Food Factory

- Season 4

(2014)

An irresistible combination of caramel, chocolate, and butter pecan, discover the tantalizing secrets of the ice cream you serve like a cake; named after a people who were part of Genghis Khan's famous army, tangy tartar sauce was given a gourmet twist in the 1970s, and is perfected daily; it takes plenty of icing, slabs of cake, and a machine called the 'encruster' to make a single batch of 2,700 bite-size cake pops; and, a special roasting oven and Dead Sea salt give artisanal almonds their signature crunch.

The process of making instant ready-to-blend fruit smoothies is so cool that it takes a river of liquid nitrogen to make it happen; find out how raw organic cocoa beans are turned into luscious salted almond chocolate bars; delicious paneer isn't just the most popular cheese in southeast Asia, it doesn't melt when it's cooked; and, with a killer combination of kick, wasabi horseradish mustard features a spicy family story that only science can explain.

Featuring shredded coconut, toasted almonds, and rum, this Caribbean-inspired candy bar takes a trip through a chocolate waterfall; it takes three kilograms of rosemary, six kilograms of roasted garlic, and 100 kilograms of corn meal to produce a single batch of irresistible polenta crisps; sprinkled with walnuts and glazed by hand, every maple-flavoured Danish is a patriotic pastry that's packed with a magical filling; and, laced with butter and parmesan, Alfredo risotto is so popular that more than 25 million boxes of it are produced every year.

Two fun-loving brothers have put an organic spin on the classic cheese twist, and their high-tech assembly line includes a video system that scans for defective curls; if you've got a hankering for bite-size mint chocolate patties, the good news is that millions of them roll off the assembly line every day; it takes 200 litres of vodka every month to help put the zing in a buttery bacon-scented tomato sauce; and, the surprising thing about high-end chili powder is that it contains seven spices harvested from the four corners of the globe.

It takes 1.5 million kilograms of strawberry sauce to satisfy the annual demand for strawberry shortcake ice cream; hundreds of delectable tacitos are hand-rolled every minute, and if you want to join the assembly line, it'll take you three months to get up to speed; with gallons of chocolaty fluff and just minutes on the clock, making marshmallows is a race against time; and, after a massive shredder cuts the vegetables down to size, broccoli slaw is washed twice before hitting the spin cycle.

The surprising thing about this protein-packed breakfast cereal is that it's made from navy beans, lentils, garbanzo beans, and brown rice; a love for soda pop was the inspiration for an artisanal cream soda that delivers a flavour high without the sugar rush; the recipe for vegan mayonnaise came to its creator in a dream, and a 24-hour production cycle means a whopping annual yield of 4 million kilograms; and, steeped in Spanish history, a quarter of a million churros are dusted with cinnamon and flash-fried to perfection every day.

Now the official state snack of Texas, millions of tortilla chips are baked in a tunnel oven before taking a quick dip in a giant flash fryer; all-natural ingredients and a whole lot of cinnamon give grandma's kitchen flavour to 200,000 bite-size coffee cakes every day; if you think vegan means bland, then these decadent mint double chocolate cookies will blow your palate and your mind; and, it takes an entire assembly line to provide you with the blockbuster convenience of microwaveable popcorn in a bag.

Triple 'C' cheesecake is a chocolate lover's fantasy featuring a brownie bottom, chocolate cheesecake middle, a chocolate mousse topping, and even more chocolate; discover the unique father-and-son story behind a Noah's Ark of animal crackers, and watch as a massive menagerie of soon-to-be cookies stampedes through a giant tunnel oven; spaghetti-like strands of dough are chopped, baked for just 30 seconds, and then seasoned to become perfectly crispy sweet potato fries; and, combined with its 2000-year history, tofu's bland reputation is getting an overhaul with a ...

Up to 70 million, picture-perfect Hershey's Kisses are lovingly produced daily at the world's biggest chocolate plant; a sweet fusion of the French crepe and the Russian blini, every cheese-filled crepini is hand-assembled before a machine finishes the job; there's a real-life sisterhood behind the colourful and tangy gummy candies that look just like rainforest frogs; and, every year, it takes 150,000 kilograms of hand-selected Madagascar vanilla beans to produce top-of-the-line extract by the tanker-load.

A giant sheet of molten candy is pulled by hand before a machine takes over to produce thousands of tutti-frutti candies; on their way to your breakfast table, 300,000 spinach potato latkes are flash fried, showered with cold water, and frozen every day; a lesson in Japanese tradition and kitchen science, making gluten-free shirataki noodles requires precision and a magic ingredient; and, these guilt-free crisps pack loads of pinto beans and vegetables into every cheesy bite.

The recipe for these popular peanut butter cups hasn't changed in nearly a century and neither has the retro packaging; upwards of five million roasted vegetable soufflés are baked to perfection every year; after a successful career as a conductor, this maestro dusted off his grandma's secret almond cookie recipe and turned them into a popular and nearly guilt-free snack; and, it takes almost 7,000 kilograms of crushed tomatoes every day to make traditional Italian puttanesca sauce by the barrel.

With 165 years of practice, find out how one of the world's leading chocolatiers produces up to 500,000 dark chocolate bars a day; it takes 35,000 cashew nuts from around the world to make a single batch of the fudge-like East Indian candy called kaju katli, and it's up to a series of robotic arms to package them to perfection; loaded with butter and pecans, these crumbly melt-in-your-mouth cookies go by more names than a secret agent; and, blending tea, spices, and coconut milk, this refreshing smoothie combines tropical flair with a host of health benefits.

Packed with a double dose of chocolate pudding and cookies, 144,000 pints of this decadent ice cream are produced every 12 hours; if you love Indian curry, you'll go nuts for this irresistible blend of creamy coconut, spicy ginger, and tender crisp green beans; these champagne and strawberry lollipops will satisfy your adult cravings and the kid in you, and the good news is that up to 35,000 of them are lovingly hand-crafted every day; and, featuring European chocolate, creamy peanut butter, and luscious raspberry jam, these truffle pigs are hunted by the big bad wolf...

If you've got a serious hankering for chocolate, head to the state-of-the-art factory that produces 1.5 billion truffles a year; packed with veggies, bananas, and heaps of chocolate chips, meet the guilt- and gluten-free muffin that's as satisfying as it is healthy; retro Hot Tamales are North America's number one cinnamon flavored candy, and 73 million of them are produced every day; and, layers of buttery pastry dough and two tangy cheeses are the secret to light and flaky gourmet cheese crisps.

Complete with holiday stuffing in the centre, Tofurky is a hearty vegetarian alternative to Thanksgiving roast turkey; two best friends have put their passion for healthy eating into making tasty and nutritious snack bars that are guilt-free and packed with energy; it's arguably the most famous kiddie cocktail ever, and the good news for fans is that 1.5 million cans of Shirley Temple soda are produced daily; and, these one-bite snacks combine three generations of love with crunchy almonds, tangy cranberries, and decadent white chocolate.

First served at a fancy NYC hotel in the 1920s, today you'll find a delectable chunk of red velvet cake in nearly every single spoonful of the ice cream that bears its name; the good news for hungry hikers is that more than half a million pumpkin spice granola bars are pumped out daily; breakfast becomes a nutty decadent treat when you serve up the delectable spread that blends melted chocolate with freshly ground roasted almonds; and, though it may be hard to believe, 100 batches of lemon burst cookies are made every day using the essential oil from 24,000 lemons!

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: Planters cocktail peanuts are roasted in a giant oven called the 'Big Daddy'; Betty Lou's chocolate-covered snack bars contain freeze-dried vegetables; follow the assembly line that turns out 21 million crispy cream-cheese-filled jalapeno peppers every year; and, Old Montreal steak spice contains a secret blend of 20 herbs and spices.

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: A mother-daughter duo has perfected the recipe for gluten-free Nanaimo bars; 250,000 Chunks O'Fruti frozen strawberry fruit bars are produced every day; uncover the history behind savoury Shanghai dumplings and find out why it's impossible to eat just one; and, these multicoloured retro fruit jellies have attracted a celebrity following.

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: Discover the chicken pad Thai kits guaranteed to improve your kitchen cred; visit the Florida candy factory that's turning out heavenly melt-in-your-mouth mints; the search for the ultimate chimichurri recipe reveals a spicy love story and tons of herbs and garlic; and, every year, half a million lucky bananas are lovingly transformed into chocolate-covered frozen treats.

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: The stats on this mammoth Florida orange juice factory will blow your mind; tour the family-run business that produces 2.5 million balls of pizza dough every day; Fruiti Farts candies feature a rainbow of flavours and a personality that's all their own; and, over a million bite-size cream puffs roll off this California assembly line every day.

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: Skippy has been perfecting its iconic peanut butter recipe since 1933; eggplant Parmesan is made by the truckload in this California facility; a staggering three million bags of shelled pistachios roll off this assembly line every day; and meet the perfect movie-night chocolate bar that's packed with crunchy tortilla chips and pop-in-your mouth candy.

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: Making candy-covered almonds is a painstaking 10-hour process; the hole-free Bagelwich is boiled and baked at a rate of 15,000 buns per hour; half a million pounds of S'mores snack mix roll off a California assembly line every year; and, enough miso soup concentrate is produced annually to make over six billion cups of soup.

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: Discover the magic ingredient that keeps chocolate chips from melting away when baked; 1,000 kilograms of nuts are roasted every hour to keep up with the demand for this gourmet snack mix; these pickle slices are called bread and butter chips even though they contain neither; and, a trip to South America was the inspiration for this creamy mushroom soup.

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: More than half a million squeezable yogurt tubes are produced every day; an Italian grandma ensures every batch of old-school tomato sauce is made with love; a mind-blowing 1,400 fruity chews are cut and wrapped per minute; and, these two entrepreneurs are betting that tofu's protein-packed cousin tempeh will become number one.

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: Rice-A-Roni's massive assembly line produces six million boxes per week; this speedy Caesar salad kit takes just 30 seconds to prepare; it takes 100,000 Granny Smith apples to make a year's worth of delectable Whole Foods apple pies; and, nearly 40 million of Glutino's gluten-free multi-grain English muffins are baked every year.

From raw materials to finished products, Food Factory goes behind the scenes to reveal how our favourite foods are produced: After a century, Frank's RedHot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce still turns up the heat; seven million boxes of Shredded Wheat are produced every year; it takes art, culture, and science to create these coffee-chocolate bars with barista flair; and, from an obligatory nap to a robotic assembly line, this family-operated farm has perfected the art of hard-boiling eggs.