Part two of his Channel 4 culinary series finds the Naked Chef in Wyoming, and there’s enough testosterone to knock a Stetson off at 20 paces Yup, lots of good ol’ boys and the odd token gal, broncs and bucks, branding and rounding up stray cattle. It’s a wonder Jamie has time for any cooking – and he very nearly doesn’t.
On the plus side, this episode is definitely more enjoyable than part one. Jamie is back to, well, being Jamie, albeit one who develops a worrying attachment to his chaps. He’s much more relaxed when it’s “just the guys”, and is determined to prove he’s not some tourist looking for a cushy dude ranch experience.
Aren’t Pitchforks For Tossing Hay?
So, where’s the best place to find real cowboys? At a rodeo, of course – over 90 million fans show up at rodeos across America every year. After a quick fondue, western style (deep frying hunks of beef in boiling pork fat using a pitchfork – take that, wimpy Frenchmen!) the locals are only too happy to provide Jamie with some suitably graphic tales. “What was it like the first time you looked down and you’re holding a handful of your own teeth and blood?”
Sensibly, Jamie decides against trying out a bucking bronco and gets to grips with campfire cooking, slow simmering using traditional dutch ovens. No fancy nouvelle cuisine here – the baked beans and beef are there to put back some energy after a hard day’s work. And to prove the people of Wyoming have a sense of humour, there are the delightfully named Rocky Mountain oysters, a part of a cow one will definitely not find at McDonald’s.
Next stop – a proper working ranch where the cattle are truly free range. It’s obvious this is one of the moments Jamie has been waiting for all his life; can he make the grade as an honest-to-goodness cowboy? His lassoing isn’t up to much, but it is surprising to see how well he rides. And there is one vaguely amusing scene where he manages to sneak some asparagus into his cooking gear for the cattle round-up, and it actually goes down well.
Please Stop Talking For Five Minutes!
Unfortunately the show has too many clichéd voiceovers or asides to the camera, as Jamie dives head first into the experience. “This is where Essex boy turns into cowboy”, and “Finally my Brokeback Mountain moment” add precisely nothing to the viewing experience – can director Pamela Gordon please rein him in?
Yes, it’s good to get off the tourist trail and meet some real people, but Jamie’s American Road Trip is in danger of becoming yet another holiday show with a bit of cooking on the side to keep the Channel 4 food editors happy.
Less “look at me” and more “look at this brilliant food” please.
