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Offline apskip

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Top Chef Masters 3
« on: March 02, 2011, 10:59:44 AM »
Bravo's "Top Chef Masters" returns with a brand new format and 12 new award-winning chefs hungry to compete for the title of "Top Chef Master" and win $100,000 for their charity. This season, the masters will no longer be judged on a scale, but in elimination style challenges just as the tried and true format of the original "Top Chef." In each episode, money will be at stake, with the winners of every quickfire challenge winning $5,000 and elimination challenges winning $10,000 for their designated charities. As previously announced, celebrity chef Curtis Stone will serve as the newly appointed host of the series along with returning judge and culinary expert, James Oseland, and new series judge, the legendary food critic and author, Ruth Reichl. The third season of "Top Chef Masters" premieres on Wednesday, April 6 at 11 p.m. ET/PT and will move to its regular time period on April 13 at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

Following are the 12 "Top Chef Masters" competing chefs:

- Hugh Acheson - Chef/ Partner: Five& Ten, The National, Gosford Wine - in Athens, GA and Empire State South, Atlanta, GA; Competing for Wholesome Wave Foundation

- Floyd Cardoz - Former Executive Chef/Partner- of Tabla and soon-to-be Executive Chef/Partner of a new Danny Meyer restaurant; Competing for Young Scientist Cancer Research Fund

- John Currence - City Grocery Restaurant Group, Oxford, MS Competing for No Kid Hungry

- Traci Des Jardins - Chef/Co-owner of Jardini�re, Mijita Cocina Mexicana and Public House and Manzanita, San Francisco, CA; Competing for La Cocina

- George Mendes - Chef/Co-Owner of ALDEA, Manhattan, NY; Competing for Charity: Water

- Mary Sue Milliken - Co-Chef/ Owner: Border Grill Restaurants and Truck, Los Angeles, CA; Competing for Share Our Strength

- Naomi Pomeroy - Owner: Beast in Portland, OR; Competing for Seed Savers Exchange

- Suvir Saran - Executive Chef: D�vi, New York, NY; Competing for Agricultural Stewardship Association

- John Rivera Sedlar - Owner: Playa, Los Angeles, CA; Competing for American Diabetes Association

- Alex Stratta - Executive Chef: Stratta, Las Vegas, NV; Competing for Faster Cures, part of the Milken Prostate Cancer Foundation

- Celina Tio - Chef/Owner: JULIAN Restaurant, Kansas City, MO, Competing for Harvesters

- Sue Zemanick - Executive Chef: Gautreau's, New Orleans, LA; Competing for the Louisiana SPCA

So, Curtis Stone replaces Kelly Choi ( a plus for viewers even though I liked her) and Ruth Reichl has repalced Jay Rayner and Gael Greene

some master entertainers and celebrity guest judges including: Mad Men's Christina Hendricks, pop/rock group Maroon 5 and pop sensation Kelis, among others. For a 30 second only sneak peek of the third season of "Top Chef Masters" go to: http://www.bravotv.com/top-chef-masters/season-3/videos/for-culinary-glory

 

Offline apskip

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #1 on: March 31, 2011, 05:44:39 PM »
TCM3 begins in 6 nights at a special 11 pm EDT one-time time slot after the Top Chef 8 Reunion next Wednesday night. After next week it will drop into the TC8 time slot at 10pm.


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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #2 on: April 07, 2011, 05:33:11 PM »
TCM3

The new top Chef Masters 3 is very different from TCM1 and TCM2. The main difference is related to the long season with no break, which world-class chefs used to keep up with their restaurants. In TCM3 the format is what Top Chef’s format is, starting with 12 chefs and eliminating one each week to get to the final 2 or 3, depending on whether the finale will be one-episode or two-episode. What got lost in the translation is that there are no world-class chefs competing in TCM3. The chefs are all first-class, but nobody is world-class. The closest to that in my opinion is Traci des Jardins, who has one Guest Judge appearance (TC6-12) in her background. None of the rest of the chefs are so high-profile that I have heard of them. Well, that is about to change.

Here were the chefs competing in TCM3:
- Hugh Acheson - Chef/ Partner: Five& Ten, The National, Gosford Wine - in Athens, GA and Empire State South, Atlanta, GA; Competing for Wholesome Wave Foundation

- Floyd Cardoz - Former Executive Chef/Partner- of Tabla and soon-to-be Executive Chef/Partner of a new Danny Meyer restaurant; Competing for Young Scientist Cancer Research Fund

- John Currence - City Grocery Restaurant Group, Oxford, MS Competing for No Kid Hungry

- Traci Des Jardins - Chef/Co-owner of Jardinire, Mijita Cocina Mexicana and Public House and Manzanita, San Francisco, CA; Competing for La Cocina

- George Mendes - Chef/Co-Owner of ALDEA, Manhattan, NY; Competing for Charity: Water

- Mary Sue Milliken - Co-Chef/ Owner: Border Grill Restaurants and Truck, Los Angeles, CA; Competing for Share Our Strength

- Naomi Pomeroy - Owner: Beast in Portland, OR; Competing for Seed Savers Exchange

- Suvir Saran - Executive Chef: Davi, New York, NY; Competing for Agricultural Stewardship Association

- John Rivera Sedlar - Owner: Playa, Los Angeles, CA; Competing for American Diabetes Association

- Alex Stratta - Executive Chef: Stratta, Las Vegas, NV; Competing for Faster Cures, part of the Milken Prostate Cancer Foundation

- Celina Tio - Chef/Owner: JULIAN Restaurant, Kansas City, MO, Competing for Harvesters

- Sue Zemanick - Executive Chef: Gautreau's, New Orleans, LA; Competing for the Louisiana SPCA

I must state that when I see the list of restaurant experience, I would have to elevate both Sue Zemanick (Gautreau’s) and Floyd Cardoz (formerly Tabla and soon to be at a new Danny Meyer Restaurant)

Curtis Stone replaces Kelly Choi (a plus for viewers even though I liked her) and Ruth Reichl has replaced Jay Rayner and Gael Greene. James Osener remains as a Judge. Quickfire wins would result in $5k prize for the charity and elimination Challenge wins $10K to the charity. Total prize money was $100K for finishing first for TCM3 and a total of $250K in prize money over the episodes (at $15K per episode and 8 episodes left before the Finale those numbers do not appear to add up).


TCM3, Ep. 1

Osener and Reichl arrived to Judge the Quickfire. There were 15 mystery boxes and each chef would randomly pick one for pairing with the ingredient select by their adversary. It was one of those impossible challenges involving 2 very disparate main ingredients and 20 minutes was too much time pressure for some. Here were the dishes presented (or not) in competing pairings of 2 based on physical proximity(winner of each pair gets a *):

*Suvir – makes something out of corned beef with marshmallows
Tio – could not finish

*Traci – duet of salads with licorice and peanut butter
John – licorice, bacon and peanut butter hors d’oeuvres

*Mary Sue –cottage cheese and frogs’ legs
John – no cottage cheese sauce on the plate

*George - popcorn and chicken livers
Sue - unclear

*Floyd -cockles and marmite (vegetable spread from Australia)
Alex – marmite soup vs. cockles/leek soup

*Hugh - dragon fruit and sardines
Naomi - was not able to finish

Those considered for the Quickfire win were Mary sue vs. Traci. Traci won $5K for La Cocina.
The winners of these duos were Suvir, Traci, Mary Sue, George, Floyd and Hugh. Traci and Mary Sue were the two best. Traci’s salad duo won the $5K and immunity for the Elimination Challenge. All six of them were designated to be Team Red in Restaurant Wars, the first week Elimination Challenge. The three first-round non-presenters and other 3 losers were on Team Blue. Team Red named its restaurant Leela and Team Blue named its restaurant Mosaic. Both teams split their manpower 3/3 to Restaurant Depot and Whole Foods. Alex found some really large scallops but did not think they would pose a problem. Mary Sue decided to do cupcakes, but then back in the Top Chef Masters kitchen discovered that there was no unsweetened chocolate to use. She had to be extremely careful to prevent it from being overly sweet. There was then 2 hours to prep and 3 hours the next day to cook.

The dishes on the Mosaic menu were:
a sweet potato and peanut soup made by John C.
a vegetable fricassee made by Alex
John S. is making rack of lamb
Sue is making a halibut and scallops entrée.
a flourless chocolate cake by Naomi
a pistachio cake semi-freddo by Celina

The dishes on the Leela menu were:
Floyd is doing short ribs with oat risotto
George is doing a slow poached salmon
Traci is making a warm bread salad with Artichokes and burrata
Hugh is doing sea scallops.
Suvir is doing a berry and pear cobbler
Mary Sue is making chocolate cupcakes

One individual from each team had to serve as Front of House and typically they made a dessert. That would be Traci for Grey and Naomi for Blue. There were some issues regarding the FOH’s decisions on when and how quickly to sit the diners, who would be deciding the fate of each team, and whether to try a mass catering approach (Blue) or more of a normal restaurant approach (Grey). Curtis said that in his restaurant the FOH decision made by Naomi would have resulted in her being fired. Leela had serious problems in coordinating the flow of food to the kitchen, but it appears that Naomi was able to smooth those over with the diners, but not with the judges.

There were a number of comments about the food by the judges:
The lamb was beyond rare
Chocolate cupcakes were dry, too conservative and not innovative in any way
Split decision on oat risotto; some loved it and others did not
Sea scallops were beyond over-salted
Traci’s salad very good
berry cobbler excellent
Apple jicama salad still has store stickers left on some apples

The judges felt it was no contest for Grey, but the diners selected Blue instead. The winners for the episode were Naomi’s torte and Alex’s veal fricassee and Alex won the $10K.

That meant Red was going to have someone eliminated. The only two that the judges called back were Mary Sue (for conservative, boring, dry cupcakes and not trying anything innovative) and Hugh (dramatically oversalted scallops due to using Maldon, intense salt flakes that he did not think to make adjustments for. The body English on this decision made it seem that MarySue would be going home, but Hugh was eliminated instead. He had a sin of commission rather than omission (note – in regular Top Chef that normally carries the decision but not in TCM3). However, Mary Sue did win the Quickfire and I believe that created the decisive advantage for her to stay alive.
 
« Last Edit: June 03, 2011, 07:44:37 AM by apskip »

Offline franxaverian

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #3 on: April 08, 2011, 02:17:32 AM »
@apskip:

The person's eliminated was Hugh...Alex was the challenge's winner.

Quickfire dish: Create a dish head to head with ingredients in 2 mystery boxes 
Mary Sue v.s. John Currence - Frog legs & Cottage Cheese
*Mary Sue: Chilli cottage cheese cake  meuniere with frog legs
John C. : Buffalo Frog legs (Cottage cheese didn't make it to the plating)

Suvir v.s. Celina Tio: Corned beef and marshmallow
*Suvir: Corned Beef and marshmallow chaat
Celina Tio: Didn't make it to the plating

Hugh v.s. Naomi: Dragon fruit and Sardines
*Hugh: Pan-seared sardines with dragon fruit salad
Naomi: Didn't make it to the plating

George v.s. Sue : Popcorn and chicken livers
*George: not shown but got into winning group
Sue: not shown

Floyd v.s.: Cockles and Marmite
Alex: Cockles and leek soup with Marmite
*Floyd: Marmite Soup with cockles

Traci v.s. John S.: Peanut butter and Licorice
*Traci: Celery salad with peanut butter vinaigrette & Licorice and orange salad
John S.: Bacon licorice peanut butter Hors D'oeuvres

Offline apskip

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #4 on: April 08, 2011, 05:25:14 AM »
franxvaerian,

You are quite right. I had a typo there. Also actually won the Elimination Challenge so it would be impossible for him to be eliminated. It was Hugh eliminated. Thanks for he good catch!


Offline apskip

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #5 on: April 08, 2011, 05:36:32 AM »
Next Wednesday night's show will feature Pop Star and trained chef Kelis judging a very meaty quickfire challenge and then "Mad Men" actress Christina Hendricks and her husband actor Geoffry Arend, enlist the help of the chefs in a special 60s themed elimination challenge.

Remember that this is back in the 10pm to 11pm time slot on BRAVO for the rest of this season.

Offline coolio

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #6 on: April 08, 2011, 05:44:12 AM »
 Missed episode 1.Will see others. I remember Chef Tio! She was on the Next Iron Chef!

Offline apskip

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #7 on: April 08, 2011, 08:02:13 AM »
It's not too late to see Ep. 1 on BRAVO full episodes.

Offline TexasLady

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #8 on: April 12, 2011, 10:06:20 AM »
I really enjoyed the opening of the newest Top Chef Masters. I like the changes especially with the new host Curtis Stone. This is going to be a really good season.
The choices we make dictate the life we lead.

Offline franxaverian

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #9 on: April 13, 2011, 07:24:31 AM »
TL: I'd have to agree with you....the elimination format change is really awesome...We can see a lot of great chefs competing for 10 weeks at minimum...As for the host change, I found it unnecessary, actually. I like Curtis but the way he presented the quickfire challenge is quite robotic for me..


Offline TexasLady

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #10 on: April 13, 2011, 08:18:00 AM »
Hopefully Curtis will get more comfortable with his role on the show.  :tup:
The choices we make dictate the life we lead.

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #11 on: April 15, 2011, 04:18:59 PM »
TL: I'd have to agree with you....the elimination format change is really awesome...We can see a lot of great chefs competing for 10 weeks at minimum...As for the host change, I found it unnecessary, actually. I like Curtis but the way he presented the quickfire challenge is quite robotic for me..

I have a different viewpoint on this. The move to the strict Top Chef elimination format has driven the most interesting, most senior master chefs out of the game. With continuous filming schedules, we are are not seeing a Rick Bayless, a Hubert Keller or a Susur Lee competing.  I think a lot was lost in this transition.

Offline apskip

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #12 on: April 16, 2011, 01:56:41 PM »
TCM3, Ep. 2

It’s a new day and some new challenge in the top Chef Masters Kitchen. Curtis announced that John Sedlar had to withdrew on short notice, so Top Chef Masters had reinstated Hugh back into the competition. The Quickfire is to make a meatball dish in 30 minutes, using only an old-fashioned meat grinder. The chefs chose these dishes to present:

Sue – spicy pork meatball, spicy tomato sauce
George – chicken/short rib meatball, spicy tomato broth
Alex – spicy lamb meatball, toasted fruit, almond couscous
Floyd – fried beef and bacon meatball sandwich w/ Asian slaw
Traci – tarragon chicken meatball w/ consommé
Mary Sue – turkey albondigas soup, toasted pumpkin seeds, Manchego cheese
John C. – Vietnamese chicken meatball
Suvir – Indian spiced meatball, tamarind glaze
Hugh – lamb merguez, shiitake slaw, yogurt  
Naomi - Lamb and pork meatball, pine nuts, ricotta
Celina - Lamb and pork meatball, tomato chutney, shaved fennel salad

Guest Judge for the Quickfire was Nelis, a recording artist. She made rapid and probably accurate assessments of the relative value of dishes. Her results were:
Least Favorite – George’s chicken/short ribs, Floyd’s beef and bacon and Hugh’s lamb
Most Favorite – John’s Viet chicken meatball, Suvir’s Indian spiced meatball.
The winner was John, who got $5K from Lexus for his charity.

Next the Elimination Challenge started. The Masters were invited to a cocktail party thrown by serious foodies “Mad Men” star Christina Hendrix and her husband Greg Arend. The catch was that they were the caterers. They had to draw numbers for a dish common in the 1960s and recreate it as-is, then improve it. There was a shopping period and 1.5 hours to cook on a staged basis at Jars restaurant.

A few of the master chef ran into problems from their choices. John, who had Oysters Rockefeller, had to start the finish cooking period without knowing that his oysters would open. Suvir, who drew Veal Oscar, was forced to use a deep fry technique by lack of stove space. Here are the chefs, dishes and ingredients theoretically in their dishes:
John- Oysters Rockefeller, Oysters Rockefeller and Mignonette Pickled Oyster, Horseradish Crème Fraîche, Collards and Spicy Bacon
MarySue – Deviled Eggs, Japanese style poached egg w/umeboshi, mustard miso mayo  
George – Chicken a la king, roasted chicken breast, lemon yogurt, vegetables
Tio – Beef Stroganoff, beef tartare, fried noodles
Suvir – Veal Oscar, fried veal, cilantro, tomato, asparagus salad    
Alex – Bread Pudding, Bread Pudding and Chai-Spiced Custard, Panettone and Roasted Apple Salad
Mary – Duck a l/O’range, spicy orange gastrique, pineapple mango salad
Hugh- Beef Wellington, beef filet mignon, mushroom espuma, crisp puff pastry
Traci – CoqAuVin, Coq Au Vin and Chicken Frisée Salad, Pickled Shallots and Carrots, Bacon Vinaigrette
Naomi - Grasshopper Pie and Chocolate Mint Soufflé Cake with Toasted Kirsch Marshmallow
Floyd - Ambrosia Salad and Grilled Peppered Pineapple with Mango, Coconut and Orange Custard

It looked like the Judges Table included Danyelle Freeman, the Restaurant Girl food critic of the New York Daily News, to help out with the judging.
The Winners’ group was Floyd, John and MarySue. MarySue was the overall winner, with $10K for her charity, Share Our Strength. The Losers’ group was Sue, Suvir and Alex for these reasons:
Sue – failed to finish plating due to helping other chefs too much and congestion in the kitchen, flavors not that impressive to start with
Alex – too dense and inedible
Suvir – used a tough, heavy hand, with inedible results
It was Sue eliminated and she took it well because she had been a factor in her own demise.
« Last Edit: April 22, 2011, 10:41:47 AM by apskip »

Offline kiki

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #13 on: April 16, 2011, 02:07:39 PM »
apskip
sorry to intervene, but could you correct your post? Sue was eliminated not Mary Sue who won the challenge as you yourself mentions correctly.

Offline apskip

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #14 on: April 17, 2011, 04:59:52 PM »
No problem, kikisak. I want the posting to be correct. In this case I made a transposition error between Sue and MarySue. It is fixed.
« Last Edit: April 18, 2011, 10:13:54 AM by apskip »

Offline franxaverian

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #15 on: April 17, 2011, 09:55:59 PM »
@Apskip: Kikisak was correct. There are no two 'Mary's but there are two 'Sue's. The 'Mary' that you have for creating Devilled eggs is actually Mary Sue who won the elimination and  the 'MarySue' who was eliminated is actually Sue Zefanick which we can say our farewell to...

Offline apskip

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #16 on: April 20, 2011, 10:15:52 PM »
I discovered from tonight's episode that the critic last week and this is Danyelle Freeman, the Restaurant Girl food critic of the New York Daily News. I fixed the above recap of last week's episode to reflect that.

Offline TexasLady

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #17 on: April 21, 2011, 03:46:00 PM »
While awaiting apskip's recap, honestly, asking fine chefs to cook, serve various insects? Who thought that up?  :groan:
The choices we make dictate the life we lead.

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #18 on: April 22, 2011, 09:11:15 AM »
TCM3 Ep. 3

Curtis Stone must have gotten a big kick out of his introduction of the Quickfire for this episode: create a 5-star dish using edible leaves, flowers, wild plants, crickets, beetles, night crawlers and/or scorpions. What yummy food those ingredients can make! The dishes developed by the competitors were:
Alex – Angel Hair with Beetles and Flowers
Celina – Soy Crickets with Salsify Salad
Floyd – Omelet of Nightcrawlers, Amaranth, Roasted Shiitakes and Bacon
George – Hornworm and Coconut Soup w/ Lime, Lemongrass, Ginger, Arugula Flowers
Hugh – Tempura Fried Crickets, Sunchoke and Carrot Purée, Blood Orange Vinaigrette
John C. – Grilled Scorpion w/ Smoked Poached Egg and Oyster Root
MarySue – Thai Sunchoke Salad w/ Toasted Beetle Vinaigrette
Naomi – Tempura Fried Nightcrawlers w/ Elderflower and Herb Salad
Suvir – Himalayan Jungle and Market Salad w/ Live Hornworms
Traci – Salad w/ Chipotle-Dusted Fried Scorpion, Aloe Vinaigrette

The judges for the Quickfire were Karen England and Michael Garth, recognized experts in the edible plants and bugs movement. Their assessments of the dishes were:

Least Attractive – Suvir, George
Most Attractive – Hugh, MarySue
Hugh won the $5K prize and immunity.

The Elimination Challenge was to divide up a 10 course tasting menu into one course for each competitor. Someone had to take charge of coordinating this and Naomi stepped up. Hugh later challenged her but had to back off. The winner would be selected by the votes of 50 diners paying $100 each for the privilege and get the usual $10K plus a bonus of $5K from the per head charge. There was 3 hours to cook and all ingredients were available in the pantry. The dishes created were:

Alex – Roasted Salmon, Gazpacho Vegetables w/ Roasted Chili, Tomatillo Sauce
Celina – Chocolate Puddin’ w/ Fleur de Sel, Ginger Cake Donut
Floyd – Rice Flaked Sole w/ Roasted Cauliflower, Apple, Sundried Ginger Broth
George – Shrimp Alhinho w/ Pickled Carrot, Red Beets, Vanilla Oil
Hugh – Buttermilk Strawberry Panna Cotta w/ Black Pepper, Champagne Berry Soup
John C. – Roasted Shiitake, Prosciutto Risotto w/ Pine Nuts, Paprika
MarySue – Tuna Ceviche w/ Peruvian Aji Amarillo on Plantain Chips
Naomi – Celery Velouté w/ Salsa Verde, Lemon Oil
Suvir – Chaat Salad of Chickpeas, Yogurt w/ Baby Spinach
Traci - Roasted Rib Eye, Slow Cooked Broccoli w/ Red Wine Sauce, Fried Shallots

The judges were James Oseland, Danyelle Freeman (the New York Daily News Restaurant Girl food critic) and Curtis Stone. They rated the best dishes as by Naomi and Suvir. Naomi won the prize. They rated the worst dishes as by MarySue, John and Celia:
MarySue – not a good ceviche
John – his risotto was just average and this occasion called for something special
Celina – pudding had an imbalance of cocoa, so taste was off

I thought that Celina was the worst offender, but the judges surprised me and eliminated John instead.
« Last Edit: April 23, 2011, 07:42:17 AM by apskip »

Offline franxaverian

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #19 on: April 22, 2011, 09:25:52 AM »
@Apskip:
The one eliminated in episode 2 is Sue, not Mary Sue
The one won the quickfire in episode 3 is Hugh, not Mary Sue

Overall, always a great recap and I agree with you....I thought Celia's going home but John went home instead.

Additional information:
The elimination challenge is not as easy as you guys think.
1. No running water. Some chef had to melt ice cubes
2. The event is started 30 minutes earlier than told by Curtis.
3. No waiters so the chefs have to be the waiters.


Offline apskip

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #20 on: April 22, 2011, 10:40:34 AM »
franxaverian,
You are right. My notes actually said Hugh won the Quickfire, but I did not transcribe them correctly.

I thought I had fixed the Ep. 2 Elimination Challenge loser to Mary, but obviously not.

I will make both corrections. Thank you for getting these right.

Offline franxaverian

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #21 on: April 22, 2011, 09:13:43 PM »
Oh wait....finally I noticed why I felt there was something wrong in my post....

The chef's name is Celina, not Celia....I've been typing her name using your post and I just feel something weird after I read my post again..hehehe.

Offline apskip

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #22 on: April 28, 2011, 08:57:12 AM »
TCM3, Ep. 4   

The Quickfire gave the master chefs 12 minutes to create a “masterful” cheese dish. It was judged by Beverly Hills Chees Shop owner Norbert Wabnig. The dishes created were:
Alex – Rocchetta and Prosciutto Quesadilla, Pickled Asparagus, and Fried Quail Egg
Celina – Manchego, Crispy Carrot, Fig, Golden Raisin and Sherry
Floyd – Cojita Elote: Corn on the Cob, Crème Fraiche, Cojita Cheese, and Cayenne Pepper
George – Onion and Grana Padano Gratin, Quail Egg, Grilled Bread, and Asparagus
Hugh - Crisp Camellia Goat Cheese, Fried Quail Egg, Pepper Salad, and Hazelnut Vinaigrette
MarySue – Cojita and Gouda Cheese Empanada with Tomatillo Salsa
Naomi – Chaumes Cheese Toast, Skirt Steak, Apples, Onions, and Balsamic Vinaigrette
Suvir – Cheese Pakora Two Ways: Mozzarella Di Bufala and Gouda, Tamarind Chutney
Traci – Colombier and Prosciutto Carpaccio, Arugula, and Croutons
He judged as least favorite the dishes of Floyd ( too heavy pepper) and George (onions too strong). His favorites were the skirt steak with chaumes by Naomi and colombiere by Traci. Traci won the $5K plus immunity for the Elimination Challenge.

Elimination Challenge

This took the theme of The Biggest Loser TV series and adapted it to top Chef Masters with the real host, trainers and competitors present. Each of the 9 remaining chefs was assigned one dish out of the huge-calorie before-Biggest-Loser favorites of 9 Biggest Losers (including Rulon Gardner, U.S. Olympic Gold Medalist in 2000). Each Biggest Loser was to inspire their assigned chef to improve that dish to a low calorie version. They were put in teams of three (one breakfast, one lunch, one dinner) with the total calories to be less than 1500 as verified by a nutritionist. The judges included Danyelle Freeman and James Sytsma (editor of Grubstreet food blog) plus Curtis Stone and James Oseland.

These were the dishes presented:
Naomi – French Toast, Berries, Scrambled Eggs, and Turkey Bacon
MarySue – Turkey-Vegetable Hash and Poached Egg
Celina– Turkey Bacon and Egg Whites on Ezekiel Bagel with Vegetables
Floyd – Buffalo Meatball, Farro, Spinach, Cheese, Tomato Sauce, and Asparagus
Alex - Oven Fried Chicken, Sweet Potato Puree, Cream Corn, and Corn Bread
Traci – Beef and Broccoli, Cabbage Salad, Rice, and Wonton Soup
George – Whole Wheat Pizza with Tomato Coulis, Smoked Mozzarella, and Vegetables
Suvir – Veggie Burger and Asian Slaw
Hugh – Flank Steak, Fingerling Potatoes and Asparagus Salad
The end result was that the Blue team (Naomi, Floyd, George) reduced the calories from 4500 to 1221. The Red team (Hugh, Celina, Traci) got to 1263. The Green team (Alex, MarySue, Suvir) got to 1368. All were well below their limit and Naomi even advised her teammates to use more olive oil with the deficit to improve taste. I have to say that the dishes presented by Suvir and Traci did not look tasty to me. I think they went too far in the direction of favoring lower calories and overlooking taste.

Comments while sampling by the judges included:
Floyd – meatball sub excellent
George – complicated but developed fine flavors
Naomi – berries were nice; sweetness just right
Suvir – he wanted to make a statement about vegetarianism as the solution to obesity
MarySue – yolk did not run over like it should
Hugh – fried chicken not quite right

The winning team was Blue and the overall winner of $10K was George for his meatball sub. The losing team was Green. The Critics’ Table focus was on:
Alex - leaden corn bread that should not have been served
Naomi – did not produce a juicy, succulent burger; took the safe middle road but did not try for excellence
Suvir – he wanted to give a lecture on the plate; not enough flavor

In the final decision, minor errors did not top the brazenness of a vegetarian zealot. Suvir was eliminated for wanting to publicize his cause more than stay alive on TCM3. I think that was an eminently fair decision.
« Last Edit: May 02, 2011, 04:14:55 PM by apskip »

Offline kiki

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #23 on: April 28, 2011, 09:32:46 AM »
Thank you apskip for the report but I must correct you at certain points.

Blue team: 1221calories Floyd, George, Naomi Winners
Red team: 1263calories Hugh, Traci, Celina
Green team: 1368calories Mary Sue, Suvir, Alex. Losing team

Winner: Floyd for the meat balls
Eliminated: Suvir for the veggie hamburger

Offline franxaverian

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Re: Top Chef Masters 3
« Reply #24 on: April 28, 2011, 10:00:02 AM »
Hi Apskip, great recap. There are some corrections needed though:

These are the elimination challenge dishes with the chef:
Alex Naomi – French Toast, Berries, Scrambled Eggs, and Turkey Bacon
Celina Mary Sue – Turkey-Vegetable Hash and Poached Egg
Floyd Celina – Turkey Bacon and Egg Whites on Ezekiel Bagel with Vegetables
George Floyd – Buffalo Meatball, Farro, Spinach, Cheese, Tomato Sauce, and Asparagus
Hugh Alex - Oven Fried Chicken, Sweet Potato Puree, Cream Corn, and Corn Bread
MarySue Traci – Beef and Broccoli, Cabbage Salad, Rice, and Wonton Soup
Naomi George – Whole Wheat Pizza with Tomato Coulis, Smoked Mozzarella, and Vegetables
Suvir – Veggie Burger and Asian Slaw
Traci Hugh – Flank Steak, Fingerling Potatoes and Asparagus Salad