tasteMAKERS

It’s easy to take salt for granted, but there’s a lot more to this essential mineral than you might imagine. In Portland, Oregon, Jacobsen Salt Co. harvests salt from the cold, clean waters of Netarts Bay on the Oregon Coast. We explore exactly how flake sea salt is made and then follow the salt to see how local chefs and makers are utilizing the briny crystals in unique and delicious ways.

At Food Building in Minneapolis, makers focused on transparency, quality and sourcing are working side-by-side, supporting each other and working to build a better food system. Red Table Meat Co., Baker's Field Flour & Bread and Alemar Cheese craft products use locally-sourced ingredients and the chefs at Kieran’s Kitchen pull these artisan creations together on the plate, completing the circle.

As we become more aware of our dinner’s carbon footprint, many are seeking to grow as much as possible close to home using environmentally-sensitive methods. In St. Louis, Matt Lebon of Custom Foodscaping builds permaculture food forests, focusing on native plants and resource management to create bountiful urban harvests.

Just outside of Phoenix, the Button family is cultivating a bean that nourishes the soul as well as the body. Ramona Button was urged by her community’s elders to bring back the tepary bean, a nutrition-packed legume that has been cultivated by the Akimel O’odham people for centuries, but it was all but wiped out by the 1970s.

Almost a thousand years ago, the first Polynesians brought sugarcane to the Hawaiian islands. Today, heirloom varieties are being preserved and cultivated on Oahu by the team at Kô Hana Rum. Unlike most rum, which is made from molasses, Kô Hana’s Agricole-style spirit is made with the juice, capturing the sweet essence of the sugarcane and preserving the unique flavor of these ancient varieties.

Back before refrigeration, in order to preserve food for the winter months, meat was salted, dried or smoked, and fruits and veggies were dried, fermented, pickled or turned into jams. Today, the team at Roots Kitchen & Cannery preserves the flavor of the Montana harvest by turning fresh, organic produce into pickles, preserves and canned goods that have earned a Good Food Award.

Mead dates back to 7000 BC in China where honey was fermented with fruit and rice. At Bløm Meadworks in Michigan, honey from local apiaries is turned into dry, session-style mead. Working in partnership with farmers and beekeepers across the state, Lauren Bloom and Matt Ritchey are creating ferments that capture the essence of the region’s flavor.

Through sustainable aquaculture, Marshallberg Farm is raising thousands of Russian sturgeon, producing environmentally-responsible osetra caviar and smoked sturgeon in North Carolina. Simply cured with salt, this osetra caviar is a buttery, briny indulgence. The fish is critically endangered and farmed sturgeon is categorized as a “Best Choice” on the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch.

Yoshihiro Sako uses time-honored Japanese techniques to brew small-batch sake using single-origin rice grown on Rue & Forsman ranch in the Sacramento Valley. With a focus on crafting sake that is meant to pair with northern California’s renowned cuisine, Yoshi works with the region’s sommeliers and shop owners to bring the beautifully ephemeral flavor of sake to the American table.

Union Kitchen’s Cullen Gilchrist is working to help launch and nurture culinary startups in Washington DC, offering business guidance, a communal kitchen, distribution services and even a string of grocery stores to help ensure success. In this episode, you’ll meet three entrepreneurs who have leveraged Union Kitchen’s assets to launch and grow food brands that have gone national.

Just outside of Austin, James Brown has created a grain hub that connects the region’s bakers, chefs, brewers and distillers with organic heritage grains grown on Texas farms. The rise of artisan baking and craft brewing has spurred a resurgence in locally-milled stone-ground grain, and Barton Springs Mill gets unique varieties of wheat into the hands of Austin’s culinary artisans.

At Smoking Goose in Indianapolis, Chris Eley is taking centuries-old meat preservation techniques and making them his own, creating unique charcuterie that reflects what’s coming from Indiana farms. In his aging room, beneficial bacteria and yeast work their magic over a span of weeks -- and sometimes years -- developing complex flavors and textures.