Sonoko Sakai teaches us about real Japanese home cooking—from the world’s easiest broth to bento boxes to the surprising way she kneads her udon dough. Plus, we investigate counterfeit caviar with David Gauvey Herbert; we share our recipe for a fresh take on the chocolate cookie; and Dan Pashman explains why he’d rather eat alone this Valentine’s Day.

This episode is brought to you by Ferguson.

Questions in this Episode:

“Is French flour substantively different and healthier/easier on digestion than American flour?”

”I would love to make buttermilk roasted chicken but I keep a kosher kitchen. What is an appropriate non-dairy substitute for buttermilk I can use?”

“Last year I planted a crop of sugar cane around my property and I was looking forward to harvesting this year and trying to make some cane syrup. I’m wondering if I should use a cast-iron sugar kettle or a copper vessel?”

“Every Sunday I have dinner at my in-laws' house. In the interests of heart health, they've eliminated salt from all cooking. It's easy enough for me to add salt to my dish before eating, but salt plays other roles in cooking, right? How do we get more flavor into a dish without a lot of salt and how about for meats on the grill?”

“I have a question about making a berry-based pie. It always turns into a gooey mess. How can I get it right?”

“I have an oven that I assume is unusual in that I need to set a particular temperature for my broiler. Every recipe states to either ‘heat broiler’ or ‘set broiler to high’. My broiler can go as high at 550 degrees, or all the way down to 250. I assume 550 degrees is far too high for most things but is that the ‘high’ for most ovens? I am wondering what an all-purpose broiling temperature is; or, what are some temperature guidelines for broiling fish versus vegetables versus meat?”