Good Food
Life On A Container Ship; Irradiated Vegetables; The Theory of Randomness
Irradiated lettuce? Will it make me glow? Plus, life and eating for three weeks on a container ship, how to make a pig's life better, and how to make your own couscous at home. Randomness is the only rule in the universe. And we take a trip to the Chili King, and meet some dwarf goats.
By Evan Kleiman • • 1h 0m ListenRob Long spent three weeks on a container ship. What did he eat? Temple Grandin makes the lives of cattle better the day they get to the slaughterhouse. Why does it matter? Moraccan Mourad Lalou says couscous made at home is much better than couscous from a box. Bill Freese tells us why we need to worry about the FDA’s recent approval of irradiation of lettuce and spinach. The only pattern in life is randomness according to scientist Lenoard Mlodinow. And Jonathan Gold goes to the Chili King in Monterey Park. Nigerian dwarf goats make loving pets says Gianaclis Caldwell, plus they have very high butterfat. Laura Avery meets DJ Olsen at the market to hear about a perfect pork chop, and how to start a garden.
In this episode
8 storiesThe Market Report
JD Olsen of Lou Wine Bar makes smoked pork chops from Niman Ranch's porterhouse pork chops. To make lean pork taste great JD recommends brining the pork, from 24 hours to up to 3 days. He seasons the brine (see below) with juniper berries, pepper and bay leaves. You can find Niman Ranch pork chops at Whole Foods. While JD puts them in a…
Read the story8 minThree Weeks on a Container Ship
Rob Long is a writer and producer living in Hollywood.
Read the story7 minAnimals Make Us Human
Dr. Temple Grandin is the author, with Catherine Johnson, of Animals Make Us Human : Creating The Best Life for Animals. A Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University and designer of livestock handling facilities, Dr.
Read the story8 minHomemade Couscous
Mourad Lahlou is the chef at Aziza in San Francisco, where he and his staff make fresh couscous every day. Couscous is a Moroccan dish made by rolling semolina granules into small pellets. Unlike pasta, couscous must be steamed rather than boiled. Handmade couscous can take as much as five hours to cook. Roasted…
Read the story6 minIrradiated Vegetables
Some food producers use irradiation in the form of gamma rays, electron beams and X-rays, to kill bacteria and insects. In August, 2008, the Food and Drug Administration began allowing irradiation of fresh produce, specifically spinach and iceberg lettuce.
Read the story8 minRandomness Explains Everything
In The Drunkard's Walk : How Randomness Rules Our Lives, Leonard Mlodinow shows just how unreliable polls, grades, sports statistics and wine ratings are. According to a recent Los Angeles Times article , wine judges at the California State Fair did not give the same wines identical ratings when tasted multiple times. Mlodinow argues that…
Read the story7 minJonathan Gold: Chilli King
Pulitzer Prize winning food critic, Jonathan Gold visited Hengyang Chilli King in Monterey Park. Jonathan recommends the cauliflower in "pork oil." (138 E. Garvey Ave., Monterey Park, (626) 573-9258.) Read his review of Hengyang Chilli King and see pictures at the L.A. Weekly. Before being a food writer, Jonathan wrote about music.
Read the story8 minNigerian Dwarf Goats
Gianaclis Caldwell and her family raise Nigerian Dwarf Goats at Pholia Farms in Rogue River, Oregon. These goats have a high butterfat content, sometimes as high as 10 percent, which is an ideal quality for making goat cheese. Find Pholia Farms goat cheese at Rogue Creamery , Artisanal in New York, Pastoral in Chicago and at Steve's…
Read the story7 min
