In the world of food media, Samin Nosrat is a palate cleanser.
Though she is a fount of cooking knowledge and wisdom, neitherher award winning booknorher Netflix showever feel prescriptive.
(She also let us look inside her fridge.)
Ive been in a funny oatmeal phase for the lastI dont knowfew months.
Its been strangely soothing.
I make this instant oatmeal with cinnamon.
I chop up three medjool dates and put them in there and then add a little bit of flaxseed.
I have a whole little kit I built for myself.
So it feels like Im doing something to care for myself because I eat this big hearty thing.
Then I can make it all the way to lunchtime without feeling like Im going to go down.
How do you lunch?
I have an office where I write with about two dozen other writers locally.
And also the thing is it takes the pressure off of me.
Im pretty good about keeping both my home freezer and the work freezer stocked with frozen vegetables.
At work, I really love these green chile tamales from Trader Joes; theyre so good.
Thats my super emergency meal.
and what do you buy from Trader Joes?
Those are so good.
Often itll just be a little bit steamed rice, vegetables, or whatever.
So I bring that and I have that at work.
I always have snacks.
I figured out that I cant have snacks that aretoodelicious around.
But if theyre also too virtuous Ill never eat them.
So its about finding that balance?
Yeah, that right place.
Theres actually a trail mix from Trader Joes that has alittlebit of chocolate in it.
Its almost like a vacation to get to eat boiled vegetables.
Its usually nothing thats too fancy; its broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, kale or whatever.
So for me, its almost like a vacation to get to eat boiled vegetables.
Thats one of my favorites; I love American cheese so much.
But I definitely am a phase person.
Whats the most common mistake you think that home cooks make with chicken?
Pound it really thin into an nice, thin, even piece.
A big part of why people overcook the breasts is because its so unevenly shaped.
But otherwise, my go-to: I typically buy chicken thighs.
I find them to be so versatile.
But you get this amazing moistness from the thigh, and the flavor that comes from the skin.
You get this incredibly crisp skin.
Do you have a go-to order for if you find yourself at a random, basic diner?
Im a mood person.
I do love a tuna melt.
Do you have a movie theater snack?
Im trying to think of a new way to hit new frontiers with nutrional yeast.
Do you have a special way you make popcorn at home?
Yes I absolutely do; Im so happy you asked.
So, I have a multi-fat situation.
It gets so crisp.
I love nutritional yeast.
I kind of want to figure out a way… Could I create a savory granola using it?
Im trying to think of a new way to hit new frontiers with nutritional yeast.
I would be excited to hear about that if you come up with anything.
Going back to potatoes: do you have a favorite french fry?
Most fast food fries are twice-fried.
What the twice-frying leads to is the inside is perfectly starchy and creamy, and the outside is crisp.
Once example of a once-fried fry that Imnota fan of is at In-n-Out Burger.
Because its only fried once, the outside gets too brown and the inside is not creamy enough.
So, I really like a pale golden fry, thats salty and crisp and creamy on the inside.
Do you have a shape preference?
These are good questions!
Oh, I love that.
You said you love a tuna melt.
Do you have a favorite sandwich that you make at home?
Well, BLT season just ended.
At home I eat a lot of turkey sandwiches.
At the grocery store near my house they serve roasted turkey which is so good.
Hummus is a good one.
I believe in a lot of mayonnaise on a sandwich.
I like mayonnaise and hummus, as a combo.
I love a pickle.
And I love crunchy things.
Or any herbs, but cilantro is my favorite.
For me, as a cook, fresh herbs are a thing that bring life to food.
Its just a way to make it a little bit nicer.
It was just the taste of my childhood.
[Yotam] Ottolenghi had a recipe in his book for pasta with yogurt.
So I was like, oh my God, amazing.
I would choose limes for my acid, I think I would just choose saltlike a Maldon salt.
And I think I would just choose olive oil, but thats a really hard one.
But Ive given myself that same task before so I was prepared.
Going back to the salt: how many types of salt do you have in your kitchen?
I have Maldon saltsix.
I have a beautiful pink salt that I bought in Australiaeight.
Oh darn, you know what?
A butcher friend gave me onenine.
I bought both kinds [from the show] in Japanso thats eleven.
A lot of them have overflowed into the living room because my kitchens small.
I only really regularly use the Diamond Crystal, and one of flake salts.
And then when I test recipes the sea salt.
So, I really only keep around, on the counter or on the shelf, three.
Do you have a go-to sad meal?
One of the things I always buy at the grocery store is sweet potatoes.
Can we see inside your fridge?
Shifting slightly, whats your knife situation like?
I do have a pretty awesome knife situation.
I have a beautiful magnetic wooden strip on my wall.
I give away a lot.
My favorite one I got for six dollars at a thrift store.
Its a huge, carbon steel, big, big chefs knife.
Ive always wanted to try and get the handle refinished.
But I dont think you need fancy knives to cook well.
In terms of gadgets, there are food processors, blenders and then immersion blenders.
Do you have a favorite?
But I never ever took it out.
So I googled up the wazoo.
I boughtthis one from Breville, and its not a cheap oneI think its about a hundred bucks.
On that note: do you have any small kitchen tips?
Well, what Ive done is create as much surface as I can while cooking.
I bought a Costcoand Im sure you could get it on Amazon toojust like a stainless steel table.
So I took away that eating space and turned it into work space.
Who else would you like to see answer these questions?
This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
