Cultivating a Curious Palate

“I see this as a culinary journey that I’m taking him on. I’m trying to prepare all different types of foods, from different cultures, with different ingredients, and just getting his feedback and opening up his palate more — and hopefully sparking curiosity through that.” ~ Jack Zhang

Instagram and TikTok sensation chef Jack Zhang, aka @CookingForLevi, has some things to teach the rest of us about the adventure that is food and toddlers. His delightful videos are proof that bringing a little curiosity into the kitchen can make mealtime magic happen. Young Levi is a curious eater, eagerly joining his parents on the culinary journey they’re offering. 

Jack and his wife Emmy have just come out with Cultivating a Curious Palate, a cookbook of the delicious and exotic dishes Jack has been making for Levi. How could I not ask for a chat?

“I think curiosity is what really inspired me and drove me, because every time I made something I would be, like, how I can make this better, how can I improve on this?”

Choose to be Curious · Ep. #206: Cultivating a Curious Palate, with Jack Zhang

Listen to Choose to be Curious #206: Cultivating a Curious Palate, with Jack Zhang

Jack and Emmy have found their way to some terrific curiosity (and parenting) practices: they provide a sense of safety in and for exploration; they make their own interests and enthusiasm contagious; they prime their young son for the adventures ahead; and they serve as curious role models themselves, setting Levi up for positive encounters with novel experiences.

I haven’t stopped smiling since we spoke.

Check out Cooking for Levi!

You can order Cultivating a Curious Palate in paperback or eBook from Amazon.

Susan Engel would be proud of Jack and Emmy, Check out her book The Hungry Mind: The Origins of Curiosity in Childhood, and my interview with her in the Curiosity Studies Series, “Why Should This Be So?” with Susan Engel.

Special thanks to Jennifer Mendelsohn, who pointed me to Jack. A journalist, genealogist and gifted storyteller, Jennifer is a people connecter. She played a special role in another C2BC episode many years ago when she helped figure out what became of my mother-in-law’s long lost father.

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Plum King” by Molerider, via Blue Dot Sessions.

You can subscribe to Choose to be Curious on Apple Podcasts and now on Spotify. 

Wear your curiosity on your sleeve. Check out the Choose to be Curious shop!

India Asks Why

“We were frustrated that there was no platform like this, so that’s when we were like, okay, maybe we can become that platform.” ~ Ruchi Manglunia

Maybe it was the pandemic. Maybe curiosity in having a moment globally. I’m not sure what it is, but the thirst for learning and the attendant explosion of science communication efforts in India are noteworthy.

I sat down with Ruchi Manglunia and Shweata N. Hegde, aka Jigyasa and Utsuka, the charming — and unapologetically curious — co-founders and hosts of India Asks Why, a “science podcast for young minds.” We talked about their inspiration, operation, and hopes for a more curious future. 

For you to be curious, you have to have that support system — and I’m glad we have. We hope to be that support system to other people.

Shweata N. Hegde

Choose to be Curious · Ep. #205: India Asks Why, with Ruchi Manglunia & Shweata Hegde

Listen to Choose to be Curious #205: India Asks Why, with Ruchi Manglunia & Shweata N. Hegde

Check out India Asks Why. What question might you pose?

Kudos to Ruchi, who won the Audience Choice award at the 2023 Swiss FameLab science communication slam.

Shweata and Ruchi are deeply appreciative of the support they receive from India BioScience.

Read up on Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky and The Undoing Project. 

Theme music by Sean Balick. “Glass Beads” by The Balloonist, via Blue Dot Sessions. 

You can subscribe to Choose to be Curious on Apple Podcasts and now on Spotify. 

Wear your curiosity on your sleeve. Check out the Choose to be Curious shop!