Cooking Issues with Dave Arnold

NTT: If Waffles Could Fight Pancakes 30.05.2026 1t

Dave is joined by Joe, Quinn, and Jackie Molecules for a stripped-down crew episode covering a lot of ground: severe dust mite allergies, coin-selling in the Diamond District, homemade rotaps, and the musical qualities of real silver. Dave recaps Nick Wong and Sam Yoo’s Golden Diner pop-up, including cheeseburger fried rice, scallion waffles, and the eternal question of whether a waffle could beat a pancake in a fight. Plus: Quinn experiments with a frico Oklahoma smash burger and jam-based semifreddo, the crew debates Blizzards, Carvel cakes, Burger King fries, hot dog preferences, low-temp eggs for service, polydextrose in cocktails, oil-blanched fries, and homemade boquerones. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nick Wong 23.05.2026 1t 1min

Chef Nick Wong joins Dave in studio to talk Agnes & Sherman, his Houston restaurant named for his parents and built around personal, deeply considered food. They revisit Nick’s FCI days with Dave, from throwing hatchets and pushing kitchen equipment through the city to hot dog contests, meat glue demos, and the value of doing what you said you’d do. Plus, Angela Garbacz calls in, Dave answers a Spinzall question, and Nick breaks down scallion waffles, cheeseburger fried rice, crispy shell-on shrimp, salt-and-pepper fries, and Eng Soo’s Chicken. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Broth and Beyond with Marco Canora 19.05.2026 1t

Marco Canora joins the show to talk Brodo, bone broth, and what everyone gets wrong about stock, from marrow-bone misconceptions to the commercial realities of packaging broth at scale. Dave and Marco get into spent hens, fish fumet, lobster shells, blanching greens, cocktail dilution, juice-shake techniques, and why a little acid can save a pizza sauce. Plus: mason jar vacuuming, weevil management, fava bean grievances, striped bass butchery, gummy-bear wellness, and the eternal difference between “interesting” and actually good. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Let's Get Sauced: Tim McKirdy and Sother Teague 13.05.2026 1t 1min

Dave is joined by Sother Teague and Tim McKirdy of Sauced to talk cooking with booze, drinking with food, and what separates a good carbonnade from Belgian slander. Before that: John returns to fine dining, Nastassia survives Spirit Airlines, Jack hits the Austin wedding shot wheel, Quinn breaks in a new wok, and Dave recreates 1870s kaiser rolls from a Vienna Exhibition report.Plus: polished cast iron, mushy peas, Irn-Bru, Buckfast, fish and chips, Guinness on a Lukr faucet, forbidden Jarts, Shrinky Dinks, fry oil management, and why carbonnade should be thickened with mustard-slathered bread. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

No Tangent Tuesday: The Last Half-Inch of Banana Bread 02.05.2026 59min

Dave and the crew are back from hiatus and catching up on everything from luxury party snacks and properly aged gummy bears to bitter lion’s mane mysteries, banana ripening, homemade tofu, chicken consommé, and the eternal problem of the soggy bottom half-inch of banana bread. Plus, on-off steak cooking, peanut butter whiskey, milk punch theory, and a ruling on whether shabu-sliced beef smashed into a bun counts as a burger. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

George Motz's Hamburger America 14.04.2026 1t 5min

Dave and the gang warm up with a packed week-in-review before George Motz drops by to talk burgers, burger history, and the newly revised Hamburger America. George talks about opening Hamburger America, preserving regional burger traditions, the challenge of recreating historic burgers accurately, and what it means to document 220 of the country’s most essential hamburger spots. A wide-ranging burger conversation with one of the form’s great evangelists. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Belated Birthday Tangents 07.04.2026 1t

Dave and the crew cover a lot of ground this week, starting with geography confusion, regional slander etiquette, Jack’s post-New York cough, and a surprisingly heated discussion about whether former residents still have the right to talk trash about New Jersey. From there, the show dives into language drift, emoji fatigue, Bananagrams rage, and the ongoing battle between “less” and “fewer,” before pivoting into ramen noodles, heirloom wheat, kansui levels, nixtamalization, and the question of how alkaline is too alkaline.Later, Dave gives a birthday recap defined less by celebration than by windshield replacement, flour sifting, and side-by-side extraction tests for bread baking. Nastassia reports back from an Elizabeth Falkner pop-up at Mozza, Jack checks in after taking Dr. Jessica Harris to Mŏkbar, and John gears up for Easter with spiral ham, biscuits, mac and cheese, and Eggs Benedict, prompting a full breakdown of ham reheating strategy, biscuit technique, and poached egg logistics.In the listener questions, the team gets into frozen drink machine formulation, including ABV, sugar, acid, xanthan, methylcellulose, and polydextrose; preserving strawberry color during maceration; fixing uneven crème brûlée crusts; pasta dough silkiness, hydration, and yolk substitution; and pistachio sorbet ratios, nutritional databases, and the danger of bad pistachios. The episode closes with upcoming guest announcements and a grilling troubleshooting question that turns into a reminder that when Dave says high heat, he means truly absurd heat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Apocalypse Plans: OG Cooking Issues Crew 07.04.2026 1t

The OG Cooking Issues crew are all in studio for the first time in ages ! Find out whether the BDX cocktail cube can handle shaken drinks, and why Dave’s new hood is somehow both excellent and maddening. There’s also an extended detour into apocalypse escape plans, emergency Zodiac boats, and why New York remains a terrible place to survive the end times.Plus: Quinn reports back from yet another emu egg experiment—this time in the form of Spanish tortilla—prompting discussions of balut, giant deviled eggs, bird brains, and the general menace of cassowaries. Rounding things out are questions on pre-gelatinized starches, whether anyone should still be eating brains, what on earth to do with butter-flavored popcorn oil, how to break into bar prep work, and whether popcorn can be popped directly onto a decorative wire tree. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello, Home Cooking with Ham El-Waylly 22.03.2026 1t 1min

This week, Dave is joined by writer and chef Ham El-Waylly to talk about his new book, Hello, Home Cooking, out March 24. The conversation bounces from book-tour fatigue and the strange rituals of cookbook promotion to Ham’s childhood in Qatar, censored video game magazines, and the eternal question of how much pronunciation flexing is too much.From there: Brazilian hot dog parties, frozen pearl onions, pickled quail eggs, tostones technique, mashed potatoes cooked directly in milk, breakfast sausage without sage, tea as broth, and why sweet potato fries are still on thin ice. Ham also gets into the real mission of the book—helping people cook food that is actually achievable on a weeknight, without pretending every meal needs to be the greatest thing ever made. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

India Doris on Haggis, Highland Cows, and Opening Your First Restaurant 15.03.2026 1t 1min

On this episode of Cooking Issues, Dave and the crew are joined in-studio by chef India Doris for a wide-ranging conversation on cooking across London, France, Spain, Scotland, and New York, learning to break down whole animals in a butcher shop, the realities of restaurant labor in the UK versus the U.S., and what it actually takes to open your first place. Along the way: haggis, black pudding, game birds, owner mentality, kitchen culture, staffing philosophy, and the financial tightrope of building a restaurant from scratch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Paul Carmichael & Dennis Ngo 12.03.2026 1t

Dave is back with a full crew (John, Nastassia, Quinn, and Jack) plus two guests with deep Momofuku roots: chef Paul Carmichael of Kabawa and Dennis Ngo of Di An Di. The conversation ranges from New York ingredient sourcing and Caribbean flavors to the mechanics of great bread and better sandwiches—banh mi rolls vs. po’boy loaves, what makes a steak sandwich fail, and why mayo choices matter more than people admit.Quinn reports on cooking with emu eggs (carbonara, omelets, and what their texture suggests for custards and pasta), while Dave goes deep on soursop, why purées don’t compare to fresh fruit, and the necessity of having “a guy” for the good stuff. Dennis talks pho fundamentals—older stewing hens, keeping stock clean, holding aromatics late, and the unglamorous truth of moisture management (“squeeze that meat”). Paul breaks down laminated patties as a Haitian/Jamaican hybrid (dough technique vs. filling focus), plus WD-50-era lessons on why recipes are only guides without reps. Also: LA danger dogs, a surprisingly serious Disney-adjacent meal at Napa Rose, and a parting hot dog tip for NYC. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

C-Y Chia and Shane Stanbridge of Lion Dance Cafe 03.03.2026 1t 2min

C-Y Chia and Shane Stanbridge of Lion Dance Cafe join Dave to break down the philosophy behind their self-published cookbook—and why they closed the restaurant after four years. They discuss designing a cuisine around systems (shallot oil, chili oils, dredges, staple sauces), building menus from repeatable flavor frameworks, and writing recipes that actually teach how they think.Highlights include: vegan banana cake and Southeast Asian dessert structure; almond-sesame-shallot “ASS” cookies and sweet-savory crossover; soy-milk mayo science and high-acid balance; frying tofu nuggets with freeze-thaw texture engineering; gluten-free dredges for better crunch; Spanish peanuts vs. Virginia; brining corn before grilling; and the one vegan fish sauce that actually works. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dark Roux on Induction, Rotisserie Heat Logic, and the Science of Better Shrimp 20.02.2026 1t 1min

The crew dives into practical cooking technique: why some induction burners struggle to push a roux dark (and how throttling, pan material, and heat management affect the result), followed by a broader discussion of “high instantaneous heat, low average heat” cooking—rotisserie logic, off-and-on grilling, and moisture control strategies that build crust without overcooking. Dave also revisits shrimp quality—why wild Gulf shrimp taste dramatically better than commodity farmed blocks—and shares recent kitchen experiments, including Austrian scarlet runner beans with pumpkin seed oil and beta-carotene “Golden Fluff-O” biscuit trials. Along the way: New Orleans food notes, po’boy bread realities, and the usual rapid-fire equipment and technique tangents. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alex Stupak: Tacos, Technique and Beyond 14.02.2026 1t

Dave Arnold is joined in-studio by chef Alex Stupak to talk tacos (including the evolution of his “cheeseburger taco”), Substack-era dessert thinking, and why some techniques (and tastes) don’t hit the same a decade later. The crew detours into gumbo viscosity and the eternal question of whether s’mores should be toasted or fully incinerated. Along the way: freezing clams to open them, Manhattan clam chowder ethics, American cheese brand loyalty, film-forming gels, and what the modernist cooking wave looks like in hindsight—plus why “simple” food is dominating menus right now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

No Tangent Tuesday: Unnecessary Flourish 01.02.2026 1t 1min

Dave kicks off another anything-goes Tangent Tuesday with a stack of updates: upcoming guests Paul Carmichael and Dennis (with Momofuku/Kabo context) and a correction on the “German” drop-off that turns out to be Austrian—complete with scarlet runner beans and pumpkin seed oil for the canonical salad. From there it’s pure free-association cooking brain: the French galette des rois vs. other king-cake traditions, why grill marks are mostly a bad signal (and grill pans are worse), and Dave’s long-running dream of a bar “piñata service” that doesn’t involve handing drunk people a bat—now migrating toward a spring-loaded destruction machine. Quinn talks baguette iteration (including gelatin experiments), Dave dives deep on vintage Crisco lore and beta-carotene fry-color hacks, and the crew detours through oddball old cookbooks, “Japanese fruit cake” naming insanity, and a near-electrocution tale from rewiring a century-old Hamilton Beach mixer. The back half hits listener Q&A: milling/sifting guidance, lacto-ferment oxygen management, and circulator recommendations (with a pragmatic “watts + insulation matter more than marketing” take). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Biscuits, Bouillon and Beyond 24.01.2026 1t 1min

This week is a rapid-fire run of Cooking Issues staples: why most store carrots are trash (and why frozen veg is usually the correct move for pot pie), biscuit technique tweaks (including grating frozen butter), and a pie-crust method that splits the fat for a “medium” flake. From there it’s gear-and-systems nerdery: a Seattle Ultrasonics knife test, pro home-kitchen “hacks” (deli containers, tape/Sharpie, restaurant-supply pans, freezing bases), and a long, detailed breakdown of home carbonation—carbonators, cold plates vs. chillers, line materials, compensator taps, and why soda guns lose CO₂. The back half hits listener questions on Soxhlet extraction, nitro vs. nitrous, red-hot poker construction, oat-milk eggnog separation, and a precise carbonated French 75 base spec to close. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

No Tangent Tuesday: Full Boat 17.01.2026 1t 1min

The crew checks in live from Rockefeller Center and quickly veers from Patreon housekeeping into Polymarket absurdities, restaurant closures, and the grim mechanics of auctioning off a closed kitchen. Jean details liquidating equipment (including a Rationale), while Dave unloads on bureaucracy, safety grounds left floating inside a brand-new Bosch oven, and the theoretical physics of jacking oven temps via PT1000 resistance sensors—plus reversible home steam-injection hacks that don’t involve drilling holes.Quinn talks risotto-style oats and fresh milling, and Dave breaks down grain texture, grinder damage myths, and why oats are mushy compared to rice. Listener questions round things out with astringency in drinks beyond tannins (bitters, resins, aromatics), blood-sausage preferences across styles, and how phosphoric acid can anchor a cola-like, carbonated amaro build. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

No Tangent Tuesday: Business Excuse 10.01.2026 1t

Cooking Issues opens the new year with Dave and Joe in-studio, plus Nastassia and Jack in LA and Quinn on Vancouver Island. Dave recaps a rough holiday detour: adopting a young cat that immediately got seriously sick, turning New Year’s into emergency vet care and force-feeding. Jack reports from a cross-country drive to clear out storage, including a stop at Richmond’s Gwar Bar, inspiring instant talk of a future show takeover. Dave also offers Patreon listeners first dibs on hauling away a free six-burner Wolf commercial gas range from the Lower East Side.The crew swaps holiday cooking notes (Quinn’s turkey biryani, a red wine pork stew), then veers into gear and technique: Dave experiments with Ray-Ban Meta glasses for POV kitchen content, discusses his new Bosch oven and stone/pizza setup logic, and takes a caller question on keeping orange oil in syrup—recommending gum arabic plus xanthan while explaining why “clear” emulsions are hard. Quick hits include a shout-out to Alba in LA, a party etiquette rant about grabbing a legend’s guitar, and Dave’s non-alcoholic bitterness hacks for diet soda (wormwood/gentian infusions). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rome: A Culinary History with Katie Parla 28.12.2025 1t

Katie Parla returns to talk about her new book Rome: A Culinary History Cookbook, including why she self-publishes, how she actually gets the writing done, and what it takes to shoot a full cookbook fast. Then it’s a deep Rome run: porchetta quality (and why most is mediocre), pajata, Roman pizza styles, and how “traditional” rules like guanciale-onlyand no cheese with seafood are more complicated than people claim. Plus: the practical cacio e pepe fix (cold-start paste), why bucatini is a problem, and a few Roman myths that don’t survive the paperwork. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kevin Jeung on Noma’s LA Pop-Up and New Ingredients 28.12.2025 1t

Kevin Jeung (Noma / Noma Projects) calls in from LA to talk about Noma’s upcoming Los Angeles pop-up and what it changes when you suddenly have citrus, avocados, and California seasonality on the table. Kevin walks through how the team is doing early-stage R&D—ingredient exploration, fermentation setup, and testing techniques for hard problems like cactus slime and variable produce.Dave detours into Denmark: Christmas market roast pork sandwiches, crackling technique, and what cut the Danes actually use (loin vs belly vs skin-on neck). They also get into Noma Projects curiosities like peach tree sap (rehydrated for a tendon-like chew), plus a few practical bar/kitchen notes: a clarified spec for the Brandy Savage cranberry cordial build, and a quick take on stabilizing acidic whipped cream (gel/fluid-gel approach vs citric acid straight into dairy). Closing beat: Kevin’s Turkey method for the Noma team—compound butter under the skin, and mayo outside for browning/crisping. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.