Martha Stewart is a woman known for her impeccable taste. The Emmy-winning hostess and entrepreneur has defined what it means to cook and eat for decades. You may associate her with the finer things in life, but there’s one affordable ingredient that she uses for her dream-worthy dinner parties: bouillon.
If you peek in her pantry, you can find several flavors of Knorr bouillon on the shelf. "I make a lot of beautiful veloutés, soups, and purees of fresh vegetables," Stewart tells me in an exclusive interview. "I use the vegetable bouillon cube just to add a little extra depth of flavor. It’s been a flavor enhancer in my family for years and years and years."
Stewart also admits to using their beef bouillon when cooking short ribs or beef bourguignon. "I use it sparingly but effectively, and I think it really does work," she says. "It’s enhancing, not cheating."
Stewart regularly supplements her food with bouillon when she doesn’t have the time to make a stock from scratch. But you’ll never catch her ordering in—especially if it comes from a fast food restaurant.
"I’m not one to stop on the road and have a hamburger or whatever else that people have," Stewart says. She did previously have a love affair with Kentucky Fried Chicken—but it was short-lived.
"I love chicken wings. But when I learned how to make chicken wings my way in Amarillo, Texas, I never bought fast food wings ever again," she says. "Because I make them the best…and I know what kind of oil they’re frying in."
Stewart doesn’t have much faith in the ingredients and nutritional value of fast food meals, with a few exceptions. (She’s a fan of Sweetgreen and thinks Shake Shack is marginally better than other burger chains, she tells me.) But she also doesn’t want to miss out on the beloved dishes from the drive-thru, so she decided to start making them at home.
Stewart has partnered with Knorr to launch the Unlimited Time Menu—a lineup of seasonal and retired fast food dupes made with Knorr products (and without all of the mystery ingredients and additives). And to celebrate the launch, she enlisted an army of Martha Stewart dupes to join her.
From a bouillon-seasoned riff on the McRib to a copycat Quesarito using Knorr Spanish rice, the Unlimited Time Menu features fast food-inspired dishes that Stewart would actually serve at a dinner party.
She’s no stranger to making store-bought dupes for her friends, she tells me. "I make my own ice cream and ice cream cones. That’s fast food, really," Stewart says. "I’ve made Twinkies at home, probably with different ingredients."
Stewart’s always looking for an excuse to entertain her friends, but she doesn’t expect anything in exchange—including presents. "I don't actually like getting hostess gifts," she admits. "Them coming to my house is enough of a gift. If they're going to bring a gift, bring it from some place that I can return it if I don’t like it."
If you want to host your own Martha Stewart-approved dinner party inspired by your fast food favorites, check out the Unlimited Time Menu at Knorr.com.
