Episode 24: Sari Not Sorry
Coming to you live from the Emerson Colonial Theater in Boston, with a little cameo appearance from Sumesh Uncle!
Food Ideas Discussed in this Episode:
Delicious things, lately consumed:
Lamb shawarma from Sofra, Boston
Ginger Espresso Fizz from Ceremony, Providence
Chocolate Covered Honey Grahams from Trader Joe’s, Everywhere
Everything from Flour Bakery, Boston
Passages Read from Good Things–
The one about Barbari bread and the other about Yellow Buttermilk Cake (which took much inspiration from Rose Levey Beranbaum’s Cake Bible and her reverse creaming method).
If you are interested in Parsi cooking, or if that is your taste of home, do not skip Niloufer Ichaporia King’s truly excellent cookbook, My Bombay Kitchen.
Some of Samin’s favorite Persian comfort flavors: chicken with the taste of saffron and lemon as found in her Joojeh Kabob Roast Chicken along with tadig or kateh. Rice is always a comfort food for Samin.
The Taco Chronicles on Netflix led Samin to one of her failures during recipe development (but also led to the beginning of Monday Night Dinners, so not really a failure at all?).
[Hold space here for the worst and possibly best (maybe off all time?) Hrishi pun here about tacos al pastor.]
From the book: Teo’s Chivi Spice comes from Teodoro Diaz-Rodriguez Jr. of Sonoratown. Here’s the recipe in NYT Cooking!
Do you love Indian food? So does Samin, but she is not an expert on it. But that’s not going to stop her from answering a question about getting more Indian flavors into your meals.
Cliff Notes: start with cardamom ghee, make tadka, put it in anything you want to make Indian-ish. Also, listen to this episode for actual, intelligent ideas and context, these are terrible Cliff Notes.
Are your holidays not challenging enough?
We hear that all the time! Perhaps you need to add some kind of food competition like Aparna’s Diwali-themed cookie Olympics?
Samin suggests a Thanksgiving Condiment Competition because Thanksgiving is Bland.
Sorry to that ghost (a pilgrim), but it just is!
Here’s some suggestions from the Campaign to Acidify Thanksgiving, Condiment Competition Edition:
Yogurt sauce
Chile crisp or chile oil
Chutney–or cranberry sauce inspired by chutney
If you are already embroiled in some sort of annual Chili Cookoff situation at your place of employment, Samin and Hrishi have some thoughts on making a Cholle-themed chili that perhaps is actually just Cholle after all.
Got a lot of dates?
You could absently eat them in front of the TV a la Hrishi or you could make the iconic/legendary/GOAT Alice Medrich’s Fruit and Nut Cake–keep your eye on Samin’s Substack, people ;)
You can also put dates in a snap pea chopped salad as described in Good Things.
IF you have one pound of sumac and cannot reach the Egyptian consulate to give some back, then good luck to you!
Your only real option is to become a very generous friend who constantly gives small jars of za’atar as gifts. Which is actually a really awesome gift to receive, so get on that, this is a great option!
Portable Protein Snacks to get you to Ballet Class or elsewhere:
Boiled eggs
Various flavors of hummus with various crackers and various veggies (so you never get bored).
Two very small bean and cheese burritos, griddled.
Almond butter-filled dates
Beef jerky
Samin’s advice to her 25-year-old chef self:
Everything doesn’t have to be the hardest.
There’s stuff outside of work, and it is in fact what makes you a whole and healthy person.
You don’t have to sacrifice every part of yourself to success, you will be miserable.
Don’t lose yourself in the work.
Get yourself to therapy.
THIS IS STILL GREAT ADVICE FOR OUR PRESENT SELVES!!
ARE WE STILL LEARNING THESE LESSONS??? Sometimes, yes.
Illustration by Mamie Rheingold