On Mon, 19 Mar 2012 08:04:44 -0700, "Pico Rico"
> wrote:

>
>"Sqwertz" > wrote in message
...
>> On Sun, 18 Mar 2012 20:27:23 -0700, Pico Rico wrote:
>>
>>> "Sqwertz" > wrote in message
>>> ...
>>>> On Sun, 11 Mar 2012 21:37:00 -0400, Cheryl wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> It's not "worst *chefs* in America", it's "worst *cooks* in America".
>>>>> It's a good show.
>>>>
>>>> I just plugged my cable TV back in and starting flipping, and lo and
>>>> behold...
>>>>
>>>> I watched it fro about 10 minutes. Why would somebody want to watch a
>>>> show about people failing at cooking?
>>>
>>> Why do people watch the Sunday morning shows with politicians talking,
>>> when
>>> they so clearly have failed. Why do people look at a train wreck? Hard
>>> to
>>> figger.
>>
>> I guess you have a point there. Except that the politicians still
>> think they're best thing since sliced bread. OTOH, The FoodTV
>> contestants KNOW and fully admit they suck.
>>
>
>
>I haven't watched, but do they "win" by being the worst? If so, or even for
>fame, there could be a lot of sandbagging going on. Heck, make it worth our
>while and you and I could be worst at something.

They ultimately win by being the best. There is a $25,000 prize. The
goal of the show is to teach these people, who have absolutely no
knowledge of food or cooking, to cook.

Burrell and Flay each prepare a dish. They tell the students what it
is called, how it was prepared and what is in it. The students taste
the dish and comment. It is then up to the students to try to
reproduce the dish.

I haven't watched any of the 'Worst Cooks' in previous years, but I
was captured by this one. One of the teasers for the show was about
Chef Burrell telling a woman that her idea of vanilla chicken was a no
go. It became apparent over several episodes that this woman had no
concept of what vanilla was. She'd heard the word and that was better
than all the other words that were around her that threw her into a
panic. These people have no idea what the most basic of food
ingredients are. They've eaten fast food, frozen food or redi-prepared
items all their lives.

I can remember the novices being taught knife skills, roux, bechamel,
how to butcher a chicken, how to butcher a fish, how to make a
vinegarette and vary it, how to make a salad, several different ways
to cook a protein and how to tell when it was done. They were taught
how to prepare a mixed seafood tray. Almost all of them had never had
any kind of sea food. Lots more stuff that I can't recall.

I have been totally amazed by what these people don't know that you
and I take for granted. One woman asked Bobby Flay "you mean there
are different kinds of sausage?" You can tell by the squeamishness
that these folks display that they mostly never handled real food.
They can't name different kinds of fruit and vegetables -- and I don't
mean esoteric produce either.

I've also been amazed at what they have learned in a short time.

Janet US