# What's your favorite cooking show of all time? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 26, 2010, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109 "2010-09-26T16:29:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MTCicero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@MTCicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MTCicero)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/1 "2010-09-26T16:29:48Z")
Inspired by [the **Two Fat Ladies** accent thread.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=579639) As for mine, I’d have to say that it’d have to be one of these three: **The French Chef** , **The Frugal Gourmet** , or the aforementioned **Two Fat Ladies**. And it’s almost too close to call. But if I had to choose one, I do believe I’d go with the irrepressible, divine Clarissa Dickson Wright and Jennifer Paterson, a.k.a., the **Two Fat Ladies**. Honorable mentions would have to go to a couple of Food Network shows, one old ( **Taste with David Rosengarten** ), one current ( **Good Eats** ); and both PBS shows from the mind of evil genius Christopher Kimball, **America’s Test Kitchen** and **Cook’s Country**. So, what are some of yours? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/2 "2010-09-26T16:32:41Z")
_Good Eats_ is at the top. I like the geek factor. I also enjoyed _Floyd On Food_ (and _Floyd On Fish_), and _The Frugal Gourmet_. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/3 "2010-09-26T16:56:25Z")
Good Eats. Good Eats all the way, for all time. Good food, good geekery, good all 'round. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/4 "2010-09-26T17:00:34Z")
Julia Child FTW. ---
**Author:** ![Turek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/turek/32/18782_2.png) [@Turek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turek)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/5 "2010-09-26T17:10:19Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Good Eats. Good Eats all the way, for all time. Good food, good geekery, good all 'round. I concur. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/6 "2010-09-26T17:13:21Z")
Julia Child, Floyd, the Frugal Gourmet, and Good Eats. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/7 "2010-09-26T17:19:49Z")
Good Eats. No competition. Nobody explains what’s going on as thoroughly as Alton Brown, not Julia Child, not the Molesting Gourmet, nobody. Many of these shows are hosted by people who are excellent cooks or excellent professional chefs, but when it comes right down to eat, you’re not really learning something useful when you watch them. Alton is a genius and he should be recruited to make educational materials for children. I really wish I had been taught shopping, cooking, and nutrition with the rigor he uses in school (instead of studying American History up to WWII every damn year, for example). Graham Kerr was comparable on the healthy eating side. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/8 "2010-09-26T18:20:24Z")
Baah, if I want to watch a science show, I’ll watch a science show. Floyd for me, any show, but especially “…on Food” . Closely followed by Martin Yan. Then Nigella. ---
**Author:** ![MTCicero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@MTCicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MTCicero)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/9 "2010-09-26T18:23:11Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > _Good Eats_ is at the top. I like the geek factor. The humor can get to be a bit too precious a bit too often for me to include it in my top three, but Alton Brown is certainly, if not a god among men, then a titan for how much he’s changed (for the better) the way we perceive food and cooking. ---
**Author:** ![slightly\_askew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@slightly\_askew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slightly_askew)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/10 "2010-09-26T18:28:38Z")
I love Good Eats, but never seem to catch it anymore. When are the new ones on? I also like America’s Test Kitchen on PBS. Their recipes are about as fool-proof as they come. For pure train wreck/I can’t believe she just did that/OMG who would eat that, you can’t beat Semi-homemade. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/11 "2010-09-26T18:31:06Z")
I used to like _The Galloping Gourmet_ before Kerr stopped drinking. I also liked a show called _Yan Can Cook_ (“and you can, too!”). ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/12 "2010-09-26T18:45:08Z")
One thing I liked about _Floyd_ was that it was the first show I remember watching where the finished dish was the same one you saw being prepared. Other shows I remember had the cook prepare something, and then take an already-finished dish out of the oven and say, ‘And this is how it comes out.’ _Floyd_ showed the preparation, then said something like ‘And now, through the magic of television…’ and cut to a silent movie clip accompanied by The OK Chorale. Then he’d come back to show the actual dish that he had made, only cooked. I also liked that he used The Stranglers’s _Peaches_ as his theme music. Two things I remember from the shows: He was preparing a roast. He pointed out that it was loaded with fat, definitely unhealthy, and ‘absolutely unctuous’. But it had to be to taste good. The other was when he was visiting a couple of Frenchmen on their sailboat, which they had sailed over to England from France, and he called them a couple of ‘garlic-eaters’. Oh, and one other: He seemed to put as much wine in the cook as he did in the dishes – and made no bones about it. ---
**Author:** ![DonLogan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/51bf81/32.png) [@DonLogan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DonLogan)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/13 "2010-09-26T18:56:35Z")
The Frugal Gourmet and Cookin’ Cajun actually got me into cooking. The Great Chefs of [city] series was good. Good Eats I thought was very good. Rachael Ray I actually enjoyed watching until Oprah got ahold of her. The Kimball shows are pretty good. Iron Chef is good for some oddball recipes and techniques. Never cared for: Paula Deen Giada DeLaurentiis (I can’t take that rictus she makes - her choppers scare the hell out of me). Steven Raichlen’s grilling shows - he talks to the audience like they’re 2 years old and he (or I) has this fetish about clinking the glass bowls together when he’s mixing ingredients. Any competition show (Iron Chef excepted for the reason given). Also -1 point for any episode of any show where they deep fry in a dutch oven with 2 gallons of oil. Nobody does that at home. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/14 "2010-09-26T19:01:37Z")
Rachel Ray’s, concept, format, and presentation is actually very good. Her personality is attractive and her manner is engaging and entertaining. In our society as it is currently configured we all could use advice on preparing meals quickly. Unfortunately, she too often relies on making dishes that are too high in fat, calories, salt, simple sugars, or processed ingredients. I would have really liked to see her make the extra reach to show us how to end up with a properly balanced diet in 30 minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/15 "2010-09-26T19:04:40Z")
Christopher Kimball and the America’s Test Kitchen crew also offer a lot of useful information. For pure entertainment, I like – Julia Child Jacques Pepin Jamie Oliver Nigella Lawson Iron Chef America Lydia Bastianich – But these are entertainment. They don’t take that extra step to present useful, educational material like Alton Brown, Graham Kerr (post-alcohol), Rachel Ray, and Chris Kimball do. ---
**Author:** ![evilbeth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/evilbeth/32/2268_2.png) [@evilbeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/evilbeth)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/16 "2010-09-26T19:09:39Z")
Good Eats for actually learning techniques and such. I love Alton. Anything with Nigella Lawson for purely sensual reasons–both her and the food. Just listening to her describe what she is doing is incredibly soothing and decadent for me. I keep episodes of her shows on my DVR to watch when I need some mental pampering. In the realm of cooking/competition show, I am a fan of Chopped. ---
**Author:** ![evilbeth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/evilbeth/32/2268_2.png) [@evilbeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/evilbeth)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/17 "2010-09-26T19:13:34Z")
Giving it more thought, I always enjoyed Lousiana Cooking with Justin Wilson and I really liked The Surreal Gourmet. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/18 "2010-09-26T20:04:09Z")
**Good Eats, The Galloping Gourmet, 30 Minute Meals.** ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/19 "2010-09-26T20:41:05Z")
Justin Wilson’s Cajun Cooking (not sure of the exact title) [http://www.justinwilson.com/](http://www.justinwilson.com/) Yan Can Cook [http://www.yancancook.com/](http://www.yancancook.com/) ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109/20 "2010-09-26T21:12:34Z")
In the Kitchen With Chef Tell “very simple, very easy” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-cooking-show-of-all-time/555109.md?page=2)