Food Lovers’ Double Feature: Hulu’s ‘The Next Thing You Eat’ & ‘Taste the Nation’ | Entertainment

(Premieres Thursday, November 4)

Think you know all the classic holiday dishes? Think again. In four special episodes of her cooking and travel series Taste the Nation, Top Chef host and self-described food nerd Padma Lakshmi seeks out minority communities to see what they eat when they celebrate. Items on the menu: potato latkes (for Jewish New Yorkers’ Hanukkah), clam chowder (for the Wampanoag Nation’s Thanksgiving) and whole roasted pig (for Nochebuena, the Cuban Christmas Eve feast).

Light talk about food leads to meatier conversations about the struggles each community has faced. “I want to give our audience the whole story — that’s what makes us human,” Lakshmi explains. “It was very moving to share such intimate moments with the families.” Hearty and heartfelt? Raise a glass to that!

Robots cooking meals, meat and fish grown in laboratories, delivery by drone…welcome to the wild future of the food business! Famed restaurateur David Chang dives into how the industry is rapidly evolving—and what that could mean for the rest of us—on this fascinating six-part series, featuring guests like actor Danny Trejo. “It’s a peek at what’s around the corner,” says Chang, who notes that while many things may be changing, others stay the same. Two important takeaways: Food will forever unite us, and hamburgers aren’t going anywhere!