Not that anybody asked me, but writing about Rachael Ray and hearing people reference other chefs in response got me thinking about the other ones on Food Network, and which ones I like and which ones I don't and why.
Rachael Ray, as I said, has an incredibly grating voice and personality, but I really like how she makes delicious and even kind of fancy meals that are quick and easy to make. Skip the show, buy the cookbooks-- worth it as a chef.
Alton Brown is awesome. His show is fun and interesting, and when it comes to optimization of familiar recipes and kitchen, he's your man. I not only love his recipes, I love how he teaches you to buy equipment that is both proper and useful, and the fact that he throws in the science of it is really cool as well. That said, I think the science is more interesting than necessary to being a good cook. (I've actually found some people who cook while worrying about that stuff become slightly neurotic what's going on in their food. "But what if the protein strings aren't relaxing?" "Just follow the recipe already.") Probably the most well-rounded, accessible chef on Food Network. Might be my personal favorite.
I grew up eating Bobby Flay's recipes, as my parents have been using his cookbooks for years-- he is the master of grilling, and his style is influenced by the spicy Southwest. The man strikes me in all ways as a rock star-- an absolute badass at his craft, but I could totally imagine him trashing a dressing room and a few people to boot because some poor stage hand misplaced his whisk. I don't have a grill so I haven't really bothered to learn much grilling yet, but he's probably a bit too difficult for me to start with, though there's probably nobody better. Probably one of the greatest chefs cooking today, but I think he's a little too well aware of it.
I like Paula Deen as a personality-- I love that an older lady who's life kind of screwed her ended up working her way to enormous happiness and success, and her expansive pleasantness actually seems genuine, unlike some like Rachael, who would probably bite your face off once the camera stopped rolling. It makes me smile when her nice husband or sons come in to help her, or her fat yellow lab Gertie lays in the kitchen while she's doing her show. That said, I can't eat anything she cooks. It's all so heavy, packed with butter or cheese or slathered with mayo, it's usually aggressively not kosher, and sometimes hearing about what goes in makes me and my food issues want to crawl into a corner and never eat again. If you like heavy, unhealthy Southern comfort food, her stuff is probably delicious but it isn't for me.
My parents are into Tyler Florence right now, so I'm finding out that his food is pretty good as well. His stuff is a bit too hard for an inexperienced cook like me, but my very talented mother can do great stuff with it. Like Bobby Flay he comes off as kind of arrogant, and his show's shtick that all his recipes are the "ultimate" vesions is a little eye-rolly for me, but the proof is in the pan in the end, and his stuff is pretty damn tasty if you're talented enough to make it. Not for a novice to follow, but nice if you go to a dinner party of one of his fan's.
I'm in love with Giada de Laurentiis, though probably for all the wrong reasons. Whatever her strengths or weaknesses as a a chef may be, I am invariably distracted by how incredibly beautiful she is. To the people who point out her head is too big for her tiny body, I say be silent. She's still lovely. ANYWAY, I do enjoy her food as well, since her concept is doing updated, lighter versions of traditional Italian food, and being Italian myself that really appeals to me. She too has the problem of too much pasta and pancetta-- which I cannot believe she actually eats --but most of her Italian stuff is really my thing, and not too hard to make.
Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa is another one I enjoy. She has such a serene, contented presence that I enjoy listening to, and her food is very appropriate for me-- incredibly elegant without being unbelievably difficult. I like her show's shtick of "today I am cooking for this gathering/person/event" (though I am distracted by constantly wondering how genuine things are) because it's also helpful in planning complete meals. When I made a mocha cake that broke when I tried to get it out of the plan, it was after watching her make a brownie pudding that I thought of making the broken pieces of cake into very delicious individual puddings that saved what I thought was a failed dish. I really need to cook more of her stuff.
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