Every Spice Tells a Story. We’re Here to Listen.

My name is Gerald Zhang-Schmidt, and I’m a firm believer that the most powerful ingredient in any dish is its history.

Heat Stories is a podcast and archive dedicated to the human connection with flavor. This isn’t a recipe site—it’s a journey. We don’t just ask how to use an ingredient; we ask: Where did it come from? Who first cultivated it? How did it travel the globe, and how did it change the cultures it touched?

If you’re as fascinated by the “why” as you are by the “what,” you’ve found your people.

The Story of Heat Stories

A few years ago, I launched the first season of the Heat Stories podcast. I was deep in the world of food, developing recipes and writing about ingredients, but I felt something was missing. I could tell you how to cook with a ghost pepper, but I couldn’t tell you the story of the Naga people who cultivated it for generations.

The podcast was my attempt to find those missing pieces. I spoke with chefs, farmers, and historians, and I was captivated by what I found.

Then, life and other projects took over. My focus shifted to deep research for my book, Red Hot China, and to building Complex Heat, a home for practical recipes and cooking techniques. The podcast went quiet, but the stories never did. In fact, my passion for them only grew.

I realized that the practical world of recipes is only half the picture. The other half—the soul of the food, the context that gives it meaning—lives in its story.

And so, Heat Stories is being rekindled. It’s returning as the necessary counterpart to the kitchen—a place to explore the history, culture, and human spirit that gets infused into everything we eat.

Thank you for being curious. The world is full of flavor, and every bit of it has a tale to tell.

All the best,

Gerald