Why beefsteak tomatoes are named after a meaty dish

Intriguing facts about tomatoes

This episode of the Lunchbox Envy podcast dives deep into the world of tomatoes. Why do they taste nicer in certain settings? Do they "scream"? What are their health benefits? All of these questions and more are answered about the luscious red fruit. Listen and reflect on the historical and cultural significance of the tomato.

The unexpected return of the steakhouse

Although the 2010s and early 2020s saw fewer people eating red meat, the momentum has now swung in the opposite direction, with vegetarian spots closing and hip new restaurants slinging beef. Food writer Bettina Makalintal makes sense of the sudden shift by unpacking the steakhouse's resurgence.

How Michelin-starred chefs cook steak

Earning a Michelin star is no easy feat; neither is cooking a steak. This tutorial, featuring three Michelin-starred chefs, shows how the pros tackle the subtle art, walking even the most kitchen-averse eaters through the best ways to cook a great cut.

A chopped cheese sandwich is a New York culinary staple

The sandwich is a cross between a hamburger and a cheesesteak, featuring ground beef, cheese, and seasoning on a roll. Its fans add whatever other fixings they like, including lettuce, tomato, onions, mustard, and more.

How cultured meat is made

In recent years, a number of companies have debuted meatless alternatives to traditional burgers, chicken, and more. Some are made from soy, while others use molecular formulations to recreate the flavor profile and texture of meat. Now, actual meat...

Tex-Mex is its own distinct cuisine with roots in the Texas borderlands

The cuisine emerged from Tejano cooking, blending northern Mexican ranch food with ingredients such as yellow cheese, beef, and wheat flour. Dishes now considered staples, including chili con carne and fajitas, were Tex-Mex inventions rather than traditional Mexican dishes.

Ketchup, 101

Ketchup is a tomato-based condiment mixed with vinegar, salt, and spices. The word likely originates from Southeast Asia, where it was used for a common fish brine sauce in the 18th century. For a brief period in the early 19th century, ketchup was viewed and marketed as a medicine. Henry John Heinz formulated a standard recipe in the late 1800s.

Are burritos sandwiches?

In this video, we trace the burrito's origins, explore the legal and culinary battles around its classification, and break down why this seemingly simple food raises such a complicated question.

Beard and his eponymous awards help define 'American cuisine'

Beard sought to fuse classic American dishes, like casseroles, with international flavors and locally-sourced ingredients. The James Beard Awards often reflect the eclecticism, honoring American chefs inspired by Filipino, Nigerian, French, and other traditions.

Delmonico's was the first American fine-dining restaurant

The steakhouse opened in 1837 in Manhattan, creating what is now considered the first fine-dining restaurant in the United States, introducing gloved waiters, white tablecloths, and an à la carte menu. The establishment also claims it invented a few American staples, including eggs Benedict, which was supposedly named after two loyal customers.

Detroit-style pizza's recipe nods to the Motor City

Legend has it that the rectangular pies were originally baked in blue steel pans intended to hold nuts and bolts in auto factories. The sauce poured across the top of the pies, meanwhile, is done so in straight lines called "tire tracks."

Unlike fruits, the category of 'vegetables' is a culinary term, not a scientific one

Within botany, fruits are defined as the ripened ovaries of flowering plants, and include apples, grapes, tomatoes, avocados, green beans, peppers, and almonds. In the kitchen, "vegetables" is an umbrella term that encompasses many fruits and other parts of plants, such as leaves (lettuce, kale) and roots (carrots, beets).

Kansas City barbecue makes use of 'burnt ends'

The Midwest city has its own delicious tradition, serving the double-smoked chunks of fatty brisket slathered in the region’s signature thick, sweet-and-spicy sauce.

'Hot dog' likely evolved from the common name 'dachshund sausages'

The ubiquitous handheld snack started in New York City, where vendors sold sausages in buns, calling out "Get your dachshund sausages!" Historians believe the change to "hot dog" was natural for many fans, who found the name funny and catchy.

Tick bites can fuel an allergy to a sugar molecule in red meat

Alpha-gal syndrome is on the rise globally as ticks spread due to climate shifts. Bites from some ticks can trigger a sensitivity to a sugar molecule called alpha-gal found in mammal meat, which can lead to allergic responses to hamburgers and steak, among other products. Listen to an expert’s tips for avoiding this allergy, including quickly removing any ticks to limit exposure to their saliva or vomit.

The history of the Caesar salad

Despite what you might guess from its name, the Caesar salad wasn't invented in ancient Rome. The popular dish was created in the 1920s by two Italian brothers who'd emigrated to the United States and opened a popular restaurant in Tijuana called Caesar's Palace. This history of the popular entrée digs into that history and unpacks how it became a restaurant staple.

How spoiled meat helped uncover a bacterium that can survive the vacuum of space

When a can of ground beef and pork spoiled despite attempts to sterilize it with gamma radiation, researcher Arthur Anderson isolated the bacteria in the food and discovered Deinococcus radiodurans. The polyextremophile has since been found on the walls of nuclear reactors and overcomes radiation damage through highly optimized DNA repair mechanisms.

The first Thanksgiving meal likely featured a venison stew called sobaheg

Agricultural knowledge was vital to the Pilgrims’ survival in a new, unknown land. Explore how to make sobaheg, a Wampanoag venison stew that would likely have been served at the first meal between the Wampanoag and the Pilgrims.

How did flea markets get their name?

Flea markets are a great place to find some great deals, but why do they have such an unappealing name? One explanation is what you might expect: The earliest descriptions of these second-hand markets suggested the items might be unclean. But that's not the only plausible suggestion. This article breaks down two other possibilities, complicating our understanding of the word's etymology.

Springsteen's nickname 'the Boss' began as a joke

Springsteen's E Street bandmates originally called him the "Gut Bomb King" because of his affinity for candy. He hated the name and jokingly began calling himself "the Boss" instead. When critics began digging into Springsteen's backstory after the success of "Born to Run," they unearthed the nickname.

Trademarks are a form of consumer protection

Trademarks help brands distinguish their products from competitors, but they also give consumers clarity around the product they are buying and where it comes from. Distinguishable names help prevent consumer confusion and maintain a consumer's ability to choose their preferred product and brand.

McDonald's intentionally avoids using the word 'milkshake'

The restaurant's US menus use an abbreviated term: the simple "shake." Conspiracy theorists suggest this means the chain doesn't use actual milk, but the truth is a bit more complicated and—much to their displeasure—mostly related to dairy regulations.

T. rex hunted for prey but wasn't above scavenging rotting meat

Despite possessing a huge head full of serrated teeth the size of rail spikes, the Tyrannosaurus rex had puny, rigid arms, and scientists think it enjoyed scavenging.

Bluefin tuna, now used in high-end sushi, was once reserved for cat food

Until the ‘70s, the enormous fish were the base for cat food or, at times, thrown into the trash. Now it’s the most expensive fish in the ocean and is a popular topping for nigiri sushi thanks to the abundance of fat in its belly.

The Tonys got their name from Antoinette Perry

In 1946, trailblazing director Antoinette Perry died after decades of creative success. The following year, Perry's professional partner, Brock Pemberton, founded a series of awards to honor her. While handing out an award at the first ceremony, Pemberton referred to it using Antoinette's nickname of "Tony," and the name caught on.

The Dracula character, now seen as the vampire archetype, was inspired by a seafood-induced nightmare its creator experienced.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a group of young men ate standard American food—replete with food additives like borax and formaldehyde—as part of government research to better understand food safety.

After her fellow cult members tried to kill her with an LSD-infused hamburger, one member of the Manson Family, the murderous cult led by Charles Manson, decided to testify against the group's leader.

Some Pokémon have been named after real and fictional organisms, while some real-world species have been named after Pokémon, such as Chilicola charizard and Binburrum zapdos.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

Georgia O'Keeffe's flower paintings are often assumed to be sexual, though the artist claimed she was simply interested in highlighting the beauty of flowers that most people neglect

Poison ivy is in the same family as mangoes, cashews, and pistachios—and they all produce oily urushiol in their raw, unprocessed state—but they are typically prepared in ways to avoid causing human discomfort.

The Beatles' US label rejected the band's first two singles, 'Please Please Me' and 'From Me to You,' with one executive calling the band 'dead in the water.'

Read a deep dive on the 'all-purpose healing' peptide BPC-157.

A small portion of The Winstons' 'Amen, Brother,' an obscure '60s gospel record, is the basis for thousands of hip-hop tracks, making it one of the most sampled records ever that's informally known as 'the Amen break.'

When a Paris department store hesitated to sell Estée Lauder's perfume, she 'accidentally' broke a bottle, causing the smell to spread throughout the store and shoppers to start asking to buy the scent.

Many legends about George Washington, including his supposed wooden teeth and the story of cutting down the cherry tree, lack evidence.

See how fireworks are made and learn how metals like magnesium and copper are responsible for different colors.

Mark Twain spent decades feuding with the US Postal Service, convinced its costs and regulations were bureaucratic overreach.

See how Budweiser's famous Clydesdales spend their days at Warm Springs Ranch, where roughly 70 to 80 of the beer brand's giant horses can be found at any given time.

Explore an interactive map of battles from the American Revolution, along with detailed summaries of each engagement

Sony set the standard for cylinder-shaped batteries when it repurposed manufacturing equipment used to make rolls of magnetic recording tape.

Corals are themselves not coral reefs—the term refers to the tiny marine invertebrates that build the rigid reef.

Neutron stars, the remains of some massive stars after they explode in a supernova, are the densest directly observable objects in the universe.

Long before Major League Baseball began allowing instant replay for balls and strikes, an umpire reluctantly used the technology to determine whether a hit was a home run, a move that inadvertently ushered in a new era for the sport.

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

Learn how to read a prospectus, the juicy document that any company must file with the SEC before going public.

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.

El Niño, Spanish for 'the boy,' was named after Jesus Christ because the phenomenon resembled the weather changes observed around Christmastime.