Cottage Pie, Sweet and Spicy Meatballs, Salmon Burgers and Miso Chocolate Chip Cookies
'Oh, this is a knife kind of dinner.'
That's what we say at my home when dinner is a capital-D Dinner, requiring plates and forks and knives. Think: giant hunks of roasted squash full of tomato-ginger chickpeas, or any bone-in chicken situation, flank steak, pork tenderloin.
More often, though, I'm making the sort of dinner that doesn't need a knife — just a fork, spoon or chopsticks will suffice. This could be because it's capital-W winter where I live, and a shallow bowl cradling noodles or stew just feels so much cozier than a flat plate. (It could also be because there's a lot of good television on right now, and I want to eat on the couch. 'The White Lotus,' how I missed you.)
Dan Pelosi's new cottage pie is perfect winter comfort food. 'Cottage pie is a near twin to its sibling, the slightly better-known shepherd's pie,' writes Dan. 'The main difference between these traditional dishes, which have roots in Ireland and Britain, is that cottage pie embraces ground beef while shepherd's pie, fittingly, favors lamb.' His recipe is freezer-friendly, economical and versatile: Try ground chicken or turkey in place of the beef. Eat with a fork, maybe even a spoon (that mashed potato topping makes it easy to scoop up the savory filling), but definitely no knives are allowed here.
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Los Angeles Times
a day ago
- Los Angeles Times
‘Japanese walking' promises big health gains in 30 minutes. Health experts are skeptical
It promises the benefits of a 10,000-step walk in just 30 minutes. No gym membership required. Just a pair of shoes and a willingness to alternate between brisk and slow-paced walking in three-minute bursts. Dubbed 'Japanese walking,' the latest viral fitness trend is all over TikTok and has people wondering whether this short-interval workout can improve health more efficiently than a traditional stroll. The trend has spread across social media and beyond, with bloggers, online articles and major media outlets all jumping in on the walking routine. The protocol traces back to a 2007 Japanese study that tested the effects of high-intensity interval walking on middle-aged and older adults. But the recent buzz started with a punchy video from Australian content creator and fitness coach Eugene Teo that surpassed 10 million views on TikTok and 17 million views on YouTube. Known to his over 426,000 TikTok followers and 1.22 million YouTube followers as 'Coach Eugene,' Teo rebranded the science-backed routine into an accessible, algorithm-friendly idea: 'Japanese walking.' 'People don't like fitness jargon,' Teo, 33, said in a recent interview with The Times. 'They don't like scientific terms … and if I want to impact millions globally ... I like to make fitness advice and scientific jargon a lot more accessible.' In his video explainer, Teo describes the method: Walk fast for three minutes, slow down for three minutes and repeat the cycle five times. According to the small study of 186 women and 60 men, participants who followed this routine four or more days a week saw greater improvements in blood pressure, leg strength and aerobic capacity than those in the moderate-intensity continuous walking group. 'It's that cardio work that a lot of people are missing,' Teo said. Teo, a longtime coach and nutritionist, didn't invent the protocol, but he did help it reach millions. He said his viral video resonated with people overwhelmed by the pressure to hit 10,000 steps a day — a goal Teo himself often finds out of reach. He's been following this protocol on and off for years, ever since he came across the study. Usually, he does his walking on a treadmill. 'A lot of people have this all-or-nothing approach where they think, 'Oh, I can't hit 10,000 steps. I've failed,'' he said. 'It's about just changing the stigma people have and that all-or-nothing mentality ... of what fitness should be about.' He emphasizes effort over perfection: Walk fast enough to get out of breath, but not so fast that you can't finish the three-minute interval. The recovery periods are as slow as needed to reset. But is the science behind the trend as strong as the messaging? Dr. Helga Van Herle, a cardiologist with Keck Medicine of USC, noted flaws in the original study's design — namely, that only the high-intensity walking group was monitored with accelerometers, not the moderate intensity group, a bias that could have skewed results. 'This creates a major bias in the monitoring and compliance and could potentially skew the results in favor of the high-intensity training group,' she said in an email, pointing to the Hawthorne effect, a phenomenon in which people alter their behavior because they know they're being watched. Dr. Parveen Garg, also with Keck Medicine of USC, said he doesn't see intense interval walking as a standout recommendation among physicians. The study, he said, was small and meant to be thought-provoking and encourage further research, not to support sweeping conclusions. He supports any activity that gets people moving but cautions against over-hyping Japanese walking benefits or ease. 'It's kind of onerous,' he said, explaining that remembering to switch gears every three minutes, walking fast and slow and navigating technology isn't easy for everyone. He said it's possible to get similar benefits by walking continuously at a vigorous pace for a shorter time. But there isn't enough evidence to confirm that. Experts agree that vigorous activity, even in short spurts, is beneficial. David Raichlen, professor of biological sciences and anthropology at USC, said short intervals of increased effort — even just walking briskly for a few minutes — can yield meaningful health effects. 'There's something to the idea that small amounts of vigorous activity are really beneficial,' Raichlen said. Raichlen also noted that calling high-intensity interval walking 'Japanese walking' simply because of the study's origin is problematic. Yasuyuki Suzuki, a cardiac imaging specialist from Tokyo, is aware of the trend and the associated study. He said that while there is some new interest in the topic, it is not trending in Japan the way it appears to be in other parts of the world. He also said he does not feel any discomfort or concern about it being referred to as 'Japanese walking.' As for whether this method is better than 10,000 steps or continuous walking, Raichlen is hesitant to say — the research just isn't there yet. Higher walking cadence has been linked to lower dementia risk, Raichlen said. Also, walking in general has been tied to lower mortality, reduced cancer risk and improved cardiovascular health. 'I do think there's a lot of good from encouraging people to think about walking as exercise,' Raichlen said. 'Finding ways to sort of make walking work better for you is, you know, not a bad thing.' Still, the simplicity and catchy name may be why it took off. 'Pretty much anybody in Los Angeles can go outside and walk around,' said Sarah T. Roberts, a UCLA associate professor and internet culture expert. Roberts sees the trend as a reflection of broader social forces, including medical mistrust and the rising cost of health care and fitness. 'We're in a moment of economic uncertainty,' she said. 'For most people, a $300-a-month membership at Equinox is not a reality.' That, she said, makes low-barrier trends like 'Japanese walking' especially appealing. But Roberts cautioned against the risks of turning to TikTok and other social media platforms for medical advice. 'Stuff doesn't happen in a vacuum,' she said. 'There's a bigger social and political context to all of these things, and the backdrop to these kinds of trends is not great.' Roberts encourages viewers to critically evaluate where their health advice comes from and who profits from it. 'People with big followings often have something to sell,' she said. 'They're not really acting in the public interest.' Still, Roberts said, with every health trend, social media companies are profiting. Although some platforms have tried to crack down on medical misinformation, Roberts said such content moderation has fallen out of favor because it affects revenue. 'Devaluing expertise means devaluing the collective knowledge that people have in certain domains,' Roberts said. 'If I try to fix my own car, my car is probably not going to run very well. Now apply that to my body.' Teo said fitness trends should be approached with discernment. He's not claiming to replace traditional walking — just to offer a stepping stone for cardio. And if a viral name is what it takes to get people walking, he's OK with that. 'As long as you're not misleading people,' he said, 'and there's legitimate substance behind it, it's a great way to spin things.' Teo, Raichlen, Garg and Roberts all agree on one thing: Talk to your doctor before starting any new exercise routine, especially one that reaches vigorous intensity.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Livvy Dunne: How New York Times ‘hit piece' led to SI Swimsuit dream
Olivia 'Livvy' Dunne said her career with Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 'all started because of a hit piece' The New York Times published about her in November 2022. During a recent appearance on the 'What's Your Story?' podcast, the retired NCAA gymnast recalled the fallout from the past interview about her Name, Image and Likeness (NIL), which was titled, 'New Endorsements for College Athletes Resurface an Old Concern: Sex Sells' — and featured a snapshot of her in a LSU team-issued leotard. 'So I got offered to be in Sports Illustrated — it all started because of a hit piece The New York Times wrote about me,' Dunne, who landed the cover of the 2025 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue, told host Stephanie McMahon. 'So they came to our gymnastics facility at LSU, took pictures of me. They said, 'Wear your team-issued attire, put on a leotard,'' and they took a picture of me standing in front of the beam, like any gymnast would, and then they blew it up on the screen and put the headline, 'Sex Sells.' 'Okay, well, you just came into the facility and took pictures of me in our team-issued attire and blew it up on a screen… So I was like, 'Okay, well, this is crazy.' And there was obviously a lot of backlash to The New York Times because of that.' At the time, Dunne fired back at the newspaper in an Instagram Story post. 'And I decided I [was] going to put that same picture that they posted and captioned 'sex sells' on my Instagram story and write 'at The New York Times, is this too much?'' Dunne recalled of her clap back in 2022. 'Because, come on, you know what you're doing. You just put a picture of me in a leotard for clicks and then caption it 'sex sells.' '… And then people loved that. They were like, 'This is so great,' because no, it's not too much. You're in your team-issued attire, which is a leotard for gymnasts. I can't control that…. So it was just ridiculous. There was a lot of positive feedback from that. So, Sports Illustrated reached out to my agent. I was so excited about that. That was always a dream of mine. I mean, there's some legends and some amazing athletes that have been in Sports Illustrated.' The New York Times story was published with the sub-headline, 'Female college athletes are making millions thanks to their large social media followings. But some who have fought for equity in women's sports worry that their brand-building is regressive.' This isn't the first time Dunne has called out The New York Times publicly. During an appearance on the 'Full Send Podcast' in 2023, Dunne called the piece 'complete BS,' and claimed the reporter 'was asking me very odd questions' in the phone interview. 'The interviewer called me and he was asking me very odd questions. It was worded quite weird,' Dunne said. 'He was like, 'So, how does it feel to be a small petite blonde gymnast doing so well with NIL?' I was just like, 'Why does it matter that I'm petite and blonde?' You can just ask me about NIL without you having to use these weird ways of saying it.' Dunne appeared in the SI Swimsuit issue for the third straight year in 2025, landing one of the four covers for the 2025 issue. The New Jersey native shot on location in Bermuda, where she posed in a two-piece by Reina Olga. She told McMahon that she shot the cover with a fractured kneecap suffered during her last season with LSU. Solve the daily Crossword
New York Times
2 days ago
- New York Times
The Secret to a Great Tomato Salad Is in Your Pantry
'What is that?' my friend asked, an expression of joy and wonder on her face as she tasted this tomato salad. 'It's so … more.' More. Exactly. What she was trying to name was the salad's umami, but how do you explain that concept to someone who has just discovered it? Or to someone who thinks it relevant only to pretentious foodies? I could have told her about the fish sauce in the dressing, but I would have been revealing a secret I wanted to hold on to a little longer. Recipe: Tomato Salad With Dates I have a few of those. Not quite secrets, but little imperceptible flavor boosters. A splash of soy sauce or black garlic in Bolognese. Anchovies melted into vegetable soup. Fish sauce stirred into a caramel for a tomato salad. To anyone watching, it could look like a bit of magic. But there's a method to this. I'm chasing something that exists in the realm of sensation, a quality that doesn't readily announce its presence but still manages to make the food taste more, well … more like itself. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
