Antoni Porowski Praises ‘Queer Eye’ Newcomer Jeremiah Brent Amid Season 9 Filming (Exclusive)

Antoni Porowski has nothing but high praise for his new Queer Eye co-star Jeremiah Brent. Brent joined Season 9 of the Netflix series after original interior design expert Bobby Berk’s exit following last season, and as the Las Vegas-based season films, Porowski told PopCulture.com the new Fab Five has been finding a “pretty smooth” rhythm right off the bat. 

“He’s amazing,” Porowski says of Brent, who has appeared on shows like Nate & Jeremiah by Design, The Rachel Zoe Project and Say I Do before joining Queer Eye. The food and wine expert pointed out that Brent has “more experience” than not only him, but also fellow Fab Five members Jonathan van Ness, Tan France and Karamo Brown. 

“He’s been in reality TV for a really long time, and he’s a seasoned professional,” the Antoni in the Kitchen author continued. “What I love about him is that he’s so passionate about what he does and he brings 110%. I’m always trying to tell him, ‘Take a little beat to rest. Come over, let’s have dinner.’ He’s a very hard worker and he cares deeply.”

Coming into an established group dynamic after eight seasons of the successful Netflix series, Porowski said Brent “really tries” to be mindful in his new role. “He’s very sensitive in a way where he never wants to overstep, but at the same time does have strong opinions,” Porowski shared. “We all adore him … I would say it’s been pretty smooth all things considered. …But I just know that he wants to do well and he cares deeply, and that shows not only in his work but how he brings himself to set every day.”

When it comes to Season 9 of Queer Eye, Porowski can’t say much about ongoing filming but did express how proud he is of the whole production team for continuing “to push the envelope on diversity and storytelling.” He added, “As beautiful as the Vegas Strip is, we’re really trying to go into what goes on outside the city as well, just to show the city through a different lens, to showcase it in the best way possible.”

Living in Las Vegas during filming, Porowski said he tries to make himself a “wacky and fun” home away from home. “My castmates all make fun of me because I don’t want it to feel like home,” he told PopCulture. “What I do is that I lean into my childlike self. … There’s no door to the bathroom, so I bought one of those extension rod things and then I got these curtains off Amazon for, like, five bucks that have lightsabers on them because I’m obsessed with Star Wars. … I try to make it wacky and fun.”

The cook also keeps the kitchen feeling homey with “a whole bunch of fresh seeds and herb plants and produce” from Lowe’s, with which he’s partnered just in time for spring gardening and dinner parties. Having a lifetime love for gardening and fresh produce, Porowski said he learned you don’t need a big backyard to grow your own produce during the pandemic, when he began to cultivate fresh foods like arugula, kale, chives, cilantro and parsley at home. 

“That’s what I recommend for anybody who’s intimidated by gardening … look at the life that you have and what’s realistic and what your needs are,” Porowski advised. “Of course, you always want to be aspirational and push the envelope a little and make yourself a little uncomfortable. But if you eat carrots all the time, start learning to grow carrots. You’re going to be more inherently passionate about it, and it’s something that you’re just going to want to engage in more, and you’re more likely to make it sustainable and want to do that season after season.”

As part of his partnership with Lowe’s, Porowski developed some “nostalgic” spring recipes perfect for utilizing your homegrown produce. Keep scrolling to get his key to the perfect warm-weather get-together: 

Garden Potato Salad (Serves 12-16)
Ingredients:
1.5 lb Baby Yukon Gold Potatoes
1.5 lb Baby Red Potatoes
1/2 lb fresh green beans (2 cups)
1/3 c finely diced red onion
1 c finely diced celery
1/2 c finely diced radish
4 hard boiled eggs*
1 1/4 c mayonnaise
3 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp Aleppo pepper (or crushed red pepper)
1/2 c finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh dill

-Boil potatoes until just fork tender. Remove from pot with a slotted spoon and place into a bowl of ice
water to quickly chill.
-While potatoes are cooling, drop green beans into reserved potato water for 1-2 minutes to quickly
blanche. You will know they are ready when the color of the bean turns to bright green. Drain and run
under cold water until cooled.
-Pat dry potatoes and beans to remove excess moisture.
-Into a large bowl add mayo, mustard, lemon juice, salt, pepper, garlic powder, Aleppo pepper, parsley
and dill. Whisk until well incorporated.
-Chop potatoes into small, bite-sized pieces. Cut green beans into roughly one-inch lengths.
-Add potatoes, green beans, red onion, celery and radish to the large bowl containing dressing. Hand
tear eggs into rough pieces and add to bowl. Stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until all vegetables are
fully dressed.

*Quick tip for easy hard-boiled eggs: preheat air fryer to 250. Place eggs in air fryer and cook at 250 for
15 minutes. Remove and place in an ice water bath.

Mediterranean Garden Pasta (Serves 6 as a main, 12-15 as a side)
Ingredients:
For pasta:
1 lb of your favorite pasta (ziti, penne, farfalle or spaghetti work beautifully)
15.5 oz can of garbanzo beans drained and rinsed
2 c diced cucumber (if not using mini or English remove seeds before chopping)
1 c quartered cherry tomatoes
1/2 c thinly sliced red pepper
1/4 c finely minced shallot
1 large carrot shaved into strips with a vegetable peeler and cut in half
2 packed c baby spinach roughly chopped
1 packed c curly parsley finely minced (stems and all)
1/2 c castelvetrano olives roughly chopped
1/2 c pickled beets diced
1/4 c pepperoncini finely diced
7 oz feta crumbled or diced
Dressing:
2 Tbsp mayonnaise
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1/2 c fresh lemon juice (approx 4 large lemons)
3 large cloves of garlic grated
1/2 c olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp fresh oregano leaves finely minced

-Cook pasta according to directions. Make sure to not overcook as will become mushy and break when added to vegetables and dressing. Slightly underdone is perfect as pasta will absorb dressing as it sits.
-Strain and rinse under cold water to stop cooking. Set aside
-In an extra large bowl whisk together all dressing ingredients. Add garbanzo beans and mash with a fork until at least half of the beans are roughly mashed
-Add cucumber, tomato, red pepper, red onion, carrot, spinach, parsley, olives, beets, pepperoncini and feta. Stir all together very well to evenly distribute ingredients and fully coat with dressing. Add pasta and gently fold it in with a rubber spatula to prevent breaking. At this point, pasta is ready to serve but will become even more flavorful if allowed to sit in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours or overnight.

Pear Blackberry Cobbler with Sage Brown Butter
Ingredients:
4 heaping c quartered, cored and sliced pears
6 oz (one pint) blackberries
1 c brown sugar
1/2 c water
1/2 tsp white pepper
Pinch salt
3/4 c sugar
1 1/2 c self-rising flour
1 c milk
2 tsp vanilla
12 Tbsp (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter
2 packed Tbsp fresh sage leaves
1 c chopped pecans

-Preheat oven to 400. Place butter and sage leaves into a 9 x 13 pan and put in oven. Let cook until butter solids separate and brown and sage becomes crispy (12-14 min). You will know you are close when butter begins to smell nutty and butter turns amber in color. Dark brown bits are what you are after. Once your butter has reached this stage, remove from oven and set aside.
-Turn oven down to 350.
-While butter is browning put pears, brown sugar, water, white pepper and salt into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and continue to cook for about 10 minutes until pears become tender and liquid becomes syrupy.
-In a medium-sized bowl mix sugar, flour, milk and vanilla. Stir just until no lumps remain in batter. Add to melted sage butter by pouring into middle of pan. (DO NOT MIX)
-Spoon pears and their liquid over the batter, again do not mix. Stud with blackberries and sprinkle pecans over the top in an even layer.
-Bake at 350 for 30-35 min. Cobbler is done when lightly browned and internal temp is 190.
-Serve plain, with whipped cream or your favorite vanilla ice cream.

Spicy Strawberry Refresher (Makes one cocktail or mocktail)
Ingredients:
2 medium-sized strawberries, chopped
1 slice fresh jalapeño
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp fresh whole cilantro leaves
pinch salt
1 oz tequila (sub ginger beer for a mocktail)
Prosecco (sub ginger beer for a mocktail)
Fresh orange juice

-To a 16 oz glass, add strawberries, jalapeño, sugar, cilantro and salt. Muddle together in bottom of glass. (If you don’t have a traditional muddler the handle of a wooden spoon may be used.)
-Add 1/2 c ice and tequila, stir vigorously.
-Top with Prosecco and a splash of orange juice.