Podcast
Freakonomics Radio
Stephen Dubner highlighted the book as a massive, award‑winning cookbook that brought scientific rigor to everyday cooking. He noted its near‑thousand‑page length and how it challenged outdated culinary conventions, showing readers how to improve classic recipes with science. The discussion conveyed strong enthusiasm for the title.
Episode: Why You Shouldn’t Open a Restaurant (Update)
Kenji Lopez-Alt's first cookbook was a massive undertaking that was eventually awarded a James Beard Award, reflecting his growing reputation and influence.
He just published his first cookbook, a massive thing called The Food Lab, which went on to win a James Beard Award.
Episode: 347. Why You Shouldn’t Open a Restaurant
Kenji Lopez-Alt's first cookbook, a massive volume, was published and later won a James Beard Award, highlighting his ability to make science accessible in cooking.
He just published his first cookbook, a massive thing called The Food Lab, which went on to win a James Beard Award.
Episode: Food + Science = Victory! (Rebroadcast)
It was described as a large book, nearly 1000 pages, that explored cooking through the lens of science, and was a departure from his family background of scientists.
So J. Kenji Lopez-Alt has published a big, beautiful doorstop of a book. It's almost a thousand pages. It's pretty big. It's called The Food Lab, Better Home Cooking Through Science.
But as Lopez-Alt writes in The Food Lab, I discovered that in many cases, even in the best restaurants in the world, the methods that traditional cooking knowledge teaches us are not only outdated, but occasionally flat out wrong.
Episode: 226. Food + Science = Victory!
It was described as a large, detailed book that explored the science of cooking, particularly explaining how to apply the scientific method to everyday recipes and how to improve common cooking methods.
So J. Kenji Lopez Alt has just published a big, beautiful doorstop of a book. It's almost a thousand pages. It's pretty big. It's called The Food Lab, Better Home Cooking Through Science.
But as Lopez all writes in The Food Lab, I discovered that in many cases, even in the best restaurants in the world, the methods that traditional cooking knowledge teaches us are not only outdated, but occasionally flat out wrong.
a lot of the recipes in the food lab nod toward those 70s staples but are improved upon through science.
