Anyone who takes care of kids knows that eating off children's plates is part of the everyday dining experience. But which kid scraps make for the most delicious eats? How can an eater make these scraps even better? And which touched/dropped/pre-masticated foods are just too gross to consume?

Hillary Frank of WNYC's parenting podcast The Longest Shortest Time is disgusted by my answers, but I remain undeterred. I talk to Arun Venugopal of WNYC's Micropolis about the role of eating with your hands in Indian culture and how it can help parents find prized morsels in their kids' post-meal detritus.

Plus, former New York Congressman Anthony Weiner discusses the scraps he most enjoys eating from his toddler's high chair, and my own daughters demonstrate how they eat and share food with the grown-ups in a special Sporkful video. Watch:

After you listen to the show, make sure you check out Hillary and Arun's work. I especially like the episode of Hillary's podcast where she tells natural childbirth guru Ina May Gaskin that she has let Hillary down. And here's the video Arun made about eating with his hands, as discussed in this week's show:

Subscribe to The Sporkful podcast in iTunes.

Photo: Jen Hsu / WNYC