• Food Porn is a term for a spectacular visual presentation of cooking or eating in adverts, infomercials, cooking shows or other visual media. The most notable example may be Iron Chef, which has very little educational value, but scores remarkably high on the visual spectacle of cooking, cooking implements and the ingredients of food preparation. In much the same way that pornography can be a vicarious substitute for actual sexual relations, "food porn" is seen as a substitute for actually cooking and eating the food in question. Similarly, in much the same way that pornography may display feats of performance that average people would not attempt, "food porn" sometimes features exotic ingredients and excessively elaborate recipes and preparation.

• Food Porn is also sometimes used to refer to food that is very high in calories or a poor nutritional choice. The Hardee's Monster Thickburger is a notable example. This usage is commonly used, and perhaps coined, by the Center for Science in the Public Interest .

• Food Porn may also refer to pornography in which sexual games are played with food items. Such pornography appears to be quite popular in Japan. A brilliant example of this is evidenced in the film Tampopo by Juzo Itami. In The West, the film Nine 1/2 Weeks started a (mostly short-lived) fad of incorporating food into sexual play.

See also:

• food stylist