The Dinner Plan

Olivia Tiedemann will be the first to tell you that working as a private chef isn't easy. You've gotta know what each guest likes and doesn't like, all the dietary restrictions, "who doesn't eat anchovies, who doesn't eat onions, who doesn't eat dairy. And there's 12 of them, and they're all there at one time," Olivia says. "How am I going to contort this same entree seven different ways?" But ultimately, she loves cooking for her clients, and shares everything she's learned in her new cookbook, Eat (Like) The Rich. In this episode of The Dinner Plan, Olivia talks with host Maggie Hoffman about what really matters in a great meal. Expensive lobster and steak is nice, but the difference all comes down to cooking technique. She walks us through a few favorite dinner recipes from the cookbook, the right way to sear a piece of fish, the way she thinks about creating a new dish for a dinner party, and reveals the popular ingredient she actually hates.

🍳 ENTER THE GIVEAWAY and get Olivia Tiedemann's Parsnip Gnocchi recipe on TheDinnerPlan.Substack.com 🍳

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Made In Cookware: Visit madein.cc/dinnerplan to unlock your discount offer.
Une Femme Wines: Use code DINNERPLAN at unefemmewines.com for 20% off. Must be 21+

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You may know Pati Jinich from her long-running series, Pati’s Mexican Table, or her previous cookbooks, but this fall you’ll be seeing a lot more of her, including her new docuseries, Panamericana, and her new cookbook, Foods of La Frontera. In this episode of The Dinner Plan, Pati chats with host Maggie Hoffman about the surprising dishes she tried while traveling along the Mexican-American border, and the way her time on the road has changed how she cooks at home. Pati shares favorite Mexican recipes from a wide range of border regions: lobster burritos, vegetarian pozole, surprising salsas, and easy tacos recipes you’ll want to cook this week.
🌶️ ENTER THE GIVEAWAY and Get Pati Jinich's chipotle chicken taco recipe on TheDinnerPlan.Substack.com 🌶️
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Made In Cookware: Visit madein.cc/dinnerplan to unlock your discount offer.
Listen to Food Friends on Apple podcasts or any podcast listening app.

More Mexican cooking episodes you might like:

Rick Martinez’s new salsa book will transform your weeknight cooking
Claudette Zepeda’s Secret Ingredients for Bigger, Bolder Flavor
Crispy Zucchini Tacos With Andrea Aliseda
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When Carla Lalli separated from her ex and moved part-time into a sublet after decades of marriage, the first thing she did was make dinner. “I cooked because it gives me a sense of comfort,” Carla says in this week’s episode of The Dinner Plan. “It makes me feel like I’m in power, and it’s soothing, and it is a way to shut off other noise.” Carla shares the meals she made as she got in touch with her own cravings again and what freedom and flexibility she found cooking for one or cooking for two instead of four, and also gets into what she thinks a cookbook written by a human can offer in the age of AI. Carla’s new cookbook, Food Is a Feeling, is the rare cookbook that doesn’t start from the assumption that “every day is happy and perfect.” Instead, she says, “actually sometimes it's a really bad day, and that the best thing in your day might be this great thing that you make for dinner.”

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Get Carla's cookbook recommendations
+ the recipe for Carla's Chovy-Forward Fazool on our newsletter: TheDinnerPlan.Substack.com

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Check out this week's sponsors:

Straus Family Creamery: Find Straus organic ice cream at Whole Foods nationwide or at strausfamilycreamery.com.
Michele's Granola: Use code DINNERPLAN15 for 15% off your order at MichelesGranola.com
Row 7: Get 10% off Row 7’s chef-prepared tinned vegetables using code DINNERPLAN10 at Row7Seeds.com
Made In Cookware: Visit madein.cc/dinnerplan to unlock your discount offer.
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The high-protein vegetarian recipes in Grace Elkus's new cookbook, Protein-Packed Vegetarian, are exactly the kind of dinners I crave, packed with flavor and easy to make, even on a busy weeknight. In this episode of The Dinner Plan, I talk to Grace about her must-have kitchen gear, how to cook tofu so it actually gets crispy, and what to do if you just haven't come around to the idea of cottage cheese. I've been making the easy dinners from Grace's book over and over already, and I think you'll love them too.

Get Grace's recipes for sheet-pan veggie parm and unstuffed eggplant parmesan shells on our newsletter at TheDinnerPlan.Substack.com
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MaraBela: Find Marabela Alcohol-Free Sparkling Tea at MaraBelaTea.com
Trimona Yogurt: Find Trimona's A2A2 Bulgarian-style yogurt at TrimonaFoods.com and stores near you.
Michele's Granola: Use code DINNERPLAN15 for 15% off your order at MichelesGranola.com
Dirty Labs: Use code THEDINNERPLAN to get 15% off your first order at DirtyLabs.com.
Made In Cookware: Visit madein.cc/dinnerplan to unlock your discount offer.
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I've been looking forward to chef Pim Techamuanvivit's Thai cookbook for years. It's an essential guide to cooking Thai food, including fresh curry pastes, grilled dishes, curries, soups, and laab. In this episode of The Dinner Plan, I talk to Pim about how she learned all the Thai recipes she'd missed from home, why it matters that you seek out Thai ingredients to cook these recipes, and everything she'd put on a September dinner party menu, whether the guests eat meat or are vegetarian. You'll hear about Pim's favorite cookbooks and her advice for dealing with cooking burnout, too.

Get Pim's recipe for Kin Khao's chicken wings on TheDinnerPlan.Substack.com.
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Check out this week's sponsors:

Thaan Charcoal: Get a free starter kit including Thai-style charcoal, fan, and fire starters with the Thaan Grill when you use code DINNERPLAN at thaancharcoal.com/dinnerplan
Listen to Food Friends on Apple podcasts or any podcast listening app.
Made In Cookware: Visit madein.cc/dinnerplan to unlock your discount offer.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.