51�Թ�

If you know Food Network, you know Susan Stockton. That’s because she’s the person who shepherded the channel from fledgling TV show to the multi-platform media powerhouse it is today. It’s also why she’s an 51�Թ� 50th Anniversary distinguished alumni honoree.

After majoring in art in college, Stockton worked in the design, retail, film and floral industries before landing at ICE.

One example: She owned a shop that sold vintage movie posters and tropical plants. Its cheeky name – Hollywood & Vine – is a play on words referencing both plants and an iconic Los Angeles intersection.

Another example: She owned a graphic design studio with clients in tech, real estate and restaurants. The latter excited her, so she started working small catering gigs on the side.

After culinary school, she landed at Food Network, where she didn’t start as Senior Vice President of Culinary Production (her most recent title). Rather, she got her start as a freelancer, then seized opportunities and leveraged her experience, working her way through the ranks to become Executive Chef and then SVP.

In Stockton’s telling, her success is the result of a great team, generous colleagues and good luck – and of course, that’s partially true. But her hard work, strong culinary skills and A-game talent helped.  

We asked Stockton about finding her passion, her favorite cooking school memories, her advice for career changers, and her proudest professional achievements. Here’s what she had to say.

* The following interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

ICE: To start, can you share—in your own words—what you consider your biggest professional achievements?

Susan Stockton: I’m proud to have been part of the amazing group of TV creatives at Food Network and to have developed the Food Network Kitchens along with my culinary team. In ‘95 when I joined, Food Network was still a brand new cable network. There was nothing like it on air. Our goal was to make FN a reliable and fun source of culinary content – and garner good ratings of course. We were pretty much making it up as we went along.

Initially, we were operating out of rental studios and then moved into the 46th floor of a midtown office building…without gas. Despite all that, the Kitchens evolved into the food authority at the heart of the network. Recipes were tested and researchers supplied reliable culinary information that gave authenticity to the content on air, and eventually to the website, FN magazine, and our branded cooking product lines.

We finally landed in a dreamy location on top of Chelsea Market. Our kitchen flanked the production studio and was itself a location for various shows.

ICE: To what factors do you attribute your success?

SS: Coming from a family of home-cooks certainly helped. My dad was a photographer who supported my career in the arts. My husband Rick was my rock as I changed careers. Then great mentorship, trust and support over my 20 years came from the FN presidents to whom I reported. All that, and a whole lot of luck.

ICE: Before enrolling at ICE, you'd worked in other industries. Can you talk about your experience starting culinary school for a career change?   

SS: When I met my husband, we were both business owners who were getting burned out. We decided to start over in New York. I dreamed of having a restaurant in NYC. Suspecting how little I knew of the business, I got a job working the front of house at a little French bistro… and then I enrolled in Peter Kump’s New York Cooking School, now known as ICE. The internship program was a great eye opener for me. [I interned] in the catering department of Fairway and later in the kitchen of La Tulipe in the Village to cook with the wonderful Sally Darr.

I was also hustling as a freelance food stylist and getting to know a lot of great people in the business. One night the bartender at La Tulipe pointed out that a TV food show had just launched and looked like they could use some help. I walked into the rental studios of FN, started cooking for a show and never left.

Long story short, my past experiences in design, film, food, retail and even floral all came in handy and rolled into the credentials that worked for me to grow at FN from freelancer to Exec Chef to SVP of culinary production.

I often tell students not to be afraid to take a leap or make a change if you have a dream. It can be humbling and hard work to start over… But, gathering knowledge is all part of who you become. You can put all the tools you’ve gathered to use building a new career.

ICE: The food media landscape has changed quite a bit in the last couple decades. What changes do you observe in contemporary food media, and how do those changes inform future food media?

SS: Food and cooking have entered every category, and generations of kids who’ve grown up in front of TV cooking shows have become intrepid cooks themselves – much less fearful of kitchen mishaps, perhaps, than their parents.

I don’t have a crystal ball, but interest in health and wellness are currently front of mind as is honesty in food labelling, and also appreciation of the basics. I do hope there will always be room for instructional, entertaining cooking shows that bring us all to the table to learn from each other.

ICE: Is there any single lesson that you learned at ICE that you still use in your work or personal life?

SS: I think that a big take-away from school was the importance of how to behave while working on the line. Listening, attitude, a sense of immediacy, teamwork. These are all great lessons. Later, when hiring staff for Food Network Kitchen (whether a researcher, shopper, culinary producer or cook-stylist), I found myself giving extra consideration to those with professional kitchen experience.

ICE: Let’s talk mentorship. Can you talk about your mentors and proteges?

SS: I was fortunate to learn from the best. Hundreds of incredible chefs passed through our studios to share their recipes, tips and personal stories on air. From them, I learned what we all know: cooking is truly an expression of love and sharing.

And I learned from our young team in Food Network Kitchen who brought insight, fun and new ideas to all of these shows.

After our kitchens grew and moved to Chelsea Market, I was invited to visit a fledgling culinary high school in Hell’s Kitchen. I was so impressed by their drive and enthusiasm that I worked to develop an internship program in our Chelsea kitchens. I think we all found it rewarding to share what we knew of a new industry with these kids. Later, I joined their board of advisors.

ICE: Do you have any advice for people considering culinary school?

SS: Talk to people in the culinary field who interest you. Cooks are generally quite busy. But, I find most are happy to take a few moments with a student. Learning the basics will give you a foundation – not to mention contacts and support once you’re out on your own. It’s really a wonderful career.

QUICKFIRE QUESTIONS

Favorite kitchen tool? Chef's knife.

Salty or sweet? Salty — unless chocolate is involved, of course. 

Favorite food holiday? Christmas.

Favorite food city? Miami.

Cook, Bake, Eat… in order of preference? That’s it. 

Favorite cuisine? I was asked this a lot at my job. I’m a chameleon. There’s not much I don’t like. Presently I’m cooking Mediterranean / Italian or Asian.

Go-to “easy” recipe? Enchiladas. 

Go-to “wow” recipe? Boeuf Bourguignon. 

Most frequently used ingredient? Fresh herbs. 

Favorite food season? Summer. I love alfresco dinners in our yard with friends.