Baek Jong-won put pressure on the crew

'The King of Culinary Industry' Baek Jong-won and Korea's only 'Michelin 3-Star' Chef Ahn Sung-jae will serve as judges. Baek Jong-won expressed his admiration for the high level of the contestants' cooking skills, saying, "We often have gatherings after filming, and I pressured the production team. I asked if they could bring out the best. I really hope it turns out well."

On the 11th, a production presentation for Netflix's variety show 'Black and White Chef: Culinary Class War' was held at JW Marriott Dongdaemun Square in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul. The event was attended by PDs Kim Hak-min and Kim Eun-ji, along with judges Baek Jong-won and Ahn Sung-jae.

'Black and White Chef' is a fierce culinary class war involving 100 chefs, where the best 'Black Spoon' chefs, who are highly regarded for their taste, challenge Korea's top star chefs, the 'White Spoon' chefs.

PD Kim Hak-min explained, "The initial concept wasn't like this. It started as a survival show with 100 unknown chefs. During discussions, we thought viewers nowadays prefer more distinct points. We expanded the idea of 'Who would win if the chef from my neighborhood competed against a Michelin chef?' to a battle between unknown and famous chefs. We wanted to capture the grand clash between the Black Spoon team in black outfits and the White Spoon team."

Regarding the show's unique aspects compared to other cooking survival programs, PD Kim Eun-ji said, "In terms of scale, this is unprecedented in Korean cooking variety shows. The set was 1,000 pyeong (approximately 3,300 square meters). We prepared a set where 40 people can cook simultaneously. You will see a scale you've never seen before. We put a lot of thought into the missions to match the scale. These are missions never seen in the history of global cooking survival shows."

She continued, "The production team's mission was to establish four systems: water, electricity, gas, and ventilation. The set floor is 1 meter above the actual ground. Gas pipes, water pipes, and electrical facilities were installed in between. It took over 40 days just to create the set."

When asked why Baek Jong-won and Ahn Sung-jae were chosen as judges, PD Kim Hak-min said, "The question itself is misleading. Baek Jong-won chose us," adding, "In a word, Baek Jong-won is the beginning of this program. Without him, we couldn't have started. We thought only Baek Jong-won could judge 100 chefs. Ahn Sung-jae is the end of our program. As Korea's only Michelin 3-star chef, he was the most suitable judge."

Baek Jong-won humorously said he participated in 'Black and White Chef' because "they asked me to," and added, "There's a huge interest in Korean cuisine abroad. I thought highlighting Korean cuisine through Netflix would help the dining culture, so I got involved."

He continued, "After hearing the production team's intentions, I thought it was difficult. I've done many cooking survival shows like 'Hansik Daecheop,' but gathering 100 chefs is tough, and the site itself needs fire, water, and drainage. Realistically, even with just five people cooking, problems arise, causing interruptions. I thought 100 people were unrealistic, but they pulled it off."

Baek Jong-won and Ahn Sung-jae also discussed their judging criteria. Baek Jong-won said, "It was all about taste. The universal thing everyone can feel is whether it tastes good or not. The standard isn't that high, but I've eaten a lot. It's not an exaggeration to say I've tried everything." Ahn Sung-jae added, "Taste is the most important, but there were too many diverse chefs and dishes to judge by taste alone. Their intentions, techniques, and directions were important. Taste was the baseline. We focused on how well their intentions, taste, and feel matched."

There were times when their opinions differed during judging. PD Kim Eun-ji said, "Since only skilled people gathered, the level was very high. There were often disagreements, leading to intense discussions until a conclusion was reached. Sometimes, these discussions lasted over 20 minutes."

Baek Jong-won humorously added, "We couldn't grab each other's collars because of the cameras. You can't trust the broadcasting people; you never know where they'll use the footage," and laughed, "There were times when voices were raised. Chef Ahn Sung-jae looks gentle but is very stubborn. He's more persistent than you think."

Ahn Sung-jae joked, "When the cameras were off, he asked if a young person like me had no flexibility," and added, "Our perspectives are bound to differ. The paths we've walked are different. There were emotional moments, but we learned and adjusted together."

One of the missions involves judges wearing blindfolds and evaluating purely based on taste. PD Kim Hak-min said, "Who in the world would make Baek Jong-won wear a blindfold and taste food? This will be a survival show with scenes you've never seen before."

Baek Jong-won commented, "Wearing a blindfold while eating is crazy. It's something someone who doesn't know food would do. But it was possible because this mission came midway. When people at a high level compete, it's hard to judge. You get persuaded by the food. With a blindfold, you can only sense 60% of the experience, making it distinguishable. I think it was a good idea." He added, "I cursed while doing it. If the production team has any conscience, they'll cut out the cursing scenes," and laughed.

When asked if they would participate as contestants in a potential Season 2, Baek Jong-won responded, "Are you crazy?" Ahn Sung-jae said, "Before filming, I thought I could participate, but after being a judge, I don't think I can." When asked how they would rank, Ahn Sung-jae confidently said, "I think I'd be in the top ranks." Baek Jong-won laughed, "I think I'd be eliminated in the first round."

'Black and White Chef' will premiere on the 17th with episodes 1-4, followed by episodes 5-7 on the 24th, episodes 8-10 on the 1st of next month, and episodes 11-12 on the 8th, releasing every Tuesday.

Tae Yuna, Ten Asia Reporter youyou@tenasia.co.kr