Food Network Star Anne Burrell Wasn't "Outed" by Ted Allen

Secrets of a Restaurant Chef "has made no secret of her relationship [with a woman]," her rep says

Ted Allen wasn't stirring up any trouble when he revealed that fellow Food Network star Anne Burrell is a lesbian.

The Chopped host recently said on Romaine Patterson's Sirius XM show that he was "not going to put a label on Anne, but she is dating a woman right now." But Burrell's rep tells E! News that the Secrets of a Restaurant Chef star never made her relationship status a secret and what Allen said is "not really a big deal to her."

The rep says that it sounds more like Sirius host Derek Hartley was caught off-guard when Allen mentioned that Burrell is dating a woman.

Burrell's "significant other is a very private woman," her rep told the New York Post. But "they have been together for a couple of years and spend a lot of time together. It is no secret in the culinary world."

Out magazine noted last year that although the Food Network has a sizable gay audience, none of its major stars have publicly come out. Bob Tuschman, general manager and senior vice president of the network, noted that Food Network is "always looking to broaden the diversity of our hosts."

Allen, meanwhile, became a household name when he starred on the Bravo hit Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.