Tia Mowry Embraces Family Cooking Traditions in 'Not Like My Mama' and Talks Holiday Food Plans (Exclusive)

Tia Mowry's love of food and family has been more present than ever in recent years for the mother of two. With c lookbook on our own, as well as her YouTube channel that centers on lifestyle hacks, she's constantly adding new ventures to her plate. Her latest culinary competition series,  Not Like Mama, is no different. The show is brought to streaming services via FilmRise and lifestyle entertainment company Kin. Mowry hosts alongside singer-songwriter and talk show host Terrell Grice. Each episode pits everyday cooks against their own recollections – and lets their family members and the hosts judge the special dishes they make. Can these 10 cooks successfully recreate their matriarch's (and one patriarch's) dishes – without a written recipe – or will their food be labeled "not like mama used to cook?" The show is available to stream on major platforms including Tubi, YouTube, The Roku Channel, FilmRise streaming apps, and more.

PopCulture.com spoke with Mowry about her own family food traditions and what she enjoyed most from the show. She also dished on keeping things balanced during the holidays, and how she plans on creating new traditions this year for her children centered around exploration. 

I love the concept of Not Like Mama because it's all it's all about family, food, and tradition. What role would you say the food played growing up in your household and your family?

TM: Food growing up in my household was very important. It was the centerpiece of the family. And my parents both worked and they had very busy schedules, long days. But it was very important for them to have food at the dinner table at the end of the day so that all of us could get together and bond, and create memories, and share each other's experiences. And so it has had a huge impact on my life. 

Some of my best memories and fondest memories, I would say, were around the dinner table. We used to have this glass table. And I just remember spaghetti sauce, getting all over, our fingerprints on the table. And at the end of our meal, we would have to, of course, clean the kitchen and make sure that the table was back. We had very pristine military parents. But all of that didn't matter because of what came before that. It was great memories when all of us could get together. 

And I even realize the importance of it now, because when you are older and the older you get, the less time you get to spend with your family members because everybody is doing their own thing and everybody has their own life. So usually, we just get together during holidays. But growing up, it was an everyday thing. And I'm just so happy we did do that. Because, again, it's so far and few when it comes to now.

In this specific show, you guys are working with amateur cooks. Was there a favorite recipe shared throughout the process that you took in and saved for yourself to share with your family?

There were these egg rolls that were just so tasty and so fantastic. And what I really loved about it was this was a family that had Italian heritage and Vietnamese heritage. And so they were able to blend both of those cultures together and come up with this amazing dish. And when I say it was so fantastic, and it something that I had never tasted before. Because when you look at Italian cuisine, you don't think of egg rolls. And then when you think of Vietnamese egg rolls, you don't think of Italian. 

So for her to be able to combine both of these – it was definitely a risk on her part. But for her to be able to combine both of these cultures together was courageous and delicious. So I would definitely say that. And I've never really tackled eggrolls before.

I love the chemistry between you and Terrell Grice. What do you love about working with him the most?

First of all, it's like we're attached at the hip. We still talk to each other. We still see each other. We still hang out at the house together. I think what I love about him the most, and I even told him was like, never have I ever worked with someone next to me that made me feel like family. I have worked with my sister for years. And what I mean by that is when I would work with my sister, there was a sense of comfort that if I even forgot something or I was struggling with a thought, she would always pick it up. It was just that built-in telepathy or sense of comfort. And I think because he's just raw and he's just an honest person. Qualities like that in this industry are very rare. And he's very comfortable being in front the camera. 

I don't know if you know his story or his background. It's not like he came up in this business or he grew up wanting to be in this industry. It kind of just happened to him. And I think when it happens that way, there's something organic and this natural born kind of star quality that you have. And I feel like he does have that. And he's funny as hell and he just tells it like it is, which is perfect for a culinary show.

Now, as women age, typically, their mothers, grandmothers, and aunts teach them about the kitchen. So tell me some of your favorite memories and how you're passing them along to your daughter. 

Some of my favorite memories about being in the kitchen is being my mother's sous chef, especially during the holidays. I just loved the stillness. During the holidays, there's a lot of cooking. And there's a lot of moving pieces. But what I mean by the stillness is actually being able to be present with her, where it was just me and her. When you have a family of five, you don't really always get that one-on-one quality bonding time. And I was able to get that with my mom when I was in the kitchen and we were cutting up the greens. And when I was frying the chicken she was telling me to wash the chicken and season the chicken. I still remember those memories. And I think it's because of that stillness and being present with one another was just so moving to me and bonding. And I want those same experiences when it comes to my kids. 

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My son is actually in the kitchen more now and he loves being in the kitchen. He actually wants to make his own breakfast. She's like, 'No, mom, I got this, I got this, I got this.' And even as a mom, you're kind of looking over your shoulder. The other day, he was making bacon. Then he decided to put salt on it. And I;m like, 'Hey, what are you doing? Do you know this is wrong?' He's like, 'Mom, I do this all the time.' But my point is there was laughter, and there was this memory created. 

And even with my daughter, she has a a tower, and it's something that she gets in so that she can actually reach the counter and that she doesn't fall. But she's starting to help me. We even have knives and stuff specifically for toddlers so that she can use cutting boards and all of that. When people come together for a project or for a meal or for a dish, iit brings on this sense of togetherness and community. You're working towards something together and there's just magic that happens in that experience. And I just want to continue to build those wonderful, amazing experiences for my children. And then they're going to do the same for their children. It's about tradition for me. And it just makes me feel good as a human being, as a parent, as a mother.

So we are in the holiday season. It's a binge-eating season. It's the winter months. So it's all about comfort food. What are some of your favorite family recipes? But also, you have a cookbook about how food is related to health and how food can be a healer. How can we curb that during this time and make sure that we're still making sure that it's a healthy balance?

I think some of my favorite dishes that have been passed down, especially during the cold winter months – pasta is something that I've been eating, maybe two times out of the week right now. And my dad, he has this amazing recipe – actually, we did this recipe on my YouTube channel, Tia Mowry's Quick Fix – and then of course, I've done my own version of it too –  but my dad has been making this spaghetti and meatballs recipe ever since I could remember. So that's something that we've been chowing down on, and I've been eating that unapologetically. 

And then in regards to wellness, I'm a huge believer in comfort food and great food, great tasting food. So. It's just about swapping out and having alternatives. So maybe instead of, for example, with meatballs, you could use breadcrumbs. And instead of using breadcrumbs, you could supplement oats. And what I like to do is I'll just soak the oats in some milk so that they puff. And then I'll go ahead and add them to my new meatballs. And instead of doing pork and beef, you could do turkey. So you could still have these amazing comfort dishes, but just kind of swap out the ingredients. That's one way. 

Or you could just have a certain schedule. Maybe Monday through Friday, you can be more mindful. And then on the weekends, you can indulge and have a good time. So I would say those are my tips.

How are you planning to spend your holiday? And are you cooking this year?

That's a really, really good question. So what I'm deciding to do this year – and I feel like I am moving towards this from now on – I'm all about the holidays and gift-giving. And there will be some of that, but it's not going to be as much because I feel like the biggest gift that I can give to my children are experiences and memories and growth and learning. So, one of my favorite things that I love to do with my children is travel. So we are going to be traveling to Thailand this year. And to be able to see their faces light up as they explore is exciting. I've never been either. So it'll be us building memories together, seeing temples for the first time, exploring Thai food, indulging in their cultural delicacies, learning about their religion, and getting a broader sense of someone's culture other than your own. I feel like is a way that it's it builds character and it's one of my beliefs on how we can make this world a better place when we are less narrow-minded of our own understanding and learn more about others. So that is the biggest gift that I want to give my children this year. 

So to answer your question, will there be cooking this year? Now. There's been tons of cooking throughout the year and during other holidays. But this year it's more about indulging and learning. And then what can I do to bring that home? What can I learn to add to my book of recipes that I can pass down to my kids and then they can pass down to their kids?