Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Radio

Chef Lucas Sin’s quickest dining experience clocked in at 6 minutes and 40 seconds. This expedient supper took place at a famous cha chaan teng, or Hong Kong diner, and he believes it’s one of the best restaurants in the world. From the extensive menu—french toast, black pepper spaghetti, milk tea, the list goes on—to the more abstract “human emotion flavor” that keeps diners coming back, Lucas explains what makes these neighborhood restaurants so special. Plus, reporter Jessica Sidman investigates the so-called "food truck mafia" around Washington, D.C.'s National Mall; and Ian Buxton gives us a lesson on Scotch whisky.

Photo credit: Nicholas Wong and Mario Chui

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99% Invisible’s Chris Berube shares margarine’s secret history—from Supreme Court battles to Eleanor Roosevelt’s advertising campaign—and why in some states you could only buy margarine that was dyed pink or black. Plus, we learn about snacks from around the world with Unsnackable’s Folu Akinkuotu; Dan Pashman tells us what there is to love about canned foods; and we make Brazilian-Style Pizza.

Get the recipe for Brazilian-Style Pizza Carbonara here.

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Food writer Tim Hayward shares the juicy history of the steak. We take a peek inside the secret beefsteak societies of England and New York, learn a classic Argentinian salting method, and try a steak from a 25 year-old-cow in Spain. Plus, Kenji López-Alt goes on a quest for the perfect teriyaki; Sara Moulton and Chris take your cooking calls; and we prepare a Sunflower Hummus from Georgia. (Originally aired October 10, 2025.)

Get this week’s recipe for Sunflower Hummus here.

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In this special episode, we’re releasing an extended cut of our interview with Alexis Nikole Nelson. She tells us about the foraged ingredients you won’t find at your grocery store (like mugwort and magnolia flowers!) and the dishes she creates with them. Plus, Alexis reveals her favorite spot in New York City for foraging maitake mushrooms.

Photo credit: JB Douglas

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Alexis Nikole Nelson, known on TikTok as the Black Forager, has been foraging wild ingredients as long as she can remember. In her new book, "Happy Snacking, Don’t Die!", she shares what she cooks with them—including pickled onion grass and mushroom sour candy—and reveals a run-of-the-mill weed that might help flavor Dr. Pepper. Plus, we visit Arianna Pasquini to find out what Romans actually cook for dinner; then we head to Oktoberfest to learn the sport of Steinholding.

Photo credit: JB Douglas

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For this week's bonus, we're going back into the archives with our good friends Grant Barrett and Martha Barnette from the radio show A Way With Words. In our first-ever episode together from 2019, they discuss why some restaurant servers ask “Will you be wanting anything else?" They also explain phrases that seemingly don’t make a lot of sense, such as “in a pickle.” Plus, master spice blender Lior Lev Sercarz teaches us how to transform a meal; we learn the step-by-step rules to perfect curry; and Adam Gopnik ponders climate change and the future of wine.

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Bon Appétit columnist Maggie Hennessy helps us navigate the new rules of dining out. Is it ever OK to take out your phone? What’s the best way to grab your server’s attention? And how fussy is too fussy? Plus, Irene Yoo throws a soju party, and Grant Barrett and Martha Barnette of A Way With Words share the stories behind your favorite pasta shapes. (Originally aired September 26, 2025.)

Photo credit: Bon Appétit / Getty

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For Pati Jinich, there was a right way and a wrong way to make authentic Mexican cuisine. That was until she journeyed across the U.S.-Mexico borderlands. From cowboy candy to green spaghetti, she joins us to share the foods and lessons she learned from both sides of the border. Plus, Milk Street Radio producer Sarah Clapp visits the 2026 James Beard Chef and Restaurant Awards and meets the winners; and Mo Rocca prepares a funeral breakfast for accordionist Lawrence Welk.

Photo credit: Jennifer Chase

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This week, we’re revisiting one of our all-time favorite episodes—our 2020 interview with Claire Saffitz, in which she describes the trials and tribulations of creating famous snack foods on the Bon Appétit YouTube series “Gourmet Makes.” Plus, we talk to Ed Currie, the creator of one of the world's hottest pepper: the Carolina Reaper; we make Greek-style braised chickpeas; and Alex Aïnouz brews beer at home using only ingredients found in a supermarket.

Get the recipe for Greek-Style Braised Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Orange here.

Photo credit: Alex Lau, Bon Appétit

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He cooked for the czar of Russia and the Rothschilds, and even made Napoleon Bonaparte's wedding cake. He invented the chef’s hat and published the first recipes for soufflé and meringue, but you’ve probably never heard his name. This week, it’s the story of the world’s first celebrity chef: Marie-Antoine Carême. Plus, we’re joined by one of today’s best chefs, Enrique Olvera; Kenji López-Alt returns with a brand-new way to fry an egg; we make Indonesian Beef and Sweet Soy Sate; and Chris and Sara take your calls and tell us how to organize handwritten recipes, why we season everything with pepper, and much more. (Originally aired August 8, 2025.)

Get this week’s recipe for Indonesian Beef and Sweet Soy Sate here.

Listen to Milk Street Radio on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify