- 7 hours ago
Chopped - Season 64 - Episode 05: Eggscuse Me
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00Americans eat 140 million eggs a day.
00:06That's one for every man, woman, and child in the nation.
00:10Ha ha ha ha, yeah!
00:12The clock starts now.
00:14All right, let's go, Chef. Here we go.
00:15Don't get scrambled.
00:17Eggs, it's one of those things that you have to get exactly perfect.
00:20Kitchen essential.
00:21Egg-cential?
00:22Yes, I'm here all day, folks.
00:24Cooking makes me happy, Chef.
00:25I've been raising chickens for the last nine years.
00:28I don't know if you can tell.
00:29Well, sometimes things that are too easy, though, will mess you up.
00:33I'm definitely panicking at this point.
00:3630 seconds.
00:36Your dishes are egg-cellent, or it's your exit.
00:40Oh!
00:41What, what, what?
00:42You all right, Chef?
00:48These eggs are the hard work of my babies at home.
00:52We have 17 chickens, and I spend pretty much most of my day collecting eggs.
00:57I hope you're proud of yourself.
00:58Say hello to America.
01:00I'm a head chef at Abisson Broad Creek in Laurel, Delaware.
01:05I love eggs, and you go to Foam, so you can do Bernays.
01:09I mean, eggs can be sweet, salty, savory.
01:13My style of cooking is host-style cuisine.
01:16Marrying beauty and fashion into food?
01:19Yeah.
01:20I like this to come out on the plate.
01:24I mean, because look at me.
01:26Excuse me while I go beat the competition.
01:29I'll be at my office.
01:30All right.
01:38In India, we have a thing called an egg walla.
01:40Egg walla is the person who brings eggs to you, as I'm used to, both eating eggs and cooking
01:45with eggs my entire life.
01:48I'm a chef and consultant from Central Florida.
01:51When I was 21 years old, I came to this country for graduate education.
01:56But 20 years ago, I had a professional midlife crisis, and I channeled this path of getting
02:00professionally trained as a chef.
02:02The training that I've had as a mathematician makes my outlook on life unique.
02:06This is not your everyday shakshaka.
02:10Having gone through the ranks, I'm here to prove to the world that I belong, and I'm
02:13ready to show it.
02:19If somebody were to ask me what my last meal would be, it would be an egg dish, 1,000%.
02:25When I think of eggs, I think of how eggs are a foundation for so many dishes.
02:31And Japanese food, as well as French food, it's a pivotal and critical ingredient.
02:36I'm the executive chef at the Cherry Circle Room in Chicago, Illinois.
02:40With my Japanese background, we tend to be perfectionists, and within nine months of opening
02:45my restaurant, we were awarded a Michelin star.
02:48Growing up, my dad was a chef.
02:50His restaurant, Yoshi's Cafe, really laid that groundwork for a lot of Asian chefs.
02:55My dad was literally working in the kitchen until he could no longer.
03:00I think that my job is just to continue his legacy.
03:06There's probably not one day that goes by that I don't have eggs.
03:09I love cooking rustic Italian food, and if you want to make a delicious pasta, you're
03:14definitely using fresh eggs.
03:18I'm the executive chef at Amar at ParaÃso in Miami, Florida.
03:22My dad is a very, very passionate chef, and I really feel like I drew and grew my love
03:29for cooking through him.
03:31My parents came from Dominican Republic, worked their tails off to be able to provide my brother
03:37and I with better life and more opportunities.
03:40They've been there every step of the way for me.
03:42It's time to execute.
03:44Winning this would be really, really amazing for them.
03:52Hello, chefs.
03:53Hello, chef.
03:54How are you?
03:55We have a special theme for your competition, eggs.
03:59It's fantastic.
04:00Let's go.
04:00That's egg-cellent.
04:01You'll find different kinds of eggs in every basket, and we want you to impress us with all
04:07of the ingenious ways you can make them shine.
04:10If your dish doesn't cut it, you will be chopped.
04:13There'll be no chopping today.
04:15Let's go.
04:21Open them up.
04:23Ha, ha, ha, ha.
04:25Yes.
04:26Okay, you've got caviar.
04:30Caviar, okay.
04:32Luxury ingredient in the house.
04:34Best egg.
04:35Plus quail eggs.
04:37Score.
04:38Quail eggs.
04:41Smoked salmon.
04:44I love this.
04:45And Tokyo scallions.
04:48All right.
04:50All right, let's make some food.
04:5220 minutes to work.
04:53This is such a good basket.
04:55Ooh.
04:56Clock starts now.
04:59Behind.
04:59All right, let's go, Jeff.
05:01Here we go.
05:04Tiffany Faison, you are joined on the panel by two guest judges, trend-setting Texas restaurateur
05:09Chef Julian Rodarte.
05:11Super happy to be here.
05:12Plus pro football player turned Food Network star, Chef Eddie Jackson.
05:16Welcome to you both.
05:18Always a pleasure, Ted.
05:20Judge's eggs are one of the great miracle ingredients of all time.
05:24They're a staple in everything.
05:25Yes.
05:25From sauces to center plate, desserts, all the way through.
05:28It is an absolute kitchen essential.
05:30Egg-cential?
05:31Yeah.
05:32Did you just say egg-cential?
05:33He had some beer all day, folks.
05:37The memory of eggs takes me back to my childhood.
05:40I used to make egg burjis for myself.
05:43I used to make egg omelets for myself, eat egg on the street.
05:47So I'm making a Tokyo scallion and smoked salmon egg burji and scallion chutney.
05:55I decided to use the smoked salmon and Tokyo scallion my burji because it has great smoky flavor.
06:03Coming down behind.
06:04Cooking eggs, I think they're a measure of a chef.
06:07Like, nothing is as fast and as technical as cooking eggs.
06:10I want to see the ingredients shine.
06:11I want the quail egg to be nice and yolky, if you will.
06:15And then I would serve that with the caviar, maybe in a crostini or tostada form.
06:20I love that.
06:21Coming down, coming down, coming down.
06:23I've been eating quail eggs for at least 15, maybe 20 years on a regular basis.
06:28What's tricky about quail eggs is that their shell is extremely thin.
06:34But I'm cracking the eggs right at the top and I'm dropping it right into the deep fryer.
06:40I'm making a deep fried quail egg over a smoked salmon and scallion cream.
06:47I love the way that smoked salmon and scallions taste together when they hit cream.
06:53This gets a nice, luxurious flavor profile.
06:56Oh, yeah, you're working.
07:01Why is this so hard to open?
07:04Eggs are amazing because they can be super simple but also super intricate.
07:11I'm thinking that I want to make a frittata because eggs are a really nice vehicle for these beautiful ingredients.
07:19Mari, what are you making?
07:21I'm making a potato kind of egg frittata.
07:24I'm going to poach some quail eggs.
07:26Hopefully, we'll get to an herb creme fraiche first radish situation.
07:30Amazing.
07:31I just heard like an hour and a half of work.
07:32Yeah, potato frittata in 13 minutes.
07:35And a poached egg on the top.
07:36So, we'll see.
07:39Japanese scallions, I love deeply.
07:41Same.
07:41They're mildly.
07:42They get those raw or just a little bit.
07:45I like it raw.
07:45I like it raw.
07:47You can still get the texture of it.
07:48It has a little bit of that like onion heat to it.
07:51It can easily be made into like a chimichurri or quick sauce.
07:54Ivan, what do we got?
07:56I am doing some melted scallions with a little bit of aromatics, butter, and then a smoked salmon white wine
08:04beurre blanc.
08:05And then the egg, I'm getting there.
08:08Eggs should be top of mind, buddy.
08:09Top of mind.
08:11Chefs, nine minutes on the clock.
08:13Let's go, chefs.
08:17So, with the caviar, I'm making it a very simple caviar cream sauce.
08:21We talk about caviar being such an incredible ingredient.
08:24It's tough in 20 minutes.
08:25You want to kind of cook everything.
08:27Like, if it goes into a sauce, it should be put in the sauce in the very end or else
08:31the caviar can pop.
08:32Yes.
08:33And then it cooks down.
08:35It's working.
08:37With the caviar, I want it to stand out.
08:40So, I'm going to put this caviar in some fish sauce.
08:43I'm always going to be unique.
08:44I'm not going to just put a dollop of caviar on the plate and call it a day.
08:49It's aggressive, but it's good.
08:53Seems like the competition is stiff.
08:55So, of course, I want to show off to the judges.
08:58With the Tokyo scallions, I'm using them in three ways.
09:01In the potato egg frittata, the wasabi herb creme fraiche, and fried them as a crispy topping.
09:09Five minutes, chefs.
09:10Keep cooking.
09:13That's way too fast.
09:17I'm worried.
09:18Ivan hasn't even touched his quail eggs.
09:19What?
09:21I have all my other components going, but I have no idea what I'm going to do with the quail
09:25eggs.
09:25Time is against me.
09:26You have to be agile when working with them and nimble.
09:30How intense.
09:30How intense.
09:41At this point, I still don't really know what I'm going to do with the quail egg.
09:46Okay, okay.
09:46But I keep pushing forward as quickly as I can.
09:49So, I think, let me make a nice little aioli to round out the dish.
09:54So, I put the egg yolks over the double boiler.
09:58Emulsify a little bit of nice olive oil into there.
10:00Okay, okay.
10:01Things are happening.
10:03I love seeing the fact that Ivan hasn't even touched his caviar yet.
10:06Like, I don't want to see caviar being used, you know, five minutes into the round.
10:10I get the beurre blanc to where I want it.
10:11I add some chopped chives at the end.
10:14I add about a dollop or two of caviar in there.
10:18With the sunny quail egg, I'm going to fry it gently, leave the yolk runny.
10:23I want the egg to be this unctuous, runny yolk when one breaks into it.
10:29I'm leaning into the egg theme really hard.
10:32I want this dish to kind of look like a bird's nest.
10:36So, I find some filo and I drop that into the deep fryer.
10:40I like the ways it's looking.
10:41It's a little bit weird.
10:43It's a little bit quirky, just like me.
10:45Let's go, chefs.
10:46Taste your plas.
10:47Taste everything.
10:47Beautiful plates.
10:49Get it done.
10:49Get it done.
10:50Let's go, Ivan.
10:5130 seconds.
10:52Don't get scrambled.
10:59Chefs, you are dangerously short on time.
11:0210, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
11:14Time's up.
11:15All right.
11:15Good job, chef.
11:17Good job, chef.
11:18Good job, chef.
11:19That was great.
11:20Chef.
11:21Oh, my goodness.
11:22I can barely breathe.
11:23That's so much fun.
11:24I know.
11:27Well, that was intense.
11:28That was intense.
11:28But I'm really happy with what I made.
11:30I didn't come this far, you know.
11:32Halfway around the world 37 years ago to leave after one round.
11:35How are you feeling?
11:37A little stressed.
11:38It was kind of intense.
11:39I mean, kind of had some last minute ideas.
11:41So hopefully it pays off.
11:43You opened up that first basket and got caviar, quail eggs, smoked salmon, and Tokyo scallions.
11:53We'll start with you, chef.
11:54Hari, please tell us about your dish.
11:56Chefs, I have for you a smoked salmon and Tokyo scallion egg bourgie with a sunny quail,
12:05a little caviar cream, and a Tokyo scallion chutney.
12:09What did you call your dish?
12:11Bourgie.
12:12It's a scrambled dish in India.
12:13I thought you said boujee.
12:14I did, too.
12:15That's the caviar taco.
12:18Tell us about where you grew up, chef.
12:20I grew up in Mumbai in India, and I came to the United States in 1987 to study mathematics.
12:26Really?
12:27Yes, chef.
12:27But 20 years ago, I had a professional midlife crisis, and I stepped into this beautiful world of food.
12:32That's a very interesting career path.
12:35I love your use of the Japanese scallions.
12:38I can taste them throughout in multiple ways.
12:41Absolutely delicious.
12:42I was concerned that the chicken eggs would overpower some of the quail egg, but honestly, it was delicious.
12:46My only wish was that I had a little bit more caviar.
12:49But I think it's kind of funny, though, when you said you was a mathematician,
12:53because the biggest issue that I have with this is, like, the ratios are off.
12:58When I got a little bit of that caviar and I got a little bit of the smoked salmon, I
13:03got those pops of salt, but it wasn't a lot of it, and I wanted more of it.
13:09I've never had, like, a sunny-side-up egg on scrambled eggs before.
13:13That's so interesting.
13:14Further, they're a very hard to scramble.
13:16Having that yolk to kind of bring it back to life a little bit is helpful.
13:20Really incredibly creative dish, chef.
13:24Next up, chef Alexis.
13:25I'm going to deep-fried quail egg over a salmon and onion cream with deep-fried phyllo and a little
13:33bit of a marinated caviar on top.
13:36So the phyllo just kind of makes it look like a little bit of a nest since we are doing
13:41eggs today.
13:42Chef, where do you cook?
13:43I am embarking on my second head chef position, but it's five minutes from my house.
13:49I get to be near my chickens and my children and my chickens.
13:54I have 18 chickens right now.
13:56Two.
13:57So now I do.
13:58That's the chick I want.
13:58I'm just going to point out, chef Alexis, that you mentioned the chickens before your children.
14:03Oh, I know.
14:04I did.
14:04But we have six kids, so it's hard to keep all the kids together.
14:07I can keep the chickens together.
14:10The use of the fried phyllo with the Tokyo scallion, you fried both of those.
14:14Really clever, right?
14:16But I think because the quail egg fries so quickly, that's the problem.
14:20With that, I think you still want some, like, gooey middle, and this is pretty well done.
14:25The fist sauce with the caviar is like, mm, I think those things are going to cancel each other out.
14:31But as I get into it, I actually enjoy that really assertive saltiness, right?
14:37The problem is this doesn't have a vessel.
14:38Like a wonton, you get everything in one bite, because right now it just seems like disjointed to me just
14:44a little bit.
14:46I agree with you, but I really enjoyed kind of the playfulness of its nests with an egg in the
14:51middle of it.
14:53All right, next up we go to Chef Ivan, who appears to have spent a little money on this dish.
14:57There's that caviar.
14:59Right on.
15:00So in front of you, chefs, you have a melted scallion with a smoked caviar beur blanc, some crispy scallions
15:06on top.
15:07What was it that tugged you into culinary?
15:10My father.
15:10He is one of the best cooks I know.
15:13At a young age, I was just a little fat kid in the kitchen, kind of just not knowing what's
15:16happening.
15:16But the aromas and, you know, being Hispanic just brings family together.
15:21Chef Ivan, the use of the Tokyo scallion is really smart here.
15:25It gives this really luxurious, sort of sophisticated slant to your dish right away.
15:31But I think it's screaming for bread.
15:34To, like, really soak up all that delicious flavor.
15:38I think the addition of the salmon on top was very, very smart because everything underneath it was kind of
15:44like one note for me.
15:45Because if you get some of just the reduction in the sauce on its own without that little pop of
15:49caviar, it's very bland.
15:52But other than that, this is a very, very good first round.
15:55Thank you, Chef.
15:56Chef Ivan, I love hearing your story because it reminds me of mine.
15:59I was that same young, kind of fat kid in the kitchen.
16:02My dad, he came home after cooking every day for all of his guests.
16:06He would come home and cook for his family.
16:07And so, all together, it's an absolutely delicious dish.
16:11Thank you for the feedback, Chef.
16:12All right.
16:13And finally, we go to Chef Mari.
16:15I have prepared for you a frittata.
16:17It is topped with a wasabi herb creme fraiche, soft-boiled quail egg, and then topped with some crispy Tokyo
16:26scallions.
16:28Mari, I think the frittata is cooked perfectly.
16:31I just feel like the quail egg, to me, just seems like a little bit of an afterthought when it's
16:36just placed on top.
16:38The problem is the quail egg, right?
16:40Just like, I think, had you just sunny-side up, like, just really babied that egg and given us some
16:46runny yolk, that would have worked really nicely in here.
16:48This is egg spectacular, right, all day.
16:52And so, it's really important that the eggs are celebrated in really robust ways.
16:56I agree, but I love the cream.
16:58I love the combinations of the dill with the scallions, the wasabi.
17:03There's so much depth.
17:04There's so much complexity.
17:05Very, very well done.
17:07Thank you, Chef.
17:08All right.
17:09Thank you, Chef.
17:12There's a little trepidation because the quail egg was overcooked.
17:15But I think Chef Mari may be on the chopping block.
17:20After the judge's feedback, I am slightly concerned.
17:24So, I am having second thoughts about my execution.
17:39Who's dish is on the chopping block?
17:55Chef Alexis, you've been chopped.
17:57Judges?
17:59Chef Alexis, we really enjoyed the plating of your dish.
18:03However, the dish just didn't feel as cohesive as we wanted it to be.
18:07And your deep-fried quail egg was overcooked.
18:11And so, we have to chop you.
18:13Thanks a lot, guys.
18:14It's been really great.
18:15Thank you for being with us, Chef.
18:16Be well.
18:19You know what?
18:20You live and you learn.
18:21And it does not mean that I'm stopping.
18:23There's going to be a lot more coming from me.
18:25You're never, this isn't the last time you're going to see all this.
18:28You better get ready.
18:33Chef Hari, Chef Mari, Chef Ivan.
18:36Entree basket is here.
18:42Open it up.
18:47And you've got...
18:48Interesting.
18:50Salted egg yolk syrup.
18:52Salted egg yolk syrup?
18:54I have no idea what that is.
18:56I'm going to find out.
18:58Some eggs.
18:59Duck eggs.
19:00These are duck eggs.
19:02For sure.
19:04Plus.
19:05My favorite green in the world.
19:07Collard greens.
19:08Okay.
19:10And Mexican chorizo.
19:12This is not egg-related, really.
19:1630 minutes.
19:17Oh, my God.
19:19We're definitely going to have to think about this a little more.
19:21Clock starts now.
19:24Yes, yes, yes!
19:31Judges, is there room for improvement now that we are in the entree course?
19:35I think the biggest thing for me is, like, I don't want to just see the egg used once.
19:38Like, use it multiple times.
19:42I think this is an excellent basket for an omelet.
19:46Yes.
19:46Just straight up make an omelet.
19:48I was more so thinking, like, a fried rice.
19:50Fried rice would be good.
19:52Yeah.
19:53All right, Mari, what you got going?
19:55So, I'm going to make some omelet rice.
19:57I'm going to do a soft egg scramble on top of fried rice with all these ingredients, making a little
20:02bordelais sauce.
20:04I decided to make a chorizo bordelais just because traditionally we use beef scraps.
20:09So, to me, it just made sense to swap out protein for protein.
20:15Tasting that egg yolk syrup, it has this sweetness, but also it has a little bit of saltiness to it
20:19as well.
20:19I think the egg yolk syrup would be the base of any kind of grape vinaigrette or any, it's really
20:24got this, there's no actual egg yolk in the egg yolk syrup, but it's got this butterscotch-y kind of,
20:29like, delicious autumnal quality to it.
20:34Oh, whoa there, buddy.
20:36Slow down.
20:37Ivan.
20:38Yes, chef.
20:38What are we doing?
20:39We're making some pasta, chef.
20:40I'm going to make a little bit of tagliatelle.
20:43Use some of that salted egg yolk in here, some of the duck eggs, whole, and the yolks.
20:48Salted egg yolk in your dough.
20:50Yes, chef.
20:50Wow, love that.
20:52Making a pasta is a ginormous risk, but I'm wanting to showcase some technical ability and wow the judges with
20:59what I can accomplish within 30 minutes.
21:02The duck eggs, guys, differ from chicken eggs in a couple of different ways.
21:06A little bit bigger, so overall volume is increased.
21:09They're much, much richer, so you see, like, a really, like, beautiful orange yolk typically.
21:13I love duck eggs, like, fried over the top of very spicy things.
21:18Yeah.
21:19Hari, you've got some beautiful spices on your station.
21:21What are you doing?
21:22Making a little North Indian-style curry.
21:25I'm going to make some egg white sauteed kind of tortillas as your bread.
21:29Right now what he's doing is bouncing up and down with excitement, which I love to see.
21:33I love to see it as well.
21:36Making a caramelized chorizo-collard green duck egg tikka masala with some egg-crisped tortilla.
21:46So I'm cooking the chorizo as well as the collard greens.
21:49The stems in the chorizo are in one pan.
21:52The tops of the collard greens and some mushrooms and onions are in another pan.
21:57I add the egg yolk syrup to both pans because I know it has that sweetness, and I'm using
22:01it as a sugar content to help caramelize these components.
22:04Chefs, 17 minutes on the clock.
22:13Chef Ivan, what are you using the merlot for?
22:15Uh, that, I kind of built a little bit of ragu with a chorizo, a little bit of onions and
22:20garlic.
22:20Chorizo-agula.
22:21And now I got my greens in here with the chorizo, kind of making like a Mexican-Italian ragu.
22:27I hope, you know, my Italian friends don't hate me for it.
22:30I want to win for my parents.
22:32I mean, they have sacrificed so much to even get me to the point that I am in life.
22:37Food was always at the table, clothes on my back.
22:39Bringing a chopped championship home to mean the world to them.
22:44Five minutes, chefs.
22:46Keep cooking.
22:47The duck eggs, I'm simply going to boil them and leave the yolk slightly soft.
22:56By curing the duck egg yolk and soy, it's going to taste really nice with that extra
23:01umami from the soy sauce, and I hope that it will add an extra level of creaminess to
23:08that scramble.
23:10One minute left on the clock, chefs.
23:17I was worried about Chef Ivan, but now it looks like this is the part running now.
23:24Be smart.
23:25Be smart in your final seconds, chefs.
23:28Five, six, ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.
23:40Time's up.
23:40All right.
23:41Please step back.
23:42Woo!
23:43Wow.
23:47Besides feeling very sweaty, I feel good.
23:49One thing is to put an egg on the plate, right?
23:51That's a no-brainer, but it's in the pasta, it's in the dough, and I'm very proud of what
23:55I just made.
23:57The competition is tight, it's fierce, it's elevated, it's passionate, but you know, I'm
24:02going to make it to the next round because I made the dish I wanted to make.
24:04I have no regrets.
24:05I've showcased the basket ingredients in the best way I could.
24:13Chefs, for the entree round, you got salted egg yolk syrup, duck eggs, collard greens, and
24:23Mexican chorizo.
24:25Chef Mari, please tell us about your main course.
24:28I have prepared for you omu rice.
24:30It has a pickled collard green frisee salad, soy cured duck egg yolk in the center.
24:37And a chorizo bordelais on the side.
24:40Is there someone who inspired you to become a chef?
24:43It was definitely my father.
24:44Unfortunately, he did pass about 11 years ago.
24:48He was truly an inspiration to me because even though he did get ill, he was in the kitchen
24:54working up until the day that he couldn't.
24:57I think through me, I'm able to like really still continue his voice through my dishes.
25:04I love hearing that.
25:05Well, first off, I'm a big fan of like a soy cured egg yolk and that was delicious right
25:10on top of here.
25:11The chorizo with the egg syrup and the rice and the egg, it all, it all goes really, really
25:15well together.
25:17I love this chorizo.
25:18It does give a little smokiness to it that I really appreciate.
25:21But there is a sweetness because you have the sweet ketchup here and then you have the
25:25egg yolk syrup in here.
25:26It just makes things a little bit too sweet and it needs some balance.
25:31Everything is really rich.
25:33It needs some relief.
25:35I think you're hinting at that with your collard greens and pickling the stems of the collard
25:39greens.
25:39Really nicely done, but I need more of it, right?
25:43Putting the egg yolk on top makes a lot of sense.
25:45You have to really remove the white from the egg yolk.
25:48I got a raw egg white, which is, it just detracted from all of the cool work you've put into
25:54this dish.
25:55But overall, it's delicious and it's craveable.
25:57Thank you, Chef.
25:58Next, Chef Ivan.
26:00All right, Chefs, in front of you, you have a salted duck egg tagliatelle with a chorizo
26:05and collard green ragu.
26:12Chef Ivan.
26:13Yes, Chef.
26:16This is outstanding.
26:17This is really, really good work.
26:20We watch you work with this dough and just to be able to pull this off is excellent work.
26:24I think the chorizo, you really rendered it out nicely and the spice that it's given in
26:29contrast to the sweetness of that egg yolk syrup, I think they play very well.
26:34My favorite aspect of this is actually the collard greens.
26:37That bitterness and that crunch and the way you cooked it, I never thought greens would
26:42be my favorite part of a ragu and you really did this, these collard greens amazingly.
26:48Chef Ivan, it takes a lot of courage to cook this and put it in front of us in an
26:53egg battle.
26:54The question for me and I think the elephant in the room is, is this an egg-centered dish?
26:58You know, for celebrating eggs today, is this enough?
27:03And it's delicious, no question.
27:05I don't know if it's enough.
27:06Understood.
27:07Thank you, Chef.
27:08Finally, Chef Hari.
27:10Chefs, what I have for you is a caramelized chorizo, collard green and duck egg tikka masala.
27:18And I've used the syrup to kind of give some of the balance and sweetness in the dish.
27:22And I used the duck egg to batter the tortillas and pan-crisped it.
27:27So the tortilla is great.
27:29I think coating it with the egg, super smart, super delicious.
27:32I like the way the duck egg is cooked.
27:35I think this is an interesting way to use it and the flavors are great.
27:38I'm loving the combination of spices and heat, but I'm not really happy with the combination of it with the
27:47chorizo and collard green and the egg yolk syrup.
27:51I think it's making it really, really sweet.
27:54It almost tastes like maple breakfast sausage.
27:58I do agree.
27:59I think you utilize the salted egg yolk syrup kind of in everything, but you technically cook the boiled egg
28:09perfectly.
28:10The sauce is delicious.
28:12The vegetables are delicious.
28:15Very good.
28:16Thank you, Chefs.
28:18Do I think I'm on the chopping block?
28:20I don't think so.
28:21I cooked the dish I wanted.
28:22I'm excited, and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens.
28:25That round, it was definitely a lot more challenging than the first round for me, but I did my best.
28:31I can't really control what happens.
28:45So, whose dish is on the chopping block?
28:57Chef Hari, you've been chopped.
28:59Judges?
29:00Chef Hari, we felt that you just overdosed on the salted egg yolk syrup, and it covered up the amazing
29:05flavors you developed with the chorizo and the collard greens.
29:09And so, we had to chop you.
29:12Thank you, Chefs.
29:13Good luck.
29:13Thank you, Chef.
29:14Best of luck.
29:16I wanted to go one more round.
29:18I was ready.
29:18I was just getting warmed up, as they say.
29:20I was focused.
29:20I made the dish I wanted to make, and I did the best I could.
29:30Chef Ivan, Chef Mari, this final basket will play a big role.
29:38Dig in.
29:41Oh, here it is.
29:43And you are looking at an ostrich egg.
29:46This is going to come at some point.
29:49My God.
29:50Oh, my God.
29:52It's massive.
29:54It's like a dragon egg.
29:55All right.
29:56Plus, chocolate caramel eggs.
29:58Okay.
30:00Strawberries.
30:00That's nice.
30:02Strawberries.
30:04And lady fingers.
30:05Lady fingers?
30:06That's very kind, actually.
30:09Thrown for a loop a little bit.
30:11I mean, what am I supposed to do with this?
30:13Um.
30:1430 minutes to make egg-citing desserts.
30:17Yeah.
30:18Clock starts now.
30:20Let's go.
30:20Let's go.
30:21Let's go.
30:26They have come too far to crack up now.
30:28No, that's right.
30:29In sports terms, though, the basket ingredients right now, just like, it's a layup.
30:34Yes.
30:34It's a layup.
30:34It's a layup.
30:35It really is.
30:36Sometimes things that are too easy, though, will mess you up.
30:39Ostrich eggs are giant, right?
30:41The thing you want to do is get rid of the white.
30:43The white tends to be a little bit tougher from, like, a chicken or a duck egg.
30:46The egg yolk of the ostrich egg performs like any other egg yolk.
30:50You just, it's just so much more of it.
30:52Quite massive.
30:53Oh, God.
30:54And to me, this basket is ice cream, custard, kirmisu.
31:00Yeah, absolutely.
31:04Chef Ivan, what we're making, brother?
31:06I'm going to make a ladyfinger cake with a zavallon, some macerated strawberries, and
31:13I'm still thinking about the chocolate component.
31:16Ivan, how are you feeling about this egg?
31:18Oh, my God.
31:19I'm just happy I got it open.
31:21Got some things separated, so some things are happening.
31:24I've never used an ostrich egg before in my life.
31:26It is a massive white, and it is so much yolk.
31:32When it comes to this sponge cake, I'm adding this in batches, hoping that my culinary knowledge
31:37would help guide me through this.
31:44The interesting thing about both of these chefs is they're sort of cooking with a lot
31:48of heritage.
31:48Mari's dad was the chef of a legendary restaurant in Chicago.
31:53Similarly, Ivan has had kind of the same heritage of his father, so.
31:56I completely agree, and they've been fairly neck and neck.
32:00Clearly, yeah.
32:00Yeah.
32:01I hope I can add this.
32:02I decide to make a Swiss meringue with the ostrich egg because I do think that it is a smart
32:08way to use the egg white.
32:10I feel like torching it will be really beautiful.
32:14Chef Mari, what are we making?
32:16Trying to make a strawberry sherbet and some Swiss meringue.
32:24I'm adding prepared strawberry preserves just to fortify and concentrate that strawberry
32:29flavor.
32:32Chefs, 17 minutes on the clock.
32:38With the zavillon, I grab half of my egg yolk, put some sugar in there.
32:45I grab some Marsala wine, start whisking away.
32:48It's something that I have to be very attentive to because I could end up with sugary scrambled
32:52eggs.
32:53There's so much at stake here.
32:55I got my family on the line.
32:57I'm thinking about bringing a chopped championship home to Miami, to my hometown.
33:03Okay.
33:04Chefs, nine minutes on the clock.
33:09With the ostrich egg, I'm using it two ways, ostrich egg Swiss meringue, and I'm also using it
33:15in a chocolate caramel egg mousse.
33:22I check the consistency of my strawberry sherbet, and it just isn't really setting up at all.
33:29Hey, Mari, how's the sherbet looking?
33:32We're almost there.
33:34A little bit under still?
33:35Yep.
33:38Time is running out, and I am actually starting to feel a bit frantic.
33:44Oh!
33:47So close, so close, so close.
33:50You all right, Chef?
33:50I think I might give up on this.
33:52Keep pushing, keep pushing.
33:53I have to make sure the sherbet is perfect.
34:04The consistency of my sherbet just isn't really setting up at all.
34:10I think I might give up on this.
34:12I look over at Chef Ivan's dessert, and it's making me a little nervous because he managed
34:18to make some sort of a cake in 30 minutes, but I'm not really feeling like I can back down.
34:24So I give it another go, and thankfully, it's coming out exactly the way that I wanted it to.
34:35We're good.
34:36One minute on the clock, chefs.
34:39This is it.
34:46Check this out.
34:47Chef Ivan has deep fried the leaves from the tops of strawberries, apparently to garnish.
34:54I've never seen anybody do that.
34:56I know that we are not dipping strawberry tops in chocolate right now.
34:59Well, we are.
34:59I have my chocolate mixture from the chocolate caramel egg that I've kind of thinned out with
35:04a little bit of heavy cream.
35:05So it's kind of like doing chocolate and strawberries, but in a different way.
35:10I've never just, I mean, I've eaten a strawberry top.
35:13It's just really like filament-y and like not a lot of flavor.
35:17Let's go, chefs.
35:18Finish up.
35:19Let's go.
35:19Get it done.
35:20Get it done.
35:20Final seconds.
35:2120 seconds.
35:2220 seconds.
35:2220 seconds on the clock, chefs.
35:24Let's go.
35:25Get it done.
35:25Final seconds of the final round, chefs.
35:2710, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
35:40Time's up.
35:40We've got that.
35:41Good job.
35:42Yes.
35:42Wow.
35:42Can we go from 4 minutes to 20 seconds like that fast?
35:45Yeah.
35:47I'm feeling okay about my dessert.
35:49I normally prefer more of a composed dish.
35:51I tried to use the egg in a lot of different ways.
35:54Maybe that was a mistake.
35:55We'll see.
35:55But I do think that the flavors will be there.
35:58I feel like this dish is winner-winner chicken dinner.
36:03When it comes head-to-head, it's a battle of the Titans.
36:05You know, we're both here for a reason.
36:07So may the best chef win, honestly.
36:09Chef Mari and Chef Ivan, in the final round,
36:12we challenged you to make desserts with an ostrich egg,
36:16chocolate caramel eggs, strawberries,
36:19strawberries, and lady fingers.
36:23Chef Mari, please tell us what you've made.
36:24I have prepared for you a strawberry parfait.
36:27It has a toasted ostrich egg Swiss meringue,
36:31underneath a strawberry sherbet,
36:34and then underneath that is the chocolate caramel egg mousse.
36:39So, Chef Mari, I like that you use the strawberries two different ways.
36:43So you have the strawberry inside of the sherbet,
36:45but I also love the fresh strawberries as well
36:47because it gives it a little bit of texture.
36:50But you have this mousse, then you have the sherbet,
36:52and then you have the meringue on top.
36:54It just seems like they're all kind of milling together.
36:59Fortunately, like the mousse, I had one little taste of it,
37:02and I was like, oh, my gosh, that mousse is incredible.
37:04And then I couldn't get it ever again
37:06because of the way it was kind of melting into each other.
37:09This is a baked Alaska, right?
37:11Take that, make strawberry ice cream,
37:13put some of that chocolate caramel egg into the ice cream,
37:17and then put your meringue on top.
37:18You know what I mean?
37:19For sure.
37:20The use of the egg whites from the ostrich egg
37:22is really successful with the meringue.
37:23I think that's great.
37:25Thank you, Chef.
37:26Finally, Chef Ivan.
37:27So what you have in front of you
37:28is a ladyfinger sponge cake
37:30with an ostrich egg zabayon,
37:33macerated strawberries,
37:34and a chocolate strawberry top.
37:40I will say, like, I was like,
37:41what is he doing with this strawberry top?
37:44I was like, what in the hell?
37:45I love it.
37:46It's my favorite part of the dessert.
37:49You do get some of the vanilla notes
37:51of the ladyfinger in here,
37:53but the sugar's not cooked out in the zabayon.
37:56It's tough to cook out sugar in an ostrich egg,
37:59so it's a little bit gritty.
38:01For me, there's a lot of grittiness
38:02that I'm getting in my zabayon,
38:06but that's the only kind of, like,
38:08missed piece aside from having a great cupcake
38:10with those ladyfingers.
38:12I do want either more of that chocolate-covered strawberry top
38:17or more of the chocolate.
38:18There's literally no chocolate on my plate right now.
38:21But overall, I think that this was a very thought-out dish.
38:24Thank you, Chef.
38:26Thank you, Chef.
38:31Judge, eggs just seem so friendly, so familiar,
38:34but they can really be tough to get perfect.
38:37What were the biggest hurdles these two chefs faced?
38:40Knowing when to use the eggs
38:41and knowing how to use the eggs.
38:43We started the first round.
38:44Chef Mario gave us a frittata.
38:46It had this gorgeous wasabi cream sauce on top
38:49that I really liked.
38:50I love the combinations of the dill
38:52with the scallions, the wasabi.
38:55But the quail eggs were cut in half and put on top.
38:58It was a little...
38:59Afterthought-y.
39:00Afterthought-y.
39:01Oh, no, Chef Alvin's plate.
39:03I think you did a really good job
39:04with those Tokyo scallions just kind of melted.
39:06They almost just literally, like, melted in your mouth.
39:08The scallions really shine in that dish.
39:10I still think that it needed a little bit more seasoning
39:13because, again, when you didn't get the bite of that caviar,
39:16it was very under-seasoned.
39:18Then we roll into the entrees.
39:20I'm still thinking about that pasta.
39:21Chef Alvin had two basket ingredients inside that pasta.
39:24The egg yolk syrup, and then he also had the duck eggs,
39:28and he pulled it off.
39:29Elephant in the room, not to shatter anyone's hearts,
39:32does it need more egg?
39:34Is egg in pasta dough enough?
39:35I don't know.
39:37So we go from a pasta dish without any discernible egg
39:41to, like, a deconstructed Ami rice
39:44with not only scrambled eggs, but also a full duck egg
39:47on the top of the scrambled eggs.
39:49My issue was that there was still some white attached to the yolk.
39:53And then really kind of detracted from some of the good things she did,
39:56like the delicious chorizo crispy rice that was right underneath there.
39:59Well, here we are.
40:00Decision time.
40:01Do you know who's won?
40:12I think I did more than enough to celebrate eggs
40:16and transform them instead of just putting a yolk on the plate.
40:20I am the next chop champion.
40:24Feeling pretty good.
40:25I put a lot of technical skill on the plate.
40:29Don't think I would have done anything differently.
40:32So, who's dish is on the chopping block?
40:47Chef Mari, you've been chopped.
40:50Judges?
40:51Chef Mari, we thought the potato frittata was so delicious and really well-made.
40:55For us, it really came down to the use of the quail egg,
40:58that we got like half a quail egg on top.
41:00It just wasn't enough.
41:01For the dessert round, there were three different components
41:03that ultimately got muddled into one.
41:06And so, we had to chop you.
41:10I understand.
41:10I'm feeling disappointed, but Ivan did a phenomenal job,
41:15so I don't really feel like I lost to somebody who didn't deserve to win.
41:19I think my dad would be proud of me.
41:22And that means, Chef Ivan Barros, you are the chopped champion.
41:26And for your hard work, you'll get $10,000.
41:29Well done, Chef.
41:30Nice job.
41:30Let's go.
41:31Nice job.
41:32Let's go.
41:33You did it.
41:34You did it.
41:36I'm on cloud nine.
41:37Oh, my God.
41:38It feels so amazing.
41:39I'm a chopped champion.
41:40Like, I mean, come on now.
41:42How do you think your parents are going to feel about this?
41:45They're definitely going to cry.
41:48They're going to be so proud.
41:49It's crazy.
41:50We did it.
41:52I am so excited to share this with my mom and dad.
41:55It means a lot to bring home a win for them.
Comments