[3][4][5][6] Adopted at the age of one week, she grew up as the daughter of Virginia Lee (née Brothers) and Spiro "Pete" Cora in Jackson, Mississippi.

[7][8] Her adoptive father was of Greek descent (his parents being from Skopelos, Greece, himself born in Greenville, Mississippi only two months after they had arrived in America).

[2] After earning her Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Physiology and Biology from the University of Southern Mississippi, she enrolled at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York where she graduated in 1995.

[7][11] Cora made her TV debut in 1999 as co-host with chef Rocco DiSpirito of Food Network’s Melting Pot.

Cora is the co-host of Around the World in 80 Plates, an American reality competition show that premiered on May 9, 2012 on the Bravo cable TV network.

[19] Cora competed in the 2021 Second Annual Guy Fieri's Tournament of Champions on the Food Network, narrowly losing to Michael Voltaggio.

The eponymous Cat Cora's Kitchen,[23] a bar and lounge-style restaurant, opened at Terminal 2 at San Francisco International Airport in April 2011.

Since 2016, she has a partnership with Aramark, providing dining options in businesses, universities, schools, hospitals and sports stadiums under the names Olilo and Wicked Eats.

][27] Her first cookbook, Cat Cora's Kitchen (2004), was inspired by her Greek heritage and Southern roots, and contains numerous recipes that were her family's favorites while she was growing up.

[38] In the September 2006 issue of FHM, Cora was featured in the cooking section, where she demonstrated various recipes using items purchased from a convenience store.

She released a statement after her arrest, saying: "I deeply regret my decision to drive that evening after my designated driver became unavailable.