This ranking is based on the sum of three scientific criteria, each scored on a five-point scale:
Midterms are around the corner, so it’s time we start preparing our rotation of mindless television to procrastinate to. If you like cooking and food or reality TV, I’ve got you covered. I present to you my highly objective ranking of the best cooking and food shows on Netflix Canada since 2020.
1. Storytelling/Intrigue, measured by how eager I was (and how much you will be) to watch all the way through and how often I needed to fast-forward.
2. Cinematography, measured by how hungry the camera shots of food made me.
3. Mindlessness, measuring the shows zone-outability, crucial for busy law students.
Please note: although this is a law school newspaper, I cannot make claims to the legal significance of these results.
4. Best Leftovers Ever!, 2020 (8 episodes)
A cooking competition show about repurposing leftovers into brand new dishes. If your fridge is full of plastic containers with questionable contents, maybe you should take notes while you watch this one.
Storytelling/Intrigue: 1
Each of the eight episodes stand alone, so although each one was full of intrigue, there wasn’t any fervor to get through them all. Also, with only three contestants each episode, I often found myself fast-forwarding.
Cinematography: 2
I mean, it’s leftovers, what can I say? The cooks made some pretty impressive plates, but they made me less hungry for the food and more anxious about the dirty dishes I have to clean.
Mindlessness: 5
Now this is some good mindless television! Since each episode stands alone, you don’t have to devote much time and energy to following along.
Total score: 8/15
3. Is It Cake?, 2022 (8 episodes)
A cooking competition where contestants…it’s in the name really.
Storytelling/Intrigue: 2
It was fun but, it was obvious what was going to happen in the end…until it wasn’t.
Cinematography: 2
Most of the items they were trying to replicate I would never want to eat. And the cakes looked so real that I would never want to eat them either.
Mindlessness: 5
So many confessionals, so much zone-out time!
Total score: 9/15
2. Baking Impossible, 2021 (8 episodes)
A competition show combining baking and engineering. The kind of interdisciplinary thinking we need in our legal studies.
Storytelling/Intrigue: 5
You can’t fast-forward this. Baking Impossible is really good at the bait-and-switch, so you’ll want to watch all the way through.
Cinematography: 2
Seeing copper wires sticking out of cakes didn’t deter my hunger that much, but my rational self knows that they wouldn’t be good to eat.
Mindlessness: 5
Top tier zone-outs because, even if I tried to, I couldn’t follow the engineering portions.
Total score: 12/15
1. THE BEST: The Great Canadian Baking Show (Season 5), 2022 (8 episodes + 1 bonus episode)
The Great Canadian Baking Show is hands down the scientifically proven best cooking show on Netflix Canada. This CBC show features amateur bakers from diverse backgrounds competing for the title.
A Canadian gem. What more needs to be said?
Storytelling/Intrigue: 5
Intriguing all the way through. Fast forwarding was only required in the final few episodes, where the number of bakers started to dwindle.
There’s also a special holiday episode, and the sixth season is airing 2 October 2022, so you’re covered for finals season too!
Cinematography: 5
I. Wanted. To. Eat. Everything. Period.
Mindlessness: 3
Total score: 13/15
With all the intrigue, it’s pretty hard to look away. But as the numbers dwindle you can probably get away with turning your attention back to reading cases for a few minutes at a time.
Now that you have the results, what you do with this information is up to you. Stick to the best or watch them in order of the criteria you find most important. And if these cooking shows won’t be enough, let me know what I should rank next.