The Flirty Reason Alton Brown Really Got Into Cooking

One of the masterminds behind hit TV shows like "Good Eats," "Iron Chef America," and "Cutthroat Kitchen" is none other than Alton Brown, who is known for his sharp wit and comedic personality, via Food Network. His star power within the Food Network has also led him to sell his own merchandise line, create a signature coffee, and publish a slew of cookbooks, per his official website. Many of them are extensions of his show, "Good Eats," while others focus on everyday cooking and kitchen gear.

His culmination of recipes screams unique and versatile — who else can whip up a bone marrow panna cotta, turketta, or aged eggnog? (The latter can, apparently, be aged for a month or two, or maybe even longer). He's also known for re-imagining desserts, global fare, cocktails, and even the little things like ice cubes. Versatility aside, his recipes are perhaps best known for their science-based spin, which is evident by names like thermal shock sirloin and cold water method pasta.

But everyone has to start somewhere, and for Alton Brown, that somewhere was back in his college days.

Like many people, Alton Brown learned a thing or two from his mother and grandmother (per Biography), but the real reason he got into cooking was to score some dates back in college, per "Larry King Live." As Brown states, "Me and food started getting together in college when I found that I could not get girls to go out with me if I asked them out to dinner. But if I offered to cook for them, they were curious."

Larry King follows this up with a question about his time in television, to which Brown explains that he has extensive experience in production. He's been a cameraman, cinematographer, and commercial director, even working on R.E.M.'s "The One I Love" music video as the director of photography (the latter by Biography). He also spent his downtime on set watching cooking shows, which likely sparked the idea to pivot toward this path, explains Biography. 

After training in culinary school, he went on to create "Good Eats," release albums, and win awards (via Food Network), but if it weren't for him cooking for his dates back in college, we likely wouldn't be graced with the genius of Alton Brown.