Taste Buds
Season 4
Season 4 of Taste Buds brings more fun with my Emmy-nominated take on foodie fun throughout the Twin Cities and beyond. I’m joined by foodies, food producers and chefs as we explore the food creators in our community, get inspired by them and head back to my home to make dishes that even the most intrepid home cook can try with success. Each 30-minute episode can be found on the Fox 9 local app and the show airs every Saturday at 8:30 a.m. on Fox 9 plus all shows are posted on YouTube and Stephaniesdish.com. Get all the episodes and show recipes below.
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Episode 1 – Dive Bars
Stephanie Hansen and celebrity guest @MelissaPeterman (“Reba,” “Happy’s Place,” “Fargo”) hit the road for a dive bar food tour across the Twin Cities.
Together, they visit local favorites, including Frenchman’s Pub in Richfield, the iconic 1029 Bar in Minneapolis and The Nook in Saint Paul. The pair tastes everything from breakfast burgers and lobster rolls to dry-rubbed wings and the famous Juicy Lucy.
Back in her kitchen, Stephanie tests out a simple air fryer recipe for fried pickle planks with homemade chipotle ranch dip.
Recipe:
Half Time Edition – Elote Street Corn Dip
Stephanie Hansen is serving all the flavors of elote street corn in a creamy dip for this halftime edition of Taste Buds.
Recipe:
Episode 2 – Tangletown Farm to Wise Acres Table
Stephanie Hansen explores true farm-to-table dining with a visit to Tangletown Gardens and Wise Acre Eatery, getting an up-close look at the closed-loop agricultural system that fuels their Minneapolis restaurant.
A tour across the farm with Farmer Dean highlights free-ranging Scottish Highland cattle, expansive vegetable fields, solar-powered chicken pastures (dutifully protected by resident geese), and year-round greenhouses.
Next, the journey moves from the field to the kitchen as Chef Dan crafts Wise Acre’s fan-favorite Brunch Bowl, followed by a colorful carrot-feta salad topped with edible flowers.
Back at home, Stephanie brings the farm-fresh momentum indoors by creating a simple, savory asparagus tart using asparagus from her own garden.
Recipes:
Episode 3 –El Sazón
Can you really get a multi-course, fine-dining dinner inside a gas station? On this episode of “Taste Buds,” Stephanie Hansen checks out one of the Twin Cities’ most unique culinary success stories: El Sazon and Xelas by El Sazon
Founded by husband-and-wife duo Cristian and Karen De León, El Sazon began inside a tiny kitchen at an Eagan BP gas station in 2022. From there, the De Leóns turned it into a hot spot for six-course tasting menus before expanding into several restaurant locations.
Stephanie meets up with Cristian and Karen to learn how the concept came to life while sampling some of their most famous creations. See how Cristian crafts their signature beef short rib birria ramen, a massive breakfast burrito featuring 48-hour marinated steak, concha French toast topped with dulce de leche, and a taco platter featuring tempura-battered shrimp.
Back at home, Stephanie tackles slow-cooked birria for the first time, braising chuck roast for four hours until it’s fall-apart tender. The result is rich, flavorful birria tacos served with a warm consommé for dipping.
Birria for Tacos, Burritos and Bowls
Recipes:
Episode 4 – Crocktober
October is officially “Crocktober” for Stephanie Hansen as she fires up the slow cookers for easy, flavor-packed comfort food recipes.
Stephanie visits creator Erin Jensen, the voice behind popular food blog The Wooden Skillet, to see how she crafts crowd-pleasing, elevated crockpot meals. Erin demonstrates her rich short rib ragu served over rigatoni, along with a hearty Italian wedding soup made with tiny, pan-seared pork and beef meatballs.
Back in Stephanie’s kitchen, inventor Betsy Thompson of Load of Crock stops by to demonstrate her line of crockpot liners designed to simplify cleanup. Betsy and Stephanie put the liners to the test while building slow-cooked meatball sub sandwiches.
Plus, Stephanie shares a simple weeknight hack for cooking pasta directly inside the slow cooker, transforming simple ingredients into a creamy, one-pot lemon chicken pasta.
Recipe:
- Lemon Chicken Pasta
- The Wooden Skillets Short Rib Beef Ragu
- The Wooden Skillets Italian Wedding Soup
- Meatball Sub from Load Of Crock With Betsy
Half Time Edition – No Bake Pretzel Bars
Stephanie Hansen’s simple, no-bake peanut butter pretzel bars blend salty, crushed pretzels with rich, melted chocolate for a quick game-day favorite for halftime.
