One of the miracles of the digital age is the ease with which people can produce podcasts. There’s an immediacy and informality in many of them that appeal to me. I listen to a range of podcasts (mostly food, agriculture and science related). I also love that podcasts are providing an opportunity for me to “listen” to some of my favorite writers. Here are a few podcasts you might enjoy…
New on the Scene: The Level Teaspoon
T. Susan Chang is a nationally known food writer and commentator who focuses on reviewing cookbooks. Her work regularly appears in the Boston Globe, on NPR and other major news outlets. She’s also a regular contributor to NPR’s Kitchen Window series. She’s the author of one of the best memoirs I’ve ever read, A Spoonful of Promises: Stories and Recipes from a Well-Tempered Table. Chang has recently launched a weekly “all-cookbooks all-the-time podcast”…The Level Teaspoon. And I’m all ears.
I love cookbooks but they overwhelm me. Each week Chang looks at some of the latest cookbook releases. An accomplished cook, she tests a couple of the recipes with a guest (a friend who likes to cook.) You can find the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher and Google Play. Be sure to follow Susan’s blog for the best of the written word, as well.
This is an incredibly smart, lively and fun podcast. Phenomenal sound effects, too! You’ll be hooked.
Showing the Full Range of the Food System: Farm to Table Talk
Rodger Wasson is a veteran in food and agriculture. He’s from a farming family and has worked in various ag-related enterprises. He launched the Farm to Table Talk podcast a little under a year ago. His goal? To share his philosophy that “…good farming like good food comes in all shapes and sizes.”
The range of individuals Wasson has interviewed is impressive (as is the range of interests they represent, from rural to urban, organic to conventional, experienced and new farmers, etc.) On this podcast you’ll “meet” people whose work you may already know (such as Russ Parsons, former LA Times food writer.) But you’ll also meet people you’d like to know better, including new farmer Ruthie King.
Thought Provoking: The Secret Ingredient
The food system is complex and impacts every aspect of our lives. This podcast reflects that truth, taking listeners from local to global issues in the course of a single episode. Bonus: history lessons.
Academic/journalist/activist/writer Raj Patel partners with journalist Tom Philpott (Mother Jones) and Rebecca McInroy to produce The Secret Ingredient. The Secret Ingredient places food within its larger context. It tackles critical and difficult issues (ex: nationalism, hunger, incarceration, justice) through conversations with leaders in the food movement. The team has interviewed people I greatly admire, including Gary Nabhan, Valerie Segrest, Jan Poppendieck, Marion Nestle and Fred Bahnson.
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Have a great day.