Monday, January 25
Did You Watch 'Mexican Made Easy'
The longstanding drought of Mexican-themed programming on Food Network is now over... for at least six episodes.
Did you watch Mexican Made Easy this past Saturday?
I did and thought it was pretty much okay. Pretty good, even.
Host Marcela Valladolid is almost a Mexican carbon copy of given-a-show-partially-because-they-neeed-an-Italian-themed-show Giada De Laurentiis. She's petite, pretty, smiles brightly at the camera and knows how to cook and talk at the same time.
Mexican food is incredibly popular, so I'm surprised it took this long to get a Mexican show. But did we love it??????
Labels: food network, mexican made easy
posted by jacob @ 6:17 PM
53 Comments:
I thought she was actually really good and wish her the best of luck!
You want good Mexican cooking?? Catch Rick Bayless on PBS's new Create TV. He's been around for years and knows more about regional Mexican cooking than anyone on TV. The jury is out on this one, but she is cute and "perky". I still remember the Two Hot Tamales who started on FoodNetwork years and years ago and they had some great recipes.
what about daisy and that annoying ingrid person?
a giada clone is better than a rachael clone
no kidding Jacob, this is not the first Mexican theme! Ingrid Hoffman ring a bell?
Daisy is from Puerto Rico and Ingrid Columbia. Trivia note-the host of this new show was on Martha Stewart Apprentice. I believe she came in 4th.
Ingrid and Daisy didn't cook Mexican food, but something called pan-Latin food. They took recipes from all over Latin America and watered them down until nobody recognized them.
I'm glad a Mexican food show is finally on the air. I love Mexican food and can't wait to try out some new recipes.
I don't foresee this lady supplanting Rick Bayless any time soon, but I'll give her a whirl next time her show is on.
Isn't that a bit like calling Olive Garden "Italian" and Chi-Chi's (didn't they go out of business) "Mexican"? They should have just given Bobby a sombrero and fake black mustache and called him Roberto for a half hour.
I get that Food is trying to be all politically correct now, but throwing a deer in the spotlights like they've done in the past may not be the best approach. And I get this feeling that somewhere in a back room someone is saying "We can't give that person a show, they're too Mexican (or Italian, or black, or Asian) like the many other back rooms in TV and movie land.
All I want is someone who I can believe cooks what they profess to cook well. I don't care what race or nationality they are. If I see passion for their specialty then I'll be sold. I don't get that with half the people on Food. All I get with them is pretense.
i didnt watch it because i couldnt understand her in her commercials ... your name is what?? immediately turned me off
Also like Giada, it appeared somebody's make-up application gun was set to "whore." Seriously. Tone it down.
May seem trivial, but it relates to what Greg was saying. If you're honest about what you're doing (here, cooking Mexican food) and doing it well, then there's no need to gild a lily. Just be.
heh...this girl was on Martha Stewart's apprentice.
I thought she was okay. Looks interesting, but you're absolutely right in that she's Giada's clone. The two could switch shows and it'd be weeks before anyone knew the difference! I really don't care what your nationality is, so long as you can cook. Rick Bayless has zero Latino in his blood, but he's a damn good chef.
Rick Bayless is OK. He takes a lot of Mexican food and puts his own spin on it, under the guise of "improving" it. I've had better.
Anon 7:40, you have NO idea what you're talking about. Bayless is a walking encyclopedia of knowledge about Mexico and its food. He's basically devoted his life to it. His respect for the cuisine is beyond description. Whenever he "alters" it it is only to make it easier for a home cook to do it (or to speed up a process that would be a burden). I doubt "you've had better" -- in fact, I doubt you've ever even eaten at one of his restaurants. His show, by the way, which is part travelogue and part instructional, is light-years better than anything currently on the FN.
I remember her from the apprentice she was useless.
So now FN has three latin shows but still no asian. And yet another cute female host.
It's sad that FN is no longer about the food anymore but a showcase for young, pretty people. If Paula or Ina auditioned for FN today, I don't think they would give them the time of day.
I might not care too much if Pawler didn't get the time of day...
Re: "So now FN has three latin shows but still no asian"
I think Daisy is gone. Frankly, I wouldn't mind if they replaced Ingrid with another Mexican food show. I could easily watch two Mexican food shows.
I would also like to see some Asian food shows--Chinese, Japanese, Indian--and a Middle Eastern show.
FN needs more ethnic food shows overall. I've had enough of Paula Deen style comfort food. Let's see something new.
She is good.Thank you for posting such a useful website.
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It seems that Japanese food/cooking/ingredients have such a influence with so many of FN's chef already- (panko, mirin, sake)they need to have a Japanese/Asian FN chef who can actually relate with viewers. Sorry Morimoto,no disrespect.
I liked the show. I liked the way she explained the ingredients and talked about why she was using certain things eg the Ancho chili powder and the light beer in the Micheladas. As much I respect Rick Bayless as a master scholar, chef and expert on regional Mexican cuisine, I'm not going to be trying many of his dishes at home. I am lucky enough to live close to his three Chicago restaurants, and have eaten at them many times, but as sublime as the Top Chef Master winning mole was, at nearly 30 ingredients and lots of time and energy to create, I'm just not doing that at home. Even his newest most casual restaurant, XOCO, has things I don't have the time, or equipment (some of the best tortas there come from the word burning oven) to recreate at home. His food is delicious, but I'm going to his restaurants to get it :) Marcela's cooking, I think, is much more accessible to the home cook. She appears to have the background and the culinary chops to be very successful. From her blog : "Born in San Diego and raised in Tijuana, Mexico, the Food Network Chef jumped straight into a culinary life at an early age. Her grandfather was a chef in Mexico and her aunt opened one of the first cooking schools in Tijuana, Mexico where Marcela got her first job. She went on to study at the Los Angeles Culinary Institute and graduated as a classical French pastry chef from the Ritz Escoffier Cooking School in Paris.
Marcela’s passion for food and her classical training landed her a job at Bon Appetit magazine where she served as one of the magazines food editors."
She does remind me Giada, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing.
I do have a complaint about the second show, though. FN played the first segment, including the intro twice, so I never saw her make the skewered shrimp.
Wow. Some of your comments are brutal. Her makeup set to "whore?" One said that they turned off the tv because they couldn't understand her last name?
So, you'd rather she be on tv with no makeup on and her last name have one syllable?
All this woman wants to do is cook on tv. Why does she have to look like a school marm to get any cred?
Guess what? Some of the best food in this country was brought over by people of color. Maybe instead of watching so much Food Network, you haters should read about food history and get in touch with the world around you.
Anonymous: Maybe Marcela should suck less, and then people would make less fun of her. Oven-baked tortillas (tor-TEEE-yahs, as she helpfully reminded us 80 billion times) and lime-flavored beer? This is what passes for an instructional cooking show?
She's had more than chips and lime flavored beer on her show. I have watched her shows, and I have made some of the recipes (shrimp, guacamole) and they were good. The combination of fresh ingredients and easy to make, tasty recipes will make her a success.
Well then, respectfully: you're an idiot.
Honestly, I couldn’t get pass her promo where she says her name like a five-year old.
Regarding the old Gia-DUH, I wish FN would have the guts to retire her show once and for all. How many more mascarpone cheese/pan-che-tta meals do we need? She changes one ingredient and presto we have another mascarpone recipe.
Giada makes good, real food that people like. Why would they get rid of her? So far, Marcela also makes real food. I want recipes full of real ingredients that don't take all day to prepare. I also like seeing real Mexican food.
I guess you feel more comfortable with Sandra Lee dumping processed garbage into all of her 'recipes' and calling them healthy. Did you see the You Tube clip of Lee making a burrito casserole on GMA? She took about eight frozen burritos and put them in a casserole dish. Covered them with canned chile sauce, 10 inches of orange cheese and then sprinkled some lettuce and olives for color.
Klassy!
This chica hasn't made anything outstanding or even mouth-watering. Two different shows she "made" tortilla chips; one with a guacamole, (wow, homemade guacamole-what a concept), and one with a chunky salsa. Big friggin' deal. I think this past weekend she made a butternut squash soup. Must we be sujected to yet ANOTHER butternut squash soup recipe?! Hell...Ina, Sunny, Feeyedi and Aaron have all made that recently. Get that beeyatch some recipes already! And somebody tell that chica to open her damn eyes when she's talking to the camera. Get with the program or getsta steppin'!
Let me start by saying that stupid ignorant hicks that turn the tv off just because a person's last name isn't Smith or Johnson are a waste of space. No wonder why the rest of the world hates America... and all those "hooker" comments- lemme guess... they are all made by frumpy FAT americans that are insecure and feel that the only way to make their puny existence relatively entertaining is to make fun of others.
Mexican Made Easy is a good show, it is a real Mexican show. Sure, she's an amateur and is not 100% camera ready, but she knows what she's doing. If you have never gone to Mexico and eaten in a real Mexican restaurant than SHUT YOUR MOUTH and go back to eating your burritos in Taco Bell.
Thanks :)
Oh and by the way- to that "chica" guy.
Shut up cholo
You are a disgrace to the Mexican Race HA
Food Network will never fire Giada, not as long as her ta-tas bring in the ratings. She can put mascarpone cheese in every single recipe for all they care.
If you want REAL italian recipes watch Lidia's Italy and for REAL mexican food watch Rick Bayless.
And YOU, Anon @ 2:48am, are a disgrace to the ENTIRE HUMAN race. It's because of morons like you that cooking shows like this exist on FN. Cooking for re re's as I call it. And, I would hope she would know what she is doing if she's using really basic ingredients like tortilla chips, guacamole and beer, tu tonto hembra! OLE!!!
Caramba! I didn't know that Mexican cooking could excite all of this passion!
Mexican food, whether cooked in America by a newbie host or cooked by your Mexican abuela over a hot stove, needs one essential ingredient: EL AMOR.
Clementina
"A Little Cup of Mexican Hot Chocolate"
I think she does a great job... I am from Mexico City and the recipes are almost exact of those of my mother and grandmother... Food Network, you did a great job. just wish she was on during the week as well.
I wonder if Anon @ 2/03/2010 3:44 AM is the same one calling people idiots. It always kills me when folks come off all preachy and don't have a solid grasp on the English language. "Honestly, I couldn’t get pass her promo where she says her name like a five-year old." Yeah, that would be 'past', thanks.
Anyone who says they refuse to watch this chick's show because she has an accent is a bigot, period.
This host is perky and sweet. To some this is annoying and to others it is not. Regardless, she should be judged by her food and not social or racial prejudice.
After trying some of her recipes, I am impressed. They are both easy and delicious. I hope to see more from her soon.
Marcela's Show is great! SOOOOOOO glad finally a show with real mexican food just as I remember growing up and when I go back to visit my family.Mexican is more than just tamales and enchiladas much,much more and not too complicated.She is cooking so normal and I can totally smell the delicious meals that I forgot how to make because I have been in the US so long but love it, love it, me encanta!My kids enjoy it as well.When I saw Marcela in the show with Martha and she suggested to her that she would be better in a mexican cooking show I was hoping for that to happen real mexican...Is true Mexican food. The make up - well she is mexicana! and mexican girls in Mexico were lots of make up and high heals on daily basis Miss Universe guess what Mexicana!!!
Marcela I hope you continue cooking all the meals that make me so happy y se me hace agua la boca! que rico...best food ever Tacos, tacos and tacos.
Food Network great jobs Marcela is real.
Soy Sonorense de hueso colorado :)
As a Mexican American I find her recipes to be what mom makes. There are staples that she uses that I are at home if you are from the north region. She is doing what I wanted which is follow mom's recipes and take those recipes for your own family meal standards
First of all, I love Marcela's show and record every single one of her shows. I was born in Northern Mexico and raised in California. I absolutely love her food because it's authentic and easy to prepare.
I read all the comments regarding her show and I cannot comprehend the mentality of some of the writers. They don't know the first thing about Mexican cuisine but are quick to judge Marcela's cooking, makeup, accent, etc. What is going on people? Don't you have anything better to do? Learn to love other cultures and stop being so close minded. I wish Marcela all the success that she deserves. You're the best in my book!
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I first start watching Marcela's show because she is gorgeous.As far as her camera skills,she gets better and better with each episode.Why are people so negative of others who are doing positive things.Stop being a hater and get your own cooking show
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This woman is so annoying. Her food is not actually Mexican...it is Tex Mex at best. Also, her fake accent is ridiculous. I can't believe FN has not fired her already for being completely ridiculous. It is offensive and she is making a caricature out of Hispanic people.
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