The ten best cooking shows

[Warpy]

(ohmigawd, I agree with most of them)

http://www.slashfood.com/2009/12/30/top-10-cooking-shows/?icid=main|htmlws-main-n|dl8|link4|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.slashfood.com%2F2009%2F12%2F30%2Ftop-10-cooking-shows%2F

I only checked to make sure all the ones I've found useful made the list.

I think I'd have deleted Stewart as too impossibly "Christmas in Connecticut" and replaced her with the slightly more rational Ina Garten.

Otherwise, love them or hate them, it's a great list.

[grasswire]

1. I think that's an odd list.

Where's Sara Moulton?

Where's David Rosengarten?

And if Andrew Zimmern qualifies, why doesn't Mr. Bourdain? Gee.

[Warpy]

3. yes, but the real innovators were there

and I think that's what the list was about.

I'm not fond of Zimmern or Lagasse, but I can tell why they're there. The only one I really questioned was Martha Stewart, although I have to say the first show she did after she got out of the joint was one of the funniest things I've ever seen.

[kentauros]

2. It is a good list

though I don't know why The French Chef came in second to Iron Chef. The latter never really taught me anything, but Julia was a great instructor :)

Iron chef is fun to watch, but it's more like a Food Gong Show than something you watch to learn how to cook.

[grasswire]

6. the comments are very amusing

Many many people miss the Frugal Gourmet and the Two Fat Ladies.

Many people disagree with the inclusion of Zimmern.

It's pretty clear the writer pulled the list out of the air.

[Warpy]

10. Not completely

He got Child for innovation, Kerr for a slap happy approach that said it could be a load of fun, Oliver for simplified recipes where you didn't need a kitchen full of exotic stuff you'd only use once, Brown and ATC for geekery, Yan for Asia, and the balance for entertainment. I think Zimmern was included for reminding us that stuff we think of as disgusting can actually taste pretty good if you're hungry enough.

I thought it was a pretty good list for a filler article.

I thought Rick Bayless might have deserved a spot for reminding us the continent doesn't end 10 miles below the southern border or that Ina Garten should have taken Stewart's place because she's a little more realistic, but that's just me.

[tishaLA]

4. The F Word isn't there. And that is one of the most informative cooking shows

I have ever seen. I can live without things like Emeril's show forever. Martha, however, is the reason I started to cook.

[Warpy]

5. Martha is the reason I almost quit

Talk about an impossible standard, a rich matron with a platoon of servants just off camera lecturing us all on the proper way to do things.

Her prison show was great, how to turn out interesting food with a toaster oven, a popcorn popper, and a microwave.

[tishaLA]

9. I think it was the impossible standard that drew me in

I really liked--and still do, but less--her attention to detail and her demands for precision. I understand that people hate her, but for me, it works. And if it weren't for her, I would never have discovered people like Julia Child or the many great chefs she has had on her shows.

[eleny]

12. Martha Stewart is why I made marshmallows this Christmas season - finally

I saw her make them years ago and was a coward until, by George, I made them this year.

[grasswire]

13. that almost sounds like the first line in a story, or a movie title

"Martha Stewart is why I made marshmallows this Christmas."

Ha! She has achieved her purpose as a self-proclaimed teacher.

[eleny]

14. LOL!

:rofl:

[grasswire]

7. amazing, isn't it, how Martha evokes strong reactions

I happen to really appreciate her. Can't stand to watch her spoiled and shallow daughter, but I like Martha. Especially for her chilled lemon mousse recipe.

[Warpy]

16. Her dessert recipes are all great

Her main dish stuff, not so much. Too many exotic ingredients. You can find those ingredients, but mostly they rot on the shelf after you use them just once or twice a year.

One thing I loved best about Julia Child was how she chose her recipes to tailor them to things you could find in a supermarket by the early 1960s, with the exception of some of the organ meats. You could still special order them in any market that had a butcher, though.

[surrealAmerican]

8. One of my all time favorites was the "Great Chefs" series.

They featured a different chef on each episode, but all really loved what they were doing, and it came through in the production.

[eleny]

11. Agreed about Garten

She's calm and down to earth. I can't help but like her and her recipes are good.

I also like the Great Chefs series that has been mentioned. I'd never cook like that but loved watching the effort made.

Then there's Molto Mario. I thoroughly enjoyed watching Batali working the pots and pans with calm confidence. I learned some more from him about Italian cooking.

The Iron Chef has never been among my favorites. The show's tempo made me too nervous so I stopped watching. Oddly, Jamie Oliver never got on my nerves. His enthusiasm is catching. Besides, he calls his fish guy a "monger". Love. Him.

Last but not least -- I'm sorry that they didn't give a nod to Joyce Chen, the grandma of Chinese cooking shows. She broke ground with her program and demystified Chinese cuisine as Julia Child did French cooking. She taught me to be comfortable in an Asian market. I'll always be grateful to her.

Thanks for posting about this list. It brought back good memories of Graham Kerr's shows, too.

[fizzgig]

15. i agree with you about martha stewart

and i'd like to have seen cooking with jaques and julia on there, too, because it's so much fun to watch. i'm kind of biased toward pbs cooking shows, because that's one of the few channels i get and i spend a lot of time watching it.

[supernova]

17. I think Julia should be #1

on that list. She practically invented the cooking show.

Glad to see Graham Kerr on that list too. That brings back fun memories. :-)

I can't believe the writer left off Jacques Pepin. He is absolutely wonderful. I've learned a lot from him over the years. Plus I had such a crush on him when I was little. Hee Hee.

Iron Chef (the original) is a lot of fun, but it's not an instructional show. Sidebar: I learned somewhere along the way that Chairman Kaga was the Japanese Jean Valjean at one point.

edit: I like to watch Martha, but I feel no desire to do any of her recipes. They are finicky. But the Everyday Food show is great.