Hey Mamaliga with Carolina Gelen, Irina Georgescu & Fanfare Ciocarlia

On Play Me a Recipe, your favorite cooks will walk you through their most treasured recipes, offering all the insider tips, stories, and tricks you won't get from a written recipe—and you'll be right alongside them, every step of the way. If you're cooking along, here's the recipe we're making today. Go ahead and grab the ingredients below before starting the episode.

Subscribe to The Genius Recipe Tapes here.Referenced in this episode:Toni Tipton-Martin's Louisiana Barbecued Shrimp recipeToni's non-profit, The SANDE Youth ProjectToni Tipton-Martin named 2021 Julia Child Award recipient (The Julia Child Award)Genius-Hunter Extra Credit:Check out Toni's cookbooks, Jubilee and The Jemima CodeFor more recipes celebrating Black food history, check out @meikoandthedish's 38 Jubilant Recipes to Kick Off Black History MonthSpecial thanks to listeners Christina (@berrygoodfoodfdn) and Meiko (@meikoandthedish) for calling in this week.Is there a genius recipe you'd like to share? Tell me all about it at [email protected].

Host Peter J. Kim is joined by content creator Carolina Gelen and author Irina Georgescu to talk about mamaliga, pickles, and Romania's super juicy sausages, as well as how communism shaped the family dinner table. Peter also discusses the musical influence of Romania's Romani people with Henry Ernst, manager of the energetic brass band Fanfare Ciocărlia.

Host Peter J Kim takes a trip to the United Kingdom to explore puddings, PFCs, and the mysterious saveloy dip. Food Network host Mary McCartney invites us into her home to talk about the importance of Sunday roasts, and food and music memories with her father Paul McCartney. Jonathan Nunn, the founder of Vittles, guides us through the most important food on the streets of London—and it's not fish and chips. Through it all, listen to music by British rapper, Hyphen, who accurately describes his style as "sexy lounge rap." Our next episode is coming out in just a couple of weeks, but in the meantime, check out Counterjam on Spotify for Peter's playlist of the wonderful musicians from this and past seasons. 

Host Peter J. Kim will get into sinigang, adobo, lechon, and all that good stuff, but we’ll also explore the interplay of names, language, menus, and the immigrant experience with chef and author Dale Talde, filmmaker and educator Evelyn Obamos, and hip-hop artist Ruby Ibarra, whose bangin’ album Circa91 will be the soundtrack to this episode. For bonus tracks from Filipino and Filipino-American artists, check out Counterjam on Spotify.

Host Peter J. Kim looks at the beauty and energy of Brazil, and reflects on issues related to home and scarcity with musician Bebel Gilberto, and Woodspoon chef Natalia Pereira. Music is by the rapper Kunumi MC. Check out Counterjam on Spotify for more tracks to groove along to.

Host Peter J. Kim looks at Ethiopian culture with chefs Marcus Samuelsson and Serkaddis Alemu, and spins a few tracks by Kibrom Birhane.Here's Marcus's wife's sister's recipe for Kitfo on Food52—one he's, as you'll learn in the episode, not allowed to prepare himself. Thanks for tuning into season 2; we'll be back with season 3 in a bit! In the meantime, queue up the Counterjam playlists on Spotify for more from Kibrom Birhane, among other wonderful Ethiopian artists.

Host Peter J. Kim digs into French culture with three phenomenal guests: pastry genius Dominique Ansel, Top Chef France star Mory Sacko, and one of the most distinguished individuals in Peter's life, Stéphanie Jacquemont (aka his wife).Check out the accompanying Counterjam playlist on Spotify for more from Lindigo, and other wonderful French artists.

This episode, Peter speaks with 19-year-old food whiz and social media sensation Eitan Bernath; actress, comedienne, and Broad City creator Ilana Glazer; and renowned chef and author Einat Admony on Jewish holiday foods: there's the seder plate, matzah and maror, and of course, grandma's chicken matzo ball soup. All music is by Gitkin.As always, keep the party going by checking out this episode's accompanying playlist on Spotify, or chef Einat's recipe for pre-Shabbat-friendly aruk, or light Iraqi potato & herb patties, here.

Self-proclaimed fufu-head Peter J. Kim sits down with comedian Ego Nwodim and Afrobeat pioneers Femi and Made Kuti to discuss ultimate jollof, Nigerian religi-pop, and the beloved ball of cooked starch that goes by many names.That's a wrap on season 1 of Counterjam. We'll be back in May with season 2. In the meantime—follow Counterjam on Spotify for bonus playlists, and subscribe to the show so you don't miss a thing.