youtube food channels that aren't hipster white millenial foodies
May 4, 2023 12:17 PM Subscribe
I really like watching cooking videos on Youtube, but it's hard not to notice certain demographic similarities, and I'd kind of like to expand a little bit.
I'm not saying anything bad about Kenji or Babish or Adam Ragusea or Ethan Chlebowski. I like those guys. I like the various America's Test Kitchen shows. But while looking for some specific things a few weeks ago, I came across some videos from two channels, Smokin and Grillin with AB and the Simple Way with Delila, both of whom are black, and I enjoyed them. Not to sound patronizing, but they seem a little realer than a lot of Youtube content. I also watch a couple other channels run by white people, Julia Pacheco and Cooking with Big Cat 305, both of whom are also "real" and unpolished. The appeal for me is that all of these seem like actual people in actual kitchens, not people putting on a show for the camera, both in terms of personality (they speak naturally and mostly unscripted) and in terms of the actual food (which are often dishes that I'd cook and eat myself). Who else is out there?
I'm not saying anything bad about Kenji or Babish or Adam Ragusea or Ethan Chlebowski. I like those guys. I like the various America's Test Kitchen shows. But while looking for some specific things a few weeks ago, I came across some videos from two channels, Smokin and Grillin with AB and the Simple Way with Delila, both of whom are black, and I enjoyed them. Not to sound patronizing, but they seem a little realer than a lot of Youtube content. I also watch a couple other channels run by white people, Julia Pacheco and Cooking with Big Cat 305, both of whom are also "real" and unpolished. The appeal for me is that all of these seem like actual people in actual kitchens, not people putting on a show for the camera, both in terms of personality (they speak naturally and mostly unscripted) and in terms of the actual food (which are often dishes that I'd cook and eat myself). Who else is out there?
Alvin Zhou
https://youtube.com/@AlvinKZhou
Self-described Asian influence. His videos aren’t “shows” and are edited and may be more polished/produced than you are looking for(?) but they are in a home kitchen and high quality.
posted by subwaytiles at 12:59 PM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
https://youtube.com/@AlvinKZhou
Self-described Asian influence. His videos aren’t “shows” and are edited and may be more polished/produced than you are looking for(?) but they are in a home kitchen and high quality.
posted by subwaytiles at 12:59 PM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
C.HerCreations (Hmong cuisine, also does other SE Asian recipes). She's very calm and explains things in a really normal way, like a friend explaining what they're doing as you stand beside them at the stove.
papadesuyo777 (Japanese food). He doesn't talk but there are English captions. Each video is usually about just one specific dish, sometimes recreations of restaurant meals.
Imamu room (Japanese food). No talking, captions only again, though she does talk to her kid and husband if they're around while she's cooking. She is usually making bento dishes and often includes at least one meal cooked at home. It's a different vibe from the other Japanese channel. That guy will sometimes make his own noodles, and it's very hobbyist, precise, and effortful for one meal. I don't recall Imamu ever making her own noodles, but if she did, it would be from the perspective of the home cook who has to think about the entire week of meals. That might actually be true for the other guy, it's just not shown in his videos.
posted by automatic cabinet at 1:18 PM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
papadesuyo777 (Japanese food). He doesn't talk but there are English captions. Each video is usually about just one specific dish, sometimes recreations of restaurant meals.
Imamu room (Japanese food). No talking, captions only again, though she does talk to her kid and husband if they're around while she's cooking. She is usually making bento dishes and often includes at least one meal cooked at home. It's a different vibe from the other Japanese channel. That guy will sometimes make his own noodles, and it's very hobbyist, precise, and effortful for one meal. I don't recall Imamu ever making her own noodles, but if she did, it would be from the perspective of the home cook who has to think about the entire week of meals. That might actually be true for the other guy, it's just not shown in his videos.
posted by automatic cabinet at 1:18 PM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
Chef John
Wikipedia: "A differentiating aspect of Mitzewich's videos on YouTube is his way of filming. He deliberately keeps himself out of the shot, only displaying utensils, ingredients and his hands. He records the narration later. His narrations are always done in a wandering and almost singing tone of voice, with one rhyming wordplay joke per video."
posted by ringu0 at 1:20 PM on May 4, 2023 [2 favorites]
Wikipedia: "A differentiating aspect of Mitzewich's videos on YouTube is his way of filming. He deliberately keeps himself out of the shot, only displaying utensils, ingredients and his hands. He records the narration later. His narrations are always done in a wandering and almost singing tone of voice, with one rhyming wordplay joke per video."
posted by ringu0 at 1:20 PM on May 4, 2023 [2 favorites]
Middle Eats
Maangchi (check out her older videos for the unpolished gems)
Simply Mamá Cooks
Michelle’s Cooking Channel
posted by Mizu at 2:30 PM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
Maangchi (check out her older videos for the unpolished gems)
Simply Mamá Cooks
Michelle’s Cooking Channel
posted by Mizu at 2:30 PM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
Came to mention Middle Eats, Mizu wins! I've learned a lot about marinades and sauces, and of course watching Obi joyously gobble whatever they've just made.
Chinese Cooking Demystified. They are serious about exploring all the different types of cooking styles, ingredients, and flavors, and more recent videos have leaned towards having Steph (Asian female of the couple) narrate; earlier videos are mostly narrated by Chris, male. I find them informative and entertaining without being annoying and click baity.
I've been watching a few videos from Ottolenghi Test Kitchen, which feature different folks cooking what I'd describe as Mediterranean/Middle Eastern. They recently did a whole week of Za'atar themed dishes, for example.
How To Cook That, by Anne Reardon. Most of her videos are about desserts, cakes, chocolate, which I'm not into, but I love her debunking videos about cooking hacks, and her series of trying out cooking gadgets with her husband Dave. I appreciate a food scientist who is actually trying to educate about things like food color safety and viral videos.
I would watch more ChefJohn videos, but I can't with the singsong voice. I want to learn about ingredients and techniques, and there's something so distracting about that weirdly up-and-down cadence. YMMV.
posted by winesong at 3:13 PM on May 4, 2023 [2 favorites]
Chinese Cooking Demystified. They are serious about exploring all the different types of cooking styles, ingredients, and flavors, and more recent videos have leaned towards having Steph (Asian female of the couple) narrate; earlier videos are mostly narrated by Chris, male. I find them informative and entertaining without being annoying and click baity.
I've been watching a few videos from Ottolenghi Test Kitchen, which feature different folks cooking what I'd describe as Mediterranean/Middle Eastern. They recently did a whole week of Za'atar themed dishes, for example.
How To Cook That, by Anne Reardon. Most of her videos are about desserts, cakes, chocolate, which I'm not into, but I love her debunking videos about cooking hacks, and her series of trying out cooking gadgets with her husband Dave. I appreciate a food scientist who is actually trying to educate about things like food color safety and viral videos.
I would watch more ChefJohn videos, but I can't with the singsong voice. I want to learn about ingredients and techniques, and there's something so distracting about that weirdly up-and-down cadence. YMMV.
posted by winesong at 3:13 PM on May 4, 2023 [2 favorites]
I really like Made with Lau for Chinese cooking. A young man films his father making all sorts of Chinese dishes. His Salt and Pepper Pork Chop has become a favorite in my house. Videos usually have a link to a web page with the full recipe.
posted by bondcliff at 4:01 PM on May 4, 2023 [7 favorites]
posted by bondcliff at 4:01 PM on May 4, 2023 [7 favorites]
Made with Lau is solid, I strongly recommend it.
posted by fiercekitten at 4:14 PM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by fiercekitten at 4:14 PM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]
in terms of the actual food (which are often dishes that I'd cook and eat myself).
So what are the kinds of dishes you would cook and eat yourself?
posted by splitpeasoup at 4:55 PM on May 4, 2023
So what are the kinds of dishes you would cook and eat yourself?
posted by splitpeasoup at 4:55 PM on May 4, 2023
Response by poster: Good question. I left it vague because I didn’t want to limit responses too much. We can say: heavy on potatoes, cheese, and sauces; and made with ingredients that don’t require a trip to a special store. But I’m willing to make exceptions for likable people. I started watching Curries with Bumbi a little already, and while I’m not much of a curry eater, she seems nice, and so I’m going to watch more. And I adore Chef John. I think I’ve only made two of his recipes in my life, but I love watching his videos, because he’s authentic in the way I’m looking for.
posted by kevinbelt at 5:55 PM on May 4, 2023
posted by kevinbelt at 5:55 PM on May 4, 2023
Pati Jinich does shows on PBS which can be streamed, and also has a presence on youtube. She's Jewish, grew up in Mexico, and has lived in the U.S. for some time with her husband and children. All of these things inform her take on Mexican cooking.
posted by gudrun at 7:17 PM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by gudrun at 7:17 PM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
Hot Thai Kitchen / Pailin's Kitchen. Marion's Kitchen. Kenji Lopez-Alt. Claire Saffitz. Aaron and Claire.
posted by ellerhodes at 9:00 PM on May 4, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by ellerhodes at 9:00 PM on May 4, 2023 [2 favorites]
I really like Glen and Friends, who is a nice older Canadian gent (with appearances at the end from his wife Jules to taste the food). His recipes are really straightforward and extremely accessible. Also every Sunday is an episode of “The Old Cookbook Show” where he makes a recipe out of old (usually Canadian) cookbooks, usually from the early 1900s.
posted by thebots at 11:20 PM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by thebots at 11:20 PM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
De mi rancho a tu cocina! I could watch her for hours (and have), and I barely speak Spanish. So lovely.
posted by CheeseLouise at 3:07 AM on May 5, 2023
posted by CheeseLouise at 3:07 AM on May 5, 2023
Nthing Middle Eats, Alvin Zhou, and Chinese Cooking Demystified.
Andrea Nguyen cooks dishes like Vietnamese Beef Stew in her real kitchen.
Helen Rennie shares not just recipes but techniques about everything.
Internet Shaquille. The vast majority of his videos are brisk, opinionated, and, thank GOD, not interrupted by endless YouTube commercials.
Jon Kung recently got a somewhat fancier kitchen in his Detroit house, but he's still focused on cooking. Both his videos and shorts (techniques are more important than recipes) are really worth it.
posted by maudlin at 7:38 AM on May 5, 2023
Andrea Nguyen cooks dishes like Vietnamese Beef Stew in her real kitchen.
Helen Rennie shares not just recipes but techniques about everything.
Internet Shaquille. The vast majority of his videos are brisk, opinionated, and, thank GOD, not interrupted by endless YouTube commercials.
Jon Kung recently got a somewhat fancier kitchen in his Detroit house, but he's still focused on cooking. Both his videos and shorts (techniques are more important than recipes) are really worth it.
posted by maudlin at 7:38 AM on May 5, 2023
Also Manjula's Kitchen ... Her website is great, too, and everything about her videos remind me of my grandma but desi. Her recipes are largely veg-friendly.
Love Made with Lau and I've really come to appreciate Pati Jinich.
posted by OhHaieThere at 7:50 AM on May 5, 2023
Love Made with Lau and I've really come to appreciate Pati Jinich.
posted by OhHaieThere at 7:50 AM on May 5, 2023
Hebbar's Kitchen and Honest Kitchen are two of my favorite vegetarian Indian channels. I have learned so many regional Indian recipes from these two.
posted by indianbadger1 at 9:43 AM on May 5, 2023
posted by indianbadger1 at 9:43 AM on May 5, 2023
Turkish Food Travel is very homey and simple. In her most recent video, for example, she accidentally broke a glass dish (by pouring hot liquid into it) and kept it in the video anyway.
Japanese Food Videos / Pure Japan has every day food items (often in several different versions, which is good if you can't find certain ingredients AND if you want something besides the base recipe).
Like many others, I also like Manjula's Kitchen (natural, homey) and Middle Eats (if he messes up, you'll see it and/or hear about it!).
posted by Ms. Moonlight at 9:46 AM on May 5, 2023
Japanese Food Videos / Pure Japan has every day food items (often in several different versions, which is good if you can't find certain ingredients AND if you want something besides the base recipe).
Like many others, I also like Manjula's Kitchen (natural, homey) and Middle Eats (if he messes up, you'll see it and/or hear about it!).
posted by Ms. Moonlight at 9:46 AM on May 5, 2023
Plan D is my absolute favorite - she's Korean and unless you live next to a Korean grocery store, probably can't get everything, but she's my favorite example of silent vlogging.
posted by yueliang at 10:48 PM on November 29, 2023
posted by yueliang at 10:48 PM on November 29, 2023
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