Friday, May 21, 2010

Food Television

"America’s Test Kitchen” is always a favorite cooking show of mine. One episode usually includes a couple cooking portions, where they show you how to make a dish and tell you things about it like what the best kind of onion to use for French Onion soup is (since they’ve tested all kinds). They also test cooking gadgets like garlic presses, cast iron skillets and whisks. They determine the best quality for the best price, which isn’t always the most expensive. And they also test different brands of things like salt, canned tomatoes, cheese, etc. It’s a very accessible show and it’s on PBS. The main guy can be a bit annoying (so I’ve gathered from my husband when he’s forced to watch it with me). But it’s well worth enduring that. And I was so encouraged to learn another good friend of mine is a fan as well. That must mean I’m on the right track, because she’s a fantastic cook!

PBS has actually had several cooking shows that I’ve watched in the past. I know every locale has their own listings, but definitely check them out. Lydia’s Kitchen” was a good one on homemade Italian food that I used to love to watch when we were in Cincinnati since it was listed there on PBS.

For just a short period of time, there was a cooking show on Lifetime called “Cook Yourself Thin”. They would take a person that wanted to lose some weight, learn their favorite foods and then remake them into healthier versions, teaching that person how to make them too. It was interesting, but I’m not sure any of the individuals they selected actually lost much weight. They would go back in 6 weeks and check on them, but they never looked a whole lot different to me. Other than the fact that they let them wear makeup, style their hair and wear cuter clothing! But it was still interesting to me, someone who loves food but also likes to be somewhat health conscious from time to time.

I wish I had The Food Network. But I know that if I did, I would never get away from the TV. So it’s actually probably best for both my wallet and my life that I don’t.

And lastly, I love reality food shows like “Top Chef”, “Hell’s Kitchen” and “Kitchen Nightmares”. I used to watch “Top Chef” with my sister-in-law, Christine, and we loved the food, the constant drama, and the fun challenges and quick fires. Seriously, you should check it out. I haven’t watched it for awhile (due to said lack of full cable), but when a chef can make gourmet food out of popcorn, they deserve to be paid the big bucks! And all those shows just underline my deep resolve to never, never be a chef myself. Too much stress cooking for all those crowds…

7 comments:

  1. I'll admit it, Everyday Food on PBS was a regular Saturday morning ritual for me. I even made their chicken parmesan, making some healthy changes (at the time). http://www.pbs.org/everydayfood/recipes/chicken_parmigiana.html Jake would probably like it, it's mozzarella.

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  2. I watch Hell's Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares on Hulu.com! They take a while to post new episodes, but keep the five or so most recent ones up all the time. New season of Hell's Kitchen starts next month.

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  3. Thanks for the recipe suggestion, Dave! And for being brave in admitting you watch (or watched) a cooking show. :-)

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  4. We are Food Network junkies. Somtimes they seem quite a bit out of our league, but it's a place to start anyway.
    I like watching the competitions on Top Chef and Chopped - picking a contestant and cheering them on too. Even the kids got into the last season of the Next Food Network Star.

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  5. I like American's Test Kitchen too. Maybe because it's kind of like a teaching show instead of a just tell you the recipe type show? It probably is good that you don't get the Food Network. There are lots of good shows on there. I don't have ones that I sit down and watch every week but the Food Channel is always good for the times when you sit down at an odd time like a quarter after and all the other shows are already started.

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  6. Justin and I have watched EVERY episode and season of Top Chef. It is one of the few shows that we both get into.We also really like Bobby Flay's Throwdown-our fav part of that is when Bobby is in his "test kitchen" with the girls trying out different ways to make things. I am going definately going to check out America's Test Kitchen. Thanks Cari!

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