Flashback: It’s 2006, and you are sick at home. You flick through the litany of daytime movies and news breaks until a wash of green and red graces your screen. You settle in and watch as Team Capsicum takes on Team Tomato in what has been described as “the best cooking show Australia has ever seen”.
Drilling into the nostalgia programming that has become so successful recently, Ready Steady Cook is back! The cooking competition show will take a prime-time position on Network 10 at 7:30 p.m. on Fridays.
B&T sat down with some of the Ready, Steady, Cook team to discuss the new format and what makes the show so great ahead of tomorrow’s season launch.
Miguel shares what he LOVES about the show! 😍🤩#ReadySteadyCookAU Starts 7.30 Friday on @channel10au and 10 Play. pic.twitter.com/2xFFTYUilz
— Ready Steady Cook Australia (@ReadySteadyAU) March 6, 2024
For Rachael Brand, executive producer for Paramount ANZ Brand Studio and network producer for Ready Steady Cook, working on this program is a return to her roots. In her first TV role, Brand used to load the audience as a production assistant on the original program. “There are actually quite a few people in our crew, chefs, and contestants who were involved in the original,” she said.
“We have so many people who remember the old format. But from there, our job is to build a new audience, introduce an audience familiar with the old show to a new format, and provide that surprise and delight in the primetime format that we’ve created”.
The new format is brought to life by celebrity chef, author, and television personality Miguel Maestre, who told B&T that it was “very refreshing to bring back to life something that is so loved by everyone.”
“Our amazing new host, Miguel, has always had this incredible ability to connect, to make people feel comfortable and loved, and to make people laugh. But he’s also one of the country’s best chefs. So, along the way, we get some tips from Miguel, he gets on the tools, he helps our chefs, and he helps our contestants,” Brand said.
The program is abundant with special guests, including I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here hosts Julia Morris and Robert Irwin. Usually seen wrestling crocodiles, Robert Irwin is at home in the kitchen, preparing a curry. “Robert Irwin was doing 1000% more cooking than Julia Morris,” Maestre joked.
The warmth of the program makes it a perfect addition to the Friday night schedule for families who are looking for something light to round out the week. The Chef’s Challenge, the final segment of the prime-time program, is a new addition that builds excitement in the new format. “We have chef vs. chef, and they have 10 minutes to create something, and what they come up with is just outrageous,” Brand said.
To satisfy that “I can make that” moment we all experience when watching cooking shows—a moment that is only amplified in the 20-minute format—recipes from some of the country’s best cooks are available on 10 Play after the program airs—just in time for your Saturday night in. Woolworths are the main sponsor for Ready, Steady, Cook with a natural alignment to the show as well as authentic and engaging integrations including shopping lists, contestant bags and ingredients.
“At the end of every episode, Miguel says, ‘Love is the most important ingredient in the kitchen.’ That warmth of Miguel and the warmth of the format’s nostalgia really come through, and we can’t wait to share it with everyone. It’s really special,” said Brand.
