2007

S2.E1 ∙ Cheese Rolling

Tue, Jan 15, 2008

The French love their Brie, the Dutch revere their Gouda, and Canadians swear by their cheddar. But when it comes to cheese, no nation has as much pride as Jolly Old England. Bob travels to Gloucester, England for the Cooper's Hill Cheese Rolling competition. This 200 year-old tradition involves a mad group of cheese-lovers who catapult head-over-heels down an insanely steep hill in hot pursuit of a speeding ten-pound wheel of Double Gloucester cheese. First lunatic down the hill gets the cheese...or a free ride in an ambulance.

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S2.E2 ∙ Haggis Hurling

Tue, Jan 01, 2008

Bob travels to Scotland to take part in one of the weirdest food competitions in the world...haggis hurling! (Imagine a two-pound shot put made of sheep's organs, oatmeal and spices and you start to get the idea.) The Scots have been hurling haggis for centuries, but Bob's only got five days to master the technique and take on the champions at the Highland Games - while wearing a kilt, no less. Watch Bob take on the reigning champions and brave the eccentricities of medieval cuisine - accompanied by a wee dram of single malt scotch...or two.

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S2.E3 ∙ Honey Bee

Tue, Jan 08, 2008

Honey: bears go crazy for the stuff, and so does our Glutton for Punishment. Whether he's spreading it on toast, swirling it in ice cream, or slathering it on Peking Duck, honey is Bob's favorite all-natural food. Beekeepers bring this sweet treat to our tables every day, but how do they do it? Bob has just four days to learn all about the secretive art of beekeeping before he enters the Beekeepers Games, a series of bee-themed events that will force him to confront one of his deepest phobias: Bees! Will Bob freak out as tries to "grow" a bee beard, with 40,000 bees crawling all over his throat?

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S2.E4 ∙ Okie Noodling

Tue, Jan 22, 2008

Catfish tastes so delicious and light that most people who are eating it for the first time swear they're eating chicken or shrimp - that is, until they catch site of one of these prehistoric monsters. The species dates back to the dinosaurs - more than 60 million years - and they're pure predators, preying solely on other fish for food. Despite this intimidating pedigree, fishermen from all over Oklahoma come to Paul's Valley every summer to compete in the Okie Noodlin' Tournament - a bizarre derby in which anglers are allowed to use only their hands as bait! Bob must dive underwater, place his hand inside a catfish hole, and keep it there until a catfish bites him.

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S2.E5 ∙ Egg Fry

Tue, Jan 29, 2008

Eggs are the breakfast of champions. With all that protein, they're also the lunch of champions and the dinner of champions. (Heck, Rocky even ate 'em raw.) So when our Glutton for Punishment heard about a solar-powered egg-frying competition in Arizona, he was off down Route 66 faster than a Road Runner. Every year on the 4th of July, the ghost town of Oatman, on the edge of the Mohave Desert, hosts a sidewalk egg-fry that challenges all comers to cook an egg in 15 minutes or less using only the power of the sun. Bob's up against hardened solar-cooking desperadoes who have come to Oatman itching for a showdown with a TV host.

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S2.E6 ∙ Watermelon Seed Spitting

Tue, Feb 12, 2008

Hope, Arkansas is a small town with a big tradition. Each year, this small community of self-confessed "melon heads" hosts the Hope Watermelon Festival and Watermelon Seed Spitting contest. The competition is fierce, attracting seed-spitting champions from all over the state. In between bouts of hard labor on a watermelon farm--where the world's heaviest melons are grown--Bob will perfect his seed spitting technique under the tutelage of ten year-old champion Emily Rowe.

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S2.E7 ∙ Garlic Braiding

Tue, Feb 05, 2008

Garlic is the ancient cure-all, renowned for its ability to ward off everything from colds to vampires. It also makes an excellent steak rub, and is indispensable in any serious kitchen. Always on the hunt for new recipes using garlic, Bob is off to Arleux, France, garlic capital of the world, to enter in a garlic-braiding contest. Arleux is famous for its smoked garlic and still uses a centuries-old tradition to prepare it: Garlic bulbs are tied into bouquets with raffia and woven into long braids which are hung up to be smoked with peat. Bob has just one and a half minutes to weave 90 heads of garlic into a perfect traditional braid, and all the best local braiders are out to make sure they don't lose to a foreigner.

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S2.E8 ∙ Street Vendor

Tue, Feb 19, 2008

Street food--it's not just hot dogs anymore. These days, you can get everything from middle-eastern kebabs to Asian curries, but the business of street vending is still brutal, hemmed in by spiraling food costs and intense competition. Every day in New York, more than 3,000 street food vendors set up shop, desperately flogging their wares to the city's eight million demanding denizens. Running these food carts is like being a maitre d', chef, server, and dishwasher--all at once. Bob has just five days to master these duties before taking over a food cart business at the intersection of 40th Street and 8th Avenue for a grueling 12-hour shift. Will Bob be a hit on the street, or road kill?

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S2.E9 ∙ Pike's Market

Tue, Feb 26, 2008

Wild salmon are to the people of the Pacific Northwest what cattle are to Texans--they're not just good eating, they're a way of life. The fishmongers at Pike Place Fish Market in Seattle don't just sell salmon, they toss it across the market, creating a spectacle of flying-fish that draws hundreds of customers each day. To get familiar with what he is tossing, Bob picks up some salmon recipes from renowned chef Tom Douglas. Then he gets catching tips from Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Nate Burleson. But will any of this save him from humiliation (and/or serious injury) when a 25-pound sockeye flies toward his head at 40 miles an hour?

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S2.E10 ∙ Pumpkin Regatta

Tue, Mar 04, 2008

There's nothing unusual about pumpkin at Thanksgiving. You've got pumpkin pie, roasted pumpkin seeds, and pumpkin pudding. But in Windsor, Nova Scotia, they take their love of the orange legume to another level--paddling hollowed-out, giant pumpkins across a lake. Bob's challenge is to transform a 500-pound pumpkin into a sea-worthy vessel, then whip himself into shape so that he can paddle with the best. Along the way, Bob learns to cook with his pumpkin cuttings. The race is also a costume regatta, so Bob must dress for the occasion. It's a real Cinderella story!

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S2.E11 ∙ Corn Husking

Tue, Mar 11, 2008

Corn on the cob is an American tradition, a succulent food that evokes family and the warm afterglow of late-summer evenings. Bob heads to South Dakota to compete against America's best cornhuskers at the National Cornhusking Competition in Dell Rapids. Most of the competitors are in their "golden years," but they are able to shuck at a rate of almost one ear per second for 30 minutes straight. Bob will have just four days to master the hand movements and speed needed to compete against these old timers. Can this city slicker teach an old farmer new tricks?

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S2.E12 ∙ Perfect Steak

Tue, Mar 18, 2008

Grilling the perfect steak is every backyard chef's ultimate challenge. Too much time on the grill can turn even the finest fillet into leather, and too little time can turn your guests green. Bob's challenge is to learn how to cook the perfect steak in only 4 days, then become the head grill master at Benahan's, a classic steakhouse in San Antonio, Texas. When customers pay over $150 for a 34-ounces Kobe-style steak, they want it done perfectly. An order of medium-rare served without the exactly correct shade of pink will cost Bob his job.

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S2.E13 ∙ Fugu (Fish)

Tue, Mar 25, 2008

Sushi is a type of food where art meets the gut: delicate slices of raw fish are served up by Samurai swordsmen for urban sophisticates and foodie wannabees. But there's one type of sushi that brings out the true character in everyone: Fugu, also known as blowfish, is a deadly Japanese delicacy that carries enough poison to wipe out an entire restaurant of diners. Quite simply, either you have what it takes to risk eating Fugu, or you don't. Fugu chefs spend over three years in training to remove the fish's toxins. Can Bob pull it off in just five days? In his most dangerous challenge to date, Bob travels to Osaka, Japan to prepare and eat his own Fugu. Will he survive the ultimate Gultton for Punishment challenge?

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