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Top Chef Masters 3

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franxaverian:
Top Chef Masters 3 Ep. 6 recap (credit to Apskip for some corrections):

Quickfire challenge: Create a heavenly dish in 7 minutes for 2 plates. Heavenly dish --> cooked with all 'heavenly' ingredients such as Foie Gras, Caviar, Crab Claws, Scallops.

Mary Sue: Scallop with pink salt, lime & cilantro
Celina: Scallop crudo, blood orange, cumquat & lemon agrumato
Traci: Tenderloin Beef Carpaccio, truffle, maitake mushroom and balsamic
Alex: Prawn ceviche, cumquat, chili peppers, celery & blood orange vinaigrette
Floyd: Prawn with serrano chili, blood orange juice
Hugh: Tuna two ways: chopped with caviar & ventresca with chopped celery
Naomi: Foie gras, chanterelle mushrooms & fried lady apples

Judging: Rate each others' dishes. 1 being the best, 7 being the worst. The dish with lowest score win.

Hugh-Traci-Naomi-Celina-MarySue-Alex-Floyd
 
Score:
Hugh       (6th):       7+7+4+7+6+4+7 = 42 --> Lacks seasoning & caviar really bitter
Traci        (1st):       2+3+1+2+1+3+1 = 13
Naomi     (2nd):       1+1+2+3+2+2+6 = 17
Celina      (7th):       6+6+7+6+7+7+4 = 43 --> Underseasoned
Mary Sue (4th):       5+4+3+5+4+1+5 = 27
Alex:        (3rd):       3+2+5+1+5+6+2 = 24
Floyd:      (5th):       4+5+6+4+3+5+3 = 30--> Blood orange too powerful

Winner : Traci. Prize: $5000 for & Immunity for La Cocina

Elimination challenge: Cook a family style meal for Maroon 5, prepping & cooking in tour bus/RV
Alex-Celina-Floyd --> Red Team
Hugh-Traci-Mary Sue-Naomi --> Black team

Red Team (Served First):
1. Floyd - Winter Salad
2. Floyd - Soy & Rice Wine Vinegar Marinated Steak with Asian Slaw
3. Celina - Silky Corn Soup
4. Celina - Spanakopita with Couscous Salad
5. Alex - Penne with Broccolini, Tomato & Garlic
6. Alex - Enchiladas with Onion & Seitan
7. Alex - Coconut-Almond Tapioca with Grapes
8. Alex - Breaded Turkey Cutlets

Black Team:
1. Mary Sue - Chips with Salsa Diablo & Guacamole
2. Mary Sue - Tostadas with Black Beans, Chopped Salad & Crispy Fried Avocado Wedge
3. Hugh - Corn Soup with Vanilla, Pecans & Brussel Sprouts
4. Hugh - Fennel-Parmesan-Spinach Spanakopita, Dill Salad, Lemon Vinaigrette
5. Traci - Japanese Style Steak, Miso Braised Daikon & Pea Shoot Salad
6. Naomi - Breaded Turkey, Chanetrelle Smashed Potatoes & Sour Cherry-Cranberry Chutney
7. Naomi - Apple Crisps with Almonds, Coconuts & Oats
8. Margarita

Judge: Gail Simmons, Danyelle Freeman, James Oseland, Curtis Stone & Maroon 5

Winning team: Black Team

Overall Winner: Traci. Prize : $10,000 for La Cocina.

Losing team: Red Team

Critiques:
Celina: Combination of spinach and couscous not working. Spanakopita indistinctive & forgettable
Alex: Overcooked pastas, enchiladas not appetizing. Too ambitious menu with poor execution
Floyd: Unremarkable salad

OUT: ALEX

apskip:
Franxaverian appears to be away, so I offer this recap for this week's episode:

TCM3, Ep. 7

The Quickfire Challenge was one dear to Tom Colicchio’s (Executive Producer) heart, testing the senses, and also would have been for Gordon Ramsay of the “Masterchef” series. The master chefs were given headphones, earplugs and a blindfold and used one or more for each of the following tests. One chef was eliminated for each of the first several rounds, then the last 2 chef competed to win $5,000 for his charity, but no immunity.

The first round had 5 ingredients tasted with sight, sound and smell blocked. The ingredients were water chestnuts, Worcestershire sauce, cashews, papaya and mustard greens. The Floyd got none right and was eliminated from the Quickfire. The second group was epoisses cheese, hot sauce, root beer, rice vinegar and mayonnaise with smell unblocked. Naomi could not believe she missed mayonnaise but it was Traci eliminated. The next one was testing the sense of touch and the ingredients were okra, gummy bears, blackberries, chayote/mirlaton and arborio rice. Celina and Naomi were knocked out. That left MarySue versus Hugh for a test of hearing. They both missed rice Krispies with milk but were almost simultaneous for celery breaking. Hugh was very slightly faster. The next one was eating a potato chip, which neither got. Hugh got shucking oysters and then won with buttering toast.

The Elimination Challenge was about food for love. A male named Chris came in to describe his romance and how he was planning to propose to his girlfriend at a special dinner that the master chefs would create based on the story of his romantic life with this woman. The chefs designed this 6 course menu, with each responsible for one course:

Floyd – Kama Sutra Black Pepper Shrimp with Watermelon, Lime, and Mint
Celina – Soft Pretzel with Pale Ale Cheese Sauce, Frisée Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette
MarySue – Mussels and Clams Portuguese Style with Sausages and Wine Broth
Naomi – Porcini Braised Chicken Thigh with Sweet Potatoes Two Ways
Hugh – New York Strip Steak with Broccoli, Onion Ring, Celery Root Purée, and Bordelaise Sauce
Traci – Pink Lady Apple Galette, Whipped Crème Fraîche, and Caramel Sauce

The master chefs cooked this meal for 21 couples, including judges James Osener, Gael Greene (finally back and desperately missed), Gail Simmons and Curtis Stone. The mothers of the couple came to the kitchen to watch the action through a special window. The courses were designed to provide hints of what was to come, but the target of the proposal Victoria did not get the hints. After the dessert course, Chris went down on bended knee and proposed, which Victoria after a brief pause accepted. The mothers then rushed into the room as the betrothed couple was toasted with champagne.

One of the more fascinating exchanges ever took place when James Oseland asked his dinner partner Gael Greene about her sexual encounter with Elvis Presley (in 1956) which ash been documented in writing by Greene multiple times so it was not a revelation. She said she was left with him when there were no other females in the after-concert, so she was led into his bedroom. As she was departing, he asked her to place an egg sandwich order with room service for him.

OK, so who did well and who did less well. The food was generally simple, almost pedestrian, with only a few fine touches to indicate who had done better. The Winners’ Group was Naomi, MarySue and Floyd. Floyd had taken a risk on spiciness but the results were fruity, spicy and wonderful according to judges’ feedback. MarySue’s Portuguese stew (I would have loved to eat that) was cooked perfectly and the spiciness of the sausage was just right. Naomi did something to enhance the crispness of the skin and the judges loved it. The winner of the $10,000 prize for Seed Savers’ Exchange was Naomi.

The Losers’ Group was Traci (first time), Celina (almost all the time) and Hugh. Hugh’s meat was chewy and his exchange with the judges indicated that he prefers to cook down to his audience. Traci’s apple tart was missing moisture or sauce, probably because the apples she used are somewhat dry. Celina did a standard pretzel (part of the dating ritual with beer and a hockey game for the dating couple) and what appeared to be a decent salad, but was criticized for not doing anything special with the pretzel (such as turning it into a pot pie) and for two disparate elements in her dish that did not meld well.

Celina at Judges’ Table was told that a variation on the pretzel would have been preferred. Hugh was told he was banal and not ambitious. Traci was advised she should have considered applesauce for under the tart.

Final comments before the verdict was announced were:
Celina – good salad and pretzel but they did not go together
Hugh – it’s never a good idea to cook down
Traci – you missed an opportunity.
Celina, who had escaped numerous times before, was eliminated. I have to believe her poor showing on the Quickfire also contributed.

franxaverian:
Sorry for not telling you earlier Apskip but I was overwhelmed by all my assignments that I have just had the chance to freely surfing around...anyway, nice recap...I'll continue next week

franxaverian:
TCM 3 Ep. 8

Quickfire Challenge: Making breakfast using microwave in 10 minutes.
Mary Sue: Goat Cheese & Avocado on Baguette, Bacon Vinaigrette (and basil)
Floyd: Chanterelles, Bacon & Spinach Omelette with Grilled Tomatoes
Naomi: Egg, Bacon, Spinach & Chanterelles on biscuit with fruit salad
Hugh: Baked Egg, Chanterelles, Bacon, & Tomato
Traci: Oeuf en cocotte, Chanterelles, Bacon & Bananas with Lime
Bottom 2: Mary Sue – Microwaved bread became hard, will be quite messy to be eaten
                Traci - Bananas and egg don’t go well together. Too artistic for breakfast
Top 2: Hugh and Floyd
Winner: Hugh
Prize: $5,000. Hugh has accumulated $15,000 so far for Wholesome Wave Foundation

Elimination Challenge: Prepare Demo & Create Dish to Represent Scientific Principle to be presented in Edible Science Fair. The cooking utensils are replaced by laboratory equipments.
Chefs are helped by 5 scientists which represents 5 scientific principles with the products:
1. Carlin Hsueh (UCLA – Nano Technology) --> Elasticity/pizza dough. Working with Naomi
2. Heidi Bednar (UCLA –Physical Chemistry) --> Viscosity/liquidity. Working with Mary Sue
3. Carolyn Tepolt (Stanford – Evolutionary Biologist) --> Acidity/citrus. Working with Traci
4. Augustine Urbas (MIT – Polymer Physics) --> Emulsion/vinaigrette. Working with Hugh
5. Michael Klopfer (UC Irvine – Experimental Physics) --> Mailllard Reaction/beef. Working with Floyd
Trivia: Floyd has Masters in Biochemistry.

Dishes:
Mary Sue (Viscosity) – Dulce de leche Churros, Chocolate Mousse & Spiced Café de olla
Hugh (Emulsion) – Fried Okra Salad with Tomato, Fennel, Bacon & Green Goddess Dressing
Traci (Acidity) – Tuna Carpaccio + Ahi Tuna Tartare
Floyd (Maillard Reaction) – Spice-crusted beef, mushrooms, asparagus & Fried Potatoes + Beef Shabu-shabu
Naomi (Elasticity) – Fried Pizzetta with Mozzarella, Salumi & Green Olive Marinara + Calzone with Truffle, mozzarella, chanterelles & arugula, balsamic gelee

Judge: Ruth Reichl, James Oseland, Padma Lakshmi & Curtis Stone

Top 2: Floyd & Mary Sue

Winner: Mary Sue(3rd time in beating Floyd in Elimination Challenge)

Prize: $10,000 for Share Our Strength.

Bottom 3:
Naomi - Too complicated, using too many items for presentation. Calzone becomes soggy over time because of the gelee.
Hugh - Salad was messy. Mayonnaise was kind 'broken'. Overbreaded, chewy okra
Traci - Too simple as only using lemon + raw fish

OUT: Hugh

franxaverian:
This is by far, one of the most interesting elimination challenge ever........ :hearts:

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