What Kids Can Learn In The Kitchen

Summary

Podcast Summary: All Of It – "What Kids Can Learn In The Kitchen"

Episode Overview

In the December 31, 2024 episode of WNYC's All Of It, host Alison Stewart delves into the enriching world of cooking with children. Titled "What Kids Can Learn In The Kitchen," the episode features a compelling conversation with Priya Krishna, a renowned New York Times food reporter and the author of the acclaimed cookbook Priya's Kitchen Adventures. The discussion navigates through Priya's personal culinary journey, the significance of cooking as a familial bonding activity, and her insights on creating accessible and empowering recipes for young chefs.

---

Guest Introduction: Priya Krishna

Alison Stewart introduces Priya Krishna, highlighting her status as a prominent figure in the culinary world. Priya is celebrated for her role as a food reporter for the New York Times and her bestselling cookbook, Indian Ish. Her latest work, Priya's Kitchen Adventures, aims to inspire young cooks by offering a diverse array of international recipes tailored for children.

"[Priya's] new cookbook, Priya's Kitchen Adventures, teaches how to cook international cuisine. She offers recipes from Greece, Mexico, Japan, China, all the countries that she traveled to as a kid." — Alison Stewart [01:12]

---

Shaping Culinary Passion Through Childhood Travels

Priya shares anecdotes from her childhood, marked by frequent travels due to her mother's career in the airline industry. These experiences exposed her to a multitude of cultures and cuisines, igniting her lifelong passion for food.

"Food was always, for me as a kid, such an easy way into the culture. I just fell in love with certain dishes... It was so hugely influential where I am now." — Priya Krishna [03:13]

---

Cooking as a Bonding Activity with Her Mother

Despite a complex relationship with her mother, Priya found common ground in the kitchen. Cooking together served as a neutral and comforting space where they could connect without the pressures of cultural and generational differences.

"Every night I would do my math homework sitting on the kitchen island while she cooked... It was a neutral zone. It was really crucial for our relationship." — Priya Krishna [04:24]

"Food, cooking, being in the kitchen together can be a way for a lot of people to find connection with someone in a way that they might not otherwise be able to." — Priya Krishna [05:41]

---

Creating Empowering and Accessible Recipes for Kids

Priya discusses the philosophy behind Priya's Kitchen Adventures, emphasizing that recipes for children should not be simplistic but rather inclusive, empowering, and adaptable. She challenges the notion that kid-friendly recipes need to be "dumbed down," advocating for clear communication and manageable techniques that inspire confidence in young cooks.

"A kid recipe... is inclusive. It is empowering. It allows them to make choices along the way. And above all, it is doable and accessible, but it does not dumb things down." — Priya Krishna [10:02]

"Writing recipes for kids has made me a much better adult recipe developer... Everyone values clearer communication and more streamlined recipes." — Priya Krishna [10:02]

---

Highlights from "Priya's Kitchen Adventures": Japanese Cuisine Focus

Priya elaborates on the Japanese section of her cookbook, presenting recipes like onigiri, ramen, udon, and soba. She explains how these recipes are designed to be engaging and manageable for children, often integrating elements that make cooking feel like a craft project.

"When I was making that with kids, I loved how much they enjoyed shaping the rice into a triangle, wrapping the seaweed, decorating it with sesame seeds. It really does feel more like a craft project than cooking." — Priya Krishna [12:49]

---

Listener Interactions: Sharing Kid-Friendly Recipes

Throughout the episode, listeners contribute their own favorite recipes and cooking tips for children. For instance, Zoe from Brooklyn shares a refreshing ginger-lemon ice cube recipe that can add a creative twist to beverages.

"I have a recipe like, with like ice cubes, like ginger, lemon... It sounds so refreshing." — Zoe [15:14]

"That sounds so refreshing." — Priya Krishna [15:52]

---

Encouraging Young Chefs: Nurturing Culinary Interests

Priya offers valuable advice for parents looking to support their children's burgeoning interest in cooking. She emphasizes the importance of providing the right resources, such as specialized cookbooks, and encouraging exploration of diverse cuisines to foster an open and curious mindset.

"Start with the country that you're least familiar with the cuisine. Start with your least familiar and find a recipe that looks delicious to you... Maybe becomes one of your new favorites." — Priya Krishna [17:53]

"Some of your dishes are going to be the best thing you ever made. Some of them might need a little bit of zhuzhing... There's nothing more exciting than eating a dish for the first time." — Priya Krishna [18:28]

---

Conclusion: Embracing Culinary Adventures

The episode wraps up with Alison Stewart summarizing the key insights from Priya Krishna, emphasizing the transformative power of cooking in fostering creativity, cultural appreciation, and familial bonds among children.

"This was Tiffany Hansen's conversation with New York Times food reporter and cookbook author Priya Krishna... This is all of it." — Alison Stewart [19:05]

---

Final Thoughts

This episode of All Of It serves as an inspiring guide for families looking to integrate cooking into their routines. Through Priya Krishna's experiences and expertise, listeners gain a deeper understanding of how the kitchen can be a space for learning, connection, and cultural exploration for children.

---

Notable Quotes

• "Food was always, for me as a kid, such an easy way into the culture." — Priya Krishna [03:13]
• "Food, cooking, being in the kitchen together can be a way for a lot of people to find connection." — Priya Krishna [05:41]
• "A kid recipe... is inclusive. It is empowering." — Priya Krishna [10:02]
• "When I was making that with kids, I loved how much they enjoyed shaping the rice into a triangle." — Priya Krishna [12:49]
• "Nothing more exciting than eating a dish for the first time." — Priya Krishna [18:28]

---

This comprehensive summary encapsulates the essence of the All Of It episode, highlighting the meaningful discussions and practical advice shared by Priya Krishna on nurturing culinary interests in children.

Transcript

[Tiffany Hansen]

Listener support, WNYC Studios.

[Alison Stewart]

This is all of it. I'm Alison Stewart. It is New Year's Eve, and here on the show, we wanted to help you celebrate with some conversations about food, drink and merriment. And so much about the holidays is about family. The kids are home from school and maybe you're looking for some activities to keep everyone busy and happy. Bonus points if you can all be bonding together. And one of the best places to bond and maybe share some family traditions is in the kitchen. So now a conversation about cooking with kids. Before we get into it, I want to remind you that this is an all of it encore presentation. So even if you hear some calls from when it was first aired, we won't be able to take your calls today. This conversation was guest hosted by WNYC's Tiffany Hansen. So without any further ado, here's Tiffany.

[Tiffany Hansen]

If you're a foodie, you probably know who Priya Krishna is. In the culinary world, she's pretty much a household name. She's a food reporter for the New York Times. You may have seen her on their YouTube channel where she takes us behind the scenes in famous restaurants, bodegas and pizzerias. Or maybe you have her best selling cookbook about Indian American food called Indian Ish. Now Priya is sharing her love of food with a younger audience. Her new cookbook, Priya's Kitchen Adventures, teaches how to cook international cuisine. She offers recipes from Greece, Mexico, Japan, China, all the countries that she traveled to as a kid. And with us now is the author and New York Times food reporter, Priya Krishna. Hi, Priya. Welcome to all of it.

[Priya Krishna]

Hi. I'm so happy to be here.

[Tiffany Hansen]

So I mentioned that you did a lot of traveling as a youngster. So talk to us about that, first of all, because that's really where this cookbook started.

[Priya Krishna]

Yes. So my mom worked in airlines and any child of like pilots or flight attendants will remember this, you know, basically back in the day. And I think now to a certain extent, if you work for the airline, you get perks for you and your family so you can get on a flight if there is space. But what that means in reality is you show up at the airport and you're running from gate to gate just looking for a flight where there might be four open seats. So you don't know where in the world you'll be traveling to, where whether you'll need a ski suit or whether you'll need a bathing suit. And you don't know whether your seats are going to Be together, whether you'll all get seats at all. And so it was a very fun and very chaotic childhood in which, you know, I, I basically grew up at airports and.

[Tiffany Hansen]

An adventurous childhood.

[Priya Krishna]

Yes.

[Tiffany Hansen]

Did it make you adventurous, food wise, do you think?

[Priya Krishna]

It, it definitely shaped my love of food. I don't think I would be in the position that I'm in right now if it weren't for those travels. I feel like I would land in these new countries. I. Things would feel unfamiliar, the language would feel unfamiliar, but the food was always, for me as a kid, such an easy way in to the culture. And I just, I, I just fell in love with certain dishes. Onigiri in Japan, dumplings in China, pesto in Italy. I just, I just like fell head over heels for. It was like I was falling in love again and again and again in every country we visited. And then only to come home and realize we can make these dishes, we don't actually need to travel. We can just do that in our own kitchen and, you know, become more curious eaters and people. So it was so, so hugely influential where I am now.

[Tiffany Hansen]

You mentioned your mom. She was in the airline industry. She is also the co author of your last cookbook, Indian Ish. I'm wondering, as a kid, what do you remember most about your time in the kitchen with her?

[Priya Krishna]

My mom and I had a really complicated relationship. Have a very complicated relationship. I think it's, it's really hard when you're an immigrant and your kid is growing up in American culture. And how do you find connection, especially when you are very different from your daughter? My mom and I are very different. Food was really one of the things we had in common. I remember every night I would do my math homework sitting on the kitchen island while she cooked because I just liked watching her cook. I liked being given little tasks like washing the cilantro or, or chopping the green beans for dinner. It was a neutral zone. It was a place where it felt like the stakes were a lot lower. There's something about doing menial tasks like watching rice, that just makes, I think, conversation a little bit easier. It was really crucial for our relationship. I feel like the axis of our relationship has always been food. And that's. That was true when we wrote Indian Ish together. It's true. It's true today. Yeah.

[Tiffany Hansen]

Well, food, cooking, being in the kitchen together can be a way for a lot of people to find connection with someone in a way that they might not otherwise be able to.

[Priya Krishna]

Yeah, I agree. I feel like you Know, in the same way that they say, like, you can have really deep conversations in the car. Cause you're not looking directly at each other. It's sort of like doing another activity really allows you to have sometimes more deep conversations because it doesn't feel as intense. It feels like you're working towards a common goal.

[Tiffany Hansen]

I can remember when my kids were growing up, they had a favorite dish that they gravitated to. They always wanted to make that. My youngest son always wanted to make cobbler. Fruit cobbler of any kind. Right. It's kind of easy. You crumble the stuff on top and it works. And it usually turns out okay. Edible. Put some ice cream on it. You're pretty good. I'm wondering what you remember about the first dish that you and your mom cooked together. Was there something you went to over and over again that you asked her to help you with?

[Priya Krishna]

Yes, there are two dishes that come to mind. First is, I called it green spaghetti, because that's what it was called in the cookbook that we bought. But I was gifted a kids cookbook, and I immediately saw a recipe for spaghetti but green. And I was like, holy cow. I've only known spaghetti with red sauce. What is a spaghetti with green sauce? And that is how my mom and I first tasted pesto. And we fell in love with pesto. And to this day is one of our favorite sauces to eat, to riff on. And we made it over and over again. And we discovered, oh, you can add a little bit of lemon. It changes things. We can substitute the basil for a little bit of arugula. We can use pecorino instead of parmesan cheese. You know, there's so many. You can add different kinds of. You can add pistachios instead of pine nuts. And that. That recipe we made over and over again in so many different ways. And the second thing we made was every year we would bake my birthday cake together. We weren't big bakers at all, but there was this one Betty Crocker chocolate cake recipe that we both loved, and that was our tradition, was to do that cake in that exact same way. We never changed the recipe. It remains to this day, probably my perfect cake. It's just a dark chocolate cake with dark chocolate ganache. And we'd garnish it with, like, rose petals from. From the garden. And. And it was perfect.

[Tiffany Hansen]

You know, I found that, you know, talking about pesto, for example, I found that cooking together really helped my kids become more adventurous because they were involved, especially specifically around green things. You know, I, if I was alone in the kitchen making it, I might use it as an opportunity to sneak in something that I felt was maybe a little bit better for them, like some spinach in my pesto. But I'm wondering if you think that that experience cooking with your mom at an early age made you more adventurous.

[Priya Krishna]

I would like to think that being an open and curious and empathetic eater makes you an open, curious, empathetic person. Like, to me, it just feels like those things are, are interlinked. Like I. If you're more open minded in the kitchen, I think it translates to being more open minded generally. You know, of course, that's not always the case. We have people who, you know, love tacos but are anti immigration. But I'd like to think that the more diverse a palette we have at a younger age, the more open and curious and accepting we are of what feels different for us.

[Tiffany Hansen]

Yeah, you've written a lot for adults. This book, again, it's Priya's Kitchen Adventures. It's four kids. I have a question about, I guess the process of both writing for kids versus writing for adults and also, and not just the like, don't let the kids use the sharp knives. But what is different when you're thinking about kids cooking versus grownups cooking?

[Priya Krishna]

I think when I started out, I thought that there was a difference between the two. And I think the more I got into the book and started talking to kids, I worked with kids on this book, the more I realized actually there's not. I don't think there should be this huge difference between a kid recipe and an adult recipe. Here's how I think a kid recipe, here's the definition for me, it doesn't require a lot of special equipment or specialized knife skills. It is inclusive. It is empowering. It is choose your own adventure gives kids options, allows them to make choices along the way. And above all, it is, it is doable and accessible, but it does not dumb things down because they just because they are a kid. As I was writing the recipes and realizing, oh, I need to communicate in a clearer way because a kid doesn't know what folding something in means or what saute onions till translucent means, I was like, you know what? Adult recipes could be a lot clearer too. A lot of adults don't know what either of those things mean. A lot of adults don't want recipes that require complicated knife skills and washing a ton of dishes. A lot of adults want recipes that are empowering, that allow them to make choices. So I Feel that writing recipes for kids has made me a much better adult recipe developer. Because you realize that we assume that, like, oh, we have to talk clear to these kids because they're kids. It's like, no, everyone, everyone values clearer communication. Everyone values more streamlined recipes. Everyone values, you know, not having to do 12 dishes and figuring out a way to make it all using two dishes instead. But for so long, I think we've. We've defined kid friendly in a much different way. As whitewashed, dumbed down, very simplistic for the sake of simplistic. And I think we need to change that.

[Tiffany Hansen]

Last week here at wnyc, it was bring your kids to work day. Since we knew you were going to be joining us, we talked to some of the kids that were here about their favorite foods to cook. We have Leo from Portland.

[Priya Krishna]

My favorite type is probably shrimp tempura sushi. Well, you have to prep the rice first, then you have to wet the seaweed, then you have to put your ingredients on the seaweed and stuff and then roll it up and then chop it.

[Tiffany Hansen]

So that's Leo, you know, I had a question for you actually, about sushi, because I feel like it's such a great tactile thing to be able to do, you know, roll those maki rolls together. You have a recipe in there for salmon rice bowl. So talk to us just a little bit about why you chose the recipes you did in the Japanese section.

[Priya Krishna]

Yeah, my recipe is actually for. It's for onigiri. And it is great because it is a really good introduction to those flavors, the seaweed, rice, seafood. But in my opinion, it's a little bit easier and more manageable to shape than sushi. I really love. You know, when I was making that with kids, I loved how much they enjoyed shaping the rice into a triangle, wrapping the seaweed, decorating it with sesame seeds. Like, it really does feel more like a craft project than cooking. And the other recipes in the Japanese chapter, you've got a ramen. So many kids love ramen. They love slurping noodles. And, you know, it was so exciting to give them the feeling of making like, restaurant quality ramen, but in their own kitchens, in one pot and getting to top it with their favorite toppings, whether that's corn or scallions or a boiled egg. And then I have an udon recipe too, because I think, you know, we gotta have multiple noodle recipes in there.

[Tiffany Hansen]

We gotta, we gott.

[Priya Krishna]

Just have to. And then there's a soba recipe because we gotta have another. We have to cover all of my favorite noodles. But I love Japanese food. I found that so many kids were so drawn to so many. Like, Japanese food is very, very visual. They're like. Kids love the salty seaweed in, like, an onigiri. Those recipes were some of the most popular, and I think for good reason. Japanese food's delicious.

[Tiffany Hansen]

Yeah, you have the, The. You mentioned the onigiri, right? The salmon rice balls. Is there. Are there other non fish, you know, things that you can throw into those that might be yummy?

[Priya Krishna]

Yeah. Oh, my gosh. You can put in. Pickled vegetables. You can put in. There are some that have teriyaki chicken that you can buy. There are some that have, let's see, you could put like a cooked vegetable in there. The possibilities are sort of, sort of endless. If you can smush rice around it, you can. You can use it as a filling.

[Tiffany Hansen]

All right, Priya, prepare yourself. We have Zoe in Brooklyn. Hello, Zoe.

[Zoe]

Hi.

[Tiffany Hansen]

Do you have a recipe you want to share or did you have a question?

[Zoe]

Don't really have a question, but I have a recipe like, with like ice cubes, like ginger, lemon. You just pour the. You just pour the ginger on the bottom and you put. Pour water, put a lemon inside and let them freeze it. The freezer for like a couple days.

[Tiffany Hansen]

Okay. And then what do you do with it?

[Zoe]

Then you basically just put them in water like wands, then put normalized gifts if you want.

[Tiffany Hansen]

Nice.

[Priya Krishna]

I love that.

[Tiffany Hansen]

That's a good idea, right, Priya? Yeah.

[Priya Krishna]

That sounds so refreshing.

[Tiffany Hansen]

That does sound refreshing. Thank you, Zoe. Priya, we have a text. My son was using a Cuisinart by the time he was four and a mandolin by the time he was six. Now he's almost 14. He's making things like beef Wellington and other complicated dishes. I can remember my. That was really interested in cooking, making. What is that fondant, that really thick frosting stuff that you put on when he was like 6 years old. So if you have a child like this that is really, really into it, what's the best way to just keep plugging their interest, do you think? Is it recipe after recipe or.

[Priya Krishna]

Yeah, I think buy them cookbooks and help them to, you know, find out what techniques they are most interested in and. And buy them cookbooks that will help with that. You know, there's one of the things I like to do in my book or that I do in my book is if you like a particular cuisine, I've got a list of like, four cookbooks that you can buy. So say you read the Italy section, you're like, oh, my God, my son loves making fresh pasta. I really want him to go on this pasta journey. There are cookbooks that will help you do that. If you're a kid, loves making onigiri and wants to make all kinds of other Japanese foods and sushi, there's books to do that. So I think it's just about identifying, okay, like, they. They can do all of these things. What are the techniques they want to learn, what are the cuisines they're interested in, and just, like, getting them books to. To help them, like, hone those passions. But that's so awesome. I would. I wish I knew how to make beef Wellington by the time I was six. Gosh, that's amazing.

[Tiffany Hansen]

If you have. If there's a kid out there who's ready to take the plunge and ask, you know, someone to join them in the kitchen to make one of your recipes, what's. If you could say one thing to them, what would it be?

[Priya Krishna]

Start with the country that you're least familiar with the cuisine. Start with your least familiar and find a recipe that looks delicious to you. There's nothing more exciting to me than eating, like, a dish for the first time, like experiencing a flavor for the first time, something that was so unfamiliar to you and. And maybe becomes one of your new favorites.

[Tiffany Hansen]

Well, and maybe don't be scared of stuff. Stuff going wrong. You know, I think there's a lot of fear of, like, I don't know if I can make that, and what if it tastes bad and what if it doesn't turn out? What do you say to that?

[Priya Krishna]

This is all part of the process. You know, some of your dishes are going to be the best thing you ever made. Some of them might need a little bit of, you know, zhuzhing. Very few dishes are beyond saving. You know, a lot of the times you can add a little salt, add a little lime juice. You know, you can make tweaks to make something delicious. So if you feel like you've messed up, all is not lost. There are. There are fixes. And if it still doesn't turn out, just know that you just learned a lesson, and you'll be better next time.

[Tiffany Hansen]

That's right.

[Alison Stewart]

That was Tiffany Hansen's conversation with New York Times food reporter and cookbook author Priya Krishna. The book is called Priya's Kitchen, A Cookbook for Kids. After a break, we'll hear some live performances from Staten Island's Susan E. Wagner High school jazz band. 26 students joined us in the studio to play. Stick around. This is all of it.

[Tiffany Hansen]

NYC now delivers breaking news, top headlines and in depth coverage from WNYC and Gothamist every morning, midday and evening. By sponsoring our programming, you'll reach a community of passionate listeners in an uncluttered audio experience. Visit sponsorship.wnyc.org to learn more.