Controversial TV chef Pete Evans says person he admires most is himself

He’s the controversial TV chef that has been criticised for his opinions on autism, vaccinations, calcium, sunscreen and diet. But Pete Evans says more people should be like him and “just start speaking the truth”.

TV host, chef, author, producer, restaurateur, health coach and dad, Pete Evans has got his plate full.

An advocate of the paleo diet and lifestyle, Evans has attracted criticism for his claims about autism, calcium, fluoride, fasting and even staring at the sun, but his popularity and his empire continue to grow.

His documentary The Magic Pill and series The paleo Way are streamed on Netflix, he has hosted six seasons of a Moveable Feast for the US TV network PBS and he is the author of more than 20 books. His Facebook page has a community of more than 1.5 million followers and he is the co-host and judge of Channel 7’s top rating series, My Kitchen Rules.

With the 10th season of My Kitchen Rules set to launch on 7 on Monday January 28, Evans sat down with me in Sydney to talk TV, success, coping with controversy, self-belief and his future plans.

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Pete Evans says this year we’ll see more of what we’ve come to expect from him, just on a larger scale. Picture: Channel 7

FB: Thanks for your time Pete? How did you start your day?

PE: My wife and I do tea most mornings. It is like a ritual. So this morning we woke up, we go to the beach for an hour, have a swim in the ocean pool, take the dog for a walk and then come back and do tea. We drink probably 500ml to a litre of beautiful black tea from with Taiwan or China and it is a beautiful ceremony. We do that at sunrise which is beautiful.

FB: You are one of Australia’s most successful and popular TV presenters and authors but you also are a controversy magnet. Not everyone accepts your arguments about health and diet. How does that affect you?

PE: There are conversations now in mainstream media about things, ideas or concepts that I use myself, or implement myself, or have the belief or philosophy about, that have become talking points for the media and I think that is f---ing brilliant that people are now talking about these things in a way that promotes conversation, discussion and further research.

America and Canada are so far in front of where Australia is, they are so open-minded and they accept these things that you are talking about that seem controversial.

I don’t take all this (controversy) on myself because there are lots of people talking about these topics whether it is low carb, whether it is the industries that are potentially not doing the planet, our own health, and the coming generations health, any good.

If we are going to catch up to different parts of the world and if this is part of the process then fantastic, so be it.

Pete Evans and Nicola Robinson in Bondi.

FB: But surely the regular criticism must bug you?

PE: The controversy in the mainstream media, if we want to generalise there, none of that can hurt me in any possible way. What can they take away from me? They can’t take away my integrity, they can’t take away my passion, they can’t take away my love for myself or for others. It is impossible unless you let it and that would mean you have fears and insecurities about your own self. I am an open book. I am very open. I have always said the books that I write, don’t take my word for it. Try it out, speak to others, look at where this information came from.

The most independent thing you can possibly do is have your own thoughts. And I have my own thoughts. And my question to people is do you have your own thoughts? Everything I basically talk about is very old wisdom, very ancient wisdom, that seems to have be forgotten, and we (have to) go back to remember who we are. With everything I do in life I keep asking what best serves this human being to thrive in all aspects of life, to grow. We have unlimited possibilities and it all comes down to a choice and we make so many choices each day.

FB: Who do you admire the most?

PE: Myself. If we can’t be inspired by our own self, if we cannot admire ourselves, … if you cannot start by loving yourself, then how can you love others? I had a friend say, “you can’t say that in mainstream media, people will think you are a f---wit.” I go, “But it is the truth?”

Let’s just start speaking the truth and see what happens.

FB: Where do you sit on the issue of anti-vaccination?

PE: What does my perception or belief on that have to do with you or anyone else in this country? What does it matter? I have never publicly said anything. I have asked questions to people, on my podcast for example, saying, “Why? How? Does it?”

I don’t have the answers. To answer your question about anti-vaccination, I would speak to your health professional and then ask them this question; can you 100 per cent give me your confirmation that this is healthy for me? That is the best that anyone can do …. and also ask that for anything in your life. Speak to the professionals and ask them for assurance.

FB: Do you regret anything that has happened in your career or any decisions you made?

PE: No, because everything is perfect. Every moment in life has been perfect to get us to where we are now. We are all our experiences. Every experience we have in life strengthens who we are.

FB: You seem to have reclaimed the word “activated.” When people first noticed you using that word in 2008 many used it to make a joke at your expense.

PE: I take it as a compliment. What a great word. I am 45 now. I am young. I feel the best I have ever felt in my entire life and I am not at my peak. That is my belief. There is so much more potential, mental, physical, emotional, spiritual.

FB: When you signed up for My Kitchen Rules 10 seasons ago did you think the show would be this successful?

PE: I was lucky enough to work with Foxtel when I started my first job in television which is nearly 20 years ago, and my first series was called Home on the Lifestyle Channel and that ran for pretty much seven years. Then I did a show called Fish and then one called Fresh which I did for 400 episodes.

Then My Kitchen Rules popped up. I always have the intention that anyone I work with it is going to be a long-term relationship. Whether it is personal or business, I think we all want that if it is a “win win” relationship.

Pete Evans with fellow My Kitchen Rules judge Manu Feildel. Picture: Darren Leigh Roberts

FB: Win win?

PE: These days my philosophy is “win, win, win.” It has to be a win for the customer, if there is a customer and in this instance it is the viewer, it has to be a win for myself and my family, and it has to be a win for the people I am working with. When Channel 7 offered me this job the intention was always how long can a relationship last and now it has been 10 years and fingers crossed, hopefully, it will keep going.

FB: You and Manu Feildel were friends well before MKR. Is it true you gave him his first job in Sydney?

PE: I was running our restaurant called Hugo’s in Bondi at the time and …. this resume was there when I came in one morning. I had a look at it, Manu Feildel, French, and it listed the restaurants he had worked in. At that point of time we were looking for a head chef who could take on (their new restaurant) Hugo’s Lounge. I called him within five minutes, he came down later that day and we started working together the next day. That was 18 years ago. We worked together for many years then he left Hugo’s and went to some different restaurants to cement his name in the food scene here in Australia.

FB: Is it true you helped Manu get cast on MKR?

PE: I did the audition and I got the job for MKR and a few days later I did a screen test and I was working with somebody else as the other judge. The chemistry just was not right. MasterChef had just started and was so good I was like, “this partnership has to work” and I know my strengths and weaknesses. Generally I need to work with a big, colourful character because I bounce off that energy really, really well.

So I rang up the executive producer and said I think you should look at Manu Feildel. I heard laughter at the end of the line and he (the EP) goes “Manu has actually done a few pilots with us but there were concerns with his French accent that it was too strong so we have pulled him out and re-auditioned and you have actually got his position.”

I had not seen Manu for about five years at this stage and I said, “Manu is the chef’s chef. He is somebody everyone will respect as far as culinary prowess goes, his accent is a bonus, the women will love him, the men will love him, critics will love him, the chefs will love him, the foodies will love him, our synergies will work well.” About two days later I got a call from Manu and he goes, “we are working together, brother.”

It was meant to be.

FB: We seem to read every year that you are at odds with each other.

PE: We are dear friends, we are like brothers, despite what you might read in some publications. We look forward to working with each other for five or six months of the year and then we have that break for six months.

FB: Have you had offers from other networks trying to lure you away from 7?

PE: No. None. If I put the energy out there then potentially the offers or opportunities would come, but it is like anything in life. If you are in a relationship with somebody and you are happy in that relationship generally those temptations or opportunities don’t arise. I have worked with Foxtel and Channel 9 and I left on great terms and that is my intention always.

The last six years I have also been working in America and New Zealand and making my own TV programs and documentaries so even if there was an offer, which there isn’t, where do I even fit that in?

FB: A decade is a lifetime in TV. Ten years down the track does MKR still challenge and excite you?

PE: I was 19 years in my family and friends (restaurant) business and that was an amazing part of my life. Nineteen years of working anywhere from 60 — 100 hour working weeks, I learnt so much from that experience. My intention through that was to become a wonderful chef, that was always my goal.

For me success is contentment and growth. Personal growth, physical growth.

What I have loved so far on this journey, if we are talking about television, is the amount of growth I have had from my very first day. I was the greenest, shiest, most novice, most amateur, most scared person to ever to step in front of a camera.

I am 18 years now into the media side of this career and the growth I have experienced is huge and now I am stepping into another role producing my own films and TV shows. That is another case of starting at the bottom and growing. Our purpose in this existence is to grow and to learn and remember and to enjoy the journey as much as we can, and to have as much fun as possible because once we stop growing is when we start ageing.

FB: Have there been any MKR contestants who really made an impact on you for good or bad reasons?

PE: I am employed to be a judge and a co-host on My Kitchen Rules and it is a job I take very seriously and with great responsibility. However many people enter this competition each year there are only two people who win. Even in my years of running my own businesses one of the hardest things you can do is let somebody go. These contestants have sacrificed so much to be on the show. They have put their hearts and souls into it and they have had to leave their families (to film the series) and basically Manu and I have to remove 95 per cent of them and that is why we don’t take it lightly. We do care about these people. We want them to have a wonderful experience on the program.

But ultimately, we basically sack most of them and it is the hardest part of our job.

FB: What makes My Kitchen Rules work?

PE: It is the perfect recipe. It has got the drama, the education, the tears, the bitterness, the spiciness, the sourness, it has something for everybody and it is really interesting. It depends on what you focus on. I focus on the evolution of the contestants, I focus on my personal growth and I also focus on the beautiful moments that happen on the show. Everybody has a different perception of the show and generally how you perceive the show could be a mirror into how you perceive yourself in your life.

Pete Evans and wife Nicola. Picture: Julie Kiriacoudis

FB: How much of an impact has your wife Nicola had on your life?

PE: We are two individuals that have chosen to come together to have a relationship that we can both grow from individually and together. It is as simple as that. We have a mutual respect and a love for each other and we are having a wonderful time. I think that is the key to any relationship, ‘win win’, ‘growth’, ‘respect’, take each day as it comes.

FB: Any tips for others looking to be successful in their fields?

PE: It is a pretty simple recipe for success. Find the things that you love to do by yourself, or with people you care about, and keep doing it.

FB: What comes next for Pete Evans?

PE: I have not even started. Every day we start again and I have got so many things in the works. I don’t have a PA, I don’t have a manager, I don’t have an agent, I don’t have an assistant, no publicist, it is just me. I have two staff members who have worked with me for 12 years. They are both chefs, they help me with my cookbooks, they help me with my other TV work, they are part of my family, they are like sisters to me and then I partner with Channel 7 and I work with professionals in their chosen fields. With my products I work with people that are doing the right thing in those industries. What is next is more of the same but on a larger scale.