I’m Samin Nosrat, the Host and Executive Producer of 'Salt Fat Acid Heat,' and This Is How I Eat

In the world of culinary media, Samin Nosrat serves as a refreshing change. While she offers a deep reservoir of culinary knowledge and expertise, neither her award-winning book nor her Netflix series come off as overly instructional. Instead, she invites audiences to explore, savor, and enjoy food, all while exuding warmth and positivity. In the spirit of generosity, she shared her approach to coffee, her favorite Trader Joe’s meal, and why eating boiled vegetables can sometimes feel like a retreat. (She also gave us a peek inside her fridge.)

Location: Berkeley, California

Current gig: Chef, educator, and writer, as well as the host and executive producer of the Netflix series Salt Fat Acid Heat, based on my award-winning book of the same title.

One word that describes how you eat: Joyful

Can you walk me through a typical day from a food perspective?

I don’t have many typical days, but when I’m at home and working from the office, that’s when things feel most routine. I take thyroid medication in the morning, so I have to wait about an hour before eating. This gives me a slower start to the day. Then, I prepare my coffee, which I describe to people as having 'enough half-and-half to make it look like Haagen-Dazs coffee ice cream,' meaning I add so much that most others might feel embarrassed about it.

Lately, I’ve been on a strange oatmeal kick for the past few months. It’s oddly comforting. I prepare instant oatmeal with cinnamon, chop up three medjool dates, toss them in, and add some flaxseed. I’ve created a whole kit for myself, and I just mix it all together. Then, I finish it off with a generous scoop of almond butter, frozen blueberries, and a dash of half-and-half. My mom used to make us oatmeal when I was younger, but I would often feel hungry again just an hour later. So, I think adding dates and getting the sugar from fruit with fiber is more satisfying. A friend once called it his 'power breakfast' and made it for me. Normally, I’m not one for 'superfoods,' but it tasted so good that I decided to make it myself. It feels like a way of caring for myself because it’s such a hearty meal, and it helps me make it all the way to lunch without feeling like I’m crashing.

How do you do lunch?

I work in an office with about two dozen other writers locally. We have a basic kitchen setup, so I usually bring leftovers to reheat or eat at room temperature. Mondays are tough to get to work but also my favorite day, because my friend Dominica Rice opened an incredible Mexican restaurant just 10 blocks from the office, and on Mondays she makes green mole. I think, 'Oh, my God, the only reason I’m getting out of bed on Monday is for great mole.' It also helps take the pressure off of me because Sundays can be exhausting with work, shopping, and other tasks. I allow myself to go out for lunch once or twice a week so I don’t have to cook. However, I learned early in my office life after leaving restaurants that eating out for lunch every day is a bad idea, as it leaves me too full and unproductive for the rest of the day.

I started working in an office when I was 31, which was the first time I truly became a home cook while also commuting to work. Before that, I went straight from college to a world-class kitchen, so I always had a somewhat complicated view of 'lunch.' In the restaurants I worked at, we always had a nice staff lunch with a variety of things—salads, a main dish, and some pasta or rice. It took me about a year of working with everyday home cooks to realize that people just bring something simple from last night’s dinner, like a meatball with carrot sticks, and that’s lunch. I learned that lunch doesn’t have to be elaborate, and it can still be satisfying and nourishing.

It’s been great, and in some of my more desperate moments, I’ve resorted to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. If I have nothing else, I bring two corn tortillas and a can of beans, which is much less stressful than what I used to feel about constructing a meal. At the same time, it’s nice to enjoy some home-cooked leftovers or even just a bit of salad with a bottled dressing we keep at the office. I make sure to stock both my home and office freezers with frozen vegetables. At work, I love the green chile tamales from Trader Joe’s—they’re so good. That’s my go-to emergency meal.

That’s a perfect answer to two questions I was going to ask you later—'what do you think of frozen convenience food?' and 'what do you buy from Trader Joe’s?'

They’re so good. I live alone, but as a professional cook, I find it tough to cook for just one person. So, I always have leftovers, which I’ve come to see as a way of taking care of my future self. It might just be a bit of steamed rice, vegetables, or whatever I’ve got. I bring that to work with me. I always keep snacks on hand. I’ve learned that I can’t have snacks that are too delicious around because, me and the sugar lovers in my office, if we buy ice cream, we’ll finish the whole thing in one day. But if snacks are too healthy, I won’t eat them at all.

So, it’s all about finding the right balance?

Yes, exactly. There’s this trail mix from Trader Joe’s that has just a small amount of chocolate in it. The best part about working in an office is that, with some kind of routine, I get hungry for dinner. If I’ve been to the gym, I actually look forward to eating when I get home. By then, because I haven’t been cooking much and have been sitting in front of a screen all day, I’m usually excited to get home and cook something, using my hands to prepare it.

When I travel, I make sure my fridge is stocked with both fruits and vegetables. When I’m at home and shopping, I always buy two, three, or four different vegetables, so I always have a variety to choose from. It’s usually nothing too fancy—just basics like broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, or kale. I’ll cook them in different ways—roasted, boiled, or sautéed—and add a green, plus either an egg or tofu. At home, I keep meals simple, especially when I don’t feel the need for a fancy meal. This is because a lot of my work and public life involves eating rich or complex foods, so eating something as simple as boiled vegetables almost feels like a vacation.

It’s not quite the same, but I go through something similar when I just want to make a simple burger for myself, with American cheese and nothing else.

Absolutely. I’m totally into American cheese; it’s one of my favorites. Then I go through different phases, like a sausage phase where I’ll make sausage and sauerkraut, or a ground meat phase where I’ll buy ground turkey for turkey burgers or ground lamb for lamb meatballs. I’m definitely a person who goes through food phases.

One thing I loved in your last episode of Salt Fat Acid Heat was when you mentioned that your favorite meat is chicken. What do you think is the most common mistake home cooks make when preparing chicken?

Typically, it starts with buying boneless, skinless chicken breasts. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with them, the skin and bone actually help protect the meat from drying out or overcooking. If you’re going to use boneless, skinless breasts, you need to be vigilant about preventing overcooking. A simple trick is to pound them thin, creating a “paillard.” To do this, I put the breasts between two plastic bags with olive oil and then pound them thin with a mallet or the bottom of an olive oil bottle. This way, you end up with a nice, even, thin piece of meat.

The reason people tend to overcook boneless breasts is that they’re unevenly shaped. The thick part cooks much slower than the thin part, so the thin bottom gets dry if cooked to the same level of doneness as the thick top. My suggestion is to pound the meat until the top is as thin as the bottom. If you go even thinner, you get a large, thin piece that cooks quickly—around 90 seconds to two minutes per side in a super hot pan. This method gives you beautifully browned, juicy chicken with a lot of surface area for browning and prevents overcooking.

But for my go-to, I love chicken thighs. They’re super versatile. If you buy boneless thighs, or remove the bone yourself, you can cook them skin-side down in a cast iron pan with another cast iron pan on top. There’s a recipe for this in my book, and it’s incredibly simple, cooking as fast as grilling chicken breasts. The thighs stay juicy, and the skin crisps up beautifully. In the book, I call this recipe “conveyor belt chicken,” but it’s essentially a version of “brick chicken” or “chicken under a brick.”

Do you have a standard order when you end up at a random, basic diner?

I’m very much driven by my mood. I do enjoy a good tuna melt. If it’s breakfast time and hashbrowns are on the menu, I’ll opt for a two eggs over easy plate just to make sure I get those crispy hashbrowns.

Do you have a favorite snack when you go to the movies?

Ah, I wish I went to the movies more often! But when I do, I’d definitely go for very buttery popcorn. That’s my go-to snack.

Do you have a special way of making popcorn at home?

Oh yes, I absolutely do! I’m thrilled you asked. A friend of mine gave me an old-fashioned hand crank popcorn popper, and it’s fantastic because not a single kernel gets left behind. My method is a multi-fat approach: I use coconut oil to pop the corn, which gets so hot that it creates this almost lacquered coating on the popcorn, making it incredibly crisp. It's just amazing. Then, I melt butter and add salt and nutritional yeast, which I love. I’ve been thinking about how I could possibly create a savory granola using nutritional yeast—just brainstorming new ways to take it to the next level.

If you come up with something, I’d love to hear about it! Now, about potatoes—do you have a favorite kind of french fry?

It’s been quite a few years since I’ve regularly eaten fries at places where they’re a staple, so I’m not really sure about any specific brand. But I do swear by the twice-fried fry. It’s the kind where the outside gets super crispy, like the fries at McDonald’s. Most fast food fries are twice-fried. The beauty of twice frying is that the inside becomes perfectly starchy and creamy, while the outside gets crisped up. However, I’m not a fan of the single-fried fries at In-N-Out Burger. Since they’re only fried once, the outside tends to turn too brown, and the inside doesn’t achieve that creamy texture. What I truly crave is a pale golden fry—salty, crisp on the outside, and creamy on the inside.

Do you have a preference for the shape of fries?

Oh, these are some great questions! I’d probably stick with the classic, long, skinny fry, but I’ll never pass up a waffle fry or curly fries either.

My favorite is when you order a regular batch of fries, and then a waffle or curly fry sneaks in there.

Oh, that’s the best! I absolutely love that too.

You mentioned loving a tuna melt. Do you have a favorite sandwich that you like to make at home?

At home? Well, BLT season just wrapped up. When I’m at home, I tend to have a lot of turkey sandwiches. There’s this grocery store near my house that serves the most amazing roasted turkey. I love getting turkey that’s freshly sliced at the deli instead of the pre-packaged stuff, even though I do buy that sometimes. But the pre-packaged stuff is usually so loaded with water, which changes the texture and taste. I’m a firm believer in slathering a sandwich with lots of mayonnaise, or, if not that, another kind of moisture like hummus. It works wonders.

I’m a fan of combining mayonnaise and hummus. Tomatoes are a must, and I can’t get enough of pickles. I love crunch in my sandwiches. And then there’s my little touch, which isn’t really a secret, but it’s something I love doing: I add cilantro, or any fresh herb, but cilantro is my top choice. Fresh herbs are essential to me in cooking—they bring something special, a burst of life to food, making it just a little more vibrant.

I loved it in the Acid episode when you shared that you used to put yogurt on everything. Do you still find yourself doing that now, especially when you need something comforting?

Recently, I was at an event, being interviewed on stage, and we got to talking about yogurt. I admitted that when I was younger, I’d put yogurt on everything—even pasta. My brothers and I did it all the time, not only for the creaminess and tang but because it helped cool the hot food faster so we could eat it. I’ll always remember how much I loved the taste of my mom’s meat sauce—spaghetti with meat sauce—with yogurt on it. That was such a comforting taste of childhood. But after becoming a chef and traveling to Italy, I was horrified by the thought of putting yogurt on pasta. So, there I was, confessing it in front of a crowd, and this Italian woman stands up and says, “It’s okay, yogurt on pasta is fine.” [Yotam] Ottolenghi even has a recipe in his book for pasta with yogurt, so I was like, “Wow, amazing!” Then this Italian woman adds, “But if you put mayonnaise in your pasta, that’s where I draw the line.”

I almost don’t want to ask, but if you had to pick just one source of fat, one source of acid, and one source of salt, which would you choose from each category?

If I had to choose, I'd go with limes for acid, a good Maldon salt for my salt, and probably olive oil as the fat—though that’s a tough choice. I’ve done this exercise before, so I was ready for the challenge.

Speaking of salt: How many varieties do you have in your kitchen?

I’ve got two types a friend sent me to try, plus Diamond Crystal, and a fine sea salt for recipe testing. I also have Jacobsen, which is a lovely salt from Oregon. That’s six with Maldon. Then there’s sel gris—seven. I have a beautiful pink salt from Australia—eight. Oh, wait, a butcher friend gave me one—nine. And two kinds from Japan—making it eleven. Some are overflowing into my living room because my kitchen’s small. But I mainly use Diamond Crystal, a flake salt, and a sea salt for testing recipes. So, I only keep three on the counter or shelf regularly.

Do you have a go-to “sad meal”?

Sweet potatoes are something I always pick up from the store. When I'm feeling exhausted, I’ll halve them and roast them flesh side down until they’re crispy and golden. Depending on what I have at home, I turn them into a baked potato experience. I mash up the insides, grate sharp cheddar cheese on top, and drizzle with hot sauce. My go-to sauces are Valentina, the vinegary Mexican one I love, or Calabrian chili paste. I add either yogurt or sour cream, and that’s my ultimate ‘sad-couch-watching-TV’ meal.

Can we take a look inside your fridge?

Yes.

Let's talk knives for a moment. What’s your knife collection like?

I’ve got a pretty solid collection of knives. I keep them on a stylish wooden magnetic strip on my wall. I've been cooking for years and collecting knives for just as long, so I have quite a few. I give away a lot, though. One of my favorites is a huge carbon steel chef’s knife I snagged for six dollars at a thrift store. I took it to my sharpener and asked him where he thought it came from. He looked at it, noticed no markings, and said it probably dates back to the 1920s in Chicago. It’s about twelve inches long, with a worn wooden handle, which I’ve always thought about refinishing. But honestly, you don’t need fancy knives to cook well. For a great all-around chef’s knife, I’d recommend Victorinox—they offer great ones for around 40 bucks.

When it comes to gadgets, like food processors, blenders, and immersion blenders, do you have a favorite?

I inherited an old Vitamix blender from someone, and at the time it made me feel like I had something fancy, even though it was quite old. But I rarely ever took it out. It's pretty amazing how finely it purees things, and when I’m cooking for work, it’s super handy. The problem was it was just such a hassle to pull it out from under the shelf, wash it, and put it back each time. So for a long period, I didn’t have anything. Then, when I started testing recipes for my book, I realized I often recommended using an immersion blender but didn’t own one. So I did a lot of research and ended up buying one from Breville. It’s not exactly cheap—around a hundred bucks—but it’s fantastic. It can smooth things out so well and even has a mini food processor attachment. For my personal cooking and the recipes I write for six or eight people, this is all I need. Living in a small apartment with limited kitchen space, I just couldn’t justify another big appliance. When I worked in a restaurant, sure, both types of blenders were crucial, but this little immersion blender gives me the best of both worlds.

Speaking of that: do you have any small kitchen tips?

One of the best things I did was maximize my surface space while cooking. I found a stainless steel table at Costco—though I’m sure you could find it on Amazon too—and brought it into the kitchen. The previous tenants had used the space as a tiny eat-in kitchen, which really only fit two people. I took out the dining area and turned it into a work area instead. Honestly, whenever anyone asks me for kitchen tips, my top piece of advice is, “you can never have too much counter space.” So I suggest creating as many surfaces as possible in your kitchen—that’s the key.

Is there anyone you’d like to see answer these questions next?

I’d love to hear from Michelle Obama, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jonathan Van Ness, Terry Gross, Maggie Haberman, Mary Oliver, and Wendy MacNaughton.

This interview has been streamlined and refined for conciseness and clarity.