#video #Americas Culinary Cup - Season 1 - Episode 03: Nice Big Squash #drama2026 #movie2026 #hotmovie
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00:02I'm Padma Lakshmi and we've scoured the nation to bring together the most elite chefs and the
00:09most renowned judges into the ultimate culinary battleground. This is a test of our 10 culinary
00:16commandments. Master them and you win $1 million. Brought to you by our official clean-up partners,
00:23Don Powerwash. Eleven of you have now survived the first commandment. Oh my god. How are you feeling,
00:39Keith? Take a moment to celebrate, do my end zone dance and get right back to practice. Unfortunately,
00:45there's no time to celebrate because your next culinary commandment starts now.
01:01These are sexy. Wait, what's going on? They're kidnapping us. Chefs, your second commandment is
01:15sustainability. I personally am very excited about sustainability commandment. I am very proud to be
01:21the only Mexican chef in the United States with the Michelin green star for sustainability.
01:25Sustainability is about preventing food waste by making ingredients last, sourcing locally and eating
01:31foods that require fewer natural resources. Chefs, in my mind, this next commandment might be the most
01:37important of the 10. True mastery begins with sourcing and that means selecting ingredients that are local
01:44sustainable and sustainable. For your next cook, you'll have one hour to create a dish using hyper-sustainable
01:51ingredients. These all-electric Rivian vehicles are going to take you around the farm to gather produce directly from the
01:59source. You'll be pairing those vegetables with additional sustainable ingredients and we'll meet you back at the
02:19next challenge. So I don't have enough time to soak in the glory of the win. Congratulations, Matt. You are
02:27the winner of the carnivore classic.
02:29But now with the sustainability commandment, I'm going to continue to push myself.
02:34All right, don't just stand there. Be like waving homecoming queenies. Bye, chefs.
02:43Made it. It's been a long, hot day. I didn't go home, but it always sucks being on the bottom.
02:50It may just not meet my expectation. You just have to pick yourself back up and go for it again
02:55and keep going and keep going.
02:58Oh my gosh, this is amazing. Oh, thank you, caballero.
03:02I'm excited to run through the fields and let the ingredients speak to me and be like, what, Leek?
03:09Oh wow, you're taking out your shoes? I gotta run. Hope I clip my toenails.
03:14Let's go. Okay, let's go.
03:18I'm a runner. I've been running for years and years. Running is my, like, zen time to formulate ideas and
03:25clear my head.
03:26Having that mental break has been arguably the most important part of my success outside of my support with my
03:34family.
03:34Go daddy!
03:36This year has been the hardest year of my life. My mom passed away in January.
03:40I have been a mama's boy since day one. Because I wanted to spend more time with her, I was
03:45naturally hanging out with her in the kitchen all the time.
03:47I more ate things than I did help. But, you know, I didn't know it at the time, but I
03:51think that's when I started to fall in love with food.
03:54Hi.
03:54Oh, hi, chef.
03:56I've been thinking about my mom every second of this competition. I'm 100% doing it for her. I'm just
04:02hoping I get to the finish line.
04:04All right. I think I got what I needed.
04:12That was fun.
04:13Whew. Yeah, I got a good tan.
04:23Oh, back in rainy New York.
04:25Uh-huh.
04:26Look at that.
04:36Hi, chefs.
04:37Hello.
04:39Welcome back to the city. I see you have all your produce from the farm.
04:43Yes.
04:44What'd you get?
04:45Some beautiful leeks.
04:46I love leeks.
04:47Katie looks like she has nothing in her basket.
04:49I know.
04:49I got exactly what I need.
04:51Very sustainable of you.
04:52Yeah.
04:54As you know, today's culinary commandment is sustainability.
04:58And mastering this commandment will get you one step closer to the prestigious honor of being the winner of America's
05:05Culinary Cup.
05:07And walking out of here with $1 million, thanks to our friends at Dawn Power Wash.
05:14Michael, you have a green Michelin star, right?
05:17Yeah.
05:18I was awarded a green Michelin star in 2023 for my work at my restaurant.
05:21So maybe that makes Michael the chef-to-be.
05:23We coming, Michael.
05:24.
05:26Uh, Matt won.
05:27The meat commandment.
05:29It feels really good to be acknowledged for the things that you've done in your work.
05:33But it kind of makes you go into this frenzy of like, don't this up.
05:39Chefs, you'll have one hour to create a dish featuring both the produce you've harvested from the farm in addition
05:47to the hyper-sustainable ingredients in our pantry.
05:50Like mussels, ants, and quail.
05:53The two chefs who receive the lowest scores in this commandment will battle it out in a head-to-head
05:59cook-off.
06:00Where the loser will be forced to go home.
06:03Cooking head-to-head.
06:03I've been there before.
06:04And I don't want to do it again.
06:06The further away I'm from the bottom, the closer I am to getting that million dollars.
06:11We're cooking on a stagger.
06:12Buddha, you're first.
06:13You have one hour.
06:15On the clock.
06:16Your time starts now.
06:17Go Buddha.
06:18Go Buddha.
06:20For this commandment, chefs will be scored on four judging criteria.
06:24Come on Buddha, you can do it.
06:25Taste, creativity, presentation, and mastery of the commandment.
06:29Each category is worth five points for a total of 20 points from each judge with a possible perfect score
06:36of 60.
06:37Is Beverly cooking with her mind right now?
06:39Totally.
06:40She's going through the steps in her head.
06:42Yeah.
06:42It looks like it.
06:43Today I'm making all parts of the leeks.
06:45I'm gonna serve them with some razor clams.
06:48Buddha, how many ways are you doing leeks?
06:50Five ways.
06:52I like five.
06:53Maybe I want five kids later on.
06:55I don't do minimum requirements.
06:56I go for the moon and if I don't hit the moon I'll end up in the stars.
06:59Michael's off.
07:01Woo!
07:03Hey Michael.
07:05Chef.
07:05Batman says you're the only one to be, huh?
07:07Damn it Buddha.
07:08Yes.
07:09I think so.
07:10My sustainability journey started with this idea of being able to take quote unquote garbage and turn it into another
07:17layer of flavor.
07:19Hi baby.
07:20Hi baby.
07:20I am here for my community, for my culture, my family.
07:24My wife Ryan has been the biggest supporter of my career.
07:27I couldn't have done it without her honestly.
07:28And her also just kind of helping me through my transition when I left the church.
07:32I grew up in a cult and walking away was not easy.
07:36So I want to win this million dollars for her.
07:38And I'm gonna cook my ass off.
07:40Michael what are you doing with everything from the farm?
07:41I'm making an agriculture chef.
07:43I'm gonna make a little squash puree and then I'm gonna roast a little bit of quail.
07:47I've cooked quail before and it's super sustainable.
07:51And also I can make like an ant and nori like rub.
07:54Ants are nutty, earthy, fun.
07:56And some good times.
07:59Keith.
08:00Start.
08:01Let's go Keith.
08:02Let's go.
08:03My strategy?
08:04Use as few ingredients as possible.
08:06It's very sustainable.
08:07Leeks will be the starter dish.
08:09I will do a leek and potato volute.
08:12Leek and potato soup.
08:13That's it.
08:15Uda, Keith, is this a battle of the leeks?
08:17Battle of the leeks.
08:18Yeah it's a battle of the leeks.
08:19Can't wait.
08:20Keith looks like he's cooking Wednesday supper.
08:22Yeah he does, he looks very chill.
08:24I am someone who grew up with less than other people.
08:27I am someone who thrives under pressure.
08:30I've been to prison.
08:31I did it all.
08:32And so sustainability, I got this.
08:35Okay, what's next?
08:36Start Gianna.
08:39I want my dish to be the best.
08:41I see lobster and the sea urchin.
08:43And those are like just things that I love to eat.
08:46Nice and fatty.
08:47I just came from the land.
08:49Let's take it to the sea now.
08:51Katie, time's on.
08:52Katie.
08:52I go in the pantry and I get exactly what I want.
08:56Mussels.
08:56Okay.
08:57Mussels are incredibly sustainable.
09:00Melina, get going.
09:05My strategy for this cook is to cook as if I'm cooking a dish for my wife.
09:10She's the only person that I know that's more chill than me.
09:13My wife would be vegan if she weren't married to me.
09:16So I'm making a completely vegan dish.
09:18That is the ultimate example of sustainability.
09:26Whoa.
09:26Whoa.
09:27Whoa.
09:28Oh no.
09:29Oh no.
09:31I mean, at least she didn't have a beard.
09:33That's why mine's so much shorter now.
09:37What's Michael up to?
09:38I think he's got quail over there.
09:40This is the ant rub that I made for the little quails.
09:44Little quail.
09:44I gotta say, I think quail's like a risky choice.
09:47Why?
09:48The birds are so small and they have to be cooked just so,
09:50because if they're not, then they're, you know, gonna be dry.
09:51They get tough really easy.
09:54Gotta go.
09:56Please start, Emily.
09:57Emily, get going.
10:00What I got on farm is carrots.
10:03So I'm featuring seaweed and carrots.
10:05Whoo!
10:09Missed one.
10:13Emily's working away.
10:17Matt, your time starts now.
10:21Let's go, Matt.
10:22Start cooking.
10:23I just won the meat commandment challenge.
10:25So this kind of helps bring a little bit of confidence
10:28for the rest of the competition.
10:32Beverly looks ready.
10:33I'm sorry.
10:34My body's like a bolting, like.
10:36I know you're ready, Beverly.
10:38I've been ready.
10:41Beverly, go.
10:41Let's go.
10:48Got clams?
10:49Sweet.
10:55That kalabasa is gonna take a minute.
10:57Yeah, that's gonna take time just to peel that thing.
11:00Ooh, Chris has a nice big squash, too.
11:07Oh, God.
11:09Kara, your time starts now.
11:13I would say that I'm one of the more sustainable chefs here.
11:17My strategy is to go vegan.
11:19I know how to use everything from the roots to the sheets.
11:22I mean, mushrooms are sustainable.
11:23They, like, they come from death, you know?
11:25Some kind of a beautiful thing.
11:28Ooh-wee.
11:30Ooh-wee, baby.
11:33It's gonna be hard to beat.
11:36Chris, your time starts now.
11:39So, I'm gonna do a rose serum squash with ricotta and blackberries.
11:44Buddha, you have five minutes left.
11:46Five minutes, Buddha.
11:48Michael, 15 minutes, you are up.
11:50Quail is kind of, like, starting to become a problem for me.
11:54I'm not getting the color that I want, the browning.
11:57We're, like, getting to the wire.
11:59So, at this point, I start to worry, right?
12:01Like, my sauces are tasting really good.
12:03Everything's really great.
12:04But then I cut into one, and it's still not all the way there.
12:09So, I put it in the oven, and I'm just praying that hopefully the universe, like,
12:13sends me a Hail Mary, and it's not f***ing raw.
12:29I want a medium cook on that quail.
12:31Time is of the essence, and hopefully I can get it up to at least temperature.
12:37Flowers from the farm.
12:38Buddha, five, four, three, two, one.
12:45Time's up, Buddha.
12:46I feel confident with my dish.
12:48I think it's delivering the right message of sustainability.
12:51What did you make for us, Buddha?
12:53I'm trying to utilize the whole leek.
12:54So, I braved the leeks, a little bit of bacon.
12:57They're served with clams, focusing on a vegetable as the main component.
13:01You did develop really good flavor of the leek.
13:03Good job, also, of, like, sticking to the commandment here.
13:06Shellfish are very sustainable.
13:08I think the soup is great.
13:09I think that the razor clams are nice and tender.
13:12I think you could have used the opportunity to give it a little bit more crunch,
13:15maybe fried some leek.
13:17But some dishes are just soft, and it's okay.
13:21Yeah.
13:21Taking a humble vegetable and a few razor clams
13:24and making something so luxurious and special-feeling
13:28is exactly what we want to do with this commandment.
13:31Yes, thank you.
13:32All right, let's score.
13:39Silky smooth, baby.
13:42I am chilling the muscles right now.
13:45The cold muscle dick.
13:47Pisto manchego takes a while to make.
13:49The risk I'm taking is I'm making a quick version.
13:53Not cold yet.
13:55Michael, 30 seconds.
13:5730 seconds, Padma.
13:58I'm stressing about the quail.
14:00Hopefully, my sauces will, like, save me.
14:03Michael, five seconds.
14:04Five.
14:05Four, three, two, one.
14:09Time's up, Michael.
14:16Chef, what'd you make for us?
14:18Pan-roasted quail with a rub made from ants, a plum sauce,
14:22and then the squash puree was made with all the beautiful vegetables from the farm.
14:27You can build these complex sauces, flavors that are very rich.
14:32This puree in the middle of a plate is really cool.
14:34And the legs of my quail are great.
14:36You know, the rub is really fun.
14:38Unfortunately, I think the breast on my bird is a little bit rare.
14:42Unfortunately, mine is, like, very rare.
14:44However, the rest of the plate, as Wiley said, absolutely delicious.
14:49Maybe you should have gone vegetarian.
14:50Yeah, thank you.
14:51This is really raw.
14:52You did yourself a real disservice because that puree is excellent.
14:56I appreciate it.
14:57Thank you so much.
14:58Thank you, guys. Thanks, Michael.
15:00The reason why I picked up the quail in the first place was because I wanted to highlight a protein,
15:04and now this is the thing that's going to potentially be bringing me down.
15:09I'm not sure how to rate the taste or creativity because, like,
15:14it's so raw.
15:15Fair enough.
15:20Time's up, babies.
15:22That's all you got.
15:24Go big or go home?
15:25I got some heirloom carrots here.
15:27I'm making, like, kind of a take on, like, tandoori carrots with yogurt but with tofu.
15:33I'm gonna pass the carrots in a lime miso sauce.
15:39Take a surprise.
15:41Okay.
15:43He's plating.
15:46Three, two, one.
15:49Time's up, Keith.
15:54It's a beautiful dish.
15:55Everything I create, I believe, is gonna be delicious.
15:59Hi, Keith.
16:00Hello.
16:01Right here, we have a leek and potato velute, shive oil, truffle oil, and crispy potato skins.
16:08The texture of your soup is great.
16:10I do think that with leek as your vegetable, there's not a lot of leek shining through.
16:15It feels like it was about potato and that you got out of the pantry.
16:19You can't really taste the truffle oil, which is a good thing,
16:22because I think truffle oil is probably one of the least sustainable things that we've ever created.
16:28I love the consistency of your soup.
16:31It ain't like a velute, a beautiful example of one.
16:35The soup, to me, it just tastes a little too oily, if that makes sense.
16:40Okay.
16:41Thanks, Keith.
16:43I can't believe it.
16:45I use one of the most sustainable ingredients,
16:48paired with the least sustainable ingredient in the truffle oil.
16:52Ah, damn.
16:55I'm not trying to cook again tonight.
16:57So in here, we're gonna torch off the skins.
17:00From there, we're gonna stew this down,
17:03kind of really showcasing the beautiful flavors of the tomato.
17:06Kind of like a Prattatouille, if you will.
17:11Dianna, you have 90 seconds.
17:1390 seconds?
17:14Flowers, flowers, flowers, flowers.
17:15I have them over here, my flowers, my flowers, right here.
17:18Time is difficult for me.
17:22Time's up, Dianna.
17:25What did you make for us?
17:27Mar y tierra.
17:29Stuffed eggplant with lobster, salsa ranchera made with calabaza, tons of chile and leeks.
17:36Everything that was in my basket is inherent.
17:38I commend you for using the entire basket, but you could have maybe left a few of those ingredients out.
17:44Dianna, I have to respectfully disagree with Wylie.
17:47Yeah, so do I.
17:49I think that you brought all these ingredients together in a really compelling way.
17:54This dish is a beautiful dish. It's a creative idea.
17:57But I think the ratio is a little up.
17:59It needed more lobster.
18:02I feel good about my dish, but I have no idea, like, how it's going to be scored.
18:06I don't want to cook again.
18:09I love going to farms, so it felt really good to, like, get in that element again today.
18:14At Curité Bar de Tapas, we use the influence of the ingredients and the producers in our area.
18:20It's got, like, this sense of place.
18:23Spanish tapas via Asheville, North Carolina.
18:26And you can only get that food there because it's our identity.
18:31I have a master's degree in biomedical engineering.
18:34But honestly, it was not filling my soul.
18:38I wanted to cook.
18:39Oh, I can't stop shaking. It's so crazy.
18:41Right as I was switching careers, I started cooking Spanish food and then never looked back.
18:48Ooh.
18:48What'd you make, Katie?
18:50This is a version of mechiones and escobiche, which are pickled mussels.
18:54I made ratatouille, and then I blended that into the sauce to try to capture all of the flavors from
19:00all of the vegetables that I gathered.
19:02I think the sauce is beautiful. So is the knife work.
19:06These mussels are plump, juicy, lovely.
19:09They're not rubbery. They're cooked exactly as they should be.
19:13This is a very delightful dish.
19:15I loved it. I thought it was delicious. The mussels were tender.
19:18You came in with very few ingredients.
19:20Seemed like you had a plan, which is great.
19:22And I think you definitely executed the plan. This was great.
19:27Katie probably used the most sustainable ingredient of every one that we've tasted from so far.
19:33Mussels are a highly sustainable ingredient.
19:35She's going to be tough to beat.
19:37Never worked with this varietal squash before, so just try to make sure I can treat it properly and pay
19:41respect to it.
19:42I'm looking good for one, so I don't even know. You never know.
19:46I'm going to start plating here in a second. A little mint here.
19:49I love mint and eggplant together.
19:51Now I'm going to add on the sea beans.
19:53Three, two, one. Malina, time's up.
20:01Hello, judges.
20:02It's kind of like a take on the nasu dengaku, which is the Japanese dish.
20:07I use a red miso, red raspberries, and red beets.
20:11That green sauce is delicious. So good.
20:14You treated that eggplant like a steak.
20:16It was cooked to perfection.
20:19And seasoned well.
20:21Thank you, Malina.
20:23Hello, chef.
20:24Hi.
20:24I made carrots and seaweed.
20:26Super excited to use seaweed in all different types of ways.
20:32It's delicious.
20:33And I'm sorry that I don't have anything negative to tell you about this dish.
20:36Stop.
20:37I wish I did, but it's just too damn good.
20:39Stop!
20:40All right, I'll stop.
20:41Okay, I can breathe again for a few seconds.
20:46Hi.
20:46Hi, Kara.
20:48Mushroom wontons with mushroom broth.
20:50You said sustainable.
20:51Like, if you really want to, like, nitpick it, you've got to go vegan in my mind.
20:55Great, thank you.
20:57These are big for one biter, but I'm going to do my best.
21:01Listen, if I gave you a small dumpling, my mother would shame me.
21:04Like, total shame.
21:06This was great.
21:07It was very simple in its presentation, but it delivered on a whole other level.
21:14The broth is luscious and light, full of flavor, and the dough is made by your expert hands, and it
21:21shows.
21:22So, thank you.
21:23Thank you for a job well done.
21:25I mean, if Kara keeps cooking like this, she's going to have her baby here in the kitchen.
21:29Yeah.
21:40What did you make for us, Matt?
21:42Farm ratatouille with seared scallops and saffron clam sauce.
21:47Matt, I think you took a bunch of seemingly simple ingredients, put it together, made a beautiful, elegant dish.
21:54Unfortunately, I did get a little bit of sand in my scallop.
21:59That would be sort of my big pet peeve.
22:03Same.
22:03I know that's just, like, the biggest no-no that you can do is have a sandy scallop.
22:08I could actually go home today.
22:20For me, Matt, I really prefer to have scallops seared on both sides.
22:24It's just a pet peeve of mine.
22:26Everything about this dish is so beautiful.
22:28I love the tiny leaves of basil on the tomato.
22:33It gave the dish such brightness.
22:36But my scallop had a touch of sand in it, too, in that first bite.
22:40Thank you, Matt.
22:41You can go back to your station.
22:43I feel super deflated right now.
22:44We're here to take risks, and unfortunately, this one bit me.
22:49Three, two, one.
22:52Beverly, time's up.
22:54I'm a little nervous because it is very simple.
22:59It's just carrot sauce and the garnishes.
23:02Hi, Beverly.
23:03Hello.
23:04What did you make for us?
23:05Rasul Hanout grilled carrots with tofu yogurt.
23:08I used the whole vegetable, which I thought was also the sustainable factor.
23:14Beverly, I gotta say, everything was really well-balanced, really delicious.
23:19I love the almonds at the end to give it a little bit of crunch.
23:23I love the texture of that tofu yogurt that you created.
23:27Very smooth on the palate.
23:28Carries just the right amount of flavor of saffron.
23:30I love the tartness on the tofu.
23:33I'm gonna call it a cream because it was so whipped, so luscious.
23:36And I'm gonna steal that tofu yogurt the next time someone comes over my house and doesn't eat dairy.
23:41I have nothing bad to say about this dish.
23:44I really can't find anything.
23:45Oh, my God, really?
23:46Thank you, Beverly.
23:48Oh, my God.
23:48It is a very sustainable dish.
23:51Yeah.
23:51She understood the commandment really well.
23:54All right, Chris.
23:55Time's up.
23:56You're the last.
24:00Hello.
24:01Good to see you.
24:01Whoa.
24:02What did you make for us, Chris?
24:04I got really excited when I saw the fall and winter squash varietals at the farm.
24:08So I did a roasted squash, used it two ways.
24:10I juiced half of it, roasted half of it.
24:12I made a vinaigrette out of the squash itself.
24:16Then I made a fresh ricotta.
24:18Folded a little bit of lemon zest into that.
24:20And I pureed blackberries into that.
24:22And then there is chapulines.
24:24And kind of like a chili crunch with coriander and a little bit of cumin.
24:27And toasted garlic with olive oil.
24:29Olive oil.
24:30Yeah, that's it.
24:31Sorry, that was a very verbose explanation.
24:34There's a lot of delicious components on this plate.
24:37I mean, a lot.
24:39I think you could have left a few of those ingredients out.
24:42Wiley's right.
24:42Like, a little more focus.
24:44Like, dial it back a little bit.
24:45Save a little something for tomorrow.
24:46My biggest problem is the roasting and the lack of seasoning on the squash.
24:51OK.
24:52Thanks, Chris.
24:54I know that I didn't put up the best dish.
24:55So for all I know, I'm going to have to battle it out.
24:58It's drowning in condiments.
25:00He's like the Jackson Pollock of his kitchen.
25:09Chefs, gather around.
25:10The scores are in.
25:16Today's commandment was about mastering the art of sustainability.
25:21The two chefs with the lowest scores will battle it out in a head-to-head cook-off,
25:26where the loser will be forced to go home.
25:29Let's see how you did.
25:31I feel like I just want to close my eyes and open them when it's over.
25:37The sound of the board is incredibly traumatizing.
25:40Like, more than a ticket printer, more than the elevator ding.
25:43Like, I just feel like my heart is racing whenever I hear that sound.
25:54Yes, Beverly?
25:57You were one point away.
25:59Oh, my God!
26:01Perfection!
26:02Oh, my God!
26:0559 out of a possible 60 points.
26:08How are you feeling?
26:10A little out of body.
26:12Out of body?
26:14Yes.
26:15That's a good answer.
26:16Are you kidding me?
26:17Is this a dream?
26:18Love is pouring into me, and all I want to do is just, like, pour out more love.
26:22And it's so beautiful because I think it's empowering me to be even bigger.
26:26And Katie, right behind her, I'm now out of my body.
26:31Two from Perfect, which is like, wow.
26:35I, I, yeah, I mean, I, I feel incredible.
26:39I'm very proud of both of you.
26:41Yeah.
26:43Crushed it.
26:45The women crushed it.
26:48All right, chefs.
26:49If you see your name on this board, that means you're safe.
26:54I knew that I wasn't going to win with the sandy scallop, but at least I didn't lose.
27:00Michael, Keith, and Chris, you three are on the bottom.
27:05Um, how are you feeling, Chris?
27:08Not extremely happy to be on the bottom, but I feel like it feels better to be on the bottom
27:13knowing where I went wrong.
27:15Michael.
27:16I know what I did wrong.
27:18No excuses.
27:19I'm going to fight back.
27:19Keith.
27:21Pressure.
27:21How do you perform under pressure?
27:23I've been performing under pressure my whole life, and I've made it this far.
27:27So I would say that I perform pretty damn good under pressure.
27:30Well, one of you will be safe, and two of you will be doing a head-to-head cook-off,
27:36where the loser leaves this kitchen for good.
27:41Are you guys ready to see the scores?
27:43Yeah.
27:44Bring it on.
28:05Chris, you look really relieved.
28:07Yeah.
28:07Very.
28:08I have never been so happy to see my name falling into ninth place.
28:12I don't want to leave on a dish where I didn't feel excellent.
28:15You know what I mean?
28:15I want to feel like I gave it my all, and I would make that again.
28:19Keith and Michael, you're going to have to cook for your life.
28:23I've been fighting my way up from the bottom.
28:26I started as a dishwasher.
28:28I got a Michelin star two years ago, and I'm going to fight back.
28:31I love and respect Keith, but I don't want to go home.
28:34So I'm going to cook my ass off.
28:36Keith, you said you cook well under pressure.
28:39Funny how things come back and bite you in the butt.
28:43Oh, yeah.
28:44Chef Michael is a green star and one-star Michelin chef, right?
28:48Like, he knows what he's doing in the kitchen, but I know I can cook as well.
28:53Michael and Keith, please step forward.
28:59Since this commandment is all about sustainability, in this final cook-off,
29:05you'll have to use some of the most commonly wasted foods in America.
29:11Foods like onion skins, carrot peelings, celery tops, and stale bread.
29:16Each of you will have to create something beautiful out of these scraps,
29:21and whoever loses is going home.
29:25You'll have one hour.
29:27Your time starts now.
29:30Good luck to both of you.
29:32Come on, guys. Go.
29:33You got it.
29:34You got it.
29:38I don't know what I'm making.
29:40I'm just letting the scraps speak to me.
29:44All right.
29:45I'm nervous.
29:46No, it's all mine.
29:47It's a high-anxiety environment.
29:49Yes.
29:50I think that's a fun challenge because using the scraps, it's the other side of your brain.
29:54Yeah, 100%.
29:55Just really unlocks your creativity.
29:58I would imagine that Michael is a bit gun-shy because of how raw that quail was.
30:06Yeah.
30:06So I would guess he's just doing a vegetarian dish.
30:10Keith knows his way around using what's available, so I expect he might reach for some of the proteins.
30:18There's some fish heads, fish collar.
30:20Oh, yeah.
30:21I would do the fish collar.
30:22Fish collar, sure.
30:24Let's go, boys.
30:26Let's go.
30:30I just have to fight for my life.
30:32I know that if I just start cooking, it's getting the flow.
30:37Like a musician.
30:38Just start playing music.
30:40Strange as it may sound, the dish begins to develop.
30:45Keith, what are you doing?
30:46I am going to do a saffron and fish collar with some form of sambal.
30:53That sounds delicious.
30:55It wasn't that I decided to become a chef.
30:58I came home from prison and got a job in the kitchen.
31:01I decided to change my life around.
31:03That was the decision I made, and the kitchen opened up that opportunity for me.
31:07And it led to me becoming a chef and a restaurateur.
31:12I got my first job in the kitchen in 2016, and I opened my own restaurant in 2018.
31:18And what I was able to do, got recognized really fast.
31:23People loved it.
31:24It became a national sensation.
31:26It tells you that where I come from, there's talent if given the opportunity to showcase it.
31:33That's why I hire formerly incarcerated.
31:35I love providing opportunity.
31:37It's my sole purpose.
31:39Dear Chef, congratulations.
31:41We ask that you join us at America's Culinary Cup for a chance to win $1 million.
31:52Yes, I'm here to win $1 million.
31:54But I'm also here for my little community of Watts, knowing my story and what my life was like.
32:01And to see me on TV competing for a million dollars, that next generation, like, they can believe they can
32:08do it.
32:09This cook against Chef Michael, I have to just remember to stay true to who I am.
32:15Mike, how you looking?
32:16I'm looking great, Chef.
32:17Thank you so much.
32:18Michael, what do you have going on there?
32:19I have a vegetable stock with all the trim where I'm going to blanch all my vegetables in.
32:23And I'm going to make a little puree of carrot, beet, some crema.
32:27That's clever.
32:28I'm not using any protein.
32:29That's what I should have done earlier today.
32:31It's time to redeem myself.
32:33Growing up in a cult, it's almost like you're living two lives.
32:37There were services seven days a week, 365 days a year.
32:40And then you had public school.
32:42As I got older, I left the church.
32:46It was very hard because my family is still very much involved in it.
32:52That caused some ribs in the family.
33:05During that transition, food was always the constant.
33:09The kitchen was always there for me.
33:12And I had a chef very early on, and he would say,
33:16Michael, like in these four walls, nobody can touch you.
33:19So just cook.
33:20And I could never get that out of my mind.
33:23So when I step in the kitchen, it's my safe space.
33:28Anything short of a win here, it's just a non-negotiable for me.
33:32I learned this one from my friend, Matt.
33:37Yes.
33:39Double fisting.
33:40It's a good technique, no?
33:42Yeah.
33:43I take old plums and peaches, and I get them blistered and really nice and charred.
33:47And I throw those into the blender with the natural oils from the lemon peel and the orange peel.
33:52And I season it.
33:53And it's like this beautiful dressing for like a summer salad.
33:56Oh, I'm almost .
33:59Gosh, I feel like I'm watching my kid at the cross-country meet.
34:02I'm like, keep going.
34:03I know.
34:04Yeah, they're both moving quick.
34:0630 minutes, Mike.
34:0730, chef.
34:08Oh, what do you think is happening over here?
34:11He said he's making a sambal.
34:12Sambal?
34:13Yeah.
34:13Yes.
34:14Sambal is a spicy condiment, and it's a great place to hide another sustainable ingredient.
34:21So I take the poke from kale and the poke from carrots and just fold it into the sambal, and
34:31they gave it a beautiful texture.
34:33I love a good sambal.
34:35Michael, what are you going to do with the Swiss chard?
34:37Chef, I'm going to make a salsa, because Mexicans make salsa.
34:43Yes, they do.
34:44Fifteen minutes out.
34:46Fifteen minutes out.
34:46When are you going to cook your fish?
34:47In ten.
34:48Ten?
34:51Is that too late?
34:52Make it happen.
34:53Katie.
34:54I just feel her energy.
34:56And so in my mind, I'm like, if the chef that got 58 points concerned about me putting the collar
35:02on, well, maybe I'll put it on now.
35:06Katie, you okay?
35:08Is this stressing you out?
35:09It is.
35:10Yes.
35:11Immensely.
35:13One minute left.
35:16I hope my fish collar's done.
35:17Oh, Michael's already plating.
35:21I am going to put up something that I can totally stand behind.
35:27Go, 30 seconds.
35:2830 seconds heard.
35:29If there was something else that was supposed to be on this plate, it would have came when I was
35:35playing the music.
35:37Five, four, three, two, one.
35:41Woo!
35:42Good job, guys.
35:43Good job, guys.
35:44Good job, guys.
35:44I was fine.
35:44I keep.
35:45Good job.
35:54One of these guys are going to go home and you're not going to see them.
35:57It's scary.
36:00I'm feeling really confident everything's done beautifully.
36:03And my dish speaks to the sustainability challenge.
36:06This is roasted beets and carrots with a stone fruit vinaigrette over a crema made from the byproducts of beets
36:13and carrots as well.
36:14And salsa verde.
36:17That puree was really interesting.
36:19It was crunchy, creamy.
36:21I loved the salsa verde.
36:23I guess for me, at the end of the day, it's supposed to start with the carrots and the beets.
36:28And the carrots and the beets are not really singing the way the rest of the things around them are.
36:34That being said, everything around the carrots and the beets is super tasty.
36:39Michael?
36:40I like the cook that you put on the beets and the carrots.
36:42And I like the fact that you roasted them in that oven and got real deep caramelization to bring out
36:47their flavor.
36:47And I also like the fact that you spoke to this sustainability commandment.
36:51You kept the dish vegetarian.
36:53Really allowed the vegetables to speak.
36:56Nice dish.
36:57Thank you, chef.
36:58Michael, I love that puree.
37:00It was really luscious and creamy.
37:04There's a little bit of bitterness in the salsa verde from the carrot tops, which I love because of these
37:09vegetables having so much natural sugar.
37:12I just think the vinaigrette was lost a little bit.
37:15It was kind of obscured.
37:19Keith, tell us about your dish.
37:21So I put together a grilled fish collar with saffron fish cream and a sambal.
37:27I used peppers and fish sauce and vinegar and the pulp from the kale and the pulp from the carrots
37:33and infused it in the sauce as well.
37:37When you say pulp, what is it?
37:38The pulp, so when you juice the carrots, the pulp from the carrots after you juice it.
37:43When you juice kale, the pulp from the kale.
37:46Okay.
37:47I made that.
37:47Very cool.
37:48I'm a sucker for a fish collar.
37:50And so there's a lot of things that I appreciate about this dish.
37:53I like the finesse that you put into the sauce.
37:55I thought it was really quite nice.
37:57I, too, love fish collar.
38:00This was delicious, really well cooked.
38:03You had a really powerful sambal.
38:08I love that you used what was left at the bottom of the juicer from kale and from carrots.
38:15But when you call something a saffron sauce, you create an expectation.
38:21I respect your restraint.
38:23It can be overpowering.
38:25But I think here, I just would have liked to see...
38:28More saffron.
38:29Right.
38:29Exactly.
38:33Matt, you're like locked in on the doors.
38:35I just...
38:36I don't know.
38:37It's been a long time.
38:39Yeah.
38:39Who do we think is going to walk out?
38:41Million dollar question there.
38:43Michael and Keith, you're both inventive, creative, top-notch chefs.
38:51But unfortunately, one of you will stay in this competition and one of you won't.
38:58Okay.
38:59Yeah.
38:59Michael, which dish is better?
39:05For me today, it was Keith's dish.
39:09Wiley?
39:11For me today...
39:16It was Keith.
39:21Michael, I'm so sorry, but you've served your final dish.
39:25It was unanimous.
39:28I'm very disappointed that I'm going home on sustainability.
39:32I was really proud of that dish.
39:34I executed it really well and the flavors were good.
39:37Thank you so much.
39:38Thank you, guys.
39:39Thank you, chef.
39:40I hope that this experience can be of inspiration to all the young Latino chefs out there.
39:55I lost to a fish collar.
40:00Keith, you gave us a beautiful, complete dish that could go on any menu that didn't feel like a dish
40:08made of meager leftovers.
40:10Thank you, chef.
40:12Thank you, chef.
40:12Congratulations.
40:14Good stuff.
40:29Oh, be careful.
40:32Be careful.
40:32Be careful.
40:34Be careful.
40:38I can take a hug.
40:40I can take a hug.
40:42Man.
40:44Pressure.
40:45Talking about pressure.
40:46I haven't felt that much pressure in a long time.
40:50And it's not to say that I succeed under pressure all the time, but I succeed enough to I'm here
40:57today.
40:58You know, in life and in this moment.
41:00Here.
41:01They enjoyed both dishes.
41:02And for Matt, he had a lot of delicious things going on.
41:07I mean, Mike.
41:08Sorry.
41:08Don't throw me at you.
41:08Don't throw me at you.
41:12Chefs, I hope you gathered yourselves.
41:14That was an intense one.
41:17Ten of you remain now.
41:20It's just going to get harder from here.
41:22Please get some rest.
41:24The next one's going to be tough.
41:26See you.
41:28In this competition, you don't have a second chance here.
41:31You don't have an opportunity to rework a dish and say,
41:34Oh, I got your feedback, but I did survive and I'm going to be ready next time.
41:39Now there's ten of us and this competition is intense.
41:44What is going to be the next commandment?
41:48We just have to wait and see.
41:53Next time on America's Culinary Cup.
41:56Oh my God.
41:57Today, you'll be tested on the third culinary commandment.
42:01The art of the sauce.
42:05Wait, she gets to say that?
42:06That's right.
42:07I said it.
42:08I'm worried about that chicken.
42:10I'm worried about that chicken.
42:11Damn.
42:12Damn.
42:13There's going to be a lot of bleeping in this episode.
42:15Good job.
42:19Delicious.
42:44I'll see you in the next video.
42:44That's right.
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