On Monday, May 15, Bon Appétit editor-in-chief Dawn Davis and food director Chris Morocco hosted a live showing of Dinner SOS, Bon Appétit’s podcast at Symphony Space in New York City.

Author, host, and executive producer Padma Lakshmi; writer and former Gourmet editor Ruth Reichl; and chef, restaurateur, and author Marcus Samuelsson joined Dawn and Chris onstage to share their best tips, tricks, and solutions for all of our cooking conundrums and dining mishaps. They discussed how to make a perfect steak (Reichl’s tip: Do like Judy Rogers of Zuni Cafe fame by seasoning your steak and leaving it uncovered in the fridge for up to several days before cooking), the best way to prepare fish for someone who doesn’t like it (Lakshmi says go heavy on the aromatics like makrut lime leaves, ginger, and herbs), and the best practices for preparing crudo or ceviche at home (Samuelsson recommends sushi-quality, grade A fish and says always ask for the bones so you can make fish stock—you’re paying for them anyway). Other tips included always buying individual knives based on your kitchen needs (start with a good chef’s knife) and always making fried chicken for a crowd in advance—serve it room temperature because it’s even better that way.

See photos from Bon Appétit at Symphony Space: Dinner SOS Live below. For more cooking advice, check out Bon Appétit podcast Dinner SOS. And to learn more about our cohosts, check out Lakshmi’s show Taste the Nation, Reichl’s documentary Food and Country, and Samuelsson’s latest New York restaurant, Hav & Mar.

Dinner SOS Live

Originally Appeared on Bon Appétit