In the coronavirus pandemic, even celebrities have to cook at home.

Because dining out is limited by state regulations aimed at limiting the spread of COVID-19, cooking and baking are on the rise for many people, and Selena Gomez counts herself among them. Although she’s a successful professional singer and actress, Gomez is definitely not a professional chef. But she’s trying.

In the new HBO Max series “Selena + Chef” (streaming Aug. 13), Gomez, 28, tries to learn how to be a better cook from professional chefs, including Antonia Lofaso, Ludo Lefebvre and Nancy Silverton. They walk her through dishes like a classic French omelette or matcha chocolate chip cookies and she tries to re-create the restaurant-quality dish. The only catch? It’s all happening remotely in quarantine, so the chefs can offer Gomez only their best advice over video chat.

“It was so strange, because there was no one in my house but there were cameras everywhere,” she said at a virtual Television Critics Association panel. ”It comes out so well, (and looks) like a normal cooking show. And that was really really, cool, but also really odd because (the crew) was outside.”

Gomez, who rarely appears in unscripted programming, thought the series could bring some lightness and levity to the world amid the pandemic.