Ready to be the Next Food Network Star?

Think you’ve got what it takes to be the “Next Food Network Star“? If you are good on camera, can cook like nobody’s business, and convey the appeal of your recipes to others, you might have a good shot. The network is currently taking applications for their 2010 season.

In the past, people with a high-level of cooking expertise from either culinary school or hands-on chef experience has competed. But this past winner a few weeks ago, Melissa D’Arabian, wasn’t a classically trained chef. She was an at-home cook with four kids who needed to get dinner on the table in a hurry.

Granted, she has a very high level of skill in the kitchen. But I think the fact that she won has opened it up for other, perhaps similar, entrants. If you watched the last season of the Next Food Network Star, you also saw that there were a few contestants early on who looked down at Melissa in the beginning because she was a home cook. These contestants came across arrogant and quite ridiculous, one of them even rolling their eyes at her while working on a challenge. This behavior was called out by Bobby Flay, who said that “a little chivalry goes a long way in the kitchen.”

Why these contestants had that uppity attitude is beyond me. Rachel Ray fully admits that she isn’t a chef and yet she does pretty darn well in the cooking world!

Still, with Melissa D’Arabian winning this past season, I think it will give some confidence to others who may feel that they can also be great on camera and show the world their culinary skills. Think it’s you? Enter today!

Image: sxc.hu.