Pakistani-American communities in the U.S. rely on dealers on WhatsApp to gain access to their most coveted treasure: Pakistani mangoes. And they pay a premium for it. In part one of this two-part investigation, reporter Ahmed Ali Akbar searches for answers. Why are Pakistani mangoes so hard to find? And why is the Pakistani community resorting to deals on WhatsApp to procure them? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-s...
Dec 19, 2019•34 min•Season 3Ep. 6
In 2015, Will Harris, a farmer in southwest Georgia, partnered with Spanish entrepreneur father and son to bring Iberian pigs to the United States. The climate would be different (from hot, dry Spain to wet, humid Georgia) and so would the pigs' diet (they would eat Georgia pecans instead of acorns), but Harris figured this expensive gamble could pay off. Can jamón ibérico can be reduced to a simple formula (pigs + pasture + acorns), or is there more to the story? See Privacy Policy at https://a...
Dec 12, 2019•37 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Reporter Kayla Stewart attempts to trace Gulf Coast dish Jambalaya back to its rumored roots in West Africa’s Jollof Rice. Kayla’s journey to find a connection between the two dishes takes her from her mother’s Houston kitchen to the streets of Accra. But instead of a link, she finds that the history of African American food ways cannot be separated from the influences of slavery and colonialism. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/p...
Dec 05, 2019•44 min•Season 3Ep. 4
A South African Entrepreneur, Leah Bessa, discovers that processing Black Soldier Fly larvae produces a milk-like substance, dubbed Entomilk. Can Leah’s entomilk ice cream succeed as a dairy-alternative? Although South African populations have a traditional history of bug-eating, can modern society overcome its ick-factor to take advantage of all bugs have to offer? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Nov 21, 2019•40 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In a deep dive into “prepper” culture, we learn what makes up the ultimate survival cuisine. We investigate the motivation of this subculture that stocks up on non-perishables for the end-of-times. Should the desire to survive be reduced to a quirky paranoia, or is the quest to prepare for survival in dire circumstances more noble than we give it credit for? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Nov 14, 2019•38 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Mezcal has recently enjoyed a spike in popularity, which brought a welcome surge to the Oaxacan economy, the southern Mexican state where Mezcal is produced. But is the demand for Mezcal outgrowing the supply? What can be done to ensure it survives for years to come without sacrificing the agave plants and land that sustain it? Can mezcal avoid becoming the next tequila? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info...
Nov 07, 2019•40 min•Season 3Ep. 1
An underground mango industry, the hidden costs of your favorite Mezcal, and ice cream made from bugs. Season 3 goes deep to challenge our ideas about what we eat and uncover where it comes from. Tune in for Season 3 of Proof beginning November 7. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Oct 17, 2019•3 min•Season 3Ep. 1
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: does eating ice cream slower prevent a brain freeze? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Oct 03, 2019•7 min•Season 2Ep. 18
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: do pistachios spontaneously combust? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Sep 26, 2019•10 min•Season 2Ep. 17
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: If I was stranded on a deserted island, what's the best food to wish for? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Sep 19, 2019•10 min•Season 2Ep. 16
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: What are the weirdest things US presidents ate? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Sep 12, 2019•15 min•Season 2Ep. 15
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: If you flung a cookie dough ball into space, how long until it bakes into a cookie? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Sep 05, 2019•15 min•Season 2Ep. 14
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: why is ranch so addictive? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Aug 29, 2019•14 min•Season 2Ep. 13
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: In a world fraught with food fraud, how do you know what you're buying? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Aug 22, 2019•10 min•Season 2Ep. 12
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: How much kombucha would it take to get you drunk? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Aug 15, 2019•16 min•Season 2Ep. 11
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: Is cereal soup? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Aug 08, 2019•15 min•Season 2Ep. 10
In these bonus episodes, we try to answer your weird food questions. This week: Why are some flavor pairings divine (chocolate + coffee) and others horrible (orange juice after toothpaste)? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Aug 01, 2019•12 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Chinese restaurants are an essential part of the American landscape -- even more ubiquitous than McDonald’s. But a century ago, they were almost extinguished by legislation passed around the country that barred young white women from eating at chop suey houses. This is the story of an organized effort to wipe out Chinese eateries altogether and how these restaurants survived in spite of it. We want to get your feedback about Proof. Please take this survey so we know what you like and what we can...
Jul 18, 2019•35 min•Season 2Ep. 8
“Ugly Food” subscription boxes propose to solve a very big problem: nearly half of all the food produced in the United States is being wasted, even while many struggle to put food on the table each day. But can delivering a box of three-legged carrots and misshapen squash really address the root causes of food waste? Or is the Ugly Foods movement actually doing more harm than good? We want to get your feedback about Proof. Please take this survey so we know what you like and what we can do bette...
Jul 11, 2019•39 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Makgeolli is a quintessentially Korean alcohol, but few people outside of the Korean peninsula have ever heard of, much less tasted it. Even within Korea, it’s mostly known as an overly sweet, low quality drink available at every corner convenience store. But the real version of Makgeolli is the product of centuries of traditional Korean brewing techniques -- an elegant, complex, and balanced brew easily made in any home kitchen with only three ingredients: water, rice, and a fermentation starte...
Jun 27, 2019•36 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Eliza Tibbets was ahead of her time. She was a suffragist, an abolitionist, held regular seances in her home, and lived in a utopian community. And in Riverside, California, she was also considered the unofficial queen of the orange industry. As local legend has it, every navel orange tree in the Golden state can be traced back to cuttings from the two parent trees in Eliza’s front yard. This is the little known story of how an amateur farmer with utopian dreams launched an entire industry. See ...
Jun 20, 2019•30 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Great wine begins with high quality grapes, careful fermentation, deft blending techniques, and, in Mexico’s Valle de Guadalupe, a group of puritanical Russian immigrants called the “molokans.” Learn how this region’s earliest settlers escaped from religious persecution in tsarist Russia and how a culture of innovation and experimentation has transformed this humble strip of land near the Pacific coast into one of the most fawned over and exciting wine destinations in the world. See Privacy Poli...
Jun 13, 2019•41 min•Season 2Ep. 4
The snakehead has been described as one of the ugliest fish in the world. It has a thick neck and razor-sharp teeth. It's been rumored to bite little kids and walk on land. It’s also an invasive species that’s been plaguing the Potomac river system for nearly two decades. Can turning this monster into a local delicacy save the Potomac? See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Jun 06, 2019•40 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Probiotics are everywhere, but the science that explains the mechanism of the gut-brain connection still isn't there. Harvard PhD candidate Cary Allen-Blevins is researching everything from breast milk to kombucha to better understand the role of probiotics in gut health. This episode is a collaboration between Proof and Veritalk from Harvard's Graduate School for Arts and Sciences. The original version is part of a series on food that Veritalk produced recently. Check it out at: https://gsas.ha...
May 30, 2019•27 min•Season 2Ep. 2
In the 1970s, the Miracle Berry was poised to become the sugar replacement of choice. It was hailed as the solution to the diabetes epidemic, and was preferred to every other sugar alternative in blind taste tests. The fruit contains a taste-altering protein, miraculin, that makes sour foods taste sweet. So why haven't you heard of it? Did "big sugar" engineer its downfall? And can modern food entrepreneurs reposition the miracle berry as the future of sweet? See Privacy Policy at https://a...
May 23, 2019•43 min•Season 2Ep. 1
An FDA conspiracy, an invasive species threatening our waterways, and an emerging wine region that shouldn't work. If you thought Season 1 changed the way you thought about food, stay tuned. Season 2 of Proof starts May 23rd. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
May 02, 2019•3 min•Season 2Ep. 1
A conversation with culinary historian Michael Twitty about the history of American Barbecue. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Apr 11, 2019•22 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Jack Bishop discusses the history and unique flavor of celery tonic. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Mar 21, 2019•9 min•Season 1Ep. 13
You've seen them on labels, but what are natural and artificial flavors anyway? Reporter Sara Joyner explains. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Mar 07, 2019•9 min•Season 1Ep. 12
How do the test cooks at America's Test Kitchen manage their cravings? Jack Bishop heads into the kitchen to find out. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Feb 21, 2019•7 min•Season 1Ep. 11
