Nobody believed the ‘Food Network’ could last. Even I was short sighted and thought to myself, 24 hours of food on TV? They’ll run out of things to talk about in four days! But that wasn’t true. ‘Food Network’ continues to get better and evolve.
Everybody says, ‘I have problems overcooking steak on the grill,’ but just take it off earlier! Grilling is really common sense. It’s very simple. You should think of a grill as a burner – it just happens to have grates. You shouldn’t be intimidated by it.
I was not such a great student, .. So, when I graduated high school, I went to work cooking. I cooked a little at home, but back then, cooking wasn’t really a profession that you aspired to, unless your family was in the business.
Don’t try to be the next Rachael Ray or Bobby Flay, we already have those people. We want someone who is going to make their own mark on ‘Food Network.’
Chipotles to me are a one-of-a-kind pepper because they’re smoked jalapenos, so they’re fiery and they’re smoky. It’s good to use chipotles in salsas or soups or condiments – that works really well. To me, they always really pick up anything you put them in.
I live in New York and I’m in New York basically all the time. I spend a lot of my time in my restaurants, and I feel like that’s why they’re successful.
My contribution I hope is to get people to eat full-flavored food. If I could come away with that alone, that would be a fantastic accomplishment. I’m also very proud of being a very American chef.
Even if the chef has a good business head, his focus should be behind kitchen doors. A business partner should take care of everything in front of the kitchen doors.
I think cookies are sort of the unsung sweet, you know? They’re incredibly popular. But everybody thinks of cakes and pies and fancier desserts before they think cookies. A plate of cookies is a great way to end dinner and really nice to share at the holidays.
