Chewing the Fat: Alton Brown on Race, Class, and Food

Serious Eats: Video Podcast

About six months ago we decided that it would be fun to produce more original video segments for Serious Eats. When I made a list of interesting people I wanted to interview on camera for a series called Chewing the Fat, Alton Brown was at the top of the list. Why? Because whenever I have watched him on the Food Network or chatted with him (ever so briefly) when I was an Iron Chef judge, I have always found Alton to be interesting, provocative, smart, and funny. We were thrilled when Alton agreed to do it. Who did we get to shoot, direct, and edit the Alton videos? None other than Hamburger America director and author George Motz.

This week's Chewing the Fat finds Alton discussing race, class, and food. In fact, as Alton himself notes, it's impossible to take a motorcycle eating trip down the length of the Mississippi River without discussing these issues. Ms.Clara Brantely, the extraordinary African-American woman Alton is conversing with, is the cook at Jim's Cafe in Greenville, Mississippi.

The Feasting on Asphalt DVDs are available at Foodnetwork.com and the book is available at Amazon.