The Food Show You'd Like To See

[IndyRob]

Describe the food show you'd like to see. Maybe someone will notice and we'll actually see it.

For me, it would involve Wylie Dufresne and Homaro Cantu teaming up to try to beat a pair of top traditional BBQ chefs in a pork rib challenge. Rivals teaming up for a battle of new vs. old.

[Beth Wilson]

Maybe a food show about food and not the personality of the host. It seems alot of shows these days are all about promoting the personality and the products they are selling.

I enjoy the fancy, shiny, no expense spared products they use on these shows but really, for most of us, who has the money or the space.

Back to basics would be nice.

[Dakki]

Brewing show, to go with my new obsession. Do it practical (I'm thinking Alton Brown's style here), not "(Food Celebrity) visits the world's top breweries and discusses ingredients you'll never get your hands on."

I'd also like to see something like Jacques Pepin's Complete Techniques in a video format. I don't mean take the book straight to TV, rather a show that teaches technique, not necessarily limited to classic Western stuff; it could cover sous vide, Chinese cleaver techniques and so on.

[ElsieD]

For starters, something that does NOT have Gordon Ramsey or Ted Allen in it. I'd love to have a BBQ show; I know Raichlin has one but unfortunately, he puts me to sleep.

[Anna N]

I'd love to see more serious "teaching" shows especially for non-Western cuisines like Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese, etc. But I don't see it happening. Food TV is about entertainment not education. Too bad.

[Shamanjoe]

I'd like to see a "from field to plate" show like the one that Sunny Anderson was doing, except completely different. Her shows were too short, covered things so super-basic that I thought I was watching a kid's show, and then showed one or two uses that sometimes were interesting, and sometimes completely irrelevant.

I'd like a show that is an hour long (or a very well-researched and concise 30 minutes) that deals in-depth with how the food is produced, transportation methods, markets and finally at least a few different uses that aren't plugs for the latest food product. Something more generic, like caramelizing an onion until it almost melts away in the pan, or how they make onion powder, and all the products it goes into that we don't realise.

That would be my ideal food show, though it might be more at home on the science channel now that I read it.

I'd also like a show about french cooking techniques. All the really basic stuff, from breaking down a duck to mother sauces, etc. etc.

[jsmeeker]

Something with Thomas Keller. That would be awesome. "Ad Hoc at Home" would probably be best. But mixing in some "Bouchon" would be nice. This could work on PBS

[lancastermike]

Holly Moore eats across America

Holly Eats

[TeakettleSlim]

A show teaching about home canning and preserving-- given the resurgence of interest in this, a show talking about the science of it, as well as giving new, safety-tested recipes would be timely. Jams, preserves, pickles, fermentation, pressure canning...

[nakji]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again :

...

Shows I would be interested in seeing on a so-called "Cooking" channel:

Shows that demonstrate regional cooking: North African; regional Indian; Thai; regional French; regional Chinese; Japanese home cooking; etc. How people in those countries shop, learn how to cook, plan and prepare meals.

Shows that demonstrate how to organize/manage a home kitchen, including keeping/maintaining inventory; planning weekly/monthly shopping; assessing kitchen equipment; planning and preparing celebratory meals; canning and preserving, etc.

Seasonal cooking - through a year, cooking locally a plus. But you know, in a challenging area. Like Maine, or somewhere with a winter.

Shows that assess cookbooks: ie, this week we're cooking with:"..."

Shows that solely test cooking equipment.

Shows on packed lunches.

Shows on cooking for picky eaters/allergies/dealing with other limitations.

BUDGET cooking.

Shows that show you how to create your own recipes.

...

Also, I'd like to see shows with more than one presenter. Like, and hour show where maybe one person does a piece on equipment testing, then another does a visit to a market and makes something with what they bought, then someone else does a short piece on something else - a travel bit, or a bit on dealing with supermarket produce or something. Like a cooking 60 minutes.

[Chris Amirault]

I'd love to see more serious "teaching" shows especially for non-Western cuisines like Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese, etc.

I completely agree. Instead of personalities, you'd get fundamentals, techniques, ingredients.... Also agree that it ain't gonna happen no how.

[nakji]

From the network's point of view, what's the point of having the shows be so personality-driven? Are they just easier to market? Genuinely more popular? Because you think it would cost them more in the long run.

[runwestierun]

I would like a show that mirrors what you learn in culinary school, one that is taught by instructors and follows a school syllabus. Same thing for pastry school. I don't want to be told over and over how easy something is and then have it dumbed down nearly unrecognizably. I want to really learn and master a skill.

[lesliec]

All of the above, almost. I particularly want to see Shamanjoe's show around food production, markets and interesting uses.

I like José Andres' 'Made in Spain'. It's not perfect - I wish he wouldn't keep popping home to Washington all the time; the poor man must get exhausted (I know I do) - but it's a lovely mix of scenery, culture, food and techniques.

What I DON'T want to see is more 'cooking as competition' shows; Masterchef, Great British Menu, Iron Chef ... you know who you are. They might be mildly entertaining once, but cooking should be about ENJOYMENT, not huge stress and slagging off the other guy. Shouldn't it ... ?

[Chris Hennes]

For those of you looking for more education and less personality: give YouTube a try. There are a ton of people out there who are posting cooking segments, and some of them are pretty good. At least they aren't "Semi-Homemade"!!!

[Pierogi]

From the network's point of view, what's the point of having the shows be so personality-driven? Are they just easier to market? Genuinely more popular? Because you think it would cost them more in the long run.

It's all about the marketing, baby.

I don't know if you get "Next Food Network Star" where you are, but seriously, one of the comments most frequently made about the contestants by the Food Network honcho-exec judges is "I could(could not) see them with their own line of pans/sauces/housewares/linens/knives/gadgets/etc.". The producing commercial network (remove PBS from this equation) keeps a large portion of the reveue from those sales as a licensing fee or royalties. All that Paula Deen/Rachael Ray/Bobby Flay/Emeril stuff in the stores feeds not only the celeb chefs, but even moreso the commercial network that birthed them. Well maybe not Emeril any longer, since he sold his name rights to Marfa Stewart, but still.

WAY more money in the licensing/royalty end of it than the viewers associated with the show.

Giada at Target = $$$ for Food Network

Bobby Flay at Kohls = $$$ for Food Network

Paula Deen at Walmart = $$$ for Food Network

Poor PBS stands there with their hat in their hands, hoping people shell out for a membership in their local station, so they can get a cookbook or a DVD as a "premium".

[JimS]

Celebrity boxing: Gordon Ramsay vs Martha Stewart. I'd buy the PPV.

[jsmeeker]

From the network's point of view, what's the point of having the shows be so personality-driven? Are they just easier to market? Genuinely more popular? Because you think it would cost them more in the long run.

It's commercial TV. It's a lot easier to get people to watch likeable people.

[Holly Moore]

"The Last Network Food Star" or what LancasterMike said.

[JTravel]

I'd love to see more serious "teaching" shows especially for non-Western cuisines like Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese, etc. But I don't see it happening. Food TV is about entertainment not education. Too bad.

Maybe even one show, with a progression of "locals" showing their market (I am a market lover) and then a couple more shows in each locale. There are people "here" on eGullet that could do that.

When foodtv first came on there was David Rosengarten "Taste", with an episode on "mushrooms" or some other ingredient. Info on ingredient, history, and a couple of recipes. Loved it. It's when I started getting into food. But no flames into the air, no tension, no competition.

[JTravel]

Not to say that I wouldn't love shows on any of the Asian cuisines that each deserve a season of their own. Can you imagine, a Thai person, and perhaps a Thai/American, going from area to area showing us what people eat, and then preparing a couple of things. Travel, scenery, info, daily life, food, recipes....That is my dream show.

[nakji]

It's all about the marketing, baby.

I don't know if you get "Next Food Network Star" where you are, but seriously, one of the comments most frequently made about the contestants by the Food Network honcho-exec judges is "I could(could not) see them with their own line of pans/sauces/housewares/linens/knives/gadgets/etc.". The producing commercial network (remove PBS from this equation) keeps a large portion of the reveue from those sales as a licensing fee or royalties. All that Paula Deen/Rachael Ray/Bobby Flay/Emeril stuff in the stores feeds not only the celeb chefs, but even moreso the commercial network that birthed them. Well maybe not Emeril any longer, since he sold his name rights to Marfa Stewart, but still.

WAY more money in the licensing/royalty end of it than the viewers associated with the show.

Giada at Target = $$$ for Food Network

Bobby Flay at Kohls = $$$ for Food Network

Paula Deen at Walmart = $$$ for Food Network

Poor PBS stands there with their hat in their hands, hoping people shell out for a membership in their local station, so they can get a cookbook or a DVD as a "premium".

Ah - "Moichandising!" to quote Spaceballs.

Depressing, but understandable. I don't get any food networks, and to be honest, I don't have any networks, I just keep my TV around for watching DVDs. I wonder what the sales are like on those lines? I can't imagine buying any cooking equipment because Bobby Flay or Paula Deen had used it, but then I assume I'm not really the target market.

[Pierogi]

Ah - "Moichandising!" to quote Spaceballs.

Depressing, but understandable. I don't get any food networks, and to be honest, I don't have any networks, I just keep my TV around for watching DVDs. I wonder what the sales are like on those lines? I can't imagine buying any cooking equipment because Bobby Flay or Paula Deen had used it, but then I assume I'm not really the target market.

Well, I sure know *I'm* not !!!

Funny, I just finished reading an otherwise totally forgettable book about Julia Child written by a woman who worked with her on her later TV shows (NOT French Chef, much later, like "Julia with Master Chefs"), and the one thing that stood out in the book was that Julia would NEVER associate her name with anything she didn't have a) complete confidence in, b) she hadn't USED and liked, and c) didn't trust the people involved with it.

Her theory was, and it's SO sound, and SO relevant in this context, was that if she put her name on a product, let's say olive oil...that today was fantastic, all was good. But 6 months, or a year, or 5 years down the road, the producers she knew and trusted sold out to MegaConglomerate and the quality tanked, unfortunately, her NAME was still associated with a now inferior product.

Which, in turn, would take HER name and HER reputation down with it. So she rarely, if ever, gave endorsements, and never, ever sold them.

Words that would serve many of these so-called "celebrity chefs" well, me thinks.

[Carolyn Tillie]

Wow -- I guess I am the only one that would LOVE shows on food history. The History channel has done a handful of documentaries about certain foods; hot dogs, ice cream, and so forth and then there is Modern Marvels which has shows specifically about milk or cheese or tea, but I would love full-on cultural investigations into Medieval, Victorian, Renaissance history.

There are a ton of people out there doing bad-ass research and recreation; the SCA, Renaissance Faire Folk, and Civic War re-enactment groups who are doing everything possible to be authentic and so few know about it. I have done some serious catering for Freemasons, preparing meals that would emulate a scenario of Richard the Lionhearted meeting Saladin during the Crusades, a handful of Victorian recreation meals, and have worked the Ren Faires. Food History is incredibly fascinating and there is so little of it documented in anything other than books.

[percival]

What if you and a group of castaways were stranded on a deserted island/in a jungle/on a remote mountain for a month/a season/a year? How would you and your community survive?

Real survivor, not Melrose Place with stupid human tricks. You start with nothing. You are given nothing. You farm. You hunt. You cook. You build shelter, make fire, build food storage, aqueducts, herd flocks. In essence, taking all the current fads of locavorism, slow food, organic, and making it a reality. Would Alice Waters really practice what she preaches if he had to cut and haul her own fire wood and break down her own oxen? Take food bloggers, celebrichefs, food critics, GMO corn farmers, organic farmer's market vegan sandwich wrappers -- and kill their Interwebs, destroy their iPhones, bury their Le Creusets, and make them actually walk the walk. Make them learn to live and to cook with their hands. Make Jeffrey Steingarten raise and slaughter his own bacon. Make Rachael Ray make distill her own EVOO. Make Michael Pollan actually run a subsistence farm, instead of just telling others they should be doing it. Can't hack it? Can't offer anything that benefits the community? You're voted off the island. Each week, instead of being given a freebie or a pointless challenge, give them hell. Your hen house just blew away. Your only oxen is now sick. The grain silo caught on fire. Your vines just froze over. Make them cry. They can always forfeit and quit whenever they want.

Since it's celeb, make it a big pot: $1 million to the charity of their choice or something. Split between X remaining contestants. The show would turn food entertainment and politics upside down.