You Suck at Cooking

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

The narrative style has been characterized as "chaotic but self-aware" and seemingly but not really "effortless" and "haphazard". The narrator's "wry [and] often exasperated" persona speaks with a brisk deadpan tone and repeatedly goes on absurdist riffs. The videos often feature irreverent skits; simple, quirky songs; and absurd visual gags made with jump cuts and stop motion.{{cite news|url=https://www.thetriangle.org/opinion/you-suck-at-cooking-deviates-from-the-youtube-cooking-channel-formula/|title='You Suck at Cooking' deviates from the Youtube cooking channel formula|last=Amuh|first=Kwame|date=March 13, 2020|work=The Triangle|access-date=February 14, 2023}} These gags regularly depict bizarre ways of gathering or processing ingredients (e.g., chopping vegetables by smashing them with a baking sheet). Despite the levity, You Suck at Cooking does genuinely relate recipe instructions and culinary advice. The recipes are intended for novice chefs; the dishes on the channel rarely end up looking picture-perfect.{{cite news|url=https://www.ksta.de/freizeit/geniessen/weniger-beschissen-kochen-3-rezepte-fuer-alle-die-bisher-in-der-kueche-versagt-haben-121965|title=3 Rezepte für alle, die bisher in der Küche versagt haben|language=de|trans-title=3 recipes for everyone who has failed in the kitchen so far|last=Wessendorf|first=Tanja|date=October 11, 2020|work=Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger|access-date=February 14, 2023|url-access=subscription}}

You Suck at Cooking has developed a number of inside jokes and running gags.{{cite web|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/peggy/youtube-channels-bingeable|title=24 Incredibly Bingeable YouTube Channels For When You've Watched Everything On Netflix Already|last=Wang|first=Peggy|date=March 15, 2020|work=BuzzFeed|access-date=February 14, 2023}} In one recurring storyline, talking eggs act out a police drama; in another, a robot named Pimblokto tries to cook. 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" ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ʌ|n|d|oʊ}} {{respell|UN|doh}}), spatulas as "wangjanglers", and ground pepper as "pepper pepper pepper".{{cite web|url=https://www.openculture.com/2022/12/watch-you-suck-at-cooking-a-hilarious-source-for-tasty-recipes-and-food-hacks-of-questionable-veracity.html|title=Watch You Suck at Cooking, a Hilarious Source for Tasty Recipes and Food Hacks of Questionable Veracity|last=Halliday|first=Ayun|author-link=Ayun Halliday|date=December 29, 2022|website=openculture.com|access-date=February 14, 2023}}{{sfn|You Suck at Cooking|2019|pp=19, 22, 29}}

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

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.{{cite web|url=https://www.bookpage.com/features/24442-lifestyles-october-2019-lifestyles/|title=Lifestyles: October 2019|last=Felts|first=Susannah|date=October 2019|website=bookpage.com|access-date=February 14, 2023}}

In 2017, You Suck at Cooking was recognized at the 9th Shorty Awards with a nomination in the 'Weird' award category.{{cite web|url=https://shortyawards.com/9th/yousuckatcookin|title=You Suck at Cooking|publisher=Shorty Awards|access-date=February 14, 2023}} Celebrity chef Jet Tila once named You Suck at Cooking as his favorite show.{{cite news|url=https://www.post-gazette.com/life/food/2018/11/14/Jet-Tila-TV-chef-Chopped-Iron-Chef-America-CMU-Asian-cuisine-shrimp-spring-roll/stories/201811140009|title=7 takeaways from chef Jet Tila's shrimp spring roll lesson at CM|last=Subramaniam|first=Arthi|date=November 14, 2018|work=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|access-date=February 14, 2023|url-access=subscription}}

{{Reflist|refs=

• {{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/03/12/this-lo-fi-cooking-youtube-channel-is-antidote-hyper-stylized-food-instagram/|title=This lo-fi cooking YouTube channel is the antidote to hyper-stylized Food Instagram|last=Sichynsky|first=Tanya|date=March 12, 2019|work=The Washington Post|access-date=February 14, 2023}}
• {{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/03/18/you-suck-cooking-wont-make-you-hungry-it-will-make-you-laugh/|title=You Suck At Cooking won't make you hungry, but it will make you laugh|last=Johnson|first=Thomas|date=March 18, 2019|work=The Washington Post|access-date=February 14, 2023}}
• {{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/03/21/these-how-videos-youtube-wont-teach-you-how-be-better-adult-theyre-not-supposed/|title=These 'how to' videos on YouTube won't teach you how to be a better adult. But they're not supposed to.|last=Decaille|first=Nia|date=March 21, 2019|work=The Washington Post|access-date=February 14, 2023}}
• {{cite news|url=https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/why-you-suck-at-cooking-is-one-of-the-best-channels-on-youtube/|title=Why 'You Suck at Cooking' is one of the best channels on YouTube|last=Parker|first=Jason|date=December 7, 2016|publisher=CNET|access-date=February 14, 2023}}

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• {{cite book|title=You Suck at Cooking: The Absurdly Practical Guide to Sucking Slightly Less at Making Food: A Cookbook|author=You Suck at Cooking|date=October 15, 2019|publisher=Clarkson Potter (Penguin Random House)|isbn=9780525576556}}

• {{Official website|http://yousuckatcooking.com/}}

Category:YouTube channels launched in 2015

Category:Food and cooking YouTube channels