Padma Lakshmi recently published a memoir—Love, Loss and What We Ate—but somehow, what she's about to do seems even more revealing.
"I feel incredibly exposed right now," she laughs.
The Top Chef host has agreed to let us snoop inside her fridge and freezer (and post the photos for you to see), giving us an inside peek at what fuels her throughout the day. And, admittedly, a chance to see if she succumbs to the occasional binge on Thin Mints or straight-from-the-container swig of milk, like the rest of us.
In the process of being nosy, we uncovered much more than Lakshmi's must-have foods; we also picked up some critical food-prepping tips and weeknight dinner ideas—and stumbled upon one thing she couldn't resist smuggling from the Top Chef set.
Let's have a look, shall we?
1. She Stocks Preserved Lemons Like You Stock Milk.
To be fair, Lakshmi often has organic whole milk on hand too, but preserved lemons are an absolute kitchen staple.
"They're the unsung hero of Moroccan cuisine; you can do anything with them," she says. The lemon halves are stored in oil with saffron, salt and nigella seeds, giving them a stronger, more savory flavor than regular lemons—and making them the perfect addition to a variety of easy dinners.
Lakshmi often chops a few and adds them to a sauté pan with olive oil, sliced garlic cloves and whatever lean protein she has on hand—fish, chicken or shrimp, typically—along with a 1/4 cup of water to make a thin sauce to top the dish. It's a healthy weeknight dinner that's ready in minutes, which she often serves with rice or vegetables.
She'll also use chopped preserved lemons to add citrusy flavor to green beans and zucchini, as well as when she's making roast chicken.
2. You Won't Find Fresh Ginger.
Lakshmi cooks with ginger often, which is why you'll always find ginger paste within easy reach in her fridge. "It lasts longer than a nub of fresh ginger," she explains.
3. She Makes It Easy to Eat Healthy.
Greens, spinach and other fresh vegetables are always on hand, and they're stored right about at eye level, so they're the first thing Lakshmi sees when she opens the fridge.
Also close at hand? Eggs. Lakshmi keeps half a dozen pre-boiled, so she can grab one for a protein-rich snack, or whip up a quick egg salad for her or her daughter.
4. There's A Secret Stash You Can't See.
In the drawer at the bottom of her fridge, Lakshmi stores her guilty pleasure: All kinds of cheese. "That's where I store the juiciest things," she says. "For me, that's cheese—I have four or five kinds at any given time, from Manchego to a French triple cream—and for my daughter, it's string cheese or Greek yogurt sticks."
5. She's All for a Good "Rolling Meal."
Lakshmi often cooks in big batches, repurposing last night's dinner for the next day's meal. "I tend to have rolling meals, where one spills into the next," she says. "I'll put chicken in a stock pot for soup one night, then use leftover chicken for tacos the next night."
Her years spent cooking taught her the value of great mise en place—AKA "everything in its place," prepped, measured and ready to go—as a way to save time cooking. Those three stacked containers on the bottom shelf, for example, each contain a different ingredient from taco night: poached chicken, greens, and black beans that have been boiled and drained.
The chicken and greens could be used for a salad later on, and the black beans could be mixed with rice for another meal.
6. She Keeps an Award in the Fridge.
Sort of. The two boxes on the bottom shelf contain bottles of Champagne, and one is a vintage bottle Bravo sent her when she was nominated for an Emmy for her work on Top Chef.
6. She Loves Chutney More Than Schmidt from 'New Girl.'
The door of her fridge is well-stocked with all kinds of chutneys, both homemade and store-bought. "Kumquat and ginger chutney, and this cranberry chutney my mom made at Thanksgiving are the ones I use the most," Lakshmi says. "I love that even if I'm in a rush, all I have to do is add some to a whole chicken or fish, and dinner's ready."
7. She Swiped This from the 'Top Chef' Set.
"It's hard to see in the photo, due to the reflection from my window, but on the top righthand side of the door—that bottle to the rightmost with the red top—it's hot sauce from the New Orleans season of Top Chef," she says. Each contestant made his or her own sauce from scratch during the Quickfire Challenge, and while she typically never takes home a contestant's meal after a shoot, she couldn't resist sneaking off with a few bottles.
"They were going to toss them out, so I grabbed a few of my favorites," she says. (Her top pick? Carrie Mashaney's sauce. "Dr. John [the guest judge] may not have liked it, but I thought it was the best. I wanted her to win that one," Lakshmi confesses.)
8. There's Something Unexpected in Her Freezer.
Lakshmi's such a big believer in keeping pre-cooked, frozen rice on hand as a way to save time making dinner that she actually has her own collection of Easy Exotic grains. "They're so good to have on standby," she says. "I came back from Paris last week and got home late, and it was so easy to just pull out that rice and heat it up with some black beans."
Her Madras Lemon Rice, for example, is based on her grandmother's recipe. "Every South Indian house has lemon rice," Lakshmi says. "It has a clean flavor, and it's beautiful with a whole roasted chicken stuffed with lemons and rosemary, or with shrimp or any kind of white fish."
9. She's an Ice Cream and Sorbet Fanatic.
As you can see, ice cream and sorbet—and the bowl of an ice cream maker—take up pretty much the rest of the freezer. The resealable container on the top left contains her favorite flavor: A homemade lychee sorbet with brown sugar and cardamom in it.
If we are what we eat, Lakshmi seems pretty well-balanced.
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