Everyone eats, which means most people cook every day. For those who have anxiety about cooking, don’t know a saucepan from a skillet, or just need a little inspiration, help is on TV. While public broadcasts and television dramas debuted as early as the 1920s, the first national cooking show didn’t air until 1946, when caterer and cookbook author James Beard starred in “I Love to Eat” on NBC.
Since then, scores of chefs have taken to the small screen, particularly after the introduction of the Food Network in 1993, which saw the rise of cooking competition shows like “Chopped” and “Top Chef.” Cooking shows offer a way for viewers to learn about cuisines from around the world. In 1963, Julia Child brought French cooking to kitchens across the country with her revolutionary show “The French Chef,” which promoted public passion for international cuisine and techniques.
In 1966, Joyce Chen became the first Asian American woman to host a cooking show. Although “Joyce Chen Cooks” only lasted one season, it introduced Chinese cuisine to many Americans. Stacker looked at YouGov data on the most known and liked TV personalities as of the third quarter of 2024.
The top 20 cooking and food show hosts were ranked by the percentage of survey respondents who recognized them and the percentage who had a positive opinion of them. Ties were broken by the latter. With the abundance of cooking shows, not every chef made the cut.
“Top Chef” is represented on this lis.
