Gourmet's Diary of a Foodie (2008)

Travel to India and Vietnam and learn how the sophisticated cooking traditions and exotic spices of these countries make their regional cuisines so complex. In Hyderabad, India, discover the intricate process of cooking mutton biryani. Then journey to Vietnam and learn the art of making chao, the country’s pungent version of pickled tofu. In the Gourmet test kitchen, editor in chief Ruth Reichl shares a quick recipe for Indian chicken vindaloo, and food editor Ian Knauer explains how to layer flavors to create a Vietnamese chicken and pineapple soup.

Travel across the world to meet a diverse group of artisans committed to keeping ancient food traditions alive. In a private kitchen just outside Hong Kong, a chef draws upon old village recipes to secretly prepare dishes for a dining room of just eight people. In Chile, a woman has dedicated her life to preserving Chile’s unmatched tuber diversity. Along southern India, local men enjoy a naturally fermented coconut liquor that stays drinkable for just 24 hours. Back in the Gourmet test kitchen, executive editor John Willoughby makes a pork stew that builds flavors with a variety of Latin roots.

Experience the unique culture and customs of the Mexican state of Oaxaca, a region that offers dramatic beauty, an ancient heritage, and some of Mexico’s best food. Back in the Gourmet test kitchen, executive food editor Kemp Minifie shares a rich and tangy recipe for beef in a spicy tomatillo sauce, adapted from a dish she discovered during a trip to Oaxaca.

Discover the many ways in which chefs and farmers around the world are shrinking the distance between farm and table. Back in the Gourmet test kitchen, executive food editor Kemp Minifie shares a resourceful pasta recipe featuring an ingredient many throw away—beet greens.

In Korea, food doesn’t simply influence culture; it defines it. Korea’s food remains tied to a venerable past with cooking techniques that reflect its royal dynasties and home kitchens. Watch a certified royal-cuisine chef exercise precision and patience to create kimchi, a fermented-vegetable dish. Discover authentic North Korean recipes, part of a disappearing cuisine largely unknown to the outside world. And in the Gourmet test kitchen, editor in chief Ruth Reichl shares a simple yet flavorful recipe for warm tofu with spicy sauce.

With its rich volcanic soils, clean air, and pristine waters, the island of Tasmania, off the southeast coast of Australia, is quickly becoming a food utopia. Visit Tasmania’s first Wagyu beef ranch, where cattle roam lush seaside pastures to produce some of the world’s highest-quality beef. Meet a truffle expert who took a gamble on Tasmania’s climate and won when he became the only person in the past century to grow truffles in Australia. Then head out to a smokehouse located in an organic apple orchard. Back in the Gourmet test kitchen, food editor Paul Grimes prepares a recipe for Mediterranean Lamb Salad, a dish made from an interesting cut of meat he discovered in Tasmania.

Travel to Istanbul, an ancient Turkish city that weaves its way through the Byzantine, Roman, and Ottoman empires. During the holy month of Ramadan, locals fast from sunrise to sunset. Join a food author for the Iftar meal, the traditional feast when the fast is broken. Discover the beauty of güllaç, a multilayered dessert studded with pistachios and pomegranates. In the Gourmet test kitchen, executive editor John “Doc” Willoughby prepares spicy grilled köfte, a Turkish street-food favorite.

Around the world, chefs and farmers are using their culinary talents to do more than just nourish. They’re helping reshape society. In a small town in upstate Vermont, meet four men who have created a sustainable food infrastructure. Cross the globe to Hanoi, Vietnam and visit a center that gives street kids the skills they need to work in the restaurant industry. High above Oaxaca, Mexico, the native people of a village play unique roles in their agricultural system. And in the Gourmet test kitchen, editor in chief Ruth Reichl turns grilled cheese sandwiches from ordinary to extraordinary with locally sourced ingredients.

Tuscany abounds with pride and passion for local ingredients. Meet the area’s masters of cucina rustica, who explain why the simplest dishes can be the most delicious. A baker reveals the secrets of saltless bread, the foundation of every Tuscan meal. In Florence, grab lunch at a street cart that keeps the city’s 700-year-old obsession with tripe alive. Head to the sea with a fisherman who grills his catch right off the side of his boat. Then share the primal experience of cooking steak over live fire with the most famous butcher in Tuscany.

Discover the many ways in which chile peppers have set the global palate on fire. In Oaxaca, family and friends come together to make Mexico’s most patriotic dish—Chiles en Nogada. Join John “Doc” Willoughby, executive editor of Gourmet magazine, in Şanliurfa, Turkey, as he researches a story on Urfa and Maraş peppers. In Lenhartsville, Pennsylvania, meet an obsessive farmer who harvests over 100 different kinds of chiles. In the Gourmet test kitchen, Ian Knauer uses serrano chiles to make an Indian shrimp curry that mixes heat with a harmony of spices.

In and around Montreal, the great outdoors plays a major role in inspiring the unique local flavor. Just 40 minutes outside the city, the collaboration between a chef and a forager results in an elegant restaurant menu. Meet a fourth-generation apple farmer who mixes the Old World and the New by producing cider using the méthode champenoise. Back in the city, tour the biggest indoor market in Canada. In the garden behind Joe Beef, chef Fred Morin shows how his fearless approach to experimentation defines his restaurant’s quirky comfort food. In the Gourmet test kitchen, food editor Paul Grimes uses Canadian maple syrup to prepare a delicious whole chicken in a pan.

Travel to the southernmost part of Spain—Andalucía, the land of flamenco and bullfighting. Visit the home of a family of flamenco musicians as they prepare classic Gypsy dishes. Meet a local farmer who is committed to producing jamón ibérico in the time-consuming traditional way because he considers its unique flavor a miracle. Learn the history of gazpacho, one of Andalucía’s most well-known delicacies and meet a chef who puts an avant-garde twist on the chilled soup. And in the Gourmet test kitchen, editor in chief Ruth Reichl shares a quick and easy way to make paella at home.