Good Eats - Season One

[danbuter]

I picked up Season One for $15 at Target. I forgot how much I loved this show (Comcast removed Food Network from my cable tier, though I still get Travel Channel, and therefore Anthony Bourdain!).

Anyways, fun things:

Episode One: Steak! And cast iron skillets! Smart opener for the series. I love how he does part of the show about the food and part about how to cure and use cast iron.

Episode Two: Potatoes! The mandolin slicer! Alton really knows what Americans eat . At least he's covered two of my favorite foods so far. I don't have a mandolin, but I think I need one. It would definitely make making scalloped potatoes easier.

xxx That's where I'm at, so far.

 

[DaveSoMD]

The DVDs are great to have!!! I picked up a box-lot of the different themed ones a few years ago off eBay.

 

[Selkie]

Yeah, I like boxed sets too. I found and purchased the complete set of Faulty Towers (staring John Cleese) on DVD.

 

[danbuter]

Episode 3: Eggs! Using a wood file for zesting! Pretty interesting episode. I make a lot of eggs at home, and I will have to try his over-easy technique.

 

[danbuter]

Episode 4: Salads! And salad spinners! Pretty cool episode. He covers what to look for at the grocery store, or better yet, the local farm stand. How to tear lettuce, though he chops certain kinds, because it won't affect them. A nice presentation of the original caesar's salad. I mostly knew everything he covered except for the caesar's salad history, but it was still interesting.

Episode 5: Chicken! The roaster! Mise en place! Interesting episode. Lots about what chickens to get, how to spice and how to butterfly them so they cook better. I don't really make chicken at home, but it was cool. I like that he harps on food safety and washing your hands.

 

[danbuter]

Episode 6: Ice cream! The ice cream turner! I have no intention of ever making ice cream at home, so this was mainly just an informative but useless episode. Alton did cover what to look for when buying ice cream (low air, high fat, few preservatives), so that was helpful. I liked his bit on the vanilla bean. I didn't know it was such a delicate flower, as far as pollination goes. Pretty cool stuff!

 

[DaveSoMD]

Episode 6: Ice cream! The ice cream turner! I have no intention of ever making ice cream at home, so this was mainly just an informative but useless episode. Alton did cover what to look for when buying ice cream (low air, high fat, few preservatives), so that was helpful. I liked his bit on the vanilla bean. I didn't know it was such a delicate flower, as far as pollination goes. Pretty cool stuff!

Actually making ice cream at home can be fun and a treat. This is the episode that got me to buy a small ice cream maker like the one he used. You can make frozen yogurt too.

 

[danbuter]

Episode 7: Biscuits! Flour! Baking Soda! Very cool episode. Alton had his grandmother on with him, and they both made their own version of biscuits. The info on flour and baking soda was also really nice.

 

[DaveSoMD]

Episode 7: Biscuits! Flour! Baking Soda! Very cool episode. Alton had his grandmother on with him, and they both made their own version of biscuits. The info on flour and baking soda was also really nice.

Alton's is the only biscuit recipe I use now. They always turn out right.

 

[danbuter]

I'll be trying them sometime in the near future. I love biscuits!

 

[danbuter]

Episode 8: Gravy! The saucier pan! Flour (again!). Really interesting episode. I have never made gravy, which is probably kind of lame. Alton makes it look really easy. He describes some of the base sauces, a few methods of how to make them, and then really gets into the roux. I didn't know you need a whisk with lots of tines for sauces, in order to prevent lumps. I guess any old whisk just won't work as well. I will have to try this out soon.

 

[danbuter]

Episode 9: Thanksgiving! Turkey! The meat thermometer! Flat racks! Cranberry Sauce! Lots of weird relatives!

Interesting episode. Yet another item I probably won't ever cook, but I liked the episode. They did a bit on the original Thanksgiving dinner, and how Abe Lincoln made Thanksgiving an official holiday after much prodding from Sarah Josepha Hale.

Some of the comedy bits were good, like Alton's "aunt".

I noticed that Alton definitely says do not put stuffing in the turkey before cooking it. Too dangerous! He instead puts in some herbs and some roasted apples and onions. Interesting idea. I'll mention it to my stepmom to see her reaction . (She makes amazing meals. Truly a talented cook. But she's also very old-fashioned about things like stuffing.)

 

[danbuter]

Episode 10: The Onion! The electric skillet! Onion soup!

This I will have to make. I have an electric skillet, and I love onion soup. It's a bit more involved than I thought it would be, but I bet it will be worth it.

Every time I hear onion, though, I hear it like that old Cajun TV chef from the early 90's used to say it: awn-yawn.

 

[JuanaCook]

There are no more Good Eats in the world for us and that is a very sad thing. We should petition FoodNetwork & AB to somehow continue the series.

I am new to the cooking experience and missed original airings of Good Eats. So I must use Wikipedia to list the episodes and YouTube to play each and every one. I am up to to season 3 so far. The subject matter in every episode is spot on target. AB's delivery was fresh and entertaining...even the corny parts.

I enjoy AB in his role as MC on Iron Chef America and watch regularly, but feel his better talents are diminished in that role.

 

[DaveSoMD]

Good Eats is moving to Cooking Channel starting the end of September. No new episodes but they will be running the series at 8 PM (it's traditional time slot from Food Network.)