The Wild Kitchen

Great charcuterie doesn’t start in the curing room. It starts with the animal.Elias Cairo has spent most of his life chasing that idea.Elias is the founder of Olympia Provisions in Portland, Oregon, one of the most respected charcuterie producers in North America. What began as a small project has grown into a group of restaurants and curing rooms, but the heart of Olympia Provisions is still a tight knit crew of people committed to doing things the right way.In this conversation, Elias shares the path that brought him there.As a young cook he left North America to apprentice in Switzerland, where food traditions are treated with deep respect and charcuterie is inseparable from farming, animals, and place. When he returned home, he realized that if he wanted to make that kind of product here, he would have to build the systems himself.Finding farmers raising animals the right way.Creating relationships that ensure consistent quality.Building a company culture where everyone understands the responsibility behind the food they produce.Because great charcuterie is not just about technique. It is about people, animals, and the discipline to do things properly.We talk about hunting, wild game, fermentation, patience, and the long pursuit of making food that people trust.Guest LinksOlympia Provisionshttps://www.olympiaprovisions.comOlympia Provisions Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/olympiaprovisionsElias Cairohttps://www.olympiaprovisions.com/blogs/bios/9641623-elias-cairo_____Silvercore is built on a lifetime spent outdoors, on ranges and in the company of people who live with skill, purpose and integrity. Here you will find real conversations, fieldcraft, practical training, stories from the wild and the lessons that help us grow mentally and physically. Whether it is a podcast with someone who has been tested, a tip you can use today or a look behind the scenes, the goal is to help you live stronger, safer and more capable in the outdoors and in life.Silvercore Club members receive exclusive podcast episodes, online courses, insurance for their adventures and discounts on premium gear:https://bit.ly/2RiREb4Online Training: https://bit.ly/3nJKx7UTraining and Services: https://bit.ly/3vw6kSUMerchandise: https://bit.ly/3ecyvk9Blog: https://bit.ly/3nEHs8WHost Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bader.tiffanySilvercore Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoorsContact:info@silvercore.ca604 940 7785www.silvercore.caAll content on this channel is for informational purposes only. Always follow the law, follow safe handling practices and train with qualified professionals. Silvercore assumes no liability for the use or misuse of any information shown here._____00:00 Introduction to Elias Cairo02:15 First tasting Olympia Provisions05:10 What real charcuterie is08:40 Learning from European food culture14:20 Apprenticeship in Switzerland20:45 Why great charcuterie starts with the animal27:30 Hunting and cooking wild game33:15 The difference between North American and European food traditions40:50 What makes great salami49:10 Patience, fermentation, and curing meat57:30 Building Olympia Provisions1:05:10 Advice for people who want to make charcuterie

Tana Grenda lives off the road system in remote Alaska, flying bush planes, hunting for food, and raising six kids where mistakes have real consequences.In this episode of The Wild Kitchen, Tiffany Bader sits down with Tana to talk about life without convenience and what that demands from the people living it. They get into fear, risk, and preparation, why skill matters more than confidence, and how time on the land changes the way people think, eat, and move through the world.The conversation spans subsistence food, women-only hunting retreats, physical training, health, and the realities of raising a family far from infrastructure. Tana also shares stories from recent hunts and trips, including time spent in Florida dealing with invasive species and the responsibility that comes with harvesting your own food.This episode is about capability, responsibility, and choosing a life that doesn’t offer many shortcuts.Guest Links🌿 Grenda’s Getaways (Wild Women’s Retreats & Adventures) — https://www.bristolbayretreats.com/🎙 Stuck N The Rut Podcast (Hosted by Adam & Tana Grenda) — https://stuckntherut.buzzsprout.com/📍 Wild Women’s Rendezvous (Event Info) — https://www.bristolbayretreats.com/wwridaho_____Silvercore is built on a lifetime spent outdoors, on ranges and in the company of people who live with skill, purpose and integrity. Here you will find real conversations, fieldcraft, practical training, stories from the wild and the lessons that help us grow mentally and physically. Whether it is a podcast with someone who has been tested, a tip you can use today or a look behind the scenes, the goal is to help you live stronger, safer and more capable in the outdoors and in life.Silvercore Club members receive exclusive podcast episodes, online courses, insurance for their adventures and discounts on premium gear:https://bit.ly/2RiREb4Online Training: https://bit.ly/3nJKx7UTraining and Services: https://bit.ly/3vw6kSUMerchandise: https://bit.ly/3ecyvk9Blog: https://bit.ly/3nEHs8WHost Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bader.tiffanySilvercore Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoorsContact:info@silvercore.ca604 940 7785www.silvercore.caAll content on this channel is for informational purposes only. Always follow the law, follow safe handling practices and train with qualified professionals. Silvercore assumes no liability for the use or misuse of any information shown here._____00:00 – Meeting Tana and the Wild Women Rendezvous03:20 – Building the right community and cutting out ego06:40 – Why women-only spaces work differently09:30 – Confidence in the outdoors and confidence in life13:10 – Fear, risk, and being prepared instead of scared15:40 – Living in Alaska off the road system22:00 – Subsistence food, logistics, and real costs of remote life26:10 – Gator, iguana, and python hunting in Florida34:40 – Wildlife management and cultural disconnects39:30 – Health coaching, hormones, and women’s training46:00 – Non-negotiables: sleep, food, movement49:30 – Training women for backcountry hunts54:30 – Wild food, inflammation, and listening to your body59:00 – Why women-only events matter1:02:30 – Children’s books, hunting stories, and legacy

Jeff Senger left accounting to buy a small slaughterhouse in rural Alberta. What followed was sixteen years of working directly with animals, farmers, hunters, and the realities most of us never see behind plastic-wrapped meat.We talk about what changes when food becomes a commodity, why some meat tastes alive and some doesn’t, and how much control we actually have as eaters. Jeff shares what it’s like to stand on a kill floor, why he believes butchers still matter, and how flavour, ethics, and responsibility are tied together whether we want to admit it or not.Topics include:What slaughter actually looks like and why hiding it mattersHow feed, age, and handling shape flavorThe difference between real butchery and portioningChronic wasting disease and what responsibility looks like in real lifeWhy whole animals used to feed communities, not marketsHow trust is built between hunters, farmers, and butchersThe Wild Kitchen with Tiffany Bader Ep. 4🌿 Learn more about Jeff Senger:https://www.instagram.com/jeff_senger/🔥 The Wild Kitchen:https://thewildkitchen.transistor.fmhttps://instagram.com/thewildkitchen_____Silvercore is built on a lifetime spent outdoors, on ranges and in the company of people who live with skill, purpose and integrity. Here you will find real conversations, fieldcraft, practical training, stories from the wild and the lessons that help us grow mentally and physically. Whether it is a podcast with someone who has been tested, a tip you can use today or a look behind the scenes, the goal is to help you live stronger, safer and more capable in the outdoors and in life.Silvercore Club members receive exclusive podcast episodes, online courses, insurance for their adventures and discounts on premium gear:https://bit.ly/2RiREb4Online Training: https://bit.ly/3nJKx7UTraining and Services: https://bit.ly/3vw6kSUMerchandise: https://bit.ly/3ecyvk9Blog: https://bit.ly/3nEHs8WHost Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bader.tiffanySilvercore Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoorsContact:info@silvercore.ca604 940 7785www.silvercore.caAll content on this channel is for informational purposes only. Always follow the law, follow safe handling practices and train with qualified professionals. Silvercore assumes no liability for the use or misuse of any information shown here._____00:00 – Leaving accounting, buying a slaughterhouse, and why food pulled him in05:10 – Why meat quality starts long before the kill floor10:45 – Calm, responsibility, and what it means to take a life seriously17:40 – Marbling, Wagyu, grass-fed beef, and flavor reality24:30 – Hobby farming, bad beef, and uncomfortable truths31:15 – What modern butcher shops often aren’t doing anymore38:50 – Tenderloin myths, forgotten cuts, and education fatigue46:10 – Waste, culture, and what’s been lost55:40 – Chronic Wasting Disease Explained Honestly.What Jeff has seen firsthand and how to think clearly about risk1:10:30 – Why Europe Treats Food Differently1:18:45 – Teaching Kids Where Food Comes From1:27:00 – Why Buying Less Meat Might Matter More1:36:20 – Trade, Sharing, and Old Food Economies1:43:50 – What Jeff Hopes People Actually Take From This

Why do some foods make us uncomfortable while others feel familiar?In this episode of The Wild Kitchen, Tiffany talks with James Beard Award–winning author Hank Shaw about how modern eaters learned to fear foods that were once ordinary. From fermented fish and haggis to offal, fat, and texture, they unpack how culture, upbringing, and convenience shape what we consider “real food.”The conversation moves through old cookbooks, whole-animal cooking, and the way children learn disgust. Hank draws on a lifetime of hunting, foraging, cooking, and writing to explain why taste is rarely instinctual,  and what gets lost when food is stripped of context and tradition.Guest links:Hunter Angler Gardener Cook: https://honest-food.netHank Shaw on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/huntgathercook To The Bone: https://tothebone.comHank's mincemeat pie recipe: https://honest-food.net/venison-mincemeat-pies/_____Silvercore is built on a lifetime spent outdoors, on ranges and in the company of people who live with skill, purpose and integrity. Here you will find real conversations, fieldcraft, practical training, stories from the wild and the lessons that help us grow mentally and physically. Whether it is a podcast with someone who has been tested, a tip you can use today or a look behind the scenes, the goal is to help you live stronger, safer and more capable in the outdoors and in life.Silvercore Club members receive exclusive podcast episodes, online courses, insurance for their adventures and discounts on premium gear:https://bit.ly/2RiREb4Online Training: https://bit.ly/3nJKx7UTraining and Services: https://bit.ly/3vw6kSUMerchandise: https://bit.ly/3ecyvk9Blog: https://bit.ly/3nEHs8WHost Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bader.tiffanySilvercore Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoorsContact:info@silvercore.ca604 940 7785www.silvercore.caAll content on this channel is for informational purposes only. Always follow the law, follow safe handling practices and train with qualified professionals. Silvercore assumes no liability for the use or misuse of any information shown here.

Fermentation has been framed as risky, technical, even dangerous - and Sandor Katz thinks that fear is the whole problem.In this conversation, the author of Wild Fermentation and The Art of Fermentation breaks down why sauerkraut is simpler than we’ve been taught to believe, what that “weird layer” on top actually is, and how fermentation often makes food safer than it was before. We talk about trusting your senses again, the lies of expiry dates, and the tradeoffs between low-tech tradition and modern tools like vacuum sealing and the Instant Pot.Plus: Koji experiments with chestnuts, black garlic myths, the real reason fermentation takes time, and a reminder that you don’t need a starter culture to do what humans have done for thousands of years.Guest links:https://www.wildfermentation.comhttps://linktr.ee/sandorkraut_____Silvercore Club - https://bit.ly/2RiREb4 Online Training - https://bit.ly/3nJKx7U Other Training & Services - https://bit.ly/3vw6kSU Merchandise - https://bit.ly/3ecyvk9 Blog Page - https://bit.ly/3nEHs8W Host Instagram -  https://www.instagram.com/bader.tiffany Podcast Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thewildkitchenpodcastSilvercore Instagram - @SilvercoreOutdoors https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoors____Timestamps:00:00 — Tiffany’s intro: how Wild Fermentation changed her early chef career01:15 — Why fermentation seems technical (and why it isn’t)03:20 — Sauerkraut is absurdly simple - fear of bacteria is the real barrier04:10 — “Fermentation makes food safer” (acidity vs pathogens)07:20 — Expiry dates are arbitrary + trusting smell/taste again08:20 — The “kahm yeast” moment: why people throw away perfectly good ferments11:05 — Hard rules: what growth is harmless vs what to toss14:35 — The real worst-case ferment: flies + eggs (practical warning)15:05 — Lids vs cloth vs crocks: how Sandor actually covers ferments17:30 — Brine vs dry-salt: when to add water and what it costs (flavor dilution)20:15 — “There’s no singular way to ferment vegetables” (core philosophy)21:50 — Fermentation Journeys + Tiffany’s inscription story24:55 — New book: Fermentation: A Natural History (what it is / isn’t)26:40 — Chestnut shio-koji project (enzymes + umami)29:45 — Koji Alchemy + growing koji on “almost anything”31:00 — Simple DIY koji incubation setup (light bulb + controller)33:10 — Black garlic isn’t really fermentation (and the Instapot workaround)35:30 — Tradeoffs: vacuum sealing vegetables (benefit vs waste)37:05 — Chestnut miso + spontaneous pancakes (dosa, buckwheat, mung bean)41:00 — Why he teaches so much: the hunger for fermentation confidence44:50 — Pear pressing → accidental vinegar (and why timing matters)47:50 — Packets of yeast are new; wild fermentation is the old standard50:05 — “You don’t need a packet of white powder to make sauerkraut” (mic drop)

In the very first episode of The Wild Kitchen, Tiffany Bader sits down with Darina Allen, a cook, teacher, and one of the most influential voices in seasonal and traditional food.This conversation begins where many food stories do: at the kitchen table.Darina reflects on growing up in rural Ireland, learning to cook by watching, gardening as a way of life, and the moment she realized that real food - grown well, cooked simply, and shared generously, could shape not just meals, but communities. Together, Tiffany and Darina talk about forgotten skills, food education, the importance of soil, and why reconnecting with how we grow and cook food matters now more than ever.This is not a how-to episode.It’s a slow conversation about memory, land, tradition, and choosing a different path in the kitchen.The Wild Kitchen with Tiffany Bader Ep. 1🌿 Learn more about Darina Allen:https://www.ballymaloe.iehttps://www.ballymaloefarm.ieForgotten Skills by Darina Allen🔥 The Wild Kitchen:https://thewildkitchen.transistor.fmhttps://instagram.com/thewildkitchen_____Silvercore is built on a lifetime spent outdoors, on ranges and in the company of people who live with skill, purpose and integrity. Here you will find real conversations, fieldcraft, practical training, stories from the wild and the lessons that help us grow mentally and physically. Whether it is a podcast with someone who has been tested, a tip you can use today or a look behind the scenes, the goal is to help you live stronger, safer and more capable in the outdoors and in life.Silvercore Club members receive exclusive podcast episodes, online courses, insurance for their adventures and discounts on premium gear:https://bit.ly/2RiREb4Online Training: https://bit.ly/3nJKx7UTraining and Services: https://bit.ly/3vw6kSUMerchandise: https://bit.ly/3ecyvk9Blog: https://bit.ly/3nEHs8WHost Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bader.tiffanySilvercore Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoorsContact:info@silvercore.ca604 940 7785www.silvercore.caAll content on this channel is for informational purposes only. Always follow the law, follow safe handling practices and train with qualified professionals. Silvercore assumes no liability for the use or misuse of any information shown here._____00:00 Welcome to The Wild Kitchen01:00 Why Darina Allen was the first guest03:00 Growing up with food as daily life, not instruction06:00 Choosing cooking when it wasn’t considered a “career”10:00 Meeting Myrtle Allen and learning to cook by season15:00 Why forgotten skills matter more than ever18:00 Making butter and realizing what students didn’t know23:00 Children, taste, and why growing food changes everything27:00 Foraging, nutrition, and noticing the landscape32:00 Soil, health, and what we’re losing37:00 Homesteading, leaving cities, and taking back control43:00 Ultra-processed food and the cost of convenience48:00 The joy of making things with your hands52:00 Ballymaloe today and passing skills forward55:00 Closing thoughts on food, care, and connection

Food has always been more than food.It’s memory. It’s ritual. It’s how stories are passed, from one generation to the next.The Wild Kitchen is a podcast about food — but really, it’s about the people, places, and ideas that gather around it.Coming soon.