NEW YORK — A regulation enforcement official says Chef Anne Burrell’s demise is being investigated as a doable drug overdose.
Officers say she was found unconscious and unresponsive within the bathe surrounded by roughly 100 assorted tablets.
Burrell, finest generally known as the longtime co-host of Meals Community’s “Worst Cooks in America,” died Tuesday at her dwelling in New York. She was 55.
Her explanation for demise remains to be pending additional testing.
In an announcement, Burrell’s household remembered her as “a beloved spouse, sister, daughter, stepmother, and pal.”
“Her smile lit up each room she entered,” the assertion learn. “Anne’s mild radiated far past these she knew, touching tens of millions the world over. Although she is not with us, her heat, spirit, and boundless love stay everlasting.”
Meals Community additionally honored the late chef in a separate assertion.
“Anne was a exceptional particular person and culinary expertise — educating, competing and all the time sharing the significance of meals in her life and the enjoyment {that a} scrumptious meal can convey,” the community said. “Our ideas are with Anne’s household, buddies and followers throughout this time of super loss.”
Born Sept. 21, 1969, in Cazenovia, New York, Burrell developed a ardour for cooking early on, impressed by her mom’s home-cooked meals and TV icon Julia Youngster.
She earned a level in English and Communications from Canisius Faculty in Buffalo, New York, earlier than pursuing her culinary schooling on the Culinary Institute of America, graduating in 1996.
She went on to review in Italy on the Italian Culinary Institute for Foreigners, the place she honed her love for Italian delicacies by way of apprenticeships throughout the nation.
Upon returning to the U.S. in 1998, Burrell labored as a sous chef at Felidia in Manhattan beneath Lidia Bastianich and later led the kitchen at Savoy in SoHo, the place she crafted Mediterranean-inspired dishes over an open wooden fireplace.
After a number of years within the restaurant world, she transitioned to educating on the Institute of Culinary Training for over three years. She later returned to kitchens and started her tv profession as a sous chef on “Iron Chef America,” ultimately touchdown her personal Emmy-nominated present, “Secrets and techniques of a Restaurant Chef,” which ran for 9 seasons.
Burrell turned a staple on Meals Community, showing in reveals together with “Chopped,” “Chef Wished” and “Meals Community Star,” most just lately competing in “Home of Knives” in 2025.
She additionally authored two cookbooks, together with the New York Occasions bestseller “Cook dinner Like a Rock Star.”
Burrell is survived by her husband Stuart Claxton, whom she married in October 2021, and his son Javier; her mom Marlene; her sister Jane and Jane’s kids Isabella, Amelia, and Nicolas; and her brother Ben.
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