Gavin Rossdale feasts with friends in new cooking show — but first he's in Chicago for Q101’S Twisted Xmas

“Dinner With Gavin Rossdale” is finally ready. On Feb. 13, the brand-new series — offering a mix of cooking and conversation with the musician and special dinner guests — will debut on on WatchFree+, a free streaming service available on Vizio TVs and the Vizio mobile app.

“I’ve been talking about it for some time,” Rossdale shares in a recent Zoom interview from his home recording studio, not far from the kitchen and dining room where the new show takes place. “My only form of expression was making songs and I thought that it would be really fun to open up a new side of myself that people wouldn’t have seen before.”

As viewers watch Rossdale cook up grouper in a black peppercorn sauce for Selma Blair or deconstructed fish tacos for Serena Williams, they get a whole new appreciation for the talent of the famous Brit who, for 30 years, has been known to most as the eclectic and sultry frontman of rock band Bush. Though it’s not too much of a leap — in Rossdale’s opinion, there’s a clear intersection of music and food.

“There’s something similar with how musicians have to be consistent each night with songs, and chefs and kitchens have to be consistent with dishes. … Working on the line, you could argue it’s similar to being on a stage,” he says. “There’s a sustained focus on your craft.”

The new series takes cues from some of Rossdale’s favorite shows like “Dinner for Five” with Jon Favreau and “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” with Jerry Seinfeld. It’s a natural extension of what Rossdale has always looked forward to when he’s not touring the world performing hits like “Machinehead,” “Everything Zen” and “Swallowed” (which he will do again this month at Aragon Ballroom on Dec. 13 as part of Q101’s Twisted Xmas). That is, cooking for his three boys (with ex-wife Gwen Stefani) and a motley crew of friends and colleagues.

More than cooking though, “Dinner With Gavin Rossdale” also hones in on the intimate conversations that come over sharing a meal (and sometimes a good sing-along too).

“I’m very inquisitive … especially about people that have done cool things … because it’s through that you can identify with people,” says Rossdale.

Among his special guests, also including Tom Jones, Jack McBrayer and Brooke Shields, one of Rossdale’s favorite moments was cooking for Chicago rapper Common.

“What I liked about Common is he’s a true Renaissance Man and that’s a beautiful thing going into 2025 for him to have achieved so much in so many areas,” Rossdale shares. He was also moved by a beautiful prayer of grace that Common recited before they dined. “I’m not religious so it was a beautiful moment sharing in his culture and feeling the gravity of that amount of respect and reverence.”

The episode with Selma Blair was another high point that tested Rossdale’s creative cooking ideas. Rossdale admits he really didn’t start cooking until later in life, shortly before Bush found worldwide stardom with its 1994 debut “Sixteen Stone.” He was broke and living in London’s Notting Hill with a roommate reared in an Italian restaurant, and Rossdale got inspired. He has forever taken that curiosity with him into the kitchen.

Before the taping with Blair, the actor told Rossdale she was big fan of curries but cautioned it would probably be too much work. So, Rossdale says, “I did something a bit oft-kilter, with a bit of spice but not too spicy.” What resulted is the grouper in black peppercorn sauce recipe he shares here (see below).

“This dish is very Chinese-based but what’s unusual about it is that the black pepper sauce uses butter, which takes it from a Chinese dish to Singaporean. … If you taste the sauce before you put the butter in, and if you taste it after, it’s completely different.”

When Rossdale heads back to Chicago this week, he’s going to miss one of his own favorite gatherings over a meal — with a good friend, the late Steve Albini and wife Heather Whinna.

“Steve was also a great cook,” Rossdale remembers. Bush worked with the lauded audio engineer and producer on their sophomore album, 1996’s "Razorblade Suitcase" with Albini honing in on the rawer, frenetic side of the band. Ever since, the two had a “really nice ongoing good friendship,” says Rossdale, who is planning on paying his respects at the newly dedicated Steve Albini Way near his Electrical Audio studio.

Thinking of Albini and 30 years of Bush (the band just released the compilation album, “Loaded: The Greatest Hits 1993-2024”) gives Rossdale pause and also a hunger for the future.

“It feels empowering to have been part of a wave of something that people felt culturally,” Rossdale says of finding his spot in the revered ‘90s rock milieu. “For me, it leads a drive to be more creative, have more thirst for knowledge … it’s this weird thing of forging forward, trying to do interesting things … and being aware of making stuff that people connect to. That’s a really beautiful thing.”

Grouper in Black Peppercorn Sauce

INGREDIENTS:

For the fish:

• Japanese grouper or swordfish (cut into portions on bias)

For the sauce:

• 6 tbsp oyster sauce
  
• 6 tbsp white sugar
  
• 6 tbsp sweet soy
  
• 2 tbsp butter
  
• 4 cloves garlic (grated)
  
• 1 tsp coriander powder
  
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
  
• 1 spring onion
  
• 2 tbsp white pepper
  
• Black pepper (lightly crushed)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat a cast iron, copper, or stainless steel pan (the heavier the better) and bring to medium heat. Add a neutral oil like grapeseed oil.

2. Ensure the skin of the fish is very dry before cooking. Avoid crowding the pan, ideally cooking one filet at a time. Gently press the filet skin-side down in the pan for 3 to 4 minutes and hold evenly to develop a good crust. Flip over and add ½-cup of butter and baste for another 2 minutes. Remove from the heat when it reaches a temperature of 155 degrees Fahrenheit. Rest and cover in more butter.

3. Make the sauce by melting the butter in a pan, and add the rest of the wet ingredients and heat gently. Be sure to add plenty of black pepper.

4. Serve the fish on a bed of rice and pour the sauce over it. Pair with a vegetable of choice, like broccolini. Garnish with cilantro to taste (optional).