Tastes and Tales From The East

On this week's episode, we take a deep dive into the cuisine and culture of Asia, with an emphasis on China. We begin with Karen Christensen, founder of Berkshire Publishing who has pursued her interest in Asia through the amazing books she's compiled.

Karen Christensen of Berkshire Publishing

On this week’s episode, we take a deep dive into the cuisine and culture of Asia, with an emphasis on China. We begin with Karen Christensen, founder of Berkshire Publishing who has pursued her interest in Asia through the amazing books she’s compiled. Karen shares her thoughts and experiences on all things culinary from East Asia to Afghanistan.

Then, Sean Chen joins us to discuss a centuries-old Chinese cookbook called the Suiyuan Shidan, or Way of Eating, written by Qing dynasty poet and gastronome Yuan Mei. Sean has just published a groundbreaking translation of the work that offers readers a window into a bygone world.

Finally, we learn the history of Chinese restaurants in the U.S. with U.C. Irvine professor, Yong Chen. Chen’s book, Chop Suey, USA, follows the history of Chinese cuisine in America – from the first four restaurants in California during the Gold Rush to the nearly 50 thousand Chinese restaurants found across the country today.