Rachael Ray's Most Controversial Moments We Can't Forget

Thanks to Rachael Ray, we all have some EVOO in our cabinets. It's not only her quirky acronym for extra virgin olive oil that we love about Ray; she was a mainstay in daytime television for years. Her quick, easy dishes and laid-back personality were a recipe for high viewership on her shows like the "Rachael Ray Show," "$40 a Day," and "30-Minute Meals." But a decades-long career in the spotlight is bound to be marked by a few infamous, career-staining moments.

In an episode of her podcast, "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead," Ray confessed her fears about how she's perceived by fans and detractors alike. She never looks up her name online, but remembers the era of her fame that catalyzed an "I Hate Rachael Ray" website. Her conscience isn't clear, either. Ray has been plagued by so many controversies that we had to compile them in a list, and the details will make you cringe.

When you think of the culinary industry's best celebrities, you may picture Julia Child, Gordon Ramsay, or Bobby Flay. All have a significant background in cooking: Child studied at Paris' Le Cordon Bleu cooking school, Ramsay worked under Michelin-star chefs, and Flay graduated from the French Culinary Institute. Rachael Ray, on the other hand, had no formal training before she snagged a spot on the Food Network. 

While teaching cooking courses in Albany, Ray was discovered by a local CBS affiliate station and recruited for an evening news segment they named "30-Minute Meals," which led to numerous cookbooks and other shows, including "Rachael Ray." Many deemed her a fraud due to her lack of proper culinary training. Even Martha Stewart told ABC's Nightline in 2009 that she thought Ray was "not good enough for me" (via TV Guide). But by no means does Ray consider herself a chef, either. In 2005, she told the New York Times, "I have no formal anything. I'm completely unqualified for any job I've ever had."

A business venture you'd likely assume Rachael Ray has tackled would be cookware. It's true, she has her name emblazoned on every fancy cooking gadget and kitchen staple — from a cheese grater to a Dutch oven. Not all her commercial undertakings were a success, though. Ray faced a wave of criticism over her collaboration with Dunkin' (originally Dunkin' Donuts) in the early 2000s. 

There were numerous complaints with the advertisements she led for the coffee chain. For one, Ray received immense backlash for the scarf she was wearing in a 2008 commercial. Many opined that the accessory looked offensively similar to a kaffiyeh, a traditional Middle Eastern headdress, which critics commonly associate with terrorism and Islamic extremism, per the Los Angeles Times. That's not all. Anthony Bourdain, a fellow celebrity chef and known figure on the list of celebs who just don't like Ray, voiced his outrage over her brand deal with Dunkin', calling it "evil" and "like peddling crack to kids" to promote the food and drink company's relatively unhealthy products (via Page Six). 

Rachael Ray made herself a household name on TV. However, one of her most memorable on-air moments lives in infamy. The cook accidentally started a surge of controversy when she shared her red pozole recipe on her "Rachael Ray Show" — it left a sour taste in the mouths of a certain demographic. The clip from her show went viral, with the Hispanic community rallying together to teach Ray a lesson on how to make the traditional Mexican dish the right way.

Mexican moms even joined the YouTube brand Mamah! to collectively shake their heads while reacting to the video. "How disgusting," one said. "It's like dog food," the other claimed. A clip of the ladies was posted to Instagram, where more of Ray's critics left scathing reviews. According to the Daily Mail, one person even called Ray's rendition of the dish a "hate crime" because it was so poorly executed.

Rachael Ray caters to all walks of life, not just the ones who watch her on TV. In 2008, she partnered with Ainsworth Pet Nutrition to launch a line of pet food called Nutrish, which she once claimed had such quality ingredients that she would eat the product herself to prove so. Her business was a booming success, with a reputation for being all natural, until 2018, when New York dog owner Markeith Parks sued Rachael Ray Nutrish for misleading customers about the food's nature.

The $5 million lawsuit, which damaged Ray's reputation, claimed that Nutrish's Super Premium Dog Food line had trace amounts of the unnatural herbicide glyphosate. Bobby Modi, the vice president of Pet Food and Pet Snacks for The J.M. Smucker Company, who acquired Ainsworth Pet Nutrition in 2018, told The Blast at the time that they "strongly stand behind the quality of our products, ingredients, and sourcing practices" and that they "plan to aggressively fight these claims." The suit was later dismissed in 2021.

The COVID-19 pandemic was the mark of Rachael Ray's downfall. However, the 2020 lockdown was seemingly the reason for one of the cook's biggest controversies. The rapid spread of the virus in March 2020 was the incentive for Ray to change the schedule, letting her team know that the rest of the "Rachael Ray Show" season's episodes would be shot remotely from her home in upstate New York, per Variety. The outlet reported that this shift left over 20 seasoned crew members, such as camera operators and audio technicians, without work or pay.

When the dispute between Ray and the crew started making headlines, the cook took to her Instagram Story to clear up the "disturbing" allegations. She claimed she and CBS were discussing solutions on how to provide compensation to her crew members who were affected by the pandemic changes, per Us Weekly. "It has been my utmost priority that we keep the full contribution to their healthcare plan during this pandemic," she wrote. "I care about my colleagues as family, and as we approach the holidays, we want to keep everyone safe."  The crew was later informed that they would not return for the remainder of the season at the show's Manhattan studios in November 2020, leaving them without pay for about two-thirds of their schedule, according to Variety.