Last night I was hanging around with my sister watching Food Network and an old episode of Good Eats came on. It reminded me just how much I love the show.
I don’t think it’s news that Good Eats is a fun and informative watch, but I figured I would throw it some love too. Alton Brown is my favorite Food Network personality and it all started with Good Eats. Being a bit of a science nerd myself, I love that the show focuses on the science of cooking, along with the history of the food that Alton is working with. It’s amazing how much information AB manages to stuff into every episode.
For instance, on his show about peas, he goes into the history of the crop in medieval Europe and how it revolutionized farming and crop rotation because it didn’t sap the soil of all the nutrients like other crops. Useful information? Maybe not, but interesting nonetheless. Plus, I play a lot of Trivial Pursuit.
Beyond the history and science, Alton also offers up a lot of great advice on kitchen gadgets (with the help of his gadget expert W). In one episode he went through all the different types of waffle makers, informing the viewer of which features are critical and which are useless. He does this regularly, and it has certainly affected my gadget purchasing.
I also love the creativity that Alton uses on the show. Yes, sometimes it’s over the top, but it’s all in good fun. Whether he’s cooking with his “sister” and “nephew,” or testing kitchen gadgets in his dungeon with Igor, the show is always amusing.
The one downfall for Good Eats, in my opinion, are the recipes. I’ve made plenty of Alton’s dishes before and for the most part they are successful, but because his show focuses on basics, techniques, and scientific fine-tuning, the recipes don’t tend to be as creative as some of those featured on the other Food Network shows. I’m really nitpicking here though, as Alton’s Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip is quite revelatory. It’s a hit at any party, and super easy to make.
Are you an AB fan? Do you have a favorite episode of Good Eats?
Clacked by Bob Degon
on Dec 27, 2008 @ 14:00 EST5EDT
I love good eats and there are too many episodes to remember!
However the Santa Claus one was great. “Mrs. Claus only lets me out one day a year and I want good cookies damnit!” haha
Alton is also my favorite Food Network personality and his “Good Eats” is a must-watch in our house. We’re all science geeks to one degree or another and his explanations of WHY something is prepared a certain way are far more interesting than the usual peraonality telling us HOW it’s cooked. Any recipe can give us the how, but Alton’s about the only one giving us the why and I can appreciate that. Knowing the science behind cooking helps you understand and apply those techniques to cooking other, perhaps similar, foods.
Now for pure tastiness I have to go with recipes by Paula Deen. If you cook like she does you probbly won’t live for very long, but you’ll enjoy every day until your last!
I’ve been a Good Eats fan since the beginning. I’m a nerd about the fact that he not only shows how to make a certain dish, but the whys and the science as well. His recipes are easy to make, and if you par attention to the science behinh the show, it makes you a better cook for other, more challenging recipes.
I have all his books, and use them regularly in the summer when I’m grilling. I still stick to his basic grilled steak recipe; kosher salt, peanut oil, and a super hot grill.