“Top Chef” host and Kentwood, Michigan, native Kristen Kish recently dished with “Live with Kelly and Mark” host Mark Consuelos about Michigan cuisine.
During an appearance on “Live” on Thursday, Consuelos asked Kish, “What was the culinary experience like for you in Michigan?”
Kish used the occasion to shout out Consuelos’ Michigan connection — his son, Joaquin, recently graduated from the University of Michigan — and then they talked up those most Michigan-of-dishes, casseroles.
“Stick-to-the-ribs, it’s hearty,” Kish said of Michigan food. “Meant to keep you full all winter.
“But I loved it. That’s my version of comfort food. Anything with a carb, secondary fat, and then maybe a little protein every now and again,” she said.
Kish told co-host Jane Krakowski, who was sitting in for Kelly Ripa, that she didn’t necessarily grow up learning to cook — “cooking adjacent” is how she referred to the preparing of casseroles and such — but she said she did learn a few tricks in the kitchen from her grandmother.
“More eating than cooking at that age,” she said. “I dabbled, a little bit.”
Kish, 42, won the 10th season of “Top Chef” and became the show’s host in 2024, during “Top Chef’s” 21st season. She was also a cast member on the 4th season of “The Traitors.”
The current “Top Chef” season, “Top Chef: Carolinas,” airs Mondays at 9 on Bravo, and streams the following day on Peacock.
agraham@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Kristen Kish talks Michigan comfort food on ‘Live With Kelly and Mark’
Reporting by Adam Graham, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
