Latest news with #CulinaryTalent
CBC
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBC
Anne Burrell, TV chef and coach on 'Worst Cooks in America,' dies at 55
TV chef Anne Burrell, who coached culinary fumblers through hundreds of episodes of Worst Cooks in America, died Tuesday at her New York home. She was 55. The Food Network, where Burrell began her two-decade television career on Iron Chef America and went on to other shows, confirmed her death. The cause was not immediately clear, and medical examiners were set to conduct an autopsy. Police were called to her address before 8 a.m. Tuesday and found an unresponsive woman who was soon pronounced dead. The police department did not release the woman's name, but records show it was Burrell's address. Burrell was on TV screens as recently as April, making chicken Milanese cutlets topped with escarole salad in one of her many appearances on NBC's Today show. She faced off against other top chefs on the Food Network's House of Knives earlier in the spring. "Anne was a remarkable person and culinary talent — teaching, competing and always sharing the importance of food in her life and the joy that a delicious meal can bring," the network said in a statement. Known for her bold and flavorful but not overly fancy dishes, and for her spiky platinum-blonde hairdo, Burrell and various co-hosts on Worst Cooks in America led teams of kitchen-challenged people through a crash course in savoury self-improvement. On the first show in 2010, contestants presented such unlikely personal specialities as cayenne pepper and peanut butter on cod, and penne pasta with sauce, cheese, olives and pineapple. The accomplished chefs had to taste the dishes to evaluate them, and it was torturous, Burrell confessed in an interview with The Tampa Tribune at the time. Still, Burrell persisted through 27 seasons, making her last appearance in 2024. "If people want to learn, I absolutely love to teach them," she said on ABC's Good Morning America in 2020. "It's just them breaking bad habits and getting out of their own way." 'Cooking is fun' Burrell was born Sept. 21, 1969, in the central New York town of Cazenovia, where her parents ran a flower store. She earned an English and communications degree from Canisius University and went on to a job as a headhunter but hated it, she said in a 2008 interview with The Post-Standard of Syracuse. Having always loved cooking, she soon enrolled in the Culinary Institute of America, where she later taught. She graduated in 1996, spent a year at an Italian culinary school and then worked in upscale New York City restaurants for a time. "Anytime Anne Burrell gets near hot oil, I want to be around," Frank Bruni, then-food critic at the New York Times, enthused in a 2007 review. By the next year, Burrell was hosting her own Food Network show, Secrets of a Restaurant Chef, and her TV work became a focus. Over the years she also wrote two cookbooks, Cook Like a Rock Star and Own Your Kitchen: Recipes to Inspire and Empower, and was involved with food pantries, juvenile diabetes awareness campaigns and other charities. Burrell's own tastes, she said, ran simple. She told The Post-Standard her favourite food was bacon and her favourite meal was her mother's tuna sandwich. "Cooking is fun," she said. "It doesn't have to be scary. It's creating something nurturing." Survivors include her husband, Stuart Claxton, whom she married in 2021, and his son, her mother and her two siblings. "Anne's light radiated far beyond those she knew, touching millions across the world," the family said in a statement released by the Food Network.
Associated Press
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
Anne Burrell, TV chef who coached the 'Worst Cooks in America,' dies at 55
NEW YORK (AP) — TV chef Anne Burrell, who coached culinary fumblers through hundreds of episodes of 'Worst Cooks in America,' died Tuesday at her New York home. She was 55. The Food Network, where Burrell began her two-decade television career on 'Iron Chef America' and went on to other shows, confirmed her death. The cause was not immediately clear, and medical examiners were set to conduct an autopsy. Police were called to her address before 8 a.m. Tuesday and found an unresponsive woman who was soon pronounced dead. The police department did not release the woman's name, but records show it was Burell's address. Burrell was on TV screens as recently as April, making chicken Milanese cutlets topped with escarole salad in one of her many appearances on NBC's 'Today' show. She faced off against other top chefs on the Food Network's 'House of Knives' earlier in the spring. 'Anne was a remarkable person and culinary talent — teaching, competing and always sharing the importance of food in her life and the joy that a delicious meal can bring,' the network said in a statement. Known for her bold and flavorful but not overly fancy dishes, and for her spiky platinum-blonde hairdo, Burrell and various co-hosts on 'Worst Cooks in America' led teams of kitchen-challenged people through a crash course in savory self-improvement. On the first show in 2010, contestants presented such unlikely personal specialties as cayenne pepper and peanut butter on cod, and penne pasta with sauce, cheese, olives and pineapple. The accomplished chefs had to taste the dishes to evaluate them, and it was torturous, Burrell confessed in an interview with The Tampa Tribune at the time. Still, Burrell persisted through 27 seasons, making her last appearance in 2024. 'If people want to learn, I absolutely love to teach them,' she said on ABC's 'Good Morning America' in 2020. 'It's just them breaking bad habits and getting out of their own way.' Burrell was born Sept. 21, 1969, in the central New York town of Cazenovia, where her parents ran a flower store. She earned an English and communications degree from Canisius University and went on to a job as a headhunter but hated it, she said in a 2008 interview with The Post-Standard of Syracuse. Having always loved cooking, she soon enrolled in the Culinary Institute of America, for which she later taught. She graduated in 1996, spent a year at an Italian culinary school and then worked in upscale New York City restaurants for a time. 'Anytime Anne Burrell gets near hot oil, I want to be around,' Frank Bruni, then-food critic at the New York Times, enthused in a 2007 review. By the next year, Burrell was hosting her own Food Network show, 'Secrets of a Restaurant Chef,' and her TV work became a focus. Over the years she also wrote two cookbooks, 'Cook Like a Rock Star' and 'Own Your Kitchen: Recipes to Inspire and Empower,' and was involved with food pantries, juvenile diabetes awareness campaigns and other charities. Burrell's own tastes, she said, ran simple. She told The Post-Standard her favorite food was bacon and her favorite meal was her mother's tuna fish sandwich. 'Cooking is fun,' she said. 'It doesn't have to be scary. It's creating something nurturing.' Survivors include her husband, Stuart Claxton, whom she married in 2021, and his son, her mother and her two siblings. 'Anne's light radiated far beyond those she knew, touching millions across the world,' the family said in a statement released by the Food Network.
South China Morning Post
27-05-2025
- General
- South China Morning Post
4 Asian chefs lighting up Vancouver with Thai, Korean and Hong Kong flavours
There is plenty of Asian culinary talent in Vancouver, Canada, with many chefs inspired by its abundance of fresh seafood and local produce. We highlight four rising Asian chefs: one from Thailand, one from South Korea and two from Hong Kong. 1. Nutcha Phanthoupheng, Baan Lao Baan Lao was recently named best destination restaurant by Canada's 100 Best, and the best restaurant in Canada at the World Culinary Awards in 2024. Quite the accomplishment for Nutcha Phanthoupheng, who was a nurse and cancer researcher for 13 years before following her culinary dream in 2019. Stir-fried chicken in steamed rice paper dumpling from Baan Lao. Photo: Handout She opened the restaurant in British Columbia's biggest city to promote royal Thai cuisine which, unlike Thai staples such as pad Thai and tom yum goong, is beautifully presented in small plates and subtly flavoured. Her background in medicine also informs her cooking. 'Food is a big factor of cancer, and I want to do something to take care of people, do something beautiful, helpful and healthy,' she explains. 'Food is medicine so I want to open a restaurant that is beautiful and healthy for customers.' Originally from Isaan in northeast Thailand, Nutcha grew up cooking with her mother and helped grow vegetables and raise animals on their farm. They ate simple food such as steamed vegetables and fish, and seasoned dishes with a simple mix of chillies, garlic and fish sauce. When she and her young family moved to Richmond, British Columbia, in 2014, her husband, John, who is the honorary consul for Laos, encouraged her to follow her passion to become a chef and open a restaurant.
