1 00:00:01,920 --> 00:00:06,440 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of iHeart Radio. Hey 2 00:00:06,480 --> 00:00:11,160 Speaker 1: brain Stuff. Lauren bog obam Here, a smartly dressed woman 3 00:00:11,200 --> 00:00:14,240 Speaker 1: in a sunlit kitchen, gushes about her love of ricotta 4 00:00:14,320 --> 00:00:18,239 Speaker 1: cheese as she blithely scoops ingredients, including the cheese, into 5 00:00:18,239 --> 00:00:20,919 Speaker 1: a skillet warming on the stove. She ticks through the 6 00:00:20,960 --> 00:00:24,200 Speaker 1: dishes she'll prepare today right before your eyes warm a 7 00:00:24,280 --> 00:00:28,160 Speaker 1: rugula salad with walnuts, baked zd with butternut squash, and 8 00:00:28,320 --> 00:00:31,960 Speaker 1: for dessert, a simple, yet decadent twall crisp layered with 9 00:00:32,040 --> 00:00:36,560 Speaker 1: raspberry compote and whipped mask capone. Her thirty minute cooking 10 00:00:36,560 --> 00:00:39,000 Speaker 1: show is one of your favorites, and for a moment 11 00:00:39,240 --> 00:00:43,159 Speaker 1: you consider recreating this exact meal at home. But like 12 00:00:43,320 --> 00:00:46,640 Speaker 1: most things made for TV, the delectable spread has a 13 00:00:46,680 --> 00:00:50,400 Speaker 1: secret ingredient you probably don't have on hand, dozens of 14 00:00:50,440 --> 00:00:56,120 Speaker 1: behind the scene hands that crep and stir the proverbial pot. Traditionally, 15 00:00:56,280 --> 00:00:58,680 Speaker 1: all the cooking shows you'll see on TV begin with 16 00:00:58,760 --> 00:01:02,360 Speaker 1: on site chefs who prep food in advance. Sometimes as 17 00:01:02,400 --> 00:01:05,440 Speaker 1: many as twenty people will chop, whisk and season ingredients 18 00:01:05,440 --> 00:01:08,200 Speaker 1: in a full service kitchen before a cooking show is recorded. 19 00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:12,400 Speaker 1: The Food Network Kitchen, for example, has included five separate 20 00:01:12,480 --> 00:01:15,600 Speaker 1: kitchens that each have a stove, oven, sink, and refrigerator. 21 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:18,880 Speaker 1: That way, chefs can prepare food for several cooking shows 22 00:01:18,880 --> 00:01:22,880 Speaker 1: in advance. These prep kitchens, as well as being made 23 00:01:22,880 --> 00:01:26,400 Speaker 1: for TV kitchens on some cooking shows, require fully stocked 24 00:01:26,400 --> 00:01:31,240 Speaker 1: pantries too. For example, competition cooking shows like My Personal 25 00:01:31,280 --> 00:01:34,960 Speaker 1: Favorite Iron Chef may require pantries with hundreds of items 26 00:01:34,959 --> 00:01:38,720 Speaker 1: for each participant. Iron Chef America stocked two d and 27 00:01:38,720 --> 00:01:43,120 Speaker 1: fifty items per chef, including nine types of flour, seven vinegars, 28 00:01:43,160 --> 00:01:45,880 Speaker 1: and five kinds of salt, as well as thirty types 29 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:50,440 Speaker 1: of herbs and spices. Along with having the right ingredients 30 00:01:50,440 --> 00:01:54,400 Speaker 1: on hand, chefs and off camera kitchens prepare swapouts, which 31 00:01:54,400 --> 00:01:56,960 Speaker 1: are dishes at various stages of completion that can be 32 00:01:57,080 --> 00:01:59,800 Speaker 1: used during a cooking show. The next time you watch 33 00:01:59,840 --> 00:02:03,880 Speaker 1: an instructional cooking show, note the carefully orchestrated actions in 34 00:02:03,920 --> 00:02:09,680 Speaker 1: specific segments introduction, preparation of ingredients, stovetop cooking, seasoning, adding 35 00:02:09,680 --> 00:02:13,560 Speaker 1: extra ingredients to the dish, and plating. During many of 36 00:02:13,560 --> 00:02:15,959 Speaker 1: these segments, you're likely to see the work of people 37 00:02:16,040 --> 00:02:20,160 Speaker 1: in an off camera kitchen. Of course, even with all 38 00:02:20,240 --> 00:02:22,880 Speaker 1: this help, it doesn't necessarily mean that the host of 39 00:02:22,919 --> 00:02:25,600 Speaker 1: a cooking show has it easy, especially if they're recording 40 00:02:25,600 --> 00:02:28,720 Speaker 1: with a live audience. The host still needs to cook 41 00:02:28,960 --> 00:02:32,239 Speaker 1: and speak to the audience, often while a producer communicates 42 00:02:32,280 --> 00:02:35,720 Speaker 1: by earphone and a studio director gives silent instructions from 43 00:02:35,760 --> 00:02:39,840 Speaker 1: the floor. Cooking competition shows can be a challenge for 44 00:02:39,840 --> 00:02:43,000 Speaker 1: the contestants too, although perhaps not in the same way. 45 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:46,960 Speaker 1: Take Food Networks Chopped, for example. The contestants on this 46 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:50,240 Speaker 1: show are tasked with creating edible dishes from a basket 47 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:53,000 Speaker 1: of mystery ingredients, and it can take up to twelve 48 00:02:53,080 --> 00:02:57,480 Speaker 1: hours to film a single episode. Often the contestants aren't 49 00:02:57,480 --> 00:03:00,720 Speaker 1: even cooking, they're being asked the same on camera questions again, 50 00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:06,760 Speaker 1: or waiting for the judge's decisions. Whatever the format, instructional, competition, 51 00:03:06,919 --> 00:03:09,919 Speaker 1: or a hybrid of both, understanding the way a cooking 52 00:03:09,919 --> 00:03:12,239 Speaker 1: show works has a lot to do with uncovering what's 53 00:03:12,280 --> 00:03:15,400 Speaker 1: going on behind the scenes. There are simply some things 54 00:03:15,480 --> 00:03:23,840 Speaker 1: you can't fully understand by watching the end result. Today's 55 00:03:23,840 --> 00:03:26,200 Speaker 1: episode was written by Laurel Dove and produced by Tyler 56 00:03:26,280 --> 00:03:29,000 Speaker 1: Clang for more on this and lots of other tasty topics, 57 00:03:29,080 --> 00:03:31,920 Speaker 1: visit how stuff works dot com. Brain Stuff is production 58 00:03:31,919 --> 00:03:34,360 Speaker 1: of I heart Radio or more podcasts my heart Radio 59 00:03:34,520 --> 00:03:37,320 Speaker 1: visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 60 00:03:37,360 --> 00:03:38,560 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.