You Suck at Cooking

You Suck at Cooking (YSAC) is an absurdist culinary YouTube channel that started in 2015. It is presented by an anonymous narrator. The channel has gained over 3 million subscribers and 300 million views.

You Suck at Cooking
Title screen
Websiteyousuckatcooking.com
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2015–present
Genres
Subscribers3.19 million[1]
Total views362 million[1]
Last updated: August 4th, 2023

Overview

You Suck at Cooking parodies the genre of online cooking tutorial videos.[2][3] The videos, set in a home kitchen, are shot on an iPhone from a first-person perspective that shows only the kitchen counter and the narrator's hands.[2][4] The visual style has been described as "deliberately gritty", with lo-fi editing, poor lighting, shaky camerawork, and an "unapologetically messy" cooking environment.[2][4]

The narrative style has been characterized as "chaotic but self-aware" and seemingly but not really "effortless" and "haphazard".[2][3][4] The narrator's "wry [and] often exasperated" persona speaks with a brisk deadpan tone and repeatedly goes on absurdist riffs.[4][5] The videos often feature irreverent skits; simple, quirky songs; and absurd visual gags made with jump cuts and stop motion.[4][6][7] These gags regularly depict bizarre ways of gathering or processing ingredients (e.g., chopping vegetables by smashing them with a baking sheet).[2][4] Despite the levity, You Suck at Cooking does genuinely relate recipe instructions and culinary advice.[5][7] The recipes are intended for novice chefs; the dishes on the channel rarely end up looking picture-perfect.[4][8]

You Suck at Cooking has developed a number of inside jokes and running gags.[4][9] In one recurring storyline, talking eggs act out a police drama; in another, a robot named Pimblokto tries to cook.[4][6] The narrator of You Suck at Cooking coined his own terms for several kitchen items; he refers to the oven as an "onion" or "undo", spatulas as "wangjanglers", and ground pepper as "pepper pepper pepper".[3][10]

History

You Suck at Cooking uploaded its first video to YouTube on January 13, 2015. There are over 150 episodes as of 2023. While the narrator sometimes invents backstories for himself (and other characters), his real identity is unknown and subject to some fan speculation.[4]

A parody cookbook by the YouTuber, You Suck at Cooking: The Absurdly Practical Guide to Sucking Slightly Less at Making Food, was published in 2019.[7][11]

Reception

In 2017, You Suck at Cooking was recognized at the 9th Shorty Awards with a nomination in the 'Weird' award category.[12] Celebrity chef Jet Tila once named You Suck at Cooking as his favorite show.[13]

References
  1. "About You Suck at Cooking". YouTube.
  2. Sichynsky, Tanya (March 12, 2019). "This lo-fi cooking YouTube channel is the antidote to hyper-stylized Food Instagram". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  3. Halliday, Ayun (December 29, 2022). "Watch You Suck at Cooking, a Hilarious Source for Tasty Recipes and Food Hacks of Questionable Veracity". openculture.com. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  4. Johnson, Thomas (March 18, 2019). "You Suck At Cooking won't make you hungry, but it will make you laugh". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  5. Decaille, Nia (March 21, 2019). "These 'how to' videos on YouTube won't teach you how to be a better adult. But they're not supposed to". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  6. Parker, Jason (December 7, 2016). "Why 'You Suck at Cooking' is one of the best channels on YouTube". CNET. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  7. Amuh, Kwame (March 13, 2020). "'You Suck at Cooking' deviates from the Youtube cooking channel formula". The Triangle. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  8. Wessendorf, Tanja (October 11, 2020). "3 Rezepte für alle, die bisher in der Küche versagt haben" [3 recipes for everyone who has failed in the kitchen so far]. Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger (in German). Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  9. Wang, Peggy (March 15, 2020). "24 Incredibly Bingeable YouTube Channels For When You've Watched Everything On Netflix Already". BuzzFeed. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  10. You Suck at Cooking 2019, pp. 19, 22, 29.
  11. Felts, Susannah (October 2019). "Lifestyles: October 2019". bookpage.com. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  12. "You Suck at Cooking". Shorty Awards. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  13. Subramaniam, Arthi (November 14, 2018). "7 takeaways from chef Jet Tila's shrimp spring roll lesson at CM". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved February 14, 2023.

Bibliography
  • You Suck at Cooking (October 15, 2019). You Suck at Cooking: The Absurdly Practical Guide to Sucking Slightly Less at Making Food: A Cookbook. Clarkson Potter (Penguin Random House). ISBN 9780525576556.
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