Move over Mr. Food and Emeril. David Gunkel, a communication professor, soon will join the ranks of television chefs.

On March 1, Gunkel was featured on the premier of WTTW’s “Your Chicago Kitchen,” a two-hour cooking show that showcases the culinary skills of local people.

Gunkel specializes in Polish and Italian cuisine. His love for cooking started when he was a young boy.

“My grandmother taught me how to cook, and every Sunday all of my family gathers for a big meal,” Gunkel said.

For the show, Gunkel prepared a classic Polish soup known as chlodnik litewski. The soup, consisting of beets, eggs, dill, sour cream and onions, is served cold and tastes best with either vodka or Polish beer.

Not only is the soup rich in taste, but it is even more rich in history. It was the soup’s history and originality that piqued the interest of the show’s producer, Jerry Liwanag.

More than 200 people were competing for one of the show’s 10 spots.

“When we went through the applications, we not only looked at the recipes, but we looked at their uniqueness and history. We made our decision based off of that,” Liwanag said.

The soup is more than 500 years old and originated when Poland and Lithuania were one country, Gunkel said. The recipe he uses is a family recipe with different variations.

“I try to go to Poland every summer, and when I go to different restaurants, I order the soup,” Gunkel said. “If I like the way it tastes, I’ll ask the chef what ingredients he uses, and I’ll add those ingredients to my own recipe. The soup is extremely popular there. It is like fast food.”

Although the show was fun, Gunkel admits he was uneasy about being on television. His previous television experience circled around producing. Being in front of the camera was new for him.

Since his appearance, Gunkel said he has gotten over that nervousness, and even laughingly said, “I would love to challenge the Iron Chef!”