00:00Congratulations on your fifth season of All Up In My Grill on Tastemade.
00:05What techniques and recipes are you excited to share with audiences this time around?
00:09You know, for season five, I wanted to, like, still bring these amazing recipes and fun techniques,
00:19but we were really focusing on technique.
00:21I know, you know, watching my past seasons, I could tell that, and even through, like, interactions through my social media
00:29with people watching the show, you know, they're like, this is a great recipe.
00:32It's super fun to see you make these things.
00:34I don't have these 13 ingredients to make that dish.
00:38So I was like, you know what?
00:39Let's try and pare down some of these recipes, but make and put an emphasis on technique
00:46because at some point, you know, season five already, we're into it,
00:50we want to make some of these things feel really intuitive, right,
00:53or get the viewer to understand that grilling and or just cooking in general becomes an intuitive skill
01:01as opposed to you just following a recipe.
01:04And I think there was a real focus on that for this season.
01:06Well, one of the things you stress to Tastemade audiences is that a grill isn't a grill.
01:12It's an outdoor kitchen.
01:13When did you decide to make that your sort of mission statement for the show?
01:16You know, right from the beginning, and it's how you can use this heat source, right,
01:23that just happens to be a grill, whether it's gas or live fire, charcoal, wood, whatever you be it.
01:30You know, we're introducing a tandoori oven this season, which is something we haven't done before.
01:34And it's just really understanding that you can cook many different things.
01:42You can use it as a vehicle to bake, to pan fry, to actually grilling, to, you know,
01:55like everyone has these kind of, you know, outdoor griddles.
01:57You can do a lot of these different techniques while still utilizing being outside.
02:02So, you know, using a saute pan or a griddle on top of your grill to make pancakes or crispy hash browns,
02:09or, um, that was really the mantra.
02:11How do we, how do we get people to be out there and understand that you don't have to take a piece of meat
02:15or vegetables and put this on the grill.
02:18You can still use a saute pan if, you know, you're a little bit uncomfortable
02:21or to be able to do two different things at one time.
02:24Like, you're growing meat, but you want to make, um, you know, say you're doing brunch
02:28and you want to put, like, a steak on, but you want to cook pancakes.
02:31How do you do that?
02:32This is what I'll show you.
02:33In the premiere, you start off the season by cooking two different kinds of ribs
02:38in two different kinds of way.
02:40We're kicking things off with smoked beef short ribs, slow smoked, glazed with red vinegar,
02:45black pepper, coriander, and pickled onions.
02:47This is a deep and rich and beautifully meaty dish, like me.
02:51Then we're going Miami style with sweet and smoky St. Louis pork spare ribs,
02:56slathered in a bacon guava barbecue sauce that bring that vice city heat.
03:00What is it about ribs that make them so versatile?
03:04You know what I think makes ribs so versatile is that they, um, one, contain a lot of, um,
03:10they're marbled really well, so they have a lot of fat.
03:12So they, they, they lend themselves to, um, uh, staying juicy and they're also on the bone.
03:20Um, but they're, you know, when you think of barbecue, right, it's one of those iconic things
03:24like ribs on the grill, but in other countries, right?
03:27Even in the Philippines or in other places, um, they'll braise them slowly.
03:33And, you know, just all that intermuscular, um, you know, all the things that break down
03:40and make a rib kind of like unctuous and succulent, um, if you braise them, um, you'll
03:46still get that same effect.
03:47So I think that's what makes ribs so versatile is that, um, in a lot of different cultures,
03:51you'll have them cooked in a lot of different ways.
03:53One of the things I'm curious about is the process of getting a meal to screen.
03:58Are you coming up with the recipes yourself?
04:01Are you shopping for ingredients?
04:02Um, can you talk about that?
04:04You know, getting a meal from, you know, from kind of inception into the screen, um,
04:10it's a collaborative effort.
04:12Um, there's a, I've worked with wonderful culinary directors and culinary, um, you know,
04:18um, culinary leads on these shows.
04:20And it's really a conversation between the network, Tastemade, myself, and that person.
04:24And, um, you know, it starts off with, like, what do you want to do?
04:27And this is kind of some of the things that the network is, is, is jazzed on.
04:31And that helps me give me inspiration.
04:34You know, like, oftentimes it's like, it's easier to cook when there's at least some type
04:38of parameters as opposed to, like, make whatever you want.
04:41We discuss kind of, like, what we think the recipe should be and, and how we're going to
04:45move through the segment and, you know, the magic of TV, some things that, you know, um,
04:51that, you know, like a turkey, you know, you can't really make that on a, you know, you're
04:55not going to make that in a 45 minute show or a half hour show.
04:58You, um, you, you, you need to cheat some of that stuff and have one ready.
05:04So those are the things that we kind of talk through to get to the end result, to show the
05:09viewer in our world, um, you know, the end product or else we'd be there for like three
05:14and a half hours taste made is not your only platform.
05:17You are also a frequent presence on the food network and you've been on tons of
05:22shows there, which is the favorite one you've done and why, you know, when you
05:26work with someone like Guy Fieri, um, you know, tournament champions is such a fun
05:31show, you know, I'm back on TOC six.
05:33I'm not here to come in, you know, for a fun time.
05:36If I'm going to get pulled away from my family, I want to be a champ.
05:39It's really hard and it's, you're put in a category of chefs that are just amazing,
05:45amazing, um, talents.
05:47So the atmosphere around all these amazing chefs is so fun.
05:51Um, you know, you get 36 chefs together, it's more than 36.
05:54It's like at 40 something at this point, you get all of us together and, um, you
05:59know, we are, I'm a little longer in tooth these days, so it's not these all night
06:02party sessions, but you know, you get out to have good, great meals with amazing
06:05chefs and it's, it's a fun way to stay connected to people and that environment's
06:11been really fun.
06:12I just did, um, you know, I was able to do some other stuff like wild card
06:16kitchen and guys grocery games and, you know, they're all fun, but tournament
06:20champions is really the pinnacle of, of, of, of those shows on that network.
06:25Yeah.
06:25And this is a safe space.
06:26So I want you to share your true thoughts on the randomizer on TOC.
06:30I mean, the randomizer and it is, you know, I've, I've done two seasons of it.
06:36So, you know, the randomizer and I are hopefully are becoming a little bit more
06:40friends, but, um, there is this mentality that I used to have of like, okay, plan,
06:46plan, plan.
06:46And the reality is, is I think that I'm much more of a free thinker.
06:51So the less I actually plan, the less I have my mind, the more I am inspired by what that
06:56randomizer gives me, I think the better cooking I do.
07:01Obviously with cooking competitions like that, I imagine it's nerve wracking.
07:05How do you deal with that?
07:07You know, the nerves are only up until the clock starts to go.
07:13Some of these younger chefs that are on like, especially TOC, they don't know who I am.
07:18And I'm down with that.
07:20Like, don't know who I am.
07:21But if you do know, if you start to look, scratch the surface, I was cooking, I was
07:27doing cooking competitions, Top Chef season four, you were, you had a glue stick in your
07:33hand and crayons when I was doing this, like legit, that's who, that's what you were doing.
07:39You know, you, you were like in second grade.
07:41I've been doing it a long time.
07:43You know, I'm season four.
07:45I mean, we were shooting that in 720, three by four, you know, the sides are blanked out.
07:49You got to squint because you don't know that this is like, why is this picture looking
07:53so fuzzy?
07:54That was like almost 80 pounds ago for me.
07:57That's how long ago that was.
07:58So, you know, hopefully I get to keep this youthful glow.
08:02But when those, you know, when those people start to recognize like, yo, some of us have
08:06been doing this for a minute.
08:07What I've learned is it's kind of the more you like relax yourself and calm down, the
08:12better you cook and the less nerves you get.
08:14That, I think that's what takes you to the next level.
08:16The Bear, uh, everyone's favorite, uh, you know, culinary, uh, fictional show, uh, season
08:23four just dropped, uh, yesterday.
08:25Are you watching?
08:27I, you know, I, I love everything about the show.
08:30I can't watch it.
08:31It's a little, it's a little close to home.
08:33Jeremy Allen White and Joel would, Joel kind of was his executive chef and he was leaning
08:37over him and kind of like whispering, like just getting in his ear.
08:41And that was like, so PSD for me, PTSD for me.
08:44Like, I was like, that exactly happened to me and that was the moment I was like, I'm
08:47not, I can't watch it.
08:48You know, like those moments are so accurate.
08:50They really nailed it.
08:52So, um, but yeah, it really was like a little triggering.
08:55A lot of these chefs, a lot of us reacted not well.
08:59And you know, the, the, the, the cultures change and it took a lot of us to like.
09:03Look at what, how we were acting and how the industry was and say, Hey, we're not going
09:10to do that anymore.
09:11We're going to be, we're going to have a kitchen that is respectful.
09:14You draw a line in the sand and say, Hey, no more.
09:15I'm not going to continue this, um, uh, you know, this behavior anymore.
09:20And, um, you know, now it's like you want to build and support and you want a team that's,
09:25that wants to, that wants to work with you.
09:27Uh, and then how do you do that?
09:28It's not by the way that the bear portrays it, you know, that, that he got treated.
09:32You're obviously a Bravo guy.
09:34We were talking about Real Housewives before you sat down.
09:37What is your favorite franchise and why?
09:41Um, my favorite franchise, um, I mean, Dly's pretty good.
09:47I also think that the Miami, um, series and the Miami, the Miami, um, Housewives, they,
09:54um, they give it their all.
09:56Um, that they give everything that they have to that show.
10:00Um, it was, it reminds me of, I mean, and I love Jersey.
10:04Don't get me wrong.
10:04I mean, I'm in, I am in Jersey.
10:06So I love Jersey.
10:07Uh, I don't know what, I don't know how the cast is getting redone or if they are doing
10:12it or who's coming and going.
10:14Um, I don't keep up with it that much.
10:15And if you were going to have a Real Housewife come on to All Up in My Grill and you were
10:19going to make a meal for them, who would it be and why?
10:22Oh, it would be Teresa Giudice.
10:24Um, I don't know if it's, without, without a, without even second thought, it would be
10:29Teresa Giudice.
10:30I mean, one, they're local Jersey people.
10:32So hopefully that, you know, we can all kind of lift up some Jersey cats because I live
10:35in River Edge, New Jersey.
10:37But, um, that, that she's, she's a special one.
10:41Um, I mean that, that she's gone through it and, um, she's, you know, I still, I think
10:48maybe she's still going through it, but she's doing her thing.
10:50And, uh, would love to, love her on the show and see what, um, what I could teach her on
10:56the, on the grill.
10:56Uh, so.
10:58Uh, so.
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