# Cooked (2016)

> A four-part Netflix docuseries in which Michael Pollan explores how cooking shaped human life through the four elements.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/57860

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 4
- Episode runtime: 240 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: documentary
- Created by: Michael Pollan, Alex Gibney
- Network: Netflix
- Cast: Michael Pollan
- TMDB rating: 8.0/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5347906/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: none
- Tone: contemplative, warm, intimate, urgent, enlightening

## Synopsis

Cooked (2016) is a four-episode American documentary limited series created by Michael Pollan and Alex Gibney for Netflix. Writer Michael Pollan appears as himself, guiding viewers through the history of food preparation and what cooking has meant to human communities. Rather than following a plot, each episode is organized around one of the four natural elements, fire, water, air and earth, and uses that frame to examine how transforming raw ingredients into meals has bound people together. The engine of the series is curiosity about the everyday act of cooking, with Pollan visiting kitchens and traditions to show how preparation connects people to their ingredients and to each other. Each two-hour... Each episode runs about four hours in total across the series, so the pacing is measured and reflective rather than brisk. The tone is warm, intimate and contemplative, with an urgent undercurrent that argues for returning to the kitchen. Viewers who enjoy Chef's Table, Parts Unknown and The Mind of a Chef will find similar pleasures in food culture, personal narration and culinary craft. The series is rated TV-PG and works well for families and anyone curious about how food shapes culture.

## Shows like Cooked

- [A Bite of China (2012)](https://ember.film/tv/54232)
- [Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy (2021)](https://ember.film/tv/98959)
- [Street Food: Latin America (2020)](https://ember.film/tv/88185)
- [Salt Fat Acid Heat (2018)](https://ember.film/tv/70875)
- [Selena + Chef (2020)](https://ember.film/tv/89347)
- [Chef's Table (2015)](https://ember.film/tv/55477)
- [How to Change Your Mind (2022)](https://ember.film/tv/127157)
- [The Food That Built America (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/78210)
- [Tucci in Italy (2025)](https://ember.film/tv/157889)
- [Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/77428)

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