A True Food Fight

Have you seen this show yet? It's The Naked Chef, Jamie Oliver, and he's come to America to change the way we eat and think about food.

It sounds gimmicky, I know, but it's really good. He went to Huntington, Virginia, which is (by some reports) the least healthy city in the US. So far (over about four episodes) he's tangled with a hard-nosed local radio jockey, fought with down-home lunch ladies (hint: they don't like that term), and headed up a flash mob of cookin' fools. It's a lot of fun, but it's also frustrating (pizza is healthier than roasted chicken and vegetables, according to public school regulations) and inspirational (an overweight teenager who only had three years to live has decided to change her lifestyle).

Jamie's not crazy. He doesn't propose super-expensive or extensive ingredients or cooking techniques. He simply suggests cooking--not reheating, not buying fast food, not devouring packages of processed food. It makes sense, and he has a way of making it look really easy.

The only downside to this show is that it comes on Friday nights at 9/8 Central. This is not usually a problem for me, but I don't think it's found the audience it deserves. I recommend setting a DVR session or visiting abc.com.