Lauren Goode: I don’t remember this.
Zoë Schiffer: I think so.
Michael Calore: I don’t know why everyone is looking at me.
Lauren Goode: Yes. Mike, what’s your recommendation?
Michael Calore: Mine is actually related to the unboxing we just did because I want to recommend spices. So everyone has that thing that they love to add to their food. I have a friend who puts Jordanian za’atar on absolutely everything. I have a friend who loves really exorbitant fancy Meyer lemon olive oil for $25 a bottle and drizzles it over his breakfast every day. Maybe there’s a chili chip that someone is…
Zoë Schiffer: Oh my God. I just wanted to say.
Michael Calore: Right, because chili chips can cost 20 bucks.
Zoë Schiffer: So exorbitant.
Michael Calore: So exorbitant. So just buy them a year’s supply. You know they’ll take advantage of it. And it’s completely thought out. It shows that you care, that you have insight into their lives enough to know them as a person well enough to know how to make them joyful. So yes, that’s…
Zoë Schiffer: It’s so good.
Michael Calore: If you can’t decide, I don’t know what size they are. I don’t know if they’ve read this book. I don’t know if they would actually employ it, buy them something that you know they love and that you know they will employ.
Zoë Schiffer: It’s so good. This is so good because it’s strenuous to get it yourself. I run into this problem all the time because my brother and my mother are chefs. So they’ll come home and give me these really exorbitant ones, like Momofuku Chili Crisp, as a gift, and I’ll be like, “Well, I’m totally addicted to this. I need this for all my meals all the time.” And then I go buy it and I say, “18 dollars for this baby…” No, I can’t.
Lauren Goode: This is actually my favorite accessory. Momofuku hot chili.
Zoë Schiffer: You can wear it with anything.
Michael Calore: Have you tried Fly By Jing?
Lauren Goode: NO.
Zoë Schiffer: Oh, very good too. It’s Sichuan chili.
Michael Calore: Excellent.
Zoë Schiffer: Really delicious.
Lauren Goode: This is great. God, I feel like I literally recommended snake oil and everyone is like, “Oh, Mike. Yes. Thank you”. Now I’m hungry.
Michael Calore: OK, well, that’s our show today. We will be back in the fresh year. Thank you for listening Uncanny Valley. If you like what you heard today, follow our show and rate it on your podcast app of choice. If you would like to contact us with questions, comments or suggestions about the shows, you can email us at uncannyvalley@wired.com. Today’s show is produced by Kyana Moghadam. Amar Lal from Macrosound mixed this episode. Jordan Bell is our executive producer. Chris Bannon is the head of global audio at Condé Nast.