Samin Nosrat's Biggest Fan

"At home, Nosrat prepares a bean and roasted vegetable salad with her illustrator and friend Wendy MacNaughton, who did the illustrations for the book version of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat. Later, Nosrat invites her mother Shahla Nosrat to her house to help discuss the process of steaming and frying through the making of tahdig — a Persian rice dish that features a crunchy brown crust."

"Nosrat then visits the Berkeley Bowl West grocery store where she and the butcher discuss the role that fat content plays in building flavor for meat dishes."

"Nosrat’s lesson in soy sauce comes from Yasuo Yamamoto, proprietor of Yamaroku Shoyu, where the traditional version is made."

"Nosrat and Yuri procure the fish from the Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo."

"If olive oil is Italy’s greatest fat, parmesan may be a close second. Nosrat takes in the cheese-making process at an artisanal factory and concludes her tour with a tasting of rounds that have been aged for 24, 36, and 40 months. A first taste of the youngest cheese literally brings tears to her eyes, and the flavors only get more powerful from there. Cheese-makers Mauro Montipo and Tania Barbieri, of the Consorzio Vacche Rosse, explain why parmesan made from the milk of rare red cows is so special."

"Nosrat opens the episode in an unnamed salt shop, going through a tasting with a clerk. She learns the finer the salt, the more immediate punch of saltiness on her tongue. She then travels to Kami-kamagari island with her chef friend, Yuri, and learns how sea salt is made at the Moshio Salt Factory."

"At Chez Panisse, Nosrat learns the nuances of chef Amy Dencler’s use of open flame grilling. Dencler creates several “heat zones” in the fire by moving around different temperatures of coals so that things like steaks cook evenly on the grill."

"Lorenzo Chini, a Tuscan butcher who can traces his family’s business in the meat business to the 1600s, transforms a whole pig into a selection of salumi at his shop Macelleria Chini."

"On Shodo island, the host visits with food writer Nancy Singleton Hachisu and learns the art of miso from a woman named Kazumi, who is declared to be a “miso master.” Near the end of the episode, Nosrat, Hachisu, and Yuri prepare a meal in Hachisu’s home. They make boiled eggs seasoned with miso, tai meshi, a soup comprised of the Japanese tai fish, dashi, and rice."

"Nosrat learns how to make focaccia in the traditional way of Liguria, Italy, which means the bread must never be more than about two inches tall when it comes out of the oven. The dough is slathered in olive oil, which imparts a fruity flavor, a good crumb, and a crunchy crust. That’s followed by a tutorial in pesto, which uses fats from pine nuts, parmesan cheese, and olive oil, to form a sauce."