Wednesday, March 3, 2021

James May Oh Cook!

Yes the first proper cooking show I've seen all the way through and can easily say it's the best.




For someone culinary handicapped, this show really proved the adage from Ratatouille as we see fellow cooking novice James May attempt a myriad of dishes from all over the world with world class home economist Nikki Morgan. Now I must state for the record I've seen cooking competition shows, and not cooking programmes with some celebrity busybody who I don't know, and this show casts a very honest even debilitating honesty on the world of a televised cooking show or network. You see the camera crew frequently, the kitchen is a real kitchen no sets or anything of that, James speaks bluntly and realistically about his cooking but even more so the production. They don't handwave prep time and the wait time between dishes, they comically address it yes but it doesn't undercut that cooking takes time and can be as involved as you like. The dishes very much speak of that, you can go full blown and make something gourmet worthy or just make it the way you like and call it a day. I myself have pushed my culinary skills beyond ramen noodles and TV dinners, which is what I made alone for decades. Now at the very least I can cook an egg among other things. I even invested in a cookbook from renaissance man and horror icon Vincent Price (because of course I did). So this show does make me have a bit more confidence to try making more things and it's done so well. It's very much an atypical cooking show but the productions is well done, James and Nikki are a cracking good duo, the food isn't complex and anyone can make it, and it is quite funny on top of that. But not that rubbish attempt at humor to get a laugh out of the back row like on most reality shows. And I genuinely do love the variety, there's nothing necessarily "normal" about the dishes beyond steak and chips but that doesn't nor should it deter people from making it. Each is unique, explained, and presented well. It's worth a watch. There's a grand total of 7 episodes roughly 30 minutes a piece so you could honestly knock this one down quite literally between meals. It's worth it, if only to get a taste of truthful reality along with various food items. 4 stars, 8.5/10, hopefully a second season will be made and apparently all the recipes will be in a James May cookbook so sign me up for that. One more journey with our man James, once again looking at something completely different yet fun.

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