Even the best cook out there needs a little inspiration to keep going. Thankfully, in this age of streaming, you won’t have to search far to find a cooking show that piques your interest.
To give you that little spark, we handpicked a few shows you should watch if you’re a food enthusiast. You’ll find these shows on some of your favorite streaming platforms, so make sure you have a fast internet connection to enjoy watching some of that finger-lickin’ good cuisine on your TVs in the best quality. We recommend Spectrum, mainly because they provide reliable internet at reasonable prices. To find a plan that suits your needs, you can reach out to Spectrum customer service to find an internet plan for your needs.
Without further ado, here are our picks for 7 shows you need to watch as a food enthusiast:
Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat
Essential Pépin
The Mind of a Chef
Good Eats
Binging With Babish
Chopped
Chef's Table
Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat
This docu-series was inspired by the book Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking, which is a reference book that teaches cooking techniques focused on the titular elements. The author, Samin Nosrat explains how these factors determine the texture and flavor of food when cooking.
The same goes for the series, where every episode focuses on one of the title elements, explaining how the specific element is used in different cuisines. The series only has four episodes and each of them runs for about 40 minutes.
Where to watch: Netflix
Essential Pépin
This show can be a great watch if you want to learn new recipes from a master chef. Essential Pepin is hosted by Jacques Pépin, who shares more than 120 recipes he learned over the years in a 26-episode series.
Throughout the series, Pépin invites his granddaughter, colleagues, friends, and other people close to him to cook together. The show is laid out in an easy-to-follow way. Each episode starts with an introduction to the recipe and a step-by-step guide on how to cook every recipe.
Where to watch: YouTube TV, Amazon Prime Video
The Mind of a Chef
This season isn't just about food and cooking but also includes travel, science, and history. Created by Anthony Bourdain, every season follows one or several chefs as they talk about their philosophies and beliefs about cooking as well as culinary arts.
The show has six seasons, with the first five having around 16 episodes each. With there being multiple hosts for each season, you'll learn new recipes from each chef as they put their twist on a lot of classic recipes.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, The Roku Channel
Good Eats
Created by Alton Brown, who also hosts the show which originally aired on the Food Network, you'll hear in-depth explanations about the history, technique, and science behind how various foods are cooked as well as a guide on various cooking equipment.
The show focuses a lot on familiar dishes that you can cook at home and serves as a guide to choosing the right appliance as well as how you can get the most out of inexpensive equipment. Every episode in the show has its distinct theme and usually has a runtime of around 30 minutes.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video
Binging With Babish
While not exactly a show, this one is great to watch if you just want to experience something unique. The YouTube channel is great to watch if you’re someone who just wants to be entertained. However, you won’t learn good cooking habits from the series.
Created by Oliver Babish, we see him recreate foods we see in TV shows and movies. The videos aren’t painfully long and you’ll see Babish’s interpretations of Krabby patties from Spongebob, Jake’s sandwich from Adventure Time, and even the infamous shawarma from The Avengers.
Where to watch: YouTube
Chopped
If you like seeing other chefs cook then Chopped is going to be right up your alley. The show has a whopping 55 seasons that are bound to keep you hooked for a long time. Every episode has four chefs competing against each other to use uncommon ingredients to make dishes that are evaluated by a panel of judges.
Every round has a limit of 20 minutes for the appetizer and 30 minutes for desserts. The judges rank each chef at the end of the round and then choose one of the chefs to be chopped, where they don’t win anything.
Where to watch: Hulu, Discovery+
Chef's Table
This is another great series to watch if you’re looking to learn more about the science behind cooking. Chef’s Table gives viewers a peek into the hectic lives of some critically acclaimed chefs, with each episode focusing on the lives, passions, and talents of a specific chef.
The series has six seasons, along with five specials that focus on a specific type of cuisine including France, Pastry, BBQ, Pizza, and Noodles. If you’re interested in learning more about the techniques that some of the most renowned chefs use to cook, then make sure to give Chef’s Table a watch.
Where to watch: Netflix
Watching shows can be a great way to learn some advanced techniques, as well as some ways to improve the way you cook. Do you have any shows you’d like to suggest for us to watch? Feel free to leave them in the comments below.