NaN/100 votesLoading...#1 - Genesis
Season 6 Episode 1 - Aired 11/13/2017
Nobody gets a say in the life they’re born into. Thrust into a body, a family, a country and a history, the story of our lives are merely the sum of an endless combination of circumstantial factors determining who we will know, how we will fare, who we will become. But for those adopted, their origins are complicated as the where they were born fuses with the world in which they’re raised. Danny Bowien was born in Korea but only spent the first 3 months of his infant life there. He was adopted and raised by American parents in Oklahoma — religious, hard-working folks – and instead of a life in Seoul, Danny grows up in suburban middle-America. Adapting to this life was easy, for it was all he knew, but he constantly carried traces of his past with him, superficially and also buried deep below.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- NaN/100 votesLoading...
#2 - Threshold
Season 6 Episode 2 - Aired 11/13/2017
Danny spends the bulk of his time obsessing over the future – there is urgency in him that needs to be on top of everything, ahead of every trend, aware of what lies beyond the curve. But it would be impossible to know where he’s going without first examining where he came from, and from where that drive was borne. Once he committed to leaving Oklahoma, Danny emerged in San Francisco as a human tabula rasa, open to all of the experiences the city laid before him. It was here that Danny formed who he was as a person and as a chef, and the grassroots movement of Mission Street Food blossomed into what is now his greatest success.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- NaN/100 votesLoading...
#3 - Mentor
Season 6 Episode 3 - Aired 11/13/2017
Danny has been to China several times, but he’s visited Chengdu (the geographical and spiritual capital of Szechuan food) only once. He’s returning here to reconnect with the place, the food and the person – renowned chef Yu Bo – that have influenced him the most. Szechuan food has been the greatest source of inspiration for Danny, and consequently his life. This episode is about the dishes, cooking methods, unique flavors and stories (both his and Yu Bo’s) that have driven Danny on a quest to master this style of food.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- NaN/100 votesLoading...
#4 - Family
Season 6 Episode 4 - Aired 11/20/2017
For better or worse, we do not get to choose the family into which we’re born. In Danny’s case, nor did he get to choose the family that adopted him. He had no say in where he would live or how he’d be raised. After his mother’s death he felt a bizarre combination of liberation mixed with guilt, and he desperately wanted to hold on to – or recreate – the familial feel of togetherness.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- NaN/100 votesLoading...
#5 - Risk
Season 6 Episode 5 - Aired 11/27/2017
Without risk, there would not be the valuable by-products of risk – success and failure. Danny Bowien has learned that there is power in taking chances, and risk can be virtuous when it comes to navigating the creative process. Now more than ever, he has gained confidence in taking these risks, and grown more comfortable with both of its outcomes.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- NaN/100 votesLoading...
#6 - Unexpected
Season 6 Episode 6 - Aired 12/4/2017
Danny Bowien does not cook authentic Chinese cuisine, but he cooks genuine Danny Bowien cuisine – food that is inspired by his love of Szechuan food and New York City and his family and new experiences. He is 100% himself, and is constantly in search and awe of others who are the same.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- NaN/100 votesLoading...
#7 - Classics
Season 6 Episode 7 - Aired 12/11/2017
Continuing on the Hero’s Journey, if Korea was his starting point and San Francisco was his first threshold, New York City is where Danny’s adventure reaches the apex. Danny really believes that if you can make it in this ultra-competitive town with its even more competitive dining scene, then there’s nowhere you can’t succeed. While he never readily admits to long-term goals, there was a desire backed up by a strategy to prove himself as one of the Greats.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- NaN/100 votesLoading...
#8 - Multiverse
Season 6 Episode 8 - Aired 12/18/2017
What would have happened if Danny never left Oklahoma, or was not adopted at all? Instead of looking at life as a series of “what ifs,” the lens of the multiverse allows us to see a reality with infinite possibilities and infinite selves. In this, Danny is still an orphan, and is not an orphan, he opens a Chinese bakery, he grows up in Korea, and he is even a puppet.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
5.8/1011 votesLoading...#9 - Creation
Season 3 Episode 11 - Aired 11/13/2014
When Chef Nilsson develops a dish at Fäviken, he pays careful attention to the unique properties of an ingredient. Through research and recipe testing, the components of a dish are combined with the aim of preserving their natural quintessence. “The Creation of a Dish” follows the life cycle of an ingredient as it transforms from an idea into a dish at his restaurant.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.0/1010 votesLoading...#10 - Winter
Season 3 Episode 9 - Aired 10/30/2014
Explore the ways that the Scandinavian people have survived winter through the practice of preservation and aging with Chef Magnus Nilsson.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.1/109 votesLoading...#11 - Fried
Season 5 Episode 3 - Aired 10/15/2016
When it comes to preparations, few could be as delightful and decadent as a good, old-fashioned deep fry. We dip THE MIND OF A CHEF basket in hot oil, serving up everything from oyster poboys to pig’s head, from alligator filets to sardine spines.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.4/1018 votesLoading...#12 - Louisiana
Season 2 Episode 4 - Aired 9/26/2013
A look at Louisiana cuisine features a visit to Middendorf's Restaurant in Akers, La., with food writer John T. Edge; and a frogging excursion with chef Donald Link.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.4/1012 votesLoading...#13 - Restauranteur
Season 2 Episode 16 - Aired 12/19/2013
Chef Bloomfield wrestles with the questions every aspiring new or expanding veteran chef has to confront. April and her business partner, Ken Friedman, explore the challenges of opening their first out-of-state venture in San Francisco: Tosca. April is inspired by a local morning bun, and she’s busy in the kitchen testing and tasting dishes for her new menu.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.4/1013 votesLoading...#14 - Past
Season 4 Episode 5 - Aired 10/3/2015
It’s an age-old saying, but where you have been is almost as important as where you are going and ultimately makes you who you are today. Gabrielle Hamilton has traveled the country and the world, but sometimes, it’s good to go back to your roots.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.4/1014 votesLoading...#15 - Evolution
Season 4 Episode 8 - Aired 10/24/2015
Gabrielle looks long and hard at how she has evolved not only as a chef, but as a writer and restaurant owner.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.4/108 votesLoading...#16 - Legends
Season 5 Episode 2 - Aired 10/8/2016
It takes a great chef to make a great chef. This episode is all about paying homage to the greatest culinary minds in the world. Fergus Henderson, Eric Ripert, Pascal Barbot and more spend some quality time cooking with our alumni.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.5/1023 votesLoading...#17 - Sweet Spot
Season 1 Episode 14 - Aired 11/30/2012
Chang’s protégé Christina Tosi makes corn cookies three ways and her three layered Arnold Palmer Cake, Chef Burns makes ice cream and Chang goes strawberry picking.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.5/1017 votesLoading...#18 - London
Season 2 Episode 9 - Aired 10/31/2013
Chef April Bloomfield visits London, where she began her cooking career. Cooking walnut tagliatelle with chef Ruth Rogers. Making rabbit pie with chef Fergus Henderson, and enjoying a pint and scotch eggs with chef Rowley Leigh.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.5/1014 votesLoading...#19 - Sea/Salt
Season 2 Episode 10 - Aired 11/7/2013
Focus on April’s love of the sea, which is deep and fully realized.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.5/1015 votesLoading...#20 - New Orleans
Season 4 Episode 15 - Aired 12/12/2015
When your first restaurant job is Commander’s Palace in New Orleans, you are inevitably destined for great things. As a high school student in New Orleans, David’s eyes were opened by the glamorous Crescent City institution, and a long career in cuisine followed.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.6/1022 votesLoading...#21 - Smoke
Season 1 Episode 15 - Aired 1/11/2013
Chang profiles regional BBQ in North Carolina, Texas, and Kansas City plus the other-worldly smoky bacon from Allen Benton in Tennessee.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.6/1018 votesLoading...#22 - Roots
Season 2 Episode 6 - Aired 10/10/2013
Host Sean Brock prepares a typical Appalachian dinner; cooks chicken dumplings with his mother; visits with chef Joseph Lenn at Blackberry Farms in Tennessee; and learns how to make fried okra and country ham.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.6/1014 votesLoading...#23 - Italian
Season 2 Episode 12 - Aired 11/21/2013
Explore April Bloomfield’s deep love for Italian cuisine and its influence on her cooking.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.6/1013 votesLoading...#24 - Traditions
Season 3 Episode 13 - Aired 11/27/2014
Examine how the bonds of tradition help to forge the identities of families and individuals.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.6/1018 votesLoading...#25 - Prune
Season 4 Episode 1 - Aired 9/5/2015
With every chipped plate and hand-written to-do list, Gabrielle Hamilton’s “presence” is all over her NYC restaurant, Prune.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
The Worst Episodes of The Mind of a Chef
Every episode of The Mind of a Chef ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of The Mind of a Chef!
Go inside the minds of some of the world's top chefs. Narrated by Executive Producer Anthony Bourdain, The Mind of a Chef is that rare...
Genre:Documentary
Network:PBS
Worst Episodes Summary
"Genesis" is the worst rated episode of "The Mind of a Chef". It scored N/A/10 based on 0 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 11/13/2017. This episode scored NaN points lower than the second lowest rated, "Threshold".