Food Network Pet Peeve

[Saphire]

Yuck, it creeps me out when cooks wear rings, watches, bracelets, have painted nails and worst of all...long sleeves! What is up with that?!? It distracts me and when the sleeve touches the food it is so unappealing!

My award for best kitchen presence goes to Emeril (though he isn't my favorite cook) and Giada De Laurentiis (love her recipes!). They keep things clean and neat and wear aprons!

 

[java]

Oh yes. DH goes nuts with Paula deen. She wears that huge ring and shoves her hands into everything(and licks her finger by the way too!) She has commented that she doesn't care if she gets the ring dirty- she'll clean it later.
What she doesn't think about is the DIRT on that ring that's getting into her food.
I'm with you on this one. And yes long sleeves bother me when I am cooking. I have friends that insist on long sleeved chef coats though because of the splatters.

 

[Imzadi]

My Food Network pet peeve is how they use a pound of butter in almost every dish. The ones that do, and are considered their star, celebrity chefs are all Pooh sized and out of shape: Mario Batalli, Emeril, Ina Garten, Paula Deen and Tyler Florence. It's like this network is promoting heart attack meals.

I saw a show on diners where the chef made a steak fried in butter, piled with onions sauteed in butter, then piled high with a scoop of mashed potatoes made with butter, and stacked with bacon.

The Food Network has an opportunity to slip in healthier ingredient choices in every episode, especially with their star chefs, so that it becomes a lifestyle for everyone. A natural habit, instead of reaching for butters and high saturated fats. They don't have to hit people over the heads with it, like with their Calorie Commando show. All they have to do is have their star chefs automatically use healthier ingredients.

Instead, I've watched Tyler Florence go from a lean chef on Food 911 to being puffy and unhealthy looking. I look at the other chefs and think if I make and eat their stuff, that's what I'm going to look like too, in a few years.

No, I think I'll pass.

 

[Targsmom]

Long sleeve chef coats are to protect your arms.

nail polish is a big no no, tho.. ew

 

[clh2]

I love watching the cake shows...Ace of Cakes, Amazing Wedding Cakes...the guy from New York (can't think of the name).

While I love the shows, the cakes look amazing...I don't think I will evey eat a cake that has had fondant on it ever again. There is just too much "non-sanitary" stuff that seems to go on with what is shown on TV. Makes me wonder what happens when the cameras are off.

 

[Saphire]

I'm not sure I have ever even seen the shows with 'chef coats'. That sounds fine, like an apron on your arms, lol. I can't stand the bell sleeves and big cuffs from cooks like Sandra Lee, Paula Deen, Rachael Ray and (my favorite cook) Ina Garten. Would you just pull up your sleeves and remove the jewelry...please!!

 

[Randi]

Mine is the way Rachal Ray piles all the packages, cans, raw vegetables, etc. in the bowls she is going to use to prepare the food just so she can joke about making 1 trip

All I can think about is how many people handled that can or package before she puts it in the bowl. Maybe she thinks that EVOO is an antiseptic.....

 

[Aristomommy]

My pet peeve is when they take a bite of their food at the end of the segment. Then the bite is followed by 10 seconds of silence when I have to watch them try to chew and swallow the food before they say "when we come back....". Come on, I believe the food is great without having watch you digest it...

I also like the cake shows, but when you watch them decorate it, I will never eat a cake with fondant. The decorators' faces are so close to the cake and I can only imagine what happens during the flu season around the cakes...yuck!

 

[pearlieq]

It has never occured to me to worry about it. I cook with rings (I take them off for messy jobs like meatloaf but I knead dough with them on), nail polish, etc. I wash my hands before I start and when appropriate during. No one has yet died in my kitchen.

We get too caught up in this stuff. Are we expecting a full surgical scrub before cracking an egg? Should we just have the chefs irradiated before they're allowed in the kitchen? Wrapped up in sterilized space suits?

This is bringing back memories of The Anal Retentive Chef from SNL. http://www.hulu.com/watch/4101/saturday-night-live-cooking-with-the-anal-rententive-chef

 

[suejai]

I can't stand the rings either and cooking with long sleeves makes me crazy. I agree about the butter too, I use butter but they use far too much.

I like Giada, her kitchen is so clean and streamlined, and the view out the window is amazing (if it's real)

 

[Imzadi]

Another peeve is that Giada DeLaurentis can't talk and cook at the same time. She will be in the middle of chopping or stirring and literally have to stop & explain something. I know Italians talk with their hands, but it's not like she's using her hands to demonstrate the size of something. She just can't talk & stir at the same time. I wonder how much shorter the show would be if she could do both.

Mine is the way Rachal Ray piles all the packages, cans, raw vegetables, etc. in the bowls she is going to use to prepare the food just so she can joke about making 1 trip

I hate that too. Tyler Florence started doing that on his show too. He'll go over to the refrigerator to pull out vegetables or will pile cookware in the sink. (Like he's going to wash them, himself, later. )

I guess they think it makes them seem more homey to us.

My pet peeve is when they take a bite of their food at the end of the segment. Then the bite is followed by 10 seconds of silence when I have to watch them try to chew and swallow the food before they say "when we come back....". Come on, I believe the food is great without having watch you digest it...

I wish Tyler would chew and swallow his food. I hate when he talks with a mouth full of food.

 

[LisaR]

I saw a show recently with Ina Garten where she was making some kind of roast (I wasn't paying much attention). I looked up just as she got done rubbing the roast with herbs and she walks over to the oven with her disgusting hands and shoves the pan in. She walks back over to the counter and picks up a vegetable and starts slicing. My son and I started screaming at the TV, "WASH YOUR HANDS!" Yuck!

 

[Nancyg56]

My pet peeve is when they take a bite of their food at the end of the segment. Then the bite is followed by 10 seconds of silence when I have to watch them try to chew and swallow the food before they say "when we come back....". Come on, I believe the food is great without having watch you digest it...

I hate that! The silence is followed by some moaning and groaning though ....I can do without the sound effects! Just cook it, I know you love it!

I hate the hair. Pull it back, don't touch it. Hair needs to be out of your face, off your shoulders and no where near the food. I get that you are on TV but I have never worked in any kitchen that allowed stray hair.

 

[NMAmy]

It has never occured to me to worry about it. I cook with rings (I take them off for messy jobs like meatloaf but I knead dough with them on), nail polish, etc. I wash my hands before I start and when appropriate during. No one has yet died in my kitchen.

We get too caught up in this stuff. Are we expecting a full surgical scrub before cracking an egg? Should we just have the chefs irradiated before they're allowed in the kitchen? Wrapped up in sterilized space suits?

This is bringing back memories of The Anal Retentive Chef from SNL. http://www.hulu.com/watch/4101/saturday-night-live-cooking-with-the-anal-rententive-chef

We used to call my dad the Anal Retentive Chef. Not because he was all caught up in cleanliness but because the man could make 1000 meatballs all exactly the same size and shape. When we had to help, he'd pull out any slightly misshapen ones and make us re-do them. My chopping drove him insane, as well--my onion or green pepper pieces were NEVER uniform. It was the one thing he was goofy about but we loved giving him a hard time.

Back on topic--I agree with your post. For the most part, the sets for the shows are made to appear as though someone is cooking in their own home. In my own kitchen, I wear long sleeves and jewelry and don't have my hair in a hair net while I'm cooking. I wash my hands frequently and follow safe food procedures but I'm not wearing gloves to prepare meals.

 

[DWGal210]

I love watching the cake shows...Ace of Cakes, Amazing Wedding Cakes...the guy from New York (can't think of the name).

While I love the shows, the cakes look amazing...I don't think I will evey eat a cake that has had fondant on it ever again. There is just too much "non-sanitary" stuff that seems to go on with what is shown on TV. Makes me wonder what happens when the cameras are off.

OOH this drives me nuts too!!! I just see them rolling out all that fondant WITH THEIR BARE HANDS and it makes me feel sick...I can't imagine eating a cake where some has literally man-handled the frosting and decorations with no gloves. Does no one from their (Ace of Cakes) Health Department watch this show?!

 

[TDC Nala]

I suppose you haven't seen Hell's Kitchen where they usually have at least one chef contestant with a minimum of two piercings in their face - and it seems almost all of the contestants smoke. I don't know how they can have discerning palates if they all smoke.

As for the cake shows, the fact that the edits don't show them washing their hands doesn't mean they don't.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

There's a lot on Food Network that drives me crazy . If I have to hear Giada say "Perfect" one more time after chopping something or putting something in the food processor or laying a spoon in the sink...

Paula Deen and all of her jewelry is ridiculous. It is nice jewelry (a little gawdy for my tastes, but different strokes) but the way she has to make a showing out of taking it off always makes me wonder why she didn't just take it off before starting to film . And her licking her fingers grosses me out (not that I don't do it in my own home when I'm cooking for myself ). And why when she first started on Food Network did she say "y'all" 2-3 times a show and now it's Y'all-apalooza.

Rachael Ray and her piling up of stuff is getting old too. And her saying she's making a healthy, well balanced meal when it's full of pasta, cheese, and meat. Just because it's not processed doesn't mean it's "healthy". And slowly saying "E.V.O.O." takes just as long as saying extra virgin olive oil or just olive oil. And all of her 70's colored cookware/knives/bowls, etc. (all for sale! ) are so ugly (although I know plenty of people that have bought her stuff and think it's cute).

On Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives hardly any of the cooks/chefs on that show wear gloves, etc. I love that show though. It's probably my favorite on Food Network.

Ok, rant over. I'm off to find a life

 

[sbell111]

OOH this drives me nuts too!!! I just see them rolling out all that fondant WITH THEIR BARE HANDS and it makes me feel sick...I can't imagine eating a cake where some has literally man-handled the frosting and decorations with no gloves. Does no one from their (Ace of Cakes) Health Department watch this show?!

As long as they washed their hands prior to rolling out the fondant, I don't see the problem.

Personally, I have never donned a pair of gloves to prepare food. I wash my hands prior and that's good enough.

I saw a show recently with Ina Garten where she was making some kind of roast (I wasn't paying much attention). I looked up just as she got done rubbing the roast with herbs and she walks over to the oven with her disgusting hands and shoves the pan in. She walks back over to the counter and picks up a vegetable and starts slicing. My son and I started screaming at the TV, "WASH YOUR HANDS!" Yuck!

She washed her hands prio to rubbing the roast, right? If so, I have no real problem with this. Granted, it's a little messy, but it's not unsanitary as long as the veggies are to be cooked. If the veggies are going to be served uncooked, she is risking a cross contamination issue.

 

[nuke]

I had to stop watching Emeril years ago because he was always leaning over with his face right in the food. It turned my stomach.

 

[Mrs.Toad]

My aunt was just visiting and freaking out over Ace of Cakes, that they are wearing their street clothes and have their hair down while making those cakes. She much prefers Cake Boss because they wear white chef's coats.

I never really thought of it before, but it did start to gross me out a little, too, after she said it. Yes, I cook in my regular clothes and I don't put my hair up, but I'm not cooking all day long for hundreds of other people, leaning over the cakes and carving intricate decorations out of modeling chocolate.