The original Iron Chef now available on Peacock

If you talk about Iron Chef to any foodie under a certain age, they will almost always assume you’re talking about the American version. The one with Alton Brown, Bobby Flay, Cat Cora and numerous spinoffs that produced a baffling number of Iron Chefs.

However, if you are older and wiser, then you will no doubt have very fond memories of the original Japanese version of Iron Chef, the show that started it all. The series ran for nine seasons in Japan and aired over 300 episodes, all with a grand total of just seven Iron Chefs over the six years the series aired.

In 1999, shorty after Iron Chef wrapped in Japan, Food Network started airing it on the fledgling channel with the episodes dubbed in English. To the surprise of many, Iron Chef quickly became a cult classic in the States, with fans adoring the campy dubbing and the completely over the top nature of the cooking.

No doubt it was that initial success that led to the series getting an American make over and becoming one of Food Network’s biggest hits. But for many fans, myself includes, nothing can beat the charm and fun of the original Iron Chef.

Multiple season of Iron Chef are now available on Peacock.

While the series has bounced around the dial over the years, there never was word if and when Iron Chef would be available to watch on one of the streaming services. Since Food Network doesn’t own the rights to the original version, it was never a given it would be on Discovery Plus.

Well, it looks like the original Iron Chefs have found a home. Because four seasons of the classic cooking show are now streaming on Peacock.

All told it includes four seasons and in total about 100 episodes of Iron Chef goodness. All the seasons are from later in the series run, once Masaharu Morimoto took over from Koumei Nakamura as Iron Chef Japanese. Considering Morimoto was the most popular of the original Iron Chefs here in the United States, that’s not surprising.

What is surprising is where Peacock decided to place the ads. For those unaware, Peacock offers free streaming but you have to deal with ads during the shows. Sometimes the ads start at very odd times and break the flow of the battle, but it’s nothing that will ruin the experience.

And honestly, it just great to be able to watch the original Iron Chef whenever I want. I almost forgot how… unique some of the dubbing was.

So Guilty Eaters, will you be binge watching some Iron Chef in between episodes of Beat Bobby Flay? Leave a comment below and let us know or join the conversation on our Twitter and Facebook pages.