For actor and bestselling cookbook author Brian Baumgartner, food isn’t just food—it’s the secret to nurturing relationships. Baumgartner, who for nine seasons starred as Kevin Malone on the Emmy Award–winning sitcom The Office, may be the funny guy on-screen, but when it comes to cooking he’s all business. His passion for making delicious food is on display in two cookbooks: Seriously Good Chili Cookbook: 177 of the Best Recipes in the World and Seriously Good Barbeque Cookbook: Over 100 of the Best Recipes in the World. The books, available from Fox Chapel Publishing, include recipes galore—all hand selected by Baumgartner—and invite foodies of every stripe, whether cooking newbies or seasoned pros, to make dishes they can savor and share.
"There are very few things that give me as much joy as preparing delicious food for people and watching them truly enjoy it,” Baumgartner says. “I love how joyful people get, particularly when they are eating something they have never had before or that is prepared in a new way.”
Baumgartner became a cookbook author by accident, and it started in 2009 with a pot of chili on the set of The Office. In the now-famous opening scene of season five, episode 26, Baumgartner’s character, Kevin, is seen carrying into the office a pot of his “famous chili,” which he promptly drops, spilling chili all over the carpet. When the episode aired, the scene went viral, and Baumgartner became the internet’s “chili guy.”
“I had never made chili in my life prior to ‘The Incident,’ as I call it,” Baumgartner says. “Kevin spilling the chili opened my eyes to a whole new community and type of food."
Going viral compelled Baumgartner to write Seriously Good Chili Cookbook. Released in 2022, the book features recipes from past national chili-making champions, world-renowned chefs, and people who, well, just like making chili; it includes a history of chili and fun facts, as well as the author’s own chili recipe. The success of the book prompted Baumgartner to write about BBQ next—a passion of his since he was a young man growing up in the South.
Born in Atlanta in 1972, Baumgartner is all about the four Fs of Southern life: family, friends, food, and football. In his youth, he religiously attended University of Georgia football games and, along the way, developed an appreciation for BBQ. He fondly recalls taking the 70-mile journey from Atlanta to Athens on game days and setting up a BBQ pit outside the stadium, making brisket and baby back ribs and tailgating with other fans.
“Tailgating, come on, nothing better than that,” Baumgartner says. “You might be a fan of the ‘wrong team,’ but walking through tailgates before the game you are always welcome to stop by and try some food from total strangers’ pits. I love that.”
Seriously Good Barbeque Cookbook, which was released in June, first took shape in 2020, when Baumgartner set off on a 2,000-mile road trip to visit his parents in Georgia and, along the way, made stops in search of the best BBQ meals around. He ate beef brisket in Texas, burnt ends in Kansas City, pork ribs in Memphis, and all the BBQ he could handle at Rodney Scott’s BBQ in Charleston, S.C.. Seriously Good Barbeque Cookbook covers it all, from cooking techniques—grilling, barbequing, smoking—to how to apply heat to your meat. There are sections on sauces, rubs, and marinades, sweet treats, and drinks and lots of photos of mouthwatering creations. And of course there are the recipes—for Kansas-style BBQ, Texas-style BBQ, Southern-style BBQ, and more—all anointed with the Baumgartner seal of approval. “If I think it is ‘seriously good,’ then it is seriously good,” he says. “It’s as simple as that.”
These days, when Baumgartner isn’t traveling for work, he can be found at home in Southern California at the grill four to five days a week. “I actually have some picky eaters in my house, so maybe that’s why I enjoy the communal aspects of BBQ,” he says. “It allows me to stretch what I usually make for my family.”
Baumgartner’s number one tip for cooks: don’t be afraid to get messy and screw up. “I want folks to have the courage to get a little creative,” he says. “I try to make cooking not intimidating. Take the mystery out of things and give people the confidence to just try."
