Ingredipedia
Food
About
Want to feast on funny food facts and fables? Or slurp up strange and spicy stories from supermarkets and society? Bite into Australia’s funnest food podcast, Ingredipedia. Each episode, competitive hosts Emily Naismith (Broadsheet, frankie magazine) and Ben Birchall (3RRR FM’s Breakfasters, Smith Journal) try to serve the most interesting stories about a specific ingredient (say, Tim Tams or chillies) in a bid for your affection. You get to vote for who was the most interesting on Instagram!It’s fun! It’s lighthearted! It’s largely unhinged! It’s the McDonald’s Happy Meal of the podcast world (but back when you actually got a Cheeseburger and a toy inside). Join us on social media for more weird and snacky food pursuitsInstagram: @ingredipediaTikTok: @ingredipediaCreditsMusic: Jarrad Brown of Eagle and the WormArtwork design: Jess RamseyPhotography: Phoebe Powell
Episodes
- ☀️Turmeric: Health "shots", savoury granola and our foray into fashion👠
Look out, Milan... we're coming for the SS27 runways. Plus, we're coming for your breakfast with an unusual granola and Ben's coming for your dinner with some diabolically delicious options involving your favourite odd-looking root-thing (…
- 🍓Lamingtons: Should they have jam? Or something even... nuttier?✨
The Ingredipedia episode explores the debate over jam in lamingtons and describes the invention of a dream lamington.
- 🍔Salmon: Filet-O-Fish upgrade and we bring back salmon patties🐟
This Ingredipedia episode explores the history of tinned salmon aversion, techniques for crispy salmon skin, and the rationale behind adding fish to fast-food burgers.
- 🌈Fruit Tingles: Where the f**k is rainbow? When a ‘tingle’ becomes a ‘tangle’ 🍹
The Ingredipedia episode explores the Fruit Tingle, focusing on its rainbow color and the distinction between a Fruit Tingle and a Fruit Tangle, as discussed by Em and Ben.
- 🍇Sultanas: Cornflake Cookies incredible origin; do they belong in curried sausages?🤔
The Ingredipedia hosts debate the use of sultanas in savory cooking. One host defends their inclusion, while the other delves into the history of a Cornflake Cookie recipe and recounts a significant personal anecdote.
- ☕Flat white: The surprising origin story & how to find great coffee overseas✈️
The Ingredipedia episode discusses the origin of the flat white, questioning its strong association with Melbourne. It also provides advice on locating good coffee when traveling abroad and includes a personal admission about coffee-making.
- 🧈Passionfruit: Yo-yos vs melting moments; Passiona's big secret 🤫
Some pavlova toppings are better than others (there we said it) and Passiona has been lying to you your whole life. And don't want to alarm you, but there is a difference between two of the most nanna-coded homemade biscuits yo…
- 🥥Coconut Water: Why is it Easter-flavoured… and can we make it a breakfast?🍫
One of us hates coconut water and the other loves it... where do you stand? Could Easter egg flavoured coconut water turn you from a hater to an aficionado? Could your love of coconut water extend to breakfast concoctions? From the 'cloud…
- 🍪Miso: The best biscuits I've ever made; and cuppa soup's elevated cousin✨
Can't afford salmon in this economy? We've got a miso hack for you right outta the tin. We know we're always committing food crimes for this podcast, but not today... just making the greatest biscuits of our lives full stop. You might lear…
- 🐰Nesquik: From Quik to Nesquik… and the case for hot banana milk🍌
Were you a Milo house or a Nesquik house growing up? In this episode we dive into the great flavoured milk rivalry and revisit the moment in the ’90s when Quik suddenly became Nesquik. Also, your winter just got a whole lot more inte…
- 👻Pomegranate: The salad that haunted every BBQ & are they worth the effort?😫
You know the salad we mean. It was everywhere in the early 2010s! We find out if it was actually good and why it graced every Christmas and BBQ table for a good decade there. Plus: are pomegranates worth the effort and inevitable kitchen s…
- 😰Cordial: Did it keep us alive as kids? Plus, what the hell is a 'shrub'?🍹
If a single drop of water never passed your lips throughout the '80s and '90s, you will relate to this 'Coola'-flavoured episode. Ben tells tales from his childhood in the battleground that is junior spot and Em makes a more 'adult' versio…
- 🥒Pickles Part 2: Gen Z’s avocado, fashion and McDonald’s secrets🍔
Warning: in this episode we play a snippet from the very first episode of Ingredipedia back in 2015 and... eeek. It's a bit cringe, but there's a rhyme and reason ok!? It's because 'pickles' was our first ever episode topic and we feel lik…
- 🎀Musk Sticks: Why are they in the Disgusting Food Museum? Because testicles 🦌
Who knew these pale pink sticks were so polarising?! Not us, until we researched them in detail for a whole week. Let's head to the milk bar and deep dive into rosewater's trashy sister. Follow us on Instagram ( @ingredipedia ) and TikTok…
- 🥬Iceberg Lettuce: Can you hydrate without water? Plus, 'trash man' salad🥗
Sure, it's the most mocked leafy green but does it have a secret treat lurking within it? And why are we suddenly gnawing a head of lettuce like an apple? And yes, we do a while experiment on hydration, pondering whether iceberg lettuce ca…
- 🧪Lab-grown meat: Would you eat it? (We did)🥩
Step into the future with us and find out what the hell lab-grown meat actually is. Is it meat? Can vegetarians eat it? How the hell is it made? We unpack it all and what it means for ethics, animals and menus… plus, we actually eat…
- 🎂🤎 Mud Cake: Is it the saddest birthday cake? 🎂🤎
Ah, supermarket Mud Cake. $6 of sugar and regret. But what happens if you should present one to Emily for an office birthday? (Hint: BEWARE). Meanwhile, what does supermarket Mud Cake have to with Easter? And are the big chains even trying…
- 🧡Apricot: You’re eating them wrong, ’90s snacks and apricot chicken scroggin🐔
Happy new year, pals! We're back! Where did all the apricot snacks go? They were a staple food group of the 1990s and now we go years without thinking about the humble apricot… WHY!? In our first episode back for 2026, Ben proposes…
- [Re-heated] 🥝 Kiwi: Nature’s sleeping pill… or pizza’s next big scandal?🫢
Could a humble green fruit really help you sleep better? And more controversially… does it belong on a margherita? This week, we investigate the kiwi fruit: its surprising sleep science and its unexpected cameo on pizza. We also exp…
- [Re-heated] 🍓Matcha: Are strawberry matcha lattes over? Matcha vs coffee jitters😰
This is a reheated episode from earlier in the year while we take a short break! Back with a freshly baked episode on January 19. Can matcha give you a jitter-free caffeine boost (unlike coffee)? And we explore whether “ceremonial gr…
- [Reheated] 🍫Dates: Can fruit really replace a Snickers? The best sticky date pudding's unexpected location🚗
This is a reheated episode from earlier in the year while we take a short break! Back with a freshly baked episode on January 19. From a fast-food sticky date pudding you’ve probably never heard of, to a “healthy” Snicker…
- 🎁Custard: Salted egg yolk buns and bottoms up, it’s brandy season!🍹
Ho, ho.. oh shit the custard aisle is stacked it must be brandy custard season! Christmas and custard go hand in hand (as in… try and pry the custard carton out of our hands… we dare you)! We’re going all in on limited…
- 🎅🏻Naughty or nice? A very snacky Christmas road test🍫 [Christmas Sugar Rush]
Seasonal snacks are such a gamble. We take the hit for you and tell you whether they're worth snapping up at the supermarket this Christmas. We've got sweet and savoury covered. Follow us on Instagram ( @ingredipedia ) and TikTok ( @ingred…
- 🍫The Great Supermarket Chocolate Gift-Off🎁 [Christmas Sugar Rush]
It’s last-minute gift season, and we’re entering the most fraught aisle of them all: supermarket chocolate boxes. From Ferrero Rocher to Favourites, Lindt balls to Seashells, we analyse what each box says about you. Which ones…
- 🎄Pavlova trauma and Christmas pudding plot twist 🤯[Christmas Sugar Rush]
This is part one of our three part Christmas Sugar Rush miniseries! Are you team pudding or pav? (It’s ok to be both.) We’re pulling apart two of the most divisive Christmas desserts: pavlova and Christmas pudding. There are ch…
- 🍫Are Dream Balls the new Lindt Balls… and are Cheezels allowed to be flat?🧀
Is white chocolate back from the brink of extinction? And what makes the new Cheezels-flavoured CCs different to the standard CCs? And what do these two very different snacks taste like together? These very important snack questions will b…
- 🍫Violet Crumble: Peanut butter to protein powder… why is it suddenly everywhere?👀
Is Violet Crumble the most prolific brand in the supermarket? It just may be. This week we investigate how a once-niche Australian chocolate bar quietly took over every supermarket aisle – from ice-cream toppings to muesli bars to pr…
- 🫢Asparagus: What it means if your wee smells & vintage appetizers🥂
Ever wondered why asparagus makes your wee smell weird? Or what women were serving at fancy bridge parties in the 1920s? This episode covers both. We revisit the golden age of tinned asparagus (in two forms) and uncover why this diva of th…
- ❄️Nat Thaipun hosts freezer dinner parties and thinks bananas are overrated🍌
Ever wanted to make a Thai style Bunnings sausage? Or pimp your tinned sardines Thai-style? Since winning Masterchef, Nat Thaipun has worked with Jamie Oliver and some of the world’s best restaurants and now she has a (seriously beau…
- 🌽Frozen Veg: Depressing or underrated hero? (feat. a life-changing green sauce)😻
If you hate frozen veg, you might just need to know the heavy hitters and also how to make the greatest green sauce slash dip slash do-it-all condiment with a bag of frozen . We don’t want to give away the secrets without you hearing…
- 🐔Is Chargrilled Spiced Chicken the new Honey Soy Chicken? Is pistachio the new vanilla?🍦 [Road Test]
Are the new Red Rock Deli x Andy Cooks Chef Series chips worth investing in? How about the new pistachio gelato tub from Connoisseur? We will taste them and let you know. And then, of course… we dip the chips in the ice-cream becaus…
- 💪Cottage Cheese: From Fitness Girlie Snack to Cult Chocolate Bar🍫
This episode contains 112% of your recommended daily protein intake. If you’re into obscene retro recipes, there’s a “salad” in here that’ll haunt you for years — but, if you can believe it, there are al…
- 🥒 How does popcorn pickle? And what are these mango gummies all about? [Road Test] 🥭
Another SNACK ROAD TEST where we put our mouths on the line by taste testing new snacks and then share our deep thoughts and feelings. Today we're starting in the popcorn aisle, then getting freaky with gummies. Strap in. Got any sna…
- 🍄 Shiitake: Is this powdered Shiitake snack completely unhinged? And what is a Stir Dry? 🫓
Is shiitake powder the ultimate MSG hit? What does it have to do with the spice trade and 16th century ketchup? And does it pull as well as pork? We also “invent” the stir-dry. It’s going to catch on, believe us. [1:49] P…
- 🎂 Ten Years of Ingredipedia: Best Fails
We can’t believe it either, but Ingredipedia is 10 years old this month. To celebrate, we reaching back to two of our most cursed (and viral) fails. Liverwust Pineapple that didn’t make it out of the fridge, and Maple Butter th…
- 🍦Golden Gaytime: Ice-cream stardom and biscuit sleuthing🕵🏼♀️
They’re an Australian icon, but what the hell do they have to do with the greatest New Zealand biscuit of all time? Plus, find out which international superstar eats five Gaytimes a day when they visit. [1.20] Golden Gaytime biscuits…
- 🍞Toast: Can sweat make it better? Plus, an AFL player shows us how to dunk it🏉
Are you missing out on the greatest form of French toast in the world?! How about the simplest sandwich you've absolutely never tried?! We also talk Frasier, cheap toasters and the baffling way the Melbourne Football Club's Christian Petra…
- 🍫Does anyone actually like Cadbury Twirl? Plus, Zooper Dooper Twisties [Road Test]🫣
We’re trying a lil something new! NEW SNACK ROAD TEST! We’ll put our mouths on the line by taste testing these new snacks and then share our deep thoughts and feelings. Today we’ve got a cavalcade of Twirl varieties and s…
- 😠Parsley: Does the curly one deserve the hate? Garlic bread investigation🍞
WHAT’S THE POINT OF PARSLEY? We start off asking the big questions and end up with parsley stuck in our teeth. There’s an investigation into supermarket garlic bread and Ben fires up about the merits of three different types of…
- 🚫Rice cakes: Why the government ban? How to revive a stale one🍚
Are they delicious crispy spread canvases? Or boring stale cardboard? Either way you slice it, we find out which Australian state government has serious rice cake hate and give you two ways to crisp up stale rice cakes. [1.31] Government b…
- 🍫Dates: Can fruit really replace a Snickers? The best sticky date pudding's unexpected location🚗
From a fast-food sticky date pudding you’ve probably never heard of, to a “healthy” Snickers dupe, and even a butter-filled date that tastes like cookie dough – we’re uncovering the sweetest (and strangest) si…
- 🇯🇵Pocky: Is Pepero coming for them? Plus, all the cutest limited editions 💕
Is Korea’s Pepero a copycat, a contender or just a chunkier-coated cousin? Plus, we share our all-time favourite limited edition Pocky flavours (heart-shaped sticks! real cheese!) and the truly wild varieties we wish we could try. Fr…
- 🥝 Kiwi: Nature’s sleeping pill… or pizza’s next big scandal?🫢
Could a humble green fruit really help you sleep better? And more controversially… does it belong on a margherita? This week, we investigate the kiwi fruit: its surprising sleep science and its unexpected cameo on pizza. We also exp…
- 🍋Solo: Can you taste the masculinity? What about the alcohol?💪🏻
We crack open Australia’s most questionably marketed soft drink and slam it down. Ben investigates the myth of the original ‘Solo Man’ and the sweaty, hyper-masculine world he paddled in from. Meanwhile, Em attempts a tas…
- 🌮Tortillas: Are hard shell tacos actually tacos? (And did we just invent the gummy taco?)🌮
Hard shell tacos: iconic or imposter? Em investigates the surprisingly complicated history of crunchy tacos. Meanwhile, Ben makes a tortilla filled with Doritos and gummy bears (yes, really) and shares his deep love for his favourite kitch…
- 🐸Which ‘90s Freddo did we bring back from the dead? Plus, Ben's childhood nickname trauma😖
We’re diving deep into the murky chocolate waters of Freddo Frog history — from lost flavours of the ’90s to chocolate frog-inspired emotional trauma. Em brings back a colourful, much-loved Freddo (kind of), while Ben sha…
- 🫣Kangaroo is my main protein. Am I a monster? Would you eat a McRoo?🦘
Em makes a shocking confession: a huuuuge portion of the red meat she eats is kangaroo and she feels weird about it. We unpack why eating Australia’s most iconic animal still feels taboo, even though it's iron-rich, sustainable, and…
- 🍫Mars Bar: Is Moro the ‘Temu’ version? Uncanny Mars Bar tweaks worldwide🤯
Does the Mars Bar deserve it's status as one of the elite chocolate bars? Or have major developments in the Moro landscape have it quaking in its boots? Also, just what the f**k is a Mars Bar in other countries? Because it's not …
- 🍓Matcha: Are strawberry matcha lattes over? Matcha vs coffee jitters😰
Plus, can matcha give you a jitter-free caffeine boost (unlike coffee)? And we explore whether “ceremonial grade” is a con. And yes, we look into what’s next in the iced strawberry matcha latte world and also think about…
- 🤨Milo: Has it finally gone too far? And why is it huge in Malaysia?🦖
How do you drink your Milo? Everyone has their own personal rituals which we’ll explore, but we’ll also cover the incredible ways it’s enjoyed in Malaysia. And of course, we get a little ranty about all the wild Milo prod…