Video ideas

Cooking video ideas for YouTube

30 cooking video ideas for a food channel, each with a format and an opening line to say to camera.

  1. 1.Cook rice that comes out right every time

    How-to

    Opening line: Rice should not be a gamble, and I will show you the one thing that makes it work.

  2. 2.Mistakes that make home-cooked chicken dry

    Mistakes

    Opening line: Dry chicken usually comes down to one of these mistakes, and each is easy to fix.

  3. 3.You can wash mushrooms with water

    Myth

    Opening line: Cooks say never to let a mushroom touch water, so I tested whether that rule holds up.

  4. 4.A cast iron pan against a nonstick pan

    Comparison

    Opening line: I cooked the same dish in both pans, and one clearly did a better job.

  5. 5.Cook dinner with only what is in my pantry

    Challenge

    Opening line: I am cooking tonight with nothing but what is already in my pantry, and no shopping.

  6. 6.How I plan a week of dinners

    Behind the scenes

    Opening line: This is the simple routine I use to plan dinners so I do not stand in front of the fridge.

  7. 7.Kitchen tools I would buy again

    List

    Opening line: These are the tools I would buy again tomorrow, and the ones I would not.

  8. 8.The dish I burned in front of guests

    Story

    Opening line: I once burned the main course in front of guests, and this is how I saved the evening.

  9. 9.Sharpen a kitchen knife at home

    How-to

    Opening line: A sharp knife makes cooking faster and safer, and you can sharpen yours with a simple method.

  10. 10.Seasoning mistakes that make food taste flat

    Mistakes

    Opening line: If your food tastes flat, you are probably making one of these seasoning mistakes.

  11. 11.Searing does not seal in juices

    Myth

    Opening line: You have heard that searing locks in juices, so let me show you what it really does.

  12. 12.Fresh herbs against dried herbs

    Comparison

    Opening line: I used fresh and dried herbs in the same dish, and I want to show you when each is worth it.

  13. 13.Make a restaurant dish at home

    Challenge

    Opening line: I am going to recreate a dish from my favourite restaurant using only what I can taste and guess.

  14. 14.What my kitchen looks like when I film

    Behind the scenes

    Opening line: Here is what my kitchen really looks like when I am filming a recipe.

  15. 15.Cheap ingredients that make a meal feel complete

    List

    Opening line: These cheap ingredients lift a simple meal, and I keep all of them at home.

  16. 16.The recipe I learned from my grandmother

    Story

    Opening line: My grandmother never wrote a recipe down, so I will tell you how I learned this one.

  17. 17.Meal prep for a busy week in one hour

    How-to

    Opening line: If you have one hour on Sunday, this is how I prepare food for the week.

  18. 18.Why your homemade bread does not rise

    Mistakes

    Opening line: If your bread stays flat, the cause is usually one of three things.

  19. 19.Pasta water does not need to taste like the sea

    Myth

    Opening line: You have heard how much salt to use for pasta water, and I want to test that advice.

  20. 20.Boiling, steaming and roasting the same vegetable

    Comparison

    Opening line: I cooked one vegetable three ways, and the difference in taste was bigger than I expected.

  21. 21.Cook a full meal in twenty minutes

    Challenge

    Opening line: I am going to cook a complete meal in twenty minutes, and the timer starts now.

  22. 22.How I film a recipe without a crew

    Behind the scenes

    Opening line: I film every recipe alone, and this is how I set up the camera over the counter.

  23. 23.Mistakes I made as a beginner cook

    List

    Opening line: Here are the mistakes from my first year of cooking, and what I do now.

  24. 24.The first meal I cooked for someone I love

    Story

    Opening line: I cooked for someone special once, and almost everything went wrong.

  25. 25.Turn leftovers into a new dinner

    How-to

    Opening line: Leftovers do not have to taste like leftovers, and here is how I change them.

  26. 26.Baking mistakes that ruin a cake

    Mistakes

    Opening line: These baking mistakes ruin a cake before it ever goes in the oven.

  27. 27.Homemade sauce against a jar

    Comparison

    Opening line: I made a sauce from scratch and tried a jarred one, and I will tell you the honest difference.

  28. 28.Eat from one cuisine for a whole week

    Challenge

    Opening line: For one week I am cooking only dishes from one country, and I have never cooked them before.

  29. 29.Skills every home cook should learn first

    List

    Opening line: If you are learning to cook, start with these skills and everything else gets easier.

  30. 30.The restaurant meal that made me start cooking

    Story

    Opening line: One meal at a small restaurant changed how I think about food.

Cooking video ideas questions

What can I make a cooking video about besides recipes?+

Techniques, tools, mistakes, comparisons and the story behind a dish. A viewer who learns why a step works comes back for the next video.

How do I start a cooking video?+

Show or name the finished dish in the first sentence, then say what is hard about it. A small kitchen admission works well. See confession hooks.