We know you don’t want to burn your food in the kitchen (unless it’s a char/sear kinda situation), but you know what else you don’t want to burn? You, the cook. Deb and Kenji reveal their tips for avoiding cooking burnout, as well as how to mine your own sodium citrate at home. Did your eyes get whiplash reading this? Buckle up because your letters took us all over the map: biscuits for every purpose, what kind of pancakes Barbie would eat, how to cook like a boss for 1-2 people.

After putting out our first batch of episodes, we put out a call to our listeners — any questions? You sure did. Thanks to listeners from around the world who heeded our call, we bring you our first mailbag episode. Kenji and Deb debunk the 30-minute recipe, contemplate tiers of butter, go down the soup dumpling rabbit hole, and much more.

In this episode, Kenji and Deb talk all about asparagus. You can roast it, puree it, sautee it, grill it, and even eat it raw. It can serve as a snack or as part of a main dish. Did you know it grows in different colors? Hear how Deb prepares asparagus as a family snack and how it can make for a great pizza topping. And it wouldn't be an episode about asparagus without learning about the science behind its notorious side-effect.

Recipes mentioned:

Snacky Asparagus (from Smitten Kitchen)

Shaved Asparagus Pizza (from Smitten Kitchen)

Simple Grilled Asparagus (From Serious Eats)

Braised Asparagus (from Serious Eats)

Grilling season is here and so are Kenji and Deb to talk grilled chicken. From marinades to brines, to the one thing that can prevent dried-out grilled chicken: a meat thermometer. No easy access to a grill? We talk grill pans, using vinaigrette for grilled chicken, and a condiment base for your marinades that Deb now swears by.

Recipes mentioned:

• Kenji's Mayo-Marinated Chicken With Chimichurri(from NYT Cooking)
• Deb’s Piri Piri Chicken (from Smitten Kitchen)

Iceberg lettuce gets a bad rap, but can make a good wrap. In this episode, Kenji and Deb go all in on lettuce. From wedge salads with homemade ranch to chronicling the rise, fall, and resurgence of the hardest-working lettuce in the kitchen. Knife and fork wedge salads are just the tip of the iceberg. Iceberg lettuce soup? Pickled iceberg lettuce? We got you.

Recipes mentioned:

• Deb’s Iceberg Wedge with Blue Cheese (from Smitten Kitchen)
• Deb’s Baby Wedge Salad with Avocado and Pickled Onion (from Smitten Kitchen)
• Kenji’s Fully Loaded Iceberg Wedge Salad (from Serious Eats)
• Kenji says “Wedge Salads are Great” (Kenji’s Cooking Show)

News to us at Radiotopia, but there are some of you out there who have some really strong feelings about grilled cheese, almost enough for a whole separate podcast. What is it about this seemingly mellow, humble sandwich — a favorite of both small children and stoners — that elicits all this controversy? (It’s always the quiet ones.) Even if you don’t like grilled cheese, it’s worth listening just for Kenji’s genius lifehack involving sausage.

PS - If you are Team Triangle (IYDKNYK), get yourself this rad t-shirt (100% of profits go to ACLU)

PPS - for perfect grilled cheese, listen to this playlist

Recipes mentioned:

• Deb’s Frico Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (from Smitten Kitchen)
• Deb’s Classic Grilled Cheese + Cream of Tomato Soup (from Smitten Kitchen)
• Kenji’s Grilled Cheese Sandwich (from Serious Eats)
• Kenji’s Good Grilled Cheese (from Kenji’s Cooking Show)
• Kenji’s Late Night Chorizo Grilled Cheese (from Kenji’s Cooking Show)

Some people think tomato soup only exists to serve as a dipping sauce for grilled cheese, but Kenji and Deb are here to set them straight. A properly, lovingly made tomato soup — even with sad-looking supermarket tomatoes from February — can be a time portal, from the dreariest winter day to the peak of summer farmer’s market fresh. Kenji makes Deb’s genius “grilled cheese kind of built into the tomato soup”, unlocking a new level of tomato soup nirvana.

Recipes mentioned:

• Deb’s Weeknight Tomato Soup (from Smitten Kitchen)
• Deb’s Classic Grilled Cheese + Cream of Tomato Soup (from Smitten Kitchen)
• Deb’s Roasted Tomato Soup with Broiled Cheddar (from Smitten Kitchen)
• Kenji’s Fast and Easy Pasta with Blistered Cherry Tomato Sauce (from Serious Eats)
• Kenji’s 15-Minute Creamy Tomato Soup (Vegan) (from Serious Eats)
• Lisa Steele’s Cream-Fried Eggs (from the Washington Post)

In preparation for this episode, Deb and Kenji fed their children so many pancakes that they are now on a pancake strike. But before you start feeling sorry for these young people, don’t forget they got to taste the rainbow of pancake styles. Tall and fluffy. Crisp and fluffy. Thin and crispy. The hottest pancake in the world right now, the Japanese soufflé. Tough life, kids!

We learn why baking soda, baking powder, and buttermilk feature prominently, and the technique for “the absolute fluffiest pancake”.

Recipes Mentioned:

• Smitten Kitchen pancakes

• Serious Eats pancakes

• Chez Ma Tante pancakes on NYT Cooking