Foodland corporate chef Keoni Chang will take a spin on national network television Saturday and again May 17 on two original episodes of "Recipe Rehab" on CBS-TV (KGMB-TV, locally).
The show takes a prized-but-unhealthy family recipe and has it reworked by professional chefs, of which it employs two.
Chang was invited to compete against each of them in the different episodes, working to transform family recipes into more nutritionally sound, healthful dishes.
The chefs’ recipe versions are sent to a nutritionist who scores each according to nutritional guidelines, and then, Chang explained, the family must cook the chefs’ versions at home and score each for ease of preparation and flavor. The scores are added to the nutritionist’s tally, up to a maximum of 30 points. A "Recipe Rehab" crew shoots the whole thing.
Separately, the chefs face off in the "Recipe Rehab" kitchen, each making their own version in a timed competition, and then "we get to watch the family score the dishes" via videotape to "find out who wins," Chang said. Naturally he is sworn to secrecy.
So how’d he score this opportunity?
Chang is the Hawaii brand ambassador for Certified Angus Beef, a sponsor of the two episodes. Still, it was no slam dunk that he’d get the call. "Every state has a brand ambassador … but they asked me if I’d represent Hawaii, Foodland and Certified Angus Beef," he told TheBuzz.
For Saturday’s episode, Chang was presented with a beef stew recipe that has been a favorite of the Cortes family from Southern California. "It included a block of butter and a cup or two of heavy cream," as well as the de rigueur potatoes, Chang said.
Lest ye judge, he notes that Hawaii residents love a side of mac salad with beef stew, which also may not be the most healthy of choices.
Chang’s Beef Stew will be pitted against show chef Vikki Krinsky’s Beef Stew with Barley.
The May 17 episode takes on a recipe for barbecue beef ribs submitted by the Nelson family, which has been ranching in California for five generations. Matriarch Abbie Nelson’s great-grandfather was an early importer of Angus cattle from Scotland in the 1800s, according to publicity materials.
Chang’s Boneless Short Rib Skewers with BBQ Sauce and Creamed Corn will take on chef Rich Rosendale’s Steak and Sugarcane Kabob with Grilled Corn and Kale-Walnut Pesto.
Chang has long known Rosendale and actually apprenticed with him, it turns out.
Rosendale’s luminary culinary career includes leading Team USA at Bocuse d’Or in France last year, becoming a Certified Master Chef and being a multiple medalist in repeat appearances at the International Exhibition of Culinary Art (or, in German, IKA, for Internationale Kochkunst Ausstellung), often called the culinary Olympics because it is staged only every four years.
Rosendale also was the youngest-ever executive chef appointed to the legendary Greenbrier resort in West Virginia, where among other accomplishments, he established a 44-acre farm that supplies 75 percent of the resort’s produce.
Krinsky, the other "Recipe Rehab" chef, actually started her work life in front of the camera as she was cast in TV series and movies, but the craft services (catering) tables led her down a health-focused culinary path. Currently the personal chef for Hollywood actor, screenwriter, producer, director and all-around mogul Seth MacFarlane, "Recipe Rehab" has her back in front of the camera.
Chang is no stranger to the camera or to wielding his culinary chops in front of an audience. He is featured in regular videotapings of recipe preparation for the Foodland website, makes appearances on local TV, and became the nation’s first Supermarket Grand Chef by winning the inaugural Super Market Chef Showdown competition in 2012.
"They’re targeting the show toward a younger audience," he said. "They really want the show to be fun and interactive, with a lot of take-aways, including cooking tips, techniques" and easy-to-understand illustration of nutritional content, such as equating a dish to "five cheeseburgers with french fries," he said.
The first "Recipe Rehab" including Chang will air at 4 p.m. Saturday on KGMB-TV. Saturday’s episode will be rebroadcast Sept. 20, while the May 17 episode will air again June 28.
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On the Net:
cbsdreamteam.com/recipe-rehab
www.foodland.com/videos
Reach Erika Engle at 529-4303, erika@staradvertiser.com or on Twitter as @erikaengle.
