contributor Jennifer 8 Lee met up with Aftel to talk about cooking with five particularly powerful aromas: cinnamon, mint, frankincense, ambergris and jasmine. Check out Mandy’s recipes for Rose and Ginger Soufflé and Fragrant Raspberry Bubbly. See the FDA's list of Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) essential oils.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

February 12, 2019

The Art of the Sandwich Feb 01, 2019

Show notes

Bon Appetit’s Editor-in-Chief Adam Rapoport joins us with a rather intense take on sandwich making, our Dinner Party Download pals Brendan Francis Newnam and Rico Gagliano help us throw a dinner party, Anya Von Bremzen talks to Melissa Clark about the home restaurants of Cuba, America’s Test Kitchen teaches us how to make a veggie broth concentrate, and Doc Willoughby on country-style pork ribs. Francis takes calls from listeners to give suggestions for make-ahead Korean party food. He also explains what cream of tartar is and how to use for making homemade baking powder.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

February 9, 2018 (originally aired)
February 1, 2019 (rebroadcast)

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