Other Great Reality Shows > Other Reality TV Shows & News

Top Chef 7

<< < (6/7) > >>

apskip:
TC7, ep. 9 Restaurant Wars

That famous line from South Park "they killed chef Kenny" has to be considered here because the South's Park's Kenny looked almost identical to TC7's Kenny.  Why this was important will be made clear to you over time.

This episode started with a Quickfire to make the best possible dish within the usual constraints. The Guest Judge was Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. The dishes prepared were:

Alex - Roasted Lamb Chop, English Pea Puree, Smoked Bacon,  Parmesan
Amanda - Oakwood Grilled Strip Steak w/ Roasted Sunchoke, Maitake Mushrooms w/ Red Wine Au Jus
Angelo - Confit of Tomato Soup, Farmers Squash, Olive Crouton
Ed - Seared Rib Eye w/ Crushed Walnut Potatoes, Baby Arugula, Balsamic Fig Reduction
Kelly - Dark Chocolate Ganache Tart, Blackberry-Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream, Blackberry Puree
Kenny - Crispy Aged Goat Cheese w/ Strawberry-Rhubarb Relish
Kevin - Pan Roasted Halibut, Fennel, Marmalade, Tomato Fennel, Emulsion
Tiffany - Crudo of Black Bass, Yellowtail Snapper w/ Meyer Lemon-Caper Relish

The winner was judged to be Ed, who did not get immunity or anything special.

The Elimination challenge was a United Nations of Flavors Restaurant Wars competition with two teams of four chefs but really every man/woman for himself. It involved complicated buying within 45 minutes and $1000 each at both Restaurant Depot and Whole Foods. Prepping was for 2 hours, followed by staggered 2 hour cycles to allow a switch in front of the house and back of the house from one team ot the other. The dishes presented were:

rest. EDOO (Mediterranean-inspired)

Angelo - confit tomato soup w/ crouton and squash
Tifffany - crudo of black bass and yellowtail snapper
Tiffany - seared striped bass w/ clams, chorizo, spinach
?- seared lamb w/ Paremsan foam and pea puree
Angelo and Ed - Slow Baked Turbot, Eggplant Caviar & Black Olive Jus
Alex/Angelo/Ed/Tiffany - Roasted Red Snapper, Wilted Greens and Maitake Mushrooms
Alex - sautéed rib eye with crushed walnut potatoes

Rest. ?
Kelly - Corn Soup
Kenny - beet salad w/ endives and chorizo/citrus vinaigrette
Amanda - NY strip steak, maitake mushrooms, Swiss chard, sunchokes
Kenny - fried goat cheese on strawberry/rhubard relish
Kevin - pan-roased halibut w/ fennel marmalade, tomato/fennel emulsion, white beans
Amanda/Kelly/Kenny/Kevin - Sauteed Shrimp Over Angle Hair with Sauce and Crispy Basil

There was a lot of chatter about which dishes were stronger, but to the judges was crystal clear. The Angelo/Ed/Alex/Tiffany group had produced better flavors. Although some from his team arguing on his behlf were trying to find a way for kenny to be retained despite being judged Worst of the worst, there is no such way. Ed's perfectly cooked turbot was judged was judged Best of the Best.

apskip:
TC7, ep. 10 Covert Cuisine

This episode used Wylie DuFresne, chef/owner of WD50 as Guest Judge. This Hihg-Stakes Quickfire had a prize of $10,000 and required the 7 remaining chefs to create whatever they liked to use up all of a series of ingredients arriving in mystery boxes. Those were:
Rockfish and Fava Beans and Hominy Grits
Squid and Blac Garlic
Ramps and Passion fruit

This was a challenge to creativity and the results were interesting. Dishes created were:
Alex - Rockfish with Fava Bean Puree; Ramp Fondue; Sauteed Squid
Amanda - Crispy Skin Striped Bass; Squid Fricassee; Leek and Mushroom Fondue
Angelo - Smoky Hominy Grits, Squid, Rockfish Tataki, Passion Fruit Gel
Ed - Rockfish Sashimi and Hominy-Basil Puree Pashion Fruit, Grilled Squid Marinade
Kelly - Yucatan Seafood Stew w/ Black Garlic, Fava Beans, Grilled Ramps
Kevin - Pan-Seared Rockfish, Black Garlic, Hominy Puree, Jicama, Passion Fruit Salad
Tiffany - Fish Stew w/ Hominy, Fava Beans, Saffron and Black Garlic

Wylie selected Tiffany as the winner.

ELIMINATION CHALLENGE

This started with drawing knives to pick a dish to cook. Here are the results of that:

Amanda - French Onion Soup 
Alex- Veal Parmesan
Ed - Chicken Cordon Bleu
Angelo - Beef Wellington
Kevin - Cobb Salad
Kelly - Shrimp Kung Pao
Tiffany - Gyro

The challenge is to disguise the dish so that its description does not give away its original name but still make the flavors right for the original dish. This is a very delicate balancing act involving flavor and execution. All chefs struggled a bit, with Kelly ruining an entire pot of rice and having to do it over (she did not think there was time until Tiffany told her it could be done and Kelly remembered that cooking times are entended at the 8,000 where she typically cooks. Leon Pannetta, U.S. CIA Director and clearly a culinary connoisseur from his time in Congress and earler Presidential administrations was asked his opinions until he had to leave. He was to easily able see through most disguises.

The real judging was Wylie, Eric and Tom and these were the dishes:
Alex - Veal and Parmesano Chese with Tortelloni and Tomato Sauce and Tempura Cheese
Amanda - Consomme with Oxtail Marmalade, Caramelized Ohions, Shaved Gruyere
Angelo - Tartlette topped with slivers of Beef
Ed - Roasted Chicken Breast, Ham and Cheese Croquette, Spring Onion Soubise
Kelly - Spicy Shrimp Broth w/ Rice, Peanut/Vegetable Salad, Szechuan Shrimp Tempura
Kevin - Romaine Lettuce, Bacon, Rocquefort, Tomato, Avocado, Cucmuber and Turkey
Tiffany - Smoked Leg of Lamb with Smoky Eggplant, Tomatoes, Pickled Eggplant

It was apparent from the commentary that Alex was in trouble for both flavors and execution. The Winners Group consisted Tiffany, Kelly and Ed. The 5 night trip for 2 sposored to Paris by Hilton Hotels was won by Tiffany, who would use it for her honeymoon.

The Losers Group consisted of Angelo, Alex and Amanda. Alex wass judged the worst and eliminated.

apskip:
Ep. 8 Foreign Affairs


Washinston DC is our nation's capital and as such has a constant influx of foreign dignitaries and many of their cuisines represented.  You can conceptualze this episode as a way to challenge chefs toward international cuisine thinking.

Marcus Samuelsson arrives to be Guest Judge for this episode. He recently won Top Chef Masters 2 and is chef/owner the the Red Rooster.

The Quickfire is to create a dish based on the principles of Ethiopian cuisine, at which Marcus is an acknowledged world expert. Those principles are :
injera bread (used to sop up all liquids and substitute for all utensils and plates)
wat or stew
use of wide arrays of spice blends

The dishes created and presented were:

Alex - Beef and Lamb Tongue Stew with Cabbage and Potatoes
Amanda - Stewed Goat on Inijera Bread, Sauced with Braised Liquid
Angelo - Berbere-spiced Dora Wat Chicken w/ Egg, Mango Yoghurt, Mint on Steamed Injera
Ed - Stewed Lamb and beef tripe cauliflower, chickpeas, braised greens
Kelly - Leg of Lamb Wat, Cauliflower, Yoghurt and Mint Puree
Kenny - Duo of Lamb Meat Loaf and Ribeye w/ curry and Dukkah Spice
Kevin - Braised Chicken w/ Chickpeas, Cucumber Mint Salad and Yoghurt
Tiffany - Beef Goulash w/ Poached egg, Red Currants, Red Peppers and Yoghurt

Marcus' judgement was that Alex (too dry) Kevin's salad and Stephen's dish were the worst.

The best dishes were from Angelo (who admittedly cooked in an Ethiopian restaurant before), Amanda for her fine work cooking difficult goat, and Tiffany for her ability to use Ethiopian principles in a dish not Ethiopian. Tiffany was the big winner, of immunity and of bragging right over Angelo.

ELIMINATION CHALLENGE

The embassy folks from many nations were served this lunch at the Meridien House, with only sterno heat for chafing dishes so no onsite preparation or finishing could happen. 100 tasting portions were to be totally prepared at the Top Chef 7 kitchen at the Hilton Hotel for 30 minutes finishing the next morning. The food budget was $200 and time to purchase 30 minutes at Whole Foods. The most striking item was Stephen's purchase of brazil nuts as part of his ingredient (was Bravo trying to tell us something?).

The chefs were shown a map of the world with the the national colors of maybe 10 countries on it. They were to draw knives to determine the order of picking the cuisine they would do. Here are those results:

1. Tiffany Mexico
2. Kenny Italy
3. Ed China
4. Kelly France
5. Angelo Thailand
6. Alex Spain
7. Stephen Brazil
8. Kenny India

The resulting dishes were:
Alex - Cordobresa Braised Veal cheeks, jamon torta, olive and tomato salad
Amanda - Beef bourguinon w pommes fourchettes, horseradish mousse
Angelo - Sashimi of Tuna with Candied Wasabi & Soy Infusion
Ed - Tea Smoked Duck Breast with Pot Stickers in Szechuan Jus
Kelly - Beef Carpaccio with Spring Vegetable Salad, Truffled Vinaigrette & Parmigiano-Reggiano
Kenny - Curried Chicken with Leek & Parsnip Puree, Lentils & Cucumber-Mango Salad
Stephen - Flank Steak in Chimichuri Sauce w/ Black Beans and Rice
Tiffany - chicken tamales with queso fresco and Tomatillio Sauce

Joining the judges panel for this was world-class chef Jose Andres, the popularizer of tapas in the U.S. and chef/owner of minibar and Jaleo in Washington DC. The judges sampled 4 dishes round 1 and 4 more round 2. They decided that the Winners Group was Tiffany, Kevin and Kelly. The winner was Tiffany and a surprise prize of $10,000 was awarded. She is adding to her honeymoon in Costa Rica hoard.

The Losers Group was Stephen, Alex and Ed. Per Tom, Stephen's dish had poor execution and the rice was overcooked and he used the concept of Chimichuris inappropriately. Ed had not rendered off some fat and it sounded that he was a marginal member of the Loser's Group. Alex had some poor cooking technique  It was quite obvious that Stephen's limited skills had finally caught up to him. He was eliminated.

apskip:
TC7 ep. 11 Making Concessions

The guest Judge is Rick Moonen, a noted seafood master chef. So we can anticipate that this QAuickfire will use fish in some way? No such luck! The theme of this one if use of food idioms. Each chef got to draw a knife to deteremine order of selection of a food idiom which will be the basis for their dish.  The winner's recipe will go into Schwann's frozen meals delivery service. Those choices are:

Kevin - Bring Home the Bacon
Amanda - The Big Cheese
Kelly - Sour Grapes
Ed - Hot Potato
Tiffany - Spill the Beans
Angelo - Bigger Fish to Fry

Amanda - Macaroni & Cheese with Bacon and Jalapenos & Pork Chop
Angelo - Chili Crusted Tilapia Satay with Asian Tartare Sauce, Sambal & Sriracha
Ed -  Herb Roasted Garlic Ghocchi, Spring Vegetables & Mushroom Fricassee
Kelly - Pan Roasted Chicken Breast over Caramelized Brussels Sprout Leaves with Red Grape Sauce
Kevin - Bacon 3 Ways: Bacon Puree, Chopped Bacon, Bacon Froth with a Poached Egg
Tiffany - Pan Seared Cod Over Stewed Beans, Swiss Chard, Carrots and Bacon

Rick Moonen didn't like Kelly's Sour Grapes dish, nor Amanda's Big Cheese baked macaroni and cheese dish.
The dishes that were on the top were Kevin's bacon dish and the winner was Ed's Potato dish. 

The Elimination Challenge was to create a dish for serving at an upscale concessions stand at washington's Nationals Park. The shopping time was normal, but it appeared that the budget was $2000 per chef. They had to select a concept that could flourish  in that environment. The cooking was done mostly in the Top Chef kitchen and then reheating in the cramped concession area. As the chefs were setting up, 3 Nationals stars came by to watch and chat, then later to eat. This provide instant publicity for the effort.

One of the loose ends was how orders would be handled. Angelo volunteered to do this but had second thoughts. It worked out OK without hurting his food. The dishes selected were:

Amanda - Yellowfin Tuna Tartare with Fennel, Meyer Lemon & Fava Bean Puree
Angelo - Sweet Glazed Pork, Lobster Roll with Sweet Sesame Pickles
Ed - Shrimp and Corn Risotto Fritters with Jalapeno Aioli 
Kelly - Open faced Crab Cake BLT w/ Sweet Potato Fries
Kevin - Herb Marinated Chicken Kabob w/ Romesco Sauce, Shoe String Fries and Smoked Paprika Aioli
Tiffany - Italian Meatball Sub with Fennel, Basil Pesto and Fresh Mozzarella

The top two rated by Eric Ripert (who doesn't seem like a baseball type), rick, and Tom were Ed and Tiffany. Ed was ratedas having perfect balance of outside crunchiness and inside creaminess, so he won a trip to Australia. After the $10K prizes that is the best prize I remember for TC7.

The other 4 were all rated in the worst group. Angelo had way too much bread ono his sandwich and it was soggy and there was to much sweetness on the plate. Kelly had fabulous crabcakes but a poor BLT. Kevin had put fries on teh skewer, which wass too long and difficult to handle. He had a problem with demand for his chicken. Rick thoought he should have gone Romesco sauce but noy two sauces. Amanda, to have things ready the day before in the prep, had diced her tuna and it had oxidized into a grey/black color which was unappealing. Amanda earned the elimination.

apskip:
There are only 3 or 4 episodes (how do you count double ones?) left. It's time for an assessment of who should win. Originally I did an analysis which showed that Angelo and Kenny were top dogs, with Ed fairly close behind. I rated Kelly in the middle and  Kevin and Tiffany low. Q few things have changed since then. Ed and Tiffany have been cleaning house and Angelo, Kevin and Kelly were dropping. A this point in TC7, here is the order of finish I predict:

1. Ed
2. Tiffany
3. Angelo
4. Kelly
5. Kevin

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

[*] Previous page