Good Hang with Amy Poehler

Aziz Ansari

October 14, 2025

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  • Aziz Ansari skipped first grade in South Carolina because he was deemed too smart for his class, though he later felt like the 'dumb kid' at a specialized Governor's School. 
  • Amy Poehler and Aziz Ansari share deep nostalgia for their time on *Parks and Recreation*, viewing themselves as the 'aunties' to Aziz and Aubrey Plaza's characters. 
  • Aziz Ansari maintains a minimalist relationship with technology, using a flip phone and avoiding email for years to create more space for thinking, a practice he notes is shared by directors like Tarantino and Nolan. 
  • Aziz Ansari has become passionate about cooking Indian food, learning traditional methods from family in India and gaining confidence through culinary training in Italy for a show. 
  • The red food coloring in Chicken 65, which Aziz Ansari made for Rashida Jones's child, is noted for causing hyperactivity in kids due to the dye. 
  • The shared experience of laughing together in a packed theater for comedies is highlighted as superior to solitary viewing, emphasizing the importance of communal laughter. 

Segments

Tech Fiasco and Fashion Talk
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(00:00:30)
  • Key Takeaway: Amy Poehler and Rashida Jones experienced a technical audio issue before the main interview began.
  • Summary: The segment opens with Amy Poehler welcoming Aziz Ansari and Rashida Jones, immediately followed by a technical failure where Rashida Jones could not be heard. After resolving the audio issue, they briefly discuss personal aesthetics, with Rashida identifying Amy as an ‘autumn’ in color theory and Amy expressing a desire to be a ‘winter.’ They then coin the fashion trend for the season as ‘Functional Flat Front Fall.’
Poehler’s Affection for Ansari
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(00:07:43)
  • Key Takeaway: Rashida Jones admires Aziz Ansari’s insatiable curiosity and open approach to experiencing art, food, and film.
  • Summary: Rashida Jones praises Aziz Ansari as an insatiably curious person who is open to new experiences, noting his humor and her desire to always get his take on things. She recalls traveling with him, specifically highlighting his ability to order fluently in Japanese due to his excellent accent. Rashida then poses a question to Aziz regarding his favorite things to cook and eat, mentioning his delicious homemade Chicken 65.
Early Life and Comedy Beginnings
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(00:12:44)
  • Key Takeaway: Aziz Ansari began stand-up comedy during his freshman year at NYU after being repeatedly encouraged by others to try it.
  • Summary: Aziz Ansari recounts feeling older and finding New York City overwhelming compared to his youth in South Carolina, where he had no comedy outlet. He initially majored in business at NYU before realizing his passion lay in comedy, which he pursued after encouragement from peers. His early career included hosting a Monday night stand-up show at the UCB theater, which led to his sketch show Human Giant on MTV.
Path to Parks and Recreation
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(00:24:03)
  • Key Takeaway: Aziz Ansari was the first person cast on Parks and Recreation based on a viral sketch seen by creators Greg Daniels and Mike Schur.
  • Summary: The sketch that secured Aziz Ansari’s role on Parks and Recreation was a Human Giant sketch called ‘Viral Videos,’ which Daniels and Schur saw. He recalls the casting process as an ‘Avengers Assemble’ moment where the creators selected funny people they liked, emphasizing the positive energy of the ensemble cast. Ansari credits the leadership style of Poehler and Schur as the best role model he could have for directing.
On-Set Bloopers and Tom Haverford
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(00:27:01)
  • Key Takeaway: The hardest scene for Aziz Ansari to film involved trying to make Adam Scott break character while discussing Joan Callamezzo’s ‘powdering her nose.’
  • Summary: Aziz Ansari finds bloopers funnier than the final takes of Parks and Recreation because they reflect his actual experience on set, such as a chaotic dance scene involving ‘bronze in bloosh.’ He notes that the phrase ‘Treat Yourself’ became widely adopted after its appearance on the show. He also recalls a scene with Mo Collins (Joan Callamezzo) where he and Adam Scott could not stop laughing after the line about ‘powdering her nose.’
Directing Good Fortune and Cast Dynamics
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(00:40:30)
  • Key Takeaway: Directing Good Fortune required Aziz Ansari to make every decision, a stark contrast to the supported environment of Parks and Recreation.
  • Summary: Aziz Ansari describes directing his film Good Fortune as an involved process of crafting every element, unlike acting in an ensemble where everything is taken care of. He praises Keanu Reeves as both the sweetest and coolest person, noting Reeves’s dramatic shift between his serious John Wick persona and his silly role in Good Fortune. Ansari emphasizes the joy of directing comes from allowing talented actors like Keke Palmer and Seth Rogen to improvise and elevate the scripted material during rehearsals.
Food, Cooking, and COVID
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(00:52:14)
  • Key Takeaway: Aziz Ansari significantly increased his cooking skills, particularly Indian cuisine, during the COVID-19 lockdown in London.
  • Summary: Aziz Ansari grew up eating both Indian food from his mother and Southern food from his caretaker, Miss Beulah. His dedication to cooking intensified during COVID in London, where food preparation helped structure his day. He actively learned his mother’s intimidating Indian recipes by asking her for guidance and watching instructional YouTube videos from Indian ‘aunties.’
Cooking Indian Food Intimidation
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(00:54:03)
  • Key Takeaway: Indian cooking is made less intimidating by visual learning via YouTube channels hosted by Indian aunties.
  • Summary: Indian food is loved by the guest, but measuring spices can be difficult when recipes lack precise amounts. YouTube tutorials showing visual demonstrations significantly reduce the intimidation factor for home cooks. The term “Indian store” is noted as a funny colloquialism for the Indian grocery store.
Chicken 65 Anecdote
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(00:55:12)
  • Key Takeaway: Chicken 65, an Indian dish resembling chicken nuggets, causes children to become energetic due to the red food coloring dye used.
  • Summary: Aziz Ansari made Chicken 65 for Rashida Jones’s child, who subsequently experienced a burst of energy. This effect was traced back to the red food coloring commonly used in the dish. The dish is now requested whenever the child visits.
Rashida Jones’s Question
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(00:56:05)
  • Key Takeaway: Rashida Jones respects Aziz Ansari’s curiosity and asked what his favorite thing to cook is, leading to a discussion on culinary heritage.
  • Summary: The podcast utilizes a pre-interview segment where a guest’s question is posed to the current guest. Rashida Jones praised Ansari’s curiosity and asked about his favorite food to cook. Ansari stated he loves cooking Indian food because it connects him to his family history.
Learning Family Recipes
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(00:57:16)
  • Key Takeaway: Preserving family history through learning traditional home-cooked recipes is considered an important cultural act.
  • Summary: Aziz Ansari spent time with distant relatives in India specifically to learn their home cooking methods. He views learning food made by family as a special way to preserve a piece of family history. He did not grow up cooking, as his mother was a busy working parent in the 70s and 80s.
Italian Cooking Confidence
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(00:58:12)
  • Key Takeaway: Filming season two of Master of None in Italy required Ansari to live there, learn Italian, and work in local kitchens, boosting his cooking confidence.
  • Summary: Ansari gained significant kitchen confidence by working in Italian kitchens before filming the second season of his show. The local chefs were generally unaware of his fame and allowed him to learn hands-on. This experience, combined with time during COVID, pushed him to continue cooking.
Starting Cooking Late
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(00:59:01)
  • Key Takeaway: It is never too late to start cooking because the risk is low (you can throw away a failed dish) but the reward of success is high.
  • Summary: Ansari encourages starting to cook later in life, noting that cooking is a low-risk, high-reward activity. Repetition is key to learning, a concept he attributes to Lil Wayne. Failure in cooking is inconsequential if the dish is discarded.
Sources of Laughter
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(00:59:44)
  • Key Takeaway: Comedians often find humor by watching each other’s work, and Aziz Ansari currently laughs at silly internet memes shared by his wife, like one featuring a happy dolphin.
  • Summary: Because comedy is his job, Ansari does not watch much comedy, instead relying on stand-up peers for laughs. He avoids platforms like TikTok but enjoys simple, absurd internet memes. He also enjoys classic comedies like The Apartment.
State of Comedy Films
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(01:01:24)
  • Key Takeaway: Original, straight comedies are rare in theaters today, making the communal experience of laughing in a packed theater a missed opportunity.
  • Summary: The current era lacks many straight-up comedies in theaters, making the success of films like Good Fortune notable. Ansari misses the experience of seeing comedies like Anchorman in a packed theater where the audience reaction amplifies the humor. Being in a group is essential for the full impact of comedy, unlike watching alone.
Polar Plunge: Phone Defense
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(01:04:06)
  • Key Takeaway: Despite acknowledging phone drawbacks, the host defends the smartphone as a useful tool for tracking friends, making contactless payments, and receiving immediate global news updates.
  • Summary: The host offers a defense of the smartphone, calling it a ‘best friend’ that has never let him down. Functions praised include tracking friends, enabling quick, card-free purchases, and providing minute-by-minute world news. However, he immediately asks for help to get away from the device.