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00:00:00It's the ultimate culinary competition,
00:00:02and it continues in full force.
00:00:04Let's go!
00:00:06Last time on TOC7, the chefs of the C division
00:00:09got their first taste of kitchen combat.
00:00:12And the winner is Shirley Chug,
00:00:15Brian Botaggio, Dan Jacobs.
00:00:18Wow!
00:00:19And in the main event, the top-seeded culinary icon,
00:00:23Chef Jonathan Waxman, fell in a hard fight
00:00:26against Chef Viet Pham.
00:00:29It was such an honor to be in your presence.
00:00:31Good job!
00:00:33And tonight, the chefs of the D division
00:00:35will fight for the last four spots in the second round bracket.
00:00:40Whoa!
00:00:41That is delicious!
00:00:42First up, TOC6 semifinalist Chef Leigh Ann Wong
00:00:46takes on Iron Chef Stephanie Izar.
00:00:49She's just a badass.
00:00:51I'm nervous.
00:00:52Then the 24-24 winner, Chef Marcel Vigneron,
00:00:55takes on James Beard nominee, Chef David Bianna.
00:01:01Yes, yes, yes!
00:01:03CHOP grand champion Chef Kalina Bliss faces off
00:01:06against TOC4 quarter-finalist Chef Adam Sobel.
00:01:10That's a banger.
00:01:11I forgot how crazy the show is.
00:01:13It's delicious, and it's craveable.
00:01:15Yeah!
00:01:16And finally, the last of our top-seeded culinary icons
00:01:20will be revealed and take on the beast of the kitchen,
00:01:24Chef Kenny Gilbert.
00:01:25I want to see my banner drop.
00:01:27I want to have my belt, the ring, and then the cash.
00:01:32Who will win the title, the belt, and the $150,000?
00:01:37This is Tournament of Champions 7.
00:01:45Are you ready for the final night of the first round battles?
00:01:51The D-Division All-Stars are ready to prove themselves
00:01:55in the TOC arena.
00:01:56Let's meet tonight's first two contenders.
00:01:59First, we have the number seven seed, the GOAT herself,
00:02:02Iron Chef Stephanie Izard, who has struggled
00:02:05in the TOC arena in the past, but cooked her way
00:02:08into the competition with a decisive qualifier win.
00:02:12I'm approaching this season a little differently.
00:02:13My goal, honestly, was just to get in the main bracket.
00:02:15It's all about the randomizer.
00:02:17I think what's happened to me in the past
00:02:18is I have these thoughts in my head,
00:02:20and then you see the randomizer,
00:02:21and you don't let it speak to you.
00:02:23Her opponent, Chef Leanne Wong,
00:02:26whose impressive performance at TOC 6,
00:02:28has her secured at a number two seed.
00:02:31Hopefully, I'm still hanging on to a little bit
00:02:33of momentum from last year.
00:02:35I thought I would come in as a number one seed this year,
00:02:37but I'm coming in as a number two seed
00:02:39because there are mystery icons, but I'm playing to stay.
00:02:44Leanne Wong was my culinary producer on Top Chef
00:02:47like almost 20 years ago, and she was scary.
00:02:51I helped select her as a chef tester.
00:02:53I always tell her, I'm like, I was not allowed
00:02:55to be nice to you, but I adored you from day one.
00:02:58I'm sure once take me down, just like I want
00:02:59to take her down, but they're ready to give each other a big hug
00:03:01and be so proud of each other no matter what.
00:03:03I got to final four last year.
00:03:05This year, I want to get the four Bs of TOC.
00:03:08The briefcase, the belt, the bling, and the bragging rights.
00:03:12Are you ready to see the clash of the culinary titans?
00:03:16Let's light this up!
00:03:20Over her two decades as an executive chef,
00:03:24she has built a restaurant empire that spans
00:03:27from Chicago to California.
00:03:31And she received a James Beard Award
00:03:34for Best Chef Great Lakes in 2013.
00:03:38She is the first female winner of Top Chef.
00:03:42And in 2017, she won the coveted title of Iron Chef.
00:03:49And she earned a spot in the bracket with the highest score
00:03:52in TOC 7 qualifiers.
00:03:55Give it up for the GOAT, Stephanie Eisen!
00:04:00Goat!
00:04:04Whoo!
00:04:07Ready, guys?
00:04:07Ready, ready!
00:04:13Waiting to get the audience on your side, GOAT.
00:04:17Welcome to TOC 7, Chef.
00:04:19It's great to have you.
00:04:21Well, you know your opponent so well.
00:04:25She was the 2023 James Beard semi-finals for Best Chef
00:04:29Northwest and Pacific.
00:04:32She beat Iron Chef Marc Borgione in Kitchen Stadium
00:04:36and reached the final four in Top Chef's first season.
00:04:41And last year, she defeated Chris Scott, Jonathan Sawyer, Joe Sasto
00:04:46to reach the final four of TOC 6.
00:04:51Ladies and gentlemen, give a big aloha, Chef Leigh-Anne Wong!
00:04:56Whoo!
00:05:12You two have known each other for a long time.
00:05:14Yes, almost 20 years.
00:05:16Almost 20 years, yeah.
00:05:17Well, chefs, dying to see you compete,
00:05:19let's take it to the randomizer.
00:05:21Right this way, Chefs!
00:05:27Just to remind everybody, the randomizer
00:05:29will determine the mandatory details of your dish.
00:05:32The protein, the produce, the equipment, the style.
00:05:35And then in this first round, a little wild card spin.
00:05:39Move one up, move one down, or my personal favorite,
00:05:44the audience choice.
00:05:48They get to pick one of them that would move.
00:05:51Oh, let's make it happen, Cap'n.
00:05:53Here we go, going for the protein.
00:05:57Please don't make us microwave.
00:05:59Tenderloin.
00:05:59Venison tenderloin.
00:06:01Corn always gets picked.
00:06:03Microwave.
00:06:04Oh, come on!
00:06:06Earthy.
00:06:06An audience choice.
00:06:10We love you.
00:06:12Let's say goodbye to Chef Mike.
00:06:18Audience.
00:06:23Spinning the equipment.
00:06:29For a French, my, my, my, French press.
00:06:35This should be a doozy.
00:06:37Welcome to round one.
00:06:39Chefs, go.
00:06:41Go, run up.
00:06:46This is farm-raised venison.
00:06:48Not nearly as gamey as typically venison is.
00:06:51Corn we've seen in every iteration.
00:06:53This is going to be corn on the cob.
00:06:55French press.
00:06:56So this is a coffee press.
00:06:57One of the best ways to drink coffee and then earthy.
00:07:00I think vegetables, mushrooms would be a really good play
00:07:03on this, and the judges are going to be looking for it.
00:07:05I should probably get the venison.
00:07:07Qualifiers was step one.
00:07:09Now getting through the first round is step two.
00:07:13Yay, you won the qualifiers.
00:07:15Now you get to go against the best.
00:07:16Anybody want to come peel my corn?
00:07:20I'm a little bit of a culinary polyglot.
00:07:22I have cooked in Mexico, Kuala Lumpur, Japan, all over the world.
00:07:27So I'm well-versed in all styles of cuisine.
00:07:30I just need to get past this first round.
00:07:32I'm Mama Wong.
00:07:33To help us follow the chef's decision in the kitchen,
00:07:36I'm joined by two amazing culinary commentators.
00:07:39Official and recommended chef with a genius level food IQ
00:07:42is Justin Morner.
00:07:43And renowned restaurateur and the DOC3 champ, Tiffany Faison.
00:07:47Now, Justin and Tiffany will closely follow the preparation
00:07:50of the dishes so they can perfectly describe them to the judges
00:07:53during the blind tasting.
00:07:54We're also joined by our roving reporter, Hunter Fieri,
00:07:57who will be talking with our chefs backstage,
00:07:59and our culinary scholar, Simon Majandar,
00:08:01who will be talking to the judges about the difficulty
00:08:04of each randomizer challenge.
00:08:06I'm going to try to do, like, make like a really earthy spice rub.
00:08:09OK.
00:08:09I'm going to try to make some fresh ribs.
00:08:11Style is earthy.
00:08:13Venison is kind of a good fit.
00:08:14Venison, it's like a deer is wandering through the woods already.
00:08:17It kind of makes sense.
00:08:18You'll see there's a little bit of silver skin on the outside.
00:08:20Chuck needs to remove that or else it becomes a little bit chewy
00:08:23and a little tough on the palate.
00:08:24OK.
00:08:25Let's make a space rub.
00:08:26I'm known for using bold flavors,
00:08:28cooking food from all over the world.
00:08:29I have my handashi powder, which adds that salty, funky note.
00:08:33I've got chicken powder and a little bit of togarashi.
00:08:36I don't really cook a lot of venison.
00:08:38That char is another earthy note that I want to get.
00:08:42I've cooked venison maybe twice in my life.
00:08:44But the randomizer tells you what to cook.
00:08:48How long does venison take a stick?
00:08:49We don't know.
00:08:51Garlic scapes?
00:08:53Uh, garlic chives.
00:08:54Garlic chives, understood.
00:08:55Really earthy, savory.
00:08:57I'm making an earthy poached venison tenderloin over corn puree
00:09:02with a corn mushroom salad.
00:09:04Look at those tenderloins.
00:09:06I live in Hawaii, and venison tenderloin
00:09:10is something that we have in Maui.
00:09:12I'm just going to sear them, and then I'm going to poach them in oil.
00:09:16And today, it needs to be earthy.
00:09:19So I blend dried shiitake mushrooms.
00:09:29I've got a little hing, a little garam masala, a little gochujaru,
00:09:35a lot of mushroom powder, and some bite spice.
00:09:38That dry rub is nuts.
00:09:40Something we don't see a lot, asafetida, also known as hing.
00:09:43It's a wild fennel that is often referred to as originating
00:09:47from the devil due to its intense aroma.
00:09:51With venison, there's almost no fat on it.
00:09:54So it's a meat that you don't want to have past mid-rare.
00:09:57I want to olive oil poach it, which will cook it evenly.
00:10:00We're poaching them in oil that has all of these earth-conjuring herbs.
00:10:05So sage, rosemary.
00:10:07Porcini, some black garlic.
00:10:09Also smart here.
00:10:10Brought that oil up to temp.
00:10:11Then turn the heat off.
00:10:13Bang.
00:10:17Chefs, 20 minutes, 20 to go.
00:10:19Corn.
00:10:20It's like nature's candy.
00:10:25I'm making grits.
00:10:27Genius!
00:10:28Let's not go without per yet.
00:10:29Sister, you got there years ago.
00:10:31I want this so badly because I've struggled at tournament champions
00:10:35every time I've been here.
00:10:36It's time to get past that first round.
00:10:39But kicking against Leigh-Anne Wong,
00:10:40she's been a semi-finalist for a James Beard award.
00:10:43She took down Marc Forgione, one of the Iron Chefs
00:10:45in an Iron Chef America battle.
00:10:47She's just a badass.
00:10:49I'm nervous.
00:10:52They're both in their wheelhouses.
00:10:53They look comfortable, confident, even Steven, right?
00:10:56Like, they're both in their wheelhouse.
00:10:58I'm going to saute some corn.
00:11:01Corn puree tends to be sweet, tends to be rich,
00:11:05tends to be buttery.
00:11:06It's a great sidekick to earthiness.
00:11:08I add miso, earthy stuff, you know?
00:11:11Yes, Chef.
00:11:12Today, I have to bring it.
00:11:14I'm going up against Stephanie Izard, who is, like,
00:11:17the greatest of all time.
00:11:19Stephanie Izard is one of my best friends,
00:11:21and I love this woman infinitely.
00:11:23I was part of casting her on Top Chef and producing her season.
00:11:27And then we have just remained chef friends for 20 years.
00:11:31Wong, are you good?
00:11:33Uh, maybe.
00:11:34I don't know.
00:11:34We'll see.
00:11:35OK, good enough.
00:11:36And I am not sleeping on the go.
00:11:39The night is still young.
00:11:40Later, the identity of our final culinary icon will be revealed,
00:11:44as they take on the qualifier winner, Chef Kenny Gilbert.
00:11:47Wait till you see who's competing.
00:11:49OMG.
00:11:51Chef Wong, Chef Izard, 15, halfway point, 15 to go.
00:11:56Love the idea of the husks getting grilled.
00:11:58Taking a sweet ingredient, using the outside of it,
00:12:01which absolutely counts, and then getting,
00:12:03making that earthy.
00:12:04I'm just going to use some of the venison
00:12:05to infuse into the sauce.
00:12:07OK.
00:12:07I'm making an earthy sauce.
00:12:09Kind of inspired by red-eye gravy.
00:12:11That's good when you have red eyes in the morning.
00:12:13I'm doing skill shots now.
00:12:14I'm not doing skill shots.
00:12:15I'm just sticking with it.
00:12:17Go, go, go, recognition in the way.
00:12:20To me, earthy is sort of those notes
00:12:23you might get from coffee and chocolate.
00:12:27Got some extra black garlic going in there,
00:12:29cocoa nibs, corn, cobs, to impart a little bit of that flavor.
00:12:33This is my first time to be able to trail Chef Izard,
00:12:36and the creativity that her brain works with
00:12:38and the things that she processes is just spectacular.
00:12:41Do we think it's a tasty sauce, you guys?
00:12:43Should we find out?
00:12:44Yeah!
00:12:49Earthy, yes, time, Justin?
00:12:52Just under 12, Chef.
00:12:53Oh.
00:12:5311.50.
00:12:54Really?
00:12:57What's the plan with the trim, Chef?
00:12:59I'm going to make a sauce that will strain
00:13:02through the French press.
00:13:04I really focused on hitting the randomizer multiple times,
00:13:08and earthy is our style.
00:13:11Justin, I'm adding some dried porcinis,
00:13:13some black garlic, and sake made from rice of the earth.
00:13:17I'm going to add some of this corn flavor to this sauce.
00:13:20With the husk?
00:13:24OK.
00:13:30Hey, taffy, Chef?
00:13:32Yeah, whatever.
00:13:33Two years ago, my restaurant burned down in Lahaina Harbor.
00:13:35It's taken the past two years to recover from that.
00:13:40it's been amazing how my crew had helped get me through this period of my life where i was
00:13:47really struggling didn't know if i had it in me to continue cooking but getting so close to finale
00:13:53last year i'm like let's go i'm ready i want to go all the way this year
00:14:04chef has her venison cooked and resting at eight minutes left very very smart
00:14:08lets all the juices in the mild globe and all the flavors just rest back into the venison
00:14:13if you're wondering when i cook at home my kitchen is this messy
00:14:17relatable there we go hashtag relatable my family is myself and my son ernie he's nine years old i
00:14:23always of course want to lead by example and something that i never want to see him learn
00:14:28from me is to be a quitter i see him as my like beacon for trying to be a better
00:14:32person i have
00:14:33not succeeded in the past at toc and that means i have to come back it's hot i'm adding some
00:14:40earthy
00:14:40things and some more corn i have to win this first round against one of my very best friends in
00:14:45the
00:14:45world leanne to make it into the next round eat greens spread everything earthy might as well
00:14:53she supports everything that i do in my cooking life and my personal life and my momming and my
00:14:58competitions so it's hard to cook against her but that's just what toc is all about
00:15:04chefs just the final five minutes five minutes to be plated
00:15:15really good should we plate something you guys what do you think
00:15:20so i'm first going to put down my corn grit curé then i'm going to put down a little bit
00:15:24of my
00:15:24mixture of grilled corn onions and beet greens put a few slices of the venison next thing i'm just
00:15:30going to put a nice spoonful of my sauce on the venison and put these beautiful mitake mushrooms
00:15:34right on top i'm hoping that the sauce is balanced and i'm excited that i got my first cook in
00:15:40the main
00:15:40bracket on plate first i'm going to add my corn puree followed by a little pile of fried katafi
00:15:48i add my black garlic brushed venison loin a medallion of that i'm going to finish it with
00:15:54my sauce it's too thin i don't know do i add more do i add less and time's running out
00:15:59i want to get
00:16:00something green on my plate just a little bit of water crust i hope the judges score me well
00:16:04on how many times i hit the randomizer
00:16:14that's it incredible work that's the kind of clip that we like to see stephanie izar
00:16:28i think i hit earthy like 2 000 times uh corns all over the place i think all the things
00:16:35i had in
00:16:35my head that i wanted to do i just didn't have time to do
00:16:38i really don't cook venison but it looked like it was cooked perfect oh looking forward to a
00:16:55healthy dose of criticism all right ladies and gentlemen our toc judges have been waiting in
00:17:00their trailers for their first blind tasting james beard award winner for best new restaurant new york
00:17:06who received a coveted three-star review of the new york times chef scott conant
00:17:14scott conant is masterful judge i love it name chef behind some of boston's most acclaimed
00:17:21restaurants and james beard award winner for best chef northeast and his first toc debut chef kenny
00:17:32oranger oh i'm sorry i said eight times james beard award winner an internationally acclaimed
00:17:47restaurateur the sharpest dressed toc chef marcus samuelson
00:17:54my fellow favorite colorful dress
00:18:00how are you marcus was my first chef at aquabee judges what a pleasure tonight the randomizer
00:18:07offered up for protein the venison tenderloin produce is corn the use of equipment was the french press
00:18:13and the style was earthy whoa yeah so here to present the first dish is the toc3 champ tiffany
00:18:21face on i'm pretty people culinary comrades in front of you we have dry rubbed and grilled venison
00:18:29tenderloin that is on a saute of charred corn charred red onion and beet greens that has been finished
00:18:34with the salad of dry rubbed and grilled mushrooms we then have the french press created sauce that was
00:18:41charred corn husks black garlic red wine vinaigrette and a little bit of miso and olive oil damn stuff
00:18:48lots of going on on this forest floor when she says this it's like this all happened first of all
00:18:54great
00:18:55cooking great development of flavor and i love the usage of fresh herbs inside of this i feel like that
00:19:01sauce is really making this dish it's a dish that would work without it and it works really well with
00:19:07it
00:19:09the char on the corn add that earthiness that makes that not just sweet but it's actually a little
00:19:15bit of bitter the greens are added to the earthiness and the way they treated the mushroom here is
00:19:21absolutely fantastic if marcus samuelson likes your dish bravo stuff i love bitterness and i love
00:19:29the cocoa nib on the venison and that really gives it the oomph you know i still don't get that
00:19:35intense
00:19:35like in your face earthiness so maybe something like a mushroom powder i'm not getting soil maybe
00:19:43that's what it is that's a ding you know it's a randomizer thank you very much 50 points available
00:19:51in the taste 40 points for the use of the randomizer and 10 points in the plating the protein is
00:19:56so
00:19:56important so having the venison picked well i think is great she crushed it i'm really happy for my friend
00:20:02she that's why she's the goat all right judges here to describe our second chef dish is justin
00:20:07warner chef thank you guys thank you thank you we'll see judges our chef calls this deer walking in the
00:20:16woods the venison was seasoned with a spice rub that was crafted from mushroom powder made from
00:20:21pulverized shiitake garam masala five spice
00:20:24the trim became a stock that was fortified with more black garlic dried porcini sake shirodashi white
00:20:33soy sauce veal stock balanced with rice vinegar and more mushroom powder this then was strained
00:20:39through the french press in terms of corn elements the husk was charred the cob was charred and that
00:20:45was also in that sauce that was eventually strained the corn in its most natural state was cooked with
00:20:52shiitake mushrooms sesame oil and butter oh they're eating the crap out of it so i'm pretty sure that
00:20:58hers is equally delicious chef marcus clearly chef is super talented but there's a lot of difficult cooking
00:21:11techniques happening in just 30 minutes i love the corn shiitake here the texture of the broth is a
00:21:17little bit too light but i love the flavor of the broth i needed one more minute i was kind
00:21:24of hoping that
00:21:25the katafi was the silk from the corn because again i wanted to see somebody maybe do something a little
00:21:30different with that can you fry the silk from the corn you can make it look like katafi yes chef
00:21:35oh i really enjoyed that the venison was poached the texture of this was soft it was meaty it kind
00:21:41of
00:21:41accentuated the the real uh gaminess of the venison i felt really good until now this is great cooking
00:21:48thanks god the poach on the venison look at that cook it's absolutely perfect the corn i think is my
00:21:56favorite component on this plate but i think it it needs depth i just didn't have time that earthy
00:22:05element could have been doubled down and there could have been an accentuation and an extraction of
00:22:10flavors from the ingredients that are here on this plate aside from that i didn't hear a lot of
00:22:14negatives that's a tough one all right gentlemen thank you uh your scorecards are in front of you
00:22:19i know i hit corn multiple times i hit the french press multiple times so i don't know hard to
00:22:28say
00:22:29i'm feeling like i made a good dish and you know what even if leanne wins it'll be well deserved
00:22:33i mean
00:22:34she crushes it we'll see where the cards land i know the chefs cooked their hearts out let's bring them
00:22:39back in chef leanne wong here we go one chef scored a 77. these guys are tough the other chef
00:23:03scored 80. ladies
00:23:05and gentlemen the winner of the first round battle between chef leanne wong and chef stephanie izard is
00:23:20stephanie izard
00:23:24congratulations
00:23:40i'm glad my friend is going on she cooked a monster dish and like i'm you know it is what
00:23:51it is i
00:23:52have more dragons to slay coming up you're on a roll this is how the goat cooks congratulations
00:24:00chef izard wow she gave me a hug and said like go do it you know like she's always been
00:24:07my biggest
00:24:07cheerleader i love you are you ready for the next two opponents
00:24:13we have a classic east coast west coast matchup that's right new jersey chef david viana has moved
00:24:22up to a number six seed after his impressive out of the gate victory last year last year i was
00:24:28in my
00:24:29first time in the competition but i did well and you can only get here by winning every time you
00:24:34get up
00:24:34to the stage so it starts with this win his opponent is number three c marcel vigneron with new competition
00:24:41credits including a terrific performance in our recent toc christmas tournament i've never cooked with
00:24:48david before but he's got a great reputation i'm definitely going to show him why i deserve to be here
00:24:55and that's why i'm the number three seed i'm sorry marcel i love you you're the best
00:25:00uh but you're gonna have to go down today are you ready to meet the next two contenders
00:25:09after perfecting his skills in michelin-starred restaurants in new york and portugal
00:25:13he is now the executive chef of four acclaimed restaurants on the jersey shore
00:25:23his portuguese-inspired lita restaurant appeared on esquire's
00:25:272023 best new restaurant list and made him a three times jane beard award semi-finalist
00:25:37and last year he sported an upset victory against chef tobias doors on
00:25:41in his very first toc battle give a warm welcome chef david viana
00:25:57i've got all these chefs with all these fight names why the storyteller you know i like to tell
00:26:02a story through food and bring people together everyone likes a good story now your opponent
00:26:07he has opened some of la's more notable eateries and made la magazine's list of best new restaurant
00:26:17he was the runner-up on the second season of top chef
00:26:22and beat out almost two dozen elite chefs
00:26:25to become the first ever winner of 24 and 24. give a big howl for the wolf
00:26:35chef marcel
00:26:52there'll be plenty of time to tell your story be plenty of time to howl at the moon
00:26:56but first let's take it to the randomizer right this way
00:27:03okay okay tonight let's make it happen going for protein
00:27:15manila clams butternut squash chef mike englazed but you get to move one down
00:27:23what do you think chef you want to move the clams or you want to move the microwave
00:27:26i'm good with chef mike spiralizers not so much fun
00:27:30give me pork blade steak yeah we're going to move the protein yeah move the protein
00:27:34the glaze and the clams seem like a mismatch and i'd much rather glaze a steak pork blade steak
00:27:40butternut squash microwave and glaze you know how many chefs are thanking you for taking microwave off
00:27:46the list our plan it all goes in three two one go they're off pork blade steak known for its
00:27:53marbling
00:27:53big rich deep flavor butternut squash super versatile a lot that they can do with it i mean we can
00:27:58see
00:27:58this roasted we can see the pureed and could go all over the place microwave basically what it does
00:28:03is make the water vibrate and and that's what heats it up glazed as anything that has got that nice
00:28:09silky translucent coating this should be a really good cook blade steaks i've been coming up 25 years
00:28:18now cooking in this industry i hone my skills working for amberrell bobby flay michael white i've been
00:28:25nominated for james beard three times now and next thing you know you get invited to be on toc maple
00:28:30syrup
00:28:31i might not be as recognizable but i bring a lot of creativity and on any given day i can
00:28:37beat every
00:28:37single one of these steps i have competed in pretty much any cooking show i was the runner-up on
00:28:43the
00:28:43season two of top chef toc all-star christmas 24 and 24 i was the season one winner i'm not
00:28:53just going
00:28:53to make it into the second round i'm going to win the whole thing okay hey chef hi chef blade
00:29:04steak
00:29:04grilled glazed with a butternut squash glaze here for it all chef let's do it
00:29:12the microwave also known as chef mike is high powered and i thought that i could get the squash
00:29:16cooked in there really quickly pork blade steak is a really good blank canvas glaze is one of my
00:29:23favorite cooking styles so i'm going bold i want things that are going to really catch the judge's
00:29:28attention i'm going to add fish sauce white balsamic vinegar and then i vacuum seal it so it really
00:29:34infuses with the steak and will actually really caramelize once i get to the grill i really want
00:29:39to go for char umami barbecue flavor to go with the sweetness of the squash 22 year old me would
00:29:46be
00:29:46fangirling right now that i'm competing against myself and i respect him and if i'm going to beat him
00:29:52i need to get things perfect so uh justin yes i'm thinking maybe we nuke it and then we puree
00:30:04it i go
00:30:05through my rolodex of dishes and i think glaze on the pork as i'm cooking it with soy sauce and
00:30:12honey
00:30:13on a bed of butternut squash puree and some pillowy medium diced butternut squash
00:30:22i think you're going to see the squash in the microwave i was the first thing i thought of that's
00:30:27the reason they weren't shying away from it it's not like you could just microwave some water and be
00:30:32like jack no you actually have to use the microwave what's going on with these blade sticks uh we haven't
00:30:40addressed them yet yeah going right now there's a bone on the inside of this thing if i leave that
00:30:45bone in there it's gonna take even longer to cook coming in as the big three seed today not gonna
00:30:52lie
00:30:52feels pretty good i've definitely paid my dues my first two seasons of toc i got knocked out in the
00:31:00first round but having just been on toc christmas i got a little taste of what it's like to make
00:31:07it
00:31:07into the semi-finals and you know what i'm hungry i want that belt i want that ring i'm thinking
00:31:13a
00:31:13little curry pow pow chef marcel chef david we are at the 20 minute mark you have 20 minutes left
00:31:21now you guys are rock stars i want to use the bunnets kawash to make a glaze
00:31:29beautiful the juice to squash and then make a glaze out of that juice that is high level cooking i
00:31:34want
00:31:35salty sweet umami pomegranate molasses yes i'm gonna add fish sauce sugar white balsamic vinegar
00:31:42and a little bit of crap paste because you need a little bit of funk first cook's always the toughest
00:31:46tiffany first cook's always the toughest getting your feet underneath you
00:31:52that's fun so this is about to be glazed walnuts chef yes i like that more glaze and more bonus
00:31:59points
00:31:59for the randomizer toc stands out amongst any other competition 32 of the world's best chefs all
00:32:06together i'm here to win toc i don't usually work with the microwave i have a big piece of bunnets
00:32:12squash in the microwave and i'm constantly babysitting it this is something that's both occupying my time
00:32:18and mental space it just isn't going as fast as i think i needed to you didn't cut that squash
00:32:24down
00:32:24very far and chef marcel cut the scotch very small cubes and he's going to be done without question
00:32:32i'm hoping that chef might cook my butter and squash my biggest fear right now
00:32:42chefs we are at the halfway point 15 minutes 15 to go
00:32:52and then cut it from the way he originally had it what i'm looking at on the cutting board right
00:32:59now it's half done i chop it all up this is going back in the microwave one more time i
00:33:04hope this
00:33:04works hope in two minutes and that'll get me to where i need to be
00:33:10all right what i missed uh just like working on a little gastric or something sugar sugar and vinegar
00:33:16truly glazed yeah sauces are my jam it's gonna go so well with butternut squash and pork while my
00:33:24gastric is cooking that take my butternut squash out of the microwave it's nice it's tender it's soft
00:33:30but it doesn't taste like anything i'm gonna make a little puree over here somewhere let's layer these
00:33:36flavors a lot of them get that in there i want to win this competition for my family i am
00:33:43a family
00:33:43man i have a five-year-old now i'm doing cooking classes with kids i get the opportunity to work
00:33:50with my son which then i get the opportunity to spend more time with them and it's basically just
00:33:53a win-win for everybody and we just have a blast together got them dad forearms now right it's not
00:34:01a
00:34:01dad bod as a father figure i got a lot of things going and then chef mike says to me
00:34:07nuke some pickle
00:34:08juice and get some red onions going okay chef mike i'll raise you another garnish i'm going ot over here
00:34:18chefs we have 12 minutes
00:34:25so david's flipping his blade steaks that grill it's wicked hot pork blade steaks have been cooking
00:34:30for a while i think they're getting maybe a little bit over charred with some of those sugar glazy elements
00:34:36tournament champions has the highest bar i don't get the cook on the steak properly there's no chance of
00:34:41me winning i have restaurants people depend on me for a living my hope is that winning toc would
00:34:48enrich the lives of all the people that work for me and for them to be able to jump start
00:34:53their own
00:34:54things with that that would be amazing that tastes delicious boy time just burns off fast for eight
00:35:01minutes heavy soy sauce yeah that one's uh smoked actually oh tight i'm no stranger to toc
00:35:08i know you got to use the randomizer as many times as possible so i'm going for two glazes i've
00:35:14got
00:35:15my gastric and then i also have my smoked shoyu and maple syrup glaze which i'm brushing onto the pork
00:35:26and then it's like oh he had the butternut squash puree but then he also had the butternut squash
00:35:31dice that's two boxes not just one that's what you need to tip the scales
00:35:38chefs we're at the final five minutes
00:35:45you still have to deal with the butternut squash is in the microwave
00:35:52i'm feeling pressure from my insecurities with chef mike i don't have a lot of time this isn't
00:35:57a chill vibe in toc kitchen i'm putting food on this plate put the glaze at the bottom of the
00:36:03plate
00:36:03i'll sit the squash on top of it i add the nuts put the glaze on top of the steak
00:36:09i'm finishing with
00:36:09mint i really hope the judges appreciate the depth of flavor 90 seconds chef 90 to go first i put
00:36:17my
00:36:17microwave butternut squash puree diced butternut squash right on top of that then we take our glazed pork
00:36:26blade steak on top of the diced butternut squash with the calamansi gastric the audience is going nuts right
00:36:35now 30 seconds and last but not least microwaved pickled red onions the watercress i tried to check as
00:36:44as many randomizer boxes as possible we're just going to have to let the judges decide
00:36:48three two one we're done
00:36:58congratulations great job
00:37:01chef david viana chef barcelain ron
00:37:07could use another 10 minutes but i i felt good like it all got on the plate the microwave
00:37:12was it was having i was having a hard time getting it cooked through
00:37:20ladies and gentlemen let's welcome back our judges scott conant kenny oranger and marcus samuelson
00:37:26ken is a legend wow marcus scott conant this is an intense panel judges tonight the randomizer in this
00:37:37second battle offered a pork blade steak butternut squash the equipment was microwaved and the style
00:37:43was glazed chef tiffany phase on here to present the first dish chef take it away we have blade steak
00:37:49a glaze was constructed by juicing butternut squash the chef also took the butternut squash broke it down
00:37:56and put it into chef mike letting chef mike handle the cook completely until it was removed mashed with a
00:38:02little bit of butter and salt and then finished with the second glazing of glazed walnuts
00:38:07perfect most perfect cook on this pork yes yes yes yes that char on the exterior is absolutely perfect
00:38:17it's dark it has texture to it it also has that beautiful deep flavor the glazed nuts also beautiful
00:38:23i just love the sweetness against the char also the way they glazed and caramelized those nuts gives
00:38:31you that crunch sweet and a little bit bitter really craveable craveable look at that char here look
00:38:37at this it's beautiful char and then it's glazed like barbecue but in like southeast asia you get
00:38:43that crab and the fish sauce really really tasty but i would have loved if the caramelized squash was a
00:38:50little bit more uh puree they cooked it in the microwave but they didn't finish it enough in the
00:38:58microwave it's a fair criticism judges thank you so much scorecards 50 points in taste 40 points in
00:39:05use randomizer 10 in your plating feeling good you had nice things to say now we wait for the second
00:39:14judgment pretty positive feedback but also they haven't tried my dish yet to present the second
00:39:20dish is the wild card himself justin mourner judges this is a glazed pork steak with butternut squash
00:39:26and watercress the glaze that finished the dish was maple smoked shoyu the drippings found their way
00:39:34into a butternut squash puree the tail of that puree begins in such it was peeled it was diced and
00:39:40it was
00:39:41microwaved in seasoned water another half of that diced butternut squash became the dice and the microwave
00:39:47was also used to craft those not raw red onions glazing the plate and portions thereof is a calamansi and
00:39:55champagne vinegar gastrique i gotta tell you something
00:40:08that is delicious was that like all golden napkin right there golden napkin jesus man joseph
00:40:19this is like sensual this is deep and sexy and developed i love the use of the onion here
00:40:27it's such a nice pickle the beautiful watercress on the plate that great puree there's so much
00:40:33goodness here chef great great cooking great excellent taste scott whoever cooked this
00:40:41it's a true master to get that to cook to this perfection it's still pink inside and then glazing
00:40:48it and getting those bitter notes in because it's super well charred with a super sweet puree in the bottom
00:40:55and those pickled red onions and then getting all these other flavors to work so well well done chef
00:41:03chef oranger how can you in 30 minutes cook something this big this tender it is brilliant
00:41:10brilliant brilliant cooking the butternut squash the two textures the funkiness of the gastrique
00:41:17but i got a couple bites that were definitely a little chewier than i probably would have liked
00:41:23um okay and the watercress you know it's kind of gets lost on me in this he's a stickler judges
00:41:31thank
00:41:31you very much 50 points in taste 40 points in the use of the randomizer 10 points in plate a
00:41:38golden napkin
00:41:38that's got to account for something you know marcel crushed it but to have chef marcus hamerson uh call
00:41:44my dish grateful like that's that's amazing that was some fantastic chefing and let's bring our chefs
00:41:51back out david vianna
00:42:02very nice scores from the judges here we go uh one chef scored a 81. the other chef scored a
00:42:1287
00:42:15the winner of the first round battle between chef marcel vignone and chef david vianna is
00:42:29jeff marcel
00:42:32congratulations
00:42:40that was a dynamite dish of food you should be very proud of that chef david vianna thank you chef
00:42:47thank you guys appreciate it thank you everyone you guys are awesome thank you
00:42:56i'm really out of the dish i put up and wish i had one more try but maybe next year
00:43:01this is your first big win in toc feels pretty good i like this feeling i could do this again
00:43:06take a look whoo right there the wolf and the goat there you go come on audience
00:43:19what a win
00:43:25you broke that curse man broke the curse first big first big win the main bracket yeah all right
00:43:30moving on to round two let's see what the wolf can do ladies and gentlemen are you ready to meet
00:43:35our
00:43:35next two gourmet gladiators
00:43:39we have chef adam sobel a natural competitor whose second round loss to chef kevin lee last year
00:43:47dropped him from a number two seed to number five seat that last cook was the worst of my career
00:43:55toc7 is a redemption year you gotta win round one so i want it really badly his opponent is the
00:44:00number
00:44:01four seed chef kalina bliss a proven food network champion who came in blazing hot last year as a
00:44:08toc rookie and is determined to go even further this year this is like the craziness about this
00:44:13competition it doesn't matter how adam cooks it doesn't matter how i cook because the randomizer
00:44:18dictates how you're gonna cook everyone here is good there's no weak link so it just you can't think
00:44:23like that kalina is highly skilled it's good that pushes me to be sharper and intentional with what
00:44:30i'm doing let's do it okay let's do this it's time are you ready for another fantastic food fight
00:44:42he has owned his skills under the mentorship of culinary legends
00:44:47such as daniel balu gisa boy and chef michael mina
00:44:55over a two decade career as an executive chef he has earned restaurants two michelin stars four
00:45:02star reviews and a james beard award for best new restaurant
00:45:09make some noise for mr delicious chef adam sobo
00:45:26what's up brother oh what a thrill i need to get back between a one two three seed you know
00:45:32what i'm
00:45:32saying kalina is an amazing chef this is going to be a hell of a show and you are right
00:45:38she is
00:45:38amazing she started cooking at the age of 16 now has almost a decade of experience as an executive chef
00:45:47in portland seattle and chicago chicago magazine said her wonderful dishes showcased bold flavors with a
00:45:56hint of playfulness she beat bobby flay won food network's beachside brawl
00:46:03and was a 2023 chopped grand champion and last year in her first year in the arena she reached the
00:46:11toc
00:46:12six quarterfinals ladies and gentlemen put your hands together for chef polina
00:46:33i think this is a fantastic matchup let's take it to the randomizer right this way
00:46:45lots of emotion coming through your face this is fun there's a lot to digest you know let's go
00:46:51here we go go for protein
00:47:05we've got
00:47:06lamb cucumber food processor crispy and move one up
00:47:15oh do you want to move crispy up to layered i'm good with moving to layered we're gonna
00:47:21move style style yeah layered is interesting ground lamb cucumbers you can take all these
00:47:30ingredients and make it into something layered ground lamb cucumber food processor and
00:47:39layered and it's time to go
00:47:48ground lamb 85 percent meat 15 fat cucumber funny thing about cucumber is made up with like 95 96
00:47:55percent water super adaptable these two go together is so incredibly well greek in particular food
00:48:01processor in the world of food knowing how to utilize this is a time saving machine layered
00:48:09popular dishes of course like lasagna moussaka casseroles and so forth but there's also layering
00:48:14a flavor they want to see it they want to taste it this could be a good round
00:48:19i think everything's on the line today it's the first cook you know you want to do well nobody wants
00:48:24to go home on their first match i know adam's very technique driven he has fine dining and michelin
00:48:30background but i can bring it with flavors i can bring it with crunch and i proved that i can
00:48:35do it last
00:48:36year i have the reputation of being really ultra refined almost bougie but that's not necessarily
00:48:42the case it's all about being delicious mr delicious my mind goes moussaka it's a classic layered dish
00:48:51i've never battled against chef kalina i have watched her cook she's impressive yeah so no mercy
00:49:02hi chef hi okay so what i'm kind of thinking about doing is a crispy rice paper dumplings
00:49:10hold it throughout lamb how are the layers going to be in this dumpling chef so it's not going to
00:49:15be
00:49:15like a dumpling like traditional i'm going to do kind of like a square folded so then when you
00:49:19cut it half you'll see the layers that's that's the hope yeah okay i want to check something off
00:49:24the randomizer like as soon as i can all the dumping fillings going in the food processor
00:49:28just the aromatics yeah it can shred it can slice highly versatile garlic ginger onion throw it in the
00:49:36food processor buzz it these are all going to be aromatics that are going to go into the lamb to
00:49:41flavor
00:49:41it next i add all the spices that i want to use curry coriander garam masala smoky paprika
00:49:52i always have to remind myself cook good flavors don't psych yourself out i've done it before
00:49:57i might even be doing it this time
00:50:02thank you
00:50:0525 minutes two different eggplants bunch of herbs all right so do we have a clear game plan yet yeah
00:50:12moussaka it is moussaka it is moussaka it is moussaka moussaka is a classic layered dish my plan
00:50:21is to build a tower of moussaka with the moussaka you want to get the lamb seared and get it
00:50:26rolling
00:50:26and build flavors greek cuisine is something i love to eat so moussaka just made sense oregano and aleppo
00:50:35and then i need to get the sofrito for the moussaka base rolling sweet parsnip some baby carrots garlic
00:50:44there's cucumber in there as well
00:50:4923 minutes chefs 23 last year honestly i wasn't myself i didn't cook soulfully i was cooking with my
00:50:57head and not my heart this year is different getting through kalina is step one i want this
00:51:02so badly i can taste it oh no mercy
00:51:11chef kalina chef adam 20 minutes 20 to go
00:51:18so cooking the lamb out all the way through before adding it to the dumpling because what i want to
00:51:22do
00:51:22is just crisp the dumpling it's also going to save me time and then i don't have to worry about
00:51:25that
00:51:25okay next i want to work on the cucumber apple kimchi i feel like this is a really good opportunity
00:51:30to utilize the food processor again i use granny smith apple because i want it to be tart and then
00:51:37the
00:51:37cucumber and then i grab some spicy kimchi and i throw that in the food processor i always pull a
00:51:46little bit of asian influence that's kind of my go-to and then i kind of squeeze out the excess
00:51:51liquid
00:51:51soggy cukes no one wants that so i was adopted when i was four months old my parents were american
00:51:58so i literally grew up on like hamburger helper frozen vegetables none of the things that i love
00:52:05to eat now like there's korean in me somewhere it's it's coming out
00:52:11the base for the moussaka is grilled eggplant i can vibe steam a little moisture out the dish
00:52:18needs a contrast and texture so it was like i wanted to have a crispy element i'm feeling like
00:52:23it might be a tempera batter of some sort it is guys we're doing a little crispy eggplant layer to
00:52:28go
00:52:28along with the other goodies i like the crispy eggplants at all i was not a great student you know
00:52:34i would go to school just to entertain and play soccer really that was it and then my mom enrolled
00:52:38me
00:52:38in culinary arts at vocational school and i met john murphy and instantly my life changed john murphy was
00:52:46the first to see any potential in me as a young culinarian and he really looked forward to watching
00:52:55this show he passed away murphy is definitely on my shoulder win it for murphy
00:53:06all right chefs our final 10 minutes 10 minutes to go i'm going to build the dumplings so i grab
00:53:13the
00:53:13rice paper and i'm just soaking it i don't want it to tear i'd start with the base layer of
00:53:18the lamb
00:53:19then i add chiffonade spinach and then on top of that i add some cucumber kimchi you can really see
00:53:26three different layers on it four really if you count the rice paper i forgot how crazy the show is
00:53:32i forgot how crazy the show is it wakes me up in the middle of the night so i don't
00:53:36know how you forgot
00:53:37i want to pan fry it because i do want it crispy i do want to get that sear on
00:53:42it
00:53:47i decide to make a cucumber kimchi salad it's just another way that i can play the randomizer
00:53:53i add the extra cucumber kimchi that i didn't use earlier i add some scallion to it i add some
00:53:59fish
00:53:59sauce thank you
00:54:08is this the creamy component chef yeah this is tzatziki labneh we're going to do it with mint
00:54:14and then i grate the cucumbers through the food processor it's got great texture
00:54:23so my dumplings are out i'm really happy with how crispy they are
00:54:27i definitely want to slice them in half because i want them to be able to see
00:54:31the layers that i put inside of it since that's literally the challenge we've got some layers going
00:54:37i decide to just grab some black vinegar soy sauce a little bit of gochujang whisk that all together
00:54:45four minutes four to go first i put the cucumber slaw down i want to keep it very clean
00:54:52next i grab the dumplings i shingle them on top of each other
00:54:57and then i add the dipping sauce to it there's nothing that can compare to the thrill of
00:55:03competition cooking it's a whole different level of adrenaline i'm fired up two and a half minutes
00:55:08chefs two and a half to go
00:55:14plating begins nice layer of the tzatziki grilled eggplant goes over the top of that
00:55:22the lamb ragu over the top of that oh boy 25 seconds this year is different i really want to
00:55:31make a long deep
00:55:32run and take this thing to the finale that's it no no mercy
00:55:51i feel like i'm still on
00:56:02adrenaline i have never made that before i feel good but hey i've felt good before and you know
00:56:08what's happened
00:56:12could be a winning dish
00:56:13i haven't been in this position in a year ladies and gentlemen let's welcome back our steam panel
00:56:21judges chef scott conant
00:56:23chef kenny oranger and chef marcus samuelson holy smokes is this the finale scott conant has
00:56:33uh judged me on tops before all three they're amazing chefs i'm scared tonight judges for this
00:56:41next round the chefs were graced with ground lamb produce with cucumber the equipment was the food
00:56:48processor and the style was layered toc3 champ tiffany fazan thank you so much emotional support
00:56:56chefs friends uh this is a crispy layered lamb and kimchi dumpling with cucumber kimchi salad the lamb
00:57:03was treated to an aromatic paste that was processed entirely in the food processor for the kimchi the
00:57:09food processor made quick work of green apple onion persian cucumbers and spicy kimchi finally the
00:57:15salad of persian cucs was constructed of scallion thai basil the aforementioned homemade kimchi black
00:57:20vinegar and a little bit of fish sauce come on please there are a lot of very happy flavors here
00:57:28the cucumber shines with that kimchi i don't even know what's inside that rice paper and i don't care
00:57:34it doesn't matter it's yummy yes it's a deft touch well done chef well done i've always liked you
00:57:42always liked him who doesn't love dumplings i mean i love how the chef used rice paper instead of you
00:57:49know traditional wonton skin or something like that yes the lamb it's a little bit lean but the
00:57:54stretchiness of the rice paper really lends itself well to the leanness of the lamb so i thought the
00:58:00texture was great thank you they thought about the layering in a new way this is interesting right
00:58:05and then also they used the food process in multiple ways they took the challenge with the
00:58:10randomness they gave them but more than anything it's delicious and it's craveable well done chef
00:58:15yes oh my god judges 50 points in taste 40 points in the use of the randomizer 10 in the
00:58:22plating mine
00:58:23doesn't come off as layered as his but i hope the judges understand that i was trying to do it
00:58:28in a
00:58:28more inventive way this is the worst part let's see what happens judges our chef calls this a milfoy
00:58:35of moussaka parsnip carrot cucumber eggplant all chopped in the food processor and then put into that
00:58:41lamb mixture on the bottom floor we've got tzatziki going up grilled eggplant lamb ragu some more eggplant
00:58:49then more lamb then more tzatziki and then finally crowned with that crispy eggplant at the penthouse
00:58:58the boys are digging in this is like hitting all the notes right layered check food process check
00:59:05delicious check tzatziki eggplant lamb it will always work it will always be delicious it's a good sign
00:59:15i like that and this crispy little coin here really really delicious when i see layered i want to see
00:59:22layers and i love that there were multiple floors yeah i'm so scared i go right to the penthouse first
00:59:30and i just ate that fried eggplant whether it's tempura or whatever it was but man it was crispy
00:59:38amazing the tzatziki with the cucumbers was delicious but there's not enough of that in here
00:59:43for me yeah the top coin of the eggplant is beautiful but those bottom layers of the eggplant need a
00:59:48little bit
00:59:48more cook time all right judges thank you very much again 50 points in taste 40 points in the use
00:59:53of
00:59:53the randomizer 10 points in the plating the cucumber was just in the sauce right i couldn't see the
00:59:59cucumber i'm being a hater i think i had negative remarks that's not good however layered was the
01:00:07challenge i definitely hit it harder please let me take this please let me take this all right chef
01:00:14get ready for you all right let's uh let's face the music i've got the scores from the judges let's
01:00:19go ahead and bring our chefs back in chef kalina bliss we've got a close race one chef scored a
01:00:3677
01:00:38the other chef scored a 79. ladies and gentlemen the winner of the first round battle between
01:00:44chef kalina bliss and chef adam sobel is
01:00:54kalina bliss
01:00:59good job
01:01:05thank you very disappointed i thought the dish was really tasty that's it congratulations thank you so
01:01:29much let's take a look so kalina bliss takes out the great adam sobel a four five combo next up
01:01:37will
01:01:37be kenny gilbert and our icon that will be showing up to cook i'm terrified well chef listen let's not
01:01:44even worry about what's coming up let's just celebrate the win that you just had and a first round win
01:01:48for
01:01:49chef kalina bliss so happy for you well done well done
01:01:58i mean wow vegan sobel you came in last year for your first time yeah and you went all the
01:02:03way to the
01:02:03great eights yeah um which was amazing so there's going to be some eyes on you and you're a force
01:02:07to be
01:02:16cheese salad that rice paper that mochi pull i mean the flavors were layered in addition to the actual
01:02:23dumpling itself well folks i don't want to say i've saved the best for last but this is a pretty
01:02:30big deal
01:02:31we have a qualifying winner going up against tonight's mystery icon the number eight seed chef
01:02:37kenny gilbert proved the accuracy of his nickname beast of the kitchen with his impressive victory
01:02:44in the toc qualifier i'm very excited about the opportunity to cook against the icon who sent him
01:02:51to be the underdog going against someone that's a culinary legend that's been doing it for a long time
01:02:55his opponent the d division's number one seed the final culinary icon chef who has judged more than
01:03:03two hundred food competitions and is ready to compete on toc for the very first time two icons
01:03:13are gone i have a responsibility to myself to take out another one are you ready for the final battle
01:03:20of the first round of toc seven and let's light this up at 23 he became the chef of cuisine
01:03:29of a five
01:03:30diamond restaurant and the youngest african-american chef ever to run a rich carlton hotel restaurant
01:03:40he has staged some of the top restaurants around the world and worked as oprah winfrey's personal chef
01:03:48and was a semi-finalist on top chef season seven and defeated chef kelsey murphy in the qualifiers of the
01:03:56dish that antonio la faso called brilliant bring some noise for jeff kenny gilbert
01:04:19to be here i'm very humbled and very honored but i'm ready to take down some of these chefs
01:04:25the icon that you're going to go up against well he grew up working in his mother's pioneering
01:04:31restaurant that first introduced new yorkers to latin american cuisine timeout new york awarded him
01:04:38best latin american restaurant in 2002 and he was a 2005 james beard award nominee for rising star chef of
01:04:47the
01:04:49year he fought the legendary morimoto to a draw on iron chef america he was a judge on the premiere
01:04:56episode
01:04:57of shot helping it earn a james beard award and spent seven seasons as a judge on master chef ladies
01:05:11and
01:05:11gentlemen give it up for the restaurateur the author the philanthropist and the legend chef
01:05:25i'm 100 shocked chef aron is the epitome of mexican culture and cuisine talk about an icon
01:05:32he's opened restaurants from new york to new orleans he's always done bring big flavor
01:05:37hey dog look at that puppy man you want to go big kenny this is how you go big yes
01:05:47sir sir indeed
01:05:49aron you're a champion of the industry to get a guy like you to step back into the competition arena
01:05:56we couldn't be more honored thank you it's that time let's take it to the randomizer
01:06:02nice this way chef let's get after it going for the protein
01:06:18manila breakfast radish spiralizer crispy yo protein or produce re-spin
01:06:28i'm just talking about trying to make manila clams crispy i said go ahead and do the protein
01:06:34okay all right going for protein here we go
01:06:39sure would like to see anything other than that
01:06:42if it lands on manila it stays on manila
01:06:45manila clams for the finale of the big night chefs go shopping good luck
01:06:59one of the toughest randomizers i've seen i gotta be honest with you both of these guys have huge
01:07:04imaginations but ah manila clams native the pacific ocean kind of sweet breakfast radish
01:07:10spicy a little bit more delicate than most radishes spiralizer is one of my favorite things this is a
01:07:15mandolin plus you can really ribbon out small ribbons of ingredients we all know what crispy is
01:07:21there's a lot of ways to achieve it they're gonna really have to focus on this it's gonna be a
01:07:25tough
01:07:25battle lots of stuff here we go but i have a lot of cool accomplishments i've been very blessed i've
01:07:30cooked at the white house for president obama best restaurant from timeout magazine latin restaurant
01:07:35i've been nominated for multiple james beard awards and being recognized as the most prominent latin
01:07:41chef in this country for the most part hi chef how are you i'm great i'm really psyched to follow
01:07:46you when i think clams i think immediately broth so i'm making steamed manila clams in a chili coconut
01:07:54broth with plantain chips so the first thing i gotta do is start with the broth using fresnos and dried
01:08:01chiles i'm a wacko aren't you it's almost like he's got a phd in chili yeah exactly the way you
01:08:07get a
01:08:07depth of flavor in this broth for these manila clams is the idea of toasting roasting letting those natural
01:08:14flavors come out chefaron's first time to the toc arena but certainly not the first time competing
01:08:21he's an og uh chefaron sat at the chop desk long before i was ever invited to the party so
01:08:26i stand
01:08:27on his shoulders i'm very excited to follow this truck my first experience competing was on the second
01:08:34season of iron chef america i competed a lot on chopped and i'm judged as well i was a judge
01:08:40on master
01:08:41chef of gordon ramsay so the competitors that are going to be facing me i just want you to know
01:08:45that it's kind of just part of my deal my culinary journey started you know at home i had those
01:08:56food
01:08:56memories of going and seeing tortillas being made at a mercado my grandmother had the initiative to write
01:09:02a cookbook in 1986 called mexican family cooking and then my mom had a restaurant in new york city in
01:09:09the hubbity hub so for me i grew up in the industry to continue the family legacy is extremely important
01:09:15there's a little bit of pressure involved as you can imagine here we go we're getting dangerously close
01:09:20the reality is it's anybody's game i've been doing this a long time i've cooked all styles of
01:09:25cuisine he's been a private chef for oprah winfrey it's just chef against chef and the best man wins
01:09:35so i'm kidding as quick as it is we know where clams going which i think will open them up
01:09:39i wouldn't
01:09:40be surprised if he's going to open them up get them going we're going to do a fried clam
01:09:45the style of the dish is crispy so in my mind everything has to be crispy so i'm going to
01:09:52do a
01:09:53super crispy thai collard ringer salad it's going to have uh crispy clams i think um thai green papaya
01:10:01salad picking up what you're throwing down i'm known for my international cuisine and my southern
01:10:05roots and flavors i want this dish to really represent that great thing about these clams also
01:10:11is they are so fresh they are all opening up so chef's not going to have to do a ton
01:10:14of work
01:10:16he's got them in the blast filler which i think is a great idea to cool them down i think
01:10:19they're
01:10:19probably going to see a batter it was really important for the plans to be cold because i'm
01:10:23gonna have to cook these again i've been in the game for the better part of 30 plus years and
01:10:28i got
01:10:28the qualifiers i have to get to the sweet 16. the only thing that i'm focused on right now is
01:10:34getting
01:10:34past his icon
01:10:37chef halfway point you have 15 minutes left 15 to go
01:10:44my buttermilk egg batter as the clams are chilling out in a glass chiller i'm gonna work on a batter
01:10:50wow those spices smell delicious chef who made them i did it thank you very much these spices are my
01:10:56foundation i'm gonna fry the clams that want this to be extra crispy
01:11:03this is why i got the name beast mode yeah you think beast mode might be a real thing look
01:11:07at this
01:11:07guy so i have some work ahead of me but i have a plan and i plan on executing it
01:11:12to the highest level
01:11:16in the whole of the competition one of the things we see the judges look for really consistently is
01:11:20the style of the dish the dish needs to read overall in that way right elements can be crispy
01:11:25but does this dish overall read crispy the seafood stew is kind of almost going to negate
01:11:32the idea of crispiness so i'm making plantain chips just kind of make things crispy and on top
01:11:41like they're smart thank you chef when i was young i wanted to do all this like experimental mexican
01:11:47food but then as you get older as a chef i'm going back to mom's and grandma's kitchen so that's
01:11:53where
01:11:53i find myself now as a chef and i'm going to bring it here to your seat we're back we're
01:11:57cooking with gas
01:12:00the plantains come out of the fry they look fantastic i'm happy with them
01:12:04if you ever had radishes just simply sauteed in butter they're delicious check this out
01:12:11randomized what's the plan with the radishes chef so i'm going to shave the radishes to go in the
01:12:15salad i'm also going to sharpen out the greens to kind of go in with the collards the one challenging
01:12:20thing about the radish is that the flavors they're not super powerful so you have to think about what
01:12:25am i going to do with this and make this really sing chef kenny gilbert has obviously figured out that
01:12:31uh there's not a ton you can do with breakfast radish but he has figured out that there are two
01:12:36parts and he's using them both and i think that that's great i want this so bad i want to
01:12:41see my
01:12:42banner drop i want to have my belt the banner for me is the first one that's legacy legacy is
01:12:48really
01:12:48important to me i've dealt with major tragedies my first wife died in a car accident i was a widower
01:12:55at
01:12:5521 years old raising my daughter it was a year and four months when that happened i went through a
01:13:00lot of
01:13:00challenges there she's now 32 with five kids my beautiful grandkids i've gone through so much
01:13:07and so i'm gonna fight my way through this i'm gonna bring it at a very high level and i'm
01:13:12gonna
01:13:12leave it all on the plate a little micro ice bath for each of those mandolin components i'm icing all
01:13:18my vegetables because everything needs to be crispy this salad has to be exceptional and i have to use
01:13:24a spiralizer there you go breakfast radish is on the randomizer bringing in daikon radish i can add
01:13:30another element of radish in the dish to make my dressing i'm adding fish sauce lime juice garlic
01:13:39galangal bird chilis and dry shrimp i think that's gonna dress this salad and we're gonna see a kind
01:13:47of a trick of the eye with these fried clams like croutons this dish is gonna really knock the socks
01:13:53off
01:13:53of the judges because not everyone takes collard greens and makes a beautiful salad with it
01:13:59radish they certainly don't add thai flavors to make it pop i realize dot com yep this is a very
01:14:05unique
01:14:05dish this speaks to me and my culture and how i like to cook and what i've learned to cook
01:14:12while
01:14:12breaking bread with other friends from other cultures you can literally hear the crispiness of
01:14:18all of those components in the bowl as it's being mixed you have to put the clams at the last
01:14:25moment
01:14:25because you don't want to overcook them the judges will be i know i am we are all sticklers for
01:14:30clams
01:14:30that are cooked perfectly perfectly cooked clam means just popped
01:14:37so when i win tournament of champions it's going to be amazing my responsibility as an icon
01:14:44is to plant seeds our youth is our most valuable commodity so for me i do that by way of
01:14:51the
01:14:51iron sachets impact fund where i put latino kids into culinary school that i started in 2017 i'm very
01:14:57proud 26 kids have gone through the program so we're continuing the legacy through this beautiful
01:15:03youth that are just conquering their dreams to be culinary leaders
01:15:09two minutes chefs two to go literally neck and neck
01:15:12now it's time to build my plates i have my collard greens i take my rice i crunch them up
01:15:18mix it in
01:15:19chicharron crunch it up and then i put the clams all the way around the bowl any excess dressing
01:15:26will just go towards the bottom of the bowl which is not going to affect the clams from getting soggy
01:15:31i'm hoping i'm gonna get very high marks one minute crowd's going wild right now i mean this is the
01:15:37big
01:15:37finale of the night where's the clocks i want to plate my dish of course it has to go in
01:15:44a bowl i want
01:15:45to make sure i have a nice distribution of clams a good spoonful of the broth and then of course
01:15:49the
01:15:49garnishes or little plantain chips the red fresno chiles chives and cilantro letting the manila clams be
01:15:56the star
01:16:02not an easy randomizer but uh you two knew what you were doing chef aron sanchez chef kenny gilbert
01:16:09thank you so much
01:16:13a straight-up culinary killer it is craveable it has good spice but not overwhelming i think that
01:16:20broth is going to be loaded with flavor i think it's going to have heat i think it's going to
01:16:38have
01:16:39foreign only chef scott cottage chef kenny oranger and chef marcus samuelson oh ho ho ho ho marcus
01:16:47marcus oh my lord of mercy kenny oranger is probably one of my best friends yeah whoa whoa the randomizer
01:16:58served up manila clams breakfast radish spiralizer style was crispy chef justin judges
01:17:09This is a crispy Thai collard salad with crispy clams,
01:17:13crisp breakfast radishes, and their tops.
01:17:16Anchoring this all together is a chiffonade of collard greens
01:17:19and spiralized daikon radish.
01:17:22In terms of crispy components, we have rice noodles
01:17:24that were fried and crumbled up.
01:17:26We have the breading itself.
01:17:28There are some dry shrimp.
01:17:29There are dry peanuts.
01:17:30There are chicharron, the radish, the radish tops,
01:17:33and bean sprouts.
01:17:34How much stuff did he put in there?
01:17:38I'm not going to take it away from you, Marcus.
01:17:43Fried clams are very tricky,
01:17:46especially with manila clams,
01:17:48which tend to be smaller, sweeter.
01:17:50To be able to cook them, shell them, chill them,
01:17:52bread them again, cook them again the second time,
01:17:54and not have them taste like rubber requires a lot of skill.
01:17:59I love the chicharron.
01:18:00I love the fried rice noodles.
01:18:02I love the peanuts.
01:18:03So there's crispy on top of crispy on top of crispy.
01:18:05You know, very tasty dish.
01:18:07Thank you very much, Chef Marcus.
01:18:09I think Marcus is going to love it.
01:18:10Talk about playing the game.
01:18:12This is a really delicious dish with depth of flavors.
01:18:17The daikon spiral is so centered to the dish.
01:18:21The crispiness here comes from four or five different places.
01:18:24The breakfast radish,
01:18:27I wish Chef would have treated the breakfast radish a little bit different.
01:18:30Yeah, I agree with the breakfast radish.
01:18:32It's just shaved on top.
01:18:34Oh, no, I disagree.
01:18:36Great rendition here with the spice mixture on top of it.
01:18:39Also, really good acidity, great backdrop of flavor.
01:18:42I think the Chef hit all the notes as far as crispy,
01:18:45but a big miss on the breakfast radish.
01:18:47Okay, judges, thank you very much.
01:18:4950 points available in the taste,
01:18:5140 points in the use of the randomizer,
01:18:53and 10 points in the plating.
01:18:55If I miss on points on that,
01:19:00I feel that I should really hit it in all other areas.
01:19:04I think I'm there.
01:19:05I'm not worried about flavor.
01:19:07Chefs, here to present the second dish
01:19:09is the TOC champ herself, Tiffany Faison.
01:19:14In front of you, chefs, we have a clam jam
01:19:17of manila clams, fortified coconut seafood broth,
01:19:20and crispy breakfast radish.
01:19:22The broth was constructed by dry-roasting white onion,
01:19:25Fresno chilies, dried guajillo and mojito chilies,
01:19:28and tomatillo.
01:19:29Plantains were coaxed through the spiralizer
01:19:31for the crispy garnish to top the manila clams,
01:19:33and breakfast radishes were brown butter roasted
01:19:36and added to the dish.
01:19:39Who doesn't love stewed manila clams?
01:19:42Really love the texture,
01:19:44cooked perfectly on these clams.
01:19:45Addition of the Fresno chili has a nice spice to it.
01:19:48The roasted radishes are my favorite thing.
01:19:50I like the plantain that's crispy,
01:19:53but there's a spiralizer.
01:19:54Take a potato, fry it on top, like make it crispy.
01:19:57It's the whole point of the dish.
01:19:59It's supposed to be crispy.
01:20:01Clams are cooked perfectly.
01:20:03Spiralizer, would have liked to have seen a lot more,
01:20:05and then just a couple plantain chips on there.
01:20:07Just like crunchy, porky, you know,
01:20:09type of chili, crunch, whatever.
01:20:12This is a really good dish.
01:20:14It's gorgeous.
01:20:16The clams are cooked really nice.
01:20:18In 30 minutes to develop flavor, yes,
01:20:21but the lack of more crispy bits in here,
01:20:25that could have given this dish a little bit more attitude.
01:20:31Thank you, judges.
01:20:32Thank you very much.
01:20:3350 points available in the taste,
01:20:3540 points in the use of randomizer,
01:20:37and 10 in the plating.
01:20:38I want this really bad.
01:20:40I feel like my dish deserves it.
01:20:42I thought I focused.
01:20:43I thought I did well.
01:20:44I just think Kenny put too much stuff in there,
01:20:48to be honest.
01:20:49The scores are in.
01:20:51Let's go.
01:20:54Ladies and gentlemen,
01:20:56let's go ahead and bring our chefs back in.
01:20:59Chef Kenny Gilbert!
01:21:02Chef Leroy Sanchez!
01:21:07Welcome back.
01:21:09Gentlemen, have I seen some difficult randomizers,
01:21:12but that was one of the toughest I've seen.
01:21:14Here are the scores.
01:21:1876 to 81.
01:21:22The winner of tonight's final battle
01:21:25in this first round
01:21:26between Chef Aron Sanchez
01:21:29and Chef Kenny Gilbert is...
01:21:36Chef Kenny Gilbert!
01:21:38Let's go!
01:21:43Good job, Chef.
01:21:45Good job.
01:21:46Yeah!
01:21:48Let's go!
01:21:50Let's go!
01:21:55Chef Aron!
01:21:57As many competitions as you have judged,
01:22:00you know how difficult.
01:22:02When you're in the heat,
01:22:03and there's 30 minutes breathing down your neck,
01:22:07it's a monster.
01:22:07This is the toughest cooking competition,
01:22:09hands down.
01:22:10Chef Kenny,
01:22:11well done, sir.
01:22:13Thank you, Chef.
01:22:14Ladies and gentlemen,
01:22:15Chef Aron Sanchez!
01:22:16Thank you, Papa.
01:22:17Love you, man.
01:22:17Thank you for doing this.
01:22:19Best of luck to you, Papa.
01:22:20Okay?
01:22:21Represent, baby.
01:22:23Aron!
01:22:28I'm expected to win.
01:22:30I'm expected to shine.
01:22:33I didn't.
01:22:35If you want to compete,
01:22:36you've got to be prepared to win or to lose.
01:22:38Today wasn't my day.
01:22:40Congratulations.
01:22:40You have won your first bracket in TLC 7.
01:22:44Let's go!
01:22:47Big win.
01:22:48Big win.
01:22:48Let's take a look at the bracket.
01:22:50Kenny Gilbert taking down number one seed Aron Sanchez.
01:22:54Now going up against Kalina Bliss,
01:22:57who took out Adam Sobel tonight.
01:22:59Ladies and gentlemen,
01:23:00Beast in the Kitchen,
01:23:01a big win,
01:23:02and a congratulations,
01:23:03Chef Kenny Gilbert!
01:23:05So happy for you.
01:23:07Way to do it, my friend.
01:23:08Way to do it.
01:23:08We'll see you soon.
01:23:14Let's go.
01:23:16I'm so pumped.
01:23:17This is what I came here to do.
01:23:19First time I've seen this competition get started,
01:23:21I said,
01:23:21I'm going to compete there.
01:23:22And I'm here.
01:23:23I'm ready to take it.
01:23:25So of the 32 chefs
01:23:27that competed in the first round of TLC 7,
01:23:29half have already gone home.
01:23:33But the winning chefs,
01:23:35oh, they're ready for more.
01:23:37Fiva!
01:23:39Fiva!
01:23:40Fiva!
01:23:40Fiva!
01:23:40Word!
01:23:41If this is weeknight cooking,
01:23:43I want to be eating at this frickin' house
01:23:44seven nights a week.
01:23:45Join us next time
01:23:46when the Victoria Super 16
01:23:48return to wager their second round battles
01:23:51in the quest for the belt.
01:23:52The title,
01:23:53the $150,000 are right here
01:23:56on Tournament of Champion 7.
01:23:58I'm coming for the belt.
01:23:59Hey, you're having a good time.
01:24:01Adios.
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