Samin Nosrat is the author of bestselling cookbook Salt Fat Acid Heat, which is being turned into a 4-part documentary on Netflix. It's essentially a cooking class in book form.

It also has a whole page just on toast.

“One of my pet peeves is over-toasted bread,” she tells Dan in the middle of an epic discourse on the finer points of toast.

You see, even though she’s reached the highest levels of the food world, Samin hates pretentiousness. And she still has an outsider’s perspective.

“I absolutely know what it is to be different and to be made to feel different and to be very aware of that all of the time.”

This week on The Sporkful, Samin explains why she always felt like an outsider, and whether any amount of success can make you feel like you fit in.

In college, Samin got her start in the food world at legendary Bay Area restaurant, Chez Panisse. But even as she rose through the ranks of the food industry, she still felt different from her peers. For one, throughout her life, no one ever pronounced Samin’s name correctly. (It's sah-MEEN.)

The first time she remembers people making an effort to learn the pronunciation of her name was when publishers wanted to buy the rights to her book. In fact, she found out that the publishers had called her book agent in advance to make sure they got it right.

“I couldn’t believe that that had happened, and I felt so proud that I had reached that point.” But a few years later, it made her angry. Hear why in the episode.

Plus, Samin gives Dan the inside scoop on a controversy roiling the world of fancy food--a controversy that started with a spoon.

Interstitial music in this episode by Black Label Music:

- "Kenny" by Hayley Briasco

- "Sidewalk Chalk" by Hayley Briasco

- "Rooftop Instrumental" by Erick Anderson

- "New Old" by James Thomas Bates

Photos: Courtesy of Samin Nosrat