The chef, restaurateur and star of The Bear chatted with us about his go-to party appetizer and what he's been cooking recently.
Matty Matheson is a busy man these days.
The Canada-born multi-hyphenate is currently in Chicago filming season five of the runaway hit FX series The Bear, where he plays fan-favorite handyman Neil Fak. He’s also relishing in the news that his YouTube series Just a Dash has just landed on Netflix with the premiere of its third season. If none of that was enough, he also starred in a major Super Bowl ad.
The Nissan ad showcased a fictional “Dip Seat,” which promised to protect snacks on the go. In real life, Matty finds himself transporting precarious dishes when he and his wife, Trish, and their three kids pack into the car to visit his parents for dinner every Sunday. It’s an exercise that always verges on a messy disaster, he admits.
“We’re either bringing a dessert, or we’re bringing lasagna; it’s always something,” Matty says. “And if you’re bringing a casserole or a dip somewhere, you’re usually dressing up as well. It’s relatable!”
It is! Haven’t we all spilled something across the backseat, passenger seat or our own laps?
What are Matty’s tips for a good dip?
Whether they’re easy to transport or not, Matty is aware that many of the dip recipes found in the trio of cookbooks he’s released so far are consistently among his most popular recipes. Two fan favorites are his buffalo chicken dip and his cheesy citrus bean dip, which was first featured in his 2020 cookbook Home Style Cookery.
He says the key to any dip’s success is its “structural foundation.”
“A dip needs to be thin and wide. It’s like building a building. You need to have that bottom layer, the soft texture…there is a science to making a good dip. They’re easy on the mouthfeel, and we like it,” he continues. “People just need to eat dips!”
What has Matty been cooking these days?
Besides dips, Matty has also been singing the praises of mushrooms lately. In his packed schedule, he’s found time to serve as the spokesperson for the National Mushroom Council’s “It’s Not Magic. It’s Mushrooms.” campaign. In a recent Instagram video, he shared his recipe for fried popcorn mushrooms, which he described as “mushroom nugs of love.”
He told me the cheat code for making a great mushroom dish is much like the advice he gives for maximizing the flavor potential of any vegetable: treating the ingredient like it’s meat.
“Vegetables can be the main stars; they can be the main attraction,” Matty says. “A mushroom should be treated and roasted and taken care of, because there’s such earthiness and beautiful flavor there.”
I think I’ll take his word for it and combine dips and mushrooms into one this weekend with spinach dip-stuffed mushrooms.
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