Choose your titles as you would your spices. Maybe you want to add some drama or heat or something short and sweet, or a dash of something you haven’t tried. Friends and family love hanging out in the kitchen, so why not throw an impromptu listening party with a one-size-fits-all podcast, book, or performance? Recently, I just got nosy and asked people I work with what their favorite listens are while they’re stirring the pots.
“I get really hungry when I listen to Stanley Tucci talking about food in his memoir. You definitely need to be cooking while listening to this book. He’s a great, witty, charming storyteller,” advises Victoria from customer service. A music lover, she likes cooking with Words & Music.
Japanese chicken curry, pasta Bolognese, and red curry with silken tofu are just a few of the dishes Lizzie from marketing has prepared while listening to biographies and self-help books (“I can immerse myself in their worlds while still having my eyes on the burners”). She credits listening to The Imposter Cure by Dr. Jessamy Hibberd as life-changing for her as a woman and first-generation college student.
“You will laugh and cry and wonder if it’s the onions or Tabitha Brown’s truth hitting your soul as you cook,” says Phara, who’s big on listening and cooking. She also bakes her own bread, and if a story hits a rough spot, the dough will definitely get a good kneading/beating.
It’s no surprise that many prefer eating to cooking. Take Billy. He is very clear on his love of cooking, or lack of: “I don’t love it so I’ll listen to true crime because it makes it less boring.” Chasing Ghislaine and Call Me God proved to have been great saviors.
Sinya’s first listen was How Chefs Holiday. "That’s where I found my favorite chef Carla Hall’s recipe for her poundcake. I’ve used this title for other recipes too. And I like listening to short fiction. I find the stories entertaining and the timing just right.”
“Cooking is essential in my big family. I don’t cook for the joy of it,” laughs Keresa. “We have food allergies, picky eaters—two of my kids don’t like spaghetti but they love ziti and lasagna.” (Maybe they could use a little Stanley Tucci?) While cooking, she prefers podcasts because in one or two episodes she can have dinner on the table. "Holding Court is my favorite because I like learning about the law with an urban touch,” she says. Keresa stays away from fiction and nonfiction while cooking: “One book was so good, I almost burned down the house.”
Before you go into the kitchen to burn, baby, burn, have your listens ready. Cheers!
Speaking of food
Great meals and great conversations are the perfect pairing in these podcasts.
Whether you’re a super fan of Food Network or a super foodie, you’re going to want to hear this! Each week on Food Network Obsessed, host Jaymee Sire sits down with our favorite Food Network stars, chefs, and hosts dishing on all things delicious in the food world and pulling back the curtain for a behind-the-scenes taste of the network’s hottest shows. From taste-making trends to fiery foodie feuds, nothing’s off the menu.
Professional home cooks Deb Perelman and Kenji López-Alt will give you what you need to create your own recipes by showing how they create theirs. It’s what they do for a living. They cover just about everything from soup to recipes that call for nuts.
Join the party as Ina Garten invites friends old and new into her East Hampton home for good food and great conversation. With personal stories shared over cocktails and favorite recipes, each podcast episode features great guests such as Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Eric Ripert, and Ann Patchett.
Feeling a little challenged with a kitchen that’s too small? Finicky eaters? This podcast is here for you in an emergency when you have a meal to whip up but getting there is no easy feat. You can call or email your questions.
"Tell me about your mama's kitchen.” That’s the simple request that begins each episode of this Audible Original podcast from acclaimed journalist Michele Norris (NPR’s All Things Considered, The Washington Post) and Higher Ground, Barack and Michelle Obama's media company. Every week, hear guests like Mrs. Obama, Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, Matthew Broderick, D-Nice, José Andrés, and more explore the complexities of family life and how their earliest culinary experiences helped shape their personal and professional lives. Each guest brings a recipe for a favorite dish from their youth so you can taste a bit of their story.
Black Girls Eating doesn't just share recipes and tasty plates. Hosts Candace Boyd and Tanorria Askew sit down with Black professionals in the food industry, from chefs and chocolatiers to food-justice advocates, to talk about how Black culture and dynamic Black women continue to influence food. If you want cooking advice, the hosts and their guests offer plenty of that too, with episodes focused on everything from making great tea to selecting wine to choosing seasonings.
Brad Johnson puts his warm, present, and welcoming hospitality skills to use as the host of Corner Table Talk, covering topics in food, drink, and culture. He certainly knows his way around the restaurant business thanks to his father, who opened the renowned hotspot The Cellar in New York City in the 1970s. He also knows his way around interviews with his deeply thought out questions. There's something about him that makes guests open up and want to tell him everything. Following the conversation, he unpacks his interview with international speaker, writer, and diplomat Attallah Shabazz (eldest daughter of Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz). It's the best seat in the house.
Foodie memoirs
These top chefs can dish it out when it comes to telling their life stories.
Here, for the first time, Ina Garten presents an intimate, entertaining, and inspiring account of her remarkable journey. She has the gift of making everything so easy, yet all her accomplishments have been the result of hard work, audacious choices, and exquisite attention to detail. In her unmistakable voice (no one tells a story like Ina), she brings her past and her process to life in this no-holds-barred memoir delivered with her signature combination of playfulness and purpose.
When celebrity chef Mario Batali sent out an apology letter for the sexual harassment allegations made against him, he had the gall to include a recipe—for cinnamon rolls, of all things. Geraldine DeRuiter decided to make the recipe, and she happened to make food journalism history along with it. DeRuiter shares stories about her shockingly true, painfully funny (and sometimes just painful) adventures in gastronomy. We’ll learn how she finally got a grip on her debilitating anxiety by emergency meal-planning for the apocalypse.
Born in rural Mexico, Eduardo “Lalo” García Guzmán and his family left for the United States when he was a child, picking fruits and vegetables on the migrant route from Florida to Michigan. He worked in restaurants as a teenager before being convicted of a robbery, incarcerated, and eventually deported. Lalo landed in Mexico City as a new generation of chefs was questioning the hierarchies that had historically privileged European cuisine in elite spaces. The Migrant Chef offers an unforgettable window into a family’s border-eclipsing dreams, Mexico’s culinary heritage, and the making of a chef.
Tom Colicchio cooked his first recipe at 13 years old—a stuffed eggplant from an issue of Cuisine magazine that he picked up out of boredom—and it changed his life. In his memoir, which includes 60 recipes, we get a glimpse into his life and what shaped him as a person and a chef. No doubt this son of a working-class Italian family has made his hometown of Elizabeth, New Jersey, very proud.
By the time he was 27 years old, Kwame Onwuachi had opened—and closed—one of the most talked-about restaurants in America. In this inspiring memoir about the intersection of race, fame, and food, he shares the remarkable story of his culinary coming of age.
"My entire life I have been less fat and more fat, but never not fat." According to family lore, when Rabia Chaudry’s family returned to Pakistan for their first visit since moving to the United States, two-year-old Rabia was more than just a pudgy toddler. Fatty Fatty Boom Boom is a searingly honest portrait of a woman grappling with a body that gets the job done but that refuses to meet the expectations of others. This memoir offers listeners a relatable and powerful voice on the controversial topic of body image, one that dispenses with the politics and gets to what every woman who has ever struggled with weight will relate to.
When doctors told Danielle Walker that food didn’t cause her autoimmune disease and couldn’t help control it, she set out to prove them wrong. Diagnosed with an extreme form of ulcerative colitis at 22, Walker was terrified she’d never be able to eat all the wonderful foods she loved growing up or host warm, welcoming gatherings with family and friends. When the medicine she was prescribed became almost as debilitating as the disease itself, she turned her kitchen into a laboratory and created gut-healthy versions of the foods she thought she’d never be able to enjoy again. She has become a beacon of hope for millions around the world suffering from autoimmune diseases, food allergies, and chronic ailments. Food saved her, and it can save you too.
David Chang has certainly been busy since he first opened Momofuku Noodle Bar in 2004. Chang’s style is one that’s inquisitive, innovative, and exciting, and he’s often been regarded as a “bad boy” of the culinary sphere, an outspoken chef who’s always up for rebellion. In his author-narrated memoir, Eat a Peach, Chang shares each pitfall and success he has faced in his career, from the unexpected juggernaut that is Momofuku to his struggles with aimlessness and mental illness to his insights on the restaurant world. It’s a genuine and vulnerable ride that unearths the highs and lows of industry renown. Trust me—if you’re a self-described “foodie,” this is definitely a listen you don’t want to miss.
A special mélange
Just because you're in the kitchen doesn't mean you have to listen to all things food. Check out this mix from fiction to legendary music to true crime.
Emily Henry’s novel is set in a dreamy locale featuring an unlikely pair. Daphne’s fiancé dumps her for his childhood best friend, Petra. Daphne decides to move in with Petra’s jilted ex, Miles, fake dating each other to make the new couple jealous—but it quickly turns into something more. Henry’s knack for writing relatable characters while balancing romantic love with relationships between friends and siblings adds even more joy to this beautiful story.
It’s difficult to overstate Stevie Wonder’s impact on music. The 25-time Grammy Award winner forever changed the landscape of sound with his gift for songwriting, wield of multiple instruments, and trailblazing prowess with audio technology. In this Audible Original from Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Wesley Morris, Wonder’s legacy is analyzed by illustrious guests like Barack and Michelle Obama, Questlove, and Janelle Monáe. Shimmering with the enthusiasm of fandom, underpinned by history and cultural commentary, and set against the sonic backdrop of more than 40 of Wonder’s hits, this celebration of an auditory icon is one you won’t want to miss.
Beware of your beautiful neighbors. They look like they have everything, but always want more, and not just the usual acquisitions. They play a much bigger game. Pay close attention as you listen and enter this privileged world in a gated community that you’ll want to get comfortable in. A great full-cast adds to the thrills and twists that will draw you in as you get to know the neighbors, or think you do. Everyone has a story.
In this delectable romance, two star-crossed bakers find themselves at the center of a generations-old family feud. Avital Cohen, struggling with chronic pain while running her family's kosher bakery, meets the charming and mysterious Ethan Lippmann. As they work side by side, sparks fly and secrets simmer. Can love overcome decades of rivalry and resentment? With a dash of humor, a pinch of tension, and a generous helping of heart, this tale explores the power of forgiveness, understanding, and the healing nature of love. A must-listen for anyone who believes that even the most bitter conflicts can lead to a sweet thing.
Lauren Malloy was just going about her life and, like all of us, was dealing with the global pandemic, when a stranger reached out to her on Facebook with a message that would undo her life. She’d lost her mother when she was an infant and grew up believing she died of natural causes. She learns otherwise: Her mother was murdered. Malloy is the host of this real-time podcast as she unravels the truth about her mother’s life and death. Old wounds are reopened, and in a series of twist and turns, she gets closer to the truth and all that surrounds it.
