‘I’m not a chef’: How Rachael Ray became one of the most recognisable women on TV

The TV personality began her long career in food broadcasting in 2001, when she was offered a contract on The Food Network spruiking her 30-minute meals.

Ray’s cooking style relied on “quick and easy” meals the average home cook could make in 30 minutes or less.

She also regularly told viewers she had no formal culinary training. 

“I have no formal anything. I’m completely unqualified for any job I’ve ever had,” she was often quoted as saying. “I’m not a chef.”

“I’m a cook, not a chef. I grew up in industrial kitchens. My mum was one of ten kids. Our family was always in the kitchen,” she told CBS in 2019.

Ray hosted 30 Minute Meals on the Food Network for 11 years until 2012, however she is most known for her talk show, which first launched in 2006.

Her show, Rachael Ray, premiered 17 years ago and ran for 17 seasons until she announced she was stepping back in March 2023.