Why You Should Watch Cutthroat Kitchen

As a college student (soon to be graduate in May) a majority of my free time is spent either going out, or relaxing at home watching shows or playing video games, but both going out and staying in always have one thing in common...food. I am a sucker for it and love to find new recipes to add to my menu. Food Network helps further my interest in food by watching shows like Cutthroat Kitchen.  The host is none other than the culinary mastermind that I watched growing up after school, Alton Brown of Good Eats (available on Netflix).

Alton Brown on a Halloween themed episode of Cutthroat Kitchen. Truly a terrifying evil man.

Brown gives the chefs participating in the episode $25,000 each for the entire competition, their prize, but the game is just beginning. He will tell them to make a certain dish and they get sixty seconds to "shop" in the CK pantry. Then the auction part of the game begins. Competitors will spend the money to not deal with sabotages other competitors can give to each other.

One of my favorites was during the winter games...

Do you have trouble cooking on the stove? Alright use a torch instead.

That's right a model of the Olympic torch as your only heat source to cook your dish. The competitors then bid at $100 increments to not deal with it and whoever won the auction by spending the most money, gave the torch to another competitor to use. This forces competitors to think creatively on how to create a specified dish. The judge who eliminates them varies by episode to, but they aren't down there watching them cook unlike other shows. They are in a soundproof room and don't have a feed to watch what's going on. They know sabotages exist, but they don't care. They want to find the worst dish and get that cook out of there. The cook eliminated leaves empty handed, returning the money in full to the case.

Why this show is so good is partially because of the people participating. In a lot of other similar shows like Guy's Grocery Games or the original cooking competition of the Food Network, Chopped, the people there are trash talking each other as they cook, and deal with the wacky sabotages. Sure some of it is cheesier than your dad's favorite joke, but they aren't actors they are chefs and they prove it with some pretty good dishes. They are laughing and rolling with whatever comes their way. It's refreshing to see nobody cry during a competition because of adversity.

This contestant had to make a cheesecake, with these girls being "helping hands"

However, Alton Brown is the real treat of the show. His wise cracks and puns are not your average dad jokes, but you still groan from time to time stifling a laugh. He is animated and engaging with the contestants making sure they remain positive in the kitchen and remember that it's just a fun competition. When a cook makes a mistake while they are cooking, a closeup shot of brown standing behind the table talks directly to the audience in a hushed voice explaining why the strategy the chef is employing will ultimately fail and potentially cost them their chance at winning the round. His playful attitude throughout really is enjoyable to watch and works well in this setting as he live tweets during new episodes on Sunday evenings.

I am convinced Alton is a sadist.     

So whatever you are doing whether it's cleaning dishes up after Sunday night dinner or cramming for a quiz due on Tuesday, Cutthroat Kitchen is a good reward for the end of the day. New episodes air on the Food Network on Sundays at 10/9c or on Food Network's website starting Mondays after the episode airs for the first time. The past seasons are available on Netflix currently as well so dig in!