Staying Fit
People are obviously hungry these days for TV cooking tutorials. But with literally hundreds of foodie shows in the streaming mix — from the fluffy The Great British Baking Show to the silly Nailed It — choosing from the menu can be as intimidating as those banquet-hall smorgasbords from back in the day. Here's a pared-down variety pack of 11 culinary series, from star-driven to old-school, to inspire you in the kitchen.
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America's Test Kitchen
Still cookin’ after nearly 20 years! The recipes on this PBS favorite are tested up to 60 times by thousands of volunteer fans across the U.S. before the Kitchen hosts (Julia Collin Davison, 52, and Bridget Lancaster, 50) suggest viewers try them at home. Included are tips on how to avoid potential goofs and the best products to use in creating the dish. Also helpful: looks at new culinary gadgets, the science of food, and critiques of new supermarket products. Speaking of dishy: Founding host Christopher Kimball, 68, left in 2016 to form a rival brand and binge-worthy PBS show Milk Street.
Watch it here: PBS, Amazon, iTunes
Food Network
Amy Schumer Learns to Cook
Actress-comedian Amy Schumer (Trainwreck) has fun with her slacker persona — and taps into our current stay-at-home pickle — as she tries to first-time finesse meals like a poached egg with bacon, a roasted veggie sandwich and tempura-battered fish tacos. Her teacher: Husband Chris Fischer, who happens to be a James Beard Award-winning chef with a farm on Martha's Vineyard. Two half-hour episodes fire up Mondays at 10 p.m. ET on Food Network. Pop star Selena Gomez, of all people, has a similar show coming on the new HBO Max streaming service.
Watch it here: Food Network
Food Network
Barefoot Contessa
Self-branded the Barefoot Contessa, jovial chef Ina Garten — call her today's Julia Child — shows viewers how to whip up lemon ricotta pancakes, cauliflower toast, or red-wine-braised short ribs in ways that even fledgling cooks can follow. And that's just in the latest season of her Food Network hit, which premiered May 16 at 12:30 p.m. ET. The Brooklyn-born, Connecticut-raised Garten, 72 — a Martha Stewart protégée — has been clanging pots and pans on this show since 2002, making it FN's longest-running series. Catch the two most recent seasons on the channel's streaming platform for free, and various seasons and episodes for purchase widely.
Watch it here: Food Network, Amazon, YouTube and more
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