Gimball hosts an ‘Evening with America’s Test Kitchen’
“It’s about you. It’s about your recipes,” Christopher Gimball, host of “America’s Test Kitchen” explained at the Riverside Theater on Nov. 3. Gimball presented a live event featuring different clips of the show, demonstrations, and question and answers.
Gimball read fan questions that had been mailed to the show. One question asked if there was a healthier version to cream cheese pound cake. Gimball said, “Fat free cream cheese is like spackle.” Don’t do it.
“America’s Test Kitchen” show is aired on public television and is a cooking tips show. There are about 50 cooks and 170 people who make the show possible. The show features recipes, equipment testing, taste tests, cooking tips, techniques and advice.
Gimball usually taste tests on the show. He has three to four minutes to figure out the difference between four items. The tester tries to trick Gimball, but he’s usually correct.
Six audience members were invited on the stage to participate in a taste test of their own. They tested chocolate (mmm) and balsamic vinegar. Contestants chose the chocolate with the second highest cacao percentage, which was around 60 percent and the cheapest balsamic vinegar.
Audience members were invited onto the stage to taste test four supermarket products. Then their results were compared to a test kitchen tasting panel.
The evening continued with a few demonstrations by Dan Souza, a cook on the show. He explained more of the science behind cooking. He demonstrated how it takes water three times more energy to heat than oil, so when you cook with water it is gentler and moister.
Souza continued his science lesson by talking about gluten. He formed a gluten dough bubble and threw it in the audience as a souvenir.
Gimball shared the seven biggest food lies, which include: free range means nothing, serving size means nothing, and vitamin water is really just sugar water.
The evening concluded with questions and answers from the audience. Gimball and Souza answered questions regarding how to make a vegan Thanksgiving and cooking for moms.
Overall the event was great fun. There were a lot of laughs had by all. Gimball said, “We’re coming back every moth. This is the best audience ever.”
