Good Eats

Mixing humor, common sense, science and food is a winning recipe for Alton Brown's "Good Eats" series. I'm always amused by his quirky way of approaching food topics, and I walk away from every episode a little bit smarter - never a bad thing! The shows are set up more like a cross between a sitcom and an episode of Sesame Street, if you can imagine that, which is appealing to anyone who thinks the average cooking show is a little bit "stale". A great show for beginner cooks, since everything is explained thoroughly and logically, so you don't just learn what ingredients go into a dish; you also learn why the ingredients work together and what they contribute to the recipe. This show is definitely one of my favorites; I highly recommend it to everyone.

I can tell that I like this cooking show simply by the camera angles: Instead of panning behind counters, the camera goes all over the place. Alton Brown has a terrific sense of humor and always shows you exactly how to make a recipe. He seems like a normal everyday guy, and that's why I like him. The recipes are also always nice and seemingly good. In many cooking shows you just get some lame recipes for "slow roasted beef in wine sauce", but here you get French toast/vinaigrette/etc. Alton also shows you what tools to buy and for what reasons. Some people say the show is irritating; I don't find it irritating at all. What about you? This show is always original. Long live Good Eats!

Good Eats is my favorite cooking show, ever. It's also one of my favorite science programs.

AB's curiosity about nearly all things is catching, and that makes for the best kind of teaching.

Is ANY topic safe from this man's parody? I certainly hope not.

In "Give Peas a Chance", broadcast last night, he gives a recipe for a vegetarian burger-substitute. I'm a lifelong confirmed omnivore, but I've sampled many an amazing vegetarian dish, including some well-known commercial burger substitutes, and I'm probably going to have to give these pseudo-burgers a try soon.

Even simple, straightforward tips like using Kosher salt are explained (in "Eat This Rock", an hour-long episode) not just pontificated. And that one tiny detail has made a seasoning mini-revolution in my own kitchen.

Keep having fun, AB!

Alton Brown proves you don't need a good attitude for good grub; I love the cynical undercurrent. He shows us how to cook simply rather than demonstrating eight hundred varying ways of boiling an egg. He keeps it low key and educational as he explores the origins of a food. This show gets on most people's nerves, which is probably why I can stand it. Two of the best episodes focus on steak and another on pasta. As far as I'm concerned, these are the most difficult foods to prepare because of the myths behind them. I was amazed to learn all the names to the different kinds of pasta noodles, but rather than confusing me, I felt more educated.

If you have come across my reviews before you would know I love watching shows where the host loves what they do. There is no exception here on "Good Eats". Alton Brown makes me interested in cooking. He doesn't just cook; he teaches. He is very interesting and keeps the show entertaining. Many cooking shows do the same old apron in the kitchen and lets cook a roast, but Alton brings history and interesting facts to the table. He has such a vast knowledge of cooking and knows how to address it to the audience in a non-traditional way.

Check this show out on the food network. Forget about watching a show about cooking; this show just simply rocks.