YouTube’s Latino Foodies are creating a Broadcast Niche

By Nina Terrero, NBCLatino

Food-loving culture is everywhere these days and nowhere is it more prominent than on television. Thanks to the popularity of shows like “Top Chef,” “Hell’s Kitchen,” and “The Next Food Network Star” and other shows, foodie-loving programming on network and cable television is being broadcast to millions of American households.  And these shows bring the culinary personalities who host them more than just face time: one list put together by Serious Eats estimates that Rachael Ray (“30 Minute Meals” and “The Rachel Ray Show”) earns 18 million a year, with chefs like Mario Batali and Paula Deen raking in huge salaries (3 and 4.5 million, respectively)

But Latino cooks – the ones who pride themselves on making perfect tamales, healthy makeovers of classic Puerto Rican meals or intricate desserts – aren’t waiting for casting directors to turn them into the next Aarón Sanchez or Daisy Martinez. Instead, a growing number of Latino foodies are turning to YouTube with great success, proving that you may not need the support of the Food Network or Cooking Channel to make a splash.

Take for example, blogger Raiza Costa. Shortly after moving from Brazil to New York City in 2009, Costa began her blog Dulce Delight as a way to feature her intricate, mouth-watering desserts. Costa felt that sticking to a traditional blog didn’t fully convey her personality – fun, bubbly and girly – and decided to film short cooking segments, using a hand-held video camera propped on moving boxes. Four years later, the 25-year-old food vlogger has more than 2 million views on her YouTube channel, has a line of vintage-inspired whimsical kitchen wear in production and has a contract for her show to be developed for broadcast in her native Brazil.

This article was first published in NBCLatino.

Nina Terrero is a Web Producer at NBCLatino. she’s passionate about social issues, health, education, discovering untold stories among U.S. Latinos and exploring Latino culture through food, literature, theatre and the arts, she holds a B.A. in Government from Cornell University. She is also a graduate of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Arts & Science, where she received an M.A. in Political Science. Of Puerto Rican and Dominican heritage, Nina worked at ABC News as a digital reporter before joining the team at NBC Latino. Feel free to ask her about the latest films, urban political policy or her most recent forays in cooking and eating around New York City.