Tournament of Champions All-Star Christmas S01E02

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Transcript

00:00:00The holidays are the greatest time of the year.

00:00:05So we've turned the TOC Arena into a winner's wonderland.

00:00:10Some of the world's greatest, most celebrated chefs

00:00:13are pairing up to make their best sweet and savory dishes

00:00:17in the first ever team competition in the TOC Arena.

00:00:21Can you feel the adrenaline?

00:00:23Last time on TOC All-Star Christmas,

00:00:26the first of our 16 super duos clash in a night of do-or-die battle.

00:00:31Jen Nashley, your first win, how do you feel?

00:00:34I feel awesome!

00:00:35And tonight, six more teams will begin their Christmas quest.

00:00:39First, TOC four champs, Mei Lin and Nini Nguyen.

00:00:43We're just going to dominate.

00:00:44Take on Adam Sobel and Chris Petroni.

00:00:47Where's that cocoa, baby?

00:00:49Then legendary chef, Marcus Samuelson,

00:00:52and pastry chef, Rachel Sharif.

00:00:54Oh, my God!

00:00:56Battle Michelin-starred masters,

00:00:58Graham Elliott and Giuseppe Trentori.

00:01:01Push, push.

00:01:02And finally, famed brothers, Michael and Brian Voltaggio,

00:01:06face off against Kentucky's finest,

00:01:08Sarah Bradley and Damaris Phillips.

00:01:11We met each other and we fell in love.

00:01:13Which holiday duo will jiggle all the way to the title?

00:01:16I think we just won.

00:01:17The trophy, big bucks for charity.

00:01:20I'm going to kiss you.

00:01:21All right.

00:01:21And thanks to Carnival Cruise Line, $100,000.

00:01:26This is Tournament of Champions.

00:01:27This Christmas, y'all.

00:01:28All-Star Christmas.

00:01:30It's anyone's game.

00:01:31It's anyone's game.

00:01:41Are you ready to meet the Christmas contenders

00:01:45for the first battle of the night?

00:01:47That's what I like to hear.

00:01:49That's what I like to hear.

00:01:51First up, we have our number one seed team,

00:01:54the dynamic duo of Chef Mei Lin and Chef Neni Nguyen.

00:01:58This tight-knit team has major street cred.

00:02:02Mei, well, she's a TOC champ.

00:02:05And Neni is also a big competition winner

00:02:08with an impressive sweet and savory skill set.

00:02:11Not only have we've cooked together before,

00:02:14we're very familiar with each other in the kitchen.

00:02:16We all so have, like, the same mind.

00:02:20Coming here with the champ is exciting.

00:02:22Like, I have the best date to this whole thing.

00:02:24But it's also nerve-wracking because I want to make sure I bring it.

00:02:27She's cooking the savory, and I'm cooking the desserts.

00:02:31I wouldn't be here with anybody else.

00:02:33Yeah.

00:02:33They're facing off against Chef Adam Sobel

00:02:39and Chef Christian Petroni.

00:02:42Both chefs have won battles here at TOC Arena,

00:02:44but have never reached the finals,

00:02:46which explains their number four seed status.

00:02:49Christian and I have a lot in common.

00:02:51We have a lot of heritage, family growing up in the Bronx.

00:02:54We've always been dear friends.

00:02:56He's very well-versed in the pastry side.

00:02:59We complement each other really, really well,

00:03:01and we could be a force to be reckoned with.

00:03:04I mean, I've known Adam for a really long time,

00:03:05and I know his skill set.

00:03:06He's worked for a lot of amazing chefs.

00:03:09He is very technique-driven.

00:03:11I'm kind of scared of them.

00:03:13I've never met Christian, but I've been a fan.

00:03:16You know Meg. I know Meg.

00:03:17You?

00:03:18But you know Meg.

00:03:19Yeah.

00:03:20And what I know that we both know,

00:03:22that I'm sure everybody knows,

00:03:25Meg's a beast.

00:03:26If I had to pick someone to cook my last meal,

00:03:28that might be one of the chefs to do so.

00:03:30The red curry.

00:03:31Let's do it.

00:03:32Ready?

00:03:33Let's do it.

00:03:37Let's go, baby.

00:03:39Are you ready to see them Jingle Bell rock this arena?

00:03:42Let's rock it up!

00:03:47Chef Adam Sobel has guided the cuisines

00:03:49of over 50 acclaimed restaurants,

00:03:52helping earn them James Beard awards

00:03:54and multiple Michelin stars.

00:03:59With zero competition experience,

00:04:01he stepped into the TOC4 arena

00:04:04and made it all the way to the quarterfinals.

00:04:07Chef Christian Petroni is a restaurateur

00:04:09and parm-to-table cookbook author

00:04:11whose Italian cuisine has been described

00:04:14as effortless in its deliciousness

00:04:16by the New York Times.

00:04:19Give it up for Mr. Delicious

00:04:21and the great Hambino!

00:04:25Team Adam and Christian!

00:04:35Wow.

00:04:36Go, Guido.

00:04:38I know you're friends,

00:04:39but how did you make the decision

00:04:41you wanted to get in this competition together?

00:04:43It was a very faithful phone call, Guido.

00:04:45There's no one else in the world

00:04:46that I would be as excited to do it with

00:04:48and Mr. Sobel has become one of my dearest friends

00:04:50in the whole world, so this is beautiful.

00:04:52If you can put the Wonder Twin powers together,

00:04:54you guys are gonna go far.

00:04:55And going up against these opponents,

00:04:57you're gonna need it.

00:04:59Your opponents!

00:05:00May Lynn is a James Beard-nominated restaurateur

00:05:05who opened her first casual

00:05:07Szechuan Hot Chicken restaurant in Los Angeles.

00:05:12She is a master competitor,

00:05:13winning both Top Chef and Tournament of Champions 4.

00:05:18Chef Nini Wynn spent years as a pastry chef in New Orleans

00:05:22before honing her sweet skills

00:05:24in New York's Michelin-starred 11 Madison Park.

00:05:27Give it up for May Day May and Martini Nini!

00:05:34Chef Nailin and Nini!

00:05:49That's some spooky music.

00:05:50That was very spooky music.

00:05:52You made the decision to bring Nini on your team.

00:05:55Why?

00:05:56We think a lot of the same,

00:05:58so we're just gonna use our ESP and work like that.

00:06:02Chefs, to the randomizer!

00:06:03Let's do this!

00:06:04All right.

00:06:05Oh, God.

00:06:10Oh, God.

00:06:11All right, chefs.

00:06:12The randomizer will determine the mandatory details

00:06:16of both of your dishes,

00:06:17and the mandatory savory items for one dish,

00:06:20the mandatory sweet item for the other dish,

00:06:23and then the equipment, the style, and the wild card

00:06:26must be used in both dishes.

00:06:29Let's do this!

00:06:30Savory!

00:06:32Here we go!

00:06:33Yes!

00:06:35Let's go!

00:06:37Oh, my God, this game.

00:06:39It's nice not being up here by myself.

00:06:41This is good.

00:06:41The moral support.

00:06:43Turkey, pork, eye, turkey, pork.

00:06:46In the savory eye of round.

00:06:49Whoa!

00:06:50And the sweet raspberries, air fryer, buttery, and cocoa mix.

00:06:57Okay.

00:06:58Because it's the holidays, I will grant you the 35 minutes.

00:07:02Also, I'm going to give you an extra two minutes

00:07:05to come up with a game plan.

00:07:08Good luck.

00:07:08Okay.

00:07:09I'm gonna do the eye round.

00:07:11I'm gonna use the cocoa powder and make a spice blend,

00:07:13like a coffee cocoa rub.

00:07:14I'm gonna do a potato puree.

00:07:15Yeah.

00:07:16I admire his style so much.

00:07:17We have similar thought process

00:07:19when it comes to purity of ingredients.

00:07:21For the eye round, I'm thinking tartare.

00:07:24I think we're the team to beat.

00:07:26Nene and I can literally talk about an ingredient

00:07:29and bounce ideas off of each other,

00:07:31and our ideas are in sync.

00:07:34Air fryer, start the croutons.

00:07:36Three, two, one.

00:07:43I love eye of the round for beef.

00:07:45It's very lean, it's very firm.

00:07:47Sliced thin, it's really good,

00:07:49or low and slow and braised.

00:07:51Raspberries, I'm a raspberry junkie.

00:07:53You know, it's that sweet tart flavor I like.

00:07:55Plays well with chocolate.

00:07:56What's an air fryer?

00:07:57Everybody's so excited about it.

00:07:59What they really are is a small convection oven.

00:08:02It circulates warm air.

00:08:04You can crisp things really quick.

00:08:05Buttery, this can play into buttery crust,

00:08:09buttery sauces, buttery potatoes.

00:08:11You name it, they'll know how to master butter.

00:08:13And then hot cocoa.

00:08:14This getting employed in dessert, no problem.

00:08:16This getting employed into the use of the meat.

00:08:19They're gonna have to be very judicious

00:08:21about the way they use it.

00:08:23When you have a plan, fill me in.

00:08:24I'm doing a coffee cocoa spice eye of round for savory.

00:08:29It's gonna be pan roasted in ultra brown butter.

00:08:32And then I'm gonna do the potatoes in the air fryer

00:08:33like a double potato garnish.

00:08:35We didn't want eye round.

00:08:36I didn't want eye round.

00:08:37Time is the issue.

00:08:38If anyone could do something with that eye round,

00:08:41it's my brother Adam.

00:08:43I always end up getting hammered on Christmas.

00:08:46Yeah.

00:08:47If you're going out to a family dinner

00:08:48and during the holiday season,

00:08:50this was kind of a steakhouse dish that you would get.

00:08:52Christian, you got the cocoa bubble?

00:08:54Right here, babe.

00:08:58When was the first time we met?

00:09:00Um, I think we met in New York years ago.

00:09:03We really spent a lot of time together.

00:09:05The first year I did TOC,

00:09:07felt like I knew you for 30 years or so.

00:09:09Yeah, you know when someone's meant to be your friend.

00:09:11It's like, you know when you meet somebody

00:09:12and it's just easy.

00:09:13I admire his style so much.

00:09:15I'm like, I've seen Christian's desserts.

00:09:17I just love what he makes.

00:09:19Chef, what's in there?

00:09:20So I got raspberries in here right now.

00:09:23For the sweet dish.

00:09:24In the hopes of like sort of charring them.

00:09:26Sure.

00:09:26I'm making a olive oil palenta cake.

00:09:28That's where I'm gonna incorporate the cocoa,

00:09:31brown butter as well.

00:09:32With the raspberries that are currently in the air fryer,

00:09:35that's gonna go into either granita or sorbet.

00:09:38Sorbet with 26 minutes, okay.

00:09:41What we've put together really speaks to holiday.

00:09:43This is rich and buttery and roasty.

00:09:47And then you got decadence with the palenta cake.

00:09:50When I picture my mother's like holiday table

00:09:54with good holiday one in there.

00:09:56And you've sort of had this huge meal.

00:09:58And then in the middle,

00:09:59just picturing that like palenta cake,

00:10:01like on a platter with a doily.

00:10:04I want maple.

00:10:05A little powdered sugar over the top.

00:10:07I can picture it.

00:10:08I can see it.

00:10:08Or hot cocoa powder.

00:10:09In this case, hot cocoa powder.

00:10:12Chef, did cocoa go in yet?

00:10:13Yep, cocoa's in here.

00:10:14It's gonna transform from regular butter.

00:10:17To brown butter?

00:10:18To brown butter.

00:10:22Now to help us better understand

00:10:24the sweet and savory moves made by our teams,

00:10:26I'm joined by my own holiday helpers.

00:10:29That's right, Michelin recommended chef

00:10:31in charge of an elf group.

00:10:33The one and only wild card, Justin Warner.

00:10:35And the DOC3 champ and wicked Boston restaurateur,

00:10:40the one and only chef Tiffany Faison.

00:10:43Justin and Tiffany will be closely observing

00:10:45the creation of our dishes,

00:10:46so they can faithfully present them to the judges

00:10:48during the blind tasting.

00:10:51Chef May, what's the plan?

00:10:53I'm gonna do a tartare.

00:10:55What?

00:10:56Woo!

00:10:58Tartare.

00:10:59How do we make buttery tartare, chef?

00:11:01Well.

00:11:02We're gonna grate some butter on.

00:11:03Tartare.

00:11:03I'm also gonna make.

00:11:04Brioche croutons.

00:11:05Okay.

00:11:06So buttery.

00:11:07I love where we're going.

00:11:09May is great because she's won everything.

00:11:13She's not really used to losing.

00:11:15As a person who does lose,

00:11:17I'm really thankful to be here with her.

00:11:19She is smart, she is a fierce competitor,

00:11:24and she's my best friend, so I kind of won.

00:11:27So sweet.

00:11:30She took the time to really first thinly slice it,

00:11:33and she's gotta get that cut right.

00:11:35When the judges look at this,

00:11:37they will know the difference between this being thrown

00:11:39in a food processor.

00:11:40Taking the time to cut this by hand,

00:11:42as labor-intensive and time-consuming as it is,

00:11:45is a must.

00:11:47So I started in pastry,

00:11:49but I'm most known for Vietnamese cuisine.

00:11:51You know, some people forget that I have some pastry skills.

00:11:55I will be making a dessert.

00:11:57Chef Nini.

00:11:58Yes.

00:11:59What's on the menu?

00:12:00Hot chocolate Napoleon with raspberries.

00:12:02I'm gonna make some pastry cream.

00:12:04I'm gonna try to bake these.

00:12:05And into the air fryer.

00:12:07Do you use air fryers a lot?

00:12:08At home, yes.

00:12:10Have you air fried puff pastry before?

00:12:11Um, no, but the whole thing about puff pastry

00:12:14is you need it to be hot.

00:12:16Yeah.

00:12:16And air fryers can make it hot and crispy.

00:12:19Let's hope it does that.

00:12:20Desserts are very difficult to make in a short amount of time

00:12:22because a lot of times you have to, like, heat things up,

00:12:25cool things down, change the temperature in 35 minutes.

00:12:29Like, every single step matters.

00:12:32This is not the time to, like, experiment on a new thing.

00:12:40Right behind you guys.

00:12:40Sorry.

00:12:41Sobel, what do you got going over here?

00:12:43I'm doing a super brown butter potato puree.

00:12:47Eye of round is gonna sit on top of it.

00:12:49Okay.

00:12:50The potato is a huge contributor to the holiday table.

00:12:53Mashed potato is probably my favorite.

00:12:55I know.

00:12:55Yeah.

00:12:56The holidays are really important and special.

00:12:59Christian, can you open up those air fryers for me?

00:13:02Gotcha, babe.

00:13:03My dad's side of the family, we celebrated Hanukkah.

00:13:06My mom's side, Christmas.

00:13:09Very traditional Italian, very traditional Jewish.

00:13:12A four-minute timer?

00:13:13Three minutes? Two minutes?

00:13:14I don't know.

00:13:15Just a heads up, I'm gonna put it for two.

00:13:16You can look at it.

00:13:17Never done this before.

00:13:18All right, I like that.

00:13:20And I'm gonna pour the liquid nitrogen sort of right into the food processor.

00:13:25This is not something I've done before.

00:13:27Maybe I freeze up the motor.

00:13:29Maybe I don't.

00:13:30Maybe this goes great.

00:13:32Maybe it doesn't.

00:13:33But what I know is gonna happen is I'm gonna really be able to pull down the temperature

00:13:38of those roasted raspberries, which are gonna be the raspberry sorbeto.

00:13:43I'm just gonna have to get a picture of this.

00:13:47And he looks at the camera.

00:13:50May is making a brown butter chili cocoa aioli.

00:13:55Chili and chocolate is such a genius combination.

00:13:57We hate hot cocoa mix.

00:13:59Full of sugar.

00:14:00So I need some heat.

00:14:03We don't want our savory dish to be sweet.

00:14:06The holidays are like a time to like, for you to show off.

00:14:09And so...

00:14:10To your family.

00:14:11Yeah.

00:14:12To your family.

00:14:13This is what I've been doing with my life.

00:14:15How are you feeling, May?

00:14:16I feel good.

00:14:17I feel good.

00:14:18Pastry cream.

00:14:19Cornstarch, chef?

00:14:20Yes.

00:14:21Cornstarch.

00:14:22Cocoa.

00:14:23The hot cocoa mix is gonna be my sugar substitute for my pastry cream.

00:14:28I think we're the team to beat because May's the expansion of my brain.

00:14:33Because I'm like, oh my god.

00:14:35Like, I know that.

00:14:36Like, why didn't I think of that?

00:14:40All of our holiday dishes will be judged by a panel of culinary greats.

00:14:44They just don't know what the chefs are cooking or who's even competing.

00:14:48No, not because they've had too much eggnog, which could be the case.

00:14:52But tonight is because they're sequestered in their trailers because this is a blind tasting.

00:14:57The savory dish and the sweet dish are each worth a maximum of 50 points based on taste,

00:15:02use of the randomizer, and presentation.

00:15:04The team with the highest combined score for both dishes will move on to the quarterfinals.

00:15:09And the eliminated team will have a blue, blue Christmas.

00:15:15Chef Maylynn, we got a game plan?

00:15:16So we're doing buttery croutons.

00:15:18We're gonna cook these croutons in the air fryer, melting down the ghee right now.

00:15:22And it just tastes like unctuous, unctuous butter.

00:15:25Got it.

00:15:26Nene and I have known each other for almost a decade, and we've traveled together.

00:15:31We've eaten together.

00:15:33We understand each other in a way that I don't think the other teams do.

00:15:37We're just gonna dominate.

00:15:40Nene, can I go into one of these ovens?

00:15:42Not yet.

00:15:43I like to consider myself as May's sister that she never wanted.

00:15:47Oh, that's not true.

00:15:48I could not imagine you with a sister.

00:15:50I'd kill her.

00:15:51Yeah.

00:15:53So I put the croutons into the air fryer, and then I work on a raspberry glaze.

00:15:59Is that raspberry jam, Chef?

00:16:01It is.

00:16:02Raspberries are on the randomizer.

00:16:05I really wanna showcase, like, what I can make with it.

00:16:09Okay.

00:16:10Do you have the croutons?

00:16:12Yes.

00:16:13Oh, .

00:16:15They are burnt.

00:16:16You have more?

00:16:17.

00:16:18Both the ciabatta and the brioche got burnt.

00:16:21That's her buttery component to the steak tartare.

00:16:23It's also gonna give a lot of texture to the steak tartare that it would not otherwise have.

00:16:27Really critical.

00:16:29It's not good.

00:16:30Chef, we have ten minutes left in the competition.

00:16:34How did that air fryer work for you on the puff pastry?

00:16:36A little too good.

00:16:38It's crucial that we have a component that's cooked from the air fryer.

00:16:42Can't serve these burnt croutons, so we have to make them again.

00:16:49How you doing, sweet love?

00:16:50I'm rolling like a freight train.

00:16:52Have some, uh, Roboshop potatoes going?

00:16:54Uh, something like that.

00:16:55Ask?

00:16:56Ask.

00:16:57Ask.

00:16:58There's a big difference between the team version of TOC and the singular battle mode that you

00:17:04need to be in mentally.

00:17:05When you have a partner, it removes a lot of stress from the situation.

00:17:09Chris, taste these?

00:17:11And it's the holidays.

00:17:13Some people get stressed out during the holidays, but not us.

00:17:16Cool as a cucumber.

00:17:18Done.

00:17:19Delicious.

00:17:21I'm gonna knock out a quick whipped cream.

00:17:24Vanilla make it in there as well?

00:17:25Yep, vanilla paste.

00:17:26Chris, I hear a timer.

00:17:28Yes.

00:17:31I pull my cakes out of the oven.

00:17:33Boom goes the dynamite, my friend.

00:17:35Beautiful.

00:17:36They're buttery, they're crispy on the outside.

00:17:39This man created a miracle.

00:17:41Teams, five minutes to go.

00:17:43It's time to plate up.

00:17:44A little dollop of the super brown whipped potato.

00:17:47I proceed to slice the perfectly cooked beef that goes on top of the potato.

00:17:52That's my boy.

00:17:53That's my boy.

00:17:54When I plate, I want them to be cold, because I know I'm gonna be putting the sorbet in there with the brown butter cake.

00:18:00Is this gonna die?

00:18:01How does that work?

00:18:03They can hold the whole thing frozen, or you put it separate.

00:18:06I realize I can't add the sorbet to the dish, because by the time it gets to the judges, even if they judge us first, the judging does savory before the sweet.

00:18:16What's that cocoa, baby?

00:18:18And I don't want a polenta cake sitting in a puddle of raspberry coulis.

00:18:24I'm gonna put them on the side, and this is meant to be eaten together.

00:18:28Two and a half minutes.

00:18:29Two and a half.

00:18:31Kitefe and croutons, done.

00:18:35And they're looking really, really great.

00:18:38I have butter if you want a zest.

00:18:41My favorite part about this time of year is really just to enjoy food with your loved ones.

00:18:47I lay out a mound of the tartare, and I dust with a little bit more cocoa powder, as well as shaving of Parmesan cheese and butter, because the theme is buttery.

00:18:58Hello.

00:18:5940 seconds.

00:19:00I put on layers of pastry cream.

00:19:03I'm topping it with those beautiful fresh raspberries, and adding my raspberry glaze with a powder of hot cocoa mix.

00:19:13I know that we killed it.

00:19:15We literally have every single thing from the randomizer on this plate, and I think that it comes through, through and through.

00:19:22Five.

00:19:23Four.

00:19:24Three.

00:19:25Two.

00:19:26Yeah.

00:19:27One.

00:19:28Yeah, baby.

00:19:29Let's go!

00:19:30Oh!

00:19:31Yes!

00:19:32Yes!

00:19:33Fantastic job, both teams.

00:19:36Well done.

00:19:37Let's bring the judges in.

00:19:39Whew!

00:19:40I feel like if anybody's in pastry, they will appreciate how much work I put into that dish.

00:19:48Yeah.

00:19:49I mean, I burnt her croutons, but it's okay.

00:19:51We came back.

00:19:52We came back.

00:19:53I've walked off this stage thinking I clearly won.

00:19:57You never know.

00:19:58I'm proud of what you did.

00:20:00You did a lot of work, man.

00:20:01That was a lot of work in 35 minutes.

00:20:03Oof.

00:20:04Damn.

00:20:07Our TOC judges have been patiently waiting in their trailers for their big moment.

00:20:12Let's meet them.

00:20:13First, we have the celebrated chef and New York Times best-selling author, who has opened

00:20:17multiple Michelin-star restaurants, the one and only Chef Curtis Stone.

00:20:24Oh, my God.

00:20:27Curtis?

00:20:28I'm nervous.

00:20:29Next up, we have the two-time James Beard Award winner named Best Pastry Chef by Bon Appetit,

00:20:34the one and only Chef Gail Gann.

00:20:38Oh, wow.

00:20:39Oh, my God.

00:20:40She's gonna judge my dessert.

00:20:42She's incredible.

00:20:43She's a great pastry chef.

00:20:45Yeah.

00:20:46I wanna give her a prettier plate.

00:20:47And next, the James Beard Award-winning restaurateur, who received a coveted three-star review

00:20:53for the New York Times, Chef Scott Connick.

00:20:58Oh, wow.

00:20:59Scotty Bones.

00:21:00Pretty boy.

00:21:02As you know, the Randomizer is a Scrooge of Christmas.

00:21:06In the savory category, they had to work with the Aya Brown.

00:21:09In sweet, they had raspberries.

00:21:12In the equipment for both dishes, air fryer for style, buttery.

00:21:16And the wild card ingredient is hot cocoa mix.

00:21:19Here to present the first dish is the one and only TOC3 champ herself, Chef Tiffany Faison.

00:21:26Let's go, Chef.

00:21:27Come on, Tiffany.

00:21:29Judges, I present to you your savory dish.

00:21:32This is tartare of buttery I-Round with hot cocoa powder and emulsified brown butter.

00:21:39Bread was basted with cocoa butter-infused ghee and then air-fried to create little croutons.

00:21:45Not to be outdone by the tartare Santas, we have left for you the hot cocoa Napoleon with raspberries.

00:21:51The puff pastry was, you guessed it, air-fried until GBD.

00:21:55Then layered with hot cocoa and butter pastry cream.

00:21:59The fresh raspberries were treated to a raspberry glaze and finished with a dusting of hot cocoa powder.

00:22:0635 minutes. Remember, 35 minutes.

00:22:08Overall, all the ingredients favored a sweet dish more than a savory dish.

00:22:13So that being said, I think that the chef who made this tartare really kind of wove a lot of different ingredients inside that tartare in order to make it work.

00:22:22And I think in a lot of ways this does work pretty well.

00:22:25It's actually craveable.

00:22:27Let's go!

00:22:28The flavor is really good. There's a nice crunch through it as well.

00:22:31It really changes the whole mouthfeel.

00:22:34Because when you eat a tartare, it's raw beef and the I-Round.

00:22:37It's a very lean cut of beef. Works really nicely.

00:22:40I would never have chosen it, but hey, you learn something every day.

00:22:43It's a strange plate of food, but it's quite delicious.

00:22:46Okay, I'll take it.

00:22:47We'll take that.

00:22:48I'll take it.

00:22:49Clever use of the beef.

00:22:51It was a great way to cope with the time constraint, but that heat is blowing my palate a bit.

00:22:56That's what we needed.

00:22:57We needed one of those condoms.

00:22:58Sorry, May.

00:22:59At least one.

00:23:00But overall, it was an interesting dish.

00:23:03I'm not sure I tasted the hot cocoa enough.

00:23:06There was so much in the aioli, though.

00:23:09But you can't taste it.

00:23:10Moving on to the dessert.

00:23:12Things to love about it are the puff pastry, of course, very buttery, and then that creaminess of the chocolate pastry cream.

00:23:19It all works very nicely.

00:23:21I feel like the puff pastry didn't get cooked all the way through.

00:23:25I just...

00:23:26I agree the puff pastry is undercooked.

00:23:28Yes.

00:23:29That being said, the pastry cream itself is wonderful.

00:23:32The usage of the raspberries is delicious.

00:23:34I really like the hot cocoa powder.

00:23:37It kind of acts as that foil, kind of like a powdered sugar would.

00:23:41It's delicious, of course.

00:23:43Okay.

00:23:44Worst things have been said.

00:23:46We're gonna be all right.

00:23:47Yeah, I feel good.

00:23:48Thank you, judges.

00:23:49Your scorecards are in front of you.

00:23:51You are going to be scoring both dishes.

00:23:5450 points available.

00:23:5525 points will be in taste.

00:23:5820 points will be in the use of the randomizer.

00:24:00And five points for plating.

00:24:01I'm sorry, the pastry wasn't as crispy.

00:24:04I wanted to stand it up, but I felt like if I'm gonna have a milf wheat, I have to have three layers.

00:24:09I feel like we've got a good shot at this.

00:24:12Oh, dude, I feel, I'm feeling good.

00:24:14All right, judges, thank you very much.

00:24:15Here to describe the second team's dishes, the one and only wild card, Chef Justin Warner.

00:24:21First, this is a butter-based holiday eye of round.

00:24:24The eye of round was rubbed with coffee, the hot cocoa mix, a little hot paprika.

00:24:31It's accompanied then by potato in two forms.

00:24:34You'll see the air-fried sliced version, which was done with butter and Parmesan.

00:24:38And then a super brown butter with potato.

00:24:41Next, in the sweet department, you will find a hot cocoa polenta cake.

00:24:46It's accompanied by vanilla panna and charred raspberry sorbetto.

00:24:50The raspberries were cooked in the air fryer to achieve a little char.

00:24:54Of course, you can add that to the chilled bowl with your polenta cake and vanilla panna.

00:25:00Good job, Justin.

00:25:01In the amount of time that our contestants had, there's an enormous amount of work here.

00:25:08The eye of round is normally a tougher cut of meat, and it needs a lot of resting.

00:25:13You get a little bit of chewiness on that.

00:25:15That said, I'm not a gummy shark. I'm not scared of a really flavorful steak, and it is.

00:25:20Well, excuse me, you know what?

00:25:21I'm not a gummy shark. I've got teeth. I can chew.

00:25:23What's a gummy shark?

00:25:24A shark with no teeth.

00:25:26It's the only shark you're happy to see as a surfer.

00:25:29Gummy shark.

00:25:30Gummy shark with no teeth.

00:25:31Is that just an Australian thing? You don't have gummy sharks here?

00:25:34What's going on?

00:25:36In terms of the butteriness, I mean, you hit it, and it's great.

00:25:39These potatoes here are fantastic, really rich in flavor.

00:25:43The potatoes under the steak are just a little gummy.

00:25:48I love the exterior rub on the meat.

00:25:51The hot cocoa mix adds a great deal of flavor.

00:25:54Usage of the butter in this dish is really spectacular.

00:25:57Come on. Come on. Come on.

00:25:59There's a lot of color. It actually looks kind of festive, kind of holiday-ish.

00:26:03Okay, that was the idea.

00:26:05I also find the beef to be tough.

00:26:07I understand that there was not a lot of time,

00:26:10but I think it would have benefited from a little more searing.

00:26:14Dessert, there's some nice textural contrast going on.

00:26:18That polenta cake has got, you know, a cornmeal crunch to it.

00:26:22I do love the cream on top of the cake,

00:26:25and I find that the raspberry is so acidic and so lacking sweetness.

00:26:30It doesn't belong for me almost. It's too high contrast.

00:26:33Bologna.

00:26:34I like the polenta cake.

00:26:35I think that little nut of butter that's inside there also really added a tremendous amount of moisture,

00:26:40and I like the usage of the cocoa on the exterior as well.

00:26:42This is a hard thing to unpack, all right, because this sorbet here is extremely bright and acidic.

00:26:50It makes you pucker as you eat it.

00:26:54It's meant to be in with the stuff, but not alone, so that's why.

00:26:57This is so buttery that it makes you feel like the holidays just came and gave you a big hug.

00:27:02It's really fantastic.

00:27:04And then you realize why that's so acidic.

00:27:06Because they're using it.

00:27:07The chefs that have made this dish want that to cut through this, and it really works.

00:27:12Yes.

00:27:13There's no sugar in it.

00:27:14Thank you very much, judges.

00:27:15Your score cards are in front of you.

00:27:17I don't even know what's going to happen.

00:27:19I don't know what's going to happen.

00:27:21There's a couple of things that we got dinged on, but so did they.

00:27:24Well, the scores are in, chefs.

00:27:25The scores are in, chefs.

00:27:26It is?

00:27:27Damn.

00:27:28All right.

00:27:29It's anyone's game.

00:27:31As they say.

00:27:32Yeah.

00:27:33Let's bring our chefs back in.

00:27:35Chef May!

00:27:36Chef Nene!

00:27:37Chef Adam!

00:27:38Chef Christian!

00:27:39Come on back!

00:27:45Well, chefs, nice hard-fought battle.

00:27:48Here we go with the scores.

00:27:50One team scored a 42 out of 50 in savory.

00:27:53A 39 out of 50 in sweet.

00:27:57With the final being 81.

00:28:00The other team scored a 41 out of 50 in savory.

00:28:05A 38 out of 50 in sweet.

00:28:08With the final being 79.

00:28:13The winner of the TOC All-Star Christmas battle between Team May and Nene

00:28:19and Team Adam and Christian is...

00:28:25May and Nene!

00:28:28Congratulations!

00:28:29Love you, baby.

00:28:30Smile.

00:28:31Come on.

00:28:32Come on, baby.

00:28:33I love you.

00:28:38Sorry to see you go home, but I hope you have great holidays.

00:28:41Thank you for being here.

00:28:42Love you.

00:28:43Love you, baby.

00:28:45Love you, brother.

00:28:46Love you, brother.

00:28:47We love you!

00:28:56It's tough to swallow.

00:28:57Especially if it's not necessarily...

00:28:58And the bigger, tougher pill to swallow is that we're really having fun and wanted to go on a deep run here.

00:29:03So I'm pretty bummed out.

00:29:06Yeah.

00:29:07The opportunity is always amazing.

00:29:09Two best friends came in, worked collectively together, made fantastic dishes.

00:29:14Congratulations.

00:29:16There you have it!

00:29:18Thank you!

00:29:25I did it.

00:29:26We did it, guys.

00:29:27How was that?

00:29:28I liked it.

00:29:29It was great.

00:29:30It was great.

00:29:31Can we always have teams?

00:29:32I think it's nice.

00:29:33I think we communicated enough.

00:29:34Not a lot of talking.

00:29:35It was just a lot of...

00:29:36Oh, we knew that you were in your...

00:29:37We were just, like, ESP going on, like...

00:29:39Yeah.

00:29:40We divide and conquer.

00:29:41Are you ready for the next two teams?

00:29:43Yeah!

00:29:44Let's do this!

00:29:45We have our number two seed team, internationally recognized restaurateur.

00:29:49The one and only Chef Marcus Samuelson, and his executive pastry chef, Rachel Sharif.

00:29:56Rachel is definitely our secret weapon.

00:29:59She has the energy.

00:30:00I've been working with Chef Marcus for a little over four months now.

00:30:03When you find someone that's talented and committed, I'm like, you're coming.

00:30:07I can't wait for me and Rachel to come up with great flavors together.

00:30:10Marcus is a culinary icon, and Rachel's pastry skills have earned her a devoted following.

00:30:16They're hoping their time spent creating restaurant dishes will make them a winning combo in the TOC arena.

00:30:23I feel like if Chef needs something for me that's a bit more pastry-forward, I can help him out with that.

00:30:28And if I need help with, like, flavor combinations, then that's all that Chef Marcus is about.

00:30:33The number three seed team features a pair of acclaimed high-end chefs, the one and only Graham Elliott and Giuseppe Trentori.

00:30:41We worked together at Trotters back in the late 90s, early 2000s.

00:30:44Marcus, remember when he came and spent a few days with us?

00:30:47He did, yes.

00:30:48Marcus is so nice and a good dude, but when we've seen him in the kitchen, it's like kicking people out of the way and just chopping and grabbing your pans.

00:30:55So, like, he's coming in on fire.

00:30:56Graham is one of the most respected chefs and judges in the competition world, but Giuseppe has never competed in his life.

00:31:04They are hoping their decade-long friendship will be the deciding factor in this round.

00:31:10The idea is for Giuseppe to focus on the pastry.

00:31:13I'm rocking on savory, but the fact that we know each other, being able to jump by, taste each other's stuff, get an idea of how to plate, and then kind of go back to our worlds and focus, so.

00:31:22It'll be the longest 35 minutes ever.

00:31:24It'll be the shortest 35 minutes ever.

00:31:26Don't fool yourself.

00:31:28I know Giuseppe and I know Graham.

00:31:30Talk about legend.

00:31:32I kind of like how I don't have too much knowledge of anybody.

00:31:35Yes.

00:31:36Rachel's skill, she focused on pastry.

00:31:38We're gonna do very well.

00:31:41Ready?

00:31:42Let's go.

00:31:43Let's do it.

00:31:44All right, chefs, they're ready for you.

00:31:48Let's go.

00:31:49We got this.

00:31:50Let's go.

00:31:53Are you ready to see these chefs fired up tonight?

00:31:57Let's write this up.

00:32:02Graham Elliott is a three-time James Beard nominee whose namesake Chicago restaurant received two Michelin stars.

00:32:13He has been a judge on both MasterChef and Top Chef and competed on Iron Chef America and Top Chef Masters.

00:32:20Chef Giuseppe Trattori has earned three James Beard nominations and, as an executive chef of Boca, earned a Michelin star four years in a row.

00:32:31Giuseppe has been Graham's friend for two decades, but this is his first time ever competing on television.

00:32:38Give it up for Grand Slam and GT.

00:32:43Team Graham and Giuseppe!

00:33:00Giuseppe, first time?

00:33:01First time?

00:33:02First time here.

00:33:03Very excited.

00:33:04First time cooking on television.

00:33:05On television.

00:33:06In competition.

00:33:07Dude, I'm nervous for you.

00:33:08You are one brave cat.

00:33:10I like to risk it all.

00:33:12Buddy, you are.

00:33:13You are.

00:33:14Gentlemen, good luck.

00:33:15Let's meet their opponents.

00:33:17Chef Marcus Samuelson is the internationally acclaimed restaurateur and eight-time James Beard Award winner.

00:33:24In addition to being one of TOC's most respected judges, he is a Chopped All-Star Champion and a Top Chef Masters winner.

00:33:34Now, Master Pastry Chef Rachel Sharif worked in multiple Michelin-starred restaurants.

00:33:40She was a rainy finalist for Pastry Chef of the Year in 2025 and is also making her very first competition appearance here tonight.

00:33:49Give a big, loud welcome to Team Marcus and Rachel!

00:33:58You probably have one of the biggest reputations.

00:34:14You finally come and compete, which I cannot thank you enough.

00:34:20This for you to be the one that is picked out of all the chefs that would die to come work with him.

00:34:28Uh-huh.

00:34:29How does that make you feel?

00:34:30I'm super honored.

00:34:31I still can't believe it's happening.

00:34:32Well, believe it because we're here and these two guys are killers.

00:34:35I know.

00:34:36We're here to perform.

00:34:37Chefs, let's take it to the randomizer.

00:34:39Let's go.

00:34:40All right.

00:34:44As you know, the randomizer will determine the mandatory details of both of your dishes.

00:34:51The mandatory savory item for one dish and the mandatory sweet item for the other dish.

00:34:57And the equipment, the style, and the wild card, which is going to apply to both dishes.

00:35:03Here we go.

00:35:04Going for savory.

00:35:05Calamari, turkey, pork, turkey, turkey thigh in the savory category.

00:35:19Got to be happy with that.

00:35:20Sweet donju pear.

00:35:22Okay.

00:35:23Equipment, morto and pestle.

00:35:25Style, nutty, and applesauce.

00:35:28It could be worse.

00:35:29I was expecting Grinch Fieri and we're getting a little more like Santa Guy.

00:35:32Grinch Fieri to Santa Guy.

00:35:33Okay.

00:35:34At least I'm back on the Christmas card list.

00:35:36How about this?

00:35:3735 minutes to cook.

00:35:38I'm going to give you two minutes to confer as a team.

00:35:41Start now.

00:35:42I'm doing rice pudding.

00:35:43For sure.

00:35:44I'm going to Portugal.

00:35:46We both come from cultures that are very flavor-forward.

00:35:50Rachel's background with Jamaican-American and for me with Ethiopian.

00:35:54I grew up learning French pastry.

00:35:57So I have influences from everywhere.

00:35:59So when I get an opportunity like this, I'm like, hey, Rachel, you're coming with.

00:36:03Sorbet.

00:36:04Sorbet.

00:36:05I'm going to go apple.

00:36:06Apple pear sorbet.

00:36:07I'm going to make the crepes, I think.

00:36:08I looked up to you as a culinarian, but then we became friends and then, you know, we achieved

00:36:11life moments together.

00:36:12Years later to be able to come here, we're going to just crush it.

00:36:16You eat the acid.

00:36:17You eat the dish.

00:36:18I know.

00:36:19Good luck.

00:36:20Let's get to it.

00:36:21One.

00:36:22And we're going.

00:36:23Good luck, chef.

00:36:24You're going to see some great cookery tonight.

00:36:29All right, turkey thighs, right?

00:36:32I'm a dark meat guy when it comes to the poultry.

00:36:34It's got the fat.

00:36:35It's got the flavor.

00:36:36Nanju pear.

00:36:37It can be cooked.

00:36:38It can be raw.

00:36:39And pears and crisp.

00:36:40Everybody knows that correlation.

00:36:42Mordo and pestle.

00:36:43I mean, this is a key component in the culinary arsenal.

00:36:46This is going to take some arm work.

00:36:48Nutty is one of those things that can take a lot of interpretation.

00:36:51Really a big spectrum of opportunity.

00:36:54And applesauce, this is going to work great alongside of the pears.

00:36:57And we'll play really good into the dessert.

00:36:59In my household, we did curry with noodles on the holidays.

00:37:04And warm baking spices, to me, scream Christmas.

00:37:08I know I can make a good rice pudding.

00:37:10I see that we have the pears.

00:37:12I can incorporate this into a sorbet of some sort.

00:37:15It's like a really good combination.

00:37:17Chef Marcus on the grind.

00:37:20Yes.

00:37:21Kathleen on the grind.

00:37:22I do a savory of myself.

00:37:24Once I knew it was turkey and nutty, let's do something with curry.

00:37:29And apples in the curry would really work because it has a sweetener to it.

00:37:34You see the Mordo and Pesto?

00:37:36We have three of this.

00:37:38How are we making the curry nutty?

00:37:39Tons of nuts.

00:37:40I love Mordo and Pesto.

00:37:41I use it a lot.

00:37:42You can get layers of both fat and texture.

00:37:47The holidays are different.

00:37:48I know the joy when the next day comes to my family.

00:37:51It's like ripping that turkey meat off and putting the stews.

00:37:54And I was really channeling my family memories of this.

00:37:57And that's something I wanted to share.

00:37:58I'm trying not to stand here too fanboyish watching Marcus, but I am fanboying.

00:38:03Hi, how are you feeling?

00:38:04Hi, good.

00:38:05First time.

00:38:06First time competition.

00:38:07Welcome to the madness.

00:38:08Welcome to the family.

00:38:09Thank you very much.

00:38:10Awesome.

00:38:11What's the plan, Chef?

00:38:12I'm doing sweet, which is pears.

00:38:13So I'm going to go with rice pudding.

00:38:15Okay.

00:38:16Press some pears in the spice mixture for a sorbet.

00:38:19Okay.

00:38:20So we'll see how the spice.

00:38:21Rice pudding isn't holiday forward.

00:38:23Oh, for me, it's super holiday.

00:38:24It's for you.

00:38:25Not for me.

00:38:26That's how different it is.

00:38:27Like, holiday, it depends on where you're from.

00:38:29But I'm very familiar with the use of the warm baking spices such as cinnamon, clove,

00:38:35cardamom, allspice, and star anise.

00:38:39My aunt was dining in one of Chef Marcus's restaurants in New York City.

00:38:44And my aunt was like, oh my goodness, my niece is a pastry chef.

00:38:47And so I got a phone call.

00:38:48I was like, there's no way that, like, the Chef Marcus Samuelson is calling me right now.

00:38:52Oh, my goodness!

00:38:54As a young person, all you need is a shot, and Rachel has a talent.

00:38:58So...

00:39:00I like this combo.

00:39:02Chef, welcome to the dance floor.

00:39:04Hi, how are you?

00:39:05Perfect.

00:39:06And you?

00:39:07Oh, lovely.

00:39:08Pear was for sweets, so I think I'm going to make crepes.

00:39:10Okay.

00:39:11I grew up in a very poor family, and holiday for us, my mom is like, I have eggs, flour,

00:39:16a little mascarpone.

00:39:17She'll try to make crepes.

00:39:18So the crepes dish for me, my twist, and what my mom used to make during the holidays.

00:39:23Giuseppe, how are you doing?

00:39:24Do you really want to know?

00:39:27I'm going to do savory, and, you know, turkey thighs are great.

00:39:29It's kind of like a chicken on steroids.

00:39:31Not a lot that you can do with those parts in such a short amount of time.

00:39:35So you need to apply the right cooking process to it.

00:39:38Talk to me, Chef.

00:39:39What's on the menu?

00:39:40Going with turkey schnitzel.

00:39:41I'm going to pound it thin.

00:39:42I'm going to add walnuts to the crust for the nutty flavor.

00:39:44And then the applesauce, I will do the veal jus reduction with some sage and then whip that into it.

00:39:50Oh, I love that.

00:39:51I think that'll be nice, right?

00:39:52It's kind of holiday flavor.

00:39:53Nothing too loco.

00:40:12Walnuts, to me, scream holiday time.

00:40:15So grinding that, putting it into the breading was kind of one of those easy, let's do it type of things.

00:40:21This is a great call for texture, too.

00:40:23Giuseppe, six minutes left.

00:40:25Well, shut up.

00:40:26That's not funny.

00:40:27Let's go.

00:40:28Come on.

00:40:29Push, push.

00:40:30That limb is not funny.

00:40:31Okay.

00:40:32The fry station is set.

00:40:34Christmas time of 1998.

00:40:37That's when I first met Giuseppe, so.

00:40:39We met at Charlie Trotter.

00:40:40We worked there, and we're still friends to this day.

00:40:42Yeah.

00:40:43And as we all know, in a restaurant, one year, it's like a dog year.

00:40:46So I've known you for about 100 years.

00:40:49Marcus Hamilton, we've known each other for years.

00:40:52We have a similar pedigree.

00:40:54We've both judged for a long time.

00:40:56To throw all that to the side and get back in the kitchen, and then to have our culinary partners first-time television competition, you've never seen a better, more equal matchup.

00:41:06I love challenge, and this is like one of the biggest challenge, to win this competition.

00:41:11Woo!

00:41:12Come on, y'all!

00:41:13All right, team, 20 minutes.

00:41:16What's next, chef?

00:41:17I'm gonna make mascarpone cream.

00:41:19It's rich, luxurious, but, like, what am I doing with a pear?

00:41:23I was thinking about the flavor, and that's your pear.

00:41:26It's very delicate, so I use them inside the crepes and raw on top.

00:41:33Around holidays and Christmas and, you know, Thanksgiving, you need that vegetable, greenery component.

00:41:40So, grab some Brussels sprouts.

00:41:42Applesauce in the jus?

00:41:43Yeah, so applesauce, veal jus, ginger, some sage.

00:41:47And also, the applesauce was very tart.

00:41:49Yeah.

00:41:50And it was perfect for, like, savory and sweet.

00:41:52Mm-hmm.

00:41:53That's why I just warm it up with a little lemon juice and pumpkin spice.

00:41:56Delicious.

00:41:57What's the plan with this, chef?

00:41:59Make, like, a version of drage.

00:42:01Well, what's drage, then?

00:42:02It's a frickin' nut with sugar, caramelized sugar.

00:42:04Oh, okay.

00:42:05Just sounds fancier.

00:42:06What sort of nut?

00:42:07Hazelnut?

00:42:08Hazelnut.

00:42:09And then, kind of smash them in there so the sugar go with the nuts together.

00:42:11Give it a little nutty flavor and texture to this dish.

00:42:21I incorporate the applesauce into my pear juice spice mixture to give it body and to

00:42:27also help stabilize, prevent that, like, icy consistency.

00:42:30Applesauce, it's shelf-stable, so the stabilizers that she needs for a sorbet are already in the applesauce.

00:42:34Good? I didn't think about that.

00:42:35Wild smart.

00:42:36I didn't think about that.

00:42:37Feel good, chef?

00:42:38I feel good, man.

00:42:39It's, we're having fun, me and Rachel.

00:42:41It's good.

00:42:42There's probably two billion people in the world eating curry on holidays that just might not live in America.

00:42:48I was not born here, and I want to share how we look at the holidays.

00:42:52The holidays in my household, it's like, maybe we drank too much until the night before.

00:42:55You have a little bit of a hungover.

00:42:57You are gathering, making this dish together.

00:43:00It's fun.

00:43:01And curry with noodles is a great hangover cure.

00:43:04Teams, 10 minutes, 10 to go.

00:43:10How are we looking on this dessert over here?

00:43:12Dessert looks like the mise en place is ready to go.

00:43:15I think this is a smart play in that it's pretty shelf-stable.

00:43:18So what we're seeing is Chef Giuseppe moving back to help Chef Graham be a second set of hands.

00:43:22For the sauce, you want to put them on the side?

00:43:24Yeah.

00:43:25To have someone not only taking care of pastry, but to be able to jump in and help,

00:43:29it's not Giuseppe and Graham.

00:43:31It's like Graham setback.

00:43:32You know you love that one. That was good.

00:43:34That was good.

00:43:35Come on, come on.

00:43:36Turkey's done. Hash is done. You got that?

00:43:39I'm gonna get plates.

00:43:42Heather George, you have to compete.

00:43:45You gotta be able to sit on both sides of this.

00:43:47And this is fun.

00:43:49The holidays, I'm here with Rachel.

00:43:52I'm gonna enjoy every second of it.

00:43:55Last minute, I decided to get the nutty component done.

00:43:58Pecans impart an amazing nutty flavor when you toast them.

00:44:02How much do you have left, Rachel?

00:44:04I'm just gonna can do these nuts, then we have to plate.

00:44:06Three minutes. Three to go.

00:44:08So, put like apple puree on the bottom of the plate.

00:44:11Slice the crepes.

00:44:12Put one piece on each puree.

00:44:15I put some julienne pear on top.

00:44:17Dust it with the hazelnut.

00:44:18The crepe itself is almost like the Christmas present wrapping,

00:44:22and then you have the actual gift inside.

00:44:24What's in there? What is it?

00:44:25Ooh, pescabon!

00:44:27And you get it, and it's like double present.

00:44:29I was psyched about that.

00:44:31First thing down is the hash with the brussel sprout,

00:44:34the chestnut, the pear, a little pancetta,

00:44:36then the buttermilk fried turkey.

00:44:39When you're in the kitchen battlefield,

00:44:42you learn about the people that you can rely on.

00:44:45What else?

00:44:46Something to garnish the top of those pickled pears.

00:44:48Got it.

00:44:49And to see that over decades now,

00:44:51and share that heart, spirit, as well as palate,

00:44:54it's very rewarding.

00:44:55Huh?

00:44:56Nothing else?

00:44:57All right.

00:44:58I love it.

00:45:01I mean, we are going with soulful cooking curry,

00:45:05with noodles,

00:45:07my broccoli rabe on that,

00:45:10and then our turkey thigh.

00:45:11One minute!

00:45:13First was, like, warm rice pudding topping

00:45:16on top of the rice pudding,

00:45:17and then cold pear apple sorbet.

00:45:20Rachel did a fantastic job.

00:45:23For me, one of the biggest privileges

00:45:24in this part of my career is to work

00:45:26with younger-than-me talented people

00:45:28that have different narratives,

00:45:30and Rachel is one of them.

00:45:32I appreciate that a lot.

00:45:34Five, four, three, two, one!

00:45:38That's it!

00:45:43All right, chefs.

00:45:45Great performance by all of you,

00:45:47and to the new chefs, congratulations.

00:45:49You just cut your teeth in one of the most difficult competitions ever.

00:45:52Awesome job!

00:45:53Good job!

00:45:54Awesome job!

00:45:55We're going to send you back to your trailers,

00:45:56and let's bring out the judges.

00:46:03Great job!

00:46:05Whoo!

00:46:06Whoo!

00:46:07She did it!

00:46:08Jesus, take the wheel!

00:46:09She did it!

00:46:10Cooking together for so long,

00:46:11it's like an extension of each other.

00:46:12You know, same mind, same palate,

00:46:14but the biggest is the same heart and soul

00:46:16and what we do,

00:46:17so you can almost just be blindfolded

00:46:18like a dance partner

00:46:19and be able to,

00:46:20dude, dude, you got that,

00:46:21you dude, okay, how are we looking?

00:46:22I think we both,

00:46:23you both brought flavor

00:46:24in a short amount of time.

00:46:25Oh, yeah.

00:46:26Right?

00:46:27You feel good?

00:46:28Absolutely.

00:46:29Yeah, I feel good.

00:46:30I mean, I have no idea what they did.

00:46:31I don't know.

00:46:32I saw some plates,

00:46:33and I was like, whoo!

00:46:34Yeah?

00:46:35All right, let's welcome back our judges.

00:46:37Chef Curtis Stone,

00:46:38Chef Gail Gann,

00:46:39and Chef Scott Cotter.

00:46:41Curtis is a great guy.

00:46:42Curtis is amazing.

00:46:43He's traveled.

00:46:44He's been all over the world.

00:46:45He understands flavor from all over.

00:46:47I grew up watching Gail.

00:46:49That's so crazy.

00:46:51Dang!

00:46:52I worked with Gail

00:46:53back at True

00:46:54when I was 21 years old.

00:46:56Scott doesn't know it that I'm here,

00:46:58but Scott is one of my best friends in the world.

00:47:00Well, judges,

00:47:01the randomizer served up turkey thigh,

00:47:04donju pear,

00:47:05morto and pestle had to be the piece of equipment.

00:47:08Style, nutty,

00:47:09and the wild card ingredient,

00:47:11again in both dishes,

00:47:12was applesauce.

00:47:14Justin?

00:47:15Judges.

00:47:16Your savory course first.

00:47:17This is buttermilk fried turkey thigh

00:47:20with a walnut crust.

00:47:22Now those walnuts were crushed

00:47:23by the mortar and pestle.

00:47:25But you'll also find another nutty element

00:47:27in that Brussels hash with chestnuts,

00:47:29and an apple jus.

00:47:31Onto the sweet dish,

00:47:33we have crepes with mascarpone,

00:47:35pear, and hazelnuts.

00:47:37The hazelnuts were crushed by the mortar and pestle.

00:47:41First of all,

00:47:42I've never met a cutlet that I don't love.

00:47:44This is just delicious,

00:47:45and I think it's spectacular.

00:47:46Really great caramelization on that chestnut,

00:47:49Brussels sprout move.

00:47:50I like that the sauce was on the side.

00:47:52I think it's a very thoughtful,

00:47:53kind of elegant touch.

00:47:55This is just good cooking.

00:47:57Absolutely love this turkey thigh.

00:47:59Thighs in general have a nice amount of fat,

00:48:02so everything's tender.

00:48:04Thank you, Gail. Yeah.

00:48:05I love all the color.

00:48:07It's really festive and fresh.

00:48:09If I had to criticize one little thing,

00:48:11it could use a little more salt.

00:48:14How do I put all my salt on myself?

00:48:16I love the Brussels.

00:48:17It really brings it to life around the holiday time.

00:48:20I don't really get the applesauce very much.

00:48:22It's simple cooking, but it's very delicious.

00:48:24Let's move on to the dessert.

00:48:26Loving the textures.

00:48:27I've got some crunch from the hazelnuts.

00:48:29It seems like they might have been draged a bit,

00:48:32so I get, like, a little sugar crunch, too.

00:48:34I think it pairs perfectly.

00:48:38I do wish there was a little more of that cream,

00:48:40only because it's so delicious I want more.

00:48:42I think the crepe is a great idea.

00:48:44I wish there were just a little bit more color on that crepe,

00:48:47just to develop that flavor just a touch.

00:48:49A good crepe is your color.

00:48:50I mean, if I'm gonna be really particular...

00:48:52Don't get defensive.

00:48:54I like the usage of the pear,

00:48:55particularly that kind of doubling down

00:48:57in that applesauce.

00:48:58If I'm gonna be really particular,

00:49:00they might be a little thick.

00:49:01I have to disagree with my friend Scott.

00:49:03I mean, my crepe is perfectly thin,

00:49:06so I don't know what you're eating over there, Scott,

00:49:08but this crepe to me...

00:49:09Yeah.

00:49:12Crepes are not easy to make in a short amount of time

00:49:14because you try and pour that crepe batter immediately in,

00:49:17it's gonna create a bit of a tough crepe.

00:49:19These aren't. These are really delicate.

00:49:20Great holiday feel.

00:49:22Simple but still refined.

00:49:23Impressed.

00:49:24Awesome.

00:49:25Thank you very much, judges.

00:49:26Two scorecards in front of you.

00:49:27We're gonna be scoring the savory and sweet individually.

00:49:3050 points available for each dish.

00:49:3225 points are going to go to taste,

00:49:3520 points for the use of the randomizer,

00:49:37and five points for plating.

00:49:38Couldn't have gone better.

00:49:39Like, again, for me.

00:49:41If they get the deliciousness,

00:49:43we have a very high chance they don't get that.

00:49:46I have faith that we're strong in flavors.

00:49:49All right, champ, give us the rundown on the second team's dish.

00:49:53Judges, you have your morning after nutty curry.

00:49:57The ground turkey was treated to a mortar and pestle roasted peanuts,

00:50:01made into a curry and enhanced with a cauliflower and applesauce puree.

00:50:06The curry was then adored with crispy turkey.

00:50:09So on the sweet side, we have spiced rice pudding.

00:50:12The mortar and pestle was used to ground a spice mix to marinate the d'Anjou pears.

00:50:16The applesauce was also used as a stabilizer for the sorbet.

00:50:20Pecans found themselves into the mortar and pestle.

00:50:23Yes.

00:50:24For the noodle dish, I just love that I keep getting more and more flavors

00:50:28and more and more textures, too.

00:50:30Oh!

00:50:31Okay.

00:50:32Tastes nutty.

00:50:33Very happy with this dish.

00:50:34I have a little of a conundrum here.

00:50:36I like the usage of the spices inside this a lot.

00:50:39I think it's expert navigation of a lot of different flavors and layers.

00:50:43But adding the broccoli rabe feels disjointed.

00:50:46I'm not loving that idea that I'm eating leftovers, quite frankly.

00:50:50I actually thought Scott would love that kind of Southeast Asian take.

00:50:55Yeah.

00:50:56That's all right.

00:50:57Can I have your leftovers?

00:50:58Is that what that means?

00:50:59Ah!

00:51:00He he he!

00:51:01Gail!

00:51:02Point Gail!

00:51:05No.

00:51:06No.

00:51:07Not too much.

00:51:11Enjoy.

00:51:12Whew!

00:51:13At first glance, for me, it doesn't read holiday.

00:51:16But hey, we celebrate the holidays in so many different ways

00:51:19in this wonderful country.

00:51:20And I love that.

00:51:21Really creative use of the turkey.

00:51:23I think it's cool that they've cut it into bite-sized pieces and deep fried them.

00:51:26Yes.

00:51:27Thank you for understanding the turkey.

00:51:28Look, Gail's still eating.

00:51:29Yeah.

00:51:30I mean, they're all eating.

00:51:31I really do enjoy that peanutty flavor here.

00:51:34I think it's pretty on point.

00:51:35Now let's move on to the dessert.

00:51:36I don't know if you guys know this, but the rice pudding is warm.

00:51:40Which is kind of fun when you've got a frozen element and a hot rice pudding.

00:51:44Not sure I pick up a lot of pear flavor in it.

00:51:47So I wish I could have gotten a little more hint that there was pear in there as well.

00:51:52Okay.

00:51:53Now the dessert, I'm having a different experience with it.

00:51:56I really love the spices used inside here.

00:51:58I love the textures.

00:51:59I love the creaminess of the rice pudding and the juxtaposition with the candied pecans.

00:52:04Beautiful.

00:52:05Pear sorbet is lovely with the rice pudding because the extreme cold and the extreme warm,

00:52:11those two things sort of melt together and it's wonderful.

00:52:13The caramelized pecans give a real holiday feel.

00:52:16It's a very interesting combination.

00:52:18I never would have made a sorbet.

00:52:20I would have diced up some pears and put it on top.

00:52:22We're just going to leave it up to them.

00:52:24Yeah.

00:52:25You did a great job.

00:52:26That's all we can do.

00:52:27Great job, Chef.

00:52:28You did a great job.

00:52:29I think that it was a really even judging and that we did our best and we achieved what we wanted.

00:52:33We had a great time.

00:52:34Exactly.

00:52:35Judging cards are in front of you.

00:52:37I was living in shock because Scott didn't enjoy it.

00:52:41I stand by your dish.

00:52:42Of course.

00:52:43All right, chefs, the scores are in.

00:52:44Ready for you.

00:52:45Let's do it.

00:52:46Let's see what happens.

00:52:47It's time to bring the chefs back in.

00:52:49Are you ready?

00:52:50Let's bring in Chef Marcus, Chef Rachel, Chef Graham, Chef Giuseppe.

00:52:59Really high scores.

00:53:02One team scores 43 out of 50.

00:53:05In Savory, 44 out of 50.

00:53:08In Sweet, for a score of 87, the other team scores a 42 out of 50.

00:53:15In Savory, 42 out of 50.

00:53:18In Sweet, with the final being 84.

00:53:21And just so you know, thus far in the tournament, these scores are the highest combined scores of any round of competition.

00:53:29Well done.

00:53:30So, in the battle between Chef Marcus and Chef Rachel versus Chef Graham and Chef Giuseppe, the winner is...

00:53:44Graham and Giuseppe!

00:53:46Good job.

00:53:48You two cooked your butts off.

00:53:49That was a dish that would win on any given Sunday.

00:53:50And today, I'm sorry that it's not your time, but what an honor.

00:53:57Good job.

00:53:59Great job.

00:54:00Great job.

00:54:01Great job.

00:54:02Good job. Thank you.

00:54:10Great job. Great job.

00:54:12We both had a great time.

00:54:14I just wish that we would have another chance to prove ourselves,

00:54:19but it's okay. I'll be back. We'll be back.

00:54:22Yeah.

00:54:23Is this what you expected of your friend?

00:54:24Yeah. I mean, above and beyond. It's kind of like dance partners.

00:54:27We can close your eye and kind of know this one's over here.

00:54:29You guys dance?

00:54:30Oh, yeah. Come on.

00:54:31Fine, but...

00:54:32I don't.

00:54:33Well done.

00:54:34Give it up!

00:54:36Chef Graham, Chef Giuseppe, we'll see you soon.

00:54:39Adios, gentlemen.

00:54:41Woo-hoo!

00:54:43Eight meals?

00:54:44Amazing. I don't even know what to say.

00:54:46I'm pretty surprised to win, to be honest.

00:54:48The crepes had to have been incredible. Good job.

00:54:52Are you ready to meet the final contenders?

00:54:55Let's do this.

00:54:57We have our number two seed team,

00:54:59rock star restaurateurs, Chefs Michael and Brian Voltaggio.

00:55:03Now, these mega-talented culinary brothers famously competed against each other in the Top Chef finale,

00:55:10and have since teamed up to open celebrated restaurants, but guess what?

00:55:15We have never competed in a big tournament until now.

00:55:19I mean, it's only natural that we would be cooking with each other, you know, in this competition.

00:55:23This is a holiday. This is about family.

00:55:25I think if anyone's nervous about Brian and I being on a team, you know, we're nervous about that pressure of other people being nervous, because now we have to deliver on that.

00:55:34Their opponents, the number three seed.

00:55:36After you, m'lady.

00:55:38Shop legend, Sarah Bradley, and Food Network star, Chef Damaris Phillips.

00:55:44They have both won major championships, but still have something to prove.

00:55:48They're counting on their shared Kentucky pride to carry them to victory.

00:55:53We're Kentucky.

00:55:54Your social media is fabulous.

00:55:56That's how I first met Sarah. I would follow her and leave notes.

00:55:59I also love that, like, you're so in your wheelhouse. Like, don't put me in the pastry wheelhouse.

00:56:04That's how I feel about savory cooking.

00:56:06I think when we're in this kitchen, it's going to be like when we're at the restaurant.

00:56:09There's a lot of communication. It's, uh, how are you doing on this?

00:56:12How much longer on that? Can I help you with this?

00:56:14And there's going to be a lot of back and forth, but also checking in on each other, checking each other's work.

00:56:19We're not, we don't micromanage each other. We micro-support each other.

00:56:24It feels right that we're doing this all together.

00:56:28That was a good one! Let's go!

00:56:38Are you ready to see Four Chefs of Fighting?

00:56:41Then let's light this up!

00:56:48Sarah Bradley worked in Michelin-starred restaurants in New York and Chicago before returning to Kentucky to open her own James Beard-nominated restaurant.

00:56:57Freighthouse.

00:57:01She is a premier shop legend, a two-time Top Chef runner-up, and earlier this year, she went all the way to the final battle in her very first appearance on TOC.

00:57:14Her teammate, Damaris Phillips, is an in-demand judge and host in the world of both sweet and savory cooking.

00:57:23And she has won over $130,000 in culinary competitions.

00:57:29Give a big Kentucky holler for the Duchess of Paducah and the mouth of the South, Team Sarah and Damaris!

00:57:39I was expecting a little more dancing.

00:57:55We were gonna square dance.

00:57:57Well, let's get serious because your opponents are every bit serious.

00:58:02He is one of the titans on Bobby's Triple Threat and the winner of Season 6 of Top Chef.

00:58:13Chef Michael Votaggio earned a Michelin-star and James Beard Award nods as an executive chef.

00:58:18Chef Brian Votaggio is a two-time James Beard nominee who has opened over a dozen restaurants.

00:58:27He is a three-time Top Chef finalist.

00:58:30Give it up for our number two seed, Chefs Brian and Michael Votaggio!

00:58:51Are we gonna divide this between savory and sweet?

00:58:54That's up to your homie over there, the old randomize-y.

00:58:57The great thing is, is the randomizer has been serving up fantastic offerings.

00:59:03So, without further ado, the Queens of Kentucky and the Votaggio brothers, let's take it to the randomizer!

00:59:10On this way!

00:59:17Should I blow it a kiss? I don't know what to do. I'm nervous.

00:59:20A little huggy-hug.

00:59:21I can't do that.

00:59:23The randomizer will determine the mandatory details of both of your dishes.

00:59:29The mandatory savory items for one dish, the mandatory sweet item for the other dish,

00:59:34and then the equipment, the style, and the wild card must be used in both dishes.

00:59:39Let's get after it. Going for savory!

00:59:40Here it goes.

00:59:41It really gets those going, y'all. It whoops them around there.

00:59:44In the savory category, pork, calamari, ling, pork, pork tenderloin, en-sweet, pomegranate-see, spiralizer, creamy, and candied citron.

01:00:01Yes, girl.

01:00:02We can do this.

01:00:03I'm going to give you 35 minutes.

01:00:04But I'm going to give you two minutes to confer with one another before I start the clock.

01:00:21Okay.

01:00:22So I'm going to do pork tenderloin with a laggy.

01:00:24They were like, who are you going to bring? And I was like, Tamaris.

01:00:27There's like an unspoken understanding about the food that is most important to us.

01:00:33Obviously, pork tenderloin, creamy, and spiralizer.

01:00:37We are brothers. The story used to be Brian and I against each other, and now it's Brian and I against everyone else.

01:00:43I mean, I think you could cream some greens, too.

01:00:45Cream some greens.

01:00:46Okay.

01:00:47Yeah.

01:00:48Candied citron, curd.

01:00:49Also a coconut sorbet.

01:00:50So they're double for some.

01:00:51There's three, two, one. 35 minutes starts now. Good luck, Chef.

01:00:56Michael and Brian, what I'm going to give you for Christmas is a big ol' fat lose.

01:01:02You're the first or last.

01:01:04I'm already sweating.

01:01:06Chef, when you have a plan, I have a pen.

01:01:10I have this savory pork tenderloin.

01:01:12So I'm going to do sweet potato lattes.

01:01:14Okay.

01:01:15Pork tenderloin.

01:01:16I'm going to serve it with a creamy citron creme fraiche.

01:01:19And I'm going to make a little apple butter.

01:01:21Okay.

01:01:22The key for the pork tenderloin is to get a really nice char on the outside and then go straight to the oven.

01:01:27So it has plenty of time to rest.

01:01:29Tamaris.

01:01:30What's up, girl?

01:01:31What's the plan, baby?

01:01:32So I'm making a mayonnaise chocolate cake for sweet with that candied citron and pomegranate.

01:01:37You're making cake?

01:01:38Yeah.

01:01:39Listen, I don't know if it can be done.

01:01:42I think it can.

01:01:43We're going to do a candied citron curd that's going to go into the layers.

01:01:47Doing a pomegranate sauce.

01:01:48Wait, you're layering?

01:01:49I'm layering.

01:01:50Okay, cookie.

01:01:51Girl, I know.

01:01:52I know.

01:01:53I know.

01:01:54I know.

01:01:55I know.

01:01:56The holidays are four cakes for me and I will feel devastated if I don't do what I'm best at.

01:02:02I am very good at cakes.

01:02:03And mayonnaise cake.

01:02:04It's a creamy cake.

01:02:05I don't have the sweet skills like you do.

01:02:07Well, I don't have the savory skills like you do.

01:02:08Well, I don't have the savory skills like you do.

01:02:09That's just 100% the truth.

01:02:11And I think that's why this team is going to be so strong.

01:02:15Also, the holidays are about comfort where sometimes Southern food and Kentucky food is overlooked.

01:02:22This is the time of year when we shot.

01:02:25I got to get my cakes in.

01:02:27You need pan spray?

01:02:28I got you here.

01:02:29To do a layer cake, you have to bake your cake and it has to be chilled in order to build.

01:02:38Everybody's working with purpose.

01:02:39I mean, nobody is missing a beat right now.

01:02:41It is just firing away.

01:02:43What's the plan with this, chef?

01:02:45I'm going to smoke some butter.

01:02:47Woo-hoo!

01:02:48We're smoking.

01:02:49On the savory side, I'm going to do barbecue pork tenderloin, the creamy braised greens,

01:02:54and smoked sweet potato puree with spiralized sweet potato.

01:02:58Pork tenderloin.

01:02:59One of my faves.

01:03:01Quick cooking.

01:03:02Super lean.

01:03:03It's a great marinating meat.

01:03:05I think I just got a signed pastry.

01:03:08Brian grabbed the pork, so I guess I'm making dessert.

01:03:11With pomegranate.

01:03:12This randomizer, to me, influences a dish that's sort of Southern in barbecue.

01:03:17I know that that's a lane that Brian really likes to cook in.

01:03:20I'm going to take one for the team this round.

01:03:22This is my dessert.

01:03:23Curd?

01:03:24Yeah.

01:03:25I'm making pomegranate curd with citron lemon pudding and whipped candied citron coconut cream.

01:03:32It's creamy, no?

01:03:33I think that's one of the ingredients, right?

01:03:34Creamy, yes.

01:03:35Yes.

01:03:36Required in the style department.

01:03:37Why Brian and I work so well together is because we are brothers.

01:03:40We operate our restaurants together.

01:03:42Oftentimes, when we're writing menus, I'll think of this crazy dish, and all I have to do is

01:03:46say it, and then Brian just puts it together, and there it is.

01:03:50Chef, that's your pommes juice?

01:03:51Yep.

01:03:52Pommes juice, gelatin, butter, eggs, some lemon in there, too, for some more acid, because,

01:03:58you know, pomegranate doesn't have that much acid in it.

01:04:01Once I pour it onto the tray, it's pretty hot.

01:04:03I'm going to throw it into the blast chiller, and hopefully the blast chiller will get this

01:04:07down to temp.

01:04:08I'm looking for this to be set and creamy.

01:04:13Making latkes.

01:04:15Making latkes.

01:04:16Great use of the spiralizer.

01:04:18That's Sarah Bradley always thinking.

01:04:20What a fierce competitor.

01:04:21I'm telling you.

01:04:22You know, latkes are quintessential Hanukkah.

01:04:26They are fried potatoes.

01:04:28And they're so yummy.

01:04:29Okay, I want to speak to all the Jews at home.

01:04:31Use sweet potatoes for your latkes.

01:04:33You don't ever have to worry about the inside oxidizing.

01:04:36Now that my cakes are in the oven, it's time for me to start my pomegranate sauce.

01:04:41I'm taking the whole pomegranate with a little bit of sugar and some vinegar.

01:04:45You see pomegranate all the time in the holidays.

01:04:54What's the plan with the trim?

01:04:55I'm going to build a sauce with that.

01:04:58I want to make sure I'm using the pork tenderloin in two different ways.

01:05:01I'm using the pork fat to roast that to actually start the sauce,

01:05:04to reinforce the pork flavor into the dish.

01:05:07When we started opening our restaurants,

01:05:09we started taking a few holidays off because we were in charge.

01:05:13Now, when we do have the opportunity to stay home and cook with our family,

01:05:17we're doing that together.

01:05:18But I will say that sibling rivalry that you all love,

01:05:21it happens when we're at home in the kitchen cooking together.

01:05:23It does.

01:05:24That part does happen.

01:05:26The citron is the fruit.

01:05:28It's kind of the granddaddy that created all other citruses.

01:05:30Almost no juice inside.

01:05:32The pulp is dry.

01:05:33To actually eat it, you would candy the rind.

01:05:36Sweetening my coconut with candied citron.

01:05:40Coconut cream.

01:05:41People that make foams and fail in competition just, they don't make foams.

01:05:44They just get these ideas in their head like,

01:05:46today's the day I'm going to make foam.

01:05:48I've spent a lot of time formulating recipes so that I never find myself in that situation.

01:05:52Let's see this coconut cream, a creamy element, be hit with the nitrous.

01:05:56Now that's been stabilized with a little bit of gelatin.

01:05:59I think providing it's cool enough, that should set up pretty nice.

01:06:05You're doing a beautiful job.

01:06:06Thank you so much.

01:06:07You really are killing it.

01:06:08Sarah.

01:06:09And she's making apple butter.

01:06:10Mm-hmm.

01:06:11It's really traditional to serve latkes with sour cream and apples.

01:06:14Put a little citron in my apple butter.

01:06:16It's this Eastern European Ashkenazi thing.

01:06:20You guys cook together a lot?

01:06:22No.

01:06:23No.

01:06:24But we're Kentucky girls and we met each other and we fell in love.

01:06:28It's time to start on that curd.

01:06:30This is an opportunity for me to use a spiralizer and also to use a candied citron.

01:06:35Candied citron is that part of a fruitcake that you just don't want.

01:06:38So I'm going to add in an actual spiralized lemon to my curd.

01:06:43Typically with curds you have to cool them down for them to have the right texture.

01:06:49I don't have time for that.

01:06:51And so if I put the candied citron into my curd, the candied parts of that are going to act as like pectin.

01:06:58And it's going to thicken this up.

01:07:00It's the first time in TOC history that they are celebrating sweets.

01:07:04And I've always wanted to compete at this caliber.

01:07:08I am much better at sweets.

01:07:10I don't want to leave here thinking that I left anything in my gas tank.

01:07:17Teams you have 20 minutes.

01:07:1920 minutes to be plated sweet and savory.

01:07:2120 minutes.

01:07:25Brian you good?

01:07:26Yep I'm good.

01:07:27You know normally during the holidays I love to have a pot of braising greens.

01:07:30Let them cook for hours.

01:07:31Here I'm using the candied citron and heavy cream.

01:07:34Mascarpone chef?

01:07:35Yeah just to make it a little bit creamier.

01:07:37You good Brian?

01:07:38Yeah.

01:07:39Sure?

01:07:40Yes.

01:07:41What's going on there?

01:07:42I'm making a candied citron syrup.

01:07:45This is an opportunity for me to take this wild card ingredient and turn it into something creamy and double down on the randomizer.

01:07:53Candied citron Joe.

01:07:55Anything you're seeing so far?

01:07:57Yeah some smart moves.

01:07:59I think we're going to see a double utilization of sweet potatoes.

01:08:01Some of them have been placed in the pot there.

01:08:03I think that second one reserved is probably going to end up in the spiralizer.

01:08:08I use this basket right?

01:08:09You good?

01:08:10Yeah I'm good.

01:08:11I just want to get these in.

01:08:12I don't know where spiralizer is going to play in Voltaggio of the West Kitchen.

01:08:15I'm spiralizing beets because beets have a lot of natural sugar in them.

01:08:19All the components that I'm making are creamy.

01:08:21The beets will sort of add some texture.

01:08:24Powdered sugar can sort of be like a snow over top of the beets.

01:08:28Let it snow.

01:08:29Let it snow.

01:08:30Let it snow.

01:08:31I'm going to make this dill cream.

01:08:35I'm going to use creme fraiche.

01:08:36I'm going to use labneh.

01:08:37A lot of like dairy fat.

01:08:38It's going to make the dish really creamy.

01:08:40And it's going to go perfect with this really bright apple citron salad.

01:08:44We're watching Chef Sarah.

01:08:46Like she always does use those randomizer requirements over and over again.

01:08:51So we have the spiralized sweet potato and the latte.

01:08:53We also have spiralized apple salad.

01:08:55Very smart stuff.

01:08:56Are you making a cream cheese frosting?

01:08:58Yes.

01:08:59Cold cream cheese, granulated sugar, heavy cream, vanilla.

01:09:04It whips up in like two minutes.

01:09:07And it is creamy.

01:09:08I'm cooking the randomizer with my holiday traditions.

01:09:12I just don't know that I've nailed the spiralizer.

01:09:14I've grabbed a huge bar of dark chocolate and I'm shaving that chocolate down.

01:09:21Which I'm going to place on the top of my cake.

01:09:25Layer cake.

01:09:26Which means bakey, coolly, layer, frosty.

01:09:29Putting together, cutting, serving.

01:09:31At this point I don't know if the cakes are going to cool in time.

01:09:33And if they don't, I guess I'm going to have to pivot, but I just don't want to.

01:09:38Anytime you put a cake in the oven, you have literally all of your eggs in one basket.

01:09:43Your final five minutes, five minutes to go.

01:09:46I'm just going to get off this hot sheet tray.

01:09:48Okay.

01:09:49I'm a little nervous about getting these cakes.

01:09:51We got to start cutting them.

01:09:53I'm not cutting them yet, Sarah.

01:09:54We got to go.

01:09:55We have five minutes.

01:09:56I know, I know.

01:09:57Hey, it will be, it will be, it will be okay.

01:09:58It'll be time.

01:09:59I get the latkes down.

01:10:01I do a little dollop of my apple butter.

01:10:03A little dollop of my dill cream.

01:10:06Put that pork tenderloin over on the side.

01:10:09Two beautiful slices.

01:10:10Finishing this pork loin with a little olive oil.

01:10:13Honig's is all about the oil.

01:10:15And a really nice apple slaw.

01:10:17I'm going to intentionally build my dish so that my pork tenderloin can come out.

01:10:20First, I grab the greens and then grab the sweet potato puree.

01:10:24Half moon spoonful.

01:10:25Then I'm going back to the pork tenderloin.

01:10:27I'm finishing with the sauce.

01:10:31Sarah's putting my pomegranate sauce down on the plate.

01:10:34And then we're cutting out the cakes and placing them on top of that sauce.

01:10:38You want to build on them?

01:10:39Yeah.

01:10:40Oh, yeah, you got it.

01:10:41I got it.

01:10:42Do it.

01:10:43Do it, Damaris.

01:10:44I'm sorry I ever questioned you.

01:10:45Three minutes, three to go.

01:10:47Can you feel the adrenaline, everyone?

01:10:49Right?

01:10:50I put my cream into a zipper bag and I make a well and fill that up with the lemon curd.

01:10:58Another layer of cake goes on top of that.

01:11:00And then I'm topping with another layer of my cheesecake icing.

01:11:04I'm like so proud to be on your team.

01:11:06Everybody can hear this.

01:11:07It's Christmas, y'all.

01:11:08Right?

01:11:09It's Christmas.

01:11:1090 seconds to go.

01:11:11That ain't good.

01:11:12I'm grabbing my curd to start plating and it is still liquid.

01:11:21In this moment, I feel like I'm not only am I letting my teammate down, I'm letting my literal brother down right now.

01:11:27I'm going to have to make some real tough decisions.

01:11:30First, I put down the citron puree.

01:11:32Next, I am grabbing my curd, which is at 25% set.

01:11:38The only thing I can think of is place my dishes into a pan and pour liquid nitrogen all over it and let the nitrogen be the freezer to finish my dish.

01:11:46And then I'm aerating this coconut cream so that the judge can crack through and get all the different layers.

01:11:5215 seconds.

01:11:53Put the beets on top.

01:11:54Yep.

01:11:55Win or lose, do or die, it's going to come down to whether or not this thing sets up before it lands in front of the judge.

01:12:03I am praying for a holiday miracle.

01:12:05Five, four, three, two, one.

01:12:10Stop working.

01:12:16Fantastic final battle.

01:12:19Thank you so much.

01:12:21Awesome.

01:12:22That's how we wrap things up tonight.

01:12:25If that doesn't go well, that's on me.

01:12:27You did great that round.

01:12:29It stands on the top of the TOC arena and screams, I'm Hanukkah dish with pork.

01:12:34That's what I was going for.

01:12:36Really?

01:12:37Yes.

01:12:38I love that you're like, it screams I'm Hanukkah with pork.

01:12:41With pork.

01:12:42I mean, that's that Kentucky humor right there.

01:12:44All right, ladies and gentlemen, for one final visit, let's welcome back our judges, Chef Curtis Stone.

01:12:52Chef Gail Gand.

01:12:53Gail's won James Beard Awards for pastry.

01:12:56I mean, Gail's a legend.

01:12:57And Chef Scott Conant.

01:12:59If Scott says bad things about my food, I'm gonna be heartbroken.

01:13:02He's very smart when it comes to judging food.

01:13:05The final battle of the evening really turned out to be a doozy.

01:13:09The randomizer served up some pork tenderloin, pomegranate.

01:13:14Both dishes had to utilize the spiralizer.

01:13:16The style was creamy in the savory and the sweet.

01:13:20And then the wild card ingredient.

01:13:22Yes, a little candied citron.

01:13:24Chef Tiffany, please describe the first team's dish.

01:13:27I think it's about time we lit the menorah.

01:13:29We have in pork tenderloin with latkes.

01:13:32The spiralizer was used to create our sweet potato latkes.

01:13:36With the latkes, you have two creamy sauces.

01:13:39The first is a five spice and candied citron apple butter.

01:13:43The second is a creamy, fresh dill sauce.

01:13:47Finally, you have a spiralized apple and herb salad with candied citron vinaigrette.

01:13:52May I point your direction towards the creamy dark chocolate mayo cake.

01:13:57The mayonnaise was used to create a creamier texture.

01:14:00On top of the cake and in the middle, you will notice a creamy cheese frosting.

01:14:05In addition to that, there is a dollop on the inside of candied citron and spiralized lemon curd.

01:14:11What? How would that work?

01:14:13The chef spiralized the lemon and used the candied citron to make their lemon curd.

01:14:19Great job, Damaris.

01:14:21Finally, you have a pomegranate sauce and a little bit of candied citron on the top.

01:14:29One thing to say to the chef that made the pork, mazel tov.

01:14:32It's delicious.

01:14:33Wow.

01:14:34Yeah.

01:14:35Come on, girl.

01:14:37That is my man, Scott.

01:14:38I wish every Seder meal was like this.

01:14:40I like the brightness, acidic, beautiful flavor, texture of that candied apple salad.

01:14:45The apple butter is delicious.

01:14:47I love the usage of this candied citron inside there.

01:14:50I love the creamy aspects with that dill sauce as well.

01:14:53It's a traditional garnish for latkes, applesauce sour cream.

01:14:57And they're harking to tradition.

01:15:00Get it, Gail, Gail.

01:15:01Obviously, they really utilize the spiralizer.

01:15:04It's not an easy thing to necessarily work in.

01:15:07They did it perfectly.

01:15:08Part of the latkes, apple salad.

01:15:11And I kind of love it with pork because it's kind of naughty as a jerk.

01:15:16If I had to criticize anything, I think it would just be the fact that creamy is not the overall focus.

01:15:24It's not with every bite.

01:15:25How do you make pork tenderloin creamy?

01:15:27It's not easy to cook a pork tenderloin, right?

01:15:30It's easy to dry it out.

01:15:31This is cooked to absolute perfection.

01:15:34You get that nice crust on the outside.

01:15:38Creamy is something we're looking for.

01:15:41And this would lend itself so nicely to a cream sauce.

01:15:44But the flavors are all great.

01:15:46Everything individually is seasoned really well.

01:15:48It's an impressive plate of food.

01:15:50The dessert.

01:15:51Everything is light.

01:15:52And they did use the spiralizer.

01:15:55But I don't see, like, a big focus.

01:15:57But she used it twice.

01:15:59It really is this lovely mouthful.

01:16:02You get a little pop of texture from the pomegranates.

01:16:05And then the curd.

01:16:06I agree with you, Gail.

01:16:07I think the spiralizer is missing here.

01:16:10And I think there could have been maybe a bit more creativity.

01:16:13I use it two times.

01:16:14But I tell you what, it's good eating.

01:16:16Every chocolate cake should be a mayonnaise-based chocolate cake.

01:16:23It's delicious.

01:16:24You talk about hitting the brief with the creaminess.

01:16:26That is absolutely spectacular.

01:16:28Love the brightness of that pomegranate as well.

01:16:31And identifying the balance with the acidity.

01:16:33I thought I was going to say, but.

01:16:35I got no notes on this.

01:16:37Like, this is just good, simple, straightforward cooking.

01:16:40Oh, yeah!

01:16:41Oh, yeah!

01:16:43Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah!

01:16:44Oh, yeah, yeah!

01:16:45Can you hear us over here, oh, no!

01:16:46Oh, yeah!

01:16:47Oh!

01:16:48They deserve it.

01:16:49I mean, they did really smart stuff.

01:16:52Yeah.

01:16:53Well done, chef.

01:16:55Uh, could you please both get up off the floor?

01:16:59the floor okay good all right judges two score cards in front of you as you know for each dish

01:17:0825 points in taste 20 points in the use of the randomizer and five points in plating

01:17:13there were some negatives but we gotta wait to see what they say about the brothers maybe in

01:17:19this case the randomizer could save us but i have to admit that i feel like damaris definitely made

01:17:24a better dessert i just hope that your pork dish is

01:17:30high enough to outweigh the fact that i bombed that dessert bro and judges here to present the

01:17:37final dish of the evening the wild card just a mourner before you you're gonna find the savory

01:17:42dish barbecue pork tenderloin with creamy braised greens citron and then a hickory butter and sweet

01:17:49potato puree the spiralizer is used in the form of some crispy sweet potatoes the scraps left over

01:17:55from the portioning were used to craft the jus which also featured some of the candied citron

01:18:01and then in terms of creamy elements we have the use of heavy cream the mascarpone and then that

01:18:05hickory smoked butter which was used both in the sweet potato puree and to cook the pork tenderloin

01:18:11you'll find that candied citron in the sauce and in the greens now on to the sweets here we have

01:18:17pomegranate curd with candied citron pudding and then a candied citron coconut cream this is

01:18:23all crowned with spiralized sugared beets in terms of creamy components you have the curd and then

01:18:30the coconut cream that candied citron you're gonna find in a syrup on the bottom of the plate and then

01:18:36also in the coconut cream this pork tenderloin is cooked just as well as the last team cooked their

01:18:42pork tenderloin as well yours is the standard it's flawless beautifully seasoned as well the puree is

01:18:50silky smooth it has a really lovely creamy sauce it has a lovely unctuous mouthfeel i really love

01:18:56that first pork dish and i equally love this pork dish as well that sauce is adding a lot to the pork

01:19:02it's also adding a lot to that swiss jarred mixture as well and the sweet potato okay scott this pork

01:19:08dish is gorgeous it is prepared so well and it's such a sophisticated dish i'm gonna kiss you all right

01:19:17kiss me i think that sweet potato puree is ethereal i love the contrast with the spiralized sweet potato

01:19:25so you see it in two forms i do find the sauce over salted oh moving on to the dessert

01:19:32very creative you've got to get that temperature correct i poured liquid nitrogen on it and i

01:19:38prayed beets give a lovely earthiness from a textural perspective it's nicely frozen kind of like a

01:19:45semi-fredo texture to a certain extent really good flavor uh this is good cooking they didn't bake

01:19:50anything huh good cooking and it's great to see around the holiday time what do you want to experience

01:19:56on the holidays tell me the tradition that they've got from coconut beet

01:20:03girl i cannot no i kind of love the the different creamy textures and flavors and the acid you're

01:20:10picking up from some from the pomegranate as well not enough focus on the citron could have used a

01:20:16little texture and that could have been the place to grab that judges thank you very much the scorecards

01:20:20for the final judging tonight you know what cake i make every single every single crisp chocolate mayo

01:20:27cake it is one of my family's favorite cakes i can't even believe now that it escaped me to not make

01:20:35a jus i know that there's the creaminess was brought through and the components i added to the dish

01:20:41this was close i think it's gonna be close the holidays is about hugging your people and cooking

01:20:47together and that's that's what we did all right let's go check it out all right chefs the scores are

01:20:55in let's go

01:21:00all right ladies and gentlemen the judges have spoken we've tallied the scores and let's bring

01:21:04our chefs back in chef sarah chef damaris we have a two point difference

01:21:23one team scored a 40 out of 50 in savory and a 40

01:21:28three out of 50 in sweet for score of 80. second team scored a 42 in savory and also a 40 in sweet

01:21:40for a score of 82. in the battle between team michael and brian versus team sarah and damaris is

01:21:48good job good job congratulations y'all we'll get them next time

01:22:08you guys worked your butts off i think that it was a very valiant effort and i don't look at this as a

01:22:13loss as much as i think they'd take a win yeah ladies and gentlemen give it up

01:22:27well shucks it's okay oh i'm fine we cooked beautifully and i feel like we cooked holiday

01:22:34food it was such a joy and a delight to cook with you i couldn't be more proud to be somebody's teammate

01:22:40job well done all right gentlemen let's take a look michael and brian now going up against toc champ

01:22:47may lynn and nini win those two together uh silent but deadly yeah yeah congratulations well done

01:22:54gentlemen that was a holiday miracle yeah it was a little stressful a little tense at the uh the last

01:23:13few seconds i knew brian's dish was solid is there any sort of strategy kind of going into the next

01:23:17rounds are you guys splitting up the dishes we're both comfortable in the pastry and in the savory

01:23:22kitchen so for us i think it's going to be dictated by the randomizer we're up against um

01:23:27maylan and nini in the next round which they're they're fierce competitors so six teams have scored

01:23:32their first toc team victories keeping their holiday hopes alive for a green christmas going

01:23:38to six times for the last of the first round battles we got baby that will decide which teams take

01:23:45the last two spots in the quarterfinals ultimately one team will go dashing all the way to a one hundred

01:23:51thousand dollar holiday here on tournament of champions all-star christmas see you next week adios

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