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00:00.
00:05Hello, hello, hello.
00:06Hi.
00:07Good morning.
00:08Origami.
00:09Oh, wow.
00:10We walk into the arena, and there's this beautiful display
00:14of origami sculptures.
00:17It's getting real.
00:18There's only five of us left.
00:20This is the gauntlet that we have to get through
00:22to get to the semifinals.
00:26Let's rumble.
00:30Ohayou gozaimasu, chefs.
00:34Ohayou gozaimasu.
00:35Are you ready to be working alone again now?
00:38Because today is all about presentation on the plate.
00:42In Japan, sushi is much more than just a meal.
00:46It's a revered art form, and it often comes in small bites.
00:51As you can see here, this table is full of Japanese paper art figures.
00:56And like sushi, it is celebrated for its simplicity,
00:59creativity, and presentation.
01:02For your ikosa challenge, you'll each choose a Japanese paper art figure
01:07to inspire a canapé that is suitable for a high-end sushi restaurant.
01:13Canapé, amuse-bouche, hors d'oeuvre, it's all sort of different nomenclature
01:17for a dish that is consumed in a single bite.
01:20The art of the canapé is actually a skill that every great chef has to master.
01:25So your bite must be a mini masterpiece.
01:29A small bite, but it's still very important.
01:32So need a taste, quality, and character from the ingredient.
01:36And inspire from these beautiful paper arts.
01:39I'm focused in on the crane.
01:41I'm hoping that when they call time, nobody else grabs the crane.
01:44I'm already gathering ideas in my head as to what I could possibly do as a one-bite type dish.
01:50Your success with this dish will be considered in judging the queso challenge.
01:56And who will be going home?
01:58Whoever has the most delicious, high-end-looking single bite
02:02that best represents their paper art will be one step closer to the semifinals.
02:08You've got 30 minutes and a fully stocked pantry to create your canapés.
02:13Your time starts now. Grab your fingers for the table.
02:17Carefully!
02:18Ooh!
02:25They have 30 minutes to make one bite.
02:2730 minutes sounds like a lot of time, but it's really not.
02:30You need to compose an entire dish that's not just a piece of meat cooked with a sauce.
02:35You have to really think about how you're going to serve it.
02:38You've got to turn it into essentially a one-bite snack.
02:41And not only that, we were asking them to make this a work of art.
02:51I picked the tulip because I love flowers, you know?
02:54And I got a good idea on what I could do with this.
02:57I'm going to make a flower pot, kind of.
02:59Like a vegetable garden because I'm putting vegetables inside of it rather than flowers.
03:02So I'm going to bowl up some vegetables and a little cucumber wrap with some bell pepper,
03:07enoki mushrooms, a little shiso.
03:10Getting my avocado, getting everything kind of mise and plowed out so I can start creating it.
03:14This is a risky move, putting out only vegetables to these judges for a single bite.
03:19Nobody's like, oh, this is the best vegetable I've ever had.
03:21You win.
03:22But this is something you could serve in a fine dining restaurant and your cost is low.
03:27I chose a turtle because the turtle shell gives me an idea of how I want to do this dish,
03:32where it gives a nice crunch but the inside is soft.
03:35My canopy bite will be a itoyori tartar and a crispy shell curry ball with a ginger,
03:42sesame, mustard shoyu, and to represent green that's inside a turtle, a citrus, lime, cilantro sauce.
03:49I chose itoyori, which is a gold-thread sea bream.
03:52I'm going to cure it, the konbohime and a little bit of salt,
03:55and wrap it with seashell leaf as well.
03:57I do make a good amount of canapes in my restaurant,
03:59so I feel like I'm in my wheelhouse.
04:04Yoko, Yoko, how are you doing?
04:06I don't know how I'm doing, actually.
04:07I feel a little shaky today.
04:10I'm still so sad.
04:12I'm in the bottom from last competition.
04:14But I'm still feeling eager to win.
04:18I'm working on beet chips.
04:21That goes well with scallop tartar.
04:24So I'm making scallop carpaccio with cucumber sauce and beet chips.
04:30I'm choosing beet because I think the color matches with the lotus flower.
04:36Yoko, why'd you chose the lotus flower?
04:38That was what I wanted.
04:39Lotus flower is my favorite flower.
04:41Oh, me too.
04:43Kind of like me in a way.
04:44It grew up from the mud, you know?
04:45Exactly.
04:46It takes a long time to flower.
04:48Absolutely.
04:49But it's beautiful when it does.
04:50Absolutely.
04:51I'm trying to do so much.
04:53This is make or break for me.
04:59Chefs, you have 20 minutes left on your time.
05:0220 minutes left.
05:04The art I chose is the crane.
05:09I love the beauty of it, the traditional aspect of it.
05:12I'm going to be doing a chawanmushi in an eggshell.
05:15I'm going to make a potato nest at the bottom of my dish to hold this egg up.
05:19I'm going to add unagi to it, some togarashi buttered panko on top of finely julienned potatoes
05:26that I'll fry crispy and seasoned with some salt.
05:29I'm excited to make an amuse-bouche with the eggshell as the vessel.
05:34Hopefully it works.
05:36Jason, what canopy are you making?
05:38Chawanmushi with unagi.
05:40What about you?
05:41I'm making twangy tuna, but I'm going to set it in a lotus rice flour.
05:48It's a little spicy.
05:50It's got some chili in it, but it's balanced out with citrus and coconut amino.
05:55I'm making a very small batch.
05:58Throw in the green onion and the lemon zest, and it's a beautiful party in your mouth.
06:04Mmm.
06:05But it's got to look luxe.
06:07It's got to look scrumptious.
06:10It's got to look fly.
06:13So presentation in sushi is absolutely of the utmost importance.
06:20It's a very minimalist art to start with.
06:23So when you're being served something about this big,
06:26it's important that that small little bite be absolutely beautiful.
06:34What's going on here?
06:35Doing some little vegetable garden.
06:37Okay, what kind of seasoning do they taste?
06:38Um, we have a yuzu soy and a little scallion oil.
06:41Any protein there?
06:42No protein.
06:43I'm going vegetable on this one.
06:44But I think this is going to be tasty.
06:46Yeah.
06:47Okay, tasty, and I need a punch.
06:48You got it.
06:49Okay.
06:50Punch.
06:51Okay, good.
06:52Thank you, chef.
06:53Oh, good.
06:56I start my chawanmushi batter.
06:58I made the egg mixture with some dashi, soy sauce, mirin, a little bit of salt.
07:04My technique with making my egg vessel will be steaming the chawanmushi inside of the egg.
07:09Get these steaming, and we wait.
07:16Yes.
07:19This is what I made.
07:20That's a very nice crane.
07:21It's one of my favorites, for sure.
07:23So what's in fact from this?
07:24Trying something?
07:25No.
07:26So like a bird, like an egg.
07:27I want to do an egg chawanmushi in the egg shell and present it on a potato nest.
07:32Okay, good luck, huh?
07:33Yes, thank you, sir.
07:38Hello, chef.
07:39How are you?
07:40Good.
07:41Nice.
07:42Can't wait to see how this screams turtle.
07:43The shell.
07:44Oh, there we go.
07:45The shell of it.
07:46Screams lots of turtle.
07:4712 minutes, chef.
07:4812 minutes.
07:49Nice.
07:50I'm making rice flowers that coincide with my origami lilies.
07:54Because it's such a time pressure, I'm just trying to get them into the fry.
08:15Half of them are coming out great, and half of them are coming out sad and crinkled and lopsided.
08:26Shoot.
08:27So I have to keep frying more to get them where they look nice and they're not greasy.
08:33Flowers, flowers, flowers.
08:36Hey, Ko-chan.
08:37Hey.
08:38Can you do it?
08:39Just like, today we're shaking.
08:41Good.
08:42Good.
08:43But I have to do it.
08:44It's all looks pretty.
08:46If you can see it like the entire review, it's not the inside.
08:52There's a little bit of consistency.
08:53There's a little bit of consistency.
08:58If I don't win this challenge, I'm missing an opportunity to climb up the rank.
09:06I'm very impressed with what I'm seeing so far.
09:10You are with, like, all the chefs?
09:12Actually, every single one of them, what they're doing,
09:14I can see it. It makes sense.
09:16So nobody is in the weeds?
09:18I don't see anybody really stumbling here, no.
09:21Well, this might be a hard decision, then, huh?
09:23I think it's gonna come down to the flavor.
09:30This is gonna be the potatoes for the nest
09:32that's gonna go on the plate, balance the egg,
09:35I'm gonna check.
09:41Oh. Oh, no.
09:42That bubbled too much.
09:46.
09:48Which time do we got?
09:49Five minutes, guys, five minutes.
09:59Okay, guys, three minutes left.
10:01That's it.
10:05All right, pulling out the smoking box right now.
10:07A little razzle-dazzle for this plate.
10:11Right now I'm smoking these little flower pots
10:13with a little rose petals, cherry wood,
10:16and a little dried rosemary.
10:18There we go.
10:19I usually get it until it starts protruding from the sides,
10:22kind of like this, so you know there's a good amount in there.
10:25Let's go.
10:29Right now I'm starting again my chawanmushi
10:32because they overcooked the first time.
10:35I'm glad I got enough time.
10:36The rice flowers are coming out prettier than I thought.
10:47All right, Chef, one minute left.
10:49I'm adding a little tobijo,
10:50making it a little bit more elegant.
10:54Damn.
10:56This is better, though.
10:57We're gonna stop there.
10:59I like it because it's pretty.
11:01Got to finish this up real fast.
11:03Ten.
11:05Nine.
11:06Eight.
11:08Seven.
11:09Six.
11:10Five.
11:12Four.
11:13Three.
11:14Two.
11:16One.
11:18Junior!
11:19Junior!
11:20Time's up!
11:27Hi, Joan.
11:28Hi, Lyrica-san.
11:29Please tell us about your dish that was inspired by your lily.
11:33So I made twangy tuna set in a lotus rice flour.
11:38It has the fatty mouthfeel, but not the heat.
11:42Yeah, this looks good.
11:47Nothing.
11:48Nice bottoms and a nice seasoning.
11:50You did a great job, I think.
11:51Oh, yay!
11:52Thank you so much.
11:53I agree with Chef.
11:54I thought it was very, very successful.
11:55I did get the flour connection.
11:57Thank you so much.
11:59Thank you so much, Joan.
12:01Hi, Jason.
12:02Hello.
12:03Tell us about your dish that was inspired by the crane.
12:05Sure.
12:06I prepared a chawanmushi with a buttered togarashi panko.
12:10There's a little bit of unagi that was also seasoned with togarashi.
12:13And then there's a potato nest at the bottom.
12:15It tastes harmony, you know, chawanmushi taste, and a little bit sweeter come from the air.
12:22And the crunchy breadcrumb on the outside.
12:25It's nice balance and nice looks like this.
12:28Unfortunately, my chawanmushi is a little bit unevenly cooked.
12:31With that said, presentation is world-class.
12:34It's very clear to see the crane's inspiration in the chawanmushi, especially being served as a bird's nest.
12:39Thank you very much.
12:40Thank you, Jason.
12:44Hello, judges.
12:45Hi, Lucas.
12:46Hi, Lucas.
12:47You picked the tulips.
12:48I did.
12:49Please tell us about your dish that was inspired by it.
12:52Well, that's RC.
12:54Oh, wow.
12:57So what we have here is a little vegetable garden.
12:59A little cucumber roll-up with a little bell peppers, avocado, some shiso, enoki mushrooms, a little yamagobo, scallion oil, and a yuzu soy.
13:08Beautiful.
13:13Okay.
13:14So this is a goo.
13:18Right.
13:21Thank you very much, chef.
13:22Smoke's a great addition.
13:25It adds a lot of depth that I think otherwise this dish could have lacked.
13:28I think it was incredibly successful.
13:30Thank you very much, chefs.
13:31Thank you so much, Lucas.
13:32Thank you very much.
13:35Hi, Yoko-chan.
13:36Hi, Chef.
13:37You picked the lotus flower origami.
13:40Tell us about your dish that was inspired by it.
13:42So I made a scallop carpaccio with a cucumber sauce and with a beet chips.
13:47So at first glance, it's quite obvious that you've turned this into a lotus flower kind of rose.
13:55I think a little more seasoning on the top.
13:56Yes.
13:57But overall, it's a good dish, one bite.
13:59Thank you so much.
14:00Yes.
14:01Very clean.
14:02The textural balance on that is very, very nice.
14:03Thank you so much.
14:04Thank you, Yoko.
14:09Hi, Abe.
14:10Hello, everyone.
14:11You picked the turtle slash tortoise.
14:13Yes.
14:14Tell us about your dish.
14:15I have here for you a puriwal tartare.
14:18The tartare inside is itoyori, which is a golden thread sea bream.
14:22I put in a garlic inside for a little bit of creaminess and tobiko on top with the micro shisha flower.
14:27One bite.
14:28One bite.
14:29Fourteen.
14:30Fourteen.
14:31Nice harmony inside.
14:34Maybe you would have a little more sauce on the top.
14:37Mm-hmm.
14:38But still, nice balance.
14:40Tasty.
14:41This is a very successful dish.
14:42Thank you very much.
14:44I agree with chef.
14:45It needed a little bit of salt on the fish or even just to finish the dish.
14:49That said, I don't really have much to complain about.
14:55So, judges, how did the chefs do with their artistic expressions on their plates?
15:00Okay, to me, everybody did a great job.
15:03Yeah, pretty much happy with this very successful challenge.
15:07Overall, I think you guys did a fantastic job artistically, artisanally, and everything tasted good.
15:13So, thank you.
15:15So the judges obviously thought you all did an amazing job in this challenge.
15:20So, no one came in the bottom.
15:22So, round of applause to all of you.
15:24Everybody pulled out all of the stops.
15:27Everybody tried to prove that they're deserving to be in this position.
15:31While there was nobody on the bottom, there was one clear winner who hit the spot creatively and with execution and taste.
15:41Chef Morimoto, our winner is...
15:43Chef Morimoto, our winner is...
15:45Chef Morimoto, our winner is...
15:46Chef Morimoto, our winner is...
15:50...da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da.
15:57Hmm.
15:58Mmm.
15:59Mmm.
16:00Mmm.
16:01Mmm.
16:02Mmm.
16:03Mmm.
16:04Mmm.
16:05Mmm.
16:06Mmm.
16:07Mmm.
16:08Mmm.
16:09Mmm.
16:10Lucas.
16:11Congrats.
16:12Chef.
16:14Congratulations, Lucas.
16:15Thank you very much.
16:16It's a really great dish, chef.
16:17We felt like you were setting us up
16:19for the rest of the evening.
16:20We knew exactly what restaurant we were at,
16:23and it was a restaurant that we were excited to dine at.
16:25Thank you so much, judges.
16:27Announced as the winner really took my breath away.
16:29My heart went from being super nervous
16:31to just pure, you know, euphoria and just happiness.
16:35This is why I'm here, to win these challenges,
16:36to win the show.
16:38Of course, Lucas, that means that you have an advantage
16:41in this Kesho challenge.
16:43Now, our art walk continues.
16:46And this time, your muse is woodblock printing.
16:50This art form was popularized in the Edo period,
16:53the same time as the emergence of modern-day sushi.
16:57And you'll each be using one of these paintings
16:59to inspire a sashimi dish.
17:02Sashimi is an art form,
17:04and it's one that's been around for a very long time.
17:06So your sashimi plate will need to be a work of art
17:09reflecting the painting that you choose.
17:11Your painting should inspire your dish,
17:13with shapes, colors, composition,
17:17or the story that it tells.
17:19It's up to you which and how many types of fish
17:22you use to create this sashimi masterpiece.
17:26All right, Lucas, please come on up and choose your print.
17:31I am familiar with one of these paintings.
17:32You are? Like, you've seen it before?
17:34This one right here, the demon boy who's fighting the giant carp
17:38who ate his mother.
17:38Oh, that's the story.
17:40It's a beautiful story.
17:41Um, I think I'm gonna go with that.
17:42Okay.
17:44Kind of looks like you.
17:45It does, right?
17:47It's a younger me, you know?
17:48I know this painting.
17:50And it really resonates with me.
17:51I lost my mother a few years ago.
17:52And just like Ntara, I'm still fighting for her every day.
17:55And I know she's up there, and she knows how much I've done,
17:58and she'd be proud.
18:00Everyone else will have to pick theirs after their time starts.
18:05Chefs, you have an hour and 15 minutes,
18:08after which we'll name a winner,
18:10and another chef will be saying goodbye.
18:14Your time starts now.
18:16Sashimi desu!
18:18It is sashimi!
18:19Oh!
18:20Oh, no!
18:24Everyone's running before me,
18:26and there's only two left,
18:29and Yoko and I grabbed for the same artwork.
18:32I should let her have it,
18:36but nobody wants the geisha.
18:39That one looks the hardest.
18:41So, Philip, what makes this challenge so hard?
18:50I'm gonna have to really weigh in,
18:52like, is it just a bunch of delicious sashimi?
18:55Are people focusing more on the artistic side
18:58and forgetting about flavor?
18:59There's a lot that can go right
19:01and a lot that can go wrong here.
19:03Mmm.
19:08I'm gonna do ahi tuna rose.
19:11I'm gonna do a little straight ahi sashimi,
19:13and then I'm gonna do thread-thin bream,
19:16salt it, break it down,
19:17and then I'm gonna use the carcass,
19:18hit it with squid ink,
19:19and try to put that portrait onto the plate.
19:22I take appreciation for the arts.
19:24I know I can represent this painting in my dish.
19:27With the Akame tuna, I made my tuna rose,
19:29and I incorporated cherry blossom salt inside of that.
19:32So I'm taking what the judges have critiqued me on,
19:34saying, you know, I need the salt before I cut,
19:36bringing some natural flavors,
19:38and then also just being very critical on my cuts.
19:41Consistency is everything
19:42when it comes to the knife skills of sushi.
19:47So I have the portrait with the eagle on it,
19:51and I'm trimming the face of the eagle to nail the look.
19:57I grab scallops and hamachi and kampachi.
20:01I'm gonna use black tobiko for the eyes
20:04and part of the eagle's head,
20:05scallops for the snow on the ground,
20:08and then hamachi for the feathers of the eagle.
20:12So right now, I'm mixing butterfly pea powder blue
20:16so that I can do the sky.
20:18I've never created a sashimi platter based on a painting,
20:21let alone make it look like a painting.
20:23I have to get it just right,
20:25otherwise it's gonna look like a pigeon.
20:34I got the wood block that I wanted.
20:36It's a beautiful painting.
20:38It shows an older period in Japan,
20:40and I hope I could do justice
20:41in replicating this painting.
20:43I have this knife jaw.
20:44I'm looking for different fish
20:46that haven't worked yet in this competition.
20:48A high risk has high rewards,
20:49so I'm definitely gonna take this as a high risk.
20:53I'm gonna make scallops,
20:55keep the shell, and use the shell as a mountain.
20:57To replicate the trees,
20:59I'm gonna use cured salmon and cured knife jaw.
21:02With the knife jaw, I'm curing it with red peppercorns.
21:05Ground it all up, put it on my knife jaw,
21:08and season it with a little bit of sancho pepper and salt,
21:10and let that cure as well.
21:12Yoko, what painting did you get?
21:14I got woman, beautiful woman,
21:17which is myself,
21:18so I'm gonna try to be myself with the plate
21:21and make connection with the painting.
21:24I'm picking kimedai.
21:25Kimedai has a beautiful color
21:27that reminds me of the painting.
21:29When I think of sashimi,
21:31I think of kimedai first.
21:32First, I salt it.
21:34Kimedai have half skin.
21:36I'm going to pour hot water over the skin side,
21:39put it in an ice bath.
21:42Let it cool,
21:43and I took it out.
21:45I take off all the excess water
21:47and started to sear with the barn iron.
21:53Oh, sorry.
21:55Thought I was gonna burn my thing.
21:57I grab the warrior climbing the mountain to storm the castle.
22:10I take inspiration from the wood block in the sense that I feel like that's me.
22:15That's me struggling to get to where I'm at.
22:18But the good thing is I feel like that's kind of changing since we've been here.
22:22I'm making a cured saba with cashew and pine nut romesco.
22:26There will also be some candied kumquats and golden beet chips.
22:30I break down my saba,
22:32and I try to preserve the entire bones and head intact
22:36so that I can use that as part of the plating.
22:38Hopefully I can get this thing cured in an appropriate amount of time.
22:42Generally, it takes pretty long,
22:44so I got to get this thing salted before I can vinegar marinate it.
22:48Right now, I'm cutting the scallops into feather shapes.
22:58They represent the eagle's feathers on his head.
23:01Aesthetics, I think, is the hardest part of this challenge.
23:05You want it to look cool,
23:07but you also don't want it to not look appetizing either.
23:12Hey, John.
23:13Hi, Chef.
23:15Hamachi.
23:16I'm doing hamachi.
23:17Um, some scallop.
23:19I'm gonna try and make the bird.
23:21Oh, yeah? Oh, this is the bird.
23:22Yeah, this is the head.
23:24And then I'm gonna fill in the dark parts with black tobiko.
23:27You don't have to copy, exactly copy of this.
23:29Oh, shoot. That was my plan.
23:31I know, I know, I know.
23:32You can do this, this, this, this, this, this.
23:34And then maybe you do sashimi more, you know,
23:38this is sashimi combination.
23:39Okay, okay. Thank you, sir.
23:41Okay, good luck.
23:43At this moment, I'm panicking
23:46because I am trying to tell a different story.
23:49Like, hey, look at me.
23:50I'm drawing with fish.
23:51Chef, 40 minutes.
23:53I feel like I'm going down in flames.
23:5640 minutes on your clock.
23:58Morimoto gave me some feedback,
24:08and he wants me not to do a literal interpretation.
24:11Everyone else is doing,
24:13oh, this is the spirit of this painting.
24:16And I'm drawing an eagle with fish.
24:20So I'm going to start from scratch.
24:26Let's see what happens.
24:30I just seasoned the scallops with a little bit of salt,
24:33add in some lime zest,
24:34and then I'm smoking it with some applewood.
24:36The judges keep on telling me I need to season more.
24:39So I seasoned, cured the fish long,
24:42so it could develop as much flavor as it can.
24:44For the salmon, I add in lime zest, salt,
24:46and high basil leaves.
24:48I like the flavor of Thai basil.
24:50It's very fragrant, has a nice taste to it.
24:52I'm going to surprise the judges with it.
24:58With the dish, I do a Japanese ink print
25:01with the tail of the thread-fin bream
25:03to give that artistic value.
25:05I use cuttlefish ink and the tail
25:07and kind of imprint it on the plate.
25:08The first one I do isn't as legible as I would have liked,
25:11so I wipe off and I go again.
25:13The second one comes out great.
25:14Nice.
25:15And then I tried to use the head,
25:17but the head just wasn't having it on that plate.
25:21That's not working.
25:23From there, I used the whole half of the thread-fin bream
25:25to replicate the body of the fish going from the tail.
25:32I'm opening scallops,
25:34and I would like to make scallop tartar,
25:37and I wanted to make, like, a moon shape.
25:41Last time, it didn't turn out to tartar.
25:45So, this time, I want to try again.
25:48This scallop dish, I'm adding pine nuts,
25:51sesame oil, more soy sauce.
25:54I wanted to make another scallop on purpose,
25:57so I can show judges that I'm taking their notes.
26:01I'm making some guacamole.
26:10I'm just kidding. It's avocado.
26:11I mean, it's avocado. It's actually wasabi.
26:13That is going to be the white romesco.
26:19It's got the cashews and pine nuts, and also some milk.
26:23Dry shiitake is in there, as well.
26:25While it's on the plate,
26:26it'll hopefully maintain its shape
26:29with the idea that the moon is going to be on the dark plate.
26:33This white romesco, it is my guiding light
26:35into showing the judges I can do something
26:38other than just typical.
26:39I'm going to rinse the shimasaba off of its salt.
26:42It's a little bit of brown rice vinegar cut with some water,
26:45and there's a little sudachi juice in there, as well.
26:49I'm going to put it in the vinegar
26:50for as long as I possibly can.
26:54Chefs, you have 25 minutes left.
26:57Heard.
27:03Suspended in air in the middle of nowhere.
27:08So I had to stir it over because chef Morimoto
27:11said that my plate didn't have enough room,
27:13and I have to make sure it doesn't look too crowded.
27:17If it does, then it will look ugly.
27:23So now I'm just taking the spirit of the dish.
27:27So I'm nervous, but I think I'll be OK.
27:35How are their knife skills looking?
27:37I mean, knife skills is what really this is going to come down to.
27:40If your sashimi is too thick, too thin,
27:42not cut evenly, scored when it shouldn't be,
27:45or not scored when it should be,
27:47it's going to affect the mouthfeel of each of these sashimi courses.
27:50And the mouthfeel outside of the flavor
27:53is the most important thing when it comes to eating sashimi.
27:56Mmm.
28:03This is going to be butter panko crunch.
28:05I'm going to put a little bit of nori inside of it,
28:07and burrito flakes as well.
28:09Give the nice crunch to the sashimi dish.
28:12Oh, Mr. Abe-san.
28:14Hello.
28:16So this is the ishidai?
28:17Yeah, this is the ishidai right here.
28:19I put a little bit of peppercorns on the salmon.
28:21So what is this?
28:22This is a kotsububushi.
28:24I put it in the spice grinder with nori and a butter panko.
28:27And then dry it up.
28:28And then dry it up.
28:29It's going to be my sand.
28:30Focusing the slice, right?
28:31Right.
28:32So, presentations.
28:33All right.
28:34Thank you, chef.
28:40I'm putting a little barrel-aged rosemary soy
28:42on the threepin bream.
28:44Just a little more flavor.
28:45Chef.
28:47Hello, chef.
28:48This is cool.
28:49Thank you, chef.
28:50Is this seasoned to be a nice sauce for this,
28:53or is this just a...
28:54This will actually dry up,
28:55and you won't really be able to use it.
28:56It'll just be for art.
28:57Could you consider trying to figure out
28:59how to make that something that doesn't dry?
29:01I was thinking about, like, a truffle ink print,
29:03but I'm familiar with this as it is.
29:04I didn't want to go too outside my box.
29:06And it's got one of your signature
29:07razzle-dazzle lights on it, so...
29:08You know what?
29:09It's got the razzle-dazzle in there.
29:10Eight minutes.
29:11Heard.
29:18I'm worried about my top of them here right now.
29:24I'm checking it as I go.
29:26I'm cutting off a little bit of the tail
29:27to see how it's coming along.
29:29And I feel like it might need more time
29:31but I'm trying to push this
29:32as close to the time frame as possible.
29:34Just a little more.
29:36All right.
29:40I'm making the eyeball with black tobika.
29:43I'm rolling my salmon that's cured
29:47into shimeji mushrooms.
29:49So I'm going to use these as trees.
29:52I'm going to bring different flavor components,
29:54different sauces, different techniques.
29:56I want to win this challenge
29:57because I want to win this competition in whole.
29:59You know, every challenge is just a stepping stone
30:01to the final.
30:04I don't know why my hands are shaking so much right now.
30:07All right, chefs, one minute left.
30:09One minute.
30:11So as I start plating, I am starting to get a little worried.
30:14I might have misinterpreted the idea of a platter.
30:18And I notice Joan has, like, a plate full of sashimi.
30:21Abe's got a whole plate full of sashimi.
30:23I'm worried the judges are going to say
30:25this is not a sashimi platter.
30:2710, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
30:39And done!
30:41Abe ratch is up!
30:43I feel pretty good about the plate.
30:46I'm feeling like this is finally my time to win.
30:53Yoko, please come up to the omakase table.
31:08I've picked the beautiful moon woman by Utagawa Kunisaba.
31:12I made two kinds of sashimi.
31:14One, it was smoked.
31:16I garnished with bonito flake and persimmon.
31:19The other one was with combicured.
31:22I also made a kimedai sashimi.
31:23And lastly, I made a scallop tartare.
31:27I think this is a good presentation.
31:29So I always say that big visions
31:31and the imagination from a picture.
31:33So I like this presentation a lot.
31:40That was a good bite.
31:41Thank you so much.
31:41That was a really good bite.
31:43Skin is nice.
31:44How much?
31:45Skin nice.
31:46Obashi, very tender.
31:48I think everything nice balance and a nice concept
31:51and then nice preparation.
31:52I agree with chef.
31:53I think it's a very successful plate.
31:55This, I thought, I'm not saying it shouldn't be tartare,
32:00but I would prefer it a nice, thick, you know, sashimi scallop.
32:04Yeah, sorry about that.
32:05Thank you so much, Yoko.
32:06Thank you so much.
32:06Thank you, chef.
32:08All right, Abe.
32:11The art I received was the Tikkugo province.
32:15I started off with the mountain on top with the scallop shell.
32:18And to replicate the clouds, I smoked the scallop,
32:21but the cherry would smoke.
32:22I have two ways of salmon and knife jaw.
32:26To replicate the sand, I did a crunchy butter panko
32:28with bonito flakes and nori.
32:31With the challenge of drawing inspiration from your prints,
32:33I think you definitely found success in that.
32:35You know, sashimi, in the slices,
32:43every single piece is not qualified to be good sashimi.
32:47But you should care more about the slicing and then nice plates.
32:53Salmon's very good.
32:54Very buttery, completely melt in your mouth.
32:58The knife jaw is a little bit tough.
33:01The thickness of the fish as sashimi, I can work through it.
33:05When you wrap it around the cucumber,
33:08it becomes a little bit difficult to kind of chew through.
33:11It's clear that you put your effort into the artistic side
33:16more than you put your effort into the technical side.
33:19Understood. Thank you.
33:21All right, Joan, we're ready for you.
33:26Tell us about your print and your dish.
33:29I got the bird flying from the sky.
33:32So, the bird's head made out of daikon.
33:35And then the feathers are hamachi.
33:37The orange from the salmon represents the chopped signatures
33:41on either side.
33:42And then I also have white scallops to represent the snow.
33:47To me, I accept that she tried to copy,
33:50like, the birds and the mountain deer.
33:52So, inspired from art, it looks like it.
33:55I mean, looking at this,
33:57it actually looks like the head of the hawk.
34:04I think nothing so special, you know,
34:07prepare all the fish, cure the marinade,
34:09it doesn't taste so much.
34:11I like the scallop with the radish.
34:12It's crunchy in the scallop.
34:14That was good.
34:15The sashimi is fine,
34:16but there's nothing elevated or refined.
34:20And I think at this stage of the competition,
34:23I would have liked to see something more than just,
34:27I buy good fish, I slice, I put on plate.
34:30Okay.
34:31Okay, thank you so much, Joan.
34:32Lucas, come bring us your dish.
34:38The print I chose was the story of Cantaro,
34:40otherwise known as the Golden Boy.
34:41I have tuna and threadfin bream.
34:44The tuna on the backside is brushed
34:46with the Hawaiian chili pepper water.
34:47For the threadfin bream,
34:48it's gonna be cherry blossom salt as well.
34:50Then, of course, my Razzle Dazzle's all over the place.
35:09So close, that's what he said.
35:11For such a flashy, Razzle Dazzle guy,
35:12you hid it from us.
35:14So regardless of whether or not this looks like that,
35:16it is definitely inspired by that.
35:22You gave us six different type of sashimi
35:26that you treated in one way or another,
35:29and each one of them, I thought, was successful.
35:31Thank you very much, Joan.
35:32All right, Lucas, thank you so much.
35:34Okay, Jason, come on down with your dish.
35:39I chose Moon at Mount Inaba.
35:43I saw myself in that, you know,
35:45constantly trying to climb to the next level
35:48and, like, prove to myself that I can do this, you know?
35:51As soon as I get home, I'm gonna find that print,
35:53because I've never had a piece of art
35:55speak to me like that, so.
35:57And what I prepared is cured saba
36:00with a white romesco made from cashews and pine nuts,
36:03and there's also beet chips, candied kumquats,
36:06ginger and green onions and ikura.
36:08I think it's small.
36:10I'm really disappointed for the taste of rice.
36:13I think it's a beautiful plate.
36:14Let's see how it tastes.
36:21I'm very interested to hear what you have to say, Chef.
36:24Your eyebrows are, like, way up high.
36:26Yeah.
36:27Unfortunately, folks.
36:29Are you mad, Chef Morimoto, after your critique?
36:33I wanted to represent that, like,
36:35I can do traditional,
36:36but I can also reach outside the box, too.
36:38Well, you reached the outside of the box on this one.
36:42Oh, wow.
36:43This is the most...
36:45probably original sashimi dish I've ever had in my life.
36:48The flavors work.
36:49The textures work.
36:51Thank you, Chef.
36:52It's bizarre, but it's delicious.
36:54Yeah, unfortunately, this works, eh?
36:57I have to say that I like this a lot,
36:59but you have to do something more.
37:01I know.
37:02The theme is sashimi plate, isn't it?
37:03The theme is sashimi plate.
37:11I want to win this challenge
37:12because I had a lot of emotional meaning,
37:14not just my knife skills and techniques
37:16and my razzle-dazzle.
37:17The start of that dish was my heart.
37:20Chefs, in both challenges today,
37:21we explored sushi as art
37:23and your ability to create dishes
37:25inspired by famous Japanese art forms.
37:28There were some masterpieces
37:30and some that didn't feel inspired,
37:33either in presentation or flavor.
37:36Let's hear which chefs had your favorite dishes
37:40inspired by their works of art.
37:46So I choose the yoko.
37:48The success point is that you choose, like, Itoyori.
37:53Itoyori, it looks like a beautiful lady's image,
37:56so every single, you know, taste is right.
37:59Thank you so much.
38:00Good job, Chef.
38:01Chef Philip, who else had your favorite piece of art?
38:09Jason.
38:09Thank you, Chef.
38:11Art tends to sometimes hit you in different ways,
38:14the way that you felt moved by that piece.
38:17I think it was pretty clear that both Chef and I
38:19were a little bit hesitant with what you brought to us,
38:22but what you brought was very tasty.
38:24For that reason, you are also on the top.
38:27Thank you, Chef.
38:28Okay, so, judges, who had the winning masterpiece
38:32in this challenge?
38:33That's it.
38:34I say, Jason.
38:44Okay, so, judges, who had the winning masterpiece
38:48in this challenge?
38:55I say, Jason.
38:58Congratulations, Jason.
39:01I'm just over the moon.
39:03Yet again, I'm standing here,
39:05and I'm winning these challenges.
39:07It is seriously like a dream come true.
39:10Jason, you created sashimi in a new light,
39:14and in all of Chef's years and all of my years,
39:17neither one of us have ever had anything like that.
39:19So, for that reason, we're the winner today.
39:22Thank you very much, Chefs.
39:23Congratulations, Jason.
39:26So, I guess you'll be hanging up
39:27that new piece of artwork, huh?
39:29Aside from the critiques, that painting is just...
39:33very touching, very moving.
39:35It worked out for you.
39:36Yes, thank you.
39:38Unfortunately, now, we must move on
39:41to the tougher part of this discussion.
39:45Judges, whose dishes were less artfully successful?
39:49Okay, I have to say, A.
39:54You know, this is easy to image in the paint,
40:00but the other hand, from the technical points,
40:03sashimi quality is not good at the artistic point that you have.
40:07It's my first time being in the bottom.
40:09I usually give my A game.
40:11I'm always on top.
40:12I give my heart out every time.
40:14And being in the bottom just makes you want to throw up.
40:16It sucks.
40:17Who else's dish did not work for you?
40:20Joan.
40:21Unfortunately, even though you were able
40:24to get that hawk's head sort of spot on,
40:27a little bit too much effort was put into trying to recreate the art,
40:31as opposed to putting it into a garnish or a seasoning.
40:35And so for that reason, we find the two of us here.
40:40I hate this part.
40:41Unfortunately, that does mean that one of you
40:44will be leaving us now.
40:46And we are going to be really sad to see the chef go.
40:55Joan, I'm sorry, but you will not be Morimoto's sushi master.
40:58It's been such an honor to spend so much time with you,
41:03Chef Morimoto and Chef Philip.
41:05Thank you for your knowledge and your attention.
41:09This has been like the world's best masterclass,
41:12which I will carry on for the rest of my days.
41:16So, even though I'm going today, I feel like I've already won.
41:20So, thank you.
41:22Okay, I love you.
41:27It sucks, but competing on sushi master
41:33has allowed me to really dig deep
41:36and show my personality through the food
41:41and spread the joy that I feel for this cuisine.
41:46I love you, Joan.
41:48It's not that long in English.
41:49Um, anyone who has never made a setback
41:52has never tried anything new.
41:55Thank you so much.
41:56I love you, Joan.
41:58Joan, you're gonna see me again.
42:00I'm very sad that Joan's getting eliminated
42:02because she has been such a mother figure for all of us.
42:05I'm going to miss her so much.
42:07I'm going to miss her so much.
42:09I'm going to miss her so much.
42:12Are you guys okay?
42:13She was our mama sushi.
42:14Absolutely.
42:15All right, well, I need y'all to flip the switch
42:17and recognize that you've made it to the semifinals.
42:19That's huge.
42:20It's getting real.
42:21It's getting real.
42:22Yeah, let's go, guys.
42:23Let's go, guys.
42:24Let's go, guys.
42:25Let's go, guys.
42:26Let's go, guys.
42:27Let's go, guys.
42:28Let's go, guys.
42:29Let's go, guys.
42:30Let's go, guys.
42:31Thank you so much.
42:32Thank you so much.
42:33I love you, Joan.
42:34I love you, Joan.
42:35You're gonna see me again.
42:36I'm very sad that Joan's getting eliminated
42:38because she has been such a mother figure
42:39for all of us.
42:40I'm going to miss her so much.
42:42I get to live to see another day,
42:43and tomorrow's a new day.
42:44Tomorrow's a new challenge.
42:46New me, new day.
42:47You know, let's go.
42:48Rest up, chefs,
42:49because for the next round,
42:50you will be taking a tour across the globe.
42:53All right, head off to your stations.
43:12Bye.
43:13Bye.
43:14Bye.
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