Why Iain ‘Huey’ Hewitson doesn’t like MKR and MasterChef
Iain ‘Huey’ Hewitson has criticised reality cooking shows such as MasterChef and My Kitchen Rules for making “food look so complicated” as a “terrible disservice to the public”.
Speaking to A Current Affair on Thursday about his new YouTube series, the 69-year-old TV stalwart veered off topic to call out the high-rating cooking shows for its “pretentious rubbish”.
“They started off simple, and the next minute you turn around and they're doing deconstructed rubbish with smears on the plate!” he said.
After slamming food fads such as deconstructed dishes and microscopic smears of expensive food on expensive plates, he got stuck into the judges.
“This new thing when they start talk to contestants and they go 'now please tell me about your philosophy for this dish?’” he started off, before continuing: “Who gives a [stops himself from swearing]... I won't continue with that.”
A Current Affair Reporter Tineka Everaardt observed: “Some people might say, 'Well, Huey's just got sour grapes, that he's jealous of their successes.' What would you say to them’’”
The chef said he had “no axe to grind” with TV chefs such as Pete Evans, Manu Fieldel and George Calombaris, but objected to the way the shows are sold to viewers.
“I object to what it is doing to people at home, [who are now] making their fancy pants food.
“They'd do a hell of a lot better roasting a chicken in the oven with some nice root vegetables, instead of trying to make pickled ducks bums with truffle oil!”
He added later: “I'm not going to pick on shows like MasterChef, I really am not. I don't even hate the presenters... much.
“But I think the problem with the shows is they do a terrible disservice to the public because they make all the food look so complicated.”
Huey's new Youtube series is called Huey's Fabulous Fast Food for One or Two.