Serious Eats
Battle of the Fake Food Chefs
If you find typical cooking shows are too boring, maybe a battle between "chefs" constructing fake food made of painted plastic will catch your interest. This clip from Japanese TV show TV Champion pits two fake food craftsmen together as they prove to three judges who has the better skills. Be amazed as a brown, craggly slab of plastic turns into a steak and a bumpy beige lump is turned into a piece of fried chicken! Is it sad that their food looks more edible than anything I can cook? [via TV in Japan]
For those who don't know, the over ninety-years old fake food industry in Japan is pretty awesome. Fake food (also known as sampuru, the Japanese spelling for "sample") is frequently used in Japanese restaurants' displays to provide customers with clear images of what they're ordering. Be sure to visit Kappabashi, the "Kitchen District" of Tokyo, if you want to start your own fake food collection.