Encore | José Andrés: Recipe for Connection

As we enjoy the final swing of summer, we’re sharing one of our most memorable episodes on building connection.  

Why is food a foundation for human connection? Chef José Andrés has spent a lifetime of cooking for friends & family at home, in his many restaurants, and for people stricken by disaster around the world. For José, sharing and providing food spreads the empathy he believes people naturally possess for one another. This conversation between the nation's doctor and the global chef will make you want to break bread with those near and far, and it will leave you laughing over the unforgettable story of José's most stunning kitchen catastrophe. 

(04:16)    How José feels at home anywhere he is 

(05:10)    Where did José’s sense of self come from? 

(12:01)    What is at the heart of our relationship to food 

(21:05)    What inspired José to use food as empathy during disaster 

(27:16)    How do we have conversations about love & empathy? 

(31:48)    Where does José turn to when he loses hope? 

(37:36)    Favorite comfort foods 

(38:29)    His worst (and most hilarious) tale of kitchen disaster 

José Andrés, Chef & Humanitarian

Instagram: @chefjoseandres 

Twitter: @chefjoseandres 

Facebook: chefjoseandres 

About José Andrés 

Born in Spain, where he learned the craft of cooking first from his parents and then in the kitchen of Ferran Adrià’s groundbreaking avant-garde restaurant elBulli – José Andrés immigrated to the United States in 1991, first to New York City and later to Washington, D.C., where he and his partners established a group of restaurants that has earned countless fans and won numerous awards over the years. 

José holds close both his identity as a Spanish immigrant and an American citizen, placing upon himself the responsibility of both culinary ambassador and immigrant representing the two nations. He is a visionary and a humanitarian, establishing World Central Kitchen in 2010 as a means for feeding the many – using culinary training programs to empower communities and strengthen economies as well as food disaster relief in the wake of emergencies around the globe. 

He has been widely recognized for both his culinary and his humanitarian work, including by the James Beard Foundation, which named him Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic in 2003, as well as Humanitarian of the Year in 2018; TIME Magazine, which included him on the list of 100 Most Influential People in 2012 and 2018; and President Obama, who awarded José the National Humanities Medal in 2015. José holds two Michelin stars for his avant-garde tasting counter minibar by José Andrés in Washington, D.C., as well as four Bib Gourmands. 

For more conversations, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls. 

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