Chef Bobby Flay Goes Virtal With His Controversial Cooking Takes

The internet has been dissecting the many ways Bobby Flay crafts his dishes after a recent video.

A recent Instagram post by Bobby Flay went viral, where Food Network interviewed him about how he typically prepares his food in the kitchen. Followers were surprised to find out the answers he gave them and wondered if he was even trolling about any of them — like when he said “cats only” in the kitchen.

Flay does not add oil to the water while boiling pasta, he washes chicken pre-cooking but not rice, he believes it is sacrilegious to break pasta, “pre-minced garlic is never okay” in his book, and he does not wash his cast-iron skillet with soap, instead, he makes sure it’s bone-dry. Additionally, he uses creme fraiche to make scrambled eggs and hopes to have Geoffrey Zakarian cook an entree for him someday.

Many Instagram users were not pleased as punch to hear the majority of what Flay had to say in this interview. “No. Opposite for me. Washing your chicken can spread contaminates to your sink and surrounding areas. Wash rice to remove excess starch, debris, and reduce arsenic,” one Instagramer wrote.

Some were willing to make light of the interview by making jokes despite the outright disagreement on Flay only allowing cats in the kitchen. “I’d let dogs in the kitchen before cats, but I also wash my rice,” cooking influencer @whiskeyandbooch says.

On Reddit, there are dozens of threads asking why people wash their chicken and whether it is practical to do so. There is also a debate on washing rice as some people say that it removes excess starch so that the rice cooks up fluffy rather than gummy but also washes out any impurities, according to the blog She Knows.

However, there are fans on YouTube who are willing to come to Flay’s defense on his stance of washing rice. “RINSE the rice to get rid of the excess starch, but it’s not the end of the world if you don’t and alwaysrinse your chicken and pat it dry. Bobby knows what he’s doing,” a social media user says.

There is always going to be an ongoing debate on how anyone prepares and cooks their food, especially surrounding longtime culinary professionals like Flay. Some people will even say that Flay may have lost his touch and needs to retire his apron for good since he does not bother to wash his rice.

One thing for certain is that Flay seems to know his way around the kitchen, even if his cooking takes are unconventional and concerning to some. Whether all of his followers take everything he says to heart will continue to be up for debate, Flay will keep people talking for years to come.

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