PBS cooking shows are both entertaining and a great way to learn new recipes. They offer a glimpse into cooking on a budget, gourmet food, and easy recipes for busy workers.
The hosts are experienced chefs, ensuring you get great ideas you can trust. Here is everything you need to know about your favourite PBS cooking show hosts.
1. Martin Yan
Martin Yan is the host of the PBS cooking show Yan Can Cook. Yan can cook, includes traditional Chinese cooking, and offers an excellent way for novices to learn.
Chef Yan was born in 1948 and has hosted Yan Can Cook since 1983. He started cooking at a young age, and when in college, he worked in his uncle’s Chinese Restaurant.
Yan learned Chinese traditional barbequing from his uncle and then moved to Canada for further studies. Martin Yan received his Masters in food science from the University of California in 1975.
He has established several restaurants, which unfortunately closed down, but he is a successful writer. Chef Yan has written several cookbooks, some of which can accompany his PBS shows.
These include Chinese Recipes, The Yan Can Cook Book, The Joy Of Wokking, Martin Yan’s Quick and Easy, and Martin Yan Chinatowns.
He has also appeared in several TV shows, including Hell’s Kitchen, Iron Chef Vietnam, Martin Yan’s Chinatowns, Food Court, Top Chef, and Yan Can Cook: Spice Kingdom.
2. Julia Child
Julia Child was the host of several shows on PBS. She inspired many amateur chefs and made many people go to culinary school to become chefs.
She is credited with revolutionizing American cooking through her unique and inspired recipes. Julia was born in 1912 and passed on in August 2004. She started cooking when she met her husband, Paul.
Paul’s family loved food and cooking, and Julia was inspired to learn how to cook. Her desire to provide great meals for her family led to her stardom.
Julia hosted shows like Cooking with Master Chefs, In Julia’s Kitchen with Master Chefs and Baking with Julia, among others.
She wrote cookbooks including Julia Child’s Kitchen, The Way to Cook, Julia Child and Company, Mastering the Art of French Cooking and Cooking with Master Chefs, among others.
Julia was nominated and won several Daytime Emmys, especially for her show Cooking with Julia.
3. Tiffany Derry
Tiffany Derry hosts The Great American Recipe on PBS. She was born in 1982 in the State of Texas. She competed in Top Chef and has appeared in shows like Hungry Investors and Cutthroat Kitchen.
Tiffany started cooking at the International House of Pancakes at 15 years old. She was good at her job, which earned her a management position.
This chef has been in several TV shows, including Bar Rescue, Worst Cooks in America and BBQ Brawl.
4. Francis Lam
Francis Lam hosts The Splendid Table on PBS. He graduated at the top of his class from The Culinary Institute of America.
Born in New Jersey, he always wished to eat the same food as his Caucasian classmates. Today, Francis can make his food and has a degree in creative writing from the University of Michigan.
Apart from hosting The Splendid Table, he is a cookbook editor and food journalist.
5. Timothy Hollingsworth
Timothy Hollingsworth was on The Great American Recipe on PBS. He was born in 1980 and is a co-owner of the restaurant Chain.
He started his culinary Journey at The French Laundry as a junior chef. With time and a great work ethic, he got promoted to sous chef.
Timothy left the restaurant to strike out on his own in 2012. He has been on several TV shows, including Guilty Pleasures, Final Table, Top Chef, Beachside Brawl and The Tonight Show.
6. Martha Stewart
Martha Stewart hosted the Martha Stewart Cooking School on PBS. Stewart was born in 1941 and is the oldest to be featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition.
She has written several cookbooks, including Martha Stewart’s Hors d’oeuvres, Martha Stewart Quick Cook and Martha Stewart’s Pies and Tarts. She has lived a full life filled with success, intrigue and delicious meals.
The successful author has spent some time in prison and although everyone thought her company would never be profitable again, she still managed to make that happen.
7. Alejandra Ramos
Alejandra Ramos hosted season three of the Great American Recipe. She has a vibrant, playful personality that she brings to the shows she hosts.
As a woman of Puerto Rican heritage, she has used her platform to raise money for people living in Puerto Rico.
Apart from the PBS shows, she has been on Food Network Kitchen, Food: Fact or Fiction, and co-hosted Today’s Deals Live.
8. Marcus Samuelson
Marcus Samuelson is the host of No Passport Required on PBS. The show focuses on immigrant cultures and their foods. He also produces the show.
Marcus was born Kassahun Tsegie in Ethiopia and was adopted by Lennart Samuelson and his wife after the Ethiopian Civil War. The couple changed his name to Marcus when they moved to Sweden.
After graduating from culinary school, he moved to the United States to work at Restaurant Aquavitz. Apart from No Passport Required, he has been on shows like Undercover Boss, Top Chef Canada, and the movie Scooby-Doo and the Gourmet Ghost.
Marcus Samuelson has also written cookbooks, including New American Table, Marcus Off Duty, The Red Rooster Cookbook, and The Soul of a New Cuisine.
9. Lidia Bastianich
Lidia Bastianich has hosted several shows on PBS, including Lidia’s Italian Table, Lidia Kitchen, and Lidia Celebrates America.
The Lidia Celebrates America series has been a great success, and she uses it to celebrate different cultures in the United States of America.
Lidia Bastianich was born in 1947 in Yugoslavia, and her family moved to the US when she was only 8 months old.
She has written several cookbooks, including Lidia’s Italian Table, Lidia’s Italy, Nonna’s Birthday Surprise, Lidia’s Favourite Recipes, Lidia’s Cooks from the Heart of Italy and la Cucina di Lidia, among others.
10. Marc Matsumoto
Marc Matsumoto is the host of Bento Expo and learned everything about cooking from his mother.
She taught Japanese cooking lessons from their apartment when he was a little boy.
Today, he runs the No Recipes blog and has appeared on several shows, including Fresh Tastes on PBS.
If you want a new cooking show to watch, these great PBS hosts can be a good start.
You can learn the basics from Julia Childs and go on to unique spicy meals from chefs like Marc Matsumoto.
Check out PBS cooking shows to watch the talented hosts above cooking up a storm.