In this episode, we take a deep dive into the evolution of food television, from the early days of simple, instructional shows to today’s diverse and dynamic culinary landscape. We’ll explore how icons like Betty Crocker shaped early cooking programs, empowering women in the kitchen, and how trailblazers like Julia Child, Emeril Lagasse, and Guy Fieri pushed boundaries—changing not just how we cook, but how we see race and gender in food media.
We’ll also journey into the origins of Iron Chef, its impact on Asian identity, and how it became a global cultural phenomenon. Plus, we’ll reflect on the genre’s transition to streaming, where shows like Chef’s Table have brought a more artistic, inclusive approach to the culinary world. And as food competition shows shift from cutthroat to kind, what does the future hold for food media?
Here are some of the references from this episode, for those who want to dig a little deeper:
Books by Tasha Oren: Food TV ; Global Asian American Popular Cultures
The Evolution of Television Formats
MasterChef Junior: Watch on Hulu
Project Runway: Watch on Netflix, IMDb
Survivor: Watch on CBS
Julia Child
Julia Child’s The French Chef by Dana Polan
The French Chef with Julia Child
Smithsonian Air and Space Museum ; Julia Child clip
Emeril Lagasse ; Emeril Live clip
Wall Street (1987 film)
Hillary Clinton and the Return of the (Unbaked) Cookies – New York Times
Hillary Clinton explains “Bake cookies” remark April 1992 – Dailymotion
Betty Crocker – history; Betty Crocker on the radio
Mind of a Chef: Watch on Youtube, IMDb
Chef’s Table trailer; Watch on Netflix, IMDb
Jeff Yang’s new book, The Golden Screen
Hell’s Kitchen: Watch on FOX, IMDb
Gordon Ramsay on Hot Ones
Bong Appetit: Trailer; Watch on Youtube, IDMb
Vanessa Lavorato & Miguel Trinidad (Bong Appetit) – The Smokebox
Cooking with Cannabis
The Bear trailer: Watch on Hulu, IMDb
Check out our previous Episode 61: Broken Bread with Chef Roy Choi and KCET’s Juan Devis
Share your thoughts via Twitter with Henry, Colin and the How Do You Like It So Far? account! You can also email us at howdoyoulikeitsofarpodcast@gmail.com.
Music:
“In Time” by Dylan Emmett and “Spaceship” by Lesion X.
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In Time (Instrumental) by Dylan Emmet https://soundcloud.com/dylanemmet
Spaceship by Lesion X https://soundcloud.com/lesionxbeats
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0
Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/in-time-instrumental
Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/lesion-x-spaceship
Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/AzYoVrMLa1Q
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