For folks in science, if you were looking for instructions to cook with cell culture media, I'm sorry to disappoint. Instead, here you will find a list of cooking-related media I enjoy or am interested in consuming. This page's origin story is from [[0.1 Journal/2025/2025 media consumption|2025 media consumption]]. 20260106 Michelin should start recognizing food/cooking YouTube channels. There are some great ones with really high production value these days. ## Heidi-certified ### Books (non-cookbook) - *Invitation to a Banquet* ### Cookbooks I haven't bought any cookbooks. Even if I do try one, it'll take quite some time to sample enough recipes to make my mind up about a cookbook. I was gifted *Eleven Madison Park: The Next Chapter* (EMP), but haven't gotten around to trying any recipes in there. Most reviews online say those recipes are impractical to make for home cooks since they are expensive, extremely high effort, and rich, so the marginal utility of each additional bite diminishes quickly. I do want to try making the cheese gougères for a potluck! EMP could be inspiration for flavors for creating my own dishes, though. I like collecting individual recipes from different sources since I like a variety of foods, generally try to eat clean-ish, and have adapt recipes depending on if I'm cutting, maintaining, or bulking. Cookbooks I've come close to buying include - health/nutrition-forward - *So Easy So Good* by Kylie Sakaida, a dietitian who makes great videos on YouTubes of her recipes. Love how she emphasizes to think about what you can add to a food, not subtract. I like her positive mindset around nutrition and dieting. - taste/technique-forward - *Ad Hoc at Home* by Thomas Keller and Dave Cruz. Supposed to be more accessible for home cooks than the [The French Laundry, Per Se](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49151026-the-french-laundry-per-se) and thus a better starting point if I want to try these myself. ### Shows - The Bear - The Chef Show - Competition shows - Culinary Class Wars S1 and 2 ### Movies - Chef (Jon Favreau) ### YouTube - Alvin Zhou (eponymous channel and his other channel, Alvin Zhou Films) ---- ## Curious about these ### Books - *The Devil in the Kitchen: Sex, Pain, Madness and the Making of a Great Chef* by Marco Pierre White (youngest chef to win 3 Michelin stars) - I’m interested in understanding the character of someone who not only pursued excellence, but reached it and became the best in the world at his craft. People who operate at that level often have chaotic or complicated personal lives, and I want to read this book to understand the full story—not just the glory of winning three Michelin stars at such a young age, but everything that came with it, including the flip side shaped by the same relentless drive. - *Kitchen Confidential* by Anthony Bourdain - *Garlic and Sapphires*, written by food critic Ruth Reich. should be an interesting look into the other side of things (eating/critiquing vs. making and serving) - Maybe *Unreasonable Hospitality* - Related-ish, *Crying in H Mart* - *The Apprentice* by Jacques Pepin ### YouTube - Tasting History with Max Miller - dishes around the world and their history! sounds like a wonderful combination - Julies Cooking - fine dining chef teaches you how to make food. will be interested in this if I ever want to "step up my game" for special occasions ## Didn't enjoy these - Hell's Kitchen (show). More focused on the drama than the cooking than I would like. Entertaining nonetheless.