What To Know
- Alton Brown has launched a new weekly YouTube cooking series called Alton Brown Cooks Food.
- The first episode revisits and updates his iconic turkey-brining method from Good Eats.
- Fans have enthusiastically welcomed Brown’s return, expressing nostalgia and appreciation for his signature blend of science, humor, and culinary expertise.
Just in time for the holidays, Alton Brown is back with a brand new cooking show. Only this time, he’s taking his talents to the internet rather than Food Network.
The TV personality launched his new YouTube series, Alton Brown Cooks Food, on Saturday, November 22. The show’s first episode, titled “The Big Bird,” is all about cooking the perfect turkey for Thanksgiving, and was inspired by one of his earliest Good Eats recipes.
“Back in 1999, my cohorts and I capped the first season of a show called Good Eats with a one-hour special about Thanksgiving called ‘Romancing the Bird,’ the centerpiece of which was a recipe for a roast turkey, which included a pre-cook soak in a salt solution, or a brine,” he recalled. “It was an unusual move for the time. Not a long of brining being done back then.”
Brown explained that brining can not only add extra moisture to the turkey and season it, but also alters “the protein inside so the muscles don’t, well, surrender moisture quite as willingly as when they aren’t brined.”
“My hope was that the process would buy home chefs an insurance policy against over-cooking and dryness,” he added. “And judging from the comments that have accumulated on various forums and social platforms over the decades, it seems to have worked out pretty well.”
Brown noted that he “never revisited the original” until filming the episode, as he wanted to showcase “several of the changes, refinements, and innovations that I have made to the process through the years.”
Brown’s turkey-cooking process included brining the turkey in a water cooler and drying it in front of a fan to achieve a crispy skin. Unlike many people, Brown said he’s against stuffing the bird with stuffing, as it “slows the cooking process” and “promotes dryness.”
According to the video’s description, new episodes of Alton Brown Cooks Food will drop weekly via YouTube.
Fans shared their excitement over Brown’s latest project in the video’s comments section. “Mr. Brown, my husband and I married in 1999. We watched your show before our first Thanksgiving together. I wrote out the recipe carefully and we made it—it was SO good,” one fan wrote. “25 years later, we still have that ragged piece of paper carefully saved in a plastic cover in a binder that we still pull out every year when we do the turkey together. It’s become a part of our history. It’s so good to see you back on tv again. You bet we’ll be watching all your episodes!”
Another user wrote, “I swear this guy is just as loved as Mr. Rogers. It’s so great to have him back in his original form lol.” Someone else shared, “I’m not exaggerating: this made me emotional. Man it’s so great to get a surprise Alton Brown episode. The science. The food. The humor. Astonished to see this level of production value on YouTube. Alton you’ve inspired me for years and this was absolutely spectacular.” A different user added, “Watched Good Eats as a kid to sooth my anxiety, and cook today for the same reason. The nostalgia from this episode was something else.”
Brown rose to fame with his hit Food Network series Good Eats, which ran for 16 seasons from 1999 to 2012. Brown became one of the network’s biggest personalities by appearing on shows such as Cutthroat Kitchen, Iron Chef America, Food Network Star, Feasting on Asphalt, and more.