Good Food
Wild mustard, mushrooms, dudes and diets
As the world opens back up, food and travel writer Yasmin Khan explores what locals and refugees are eating in three Eastern Mediterranean countries.
By Evan Kleiman • • 56m ListenAs the world opens back up, food and travel writer Yasmin Khan explores what locals and refugees are eating in three Eastern Mediterranean countries. Master gardener and fruit tree specialist Alyssa Kahn has ideas about what to do with the wild mustard flourishing across the Southland. Doug Bierend documents the people leading the current mushroom movement. Chef Chris Yang estimates that his restaurant in Alhambra pivoted five times during the pandemic before reopening last month. Professor Emily Contois discusses the intersection of men and food in the media. Finally, it’s a celebration of strawberries at the farmer’s market.
In this episode
6 storiesEating with locals and refugees across Turkey, Cyprus, and Greece
What do borders mean in a globalized world?
Read the story12 minWild mustard beyond a condiment: Use it to make paper, ink, fertilizer
Master gardener Alyssa Kahn asserts that wild mustard has a complicated history of how it made its way to California, threatening biodiversity and inhibiting seed germination of native plants.
Read the story8 minFungi fanatics: Focusing on the future
Mushroom species are prolific and diverse, and less than 10% of them are documented, according to Doug Bierend . Now the lesser-known fungi are being embraced and studied by groups of naturalists across the country.
Read the story10 min‘In the Weeds’: A carousel of pivots at Yang’s Kitchen
Chef/owner Chris Yang had a neighborhood and media darling on his hands when Yang’s Kitchen opened in 2019. Despite its popularity and accolades, labor and the price of ingredients barely let him break even. And then there was the pandemic.
Read the story8 minDude food: ‘Comfort food with an edge of competitive destruction’
A shift has occurred in how the media conditioned the public to think about men’s bodies and ideals. When plumb was a sign of prosperity and class status, the 20th century brought expectations of the rigorous and strong male.
Read the story10 minCompeting for the spotlight: Stone fruit and berries are in season
At the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market, correspondent Gillian Ferguson meets up with Chef Zarah Khan of Botanica in Silver Lake.
Read the story8 min
