Tournament of Champions - Season 7 - Episode 06: Don't Mess with the Randomizer - video Dailymotion

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00:00:00So we're halfway through the second round

00:00:02of Tournament of Champions 7,

00:00:03and the competition has been on fire.

00:00:06Let's go, guys!

00:00:08Last time, the eight remaining chefs of the A and B divisions

00:00:11faced off as Chef Jet Tila and Chef Jonathan Sawyer

00:00:14continued their winning streak.

00:00:16The winner is Chef Jet Tila!

00:00:20Jonathan Sawyer!

00:00:22And Chef Joe Sasto toppled culinary icon Moreno Garcia.

00:00:26And the dragon slayer, Chef Kevin Lee,

00:00:29cut short Chef Britt Ressigno's hopes...

00:00:31Chef Kevin Lee!

00:00:32...of reaching the final four for a fourth time.

00:00:35I'm holding back tears.

00:00:37I don't know how much longer I can do this.

00:00:40Tonight, the surviving chefs of the C and D divisions

00:00:43battle for the last four spots in the upcoming quarterfinals.

00:00:47First, the wolf, Chef Marcel Vigeron takes on the GOAT,

00:00:52Iron Chef Stephanie Izard.

00:00:53I mean, I don't think people realize how much we all care.

00:00:56Getting into round two, I just have a lot of momentum.

00:00:58Next, Dumpling Mafia queen Shirley Chung goes up against Chef Viet Pham.

00:01:04Every round, there's a winner.

00:01:05And hopefully, that winner's going to be me today.

00:01:08Very exciting.

00:01:10Then Chef Kalina Bliss faces the beast of the kitchen,

00:01:13Chef Kenny Gilbert.

00:01:14I had to go in with a winning mindset.

00:01:16I'm about to take down Kalina Bliss.

00:01:18Not the first time that I've taken competitor after competitor out.

00:01:22And finally, TOC All-Star Christmas champ Brian Voltaggio battles Top Chef 21 runner-up Dan Jacobs.

00:01:29I want this win so badly.

00:01:31To be a winner is something I need on my mantle.

00:01:33Who will move one step closer to the title?

00:01:36The belt and the $150,000 prize.

00:01:38This is Tournament of Champions 7.

00:01:46All right, ladies and gentlemen, the question is,

00:01:49are you ready for the final night of the second round fights?

00:01:54We have the number seven seed, Iron Chef Stephanie Izar,

00:01:58who's been on a winning streak since starting out in this year's qualifiers.

00:02:02Okay, here we go again.

00:02:03The underdog once again.

00:02:05I almost didn't come.

00:02:06Guy kind of said, maybe just skip this year.

00:02:08Maybe it's just not your thing.

00:02:10You have plenty of accolades outside of here.

00:02:11It almost like fueled my fire.

00:02:13I was like, well, no.

00:02:13I want so badly to do well.

00:02:16Her opponent is the number three seed, Chef Marcel Vigneron,

00:02:19who's been proving he still has what it takes to win.

00:02:23Woo!

00:02:24After recent performances on 24 and 24 and TOC All-Star Christmas.

00:02:29The wolf versus the goat.

00:02:31It's going to be a good one.

00:02:33Getting into round two is a dream come true.

00:02:36And I just have a lot of momentum.

00:02:37But Stephanie, woo, she is a formidable opponent.

00:02:42I mean, I don't think people realize how much we all care.

00:02:4531 chefs walk away from this, like, bummed.

00:02:47You know, they didn't make it to the end.

00:02:49But one chef walks away with, like, a major boost in their career.

00:02:52All right, Chef, you ready to battle?

00:02:53Time to cook.

00:02:55Okay.

00:02:59Are you ready for another second round showdown?

00:03:05Then let's light it up!

00:03:08She has seven acclaimed restaurants from Chicago to the West Coast,

00:03:11including her newest, Valley Goat,

00:03:14named one of the best new restaurants in the Bay Area by Open Table.

00:03:19She's a James Beard Award winner, Best Chef Great Lake,

00:03:22and a nominee for Best New Restaurant.

00:03:25She's the only Top Chef winner to also earn the title of Iron Chef.

00:03:31And she cooked her way back into the tournament with the highest score of the qualifiers

00:03:36and won her very first upset victory in the first round

00:03:39against TOC 6 semifinalist, Chef Liann Wong.

00:03:43Ladies and gentlemen, make some noise for the GOAT, Iron Chef, Stephanie Eisen!

00:03:56Fine.

00:03:59Single mom, super restaurateur.

00:04:01And when we talked about what was going to happen this year,

00:04:04we said, there's no openings inside of the main bracket.

00:04:06You have to go through the qualifiers.

00:04:08I said, don't do it.

00:04:09You're an Iron Chef.

00:04:10And this was the game plan?

00:04:11This is the game plan, just to prove you wrong.

00:04:13That's honestly my driving force.

00:04:18Chef, it's awesome to have you.

00:04:19Good luck.

00:04:23Your opponent has worked with celebrated chefs

00:04:26such as Jose Andres, Joel Robuchon, and Chef Michael Mina.

00:04:29He has opened critically acclaimed LA restaurants

00:04:32focusing on locally sourced and plant-based dishes.

00:04:35He won the first season of 24 and 24

00:04:39and went all the way to the semifinals of the TOC All-Star Christmas

00:04:44and scored his first TOC victory in the first round

00:04:47with a glazed pork steak that Judge Kenny Oranger called

00:04:51brilliant, brilliant, brilliant cooking.

00:04:53Give a big howl for the Wolf, Chef Marcel Vignore!

00:05:15Every time you win something, you come out of that door,

00:05:18the howl gets bigger.

00:05:19Well, this will be action-packed.

00:05:22I promise you that.

00:05:23As soon as we take it to the randomizer.

00:05:26Right this way, Chef.

00:05:30Okay.

00:05:32Okay.

00:05:33The randomizer will determine the mandatory details of your dish.

00:05:36The protein, the produce, the equipment, the style,

00:05:38and finally, the wild card,

00:05:41which would be a fantastic, fun ingredient

00:05:43that you must incorporate into your dish.

00:05:45Let's party, folks.

00:05:46Here we go.

00:05:47Going to protein.

00:05:53Swords, lamb, sword, swordfish.

00:05:57Gotcha.

00:05:58King trumpet.

00:05:59Mushrooms.

00:06:00Oof.

00:06:01Blowtorch, New Year's Eve, and canned beets.

00:06:0735 minutes.

00:06:09Go.

00:06:09Blowtorch.

00:06:18They're huge.

00:06:19They're 10 feet long, 1,000 pounds.

00:06:21Really dynamite to work with.

00:06:22It can be overcooked pretty easily.

00:06:24King trumpet mushrooms.

00:06:25Thick brown stem and cap.

00:06:27Firm, meaty texture.

00:06:29I think this is not going to be a problem.

00:06:31Blowtorch, definitely not going to be a problem.

00:06:33There's a million things they can do with it.

00:06:34New Year's Eve dinner, this is going to be a more refined, special, unique presentation

00:06:39and canned beets.

00:06:42Good luck.

00:06:45Let's talk about this randomizer for a second.

00:06:47I think that the ingredients become a little bit more obscure.

00:06:50The cooking equipment becomes a little bit more unusual.

00:06:54And the competition gets a little bit more fierce.

00:06:58Chef Stephanie is a remarkable chef.

00:07:01She is no stranger to competition.

00:07:03This is going to be a long, hard road.

00:07:05But you know what?

00:07:06I'm built for this.

00:07:11Mirren, mirren, mirren, mirren.

00:07:12I'm known for doing different techniques and flavors from different parts of the world,

00:07:17whether it's big spices or different cooking techniques.

00:07:19I think I'm going to go a little light Japanese French influence.

00:07:23Because growing up, my mom cooked food from all over the world.

00:07:26I just thought that's how everyone cooks.

00:07:28And that's just how I've always approached food.

00:07:30I'm trying to figure out what I want to do here.

00:07:33So I'm joined, as always, by my incredible culinary commentators.

00:07:36We have the Michelin-recommended chef and the font of food knowledge, Justin Warner.

00:07:40The brilliant Boston restaurateur and the TOC3 champ, Chef Tiffany Faison.

00:07:45Now, Justin and Tiffany are shadowing the chefs so they can faithfully present their dishes

00:07:49to the judges during the blind tasting.

00:07:51We're also joined by our roving reporter, Hunter Fieri, who we talked with our winners backstage,

00:07:56and the culinary scholar, Simon Mijandar, who will discuss each randomizer challenge with the judges.

00:08:02I am excited to get this thing going.

00:08:05For my New Year's Eve dinner, I'm thinking I'm going to grill the swordfish.

00:08:09I want to make a salsa matcha and canned beet levna.

00:08:14First, I need to tackle these king trumpet mushrooms.

00:08:17One of my favorite ways to prepare a king trumpet mushroom is by frying it.

00:08:23If it's a New Year's Eve dinner, I feel like we got a party.

00:08:26Are you guys ready to party or what?

00:08:32Only Marcel savors this right in the middle of the whole thing.

00:08:37Everybody on New Year's Eve, they think about that glass of champagne.

00:08:42Let's go.

00:08:43Champagne batter, coming up.

00:08:45Woo!

00:08:47This is sour cream.

00:08:48I was thinking of doing like a little beet levna to go with the swordfish.

00:08:52Got it.

00:08:54Wish you got me.

00:08:55So, labneh and the beets doubling down on that sort of earthy umami with black garlic.

00:08:59I love the color.

00:09:01Essentially, a salsa matcha is nuts, seeds, and chilies.

00:09:06Oftentimes, for a salsa matcha, I would roast my nuts and seeds.

00:09:11In this case, nobody got time for that.

00:09:14So, I go ahead and I drop my nuts into the fryer.

00:09:18Then I'm going right out of the fryer into my saute pan and hitting it with the blowtorch

00:09:23to continue to caramelize.

00:09:26There's 150 grand on the line.

00:09:28There's our reputation.

00:09:30There's our little egos.

00:09:31And I want to make myself proud, my family proud.

00:09:34Got my little dude at home watching me cook.

00:09:37And I'm proving that, you know what?

00:09:39You can do it!

00:09:41Salsa matcha.

00:09:42So, all of those toasted nuts, chilies, red wine vinegar, olive oil.

00:09:46Enough for a good group of people.

00:09:48Mm-hmm.

00:09:48Yeah.

00:09:49I'd like that move.

00:09:52I'm going to try to do a duo.

00:09:53So, I'm going to have, like, swordfish tataki.

00:09:55Tataki!

00:09:56On one side and then trumpet scallops on the other.

00:09:59Use the swordfish to make a sauce for that.

00:10:02Chef is just making quick work of that, taking all the skin and the bloodline right out of it

00:10:06and just using, like, the center.

00:10:07For swordfish, it has a very similar texture to tuna.

00:10:10And one of my favorite things to do with tuna is treat it like tataki.

00:10:14So, poaching the swordfish.

00:10:15This is, like, true Japanese tataki.

00:10:16So, I'll you poach it for a second.

00:10:17Yep.

00:10:18And then it's going to soak in this mirin soy.

00:10:21And so, I love the juice from the canned beets.

00:10:23Canned beets, Chef?

00:10:24Long history with them, or?

00:10:25No, I don't think I've ever opened a can of canned beets in my life.

00:10:27So, canned beets are not something that I've used all the time, but they're on the randomizer.

00:10:31And that means they have to find their way to the plate in a few different ways.

00:10:34I'm also going to pickle them.

00:10:36Pickled beets are delicious and also turn it into vinaigrette.

00:10:39Using my poaching liquid from my swordfish to cook some New Year's traditional lentils.

00:10:45Lentils are a sign of prosperity in the New Year.

00:10:48And they're nice and earthy to go along with the king trumpet mushrooms.

00:10:51Chef is taking them and peeling the sides of them because they get a little bit tough to eat.

00:10:56And then she's cutting them in what would be, like, the shape of a scallop to get a nice year

00:11:00on it.

00:11:00I am always shaking and sweating and crazy going into any competition.

00:11:04It feels good to have made it through the qualifiers and to meet it through round one and to be

00:11:09in round two.

00:11:10But I still feel just as nervous as that first second that I walked in against Angelo.

00:11:14I'm, like, stressing the heck out because I'm trying to make way too many things.

00:11:19A bit of a mild panic.

00:11:23Chefs, we have 20 minutes left.

00:11:2520 to go.

00:11:29I pull my mushrooms.

00:11:31This is the crunchiest batter I have ever made.

00:11:35How do you feel?

00:11:36So far, so good, I think.

00:11:37Next, the protein is swordfish.

00:11:40It's something I am very familiar with.

00:11:42I always go to the grill or the plancha.

00:11:44It's a pretty lean protein.

00:11:46So I decide to rest my swordfish steaks in a salsa matcha brown butter.

00:11:56Chef's kiss.

00:11:57You know, the swordfish is a little bit of a trap.

00:11:59It takes so long to cook.

00:12:00Any fat lost in the cooking process has now been reapplied on the exterior.

00:12:04Okay, cool.

00:12:05For New Year's, I like to do collards, right?

00:12:08For prosperity into the New Year.

00:12:11What do you guys think?

00:12:12Collards?

00:12:12Should I do them fried or blanched?

00:12:16Come on, guys.

00:12:18Let's do it.

00:12:19Deep fry some.

00:12:21I got to give the people what they want.

00:12:23And then I also like to blanch some of my collards with some peas.

00:12:28What motivates me in these competitions is the love for the craft.

00:12:33We get the opportunity to create some incredible dishes.

00:12:38And for me, that is, that's the best.

00:12:41You guys said two ways for the collard.

00:12:42So, you know, might as well go two ways, right?

00:12:46As always, judges are sequestered in their trailers, totally unaware of who's out here cooking right now.

00:12:51So their focus will be entirely on the food itself.

00:12:54They'll score the dishes based on taste, use of the items on the randomizer, and presentation.

00:12:59The chef with the top score will move on to the quarterfinals.

00:13:02The other chef, this will be their last cook.

00:13:05Chef Marcel, Chef Stephanie, 10 minutes, 10 to go to be plated.

00:13:10I'm going to do the blue torch.

00:13:12I take the scallops and I start blowtorching them with just a little bit of sugar.

00:13:18She's going to essentially, like, make them look like scallops.

00:13:21I think the trumpet scallops will show that I really looked at the randomizer and thought,

00:13:25how do you elevate a king trumpet mushroom?

00:13:27Torching ground butter to put in with them.

00:13:29You turn it into a scallop, one of the most celebratory seafoods that you can have on New Year's.

00:13:36I start thinking I should probably make some sort of sauce.

00:13:39So I'm going to take some scraps from the swordfish, along with some shallots, some mushrooms,

00:13:46some champagne, cream.

00:13:49You can hear a pin drop in here, you guys.

00:13:51After the swordfish has marinated as long as I can give it, I'm going to torch the outside,

00:13:55really just caramelizing all of those natural sugars from the beets and from the soy and from the mirin.

00:14:00Can someone stand here and do this while I work on other things?

00:14:04I need, like, five different hands.

00:14:05I am, like, literally blowtorching while straining beets at the same time.

00:14:08It's very mom thing.

00:14:10Like, moms can always do, like, 25,000 things at once.

00:14:14Mom's multitask.

00:14:17Something about tournament champions has just never happened.

00:14:19And for me, I just want this so I can feel like I haven't, like, lost my edge.

00:14:23And I also want Ernie to see, you know what, I didn't give up, bud.

00:14:26I came back this year and look what happens when you just keep going.

00:14:29Okay, let's start just spraying this together.

00:14:32Chef, two minutes, two minutes left.

00:14:36I've got my canned beet lebna puree, my collard green chiffonade,

00:14:42and I top that with my salsa matcha swordfish.

00:14:46We put a nest of crispy collards for our king trumpet mushroom to sit atop of.

00:14:55A little dollop of caviar on top to really celebrate this New Year's Eve dinner.

00:15:02One minute, one minute to go.

00:15:04So I decided to go two separate plates rather than doing, like, a duo on one.

00:15:08I take the pickled golden beets and put them down like a little bed for the shiitake swordfish to go

00:15:14on top of.

00:15:15Then I'm going to take my pan sauce that I have and just drape that over the top.

00:15:19A little bit of that salad of the lentils, mushrooms, chives, and some of that beet vinaigrette.

00:15:2430 seconds.

00:15:25Then I'm going to take two of the king trumpet scallops and put them in the bowl.

00:15:29I top each scallop with some caviar.

00:15:31I really elevate the dish.

00:15:32And then I add in some of that lentil mushroom salad, just kind of tying the two dishes together.

00:15:37Five, four, three, two, one.

00:15:42Done.

00:15:43Beautiful.

00:15:48Dynamite paddle, chefs.

00:15:49Great job.

00:15:53Look, the judges come in.

00:15:56Oh!

00:15:57How you feeling?

00:15:58I mean, I thought it was good.

00:16:00I like that dish.

00:16:01I did use the torch a lot.

00:16:02I burned my finger.

00:16:03My hands smell.

00:16:09Either I'm going to stay and get a chance to do round three, which would be sick, or I'm going

00:16:13to go.

00:16:16All right.

00:16:17We have cooked.

00:16:20And now we await judgment.

00:16:23I think by doing two separate dishes, I kind of maybe hurt myself a little bit because I had to

00:16:28make garnishes for two things instead of just focusing on one.

00:16:31We'll see.

00:16:32Ladies and gentlemen, our TSC judges have been waiting in their trailers for their first blind tasting of the night.

00:16:37Let's meet him.

00:16:38First, we have the legendary Southern California restaurateur and winner of both the James Beard Award and coveted Julia Child

00:16:45Award.

00:16:45Ah, one of my favorites.

00:16:47Chef Susan Feattinger.

00:16:49Oh, I love Susan.

00:16:51She's awesome.

00:16:52It's a good dish for her.

00:16:53I mean, she's the chili lady.

00:16:55She's the hot tamale.

00:16:56Next, acclaimed restaurateur, shop judge, and the only two-time T-O-C champ.

00:17:03Chef Monique Shohan.

00:17:07She also likes spicy, too, actually.

00:17:10Okay.

00:17:11Oh, nice.

00:17:12And ladies and gentlemen, for his first appearance here in T-O-C judging, the James Beard Award winner for

00:17:19Best Chef California, whose Michelin-starred Bleu Delay helped redefine San Francisco fine dining.

00:17:25Hubert?

00:17:26The one and only Chef Hubert Keller.

00:17:29Ah, Chef Hubert, ça va?

00:17:33Both of my sauces I did today are definitely lean a little more front.

00:17:36Tonight, the randomizer gave the chefs a fantastic selection.

00:17:40Swordfish, King Trumpet Mushroom.

00:17:43The equipment was a blowtorch.

00:17:45The style tonight, New Year's Eve dinner.

00:17:47The wild card ingredient was the canned beets.

00:17:51And here to tell you about this fantastic dish, Chef Justin Warner.

00:17:55Tasted everything on my dish.

00:17:57Thought it was really good.

00:17:59Judges, this is a salsa matcha grilled swordfish with prosperity collards, beet labneh, and crispy king trumpet mushrooms.

00:18:08The canned beets were done with labneh in the food processor.

00:18:11In terms of the blowtorch, it was used to roast morita, ancho, and guajillo chilies, and that crafts that salsa

00:18:17matcha.

00:18:18In terms of New Year's Eve, we have champagne in the batter.

00:18:21We have collards, which typically are associated with prosperity in the South Cape.

00:18:25And then we have Ocetra caviar crowning the dish.

00:18:29It's a crunch.

00:18:30The level for TOC7 is at another level, and you can see that in the dish right over here.

00:18:38The swordfish has been cooked beautifully.

00:18:41The champagne king trumpet fritter with the caviar right on top of it.

00:18:47Dust cream celebration.

00:18:48The use of the canned beets as a labneh, great idea.

00:18:53For a New Year's dish, it's gorgeous.

00:18:56It's got all the elements with caviar and champagne that you want.

00:18:59The use of the torch, I think, could have been a bit more.

00:19:02Then going with yuzu and matcha, to me, maybe stretches it a little bit.

00:19:07Maybe you didn't need both of those.

00:19:09A smaller or thinner piece of sword cooked quicker with the torch would have been really a perfect way to

00:19:14use the torch, too.

00:19:15The fritter is really good, but I wish that the trumpet was a little bit more used in that dish.

00:19:21This swordfish is the star.

00:19:23Thank you very much, judges.

00:19:24Your scorecards are in front of you.

00:19:2750 points available in taste, 40 for the use of the randomizer, and 10 points in plating.

00:19:33All in all, relatively good feedback.

00:19:36See what they say about Stephanie's dish.

00:19:37Judges, here we are to present the second dish.

00:19:40Our TOC champ herself, Chef Tiffany Faison.

00:19:45This is a multi-course countdown.

00:19:47Let's begin our toast with a tataki of swordfish.

00:19:50The chef has fabricated the swordfish that was then poached and cured and marinated in canned beet juice, mirin, and

00:19:56soy.

00:19:56A salad was constructed of grilling the king oyster mushrooms and then slicing them into a torched beet juice vinaigrette.

00:20:03Crispy lentils were also added to this vinaigrette.

00:20:05Lentils obviously being a symbol of wealth, the chef wishes you prosperity for the new year.

00:20:10Let's move along to the second course.

00:20:11King trumpet mushroom torched scallop.

00:20:14The chef peeled and butter torched the scallops using a little bit of brown butter.

00:20:18A sauce was constructed of roasting king oyster mushrooms and swordfish with some ginger and allium in seafood stock, miso,

00:20:25and cream.

00:20:26Stephanie can cook, man.

00:20:27She can cook.

00:20:28I think since the chef really went that far on preparing two different dishes in those 35 minutes, pretty spectacular.

00:20:36I really have to say the combination with the beets, you have them under the swordfish, actually when you eat

00:20:42it together, it really comes together.

00:20:44My favorite part is the scallop trumpet mushroom.

00:20:50The use of the blowtorch on top of it gives it that wonderful sear.

00:20:54Really, really smart.

00:20:57Great presentation.

00:20:58Love that.

00:20:59Swordfish is cooked perfectly.

00:21:01But the trumpet mushroom, for me it needed salt and a little bit of acid.

00:21:08Judges, thank you very much.

00:21:09Scorecards in front of you.

00:21:10I mean, I think it's anybody's game.

00:21:12They seem to really like my dish.

00:21:14They seem to really like Stephanie's dish.

00:21:16I want to win, but if I don't, I am still very happy that I came back.

00:21:22All right, chef, the scores are in.

00:21:23All right, let's go find out.

00:21:27Ladies and gentlemen, I've got the scores.

00:21:29Let's bring our chefs back out.

00:21:30Chef Marcel Vigneron.

00:21:33Chef Stephanie Izard.

00:21:40I mean, this was great gameplay.

00:21:44And here are the scores coming together.

00:21:47One chef scored 879.

00:21:49The other chef scored 884.

00:21:52Ladies and gentlemen, the winner of the second round battle

00:21:54between Chef Marcel Vigneron and Chef Stephanie Izard is...

00:22:08Chef Marcel Vigneron.

00:22:08Chef Isard!

00:22:09Congratulations, sir.

00:22:10Wow, man, gentlemen.

00:22:12Wow!

00:22:16Chef Marcel.

00:22:18Dynamite dish.

00:22:19It's just a couple points shy, but I will tell you,

00:22:21every time we get a chance to have the Wolf in TOC, we love it.

00:22:24Pleasure and an honor to be here.

00:22:26The Wolf!

00:22:27Chef Marcel Vigneron.

00:22:34I'm not going to lie.

00:22:35I kind of had my eye set on that belt.

00:22:38I still got a long way to go.

00:22:39I did not see that coming.

00:22:40Chef Izard making it to the quarterfinals.

00:22:46Let's take a look at your bracket.

00:22:48Up against either Kalina Bliss or Kenny Gilbert.

00:22:52They're both great.

00:22:54You are dynamite.

00:22:55You deserve this.

00:22:56Congratulations, Vigneron.

00:22:57We're going to win.

00:22:57Let's go.

00:22:58Bye, guys.

00:23:07Happy New Year.

00:23:08Happy New Year.

00:23:09Well done, Chef.

00:23:10Congratulations.

00:23:11I mean, this is the farthest you've ever come in TOC.

00:23:14I'm excited.

00:23:14I mean, I think it's going to be...

00:23:15It just keeps getting harder and harder, but...

00:23:17Right.

00:23:17I feel maybe a little more confident.

00:23:20Well, congratulations, Chef.

00:23:22You've seen the great eight.

00:23:23Nice job.

00:23:23He cooked a salsa matcha grilled swordfish with crispy king trumpet mushrooms.

00:23:30That little fritter itself looked sensational.

00:23:33Yes.

00:23:33Did you not want it just to be on its own?

00:23:36Well, since it was an item that was supposed to be represented on that dish, I think it came

00:23:41out a little bit short.

00:23:42I was kind of looking in the dish to see if there's any more of those mushrooms, and I guess

00:23:46there were not.

00:23:47It tasted really good, but in TOC, it does come down to gameplay.

00:23:53Now, up next, we have the number eight seed, Chef Viet Phong, who just took down a massive

00:23:59culinary icon, Chef Jonathan Waxman, in a stunning first-round victory.

00:24:03What did you learn in the last round against Jonathan Waxman?

00:24:07Just calm and steady, but, you know, I'd be lying if I were to say that I'm not nervous

00:24:11because I'm going against Shirley Trump.

00:24:14She's really good.

00:24:14She is a fierce chef to have to reckon with.

00:24:17His opponent is the number six seed, Chef Shirley Chung, who stepped back into the arena

00:24:22after winning the fight of her life against tongue cancer and earned the highest score

00:24:28of the entire first round.

00:24:30This is a necklace that's been blasted by a monk from a famous temple in Beijing.

00:24:36So this is a collection, and it's been helping me run my battle with cancer.

00:24:42And you won your last battle?

00:24:43Yep.

00:24:44It was high as four.

00:24:45So it's definitely working very well.

00:24:47Are you ready to meet the culinary contenders?

00:24:50Let's light this up!

00:24:53The son of Vietnamese immigrants, he is a successful restaurateur with almost two decades as an executive

00:25:01chef.

00:25:04He was named Food and Wine's Best New Chef of 2011, and is a three-time James Beard Award

00:25:12semi-finalist.

00:25:16Put your hands together, Chef Viet Phong!

00:25:28You've had some fantastic wins and have gone against some heavy, heavy hitters.

00:25:32Whew!

00:25:33This is the farthest you've made it.

00:25:34It's the farthest I've made it.

00:25:36And this is big.

00:25:37This is huge.

00:25:38Your opponent!

00:25:42She moved to the U.S. from China when she was 17 and opened restaurants for culinary

00:25:48greats like Thomas Keller, Guy Savoy, and Jose Andres.

00:25:52By the time she was 35 years old, now after waging the fight of her life against tongue

00:25:58cancer, she's back to take on the randomizer one more time.

00:26:02Give it up for a true champion, the Mafia Dumpling Queen, Chef Shirley Chan!

00:26:16The Dumpling Mafia Queen, who has been through the toughest battle of all battles.

00:26:21You both are going to be facing not just each other, but more importantly, the randomizer.

00:26:26Time to get busy.

00:26:31I think it all looks potentially hazardous.

00:26:34Very.

00:26:36Go for the proteins!

00:26:44Hang your lamb, chop, hang your steak, pericot bear, immersion blender, appetizer duo,

00:26:55and hollow cheese.

00:26:59I know that you just prepared.

00:27:01Those were easy for you.

00:27:03So we can just go.

00:27:10Hang your steak, pretty dynamite piece of meat.

00:27:12There's only one per steer.

00:27:13Hairy couvert, slender, thin, skinny bean.

00:27:16Immersion blender, I think it's one of the greatest pieces of equipment I have.

00:27:19Appetizer duo.

00:27:20Now here's something interesting.

00:27:21This is two appetizers.

00:27:22We're not requiring that the hairy couvert and the hangar steak are in both.

00:27:26They want to mix the two, they can't.

00:27:28Cottage cheese separates the curd in the way by adding acid to the milk.

00:27:31This was big during the war.

00:27:33This is what people are eating for their protein.

00:27:34There's going to be sauces made, and this will make it into a great sauce.

00:27:37After the first battle, I have the highest score.

00:27:42I know to win.

00:27:44I cannot play safe.

00:27:46After the battle of my life, I'm back, stronger than ever.

00:27:50I feel like now I really know how to win.

00:27:53Baking soda?

00:27:55Baking soda?

00:27:56It's in your station.

00:27:56I've made it into the Sweet 16, and this is the farthest I've ever made it.

00:28:01Very hard on myself.

00:28:02I don't want to go home.

00:28:03I want to be able to have that belt.

00:28:09And there she is, my dumpling queen.

00:28:11This looks very French.

00:28:26Mary, I want to make this appetizer's rule that highlights both of my ingredients,

00:28:32but I really don't have time to cook two appetizers.

00:28:37So, my mind is flowing through carpaccio.

00:28:42The hanger steak can easily be a carpaccio.

00:28:44She just really needs to pound it out.

00:28:46So, when the judges eat it, it eats like a paper-thin carpaccio.

00:28:52Oh, she's using the tortilla press.

00:28:54God, so smart.

00:28:55I love it.

00:28:56Yeah, that's a good move.

00:28:58Harry Colbert going.

00:28:59Harry Colbert being blanched right now.

00:29:01I don't know what the later plan for it.

00:29:04What is the story on the cottage cheese?

00:29:06Like, how does she have been making it into an aioli?

00:29:08Since my cancer, cottage cheese actually became a source of my morning protein.

00:29:15Using an Emotion blender is my everyday life right now.

00:29:19For my breakfast, when I make my protein shake.

00:29:22Chef Shirley, Chef Viet, 25 minutes, 25 to go.

00:29:27I'm going to do like a French fried tempura batter here, Colbert,

00:29:31and then grill the hanger steaks, slice them thin,

00:29:35and they're going to be served in a lettuce wrap

00:29:37with a Vietnamese-inspired dipping sauce.

00:29:40So, first thing I'm going to do is start on the steak.

00:29:42I'm going to grill it, slice it, and make a nice marinade.

00:29:46I'm going to blitz this with a hand blender,

00:29:49and then this is going to go into the marinade for the beef really quick.

00:29:52Shallots, some lemongrass, fish sauce, sugar.

00:29:56I get it back on the grill.

00:29:58Cottage cheese?

00:29:59Cottage cheese.

00:30:00First, I am going to whip, make a sauce as a dipping for the hair of Colbert.

00:30:05I want to preserve the integrity somewhat of the cottage cheese,

00:30:10where the judges hopefully will be like,

00:30:12wow, this is cottage cheese, and wow, it's amazing,

00:30:14because typically cottage cheese doesn't taste this way.

00:30:17Fish sauce and cheese?

00:30:19Why not?

00:30:21Umami's umami, Chef.

00:30:22Umami's umami, that's right.

00:30:23This is the moment of truth, because one of us is going home.

00:30:2820 minutes.

00:30:2920 minutes, thank you.

00:30:31Shirley and I belong to a very special club.

00:30:34We both had our bouts with cancer,

00:30:36and in a lot of ways we're very similar.

00:30:39We're both Asian descent, and we both cook Asian food.

00:30:42It's like me going up against literally myself.

00:30:45I think this is going to be an incredible battle.

00:30:5318 minutes, 18 minutes to cook.

00:30:57What you got?

00:30:58Uh, we have carpaccio.

00:31:00The idea is carpaccio and then shaking beef.

00:31:02Shaking beef is really classic Vietnamese dish.

00:31:04A hot and a cold.

00:31:05Hot and cold.

00:31:07Our style is appetizer's roll.

00:31:10Now we have twice of opportunities to mess up.

00:31:14So you're just going to marinate it,

00:31:15and it's going to be cooked very high, high heat,

00:31:17to, like, caramelize with the seasoning sauce

00:31:18and everything that's on the outside of the meat.

00:31:20Chef Herrick Goubert also in the shaking beef?

00:31:23Yep.

00:31:23And then in the carpaccio, got that.

00:31:25Right.

00:31:25And then the hand mixer is just the aioli?

00:31:27Mm-hmm.

00:31:29My shaking beef can totally use another creaminess.

00:31:33So I'm cutting up some fresh earth, parsley, and chai,

00:31:38and then putting some hot cheese,

00:31:41and also a fresh whole of garlic.

00:31:43Now this is a cohesive dish.

00:31:49So I closed my restaurant to really focus on my country treatment.

00:31:54In order for me to focus on myself,

00:31:57I made a tough decision of closing my restaurant with tea.

00:32:00If I won, I would definitely love to really make Jumping Mafia a true concept.

00:32:07Bring my jumping back to Los Angeles.

00:32:11The caramelization on that hanger steak is wild.

00:32:14It's so good.

00:32:1512 minutes, Chef.

00:32:1612 to go.

00:32:17What's the plan here, Chef?

00:32:18I'm going to make a tempura batter using the cream whipper.

00:32:21Tight.

00:32:22Nice and light.

00:32:23At my restaurant, Pretty Bird, we sell tempura fried green beans.

00:32:26It's going to offer deliciousness, a nice textural contrast to the lettuce wraps.

00:32:31Believe it or not, as that club soda is exposed to air, that's going to form carbonic acid.

00:32:36The carbonic acid is going to react to the baking powder, and that's going to make for a very lacy

00:32:40exterior.

00:32:41I want to show these chefs here that I'm good.

00:32:44The show is a big deal.

00:32:46It's competitive.

00:32:47It's stressful.

00:32:48It's hard in so many different ways.

00:32:51And in the end, it's really who has the most mental fortitude to filter through all the stressors and just

00:32:56maintain that focus.

00:32:57So normally...

00:32:58A little nest of green beans.

00:32:59Exactly.

00:32:59Normally, I'm against frouting the fryer on a tempura thing, but that nest of green beans, just to, like, break

00:33:03it apart.

00:33:04It'll look at...

00:33:05Yeah, it'll be its own entity.

00:33:07Cool little finishing touch of Audubon curry.

00:33:09Just sprinkled over the end, having them on the exterior in that hot oil, just kind of confit-ing as

00:33:15the dish cools.

00:33:15Sign me up.

00:33:17Chefs, there's 10 minutes left.

00:33:19The next thing, I'm going to work on very traditional Vietnamese dipping sauce.

00:33:24I'm going to make a dipping sauce for the lettuce wrap.

00:33:27Got it.

00:33:28I take a pest and mortar, I add some garlic, shallots, lime juice, sugar, and Thai chilies, and I work

00:33:35it all in.

00:33:37So the idea is to form, like, this nice paste.

00:33:39There's a saying, cook from your heart.

00:33:41And where my heart has been has been in this rediscovery of my culture, my identity, and who I am.

00:33:49So going into the kitchen, that's where my heart leads me.

00:33:52And I have enough faith in my experience that I could hopefully make this successful.

00:33:59Hand-selected.

00:34:00One of the best.

00:34:02Chefs, five minutes left.

00:34:06If you're doing a carpaccio, you've got to reserve some time to make sure that plating is perfect.

00:34:10One half of your dish is not cooked.

00:34:11Everything around it needs to be perfectly seasoned and gorgeous.

00:34:14I'm feeling extremely good about my dishes.

00:34:18Tweezers, getting serious.

00:34:20I know.

00:34:21How do you say, I'm a shallow plate.

00:34:23I have plenty of lemon olive oil.

00:34:26And every single hair cover gets a tiny dollop of my mustard cottage cheese, aioli.

00:34:35And then I want to introduce some crunchy almond crispy salads.

00:34:39And then for my shaken beef, I'm placing this creamy herb cottage cheese in motion on the bottom first.

00:34:48And then I place my perfectly cooked butter hair cover there onto the center of the plate.

00:34:55Then I build five pieces of the shaken beef on top.

00:35:01And I really hope that judges will see all my attention to all the smart details.

00:35:1090 seconds, Chefs.

00:35:1190 to go.

00:35:13Looks like Chef Viet is going to plate his duo on one plate.

00:35:16I think that's a sure sign of cohesiveness.

00:35:18I put the butter lettuce on the bottom, a little bit of the cottage cheese, and then the gem lettuce.

00:35:24And then finally the hanger steak, and then the traditional Vietnamese dipping sauce on the gem.

00:35:29And then the herbs, which are mince, dill, and cilantro.

00:35:33And then next to it, I'm going to put the cottage cheese dipping sauce.

00:35:38And then finally on top, the tempura hair cover.

00:35:42I've taken down Erica Barrett.

00:35:43I don't know how, but I've taken down Jonathan Waxman.

00:35:46So, Shirley Chung, you are next.

00:35:49Five, four, three, two, one.

00:35:54That's it.

00:35:58Great job, Chef Viet.

00:36:00Chef Shirley, back to your trailers.

00:36:04Wow.

00:36:10I did the best that I could do, utilizing the ingredients, the tools.

00:36:15I always feel like it's me, a cancer consummizer, and I think I really did justice.

00:36:21All I can hope for is that I get another round of cooking.

00:36:26I'm feeling excited.

00:36:29I did exactly how I planned it in my head.

00:36:33All right, this is the moment of truth.

00:36:35Let's see who the judges are.

00:36:37Ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome back our judges, Chef Susan Finnegar.

00:36:41Susan Finnegar.

00:36:42The champ, Manit Chauhan.

00:36:45Wow.

00:36:46And the legend, Chef Hubert Keller.

00:36:48Ow!

00:36:49My arm.

00:36:50Wow.

00:36:51Three culinary greats.

00:36:52Tonight, the randomizer served up hanger steak, Harry Coveur, immersion blender.

00:36:58The style was appetizer duo, and the wild card ingredient was cottage cheese.

00:37:04And our TOC3 champ herself, Chef Tiffany Faison.

00:37:09Chefs, this chef would like to first have you remove the top, the carpaccio, from the

00:37:13second appetizer that's below.

00:37:15Wow.

00:37:16Quite simply, this is a master's thesis of France and Asia through the appetizer duo of

00:37:21hanger carpaccio and shaking beef.

00:37:22Carpaccio of hanger.

00:37:23The Harry Coveur were sliced and treated to a chili Szechuan pickling liquid.

00:37:28An aioli was obviously made with the immersion blender, blending cottage cheese and Dijon.

00:37:33Ready to shake on?

00:37:34The hanger steak was seasoned with oyster sauce, sesame shoyu, garlic, and black pepper.

00:37:39The garlic bourre fondue Harry Coveur on the bottom obviously blanched and then treated

00:37:43to a beautiful bourre fondue.

00:37:45You know, this reminds me of a present, a birthday present, which is beautifully wrapped.

00:37:51And then you open it up, and the gift is even better.

00:37:54This is such a smart gameplay.

00:37:58All the randomizer ingredients in two completely different formats, both of them as impressive

00:38:04as the other.

00:38:06Okay, first of all, my favorite tool in the kitchen.

00:38:10Who thinks about doing an immersion blender aioli with cottage cheese?

00:38:14So it worked great on both of these.

00:38:16I just think it was a great use of all of the ingredients that were important in this.

00:38:21First of all, the carpaccio was extremely well executed, but maybe I get a little extra

00:38:27touch of salt.

00:38:28The hanger steak here, the way it has been cooked, I have to congratulate the chef.

00:38:31It's really well done, and the haricot vert, and then the sauce that goes with it.

00:38:36Great combination, great idea.

00:38:38I take it.

00:38:40Scorecards are in front of you.

00:38:4350 points for your taste, 40 points for the use of randomizer, and 10 in the plating.

00:38:48I didn't really have anything negative to say.

00:38:51Judges, here to present the second dish is the wild card himself, Justin Warner.

00:38:55Chef?

00:38:56Judges, the first of your appetizer duo is a Vietnamese marinated hanger steak

00:39:01lettuce wrap.

00:39:02The hanger steak was sliced and marinated in an immersion blender, concocted marinade.

00:39:08From there, it was grilled and then rested.

00:39:11The second of your appetizer duo is a tempura haricot vert with vodavan and whipped cottage

00:39:16cheese with Vietnamese flavors.

00:39:19For the immersion blender, three components.

00:39:21That's shallot, garlic, lime juice, sauce that is on the lettuce cup.

00:39:25We also have the marinade for the steak.

00:39:27The sauce that accompanies the haricot vert, that was black pepper, buttermilk, fish sauce,

00:39:32and the cottage cheese.

00:39:35Chef Keller.

00:39:36First impression when I got the dish, I think I was a little bit less impressed comparing

00:39:41to the other chef where the presentation.

00:39:44Oh, man.

00:39:45When I dig into the hanger steak, although perfectly cooked, beautiful, moist, very tender.

00:39:51I have to congratulate the chef on the preparation of the haricot vert.

00:39:54I could eat a whole bowl of it, right?

00:39:56It's so good.

00:39:57Two-time champ.

00:39:58Come on.

00:39:59I love the hanger steak wrap right over here.

00:40:01It's delicious.

00:40:02It's packed with flavor to make the sauce, I think, great use of the immersion blender.

00:40:09This sauce right over here, it's delicious.

00:40:12But when I look at it, it seems that it is broken.

00:40:18Come on.

00:40:19The hanger steak was incredibly tender.

00:40:23The flavor combinations here, I love with the fresh mint, the scallion.

00:40:28And for me, the green beans are overcooked.

00:40:31But the batter was really quite delicious.

00:40:35All right, judges, thank you very much.

00:40:3650 points in taste, 40 points in the use of the randomizer.

00:40:39Ted in plating.

00:40:41Proud of the dish.

00:40:43Am I proud of the judging?

00:40:44I think I'm always nervous.

00:40:46Perhaps I have a little bit of more when it comes to randomizer.

00:40:52The chef should be very proud.

00:40:53I've got some great scores.

00:40:55Let's go ahead and bring the chef back out.

00:40:57Chef Shirley Chung.

00:40:58Chef Viet Pham.

00:41:04Chefs, I will tell you, that was some great cooking.

00:41:09Only one score moves on to the quarterfinals.

00:41:1280 to 87.

00:41:14Ladies and gentlemen, the winner of the second round battle between chef Shirley Chung

00:41:17and chef Viet Pham is...

00:41:25The winner of the second round battle between chef Shirley Chung and chef Viet Pham is...

00:41:33Chef Shirley Chung!

00:41:42It was great cooking.

00:41:44I'm sorry this is the end of the road.

00:41:45Ladies and gentlemen, chef Viet Pham!

00:41:47Thank you!

00:41:48Thanks, guys.

00:41:52I called it.

00:41:56You know, I...

00:41:59Defeated.

00:42:01I've gotten to the point now where I can talk to Shirley or about Shirley without getting teary-eyed.

00:42:07I wouldn't be able to stand here, be alive, without your love.

00:42:12And food is my passion.

00:42:15Congratulations.

00:42:16Love you.

00:42:20Into the quarterfinals, next facing either Brian Votaggio or Dan Jacobs.

00:42:25Yay.

00:42:28Ladies and gentlemen, chef Shirley Chung!

00:42:31Congratulations!

00:42:32Yay!

00:42:40I won!

00:42:41Second round!

00:42:42Woo!

00:42:43Ladies and gentlemen, are you ready to meet the next two contenders that are fighting for the belt?

00:42:52We have the number eight seed, Chef Kenny Gilbert, who followed up his qualifier with an even bigger first round

00:42:58victory against culinary icon, the one and only Aaron Sanchez.

00:43:02This is just an amazing dream for me to be here.

00:43:04I want to take every challenge as it comes.

00:43:07You know, my confidence is very high.

00:43:09I'm super excited about this cook.

00:43:11Now, his opponent is the number four seed, Chef Kalina Bliss, the returning TOC competitor who once again knocked it

00:43:19out of the park in her first round battle.

00:43:21Last season, I made it to the great eight.

00:43:24This year, I came, like, super hungry, and I really want that spot again.

00:43:29Kalina, top chef alumni, you know, so we're part of that group.

00:43:33I had to go in with the winning mindset.

00:43:35He took down an icon.

00:43:36He really impressed me.

00:43:38I mean, he's looking at flavors, he's looking at textures, he's really playing the game.

00:43:42He's going to be a tough one.

00:43:43Ladies and gentlemen, are you ready for another fantastic food fight?

00:43:48Then let's light this up!

00:43:51He became the chef de cuisine of a five-diamond restaurant at the age of 23,

00:43:56and worked in prestigious kitchens in Japan, Spain, and the Caribbean.

00:44:03He spent time as Oprah's personal chef, whose favorite dishes included his jalapeno cheddar drop biscuits, fried chicken, and field

00:44:12peas.

00:44:12He was a semifinalist on Top Chef Season 7, and he defeated culinary icon Aron Sanchez in the first round

00:44:20with a fried clam dish that Judge Scott Connick called...

00:44:25Put your hands together for the beast of the kitchen, it's Chef Kenny Gilbert!

00:44:41Such a gentle, humble, realistic, down-to-earth guy.

00:44:47But when he is in the kitchen, he is absolutely the beast.

00:44:52Very well-suited name, Chef.

00:44:56And I say good luck, because your opponent is hungry.

00:45:01Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, she loves incorporating foraged and coastal ingredients in her cooking.

00:45:07She has been the executive chef of award-winning restaurants in Washington State and Chicago.

00:45:14And was a 2022 Chopped Grand Champion.

00:45:20She's standing back there, and she's fired up!

00:45:24Welcome Chef Kalina Blitz!

00:45:40Talk about another just happy person.

00:45:44Happy until that clock goes tick, and then she just turns into this tactician.

00:45:50I mean, like a culinary sniper.

00:45:53I mean, that's always that way.

00:45:54We've got to believe in ourselves.

00:45:55We're fired up.

00:45:56Time to go to the randomizer!

00:45:58Right this way!

00:46:05All right, the randomizer will determine the mandatory details of your dish.

00:46:09The protein, the produce, the equipment, the style, and the wild card.

00:46:13Lots of opportunities for things to go horribly wrong.

00:46:17Here we go!

00:46:19Here we go!

00:46:22Here we go!

00:46:25Round and round it goes, and it lands on pork chop, duck legs, lamb, pork chops, pork chops, pork chops,

00:46:33and patch peppers, french fry press, comfort classic, and ketchup.

00:46:40Wow.

00:46:41Well, if you've got questions, I don't got the answers, because your time starts now.

00:46:51Double cut pork chops, I'm a big pork chop fan.

00:46:54Great thing about that is when you have a double thick cut pork chop like that, it's going to stay

00:46:58nice and moist.

00:46:59Patch peppers, they definitely got a good heat to it, but so much flavor, a little bit of sweetness to

00:47:03it.

00:47:04French fry press, what it does, it gives you nice uniform cuts.

00:47:07Comfort classic, you know, it invokes comfort and happiness, and I think that pork chop would be awesome.

00:47:13Ketchup, this can be used in the marinade, this can be used in sauces, there's a lot going on.

00:47:18This is going to be a really fun competition with these two.

00:47:22I came in as a qualifier, and to be able to get to the play-in, and then to make

00:47:26it through the second round, it's going to mean everything.

00:47:30Double cut pork chops is a great cut of meat.

00:47:32The wild card ingredient is ketchup.

00:47:35We know this is a condiment, but essentially it's a tomato sauce.

00:47:39When I think about these ingredients, you know, I'm coming from the Midwest.

00:47:42I'm originally from Cleveland, Ohio, and, you know, I just remember as a kid going to school that one of

00:47:50the lunch meals was going to be a Sloppy Joe.

00:47:52That's just a comfort food, but taking it to another level.

00:47:55Sloppy Joe 2.0, where I'm going to fry the chop, take that trim from the chop, and actually grind

00:48:00it up and make a Sloppy Joe.

00:48:02And I'm going to use the heck out of the Hats chilies all throughout the cook.

00:48:06It's going to be epic.

00:48:11A comfort classic with a double-cut pork chop, I mean, what's not to like?

00:48:15So I'm going to do a plate on a pork kotsudon, and I want to do a tomato curry sauce

00:48:21using the ketchup.

00:48:22I know I want to roast some hatched pepper, and that I want to serve it with rice, because to

00:48:27me, that's just like, that's a plate of comfort food.

00:48:29Uh, hi, chef.

00:48:31Hi.

00:48:33Kenny has the years and experience on me.

00:48:36He's been exec chefing since he was 23, but you're only as good as your current cook, so he might

00:48:42make a great dish.

00:48:44I just need to make a better dish.

00:48:46Chefs, we've got 25 minutes left.

00:48:49I'm going to start by breaking down my pork chops, and I'm going to save that trim, which will be

00:48:53used for the Sloppy Joe.

00:48:56This is Tournament of Champions.

00:48:57I need to make use of this randomizer and taking this protein and doing two different preparations with it.

00:49:04So by grinding it up, now I'm going to create a layered experience.

00:49:09Sloppy Joe?

00:49:11Comfort classic?

00:49:12It's going to be a sandwich with a bone coming out, and then the Sloppy Joe is smothering it.

00:49:15Okay, make six.

00:49:16That's fine.

00:49:17When you hear Sloppy Joe, you know, you think something very, very simple.

00:49:21I'm going to take it to a whole other level.

00:49:22Walk me through seasoning here.

00:49:24So we have the chicken seasoning, Cajun seasoning, fried shallots, fried garlic.

00:49:29The wild card ingredient is ketchup.

00:49:32Ketchup is very, very user-friendly.

00:49:34It's a tomato product at the end of the day.

00:49:36Ketchup in for the Sloppy Joe.

00:49:38Yep.

00:49:38A little tomato product.

00:49:39I've gone through a lot of different things in my life.

00:49:41You know, I'm a cancer survivor.

00:49:43I was a widower at 21.

00:49:44I was raising my daughter by myself.

00:49:46At the end of the day, there's nothing that I haven't gone through already.

00:49:50You know, just saying out there, you fall down seven times, you get up eight.

00:49:53That's just kind of what I live by.

00:49:55I want this really bad because I want that belt.

00:49:58I want that banner.

00:50:00I want the ring.

00:50:01And then I want the money.

00:50:05I think what I'm going to kind of do is, like, a play on, like, a pork cuciudon.

00:50:10We're going to do, like, a hatch pepper, like, spicy relish.

00:50:12Okay.

00:50:13I'm going to start the base of my curry.

00:50:14I'm going to cut some vegetables that are going to go in my curry sauce with the fry press.

00:50:21You have to use your whole body.

00:50:23In restaurants, you attach them to the wall.

00:50:24The wall comes down.

00:50:26Oh, yeah.

00:50:26Next, I'm going to add some spices to the pan.

00:50:28Curry powder, some onion powder, ground ginger, and turmeric.

00:50:32That's going to be the curry sauce?

00:50:34Yeah.

00:50:36There we go.

00:50:37That's how we ketchup.

00:50:38Ketchup is so great for so many sauces.

00:50:41A little bit of sweetness.

00:50:42It adds some acidity.

00:50:43I'm an adopted Korean, so I was adopted at four months old.

00:50:47My parents were American, and they absolutely raised me on, like, very traditional American food.

00:50:53But my cooking, like, in the last handful of years has definitely started leaning towards, you know, Southeast Asian.

00:51:00I just soaked it all up.

00:51:02And so I feel like that's kind of given me a little bit of my own style.

00:51:06Last year, I was able to make it to the great age.

00:51:09I really want to prove to myself that it wasn't a fluke, and it wasn't luck, and I deserve to

00:51:14be here.

00:51:16They're both working with purpose.

00:51:22Right now, Chef Kenny Gilbert has a ton of momentum behind him.

00:51:26He fought his way out of the qualifiers, got a win in round one.

00:51:29These are one of my favorite things in the whole world.

00:51:31Love them.

00:51:33Favorite, favorite, favorite.

00:51:35The purpose of the French fry press is to do French fries.

00:51:38And being that this is a comfort classic, it works out perfectly.

00:51:41I use the Idaho russet potatoes.

00:51:43I press it through, and I put it in one fryer.

00:51:47And then I take the hatch peppers and place it to the blender with a little bit of water and

00:51:51puree it up.

00:51:52The hatch peppers was the easiest thing for me to use multiple ways.

00:51:58The pulp of the hatch chilies, I add it into my sloppy joe.

00:52:04Also my remoulin.

00:52:05What's this?

00:52:06A little hatch chili mayo.

00:52:08So I'm going to use this for the buns, top and bottom, before I sandwich.

00:52:11Got it.

00:52:1215 minutes, 15 to go.

00:52:17This is an umami bomb, chef.

00:52:18Yeah, it's always the plan.

00:52:20Chef Kalina joined us at TOC last year, TOC 6, and no one saw her coming.

00:52:25When I tell you it was one chef after another just being weed whacked into the great eight,

00:52:30she's back this year and she is just as hungry.

00:52:32Next, I really need to start the pork chops.

00:52:35I get the dredge station together.

00:52:36I throw in a lot of the similar spices that went into the sauce to kind of complement it.

00:52:40Onion powder, I add some garam masala to it.

00:52:43Similar flavors.

00:52:44Sometimes, you know, there's this little like voice in my head that gives me a little bit of self-doubt.

00:52:48I think it happens to a lot of us.

00:52:50I am my harshest critic, so I really want to win and move on to the next round.

00:52:55They're happy in there.

00:52:56They're happy.

00:52:56So next, I'm going to add some of these like spicy hatch peppers to the rice.

00:53:03Ah.

00:53:04I feel pretty focused this round.

00:53:06Everything is tasting good.

00:53:08I feel like I'm adding flavor.

00:53:09I'm using a randomizer.

00:53:11Still needs longer, but we have plenty of time.

00:53:13Kalina's pork chops are in the fryer.

00:53:14They've been in there for a long time, and the color of the outside of the pork chop is telling

00:53:18me

00:53:18that they're probably starting to flirt with overcooking.

00:53:21Seven minutes.

00:53:24He works so fast.

00:53:25Oh, he is a wide beast in the kitchen.

00:53:27Where did this batter come from, chef?

00:53:29Baramo egg batter, Cajun spice chicken seasoning, some Hats chilis.

00:53:33I get the pork chops battered, breaded, and I place them to the fryer.

00:53:39Five minutes, five to go.

00:53:44First thing I do is take the hatch chili rice.

00:53:46I do a nice big pile down on the bottom of the plate.

00:53:50Next, I grab the tomato curry sauce.

00:53:52I really want to make sure that the cuts from the french fry cutter are, you know, very present.

00:53:58And then I grab the pork chop.

00:54:00I know I'm one of the younger kids here, so to make it to the end would just be amazing.

00:54:06Two minutes.

00:54:07Two to go.

00:54:08Pork chop's looking good, chef.

00:54:10Yes, sir.

00:54:11I'm taking my Hats chili mayo and putting it on the bottom part of the bun and the top of

00:54:16the bun.

00:54:17I place my fried pork chop there.

00:54:20I top the pork chop with the sloppy joe.

00:54:24And then my fries, season it up, place it into my bowls.

00:54:2930 seconds.

00:54:33I'm super excited.

00:54:35I left it all on in the arena.

00:54:37I did everything I possibly could.

00:54:39And then now it's in the judges' hands.

00:54:41Five, four, three, two, one.

00:54:46Done!

00:54:48Oh, that was a crazy battle.

00:54:53Back to your trailers.

00:54:54Let's bring in the judges.

00:54:57They're going to love this.

00:55:02Crazy.

00:55:03Once I saw the randomizer, I was like, I feel like this is what I have to do.

00:55:07I mean, look, I cooked the dish that I'd want to eat, that I want to eat right now.

00:55:12The question is going to be use of the randomizer and taste.

00:55:19All right, ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome back the esteemed panel of judges,

00:55:23Chef Susan Finneger.

00:55:26Oh, my God.

00:55:27I grew up watching Susan.

00:55:30She's actually a living legend.

00:55:31T-O-C champ, Monique Chauhan.

00:55:34Oh, God, I made a curry sauce for Monique?

00:55:37Why?

00:55:38And legendary Chef Hubert Keller.

00:55:41Oh, Hubert Keller.

00:55:42Nice.

00:55:43I applied to this restaurant when I was, like, 19 years old and didn't get a callback.

00:55:48Tonight, the randomizer chefs kicked down for protein and double-cut pork chop.

00:55:52The produce was hatch peppers.

00:55:55Restaurant equipment was French fry press.

00:55:57Style was Comfort Classic.

00:55:59And that fantastic wild card ingredient was ketchup.

00:56:02And our T-O-C-3 champ herself, Chef Tiffany Faison.

00:56:06For this randomizer, the chef has hatched a pork plan of Comfort Classics.

00:56:11This is bone-in pork katsudan with ketchup and hatch chili curry, kombu, and hatch pepper rice.

00:56:17Everything was processed through the French fry press for the curry.

00:56:20The pork was fabricated, leaving the center bone chopped only.

00:56:24That was seasoned with curry powder, turmeric, garam masala, ginger, and onion powders, mushroom soy gill stock,

00:56:28which is dried sauce, and shiitakes.

00:56:31Say something.

00:56:32Say something good.

00:56:34Comfort Classic to me is something which is a hug on a plate.

00:56:37And this is something which is definitely that.

00:56:40I want to hug you, Manit.

00:56:42Using the curry sauce as a base to put the ketchup in, the sweetness of the ketchup,

00:56:48I think that is absolutely genius.

00:56:51That is incredible.

00:56:53The one thing which I would have loved on this dish is a little bit more of that acid in

00:56:58it.

00:56:59I think that would have balanced off the spices.

00:57:01To use the French fry press for the vegetables, which we can see and we can taste.

00:57:07This chef has done an incredible job in developing flavors in a really short time.

00:57:12Yes!

00:57:15Conceptually, this was amazing.

00:57:17The perfect comfort dish.

00:57:19It really hit the mark.

00:57:21In terms of the use of the hatch chili, the concept, I think was perfect and right on.

00:57:27To be a comfort and classic dish, I do agree that really works.

00:57:33The rice, the vegetable, tomato, when you're eating it together, it really brings the dish together.

00:57:38But I think...

00:57:39I'm scared.

00:57:40I cut even to the center.

00:57:41My pork chop was a little bit overcooked.

00:57:45Great, judges, thank you very much.

00:57:47Your scorecard, 50 points for taste, 40 points for the use of the randomizer, and 10 points in plating.

00:57:54I think she did a great cook.

00:57:55She put together a dish that the judges felt was comforting.

00:57:58We're just going to have to see, you know, how Kenny's goes.

00:58:00If his is perfect, then I'm going home.

00:58:03All right, judges, thank you very much.

00:58:05And to present the second dish, Justin Warner.

00:58:09Judges, our chef calls this Sloppy Joe 2.0.

00:58:12The double-cut pork chop was Frenched and trimmed.

00:58:15The trim was ground.

00:58:16It was used to start the process of the Sloppy Joe, which you will see crowning the bone-in chop,

00:58:20which has been fried.

00:58:21So that Sloppy Joe mixture was done with ketchup, the solids from blended hatch chili, and plenty of seasoning.

00:58:28The French fry press was used to make French fries.

00:58:30In terms of the use of the ketchup, it was in the Sloppy Joe, and also in the remoulade at

00:58:35the center of the plate.

00:58:37This is my comfort food.

00:58:39I grew up in Toledo, Ohio.

00:58:41We had Sloppy Joes all the time, and ketchup was in the mix.

00:58:46Cleveland, that's what's up.

00:58:48I really love having the bone in there.

00:58:50That's a really interesting thing, because probably what I would do is eat half of it, and then I would

00:58:57take this other half and eat it like that.

00:58:59You can just put it in your purse and have it foil, and then when you're on the road...

00:59:05And the pork chop is actually quite moist.

00:59:08The aioli's got that really nice spice to it from the hatch chili, so the use of that is really

00:59:13good.

00:59:14Yes.

00:59:16Shoot.

00:59:17Come on, chef.

00:59:18Give me some love.

00:59:19I think, personally, the chef had the finger right on the pulse for that challenge.

00:59:24I think he succeeded in really using all the elements that needed to be done.

00:59:29Yes!

00:59:30Let's go!

00:59:31The pork chop was perfectly cooked.

00:59:33That's actually impressive.

00:59:34I mean, like, Kenny did a really good job with that dish.

00:59:36This chef has done an amazing job in creating layers and layers of flavors.

00:59:43But the piece de resistance of this entire burger is the sloppy joe part about it.

00:59:49It's flavorful.

00:59:51It's got that ketchup in it.

00:59:52I do like the french fries.

00:59:55I do think that maybe if there was a little bit of cornstarch, it might have made it crispier.

01:00:00Thank you very much, judges.

01:00:02Scorecards are in front of you.

01:00:04Okay.

01:00:05You're only as good as, like, your current cook, and every single thing has to be perfect,

01:00:09you know?

01:00:09And not everything was perfect on mine.

01:00:11I've been dying to be here.

01:00:15I've been grinding, and I am one with food.

01:00:19I knew that pork chop was going to be juicy.

01:00:21I knew I used the ingredients right.

01:00:24There's nothing else I can do.

01:00:25Scorecards are in.

01:00:25They're ready for you.

01:00:26Okay.

01:00:27Whew.

01:00:28All right, let's do this.

01:00:32The judges have spoken.

01:00:34I've got the scores.

01:00:35Let's call them back in.

01:00:36Chef Kalina Bliss.

01:00:39Chef Kenny Gilbert.

01:00:45This really came down to mainly about flavor.

01:00:50One chef scored at 81.

01:00:52Good score.

01:00:55The other chef, 91.

01:01:00Ladies and gentlemen, the winner of the second round battle between Chef Kalina Bliss and Chef

01:01:05Kenny Gilbert is...

01:01:18Chef Kenny Gilbert.

01:01:19Let's go!

01:01:20Let's go!

01:01:23Let's go!

01:01:24Let's go!

01:01:25Congratulations, Chef.

01:01:26Congratulations.

01:01:33Chef Kalina, you were doing so many things that I thought were right, and an 81's a great

01:01:37score, but unfortunately it's the end of the road, and we'll look forward to seeing you in

01:01:40the GOC in the future.

01:01:42Thank you, Chef.

01:01:43Chef Kalina Bliss!

01:01:47Oh, he whooped me.

01:01:49He had a great score.

01:01:50I'm going to learn from this.

01:01:51We're going to keep our, you know, head held high, and we're going to keep cooking, and

01:01:56you guys will see me next year.

01:01:56That was one of the most remarkable dishes we've seen so far in the competition.

01:02:02Congratulations!

01:02:02You're in the quarterfinals, my friend.

01:02:05Let's take a look.

01:02:06Here you are going up against Stephanie Izard.

01:02:09The GOAT.

01:02:10Let's GOAT!

01:02:11GOAT!

01:02:11But I'll tell you right now, everybody should take notice.

01:02:14The new guys in town, the beast in the kitchen.

01:02:17Kenny Gilbert!

01:02:19That was a huge win.

01:02:2210-point win.

01:02:24Now you're in the grade 8.

01:02:25That's got to feel pretty amazing.

01:02:27I'm so excited.

01:02:29I've been locked in.

01:02:30And the chefs all see it, watching how cool, calm, and collective you were.

01:02:33Brother, we'll see you in the grade 8.

01:02:34Congratulations.

01:02:35Yes, sir.

01:02:35Thank you, thank you.

01:02:36Well done, Chef.

01:02:36Appreciate you.

01:02:37All right, folks.

01:02:38Are you ready to hear about the contenders for the final spot in the upcoming quarterfinals?

01:02:48First, we have the number 8 seed, Chef Dan Jacobs, the qualifier winner, fresh off a major

01:02:53upset victory, who has proven that nothing, nothing in life can slow this guy down.

01:02:59I have Kennedy's disease, which is a rare neuromuscular disease similar to ALS.

01:03:05Being the lower seed, being in the further kitchen, that's just more walking around for

01:03:09me.

01:03:09So I have to be real conscious of, you know, grabbing all my stuff.

01:03:12I think it's so cool going up against Brian, somebody I looked up to for a long time.

01:03:16Brian did just win TOC Christmas, and he's got this momentum going with him.

01:03:20To me, I think I have just as much momentum.

01:03:22I beat Top Chef champion in Joe Flom.

01:03:25I beat the runner-up last year on TOC and Sir Bradley.

01:03:28I'm feeling just as confident as I did going in against either one of them.

01:03:31Now, his opponent is the number 3 seed, Chef Brian Voltaggio, the TOC All-Star Christmas

01:03:36champion, who won his first solo TOC victory in the first round.

01:03:41I've never won an individual contest or competition in my career.

01:03:46So for me, this would be a big win.

01:03:47I am going up against Dan Jacobs.

01:03:49I only know him from actually judging him in Top Chef in the season he was in.

01:03:54Great cook, great guy.

01:03:55For him to take out Sarah Bradley in the last round means that, you know, he's a force to

01:03:59be reckoned with.

01:04:00Are you ready to see these two powerhouses cooking up tonight?

01:04:04So let's light it up!

01:04:07He has two celebrated restaurants, including a modern Asian spot that the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

01:04:14praised for its completely delicious courses and perfect meals.

01:04:18He is a six-time James Beard semi-finalist.

01:04:23Now, in the first round, he scored an upset victory over TOC 6 runner-up, Chef Sarah Bradley.

01:04:33Chef Dan Jacobs!

01:04:46What have you done to ground yourself and stay focused on what's coming up?

01:04:50There's not a lot of expectation coming out of, like, a seven seed.

01:04:52I think that I surprise some people.

01:04:55And I am confident in myself.

01:04:57That's all I need.

01:04:58Dan, great to have you.

01:05:00And your opponent.

01:05:04He's a two-time James Beard nominee with claimed restaurants on both coasts.

01:05:09He's a three-time Top Chef finalist and recently won the TOC All-Star Christmas Tournament along

01:05:16with his brother, Michael, with a record-breaking score of 98.

01:05:24Ladies and gentlemen, the Bolts of the East, Chef Brian Voltaggio!

01:05:38You haven't had a lot of success inside of TOC.

01:05:42No.

01:05:42Then you have enormous success with the Tournament of Champions holiday.

01:05:46And now you're back, and we're seeing a different side of Brian Voltaggio.

01:05:51This one is a bucket list one for me.

01:05:54This is one I want to take.

01:05:55And I'm very focused on this competition.

01:05:57Chefs, time to do it.

01:06:00Let's take it to the randomizer.

01:06:01Good luck.

01:06:05So for the big finale of the night, you guys are the title fight guys.

01:06:10I mean, that's a big deal.

01:06:11Go for protein.

01:06:22Lamb, halibut, duck, lamb, halibut.

01:06:26Halibut, okay.

01:06:27And watermelon radish.

01:06:32Metal skewers.

01:06:35Sunday supper.

01:06:36And who doesn't like a finale with a little nacho cheese?

01:06:41I might be late for dinner.

01:06:44Your 35 starts now.

01:06:45Good luck, guys.

01:06:48This is not a fun randomizer.

01:06:50Okay.

01:06:51Halibut.

01:06:51The thing about halibut is, it overcooks really easy, and it gets dry.

01:06:55Watermelon radish.

01:06:57Part of the daikon radish family.

01:06:58It's not as pungent or bitter as most radishes are.

01:07:01Metal skewers.

01:07:02We always know what this is.

01:07:03Sunday supper.

01:07:04Bringing the family together.

01:07:05This is usually that low, slow, and slow meal.

01:07:08Nacho cheese.

01:07:09So this is more of a processed cheese?

01:07:11That and halibut?

01:07:13Good luck.

01:07:13I've been a runner-up in countless seasons of Top Chef.

01:07:17I've been a runner-up on 24 and 24.

01:07:19I've never tasted victory on my own, and I'm looking forward to do it this season.

01:07:23It's you and me, kid.

01:07:24Be right with you.

01:07:25I'm thinking, like, a crispy, bold salad with, like, lots of acid and crunch that's gonna

01:07:29be paired alongside this halibut that's gonna be skewered with, like, umami-rich mushrooms.

01:07:33You would find, like, grilling over coals in the backyard.

01:07:36You know, I'm out there.

01:07:37I'm working a lot.

01:07:38I'm out here competing.

01:07:38I'm spending a lot of time away from home.

01:07:40We always have a family dinner as much as we can.

01:07:42Food and family is what's so important.

01:07:44Gathering around food, spending time together, and sharing those meals.

01:07:50I got kind of a little bit of a plan here.

01:07:52We're gonna batter and fry the fish for sure.

01:07:54Nice.

01:07:54We're gonna make amole.

01:07:55Okay.

01:07:56We're gonna incorporate the skewers and radishes, both in grilled and in an espichuette.

01:08:00So we're gonna go from there with it.

01:08:02All right.

01:08:03I believe in you, chef.

01:08:04I believe in me, too.

01:08:05Thanks.

01:08:05I came into this battle knowing that I need to shop efficiently.

01:08:09I hate having to run back and forth.

01:08:11I forgot one thing, and I am not doing that.

01:08:15It takes me a long time to move around, and I'm wasting time.

01:08:19In 2016, I was diagnosed with Kennedy's disease.

01:08:21It's degenerative in the fact that I am slowly losing my ability to walk, talk, use my hands, pretty much

01:08:28everything.

01:08:29Nacho cheese!

01:08:30I think being diagnosed was able to kind of reshape how I live, made me really kind of want to

01:08:35push myself to do as many things as I could before I couldn't do those things anymore.

01:08:39So we're gonna do a mole verde?

01:08:41Yeah.

01:08:41A little bit different, just I think it's gonna work really well with the fish, a little bit fresher.

01:08:46I'm gonna get my onion, serrano, garlic, and tomatillos charring.

01:08:50I think there's seven styles of mole in Oaxaca.

01:08:53I'm a mole monster.

01:08:54I'm not typically a mole guy, but I've been cooking for 27 years.

01:08:58I've cooked a little bit of everything.

01:09:00It's gonna have a ton of flavor.

01:09:02It speaks to Sunday supper.

01:09:03What's the plan there, chef?

01:09:04Mexican oregano, a little Chinese five-spice fish sauce.

01:09:10And then here comes everybody's favorite, nacho cheese.

01:09:14You know, the biggest thing with the nacho cheese is how do I incorporate this into my dish without completely

01:09:18ruining that dish?

01:09:19I think using it as the emulsifier in my mole is the smartest way I can do that.

01:09:27I'm gonna add cilantro and kale, and this is gonna give that bright green to the dish.

01:09:34Mole verde, baby.

01:09:36And we're gonna blend her up.

01:09:37I just let it go, because the longer it's gonna blend, the greener it's gonna get.

01:09:40What's the plan with those pickles?

01:09:41So we're gonna do a little escobiche with a little bit of red wine vinegar, lime juice.

01:09:46So with the radishes, we're gonna do a little quick pickle, because it's gonna cut through that richness of the

01:09:51mole and the fried fish.

01:09:53So skewering, we're gonna do some dillia onions, watermelon radish, and then we're gonna do some eggplant on there.

01:10:00Got it.

01:10:00We do vegetable skewers at the house.

01:10:02Olive oil, Aleppo peppers, salt and pepper.

01:10:05Get it onto the grill.

01:10:06This is taking way too much time.

01:10:08Welcome to TFC.

01:10:10This is an interesting one.

01:10:12It sure is.

01:10:13To say the least.

01:10:15Skewers on the grill is a Sunday supper.

01:10:17It sometimes happens at my house.

01:10:19You know, kebab style, right?

01:10:21Okay.

01:10:21This is nacho cheese that's really the throw-off here.

01:10:24It does become a good sauce, that's for sure.

01:10:26I am quite worried about, this has to be Sunday supper.

01:10:29I need to convince the judges, this is something you would have if you came over to Voltaggio's household and

01:10:34you sat down for Sunday supper.

01:10:36I think this is one of the harder randomizers.

01:10:38Ah, the, yeah.

01:10:39Like combo platter of everything together.

01:10:42If there's any two minds that are creative enough to pull this off.

01:10:45These guys.

01:10:5520 minutes, 20 minutes left.

01:10:59So the first thing I do is I start building a marinade for the halibut.

01:11:02Definitely a skewer of the halibut.

01:11:04I'm going to marinate, I got some miso, shiradashi.

01:11:06I'm going to put some mustard in this.

01:11:08I'm going to marinate the outside of the fish.

01:11:09Yep.

01:11:09Somewhere in America, this is their Sunday supper.

01:11:12I think my biggest crutch in my competitions is, is that I don't pay attention to the challenge.

01:11:17I put up a really delicious, great dish.

01:11:19But sometimes I don't check all the criteria that's needed.

01:11:22It's going in.

01:11:24It's definitely an interesting flavor profile, for sure.

01:11:26I want to show that I'm not afraid to use the nacho cheese.

01:11:29Look at that.

01:11:29That's nacho cheese for sure.

01:11:31It tastes good.

01:11:34That emulsifier that's in that cheese is going to actually help coat around the halibut.

01:11:38It's going to make it nice and tacky.

01:11:43So I'm being very careful to cook the mushrooms separate from the halibut initially.

01:11:47My taki mushrooms, they have like a really great meaty cork.

01:11:51But I want to make sure that it doesn't take a long time for that to cook on a skewer

01:11:55while I overcook the fish.

01:11:58I've never glazed mushrooms in nacho cheese.

01:12:00This is a first.

01:12:03This thing.

01:12:05The skewer actually helped sell Sunday supper.

01:12:07This is kebabs on the grill.

01:12:09Kebabs on the grill.

01:12:09Right?

01:12:12Everybody knows I've competed a lot.

01:12:14I have a really fortunate career.

01:12:16I'm really comfortable with who I am and how I am and what I've done.

01:12:19But I have a couple of accolades I've been striving for.

01:12:22Competition like TOC, which is the hardest culinary competition that's out there.

01:12:25And to be a winner is something I need on my mantle.

01:12:2818 minutes, chef.

01:12:3018.

01:12:30Good.

01:12:31Because it's time to figure out the rest.

01:12:35Chef, am I invited to the fish fry?

01:12:37Dude, have you ever been to a fish fry?

01:12:38Has anybody ever been to a Wisconsin fish fry?

01:12:40Hell yeah, let's go.

01:12:42I get the fish into the dredge.

01:12:44Fish fries in Wisconsin are a rite of passage.

01:12:47It speaks to Sunday supper.

01:12:49But I've never fried halibut before.

01:12:53Halibut's incredibly delicate.

01:12:55You have like this tiny little window to make it perfect.

01:12:58Nice color.

01:13:01Got some nice char on these, which is great.

01:13:03What's the plan here?

01:13:04Uh, just because it's Sunday supper, we're going to do a little bit of cilantro rice in here.

01:13:08I'm nervous for them.

01:13:10I'm nervous for them, too.

01:13:11What do you think of the randomizer?

01:13:12A little bit interesting.

01:13:13I think it's a great randomizer.

01:13:15You're with the nacho cheese?

01:13:16Yeah.

01:13:17Yeah.

01:13:18Chefs, 10 minutes.

01:13:1910 to go.

01:13:20Final 10.

01:13:21I need to have, you know, a great sauce that's going to add some acid, some creaminess to the skewer.

01:13:26This is going to be super weird, but hey.

01:13:28I'm here for it.

01:13:29In this case, I have nacho cheese.

01:13:32Yogurt?

01:13:33Nacho cheese?

01:13:34Crema?

01:13:34I'm here.

01:13:35I mean, you hearing me?

01:13:36Like what I'm saying out loud?

01:13:38I want to kind of like lean towards ranch flavors.

01:13:40So I grab onion powder, garlic powder.

01:13:42I'm seasoning with nori.

01:13:44So seafood ranch?

01:13:46Seafood nacho ranch.

01:13:47Yeah.

01:13:47Obviously.

01:13:53Sea ranch for the halibut.

01:13:55I'm going to put them onto the grill on a griddle plate and sear each side.

01:13:59I mean, this fish can be dry if you're not careful with it.

01:14:01So it's going to be really, really technical to cook.

01:14:03The watermelon radish should probably get a spiralized and do like a nice salad with that.

01:14:08Going up against somebody who I've never competed against.

01:14:11Don't really know too much about them.

01:14:13Dan's an unknown for me.

01:14:14He knocked out somebody who was in a finale of last season.

01:14:17So I know that he's got a lot of gas behind him.

01:14:21So I'm just going to do like a quick pickle with citrus on the radish.

01:14:25I'm doing two different applications of the radish.

01:14:27I'm using one to work as a sauce and the other one to work as texture of like a crispy

01:14:31salad that'll be served alongside of the kebabs.

01:14:34I mean, I'm going to try to make it scream with ingredients and technique.

01:14:37Getting nice sear on each side of the fish.

01:14:38The mushrooms are starting to caramelize a little bit more.

01:14:40But I'm also going to be very careful.

01:14:42I don't want to fully cook them on a griddle.

01:14:44I'm using this to kind of get the glaze nice and tacky on the outside.

01:14:48I mean, I was working on the grill, but I see that haliband is fragile.

01:14:51So I'm going to let it glaze under the salamander.

01:14:53You know, Sunday afternoons, you might be watching sports or something and hanging out, grilling a little bit.

01:14:59There's always going to be some sort of a chip and dip element.

01:15:02It's always on the table.

01:15:03I'm going to help scrape up that ranch dressing.

01:15:06Okay.

01:15:08It's a little rice paper chip.

01:15:09The last thing I'm going to do is I'm going to throw it to the fryer to make it puff

01:15:12up and get nice and crispy.

01:15:16Five minutes, chefs.

01:15:18Five minutes.

01:15:20I'm plating this like I would plate this at a restaurant.

01:15:22We get points for a presentation.

01:15:24I want it to look beautiful.

01:15:25I'm going to do some mole down in the middle, and then I'm going to do a little swoosham mole

01:15:28kind of around the plate.

01:15:29I get some of that cilantro rice onto the plate.

01:15:33We're going to put that skewer on the side because, you know, got to use a skewer.

01:15:36I'm going to put some fried fish on top.

01:15:39We're going to put my pickle onion and watermelon rash right on top of that.

01:15:44I am not the person who's supposed to beat Brian Pottaggio, but I'm literally playing with house money.

01:15:49I have nothing to lose.

01:15:52Looking good.

01:15:53Two minutes.

01:15:54So what I'm going to do is I'm going to put a nice pool of the nacho cheese ranch dressing

01:15:57down underneath.

01:15:59I want the kebab to rest right in the center of that.

01:16:02Then just to the left of it, I'm going to put this sort of crispy radish salad.

01:16:07I'm going to drape over the top a piece of puff fried rice paper.

01:16:10I need to crush it and just get all the way through.

01:16:14Five, four, three, two, one.

01:16:18Done.

01:16:22Thank you very much.

01:16:23You're done.

01:16:27That was a tough one.

01:16:35I had to work through that one as I was cooking.

01:16:37I don't think I used the randomizer super great, but, you know, we'll go from there.

01:16:44See how it goes.

01:16:45Nervous sweat.

01:16:51One day, that randomizer was a nightmare.

01:16:54Everybody's got a different interpretation of Sunday supper.

01:16:57I just hope this translates.

01:16:58My dish is tasty.

01:16:59Got a whole can pray that's enough to bring home a W.

01:17:03Please welcome back Chef Susan Finneger.

01:17:06Oh, wow.

01:17:06Susan Finneger?

01:17:08TOC championing Shohan.

01:17:10Wow.

01:17:11And the legend himself, Chef Hubert Keller.

01:17:14No way!

01:17:15Hey, I got his cookbook when I was, like, 19 years old.

01:17:18I still have it.

01:17:18If I would have known that he was going to be here, I would have brought it so I could

01:17:20get him to sign it.

01:17:21Look at that guy.

01:17:22Still rocking that ponytail.

01:17:23Chefs, we just round out this entire competition with a little Sunday supper.

01:17:27The randomizer offered up tonight, halibut, watermelon radish, metal skewer, and who doesn't

01:17:33love Sunday supper with a little nacho cheese?

01:17:38Here to present is our TOC champ, Tiffany Faison.

01:17:42Chef, you pulled out the skewers on a Sunday and had a little backyard roast with halibut

01:17:47skewers, watermelon radish salad, and nacho ocean ranch.

01:17:52Let's start with the halibut.

01:17:53It's marinated with a marinade of nacho cheese, Dijon, miso, shirodashi, and soy.

01:17:58We have a ranch that was constructed on the bottom of your plate.

01:18:01It's not your average ranch.

01:18:03It's nacho ocean ranch that was crafted by spiralizing the watermelon radish.

01:18:07Different watermelon radish vinaigrette was also constructed that got to plate around

01:18:11with a little bit of olive oil.

01:18:14It's always interesting for me to see how a creative mind works under pressure.

01:18:20I think that here, the dish was perfectly executed in sense of with the pressure and

01:18:26the time.

01:18:27I love the way the halibut was cooked because it can be dry very fast.

01:18:31Very careful with the helmet.

01:18:32A good execution, really.

01:18:35So as soon as I saw the nacho cheese, I'm like, this is the whammy.

01:18:39This is what is going to take the dish down.

01:18:41That's how I felt, chef.

01:18:43But this chef has so expertly used it while not highlighting it.

01:18:51To me, the most impressive thing is with the skewers, both the halibut and the mushrooms

01:18:56are cooked beautifully and perfectly.

01:18:58This looks pretty good for Brian.

01:19:00I do think that the one thing which I'm missing is just a touch of sweetness to round out the

01:19:06savoriness.

01:19:07I think the use of the radish is incredible.

01:19:13I love the radish vinaigrette.

01:19:15It's amazing.

01:19:16There's like plenty of acidity in there.

01:19:19My halibut was overcooked.

01:19:21But I could overlook that because the seasoning on it was just perfect.

01:19:25The dish is really delicious and I would have it as a Sunday supper.

01:19:29Thank you very much.

01:19:33Judges, 50 points in taste, 40 points in the use of the randomizer, 10 points in plating.

01:19:40I feel like they connected to the dish in a way that I wanted to execute it and for that

01:19:45I'm grateful.

01:19:46All right, judges here to present the second dish.

01:19:48Justin Warner.

01:19:49Chef.

01:19:50Here we go.

01:19:51Judges, this is fried halibut with mole verde, skewered watermelon radish and watermelon

01:19:58The halibut fillets were done with tapioca, cornstarch, seasoned with Aleppo pepper and

01:20:04fried.

01:20:05The radish, you have thick batons that were skewered with onion and eggplant and then grilled.

01:20:10Another utilization of the radish as you'll see on top is as an escabeche.

01:20:14Now let's get into that sauce because that's where the nacho cheese comes into play.

01:20:19Pepita's grilled onion serrano, this was all blended together with the nacho cheese functioning

01:20:24for body flavor and as an emulsifier.

01:20:26I mean, I think they like it.

01:20:28I keep eating it.

01:20:29I think nacho cheese now should be a requirement in a pepita mole.

01:20:36Even the batter on the halibut is incredible.

01:20:40Best of when you think of deep fried fish.

01:20:43Sunday supper, yes, really well done.

01:20:46The randomizer was really represented the way the radishes were put on top of the little

01:20:52crunchiness, which is great.

01:20:54Unfortunately, the radishes got a little charred.

01:20:59They're supposed to be charred.

01:21:01It's charred radishes.

01:21:02I just had that burnt flavor in my mouth.

01:21:06Chef vinegar.

01:21:06The flavor of that mole is really nice, really nice.

01:21:10Incorporating the nacho cheese, that sort of blows me away.

01:21:14My halibut is a little bit overcooked and a little bit under seasoned.

01:21:19Oh.

01:21:20Thank you very much, judges.

01:21:2250 points in taste.

01:21:2340 in the randomizer tendon plating.

01:21:27This would feel amazing.

01:21:28To go into the next round and knowing I have the chance to go all the way, I'm not going

01:21:32to turn back.

01:21:32It's going to be a tight one, though.

01:21:33I competed against one of the great competitors of all time, and I held my own, so I feel

01:21:40okay.

01:21:40Ladies and gentlemen, I told you I'd give you a great finale.

01:21:42Did the chefs deliver or what?

01:21:45I agree.

01:21:47That was a tough randomizer.

01:21:48Let's bring him back out.

01:21:50Chef Dan, Chef Brian, come on out.

01:21:58Good job.

01:22:00Very close.

01:22:0380 to 77.

01:22:07Ladies and gentlemen, the winner of tonight's final second round battle between Chef Brian

01:22:12Valtaggio and Chef Dan Jacobs is...

01:22:22Brian Valtaggio!

01:22:25Congratulations!

01:22:30Well done, Chef.

01:22:31Chef Dan, I'm sad to see this be the end of your TOC run.

01:22:35We will see you again.

01:22:36Thank you so much.

01:22:37Dan Jacobs!

01:22:39See you, Josh.

01:22:42Ladies and gentlemen!

01:22:46Oh.

01:22:48You know, I did my best.

01:22:50I lost by three points.

01:22:51I'm ready to attack this again next time.

01:22:55Brian is going to the quarterfinals of TOC 7.

01:23:01Let's take a look.

01:23:03You take Dan down.

01:23:05Now it's you and Shirley Chung.

01:23:07Ooh.

01:23:08Shirley's on fire.

01:23:09I know she is.

01:23:10I know this is going to be a tough one.

01:23:11Congratulations, my friend.

01:23:13So happy for you.

01:23:16Brian Valtaggio!

01:23:24Ooh.

01:23:26That was wild.

01:23:27Keep that cheering, you guys.

01:23:28I can't breathe.

01:23:29Join us next time when the triumphant great eights step back into the arena.

01:23:33Let's get to this final four for an epic quarterfinals as the chefs move within striking distance of the title.

01:23:40Mustache is coming in hot.

01:23:42Not today, Joe.

01:23:43The championship belt.

01:23:45I don't know one-third of these things.

01:23:47I don't know one-third of these things.

01:23:48At $150,000.

01:23:51There is no bigger prize, no better trophy.

01:23:55Can you believe what's happening?

01:23:58See you next week on TOC 7.

01:24:00Adios.

01:24:00I don't know one-third of these things.

01:24:01I don't know one-third of these things.

01:24:02I don't know one-third of these things.

Tournament of Champions - Season 7 - Episode 06: Don't Mess with the Randomizer

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