While in quarantine, a lot of people started cooking. Selena Gomez decided to go one step further and film herself learning to cook from celebrity chefs and put it on HBO Max for the world to see.
Here are five reasons you should check out Selena + Chef:
Selena Gomez
Selena is an amazing host. She was always on top of things and able to spout out what she knew about the chefs and their restaurants in LA. The way the show is structured is definitely to her benefit. But what works best is that she can easily take a joke regarding her cooking skills. In the first episode when she receives the delivery of the ingredients, she declared, “Here’s the food I’m going to burn.” Who hasn’t been there when trying to cook? The fact that she could be so self-deprecating but also strong enough not to crumble when she made a mistake was admirable.
The Chef Guests
As a long-time fan of Top Chef and its spin-offs, I was delighted to see how many alums and judges appeared on Selena + Chef. Starting off with Ludo Lefevre is a power move! But more seriously, it was a diverse group of chefs that each had their own specialty to highlight and teach Selena. She really got a crash course in all sorts of cuisine: Ludo taught her French, Roy Choi Korean (really looking forward to trying that donut recipe!), Tanya Holland Southern, Candice Kumai Japanese. Not only were they patient with her, they gave her additional tips with her preparation and knife skills. They always encouraged her progress even if something went awry. And important to note: none of the recipes seemed that difficult so anyone can follow along if they wanted to!
Spotlight on Different Charities
Something unexpected on the show was that in each episode they donated $10,000 to a charity of the chef guest’s choice. Not only were they providing some funds to these charities, but they allowed viewers to get more insight for certain causes and their importance to the chefs. Some were more well-known, such as NAACP and No Kid Hungry. But Antonia chose Beit T’Shuvah, which helps people in recovery from their addictions due to her experience of watching others deal with these issues. Introducing this particular element was such a nice touch. I was glad to see these amazing causes get the spotlight.
The Editing Shade
This one sort of ties back into Selena’s self-deprecation. One of the reasons behind the show was Selena moved into a new house with an amazing Nancy Meyers-esque kitchen. But as with anyone who recently moved into a new house, some of the appliances aren’t easy to use! Including her oven. In the first episode, Ludo asks if she has a convection switch, and Selena says no. Due to the sneaky editors, it turns out she does! They put up a graphic to point this out every time she says she doesn’t have one. There are a few other times when the editors throw shade Selena’s way, and it cracked me up every time.
Her Knife Set!
Seriously, you’ll know when you see it. I don’t want to ruin the surprise for you. They were the true star of the show.
Hope you will check out Selena & Chef which has all episodes available to stream on HBO Max right now. Can’t wait to see who she gets for next season!
