Adam Richman on his 'non-chef' cookbook Straight Up
The host of Man vs Food talks exclusively to loveFOOD about the culinary travels that inspired his first cookbook.
Making a humble cheese omelette with his great-aunt Anne is what first inspired a love of food in former Man Vs Food host Adam Richman.
“When I was a kid, my great-aunt lived above us,” Adam says. “Sometimes I’d go up for a sleepover because she was so cool and one morning we made breakfast together. I’d eaten omelettes but I didn’t know how they were made so to see the eggs and cheese transformed into something very different, and doing it with my own two hands, was kind of amazing.”
A 'non-cookbook' cookbook
He’s now the author of his first cookbook, Straight Up Tasty: Meals, Memories and Mouthfuls From My Travels. Although it’s a cookbook with a difference.
“I wanted to make a ‘non-cookbook cookbook,’” he says. “I wanted to put a lot of irreverent but fun stuff in it. I mean, how many opportunities are there for a non-chef to write a cookbook?”
The recipes are as eclectic as you’d expect. “Thanks to feedback and shrewd research by my brilliant editor, we saw there was a demand for recipes inspired not only by my perspective on food, but by my food travels.”
The recipes are global, yet familiar. There’s Bloody Mary Gazpacho with Shrimp, Bahn Mi Burger and Challah Bread Puddin', and many are inspired by people in his life. “I’d beg my mum to make spinach pie when I came home from college,” he says. “And the fact I have my grandmother’s brisket is awesome because grandma and my love for her are timeless. The spaghetti pie is inspired by a fraternity brother from Emory University who gave me that recipe ages ago which I’ve played around with. “
There’s even a story in the recipe names. “Hangover Egg Sammy was inspired by my friend Andy's ‘morning-after’ cure after a big college night out. As for Chilo-Frito Sloppy Joe, I was at the Texas State fair and tried my first proper chili frito pie [a mix of chili, Cheddar cheese and Fritos corn chips]. It was incredible and I wanted to play around with the flavour and texture. I love crunchy crisps on a sandwich so it was a great opportunity to fuse that with the iconic American Sloppy Joe sandwich.”
Food travels
Richman kept a food journal at university in Atlanta, documenting everywhere he ate. After graduating, he worked in all sorts of restaurants and in all roles, although he never trained professionally. Regional theatre was his next calling and cross-country travels allowed him to carry on recording his culinary finds.
Things took off in 2008 when he began hosting Man vs Food, which would become the Travel Channel’s highest rated show. Man vs Food Nation, Adam Richman’s Best Sandwich in America, Fandemonium and NBC’s food competition show Food Fighters followed while his latest show, Man Finds Food, sees Adam discover some of America’s most interesting food establishments.
For someone who’s racked up so many culinary experiences, how has it changed how he views food? He admits it’s easier to be more critical of service and food once you’ve worked in the industry but that’s not the be-all-and-end-all. “The more you get hung up on that stuff instead of just going with the flow, you suck a lot of the enjoyment out of stuff – and that’s no good.”
Man vs Food was a big hit for Adam, but did all that guzzling and gobbling have a downside? “Well, Man vs Food pretty much killed my ability to eat raw oysters,” he says, “but generally my taste buds are pretty much intact!”
He recalls a challenge in Alaska as the best: “Simply because rather than a large quantity of one item, it was smaller portions of different things.” It was still no mean feat to devour a six-pound platter of treats which included king crab legs and reindeer sausage. And his worst? “The worst is hard to say, because they all generally sucked!”
In his latest show, Man Finds Food, he uncovers surprising food joints around the US. Any standout ones? “The fact I found a restaurant behind a bookcase in the youth hostel in the oldest firehouse in the capital city of Texas is pretty incredible.”
The 'language' of food
So after all his shows, what has he learnt about the relationship between food and people? “If I've learned anything, it’s this. People are seldom as passionate about anything as they are about the foods they love, their hometown restaurants and the supremacy of their family's or hometown dishes. During the Best Sandwich show, people were literally wishing my demise because I judged against an iconic sandwich in their hometown.”
“But I've also learned there’s a beautiful language spoken between people through food,” he says. “And no matter where you are or where you’re from, the ability to connect over food is quite incredible. The ability and willingness to try anything at least once has served me more times as a traveller and TV host than I can count.”
You can see Adam on our TV screens this summer in ITV's BBQ Champ
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