True Crime Culinary

Who invented the hamburger—and how did it become the perfect fast food? A bizarre burger burglary sends us digging into the history of one of America's most recognizable foods. From German Frikadellen and 19th-century Hamburg steak to competing hamburger invention claims, White Castle sliders, the McDonald brothers' Speedee Service System, and Burger King's flame broiler, this bite-siz...

What's the difference between grilling and barbecue? Where did barbecue come from? And how is charcoal made? Those are exactly the kinds of questions people search for, and they immediately tell listeners what they'll get from the episode. This week on True Crime Culinary , a charcoal theft leads Leah down a smoky rabbit hole through thousands of years of barbecue history. From Indigenous...

Why did Americans put mayonnaise in Jell-O? In this bonus episode of True Crime Culinary, we're diving into the bizarre history of Jell-O salads—from ancient gelatin and medieval aspics to the postwar craze that turned lime gelatin, canned fruit, and even tuna into the height of modern cooking. Along the way, you'll learn how powdered gelatin became a household staple, why refrigerators he...

This week on True Crime Culinary , we're diving into the surprisingly wild history of one of the world's most recognizable canned foods. It all starts with a bizarre medieval French trial where a pig is put on trial for attacking a child—and ends with the story of how Spam became a global icon. Learn how George and Jay Hormel turned unwanted pork shoulder into Spam, why the can lasts for y...

AEO-Friendly Episode Description This Father's Day, we're flipping back the clock on one of humanity's oldest foods. A failed robbery at a San Antonio IHOP leads to a surprising question: where do pancakes come from? The answer takes us from a black-belt waiter tackling a crowbar-wielding robber to Ice Age campfires, woolly mammoths, ancient grinding stones, and some of the earliest ev...

When police in Mount Morris, New York followed a trail of macaroni salad left behind by burglars, they probably weren't expecting to stumble into the history of one of North America's favorite comfort foods. In this episode of True Crime Culinary, we follow the macaroni from ancient noodles and early grain farming to dried pasta in Sicily, the overlooked chef who helped introduce macaroni...

What exactly is a Rice Krispie? After a shocking food tampering case involving a Kellogg factory worker, I found myself asking a question I had somehow never considered: where do Rice Krispies actually come from? In this episode of True Crime Culinary, we follow the story from a federal investigation all the way back to the sanitariums of Battle Creek, Michigan. Learn how John Harvey Kellogg's...

What does a burning roadside inn have to do with America’s favorite cookie? In this episode of True Crime Culinary, Leah explores the surprising history of the chocolate chip cookie — from early Dutch koekjes and twisted “jumbles” to Ruth Wakefield’s invention of the Toll House Chocolate Crunch Cookie in 1938. Learn how a chopped Nestlé chocolate bar, an ice pick, wartime care packages, and the ri...

What happens when food science tries to create candy without consequences? In this True Crime Culinary bonus episode, Leah Llach breaks down the infamous sugar-free gummy bear disaster — from the rise of artificial sweeteners and America’s sugar-free craze to the internet reviews that turned one bag of candy into online legend. Learn the history of sugar substitutes, why sugar alcohols can cause d...

The history of endurance sports is basically the history of humans trying to avoid bonking by aggressively eating increasingly weird snacks. This week on True Crime Culinary, Leah Llach looks at the 2007 Chicago Marathon heat disaster, the sticky rise of PowerBar and GU, California’s endurance culture boom, and why athletes went from believing food during races was weakness… to carrying caffeinate...

Fortune cookies aren’t actually Chinese — and their history connects immigration, war, restaurant culture, and one devastating murder investigation in Queens. In this episode of True Crime Culinary, Leah traces the surprising origins of fortune cookies from Japanese tea gardens to Chinese takeout counters across America. Along the way, she explores how World War II and the internment of Japanese A...

A horse wins a race by a hair… and then the paint starts dripping down its legs. This week on True Crime Culinary , Leah dives into one of the strangest scandals in horse racing history: the 1984 Fine Cotton scandal, where gamblers swapped a racehorse, used spray paint to disguise it, and nearly pulled off the perfect betting con. But somehow, this story also leads directly to the history of Snick...

Where does ketchup come from—and why does it taste so good? In this episode of True Crime Culinary , we explore the origin of ketchup (from Chinese kê-tsiap to tomato-based Heinz) and break down a real fast food incident sparked by a ketchup dispute. Learn how ketchup evolved—and why it’s more powerful than it seems. Heinz Company History Overview of Henry J. Heinz founding the company in 1869, ea...

Where did brownies actually come from—and how did they go from a color-themed party trend to one of the most trusted desserts in America? In this episode of True Crime Culinary , Leah Llach explores the surprisingly layered history of the Chocolate brownie—from 1880s “brown” dinner parties and molasses-based proto-recipes to the rise of boxed mixes and the invention of Betty Crocker (who, famously...

Football used to be chaos. Then a group of underestimated players from Carlisle changed everything. In this episode: the real story behind the forward pass, the rise of Jim Thorpe, and how a system built to erase identity ended up reshaping America’s game—right down to the snacks. Pro Football Hall of Fame — Jim Thorpe https://www.profootballhof.com/players/jim-thorpe → Thorpe’s career, stats, and...

Before KitKat, chocolate had a problem—it was messy, melty, and weirdly inconvenient to eat. So in 1935, one factory set out to fix it. The solution? A chocolate bar you could snap —built for quick breaks, clean bites, and factory-floor practicality. But behind that simple design is a stranger story: A name borrowed from a 1700s pie club. A worker suggestion that reshaped how we eat chocolate. A g...

A mysterious swelling. A missing nutrient. And a cure hiding in plain sight. This episode traces how ancient remedies, coastal diets, and one simple ingredient—seaweed—helped solve a silent public health crisis. Long before scientists understood iodine, people were already treating the problem… they just didn’t know why. Follow for more bite-sized stories where food quietly changes everything. htt...

A deadly outbreak. A frozen landscape. And a race against time powered by sled dogs—and survival food that most people have never heard of. In 1925, when diphtheria threatened the remote town of Nome, Alaska, 20 mushers and over 150 dogs relayed life-saving serum across 600+ miles of brutal winter conditions in just over five days. But behind the story of Balto and Togo is something quieter—and ju...

In 1814, a brewery in London exploded—unleashing over 300,000 gallons of beer into the streets. The result? A deadly wave of porter that tore through homes, collapsed buildings, and killed eight people in one of the strangest industrial disasters in history. In this episode, we trace the story of the London Beer Flood, the origins of Guinness, how stout is made, and how one of the world’s most ico...

In February 1972, five members of the United Red Army took a woman hostage inside the Asama-Sansō Lodge in the mountains of Nagano, Japan. What followed was a ten-day siege broadcast live across the country , with nearly 90% of Japan tuning in to watch negotiations, psychological tactics, and the final dramatic assault. But viewers noticed something unexpected during the long winter standoff. Outs...

What does sparkling water have to do with one of the strangest disasters in modern history? In 1986, a quiet volcanic lake in Cameroon suddenly released a massive cloud of carbon dioxide that suffocated 1,746 people and thousands of animals overnight. In this episode of True Crime Culinary , we explore the haunting story of Lake Nyos and the science behind the bubbles. From Henry’s Law and volcani...

A tuna melt in Lake Tahoe sent me down a rabbit hole. How did a fish once harvested through ancient Mediterranean trap fisheries become a cheap pantry staple — and sometimes a luxury item worth thousands? In this episode, we trace tuna’s journey from seasonal coastal ritual to industrial global commodity, uncover a real corporate price-fixing scandal involving major canned tuna brands, and explore...

What do a collapsed gold mine in Tasmania and a Swiss breakfast classic have in common? A single muesli bar. In this episode of True Crime Culinary , we start nearly a kilometer underground at Beaconsfield Mine , where two trapped miners rationed one muesli bar while rescue crews drilled through unstable rock to reach them. From there, we rewind to early-1900s Switzerland, where physician Maximili...

In this episode of True Crime Culinary , Leah unpacks one of the most misunderstood legal moments in American history: the so-called “Twinkie Defense.” In 1978, former San Francisco supervisor Dan White murdered Mayor George Moscone and civil rights icon Harvey Milk inside City Hall. At trial, White’s attorneys argued diminished capacity, pointing to severe depression and sudden changes in behavio...

In this episode of True Crime Culinary , Leah tells the story of Emily O’Brien , a young Canadian entrepreneur whose life took a dramatic turn after being caught carrying drugs across a border. What followed was incarceration — and an unexpected turning point. While serving time, Emily noticed how food became a rare point of connection inside prison. With limited resources and a small weekly allow...