Taste the Nation with Padma Lakshmi
Host Padma Lakshmi takes audiences on a journey across America, exploring the rich and diverse food culture of various immigrant groups, seeking out the people who have so heavily shaped what American food is today.
Reality
Episodes (10)
Ketchup or No Ketchup
Padma gets to the heart (and stomach) of Puerto Rico’s fight for independence by examining a surprisingly controversial topic: does ketchup belong on the beloved Puerto Rican dish pasteles?
From Kabul with Love
On the heels of America’s longest war coming to an end, Padma joins the Afghan American community in DC as they welcome new arrivals over feasts that remind them of the Afghanistan they left behind, and what can be built anew.
Padma and the Beanstalk
Appalachia is reinventing itself through its most beloved resource - food. Padma eats her way through the Mountain South, unearthing the inventive recipes, humble ingredients, and complex history – and picks up some banjo playing along the way.
The Borscht Identity
Padma heads to New York’s Brighton Beach and the East Village to learn why the debate over who really created borscht symbolizes a larger fight for Ukrainian identity.
Fufu for the Win
Padma’s spice meter is put to the test by comedian Yvonne Orji and others when she travels to Houston, home to the largest Nigerian population in the US, where she gets an insider experience of Nigerian food and pride.
Ube in the Bay
Sizzling silogs, sour sinigang…and sweet spaghetti? In South San Francisco, Padma enjoys Filipino food and discovers how the younger generation of Filipino Americans are the latest disruptors in the Bay Area.
Greeks on the Gulf
Padma eats her way through the seaside city of Tarpon Springs, Florida, which may as well be a Greek Island. From sponge diving to Avgolemono, she takes a deep dive into the Greek time capsule that is Tarpon Springs.…
On the Tip of My Kreung
In the symbolic heart of America’s industrial past, Padma travels to Lowell, Massachusetts and sees how Cambodian immigrants (and their cooking) have become the backbone for the revival of this New England town.
Halal from Dearborn
Padma visits Dearborn, a.k.a the Arab American “bubble”, during Ramadan, the holiest period of the year for Dearborn’s Muslim community. Cruising in muscle cars and diving into local eateries, Padma discovers the abundance of sweets and savory meats.
Ciao New York
Padma reminisces about her years in Italy, where she experienced the spirit of la bella vita, the beautiful life. Now, hungry for some life balance, she’s turning to her Italian American friends in NY to reveal their secrets, starting with pizza.