Mushrooms can be very fancy. It's the closest you can get to eating dirt.

As a chef, I had started working with groups like Share Our Strength and various local food banks in New York, raising money for hunger-related issues. And not only me, but the entire restaurant industry has been very focused on this issue.

I think the most effective way to run a kitchen is to teach, not to just yell.

I hate okra and grated mountain yam for the same reason. They're both slimy.

I think the patterns are set very early when the kids are young. But at the same time, there are some flavors kids just don't like.

We're adults. We're the ones who should teach the kids what's good to eat. I don't think the government should ever regulate what we eat at home, but we're feeding them in school with tax dollars. Quite frankly, if my tax dollars are being spent to feed kids, I'd rather feed them better food.

It's my belief that cooking is a craft. I think that you can push it into the realm of art, but it starts with craft. It starts with an understanding of materials. It starts with an understanding of where foods are grown.