'Cooking with Legends:' Rick Bayless and Ming Tsai share stories and recipes on PBS
It’s 11 a.m. on a Wednesday, and the workday has just started for Rick Bayless.
To some, it may seem like a late start, but Bayless will be on his feet creating cuisine all day at one of his Chicago restaurants.“I’m just walking in the door,” he says. “I’ll be here until about 9 or 10 at night. It will be a long day.”For nearly four decades — at least with his Frontera Grill in Chicago — Bayless has been a prominent figure in the culinary world.He’s won numerous James Beard Awards and has hosted various PBS culinary series.Beginning on Feb. 28, Bayless will be back on TV in the special, “Cooking with Legends,” and he’s bringing along fellow chef Ming Tsai.The special premieres at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, on New Mexico PBS, channel 5.1. It will also be available to stream on the PBS app after it has aired.According to PBS, the special features Tsai and Bayless as they share stories, cook up recipes on their “gotta have it” list, and dish on the inspiration that brought them into the world of cooking.The two chefs have their own distinct journeys — Ming is the face of East-West cooking, while Bayless is credited with making authentic Mexican cuisine accessible to Americans.But, the two have similar roots. Both of their families had restaurants in Ohio.
Bayless isn’t keen on the word “legend” in the title because he’s not done with his work in the culinary world.“At this point in my life, I do something every day,” he says. “All I want to do is keep doing good work. To me, that’s about exploring for myself. Being able to share cuisine and its process with people is wonderful. I’m really an educator at heart. I love learning. The best way to learn is to have to teach.”Bayless was the host of “Mexico: One Plate at a Time” for 12 seasons and enjoyed the time he spent on the series.“On ‘One Plate at a Time,’ I would occasionally get a chance to tell my story,” he says. “With the special, I get to tell my story completely. When I traveled for the previous show, it was about making Mexican culture come alive for people. People tend to see Mexican culture in one light and it doesn’t really reflect the culture. My focus has always been to go in and show people culture, history and places. But this time I get to share my own passion and where I came from. It’s also an opportunity to let the world in on why I fell in love with Mexican food and culture.”The culinary world once seemed unreachable to Bayless who got his undergraduate degree in Spanish and Latin American studies. His graduate school included anthropology and linguistics.“At one point, I decided my real passion has always been cooking,” he says. “I’ve had opportunities to visit other countries because of my profession now and it’s easily an international profession.”As Bayless has grown older, he makes sure to take time for himself and finds balance between his personal life and the culinary world.At 72, the kitchen remains a version of home.“It’s really therapy for my body and mind and I love throwing myself into something new,” he says. “I’m super into yoga and Pilates. This helps with my love for eating sweets. I really enjoy being at a table eating with people. There’s nothing like that feeling of community.”
