Warm, Spicy, Cozy Deliciousness!
By Will Hartman
It’s February. The days are getting longer, but the weather has decidedly taken a much colder turn. While there are several conventional ways to warm yourself up, such as turning on the heat or putting a hat on, at HRN, we prefer methods that not only warm your bones, but your soul as well. That’s why we’ve compiled a playlist full of hot, spicy, brothy, and stew-ey podcasts to help us escape back into our collective grandmother’s kitchens with a warm bowl of love in front of us.
P.S. If food isn’t your preferred warming method, there’s a cocktail episode too!
Cooking in Mexican From A to Z Episode 13: Mole Through the Generations: Hosts Zarela Martínez & Aarón Sánchez explore the layered flavors and history of mole. There is a different mole for every palate and protein, from negro to colaradito to rojo. Zarela and Aarón are thrilled to welcome another mother-son duo, Susana Trilling and Kaelin Ulrich, to help ensure they cover it all. Susana Trilling is a chef, teacher, author and director of Seasons of My Heart Cooking School in Oaxaca. A renowned authority on Oaxacan cuisine, Susana wrote My Search for the Seventh Mole and Seasons of My Heart; A Culinary Journey through Oaxaca, Mexico to accompany her 13 part PBS series that ran for 6 years. Like Zarela and Aarón, Susana’s son Kaelin Ulrich has taken after his mother in the culinary world as Chef de cuisine at La Calenda, a Thomas Keller restaurant in Yountville (Napa Valley), CA. At La Calenda, Kaelin makes everything (the salsa, mole, tortillas, sauces, etc.) from scratch, often using an elaborate list of ingredients native to Mexico.
My Family Recipe Episode 11: The Curry That Reunited My Family with Nyanyika Banda: Nyanyika Banda has a passion for studying the foodways of the African diaspora. Growing up surrounded with the culinary traditions of her father’s Malawian culture, she has had a lifelong hunger for exploration. In April 2020, she published an installment of My Family Recipe titled "The Chicken Curry That Put My Broken Family Back Together Again." It's about building traditions and finding forgiveness through a childhood recipe.
Cooking In Mexican From A to Z Episode 27: Sopa, Caldo, and Crema: Hosts Zarela Martínez & Aarón Sánchez are thrilled to welcome James Oseland. James recently released his book World Food: Mexico City: Heritage Recipes for Classic Home Cooking, which Zarela & Aarón absolutely love. While these three could talk about any aspect of Mexican cooking, for today's episode they've decided to focus on Soups. They set the stage by discussing the importance of soup in the average Mexican diet and outlining the difference between caldos and sopas. Then they each share their favorite soups and, especially, soup toppings! Plus, lots of great cooking tips from Aarón and Zarela.
Meat and Three Episode 95: Comfort Food: A Source of Solace Around the World: We are living through uncertain and unprecedented times. What better way to find a bit of escape and solace than through food? Comfort food is a broad concept that means different things to different people around the world. This week’s episode starts with a look at the history and meaning of comfort food. We learn about a Danish concept revolving around sharing quality time with loved ones over a meal. We take a look at how the world does chicken soup from Turkey to Scandinavia. Finally, we discover the many forms that Japanese donburi can take, and why it's sure to hit the spot every time. There’s no need for an excuse - take a load off and enjoy your favorite meal, whatever it may be!
Feast Your Ears Episode 189: Chicken Soup Now and Forever: Jenn Louis' new book The Chicken Soup Manifesto takes on the most comforting of comfort food. There exists a Chicken Soup recipe from anywhere that chickens are raised, and it represents nourishment, home cooking, and an accessible and affordable way to make a great meal. From Matzo ball to Kanjee (Sri Lanka) the book covers a lot of ground. Tune in to hear more about the book and Jenn's work on this and her previous books, Pasta by Hand and The Book of Greens.
The Speakeasy Episode 459: Baby It's Cold Outside: Andrew Meltzer joins the band from snowy, snowy Poland to talk all things winter - how to make a spicy, delicious cocktail, where cinnamon and nutmeg all came from in the first place and how to winterize your menu… and your patio.
