Usha Vance Gets Taken Down A Peg By Padma Lakshmi After JD Meal Debacle

In spite of — or perhaps because of – his seemingly desperate need to be liked, Vice President JD Vance is no stranger to getting mocked online. This time, though, JD is getting roasted for something he likely didn’t expect: his skills in the kitchen. The controversial VP once opened up about a not-so-delicious meal he made for his wife. Now, a culinary expert is sharing her opinion on the dish, and no, it’s not good.

On February 21, 2026, JD and Usha Vance sat down with frequently mocked first daughter-in-law Lara Trump for a Fox News interview. Lara asked JD about his experience cooking for Usha, and he recalled a recipe he’d created. “Usha is a vegetarian, and I am not. So, I’m thinking to myself, ‘What does a vegetarian eat?'” JD explained. According to him, vegetarians eat “vegetables, dairy and bread. So, I went to the grocery store. I got those crescent rolls that you can get that are very good. I rolled them out into a pizza shape and put vegetables and ranch on top, and stuck it in the oven for 30 minutes.”

In JD’s defense, he was under no illusions that this meal was a winner. “It was disgusting,” he explained, adding, “It was actually inedible.” The experts seem to concur. While appearing on “The Daily Show” on February 24, “Top Chef” and “America’s Culinary Cup” host Padma Lakshmi asked what we’re all thinking: “Who bakes ranch dressing?” Plus, she’s wondering what this says about Usha’s taste buds.

Like many of us, Padma Lakshmi was clearly befuddled by JD Vance’s culinary confession. “He’s married an Indian woman, so she comes from this very deep, vast culinary tradition,” she said, “and he’s giving her … ranch dressing?” Lakshmi also made note of how odd JD’s perception of Usha Vance’s dietary restrictions were. “He’s like, ‘She’s a vegetarian. She only eats bread, vegetables, and dairy.’ You’ve been married to this person for over a decade, right? And we eat lots of things … Rice, lentils, beans, squash, all this stuff.”

While meat may be a part of JD’s diet, it is pretty odd that he doesn’t seem able to empathize with a vegetarian. Saying Usha only eats bread and vegetables is reductive to the rich palate of her Telugu Indian heritage and its tradition of vibrant spices and bold flavors.  especially since he’s married to one. Lakshmi’s possible explanation for this? “Maybe he knows what she likes because she doesn’t really have good taste.”

Despite JD’s ick-inducing account of the worst meal he’s prepped for Usha, the SLOTUS has had kinder words about his cooking in the past. At the 2024 Republican National Convention, she said, “When JD met me, he approached our differences with curiosity and enthusiasm … Although he’s a meat-and-potatoes kind of guy, he adapted to my vegetarian diet and learned to cook food from my mother, Indian food.” Who knows? Maybe JD’s understanding of his wife’s food preferences has improved since his baked ranch dressing fiasco. Then again, maybe Usha was just covering for her hubby’s horrible cooking habits.