Photo: Rev Stan/Flickr
Tom Urell
In one of the fast edits during the “Quickfire” challenge on last week’s Top Chef episode, cheftestant Kevin Gillespie said that when he wanted to make an intensely flavored sauce, he “reached for [my] non-stick Calphalon saucepan” (or something). He probably wasn’t paid to say that, but it’s more than likely that he is under contract to make such endorsements when asked by the Bravo producers. To me, it changed the tone of the challenge. Yes, the entire series is laden with product sponsorships, products that are then used in the show (e.g., “the GE Monogram collection cookware” or “the Glad family of products”). But why is a contender making at all what is basically a pitch for a saucepan?
High-gloss cooking shows are absurdly expensive to produce. I can only imagine how much it must cost to make a season of the Food Network’s Next Iron Chef, which wrapped up a few weeks ago. The series starts in Los Angeles, goes to Tokyo and ends in New York, where the new Iron Chef is crowned in “Kitchen Stadium.” I was turned off, after enjoying a few of the early episodes of the season, by the challenge in Tokyo, where the cheftestants were instructed to use Kikkoman products to produce umami. Whether or not umami is a legitimate flavor/taste element, this challenge made it really hard to tell if the chefs are cooking to win or cooking to sell products (and advertising). Does it matter?
The Food Network doesn’t seem to shy away from the use of products as sponsorship and as elements within the content of the shows themselves. A Kikkoman umami ad played during every commercial break in the umami episode of Next Iron Chef. And here’s the description from foodnetwork.com of an episode clip:
“The four remaining chefs board an American Airlines flight and travel to Tokyo, Japan. The chefs begin a culinary adventure into the world of umami (a Japanese term for ‘delicious’ that is used to describe the fifth taste). First the chefs arrive at a traditional Japanese yakitori grill restaurant where they are asked to use Kikkoman soy sauce to infuse umami into their dishes and enhance the flavor profiles of a variety of ingredients.”
If this had been printed in a magazine, it would have probably had “advertisement” over the top of the page to distinguish it from the editorial content. But television doesn’t seem to acknowledge a line between content and advertising, at least not in cooking shows.
Give us your take. Does it matter that many cooking shows are saturated with products, named as sponsored or placed silently in the scene? What about on blogs, where it may not be clear if the author is paid to endorse a product (at least until the new FTC guidelines take effect)? Share your thoughts on the often-blurred lines between content and advertising.
Recipe Exploration Weekend= Success
Photo courtesy of Delicious Dishings
Jessica Alpert
I spent most of this past weekend in the kitchen. My husband, of course, was thrilled. I tried out a bajillion new recipes and created totally mismatched meals but WHO CARES (!!) when new recipes can be added as new standards.
Here are the best of the best.
Spiced Pumpkin, Lentil, Goat Cheese Salad
Megan of Delicious Dishings adapted this recipe from Bon Appetit. I loved experimenting with smoked paprika (a first for moi) and could not get OVER the delicious earthiness of this salad. I could probably do with fewer lentils since my favorite element was the pumpkin but all of that can be tweaked along the way. By the way, does anyone have a secret method for chopping pumpkin? I think my arm is still sore from fighting with my beautiful 2lb find. Nevertheless, Megan does a wonderful job guiding throughout the recipe. Give it a go and love every minute.
Salmon with Hoisin, Orange, and Bok Choy
Wow. This Bon Appetit gem was so easy and so fast. My big issue with fish is that I tend to dry it out. No.matter.what. I felt protected in this recipe: the tin foil packet (in which the fish is cooked) seemed able to lock in any moisture my novice hands might be able to suck away. Indeed this was the case. The mixture of fresh orange juice, hoisin sauce, and green onion added just enough intrigue to keep the salmon interesting. I give this one a big weeknight dinner thumbs up.
Couscous with Clementines, Chickpeas, Olives, and Dates
Another B.A. find. I love couscous but often run out of ways to keep it spicy and new; sometimes a bouillon cube and a pinch of saffron just doesn’t cut it. This recipe is simple and innovative. The combination of clementines (oh-so-seasonal), slightly cooked chickpeas, and medjool dates (I didn’t include the olives since I didn’t have any) was fantastic; I loved the juxtaposition of the sweet and salty. I decided to mix the chickpeas into the couscous and then layer the light and fluffy grains with the clementine, date, mint mixture; this created a gorgeous presentation and a delightful side.
Do you have any weeknight standards to share? Any experiments-gone-good from the weekend? Share below or tweet me @jessprk and @pubradiokitchen!
We Met Up, and Ate Up
Susan McCrory
Last night Public Radio Kitchen held its third MeetUp/EatUp and I think it’s fair to say everyone enjoyed it and walked away satiated in more ways than one!
A huge thanks to everyone who participated–in the discussion with Scott Soares, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture (MDAR), on the local food initiatives our government is pursuing in Boston and state-wide; in the much-too-brief conversation about PRK at present and what it should be to our community moving forward; and in the potluck spread. Next time, let’s make sure to bring print-outs of these recipes. They all were worth repeating!
Of the 20+ people who attended (including our ‘resident farmer’ from Powisset Farm, Meryl LaTronica–thanks Meryl!), there was overwhelming consensus that Public Radio Kitchen bolster its role as a virtual meeting point for fellow foodies and bloggers, and that we strengthen our community outreach. In other words, more MeetUps, new and more events that allow all of you to connect with one another, discuss, watch a demo, eat (of course), etc. And, by verbal consensus the group wants we editors to draw more deliberately from YOU in posting content.
To that end, we call on Liz Canella to email us her near-award winning recipe for marshmallow fluff brulee (yep, she torched it). We provide this link to Dale Cruse’s Drinks Are On Me blog, with his “How to Get Drunk Like a Supermodel” post. Proceed with caution in going there, though–this little article is not for the easily-offended. The North Shore Dish gals had a lot of good things to say about their neck of the woods, including their new find in Mildred’s Corner Café, so we tip our hats to them and call for that “lunches in Lynn” series! Penny and Ed of BostonZest have posted two great links today, one for this year’s Edible Communities Local Hero Award and another on rethinking street food, with a video clip of Ruth Reichl talking about the same. And, finally, we want to provide this link to Commissioner Soares’ new blog Commonwealth Conversations, The Great Outdoors. Get tweeting, Commissioner!
So, more to come, we promise. And thanks to everyone for making the evening come to fruition.
I Admit It. I Love ‘em.
Photo: Su-lin/Flickr
Let me make a confession loud and clear (it’s time). I LOVE TATER TOTS. Yes, I know…totally gauche but they are just so good. Taters were the first oven-involved snack I made for myself at age twelve and I’ve been hooked ever since.
Independent Radio Producer Guy Hand loves to study the history of food and often uncovers gems of stories in the process. He did this piece on the tater tot and let me tell ya….it’s fascinating.