Chef Gordon Ramsay of "Hell's Kitchen" - "Kitchen Nightmares" and owner of 23 restaurants is the highest earning chef in the U.S., with a global income of $38 million, according to Forbes.
Rachael Ray with $25 million and Wolfgang Puck $20 million rounds out the top three.
Forbes' magazine says that factors, such as TV, merchandising and cookbooks helped pump up their incomes.
Here's the ranking of the top paid chefs:
1: Gordon Ramsay, $38 million
2: Rachael Ray, $25 million
3: Wolfgang Puck, $20 million
4: Paula Deen, $17 million
5: Mario Batali, $13 million
6: Alain Ducasse, $12 million
7: Todd English, $11 million
8: Nobu Matsuhisa, $10 million
9: Bobby Flay, $9 million
10: Guy Fieri, $8 million
We were surprised that Anthony Bourdain wasn't on the list.
We checked, and while we can't get an accurate number on his TV shows, Anthony Bourdain makes around $1.5 million dollars each year. He makes most of his money from live appearances rather than his book or television show.
His total worth (we are told) is $6 million.
Additionally, Emeril Lagasse (back in 2011) had an estimated net worth of $18 million US annually. In 2012, who knows?
