Peter Som Transcript
Kerry Diamond:
Hi, everyone. You are listening to Radio Cherry Bombe, and I'm your host, Kerry Diamond. I'm the founder and editor of Cherry Bombe Magazine, and each week, I talk to the most interesting culinary creatives in and around the world of food. Today is one of our hosts with the most episodes. All December long I'll be talking to some of the most sparkly folks I know about celebrations and how they approach get togethers, gathering, cooking, gift giving and more.
Today's guest is Peter Som, the fashion designer, and very talented home chef. Peter, in fact, has his first book coming in 2025. Stay tuned for my chat with Peter to learn what he's up to for the holidays and how he blends design and food so seamlessly.
Today's episode is supported by Kerrygold. The holidays are here and Kerrygold wants to help you make life more festive and delicious with its beautiful butter and cheese made with milk from Irish grass-fed cows. If you are baking and I hope you are, be sure to stock up on Kerrygold pure Irish butter. Kerrygold's unsalted sticks are always in my fridge for whatever I need to whip up, cookies, cakes, biscuits, or some pie dough. Switching to savory for a sec. If you want to impress folks at mealtime, try Kerrygold's new butter blends. These compound butters are perfectly on trend and are great slathered on bread, tossed with some roasted veggies or melted on top of a baked potato. Try Kerrygold butter blends in sun-dried tomato and basil bell pepper and garden herbs or chive and onion. I'm sure you can think of a million ways to use them, and then it's not a holiday without a cheeseboard. If you are a longtime listener, you know I absolutely love Kerrygold Cashel Blue Farmhouse Cheese. It's my favorite blue ever. There are lots of other Kerrygold cheeses to explore and adore, including the classic Kerrygold Reserve Cheddar and the Gouda-Style Blarney Cheese. Add some crackers, I love those ones with dried fruit and nuts in them.
You know the ones, maybe some jam or honey and a little jar, decorate with a few sprigs of rosemary and there you go, a perfect cheeseboard. That's definitely one way to Host With The Most. For more on Kerrygold, visit kerrygoldusa.com where you can find great recipes, product information and a store locator. That's kerrygoldusa.com. If you're looking for a gift for your favorite foodie, we have some great ideas for you. You can get a gift subscription to Cherry Bombe's print magazine at cherrybombe.com. Get four issues of our gorgeous magazine in 2024 and free shipping. We also have Cherry Bombe memberships starting at $50. Visit cherrybombe.com for gift guides and more.
Now let's check in with today's guest. Peter Som, welcome to Radio Cherry Bombe.
Peter Som:
Thank you, Kerry. I'm thrilled to be here.
Kerry Diamond:
I'm so excited to say those words. Folks might not know you and I have known each other for a very long time.
Peter Som:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
We've been friends and work colleagues.
Peter Som:
Absolutely.
Kerry Diamond:
Peter, let's start with your career. You are a celebrated fashion designer. I've been very lucky over the years to wear many of your gorgeous pieces. How did you become a designer? How
Peter Som:
How did I become a designer? I think it started way back when I was a very shy child in California in the Bay Area. I was super shy, and I was really into drawing. I drew my mom and that was the first thing I drew, and it was literally a triangle with stick arms and stick legs. From that point, I was like, "Oh, this a-lined triangle dress is not cute. Maybe I should give it a waist." So I just started drawing outfits. Long story short, I found my sister's Paris Vogues and turned the pages, and this was mid-80s, like shoulder pads, the whole thing. Amazing Claude Montana. It was at that point where I was like, "This is what I want to do. This is what I want to do." From that moment on, I did everything I could to learn everything about fashion.
Kerry Diamond:
Did you have a glamorous mom?
Peter Som:
I did, yeah. She still is pretty glamorous. She loved clothes. Back in the day, she would wear Diane von Fürstenberg book wrap dresses, but backwards to have a low V back and have matching red suede shoes to the outfit. She loved clothes. She still loves clothes, and even to this day, she's very particular about the scarf she wears that matches the this and then that. So yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Were you stylish as a kid?
Peter Som:
You know what? I had my moments. Let's just say I tried. I grew up in the '80s, so I went from that '70s and then into preppy, and my parents would not buy me a Lacoste shirt or Ralph Lauren shirt because they were too expensive. So I bought Hunt Club from JC Penny, which was the horse about the man. But I did everything I could to be preppy. But then the '80s came along, I basically discovered glitter hair mousse, color block shirts, so I tried really hard. I don't know if it was so successful, but then I went back to east for college and for me, that was like drag. I was like, "I'm going full L.L. Bean, J. Crew. For me, college was East Coast running around the quad in my red L.L. Bean Anorak and a role neck sweater, 14 layers of clothes, but it was all about just the layers.
Kerry Diamond:
What did you study in college?
Peter Som:
I studied art history with an art minor. The whole time I wanted to go to Parsons. My parents were like, "Get a well-rounded education first, this and that," and I didn't disagree. I think I was not super mature, so I think it was better for me to be in New London, Connecticut and not New York City at Limelight or the Roxy or whatever at that age. It was just what I needed.
Kerry Diamond:
Did you think you would go to Parsons eventually?
Peter Som:
Every year I got the catalog, and I was like, "I'm going to transfer. I'm going to transfer." I didn't transfer, but I ended up graduating Con College and then I worked for a year in the industry and then I went to Parsons. So it was a little bit delayed, but I made it.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay. So you go to Parsons. What happens there?
Peter Som:
At Parsons I was in heaven. It was everything I wanted to do. It was all the drawing, all the gouache. It was making clothes.
Kerry Diamond:
Wait, tell us what gouache is.
Peter Som:
A gouache is essentially like a watercolor, a little less finicky. I don't know if they still do that anymore. Maybe?
Kerry Diamond:
Finicky watercolors.
Peter Som:
Yeah, finicky watercolors. That's my drag name, actually.
Kerry Diamond:
You said gouache and I automatically thought of ganache.
Peter Som:
As you should. As you should.
Kerry Diamond:
So you're doing all that at Parsons, I'm guessing you're interning, you graduate, where do you wind up?
Peter Som:
Yeah, actually it was interesting. I interned at Calvin and then Narciso was there as one of the head designers at that point.
Kerry Diamond:
Narciso Rodriguez?
Peter Som:
Yeah, Narciso Rodriguez. Then I interned at Michael Kors for two years, which was great. At that point, it was a very small company. Now it's obviously a hugely successful large company. After I graduated, I went and worked for Bill Blass.
Kerry Diamond:
Legend.
Peter Som:
Legend, yeah, this is Mr. Blass is how I always call him because that's what we called him and it was-
Kerry Diamond:
He was still in the office every day?
Peter Som:
He was still in the office almost every day. It was very old school in the best way possible. There was two ateliers, the tailor, the teli and the flou are the soft ateliers, the ones that make the gowns. It was the old offices that were designed by Chessy Rainer and Mica Ertegun.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, rest in peace.
Peter Som:
Yes, Mica Ertegun-
Kerry Diamond:
She just passed away.
Peter Som:
... passed away. I was so young and I was probably the youngest person there by many years, but I loved it. One of my main jobs was to take his sketches, which were very signature. They were like four lines, and I would have to take those drawings and resketch them for the pattern maker so they could see, "Oh, this is where the armhole seam is," or, "This is where the bus line seam is." So I was always excited to get that pile of sketches and resketch them.
Kerry Diamond:
Did you aspire to have your own line one day?
Peter Som:
I did. I did in fifth grade, actually.
Kerry Diamond:
So you were holding that dream for a long time?
Peter Som:
Oh yes, absolutely. I was laser focused and I said in fifth grade, I said, "By the time I'm 30, I will start my line," because somehow when you're in fifth grade, by the time you're 30, seems like an adult. You know everything. You have it all set. So I did actually start by 29 1/2 and 30, but did I know everything? Hell no.
Kerry Diamond:
So you left Blass-
Peter Som:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
... launched your own label. How did you raise money for it?
Peter Som:
Well, I left Blass and then I worked for a little bit at a bridge company called Emmanuel, and then I started my line. Let's talk about bootstrapping. I did it in a very just dive in kind of way. I probably should have had more of a plan. I had no plan. I had same savings. My family put in a little bit of money, but I was working out of my apartment doing everything myself. My apartment was crazy town, and fashion as a business, you need a lot of stuff. It's not just a pretty laptop on your desk and you tap away. There are fabrics everywhere. There is just bolts of fabric, racks and racks and racks of clothing. I was like, "I don't know how I live like..." It was crazy. People would come in and be like, Are you okay?"
Kerry Diamond:
What was your first big break?
Peter Som:
I would probably say a few things, but I think for sure getting into Bergdorf Goodman was a huge breaks, and then the support of Anna. Anna Wintour was obviously a really big break.
Kerry Diamond:
What did Anna do for you?
Peter Som:
Well, I think this was, again, going way back, the concept of young designer was really not a major concept at that point. But I was part of this group of this next generation of designers, and I think it all came to a head at 9/11 when my show was supposed to be the next day, and this was my second year in business. She saw all these designers, young designers who were already stretched to the limit, losing venues, losing everything they had for these shows that didn't happen with it for obviously tragic, tragic reasons. She was the one who gathered a bunch of us and basically put together a group show. We each had five looks, all the models, top models volunteered to do it like Alec Wek, Karen Elson, everybody, Audrey Marnay, and it was at Carolina Herrera's showroom. That was the start of actually the CFDA fashion fund and that idea of supporting young designers.
Kerry Diamond:
Wow. Okay. So then your line takes off.
Peter Som:
Yeah, it does. It does. Listen, fashion, it was crazy. It's crazy. It's volatile. It's up, it's down. It's learn quickly that you need to surround yourself with the right people, good people, kind people, smart people, nice people, all those things. Sometimes you forget these things and inside of other priorities, but it was really good for a long time. I was riding the wave.
Kerry Diamond:
We'll be right back. Today's episode is also sponsored by San Pellegrino. There's no better way to add some sparkle to your holiday table than with premium sparkling water from San Pellegrino. The unique balance of effervescence and rich minerality cleanse the palate and amplify subtle flavors, making it the perfect compliment to fine food and wines. The cherry on top, we love how the iconic green bottles make any tablescape look festive and bright for the holiday season. Looking for a mocktail to add to your holiday party? San Pellegrino Italian Sparkling Drinks are a beautiful way to add some bubbles to your non-alcoholic sips. We even use the Aranciata flavor to create a special non-alcoholic drink called Bombesquad Bubbles at our Mentor/Mentee Dinner last month. With Blood Orange, Cherry and San Pellegrino's Aranciata Italian Sparkling Drink, it was the perfect way to raise a glass and celebration of women in the world of food and drink. For more on San Pellegrino, visit sanpellegrino.com. You can find great recipes for delicious sips, product information and more. That's sanpellegrino.com.
The new holiday issue of Cherry Bombe's print magazine Host With The Most is here with culinary superstar, Molly Baz on the cover. Inside you'll find profiles on your fave, foodies and creatives, lots of hosting tips and delicious recipes perfect for your holiday gatherings. We also have a recipe from today's guest, Peter Som, so be sure to check that out. You can snag a copy at cherrybombe.com or pick up a copy at a retailer near you like Archestratus in Brooklyn, Book Larder in Seattle, Omnivore Books on Food in San Francisco, and Salt & Sundry in Washington, D.C. Check out cherrybomb.com for our complete list of retailers. You and I crossed paths at some point-
Peter Som:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
... and you so clearly were in your element. I remember seeing you work in your studio. I remember seeing you backstage coming out and taking a bow during the fashion show. You loved it.
Peter Som:
I loved it. I really did. I think I have my fingers and a few more pies, pun intended.
Kerry Diamond:
We'll talk about those pies.
Peter Som:
Yeah. But those days when I did fashion shows, I think doing a fashion show, there's a high there, and I think it's not the crowds or anything like that. I'm actually a shy person. I like to say I'm an outgoing, shy person, but for me, it's when those models are lined up, that is the purest vision of what you intended. Seeing it in 3D. I'm a sketcher, so I always sketch. Other designers have different processes, but for me, going from 2D to 3D then into motion is everything. Then honestly, doing it with a team. I had amazing people I worked with, my team over the years. It was just great for all of us to see all the hard work come together.
Kerry Diamond:
We worked on a very fun project together.
Peter Som:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
We worked on a lipstick project. When I was at Lancome, we sponsored your fashion show one year, and we did a collab lipstick. It was called P.S Kiss. I still have one in a box.
Peter Som:
I know. I don't know. Does lipstick go bad? I don't know. I think it does.
Kerry Diamond:
Yes, I think it probably does.
Peter Som:
You know what? I don't even know if I would want to touch the lipstick because it's so pristine.
Yes, exactly. It was a great lipstick. It was a dark, dark stained berry color, raspberry and blackberry got together. I knew it because was for a fall collection.
Kerry Diamond:
You and Gucci Westman worked on it.
Peter Som:
Yes, me and Gucci Westman, worked with some amazing people over those years, you-
Kerry Diamond:
Edward Enninful.
Peter Som:
Edward Enninful style my shows a bunch of times.
Kerry Diamond:
You make the most beautiful clothes. I was very lucky you dressed me for the Met Ball twice.
Peter Som:
Yes. Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
One year it was a white dress with a blue sash that I still to this day am heartbroken that I did not find a way to buy because it was the most beautiful dress. I don't think I've ever felt more-
Peter Som:
Oh, wow.
Kerry Diamond:
... amazing in my whole life.
Peter Som:
It's funny, I did mostly day wear, but when I did evening or gowns, there were never these big, poofy things. I kept it pretty sleek, I think, and I loved doing those gowns that's just on the hanger. That Halston ideology where on the hanger it doesn't look like much, but when you put it on a body and a human being, which is really what it's all about.
Kerry Diamond:
Is it?
Peter Som:
Yeah, sometimes-
Kerry Diamond:
I love that you cracked yourself up with that.
Peter Som:
But yeah, I loved dressing you, and I loved even more that you felt great in it. To me, that's like, okay, never gets sold.
Kerry Diamond:
Did I read that you started cooking after fashion shows to de-stress?
Peter Som:
Yes, definitely. Definitely. Weeks up to the fashion show, it is really late hours. It is a lot going on. It is fun, but stressful. Coming home and being able to cook something, eat it, 99% of the time, enjoy it. So having a beginning, a middle and an end kept my feet on the ground. I would come home and I'd have no music on. It'd be just the sizzle of the pan or the chopping of the knife. For me, that was the best thing ever.
Kerry Diamond:
You learned how to cook from your grandmother and your mom?
Peter Som:
I learned how to cook from my grandmother and my mom, and I would have to say my sister too. Shout out to my sister as well. The women in my life growing up were great cooks. My grandmother, she came with her young family from Hong Kong in the early '50s. She had to really learn how to cook three meals a day for eight people. My mom and her five siblings, my grandfather and her, Cantonese food but she also embraced American desserts and American food. She was very open, so she was really into all of it. So I was lucky to get the range.
Kerry Diamond:
What were some of her signature dishes?
Peter Som:
One thing she would make all the time is nuo mi fan, which actually it's something that is basically a sticky rice that has lat cheong, which is a Chinese sausage in there, usually dried shrimp and shiitake mushrooms and some other things too. But it's a savory delicious rice that we would use as stuffing for Thanksgiving. So we would stuff the bird with it. I didn't have a bread-based stuffing until I went to college, probably because this is what we did. My grandmother didn't make it that often. So for me, I was like, "I hope she made extra. Getting the leftovers the next day was the best, if there were any leftovers. This is when I would go into beast mode and try to hoard. You know what I mean? Just really animal like, "Ah, I need this."
Kerry Diamond:
What was another signature dish of hers?
Peter Som:
It's called white cut chicken. It's basically a poached chicken. It's not a golden brown, crispy skin situation. It is white and supple, and you have these dipping sauces with it, and it's served cold. It's not served hot. One of the dipping sauces is usually a scallion sauce, and the other one is a bit more of a vinegary sauce. She made that quite a bit.
Kerry Diamond:
Tell us about the wonton sessions.
Peter Som:
Oh, gosh. She was a wonton person. So I think she didn't do pot stickers with the pleats and everything like that, she had her thing. So we'd be at her rectangular, she had this faux Chippendale dining table, and it was covered, of course, like a laminated lace tablecloth, which was very precious. We never saw the surface of that table. I'm sure it was wood, I don't know. But there's always two layers over it, usually under that with a thin foam layer. It was really-
Kerry Diamond:
I think that crosses a few cultures.
Peter Som:
It's a total universal grandmother thing, that's tables seated like eight people. So we would basically just make wontons, my sister and I and my grandmother over an afternoon and literally fill the entire table just filled. Of course, you'd freeze some, you'd freeze most of them or give them away to neighbors, this and that. Basically, if you're going through the trouble of doing it, you might as well just go all out. So those were amazing afternoons.
Kerry Diamond:
What did you celebrate in December? What were the key holidays for your family?
Peter Som:
We did Christmas and, well, my birthday.
Kerry Diamond:
When's your birthday?
Peter Som:
It is coming up. It's the 15th. So I feel like my birthday was far enough away from Christmas where I never felt shortchanged, that those too much overlap. We did Christmas, and so it was the whole tree, the whole thing, all that kind of stuff.
Kerry Diamond:
What did you do for food?
Peter Som:
One night we would do Christmas Eve, we'd do some American, and then the next night we would do a Chinese meal. So we had the best of both worlds, but at every meal there was always rice, had to be, no matter what.
Kerry Diamond:
What was it, the Chinese meal.
Peter Som:
It was always a mix. I think there'd be for sure vegetables like gai lan or bok choy. My mom was a huge health nut, so we always, vegetables were the thing. It could be huge steamed fish. It could be roast pork. It never was one specific thing. It was always lots of many things, so never a lack of choice.
Kerry Diamond:
What traditions have you kept from your family?
Peter Som:
I think the traditions I've kept is definitely the nuo mi fan. It's something where I felt like it was a rite of passage because I never made it. It was my grandmother made it. So my grandmother, she passed away 20 years ago, but when she passed, then one of my aunts started making it. She'd come and then she'd be like, "Oh, I know if I did it quite right." There's always that hemming and like, "Oh," wringing of hands. "Did I add enough of this?" I would just go and say a little bit more oyster sauce or whatever. So I think for me, it was a big rite of passage just a handful of years ago when I was like, "Oh, you know what? I'm going to make this now. I can do this. It's not going to be that crazy." So that's when I felt like that was a big moment for that. I was like, "I'm taking over. I'm making it."
Kerry Diamond:
Can you walk us through the recipe?
Peter Som:
My version, and what I landed on for me was, so it's glutenous rice, jasmine rice, shallots, garlic lap cheong, which is a Chinese sausage, it's delicious, shiitake mushrooms, and those are my stir-ins. But the base is really, yeah, dark soy, oyster sauce. I cooked the rice in chicken broth and then peas. Then there's always scallions and cilantro, and it's super good. I think there's always variations. My grandmother did put dried shrimp in it. They're tiny little shrimp that have been dried, which are umami bombs. So though those, of course, you can add in as well. They're not obviously as easy to find, but any Asian market would have them.
Kerry Diamond:
The two rices, so the rices, you cook them together?
Peter Som:
You cook them together? Yeah. Yeah. They basically cook at the same time.
Kerry Diamond:
So now when you make that rice on your own, are you doing it in a different way than your grandmother did, or are you still stuffing a turkey with it?
Peter Som:
No, I just eat it straight up. Yeah, I haven't done a turkey in a while. You know what I did this past Thanksgiving and I've done for a few Thanksgivings? I have gotten a turducken.
Kerry Diamond:
Gotten a turducken, not made your own turduken.
Peter Som:
I have not made a turducken because-
Kerry Diamond:
You haven't stuffed those poor beasts into each other.
Peter Som:
No, No, no, and they're deboned too. Essentially. It's a massive roulade. You have the cavity of one where you, this just sounds so savage, but basically you're stuffing the cornbread stuffing into the cavity, wrapping. Every layer and cavity is separated by cornbread stuffing, or whatever kind of stuffing is in there.
Kerry Diamond:
I've never had a turducken. I didn't know that.
Peter Som:
Yes. I have to tell you, I did this a bunch of years ago, ordered it on a lark from this place in Louisiana. That's was one of the-
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah, I was going to say, where does one procure a turducken from?
Peter Som:
Yeah. Yeah, it's one of the places a friend told me to go that's like the OG turducken place. So it gets shipped. It comes frozen. You're ordering a bowling ball, basically. It is a solid block of matter. It is heavy, but because of the fat in the duck, there's some fat in the chicken, obviously, but really the duck is the fattiest bird, it stays pretty moist. It's delish, and you have variety, which is great.
Kerry Diamond:
Sounds like fun.
Peter Som:
You should try it one year. You know what? I was like, "This is crazy," the first year I did it. But then everyone's like, "This is so good." I'm like, "Oh, my God." I was like, "Yeah, it was so easy. You just put in the oven."
Kerry Diamond:
I, like I said, have never had a turducken but you know what I had for Thanksgiving?
Peter Som:
What?
Kerry Diamond:
I had a PieCaken-
Peter Som:
Oh, yes. Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Which is a real thing.
Peter Som:
Did you get the ones from Zac Young? He's the king of the PieCaken.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, I did not know this.
Peter Som:
Yes, yes.
Kerry Diamond:
My brother's mother-in-law. Nancy, made it.
Peter Som:
Oh, she made one. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Pecan pie and on top of that was a pumpkin pie-
Peter Som:
Pumpkin.
Kerry Diamond:
... and on top of that was an apple spice cake-
Peter Som:
Yep. Yep.
Kerry Diamond:
... that my niece then frosted. It was definitely interesting. Obviously, too, so it was delicious.
Peter Som:
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
But I think the weight of everything press down the pecan pie. So there was like a moat of pecan pie juice.
Peter Som:
So Zac Young, he-
Kerry Diamond:
That's probably not the technical term, pecan pie juice.
Peter Som:
Well, hey, Zac, is pecan pie juice the right term? Yeah, no, he invented this thing and you can actually get them on-
Kerry Diamond:
Goldbelly?
Peter Som:
Yeah, Goldbelly.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay.
Peter Som:
He does them for different occasions or different holidays and stuff like that.
Kerry Diamond:
Well, since you are a better cook than me, I'm going to tell you about two of my Thanksgiving fails, so maybe I can help some people 'cause I might make these dishes again for our Christmas Eve celebration.
Peter Som:
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
That's when my family celebrates. I did deviled eggs. I love a deviled egg, and I decided I wanted to soak them in beet juice. I did a combo. It was beet juice, and there's this fantastic brand called Sideyard Shrubs, and they sent me a cherry apple cider vinegar that's so beautiful. You can use it in drinks, vinegars, whatever.
Peter Som:
Love.
Kerry Diamond:
So I put some of that, like a little quick pickle situation.
Peter Som:
Like a little briny acidity-
Kerry Diamond:
Exactly.
Peter Som:
... which is nice for the richness of the yolks and all that kind of stuff.
Kerry Diamond:
Exactly. So went to Union Square Farmers Market the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. It was like adult Disneyland. I couldn't have been happier, bought some beautiful eggs, boiled them, could not get the shells off them to save my life.
Peter Som:
Too fresh, right?
Kerry Diamond:
Too fresh.
Peter Som:
Too fresh.
Kerry Diamond:
I ran across the street to the bodega. I saved the butchered eggs for egg salad-
Peter Som:
Perfect.
Kerry Diamond:
... and started over.
Peter Som:
Kind of a win-win. I would have to say. I love an egg. I love an egg anytime of day. I love an omelet anytime of day. So to me, just ending up with extra eggs, that's a Thanksgiving... That something you should to be thankful for.
Kerry Diamond:
I was, I love egg salad too, so I was not upset, but it was really interesting. Then the eggs turned out fabulous. They were so beautiful and delicious.
Peter Som:
And the color, right?
Kerry Diamond:
Yes.
Peter Som:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Then my second fail, and this is something, I don't know what's wrong, and maybe you can help me. I made Ina's onion dip. You caramelize, I think it's one or two onions, yellow onions, sour cream, cream cheese, and mayo. All my favorite foods.
Peter Som:
Your calcium quota is good.
Kerry Diamond:
Exactly. Exactly, and I made it healthy by serving carrots-
Peter Som:
See? Exactly
Kerry Diamond:
... on the side.
Peter Som:
Exactly.
Kerry Diamond:
It's delicious. I fail all the time trying the caramelized onions. What am I doing wrong?
Peter Som:
What it takes is time. It needs to be low and slow for a long time, is they have to really just break down and just become super jammy. If you crank the heat too much, they'll brown and really tighten up-
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah, well-
Peter Som:
... so low.
Kerry Diamond:
... they were very tight. The first batch, very tight, had to-
Peter Som:
Abandoned ship. Yeah. Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
... compost those, I'm sorry. Started over. Did it low and slow, but I had to add water a lot to them.
Peter Som:
Well, yeah, that's fine.
Kerry Diamond:
Did I not use enough fat in the beginning? Did I need maybe more butter and oil?
Peter Som:
I think it's the holidays and it's one of the iconic Ina recipes. I feel like adding a scooch more oil or butter is never going to be a bad thing. You do want it to be jammy and caramelized and dryness is not part of the equation here.
Kerry Diamond:
No.
Peter Som:
But I think cooking, it's always about a bit of improv and just being able to pivot. It's not like baking, we all know, which is you don't know until the end. That's where I've had my fails.
Kerry Diamond:
But you are a talented baker.
Peter Som:
I like baking. I don't know sometimes if it loves me back.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, We have a fantastic recipe of yours in the new issue,
Peter Som:
It's a maple five-spice pumpkin tart with a crust that's made of, oh, my God, not snickernoodles, but-
Kerry Diamond:
Ginger Snaps.
Peter Som:
... Ginger Snaps.
Kerry Diamond:
Ginger Snaps.
Peter Som:
Ginger Snaps. Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah.
Peter Som:
At the bottom of the tart shell, after I pre-bake it, I add some shards of chocolate for a little surprise. Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Yes. That sexy touch.
Peter Som:
Then really on top, there's this huge whoosh of whipped cream.
Kerry Diamond:
You do a sweetened whipped cream?
Peter Som:
Just a touch, yeah. Really, whipped cream's there to bounce out all the flavors, but you need a touch.
Kerry Diamond:
I love the addition of the five spice.
Peter Som:
For me, five spice is like pumpkin spice's sassier sister. I put five spice in almost everything, sweet, savory. Sometimes I have to stop myself.
Kerry Diamond:
You have so many beautiful recipes on your website.
Peter Som:
Oh, thank you, Kerry. Thank you.
Kerry Diamond:
Yes. So if people are thinking, "I would love to check out what Peter is making, has made," go to petersom.com and look at the recipes. Let's talk about decorating. You're talented at so many things. You make everything look beautiful that you touch. Do you have any easy tips for tabletop or decorating during the holidays?
Peter Som:
For tabletop, always I think about the 1, 2, 3s and how to keep it simple, because I'm not one for just the over the top, more is more decorations, which I love and I appreciate. But again, that's not me. So for me, it's all about lighting. Lighting is key. When you think about any chic restaurant you've gone into, there are not blaring overhead lights. We want to feel like we're eating in a gorgeous restaurant. So if you have overheads, turn them off, dim them or get dimmers. Use lamps. Use candlelight. The mood, the vibe is going to be, sometimes you're just halfway there.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you have a tree?
Peter Som:
No.
Kerry Diamond:
Did we put up a tree? No, we didn't put up a tree. Usually, I put up a tree. I go to my family's and they have a tree. Years ago they sacrificed getting a real tree, and they have this one that's in three sections in a box. The Times did a big story on that.
Peter Som:
Yes, yes, yes. I get a weird, odd joy of folding down the branches from their hinges.
Kerry Diamond:
The fake tree is apparently a big, big thing and getting bigger. But I will say one of my favorite things to do in New York is walk past the vendors, and just that smell-
Peter Som:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
... of the Christmas trees is so wonderful.
Peter Som:
Oh, absolutely.
Kerry Diamond:
Anything else you're doing for the holidays?
Peter Som:
After Christmas, my partner and I are going to Mexico.
Kerry Diamond:
Nice.
Peter Som:
So it's like we needed a little warm weather moment before... if you don't live in New York or the East Coast or even a lot of places there, January can be... Let's just say if you don't live in the Sunbelt or California, January can be a hard reality to come back to.
Kerry Diamond:
Well, you're a California baby. I grew up with this.
Peter Som:
Oh, see, yeah, yeah, yeah. Though I've been on the East coast for longer than I have, again, making myself sound ancient, but I look a little bit of a sun moment before I head into January.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay.
Peter Som:
My book script is due in January.
Kerry Diamond:
I know, We're going to talk about that. Oh, so you didn't turn it in yet?
Peter Som:
No, no, no.
Kerry Diamond:
Peter got ahead of me for a second there. He has a cookbook coming out in 2025.
Peter Som:
Yes. Yes. Do you know the date or the month? It's going to be February-ish-
Kerry Diamond:
Nice little Valentine's Day gift-
Peter Som:
... of 2025. Exactly.
Kerry Diamond:
... from Peter to the world.
Peter Som:
Valentine's Day, Lunar New Year, that kind of thing. So yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Valentine's Day. I'm thinking of all my favorite holidays. Sorry, I'm being selfish.
Peter Som:
Yeah, yeah, exactly. Any crequean holiday my cookbook is going to be it, it's going to be it.
Kerry Diamond:
International Women's Day.
Peter Som:
Hey. Yeah, listen-
Kerry Diamond:
All the holidays.
Peter Som:
My book is about my grandmother and my mom, so I'm down.
Kerry Diamond:
Maybe not St. Patrick's Day, but that's okay. The book is called “Family Style.”
Peter Som:
It is, yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Tell us about it.
Peter Som:
So it's really inspired by my grandmother and my mom and their influence of food on me, so it's kind of a mix. It's about my grandmother's Cantonese food, my mom's love of French food, and growing up in California and the, quote, unquote, birthplace of local seasonal food in the Bay Area. It's my take on things. At the end of the day, it's really about creativity in the kitchen. Coming from a fashion background and a design background, cooking is another outlet for creativity. To be able to do that and feed somebody and have them love it is the best thing of all.
Kerry Diamond:
I'm so excited for this book.
Peter Som:
Thank you.
Kerry Diamond:
Let's talk about gift giving. My family always says I am the hardest person to buy for, which I refuse to accept. I think I'm easy to buy for. How about you? Hard to buy for? Easy to buy for?
Peter Som:
I am probably hard to buy for our family. We stopped doing presents after a while.
Kerry Diamond:
Us too, yeah.
Peter Som:
We were all like, "Oh, okay, we're all adults, dah, dah, dah. We all have what we want or whatever." So I don't always want more stuff. This is going to sound whatever, but I'd rather have a great dinner, we're a great restaurant, have an experience. Honestly, I'd rather have someone give to a great charity. So yeah, so I'm hard to buy for if somebody who wants to buy me something. My boyfriend recently showed me this something, "I'm thinking of getting you this. Just say yes or no." I'm like, "Yeah."
Kerry Diamond:
Well, I agree. I love experiences.
Peter Som:
Yeah, .like a great dinner at any restaurant really, but if that feels special, I love that.
Kerry Diamond:
A class, a show-
Peter Som:
Yeah. A Broadway show.
Kerry Diamond:
... any of those things.
Peter Som:
Broadway show, I'm such a Broadway baby.
Kerry Diamond:
What about a host gift? If you do have to bring a little something, what do you like to bring?
Peter Som:
Yes. Oh, goodness. I know. I try not to stress about it, but it's something like... I love things like a Brightland, olive oils, some beautiful olive oil, you can never go wrong with something like that. There's always the candle thing. I know somebody once said, "If you give a candle, it's like you didn't care."
Kerry Diamond:
I disagree.
Peter Som:
I think there's some lovely candles out there.
Kerry Diamond:
Bring me a Diptyque candle anytime.
Peter Som:
Exactly, never can go wrong, but I do somehow love a beautiful olive oil or something in that realm.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, that's so nice. A gift of food is a lot of fun.
Peter Som:
Yeah, no, I'm pretty focused. I'm like, just give me second. I can shove in my mouth, not that I'm guzzling olive oil, but...
Kerry Diamond:
There's so many beautiful pantry items now. Brightland is a good call.
Peter Som:
Yeah, exactly, or even Fishwife, like, "Give me 10 fish." "Honestly?" "Seriously, give me 10 fish. I'm all about it." Those ones are so pretty.
Kerry Diamond:
They are so pretty.
Peter Som:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
They are.
Peter Som:
So gorgeous pantry items, yes.
Kerry Diamond:
How are you taking care of yourself these days? I know we sometimes forget about prioritizing our health and our mental health during the holidays.
Peter Som:
I think the way I'm taking care of myself is-
Kerry Diamond:
If you are, sometimes you do forget. Yeah.
Peter Som:
No. I think for me, I do need time at home with quiet, and not that TV technically is probably sanctioned by it. I do need time at home with quiet, and not that TV technically is probably sanctioned by the health people, but just watching a few episodes of Jeopardy really is very soothing. I love to get good facial. I love a little skincare, that kind of thing. But I have to say, being at home and having no music on, just a silence and being able to sit in the silence is nice.
Kerry Diamond:
Decompressing.
Peter Som:
Yes, Exactly.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay.
Peter Som:
How are you doing it?
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, gosh.
Peter Som:
Or are you not? You're always on a plane or you're always somewhere.
Kerry Diamond:
That's a really good question. I love December. I love seeing all my friends and family, so seeing my friends and family nourishes me spiritually-
Peter Som:
Yes. Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
... so I really like seeing everybody.
Peter Som:
Yeah, I think that's my other thing I love, 'cause obviously there's January where you can be more... I love the holidays in New York City. I just love how everything's beautiful and decorated, and I love seeing my friends.
Kerry Diamond:
And walking, I'm guessing you're the same. I love walking in New York City and it's not that cold yet. You can still do that before the misery.
Peter Som:
I know. You can walk and have a cute... and maintain your look, basically.
Kerry Diamond:
Priorities.
Peter Som:
Exactly. Exactly.
Kerry Diamond:
Let's do a quick speed round. Coffee or tea?
Peter Som:
Coffee.
Kerry Diamond:
How do you take it?
Peter Som:
I take it with a little almond milk and a touch of Stevia, and the grounds have to be freshly ground. I grind them every morning.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay.
Peter Som:
That's a big one.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you know that Calvin Klein's private chef had a Pantone chart and they would check to make sure the coffee was the exact color that he wanted?
Peter Som:
I didn't know that, but I'm not really surprised. I kind of love it. Maybe I should get my Pantone book. Coffee's going to take a long time tomorrow morning.
Kerry Diamond:
What is a cookbook you love or reach for frequently?
Peter Som:
A cookbook that I reach for frequently I would say any of the Ottolenghi cookbooks. He taught me about spices in a way I never really knew.
Kerry Diamond:
Favorite food movie?
Peter Som:
“Feast.”
Kerry Diamond:
Favorite kitchen implement?
Peter Som:
Japanese mandolin.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, a mandolin.
Peter Som:
Mandolin. Yes. Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Brave. Do you need a glove? Or Nigella Lawson uses one of those “Game of Thrones” gloves with it.
Peter Som:
Well, the thing I make sure I do is my hand is completely parallel to the surface so there's no digits flying around, or I have one of those rubber mitts-
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, okay.
Peter Som:
... yeah, a pot holder that I do the same thing, just so if there was one little scrape, it'll catch the mitt.
Kerry Diamond:
Got it. Got it. What's always in your fridge?
Peter Som:
Miso.
Kerry Diamond:
Fave childhood food?
Peter Som:
Swensens Coffee ice cream.
Kerry Diamond:
Favorite snack?
Peter Som:
Just some cubes of really good gruyere and a few dates and some almonds.
Kerry Diamond:
Favorite holiday song?
Peter Som:
For sure it's Mariah Carey. Hello?
Kerry Diamond:
Favorite holiday movie?
Peter Som:
“A Christmas Story.” You know the one where the kid gets the tongue stuck on the pole?
Kerry Diamond:
Love.
Peter Som:
That one. I think it's the best one. Love it.
Kerry Diamond:
Dream travel destination?
Peter Som:
Anywhere the the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express is going.
Kerry Diamond:
Nice. Nice. All right. Last question, if you had to be trapped on a desert island with one food celebrity, who would it be and why?
Peter Som:
Oh, my gosh, that's from left field. I would say Anthony Bourdain because he is well traveled. He could probably wrestle a iguana to the ground and barbecue it. I would support from the sidelines, but yes, the late, great Anthony Bourdain.
Kerry Diamond:
Peter, you are delightful. Thank you for being such a wonderful friend over the years.
Peter Som:
Thank you, Kerry. This has been amazing and it's so great to see us in our new-
Kerry Diamond:
Evolving.
Peter Som:
Evolving, growing, learning.
Kerry Diamond:
Exactly. Exactly. Happy holidays.
Peter Som:
You too. Happy holidays.
Kerry Diamond:
That's it for today's show. Our theme song is by the band Tralala. Thank you to the team at City Vox Studios and Newsstand Studios at Rockefeller Center in New York City. Our producers are Catherine Baker and Yasmin Nesbat. Our associate producer is Jenna Sadhu, and our editorial assistant is Londyn Crenshaw. Thanks for listening, everybody. You are the Bombe.