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00:15Previously on Top Chef.
00:17I'm here for my favorite quick fryer of the season.
00:19The mise en place race.
00:21You got this.
00:21They're a little oily.
00:23Oh!
00:24Check.
00:24Oh, .
00:25You're good.
00:27Yeah, baby!
00:28Damn.
00:29For your elimination challenge, create your best fish dish featuring fish from this
00:33lake.
00:34Hell yeah, brother!
00:35I think you might be the only one frying.
00:37Oh, really?
00:38Is taco too easy?
00:40A taco?
00:41This was so good.
00:43I do not want to have a dry fish.
00:45My whole journey in this competition has been like this.
00:49What is it that they want that I'm not giving them?
00:52It's perfect.
00:53It's heavy-handed on the sauce.
00:55Mm-hmm.
00:55Making a steamer.
00:56I made a Cantonese steamed fish.
00:58This thing is awesome.
01:00There's so much flavor.
01:01The skin isn't crispy.
01:02Maybe the skin of this fish is just tougher.
01:05Is everyone's fish cooked?
01:07Mm-mm.
01:07Michael's way under.
01:08The winning chef today.
01:10Lawrence!
01:11Hey-o!
01:13Gwen, please pack your knives and go.
01:18Six chefs remain to compete in the ultimate culinary showdown.
01:23Woo!
01:24At stake for the winner, the grand prize of a quarter of a million dollars provided by Graza
01:29olive oil, a feature in Food & Wine magazine, plus an appearance at the Food & Wine Classic
01:34in Aspen, their own exclusive dinner at the historic James Beard House in New York, and
01:39the title of top chef.
01:52Hello.
01:54Hi, Daddy.
01:55Hi.
01:55Hey, everybody.
01:57Proof of life.
01:58What's up, y'all?
01:59The last two challenges, I've been on the top.
02:03To be on the top now is more impactful than it was the entire season.
02:07This is taller than you.
02:08You see how tall it is?
02:09The sacrifice is real.
02:10Kids went back to school, missed my wife's birthday, like, it hurts, you know?
02:16I'm just updating my calendar because I'm counting, um...
02:19The days?
02:20Up to, like, I'm gonna be back.
02:22It's really, really exciting.
02:24But at the same time, it's like, I'm like, hmm.
02:27I know I'm here for a purpose, and this purpose is to win Top Chef.
02:30And now it's my job to prove that to everybody.
02:34Love you, Daddy.
02:35I miss you.
02:36I love you, too.
02:38Bye.
02:38Bye.
02:45Gorgeous.
02:46Gorgeous.
02:47There's kids everywhere, there's dogs everywhere, the sun is shining.
02:52Hello.
02:53Hi.
02:54How's it going?
02:55Good morning.
02:56Every single time we cook outside, I'm thriving, the other chefs are dying, and they're overheating.
03:01So yes, thank you, God.
03:03Welcome to Unity Park.
03:06Your journey has been all about pushing your creativity and trying things that you may have
03:11not otherwise tried before.
03:13Please welcome two people that know a lot about trying something new, prolific social media
03:17content creators.
03:18We've got the VIP treatment, Keith Habersberger and Rachel Cole from The Try Guys.
03:24Oh, cool.
03:24I recognize Keith immediately.
03:26Not bad.
03:27Hi.
03:27Hello, hello.
03:29I remember watching quite a bit of Try Guys with my wife in London.
03:33He's hilarious.
03:34Tell us about the Try Guys.
03:35Our group has been trying and testing pretty much everything in the world around us for
03:39over a decade.
03:40I've raced fan boats on the Everglades, cooking entire dishes without a recipe, and of course,
03:45eating literally thousands of different foods.
03:48You guys must be good at trying new challenges.
03:50Not at all.
03:53So for your quick fire challenge, we are going to try something different.
04:01Every season, our social media profiles are flooded with ideas about different challenges
04:06for the season.
04:07So today, we thought, why not give the people what they want?
04:10Oh, great.
04:12We're going to put your challenge in their hands.
04:14Here we go.
04:15There we go.
04:16Yeah.
04:17We put out a few polls that will affect different elements of your quick fire, and you're going
04:21to get those results periodically throughout the challenge.
04:24So that means you have to be ready for anything.
04:27There's a lot of internet trolls on social media.
04:30I think they're going to make it worth their while to vote against us, not for us.
04:35Are you ready for the first part of your challenge?
04:37Yep.
04:37Let's do it.
04:38Since we're nearing the end of our time in the Carolinas, there are a handful of iconic
04:42ingredients that have yet to be highlighted.
04:44So we gave the fans three choices.
04:46Peaches, which is the state fruit of South Carolina.
04:49Boiled peanuts, a very popular roadside snack.
04:52And an ingredient that is hard to get and hard to keep fresh, pawpaw.
04:55I love pawpaws.
04:57It's like if a mango and a banana had a baby.
05:01Don't eat the skin because you have diarrhea.
05:04The results are in.
05:05And don't eat the seeds because you also have diarrhea.
05:09You will each need to feature.
05:11Keith, you want to do the honor?
05:12I would love to.
05:14Oh, yes!
05:15Yes!
05:16I'd say the fans took it easy on you.
05:18I personally voted for pawpaw.
05:20If you look over into the pantry area, you'll notice that there's enough equipment.
05:24But there's not a lot of food.
05:25Ah.
05:25So we'll provide the peaches, but you're going to have to shop for the rest of your ingredients
05:29without knowing what the rest of the challenge is going to be.
05:31Oh, great.
05:32Fascinating.
05:33I know there's going to be another curveball, so the last thing I want to do is buy ingredients
05:37to make X dish.
05:39And then whatever curveballs happen, it just kind of screws me.
05:42So it's just wise to give yourself some options when you go shopping.
05:45Oh, boy.
05:47You'll each have $50 to shop at Swamp Rabbit Cafe & Grocery.
05:50Okay.
05:51And it's about two miles that way.
05:54Oh, nice.
05:54The Swamp Rabbit Trail is about 20-plus miles of a multi-use trail used for hiking, biking,
06:00running, walking, and it goes to many landmark spots around Greenville.
06:04But don't worry.
06:05You're going to enjoy this trail in style in these pedicabs.
06:08Yay!
06:09When you get there, you're going to have about 20 minutes to buy any of the ingredients
06:12you think you're going to need to cook with.
06:14And don't forget, we'll reveal the results of the next poll when you get back.
06:17Drop your knives and head over to the pedicabs.
06:21Just think about us.
06:22The whole time and our stomachs.
06:24Yeah.
06:24Next.
06:26Aloha.
06:27Oh, I love a good pedicab.
06:29Hey, guys.
06:30I'm happy to be a passenger princess.
06:32Thank you very much.
06:37It's so pretty here.
06:39Pretty busy trail.
06:41Yay!
06:43So what's good at this market?
06:45Have you been there?
06:46Yeah, it's like local fresh food.
06:48Nice.
06:49They're kind of famous for the speca bread.
06:51I have a plan.
06:52And now that you told me about this bread, I don't know.
06:55Maybe I can make just a sandwich, you know?
06:57Let's see what they have there.
06:59Beep beep.
06:59It's packed.
07:01All right.
07:02Come on, Sig.
07:04Let's go.
07:07Is there baskets?
07:08Baskets over there.
07:09I want to find things that are unique to this region.
07:12I got some really nice local ricotta.
07:15You know, that's the vibe.
07:16And I think part of why we're at this market is just to be a part of this local staple.
07:20Sig, I got some scumpernongs for you.
07:25I have like a very expensive taste, so $50 is not going to get me through this.
07:30I'm taking any donations you might have.
07:33I am just looking for fresh produce I can work with.
07:36I'm trying to figure out what honey I can and can't afford.
07:39Something local preferably.
07:41Seeing as how we don't know what the next twist is going to be, I'm shopping just so that I
07:45can have three different avenues.
07:47Sweet, savory, and spicy.
07:49Where are the spicy peppers at?
07:51I want to be able to evolve and change the dish as the challenge progresses.
07:55Seven minutes.
07:56Seven.
07:56Seven.
07:58I got tomato.
08:00I got burrata.
08:00I don't know how much time I'm going to have to cook, so I want to make sure I grab
08:04something that is ready to go.
08:07I'm just looking at things I'll pair well with peach.
08:10Sweetness, bitterness, creaminess, richness.
08:13Five minutes, guys.
08:14I don't know if I want to have this swing sweet or savory, so I'm grabbing bread.
08:19That loaf is free.
08:21A free loaf of steca.
08:22Sweet.
08:23I got some sardines, $1 off.
08:26What's up, homie?
08:27I got some arugula, some garlic blossoms.
08:29Could you just tell me as we're going price-wise?
08:32Since this is your first time here, you get a free loaf of bread as well.
08:35Oh, yeah?
08:35Oh, my God, we got snacks.
08:3849.
08:39Yep, I'm done.
08:40All set.
08:40Beautiful.
08:41Appreciate you.
08:41Got some good stuff, I hope?
08:43Yes, I did.
08:44It's a great store.
08:46Coming through.
08:47We got the goods, Kevin.
08:49Oh, you got a stack of bread, too?
08:50You had to get it?
08:51I'm going to use it as well.
08:52People don't know that.
08:54Oh, here they come.
08:56Wow.
08:56Do you think they'll underscore this with, like, Roman Colosseum music?
08:59Yes, 100%.
09:03I have a good feeling.
09:04I think I'm going to win this one.
09:07All right, thank you.
09:09Hello.
09:10All right, you ready to go?
09:11Yes.
09:12The fans voted on whether you should have 15, 20, or 30 minutes to cook.
09:17Oh, no.
09:18Oh, man.
09:19The amount of time you have, drum roll, please.
09:2430 minutes.
09:25Yes.
09:26Oh, hell yeah.
09:27Thank God.
09:27That's awesome.
09:28Those are really good fans.
09:30Thanks, fans.
09:31That's a very mature and respectable answer.
09:33One last thing.
09:34The winning dish will receive $10,000 in quick-fire quick cash.
09:38Oh, yeah.
09:39So you have 30 minutes to make a dish featuring peaches.
09:43And your time starts now!
09:51Wow, am I the only one grabbing peaches for a peach competition?
09:55What is going on here?
09:56Yeah, but now you don't have equipment.
09:57Yeah.
09:59Hey, y'all, 30 minutes.
10:00We're kind of lucky, right?
10:01The fans were nice.
10:02There's definitely a curveball coming.
10:04But I'm going to keep it kind of loose just in case something else comes up.
10:08So, working on a peach mostata and maybe toast off some bread.
10:11I'm ready for whatever.
10:12This is my quick feta for my peach salad.
10:16Broda, is that another $10,000 salad?
10:20I'm hoping.
10:21Yeah?
10:22I haven't won a quick-fire yet.
10:23I cannot leave more broke than what I came.
10:27A perfectly ripened peach.
10:29There's nothing that compares to it.
10:31So I'm going to do a peach and burrata tostada.
10:34And I'm going to garnish it with a fresh corn salsa.
10:3819 minutes and 30 seconds.
10:41I got sardines, something in sardines, peaches, tomatoes, something similar to like a panzanella.
10:48And then a green harissa.
10:50And just pick this direction because it's going to highlight the peaches, but then also be a composed dish.
10:54I think just peaches and bread on a plate is going to be the move for a lot of people.
11:00I want to, you know, put a different spin on it.
11:02Oh, that sounds like exactly the same dish I'm doing.
11:05I got peaches, tomatoes, and sardines.
11:08All right, so I got some gochujang on my peaches.
11:10And we're going to do a peach and burrata toast.
11:13Guys, we have 16 minutes.
11:15Halfway there.
11:16Lawrence, what are you doing with that bread?
11:18A little crostini.
11:19Jammy peaches, lots of fresh herbs.
11:22Got some feta.
11:23It kind of smells like peaches.
11:25It does.
11:26You're right.
11:27So you remember when I said you got to be ready for anything?
11:30Oh, man.
11:31I knew it.
11:31Tell us.
11:32There is one more thing that the followers voted on.
11:35Creating your dish to become a sandwich, taking over the station to your right, or feature a foam element.
11:42You ready for it?
11:44Uh-oh.
11:45Wait, what?
11:45Let's go, bring it.
11:46Oh, .
11:54There is one more thing that the followers voted on.
11:58I knew it.
11:59Let's go, bring it.
12:01You must take over the station to your right.
12:05Called that.
12:06Right now.
12:07I called that.
12:08Uh-oh.
12:09Wait, what?
12:09Our right?
12:10Clock is not stopping.
12:11Let's go.
12:11Bring a knife.
12:12Take your knives.
12:13Take your knife?
12:13Just take this knife and stab me right in the heart.
12:16Like, put me out of my misery.
12:19Damn it.
12:19I'm pissed.
12:21Switch!
12:22Wait, are we still cooking our dish or that dish?
12:24So you can make whatever you want.
12:26You just have to use what's on the station.
12:28New dish.
12:30Make it yours.
12:31So your dish is my dish.
12:3212 minutes, y'all.
12:34.
12:34What is the plan here?
12:36Burrata toast, uh, with a pesto.
12:38Oh, great.
12:39Another toast.
12:41There's already four other chefs making toast.
12:43And there's a bitter-ass puree in the Vitamix.
12:46What are the sardines for?
12:48That was gonna be an extra garnish, but it was a backup plan.
12:50What is the ISI gone for?
12:52That was gonna be for the burrata, but that's a backup as well.
12:54This is a setup.
12:55Rhoda, you gotta make like a chipotle aioli.
12:58Put lime juice on it.
12:59Sherry, you are on the money with this.
13:02I know.
13:03I was gonna win $10,000 with that tostada.
13:06Sherry leans very bold flavors.
13:10I love that about her.
13:12All I have to do is make sure everything is seasoned to my liking.
13:16She gave me some good stuff over here.
13:18We'll take it from there.
13:20No more twists.
13:21Ten minutes!
13:22Ten minutes!
13:23Ten minutes!
13:23Ten minutes!
13:24And what are you making?
13:25I was doing, uh, a morstata, but now it's up to you, buddy.
13:29The only thing that was missing was some kind of cream and some dairy, so my biggest spin
13:33is just gonna be making a yogurt sauce.
13:35Anthony's giving me some good stuff, so no complaints.
13:38Thank you, Lawrence.
13:38That was the right answer.
13:40What the ?
13:42Lawrence, you have seven pieces of bread.
13:45Do you not have salt on your station?
13:47The feta's pretty salty.
13:48What I didn't want to do is a piece of toast with stuff on top of it, but right now
13:52in the
13:52limited amount of time, I gotta, like, try to just zhush up the ingredients that I have.
13:56Luckily, Lawrence grabbed dill, too, so I'm just gonna shift a bunch of herbs and do, like, a take on
14:02an ayod.
14:03Jonathan, you got the biggest layup, just so you know.
14:06I know, dude.
14:06Dude, just don't put it on bread.
14:08Well, I kind of want a little bit of bread, but you're right.
14:10You got this.
14:11Wow.
14:14Got it.
14:15Lawrence, thanks for this, bud.
14:17You happy?
14:18No.
14:19What?
14:20Yo, bring the kids back, please.
14:24Chefs, you have five minutes.
14:26Five minutes.
14:27Seeger, I'm so happy I got your station, because we pretty much had, like, the same .
14:30Seeger was working on a green harissa, so I'm rolling with what he's doing.
14:36Seeger, is this the only tomatoes you have here, brother?
14:37Yeah, those two.
14:39Make it work.
14:40Broda was working on some whipped feta.
14:42She was gonna make a salad.
14:43I'm gonna switch back to a crostini and try and get as much of the original favorites from
14:47my last one in here to balance it out with acid.
14:50I'm doing crostini.
14:51No, you're not.
14:52You have to do something else.
14:53You've left me a crostini dish.
14:55Use your imagination.
14:56Set your mind free, Lawrence.
14:58One minute.
14:59I just want to get one more piece of sardine.
15:01A little garlic chive flour.
15:03I knew I shouldn't have bought those.
15:04Oui, Chef.
15:05Thirty seconds, y'all.
15:06Sherry, I love your dish.
15:08I know.
15:09I wish I was making it.
15:12Five, four, three, two, one.
15:15Time's up, utensils down.
15:18Damn, tostada looking good.
15:20Yeah, but how does it taste?
15:23Damn.
15:25Okay, Lawrence, let's start with you.
15:27Sucker, first crostini to go.
15:29Oh, I love the flowers.
15:31I love the flowers, too.
15:32That was totally all on me, not Anthony.
15:34I can still hear you.
15:35You're within earshot.
15:36Lawrence, what'd you make?
15:37A crostini with a peach and raisin relish, some pickled peaches, a little bit of arugula,
15:42and a yogurt sauce.
15:45Do you know what Anthony was going for?
15:47I think generally, yeah.
15:48My dish wasn't that unsimilar.
15:50Well, I'm chowing down on it.
15:52I like it.
15:53Ladies first.
15:54Oh, wow.
15:55This looks similar.
15:56Bread and raisins.
15:58So you have a crostini and arugula dressed in a little bit of lemon juice and sherry vinegar.
16:02Roasted peaches, pickled peaches, a little bit of whipped feta underneath.
16:05Those are like you guys chopped the same ingredients.
16:07Well, no, actually.
16:08We all got bread from the market because it was free.
16:11Okay, Rhoda.
16:12I made a peach and burrata tostada with some corn relish and chipotle aioli.
16:19Did you like Sherry's idea when you got there and you were like, ooh, I upgraded?
16:22I really liked her idea, but I like mine too, so.
16:26Another chow-chow.
16:28That's good.
16:29Thanks, Sherry.
16:31Hi, guys.
16:32Hello.
16:32Hello.
16:33Another crostini.
16:33Surprise, surprise.
16:37I made a gogujan marinated peaches on a crostini with some burrata, marinated tomatoes, and a fresh basil pesto.
16:46Sherry, how did you feel about having to give up your station?
16:49A little heartbroken.
16:50What's really bitter in the pesto?
16:52Was there arugula in it too?
16:53I believe so.
16:55Yes, and basil.
16:56Thanks, Sherry.
16:56Thank you, guys.
16:57I took over Seeger Station.
16:59He had very similar ingredients that I had.
17:01Heirloom tomatoes, peaches, sardines, and then a green harissa.
17:05And look at that.
17:06I chowed.
17:07Oh, free bread.
17:08Didn't want to do bread, but here we are.
17:11Oh.
17:11Oh.
17:12Wow.
17:13We've got sunflower and peach ayad over some roasted peaches, whipped feta, and believe it or not, bread.
17:19Do you like this as much as you liked your original idea?
17:22Yeah.
17:22I think it was a good start.
17:24Was the dill originally a part of it?
17:26The dill was in his cooler, so the dill became a part of it.
17:29I like the dill.
17:30Cool.
17:33I think they all rose to the challenge.
17:35Thought there was a nice diversity among the flavors in the dishes, even if visually, maybe a lot of them
17:40looked the same.
17:41I could taste the peach in every single dish, and it really was the star.
17:44Keith, who had one of the least favorite, but also still delicious dishes?
17:50Chef Jonathan, the sardines were a little bit overpowering in something that should be a peach-forward dish.
17:54Fair.
17:56And Rachel, who else?
17:59Anthony.
18:00The bread and the peaches were a little thick, so it was just hard to eat and get everything into
18:04one cohesive fight.
18:06And Keith, who else?
18:07Sherry.
18:08The bread was very big, the chunks of the tomato and peaches were very big, and there was also a
18:11bitter element, otherwise delicious.
18:15That brings us to the better news.
18:18Who had one of our favorite dishes?
18:21Lawrence had one of our favorite dishes.
18:24It had really incredible textures.
18:27You could really get all the flavors in one bite, and the pop of, like, vinegar was really delicious.
18:34I thought that out since the beginning.
18:37Yeah, yeah.
18:39Rhoda, it was a well-composed, thoughtful dish.
18:42It felt fully intentional.
18:44Well, she gave me all of the means.
18:46Chipotle with peaches?
18:47A revelation.
18:48Who would have thought?
18:49Who would have thought of that?
18:50Damn it!
18:51Our final favorite is Seeger.
18:53We loved the size of it.
18:55The dill and the sunflower seeds just gave it a different flavor profile.
19:00You still mad, Seeger?
19:01No, I'm not mad.
19:02Keith and Rachel, as our guest judges, you get to announce the winner.
19:05The winning dish really beautifully highlighted peaches, had a lot of delicious elements, and I really went to chow town.
19:12And the winner of today's quickfire is...
19:17Rhoda!
19:18Yay!
19:20Rhoda, congratulations!
19:22Good job on plating it.
19:24I'm sharing it with her.
19:25There's no way.
19:26Hey, fans.
19:27You guys did mid-30.
19:29You're gonna be hearing from me.
19:31You just won $10,000 in quickfire quick cash, courtesy of the active cash credit card from Wells Fargo.
19:37It's so hard to fully celebrate this win, but I have 10K.
19:42I owe Sherry a vacation.
19:44Maybe.
19:45If she's nice to me again.
19:48Sorry.
19:50Rachel and Keith, thanks for taking us to Chowville, Chowtown.
19:53You've given me a lot of vocabulary.
19:55Thanks, guys.
19:56Congratulations.
19:56Thank you very much.
19:57Good luck.
19:59Chefs, now that you've gotten a taste of the Swamp Rabbit Trail, we're gonna hop in to this next challenge.
20:09As you may have already noticed, the Swamp Rabbit Trail has really made Greenville a top destination for biking, with
20:16tourists coming from all over the world to enjoy.
20:18It's also most recently started to attract professional cyclists as well.
20:22Greenville also happens to be home to a very, very important culinary organization, whose origins began with bike tires and
20:28cycling in France.
20:30Michelin, North America.
20:32Oh.
20:34You guys know that Michelin recognition can really put a chef or a restaurant on the map.
20:38Yeah.
20:39So for your last challenge here in Greenville, we want to see you pay homage to the Swamp Rabbit Trail
20:43and the French origins of Michelin, by creating a dish with sometimes a notoriously tricky item.
20:48Any guesses?
20:50Rabbit?
20:50There you go.
20:51All right.
20:53People kind of get scared from rabbit, but it's a clean, delicious protein.
20:57Blue Ridge Rabbit Meat Company is gonna provide you with some of the best rabbit in the country.
21:01Nice.
21:01Oh, sick.
21:02Nice.
21:03And then you'll have 30 minutes at Whole Foods Market and $400 to shop for the rest of your ingredients.
21:08Wow.
21:09Really?
21:10Except for you, Lawrence.
21:12As the winner of the last elimination challenge, your advantage is $500.
21:17All right.
21:19How many people are we cooking for?
21:20Come on now.
21:21Yeah.
21:22Yeah.
21:22Not falling for that.
21:23We know.
21:24Tomorrow, you're gonna serve your rabbit dishes at a restaurant called Topsoil, right off the Swamp Rabbit Trail.
21:29You'll be serving your dishes to the executive chef of Topsoil, Adam Cook, retired professional cyclist, Brent Bookwalter, and your
21:37guest judge, Michelin star chef and owner of Inaka, Nikki Nakayama.
21:42Oh, cool.
21:43Oh, yeah.
21:44Chef Nikki's a badass.
21:45Her skill and experience is really inspiring to me.
21:49But that's not all.
21:50Her.
21:51You're also gonna serve a dining room full of people.
21:54Oh.
21:55Somewhere amongst the 24 diners, there's gonna be some very special mystery diners similar to how Michelin operates.
22:01These select diners will be anonymously scoring dishes.
22:05So the chef with the highest score will be the winner of the challenge.
22:08Mm.
22:09And then the judges will determine who is going to be sent home.
22:12And because you're gonna be getting whole rabbits, you're gonna have three hours to prep before service begins.
22:17Thank God.
22:18All right.
22:19Hop to it.
22:19We'll see you tomorrow.
22:20Oh, all right.
22:22Oh, Jonathan.
22:24Good job.
22:25Are you kidding me?
22:26It's all good.
22:31Sorry, Lawrence.
22:33Sherry's not around.
22:34No.
22:34She is pissed today.
22:36I'm a little upset after today's quick fire.
22:41I put my heart and soul on that tassata, and it was stolen from me.
22:47Tomorrow, I want to come back with vengeance.
22:50I'm gonna come out for blood.
22:55Sherry, are you cooking rabbit?
22:57I'm trying to lighten the mood.
22:59I like to have fun.
23:00Peeled garlic anywhere?
23:00Oh, I see it.
23:01Sherry, I know you got a big budget today, but save some front.
23:04Just back off a little bit.
23:07Um, my bad.
23:09I'm gonna just leave her alone.
23:11Did you see any flowers?
23:1425 minutes left, everyone.
23:16When it comes to fine dining, especially for Michelin, I think of a certain way of placing.
23:20And cooking exceptional service and hospitality.
23:22Beef marrow, that'll work.
23:24But I'm gonna just have a little fun with it.
23:26It's carrot juice.
23:27I was a big Bugs Bunny fan when I was a kid.
23:29So I'm gonna want to work carrots into my dish.
23:35Should I get gigantes?
23:37Gigantes.
23:37Gigantes?
23:38Yeah, I think that'd be nice with the rabbit.
23:40How's it going?
23:42Do you guys have call fat?
23:43Nope.
23:44Looks like we're gonna go bacon instead.
23:46Bacon will work.
23:46Rabbit being such a lean protein, the cook of it can be very dry.
23:51It's not like pork or beef.
23:52So the gentle cooking of rabbit is the way to go.
23:55Thanks.
23:5815 minutes.
23:59Hey, Ant, where's the one-tone wrappers at?
24:01They're over here, actually, because I gotta go get them.
24:03This is gonna be a tough challenge.
24:05I've never cooked rabbit.
24:07I've never worked in a Michelin star restaurant.
24:08I didn't go to culinary school.
24:10I started cooking when I was 27.
24:11I'm 38 years old now.
24:13And so if they are looking for fine dining,
24:16it's like I don't have that much experience.
24:18I'm gonna make a smoked rabbit sumai,
24:21which is a classic Chinese dim sum.
24:25All right, let's go. Keep up.
24:27I'm making new Latin food.
24:29So I'm gonna make some fongo and jerk rabbit.
24:33I think those are flavors that you don't relate to Michelin,
24:37but I know that I can refine it in a way
24:40that will be undeniably Michelin-worthy.
24:43I only worked in Michelin star kitchens in my entire career.
24:49Four minutes, guys!
24:51Thank you very much. Appreciate you.
24:53All right, we good.
24:55See you maybe next time.
24:57We hope so.
24:58Yes, me too.
24:59I'm so scared.
25:13So did anyone have a pet rabbit before all this?
25:16I did, actually.
25:17Haki and Baki.
25:19Because I'm the year of the rabbit.
25:21I always liked rabbits.
25:22Okay.
25:22I, too, am the year of the rabbit.
25:2487.
25:2587, baby!
25:26Lunar New Year for 87 is a rabbit.
25:29Maybe they're lucky, maybe they're not.
25:31I had, like, a crazy reading once.
25:34I, like, held these, like, energy sticks for 20 minutes,
25:37and then, like, this woman said that
25:39this lifetime is where I get my time to shine.
25:42How do y'all feel about your prep and everything for tomorrow?
25:45It's a lot for three hours.
25:47I think because the whole premise of Michelin is
25:50to have consistent quality of food.
25:52But also just, like, elevated enough.
25:54Right.
25:55And this is something that I've always struggled with.
25:56You have Michelin-star restaurants that are fine dining,
25:59and you have Michelin-star restaurants that are, you know,
26:01hawker stands in Singapore.
26:03That's a pretty broad scope, and so I need a balance,
26:06never having worked with rabbit before.
26:08With things that I know I can do well,
26:10I just gotta figure out how to break down a rabbit.
26:22I was feeling a little down after yesterday.
26:29So waking up today, I had to practice a lot of gratitude.
26:35I have a evil eye tattoo on my shoulder,
26:39and I think there's things that you can control in your life,
26:42but having something that you feel protected by
26:45kind of centers me a little bit.
26:48I'm trying to look at it from a more positive perspective.
26:52I have a clear head.
26:54I got this.
27:05Hey, buddies.
27:07Sherry, Lawrence, and I are going to be cooking outside today.
27:11Right behind it, buddy.
27:11Let's go.
27:13After seeing that kitchen and how crowded it is.
27:16You're good. You're good.
27:17Come on out.
27:17Didn't want to hit anybody.
27:18Coming in.
27:19Outdoor kitchen's great.
27:22How do they look, Rhoda?
27:23They look beautiful.
27:24I'm gonna do a bean stew.
27:26I'm gonna start breaking down this rabbit.
27:28Wrap the loin.
27:29Oh, I see where the loins are.
27:31I'm realizing that there's definitely a loin piece
27:33that's a drier piece of meat and more lean,
27:35and then there's some leg meat and front,
27:37I don't know, hoppers?
27:39I don't know what they're called.
27:40So you're sticking with your plan?
27:41Sticking with my plan.
27:42Nice.
27:43Rabbit sumai.
27:45I'm gonna cut chunks out of the loin and velvet that.
27:47What is this ancient Chinese technique
27:49you're doing right now?
27:50It's my grandmama taught my grandmama taught my grandmama.
27:53First thing I'm gonna do is make my jerk sauce.
27:56Yes.
27:57So as I'm breaking down the rabbit, I can start marinating it.
28:01Yeah.
28:03I didn't eat too much rabbit growing up.
28:05Did you, Anthony?
28:06My uncles, they used to hunt quite a bit,
28:08and a rabbit would end up on the dinner table.
28:10Culturally, I would say rabbit isn't considered fine dining
28:13here in the Americas.
28:14In Europe, it is classical cuisine.
28:16Rabbit's a tough sell.
28:17Yeah, everybody thinks they're pets.
28:19Sorry, Mom, but they're yummy.
28:21Layer in some flavor.
28:22All I'm worried about.
28:23Mission and challenge technique is kind of expected,
28:26so I plan on showing off two different preparations
28:29of the rabbit.
28:29I'm gonna try and braise these hind shanks right here.
28:32The loins, I'm gonna roll and prepare these carrots
28:36three different ways.
28:37Rabbit and carrot?
28:38I literally just put that together.
28:40Pika-pika-pika-pika-pika-boo!
28:42Okay, I'm just gonna do a good amount of salt
28:45to let that get into the meat.
28:46And while that's happening, I'm gonna focus
28:48on taking these tenderloins out very carefully.
28:51I haven't won an elimination challenge.
28:52I've just been flying in the safe zone.
28:54So this time, I want to show off a little bit
28:56of my style and technique.
28:58Rabbit's cooking.
28:59Now, rockin', bro.
29:02I'm trying to steer my rabbit,
29:04so I can put it in a pressure cooker.
29:06I want it to fall apart, but I want to still, like,
29:09retain some of that flavor.
29:11It smells so good.
29:14Laser-focused.
29:15I'm not around.
29:16I love it. I love it.
29:21You good, buddy?
29:22I think so.
29:23I got the hind leg meat here for the rabbits.
29:26I'm gonna grind it once, and then I'm gonna add in
29:29some of that awful meat on the second grind.
29:31The technique of doing the rollade,
29:33I learned when I was a line cook
29:3410-plus years ago.
29:35There's a saying, like,
29:36if you're not learning, you're dying.
29:38I take that every day into account when I'm a chef.
29:40I went in, and I learned that technique.
29:43I didn't get paid to do that,
29:44but look at me now, doing it on Tough Chef.
29:47Only got to do about eight more now.
29:49All right, bones here.
29:50This is going in the oven.
29:53These are gigante beans.
29:55Cool.
29:56And then I also have some peas.
30:01Nice outdoor kitchen, huh?
30:03It's impressive that they could do this out here.
30:05Yeah.
30:06So, rabbits.
30:08Rabbits!
30:09You know, people think it's somewhat daring.
30:11I mean, myself included,
30:12it's so not part of Japanese cuisine.
30:14No, it's not, no.
30:14But I'm really excited to see which of the chefs
30:17will bring out the flavor of the rabbits the most.
30:19Two hours and one minute, chefs.
30:21Oh, Lord have mercy.
30:24Hey, chefs.
30:25How's it going?
30:26Hey, chef, what's up?
30:27Say hi to Chef Nicky.
30:28Hi.
30:29Hey, chef, how are you?
30:30Good, how are you?
30:31Nice to meet you.
30:32Those little ones?
30:33Yeah, I mean, I've never seen them this big.
30:35These are nice.
30:35Wow.
30:36Six chefs left.
30:36I know, I'm getting real close.
30:38I thought Brandon would make it past me.
30:40I bet you he did, too.
30:42Is this dish based on something that you've made before?
30:45I've done, like, a couple of the garnishes before,
30:47but it's been a very long time since I cooked rabbit tenderloin.
30:49Hi.
30:50Good luck.
30:50Thank you, chef.
30:52Anthony.
30:53How's it going?
30:54It's going all right.
30:55You all ready for a rabbit today?
30:56I hope so.
30:57I mix up.
30:58What are you making?
30:58So I have some rabbit hindquarters braising right now,
31:01and then I'm gonna just do some preparations of carrots.
31:04Okay.
31:04I'm gonna use the carrot tops to make a salsa verde of sorts.
31:07Got it.
31:07Have you used a lot of rabbits before?
31:09In culinary school, for my final for classical French,
31:11I did rabbit.
31:12I didn't get an A on that one, so, but...
31:13Why didn't you get an A?
31:14My teacher, he was really strict,
31:16and his feedback was that the loins were a little bit over.
31:19That doesn't sound like he's strict.
31:20If it was over, it was over.
31:21Chef, it was culinary school like that.
31:23Well, you know.
31:24There's a little leeway there.
31:26No, there shouldn't be.
31:26If it's cooked correctly, then you learn something.
31:28That's true.
31:28And that's probably more important than getting an A, right?
31:31Checkmate.
31:32All right, I'll let you go.
31:33Nice to meet you.
31:35Hey, chef.
31:36Hey!
31:37Hey!
31:38Hi, chef.
31:39Hi.
31:40Rhoda, what are you making?
31:41I got the loins.
31:42There's forest in there with the rabbit.
31:44I'm taking some higanti beans and some peas.
31:47Mm-hmm.
31:47And that's your tomato confit?
31:48That's my tomato confit.
31:50Just something rabbit forward, but super hearty.
31:52Okay.
31:53Looking forward to it.
31:56Hello.
31:56Hi, chef.
31:57How are you?
31:57Hi.
31:58So nice meeting you.
32:00Super excited to see what you guys are doing.
32:02What are you doing?
32:03So I'm making like a jerk braised rabbit,
32:05and I'm gonna serve it with a Puerto Rican mofongo.
32:08I'm used to working in Michelin star kitchens.
32:10I used to make mofongo for staff meal.
32:12So this is my chance to represent.
32:14Okay.
32:14I'm just a little confused because jerk is not necessarily braised.
32:17I know, but I wanted to do those flavors.
32:20It makes sense to me.
32:21It's a little risky, but hey, you only once.
32:24Okay.
32:25Sounds good.
32:27All right, chef.
32:27There's about an hour left to cook before the first dish goes out.
32:30So good luck.
32:32I don't know if chef is saying this trying to mess with my head,
32:35but it definitely puts me in a face of self-doubt.
32:38So he just got me on like jerk is not braised,
32:42but like taste this and tell me it's not delicious.
32:45I'm gonna season it with salt.
32:48It is good, right?
32:50That's just the chess meat.
32:52It's really good.
32:52I know it's good.
32:54Like what have I made that it's not good?
32:56That's a problem.
33:05Time, time, 47.
33:0747 minutes?
33:08Yeah.
33:08For the first round.
33:10It's crazy, homie.
33:11I'm shredding my confit,
33:12and I'm adding a little Dijon mustard to the braising liquid.
33:16Make a little kind of curcats.
33:17I'm gonna do a tester with these real quick.
33:19I'm gonna fry the legs in egg roll wonton wrapper.
33:23It's gonna be a little quicker for me on time.
33:25Keep it uniform and whatever moisture is in there.
33:27It's gonna stay in there.
33:28How much time, Ziger?
33:3034.
33:3134?
33:32Sorry if I was being dramatic.
33:34I was hungry.
33:36What?
33:37I believe you.
33:38But seriously, enough of being in the middle.
33:41I didn't come to this competition to be mediocre.
33:44I came here to win it all.
33:47How's everything tasting on your end?
33:49I'm so proud of it.
33:50I think it tastes good.
33:51I love that.
33:53What are you doing?
33:53I'm just picking out my mirepoix from my beans.
33:56I have the red peas and then I also have some gigante beans.
34:01The peas are coming along great.
34:03The beans are not quite there yet.
34:05I'm not gonna put the beans on the plate.
34:07I'm just gonna stick with my peas.
34:09The diners are going to be voting for the winning dish.
34:12If there's one thing I've learned here, if you're not happy with something, you leave them off.
34:17When you know it's time to call it, it's time to call it.
34:19I respect that tidbit.
34:23Oh, nice roulade, bud.
34:25Nineteen minutes.
34:26Nineteen.
34:34Gorgeous.
34:35Beautiful in here, isn't it?
34:37It's a beautiful restaurant.
34:39Thanks for having us, Adam.
34:41It's lovely in here.
34:41It's really cool.
34:42It was an old hardware store.
34:43Used to be a lumber yard outside.
34:45Cool.
34:46Nikki, thank you so much for being here.
34:48Thank you for having me.
34:49I'm really excited.
34:50Oh my gosh.
34:51Brent, is this like every Thursday you have a rabbit tasting menu?
34:53Yeah, midday, a few rabbit dishes.
34:55Yeah.
34:56How many mystery diners are there?
34:58Five, I think.
34:59Okay.
35:00Are gonna be choosing our winner.
35:01Interesting.
35:04Twelve minutes.
35:05Twelve hertz.
35:07Twelve.
35:07Me preparing the rabbit in two different ways could be risky because it could be considered
35:11two separate dishes, but I want to highlight both cuts in the rabbit.
35:14That was my goal from the beginning, and I'm sticking with my guns.
35:17Two, three, four, five.
35:20What time, Zeke?
35:22Five minutes, chef.
35:23Five.
35:24This roulade should be nice and crispy and golden all the way around, and then once I have that,
35:30I know the loin will be perfectly cooked.
35:32Hot behind you.
35:33Every aspect of this dish puts the rabbit front and center.
35:38Endive is on.
35:39We'll hit him with a little bit of brown butter.
35:43I think it tastes delicious.
35:45I'm so proud of this dish.
35:46As you should be.
35:49Tom questioned whether or not this was the right approach for this dish.
35:53I know that's gonna be delicious.
35:55And I also feel that it's my job as a chef to break this constructed idea.
36:00and barriers that people have about food.
36:03We're looking good.
36:0530!
36:0630!
36:0730!
36:09Reduce balsamic.
36:17Oh, my God.
36:18That's great.
36:19Oh, oh.
36:20That looks really good.
36:25Okay, so what did you make?
36:26So here you have a rabbit roulade.
36:28It's filled with a rabbit and offal farce.
36:30Next to it, braised endive, and then a hazelnut and cauliflower puree.
36:35Sherry, tell us about your dish, please.
36:37I made a jerk braised rabbit being served with a mofongo.
36:42It has yuca and plantains.
36:43And then I finished everything with avocado crema.
36:46I wanted also to represent, like, my Latin background on this dish.
36:50All right.
36:51Nice start.
36:54Hey, Brent.
36:55What do you think of Sherry's dish?
36:56The braised jerk rabbit.
36:57It's the perfect amount of spice for me.
36:58I think it's a great balance of textures.
37:01Mofongo can be dangerous.
37:02Plantains are such a starchy ingredient.
37:04And then rabbit gets so soft when you braise it.
37:07But I think she kind of married the textures perfectly.
37:09It's not dry.
37:10It has a ton of flavor.
37:11And it's juicy.
37:12Like, it has fat.
37:12Really flavorful.
37:14Yeah, yeah.
37:14Very, very flavorful.
37:16Sherry's whole dish.
37:17Layers of flavor.
37:18Every time I reached into the bowl, I got something new and different.
37:22Sherry's rabbit dish had a lot of flavor.
37:24It was very strong in the flavor.
37:28How was it?
37:29I stood my ground.
37:30I was like, this is what I made.
37:32Is that what you said, Sherry?
37:33Is that how you said it exactly?
37:35If you like it or not, I made great jerk rabbit.
37:38I think Sigrid did a phenomenal job.
37:40I love the cauliflower hazelnut combination.
37:42Delicious and earthy.
37:44I love the endive.
37:45It was the star of the show.
37:46This was memorable in terms of being a rabbit dish.
37:49I would walk away from this restaurant and I remember the rabbit I ate.
37:53This is Michelin-style cooking.
37:54As much as we love Sigrid's dish, he's got to produce that for the mystery diners.
37:59If he missteps one and loses points, he's potentially not going to win.
38:03It was meaty.
38:04It was dense.
38:05It was good.
38:06It's flavorful.
38:07Right?
38:08But it's kind of like it's not enough for you.
38:10Mm-hmm.
38:11Good start, Greg.
38:12And I hope it keeps going.
38:14Mm-hmm.
38:15John, you want me to drop these drummies?
38:17No, not yet.
38:17I'm going to fry them at the last minute.
38:19This is going to be my carrot top salsa, right?
38:22Oh, no.
38:25The skin's not sticking.
38:27I've made Sumai so many times in my life.
38:30This is the first time doing it with Rabbit, but this is also the first time doing it with
38:33these wrappers.
38:36They feel a bit drier.
38:38All right.
38:38The skin isn't sticking.
38:39The wrappers are just falling off.
38:41You okay?
38:50All right.
38:52Lawrence, how do you feel about that?
38:53The presentation's not exactly what I wanted.
38:55Normally, it's face-side up.
38:57Yeah.
38:57Not traditional, but it's still considered Sumai, so it's fine.
39:00The Sumai didn't turn out in terms of the execution.
39:03Some of them have to be upside down.
39:06A bit better.
39:07But luckily, others are tighter, so they stick a bit more.
39:10As much as consistency is key, all the flavors will be there, but I think the plating is
39:15going to have to be a bit different.
39:17Sumai itself is going to be kind of a sneaky good amount of flavor.
39:20Three minutes and 16.
39:23316.
39:24Ju going in.
39:25That mustard ju.
39:26It's just a braising liquid with all the fun stuff in there.
39:30I'm so thankful.
39:31Top six?
39:32Dollop.
39:33Drag.
39:33Now, there's no rock to hide under.
39:36I gotta win.
39:51All right, Laurence, tell us about your rabbit dish.
39:53I made a rabbit Sumai.
39:56I velveted the loin and a bit of pork fat as well, and that's the mix for the Sumai.
40:00You made your wrapper?
40:01I did not make the wrapper, unfortunately.
40:03I'm regretting that.
40:05All right, Jonathan, tell us about your dish.
40:07We got rabbit.
40:08I did it two ways.
40:10I took the legs, confit them, made them into a croquette, and then you have the rabbit
40:14tenderloin.
40:14It's on top of a roasted mushroom and leek saute.
40:19Appreciate it.
40:21I thought Laurence's dish, the overall seasoning was really good.
40:25The ratio of the meat to the skin was a lot.
40:29He said he tried to velvet it, which I don't necessarily think that that came through.
40:34I think it would eat more nicely if it was a little more uniform.
40:37It's tasty.
40:37It's just not that interesting.
40:40Laurence's Sumai did not stick to it fully.
40:43I agree.
40:44Laurence said I was a little bit confused.
40:46I've never really had Sumai where the noodle side is up.
40:50How did it go, Laurence?
40:51I feel okay.
40:51I mean, the wrappers, part of me is like, I wish I made my own, but also I don't know
40:55if I had enough time for that.
40:56That's how it goes.
40:57Nikki, what do you think of Jonathan's dish?
41:00They're two very different dishes.
41:02And I would have been happy if he chose one and really, really focused on it.
41:07I feel like they're really nice elements from both of them, but it leans a little salty
41:11for me.
41:12I think the best part's the sauce.
41:14The mustard sauce is really good.
41:15I do love a lollipop though.
41:17I wanted to pick it up, but it was enormous.
41:20Jonathan's I really enjoyed.
41:21It had a lot of elements to it.
41:22But the seared tenderloin was a little bit salty.
41:26You good, Jay?
41:27Yeah.
41:27Seven minutes.
41:28Last plate up, guys.
41:30To preserve the integrity of my rabbit loin, I basted it in copious amounts of butter,
41:34just to help add richness.
41:36I just wanted to try and get as many flavors as possible.
41:38I wanted to keep the plating a little more simple, just so I can keep it consistent at
41:42the same time.
41:43This is the rabbit livers.
41:45Rabbit liver adds like a nice earthiness to the dish.
41:49Two, four, six, eight.
41:53Flavors are there.
41:54They all complement each other.
41:55Once you mix everything around, you get a really good bite.
41:58Three, two, one.
42:00Hands up.
42:03I got it.
42:06Oh, okay.
42:09Oh, boy.
42:09All right, Rhoda, tell us about your rabbit dish, please.
42:12I ended up making a pea stew with all the rabbit and then rolled up the loin with rabbit
42:18sausage inside.
42:19What happened to the white beans?
42:22The white beans didn't quite make it.
42:24Good decision.
42:25Anthony, tell us about your dish, please.
42:26You have a little cylinder cigar of some braised rabbit hind legs, the thigh meat.
42:30The sauce next to it is a carrot ginger puree for you to break through with the braised
42:34thigh meat.
42:34You have a loin on the other side.
42:36Underneath is a salsa ready with carrot tops and then some rabbit juice on top and then
42:40a carrot that was cooked in carrot juice.
42:43Great.
42:43Thank you very much.
42:47All righty, guys.
42:48That was a tough one.
42:49Nikki, what do you think of Rhoda's dish?
42:51I think it was a little less tender than I imagined.
42:54It's a pretty rustic dish.
42:56Yeah.
42:57That said, I like because you use all the parts.
42:59I think it's really flavorful.
43:00I don't think it needs the tomatoes.
43:01I think my favorite part of Rhoda's dish was what the tomatoes added.
43:05Actually, I think I would like more tomatoes.
43:07The loin itself was cooked nicely.
43:10Everything else is just taking away from what could have been a broth with a beautiful
43:15loin and that puree and just left it as simple as possible.
43:18I don't disagree with that.
43:19This is comfort food.
43:20It's a good fall dish.
43:21It wasn't the prettiest plate of food I've ever made, but I think it's pretty tasty.
43:27Anthony, Anthony's dish felt a little precious.
43:30It's a dish for rabbits.
43:32It was a...
43:32I thought...
43:33I literally thought that when it sat down.
43:35They just felt so far apart and strangely plated, but it did feel a little bit disjointed
43:41for me.
43:41It felt very hard to see it as a complete dish.
43:45Yeah.
43:45It felt like a series of canapes.
43:46Yes.
43:47Just like three little canapes to start your meal or something.
43:50Yes.
43:50If it's a Michelin mission and it's going to be one tiny bite, you have to make it perfect.
43:54And I think the sauces were both great.
43:56I think both of the iterations of rabbit were just... maybe fell a little bit short.
44:00The whole egg roll thing just threw me way off.
44:02It was so dry.
44:03I needed water.
44:05I really like to hear it cry.
44:06The rabbit in there is very dry, I find.
44:08To have two ingredients in your title and not have both of them shine, though.
44:13This challenge also was about consistency.
44:15We may have gotten really great dishes, but we don't know what everyone else got.
44:19And ultimately, they're going to decide the winner.
44:21So, thank you both for being here.
44:22Pleasure.
44:23Thank you very much.
44:23Thanks for having me.
44:24All right, so let's go find out what the mystery diners think.
44:26Shall we?
44:35Cheers, y'all, to another cook.
44:37I loved my dish.
44:39Because, like, I could go technique, like, let's sous vide this.
44:42And let's just, like, sear it.
44:44And let's do this little thing, and then this little thing.
44:46And let's put a little sauce in a puree.
44:48And I didn't.
44:50You just blew me sea grout the water for sure on that one.
44:53Yeah, but that was also not my intention.
44:55We had a variety of point of view.
44:57Yeah, yeah.
44:58It's such a great representation of, like, who we are as chefs and as people.
45:03Yeah.
45:16You know, chefs, the overall majority of you have cooked rabbit since culinary school or a long time.
45:21But overall, I think we had some tasty food.
45:23Mm-hmm.
45:24How did you feel about the mystery diners and knowing that they were going to choose the winner?
45:28That was definitely a big factor in plating in general.
45:31Is there any relief knowing we're not picking the winner?
45:34No.
45:35No.
45:37Sherry and Seeger, please stay here.
45:38The rest of you can move to the side.
45:44So the two of you are standing here because you had our favorite dishes of the day.
45:49And one of you had the mystery diner's favorite dish of the day.
45:52Congratulations.
45:53Hell yeah.
45:54I told you we could put together more.
45:55I know.
45:56I know.
45:57Yeah.
45:59Awesome.
46:00How's that feel?
46:01Way better.
46:02Yeah.
46:04Okay, Sherry, how did you arrive to making this particular dish?
46:08I feel like I have to ask for permission to step in and walk into a fine dining restaurant
46:14and represent where I come from.
46:16This is top six going to top five.
46:18And I think it's about time that I can become a little more confident and lean heavier on that side
46:25because there's so much to still be shown in this competition.
46:28This was a perfect challenge to highlight that.
46:32It was like one of the dishes you want to keep going back and eating because it was so flavorful.
46:36It was robust and the mofongo was beautifully seasoned and so soulful and satisfying to eat.
46:43There was a lot of really nice, nuanced spices.
46:45The balance was really great.
46:47The rabbit, like succulent, juicy.
46:50The olive oil added some fat to an otherwise very lean piece of meat.
46:53And the flavor was just like, bam.
46:58All right, Seeger.
46:58When I heard rabbit, I went back to like one of the first dishes I picked up as a line
47:02cook, which was like a rabbit roulade.
47:04Your dish felt so classic, but not dated.
47:06All the components were technically dialed in.
47:08It was as if you had been working on it for the past, I don't know.
47:1224 hours?
47:1324.
47:13Exactly.
47:14Gotcha.
47:16I think it's a good representation of me and the food that I cook.
47:19Your use of the bacon, it added to the rabbit.
47:22Overall, the whole dish tasted really good together.
47:25I think I have a better understanding of who you are as a cook after this dish.
47:28You've made a lot of really smart decisions.
47:30Did we get that on all the cameras?
47:33It's on a lot of them.
47:33It's all here.
47:34Thank God.
47:34All right, cool.
47:35Perfect.
47:35Wow.
47:37Look at us.
47:38Nikki, as our guest judge, you have the pleasure of announcing our winner.
47:41The winning chef today received the highest scores from our mystery diners.
47:46And we also really enjoyed the dish as well.
47:49The winner is...
47:54Sherry.
47:56Thank you, thank you.
47:57Hell yeah.
47:58There you go.
47:59There you go.
48:00There you go, Sherry.
48:01Congratulations, Sherry.
48:03Finally, finally, take a win home.
48:07I wanted to prove a point.
48:09I wanted to highlight these flavors.
48:11You know, I really wanted this win, and I'm so glad that I got it.
48:15I needed that, yeah.
48:17And for winning this challenge, you win an advantage going into the next elimination challenge.
48:21That's awesome.
48:21It's nice to have a little validation to keep me going, you know, like going the right direction.
48:26The two of you can step to the side.
48:29Next, we would like to see Jonathan and Anthony.
48:39The two of you had our least favorite dishes of the day, and one of you will be going home.
48:51Anthony, let's start with you.
48:53When you were thinking, you know, kind of going back to Michelin, like the starkness of the plate, what came
48:58first?
48:58First, it was how I wanted to cook and present the loin of the rabbit and then the thighs.
49:03And then I knew I wanted three sauces just to complement the rabbit itself.
49:07I thought that the components were not really talking to each other.
49:12You know, I'm fine with things that are separate.
49:15If they're perfect and they're dialed in, you are so excited to jump over here and then over here.
49:20But unfortunately, the first two bites I had were dry rabbit.
49:24The tricky part about cooking rabbit, you can't rest it.
49:27No, I tried to plate like at five minutes or four hours.
49:30One was cooked. Forget about plating, one was cooked.
49:33It wasn't cooked five minutes before you put it on plate.
49:34Right, yeah.
49:36Jonathan, what was in the braise?
49:38The braise was onions, garlic, a little bit of chardonnay, and rabbit stock that I made.
49:43It was really over-seasoned. It was salty.
49:47That was like the big problem with the dish.
49:48Like finishing salt was salty?
49:50No, the actual braised meat inside.
49:52Okay.
49:53Did everybody get the same size croquette?
49:56Yeah.
49:56It was a really big croquette. Like really, really big.
50:00My plate was not an hors d'oeuvre.
50:02No.
50:02Great.
50:03Wow.
50:04I'm gonna take that.
50:06Wow.
50:07That's what I'm gonna take for this whole...
50:08All right.
50:09No, I mean, I just, it wasn't an hors d'oeuvre, so I'm good.
50:13All right, we'll call you back in a little bit. Thank you.
50:18Can I start chugging the wine now or what?
50:20Yeah, get it while you can.
50:22Anthony, how's your back?
50:23My back?
50:24Yeah.
50:24Just ran over a train on you.
50:26Oh, me? Oh, I know.
50:28My lollipop was so big, I was like, so it wasn't an hors d'oeuvre.
50:31I wasn't driving the bus.
50:33It's fun.
50:33It's fun.
50:34I was like, you know what? I'll leave with that.
50:35I think that might read differently.
50:37Yeah, I didn't take it personally. I didn't take it personally.
50:39I was like, oh.
50:40I feel like Jonathan and Anthony made similar mistakes in which their rabbit was not properly executed.
50:46Yes.
50:47I'm very conflicted personally.
50:49I am too.
50:50It's very unfortunate that I didn't nail the rolled fried cylinder well enough.
50:54My whole thing is I didn't want the fried vessel to get soggy, so that's why I kind of kept
50:58it apart from everything and then dressed up the loin and everything else with the sauce.
51:02That's the thing, it's like the first time you played it.
51:04Yeah.
51:04You know what I mean?
51:04I just thought that Anthony's, it wasn't a dish.
51:07It was an assemblage of parts.
51:09Yes.
51:10The big problem with the egg roll, that was dry.
51:12It was so dry.
51:13It was.
51:14And it had zero rabbit flavor.
51:16You know, I covered it in the ginger carrot puree, which is how I ate it.
51:19Well, you have to.
51:20Yeah.
51:21I did think the sauces on Anthony's dishes were a little bit more complex and I enjoyed them more than
51:27the ones on Jonathan's.
51:28They were both nice.
51:29Yeah.
51:30But they didn't also work together.
51:31I knew I wanted to represent the rabbit in two ways and I knew it.
51:34You know, and I was like, you know what, I'm just going to stick with this and do this.
51:36You know, sometimes like if you plate it tighter, like it mashes together and it forces them to eat how
51:42you want it.
51:43That's it, yeah.
51:44When I think of Jonathan's croquette, I'm so overwhelmed by it.
51:47Like it was so massive that it just felt so out of whack with the rest of the dish.
51:53If you're going to compare them side to side, if you do roll to croquette, even though the croquette was
51:57a little on the salty side,
51:58I'd rather eat that.
51:59I would too.
52:00Than that roll.
52:01I just think we can't discard the saltiness of that dish.
52:04That was a technical error.
52:05The flavors were really nice.
52:07It was just hard to continue.
52:09And it was so big.
52:10It was so big.
52:11The way I look at Jonathan's is you separate that plate.
52:15There were two dishes.
52:16There was a dish on the loin and there was a dish, like there are sauce, all the components to
52:20add value to that rabbit itself.
52:25We have our answer?
52:27All right, let's get the chefs out here.
52:35You know, chefs, at this part of the competition, there's six chefs left.
52:38We are looking at every single thing that hits the plate.
52:41You have to cook with intention.
52:42Everything needs to be deliberate.
52:43And we felt that both of your dishes felt like more of a collection of ingredients and not a cohesive
52:48dish.
52:55Anthony, please pack your knives and go.
52:58Thank you very much.
52:59Anthony, just that egg roll portion was probably the worst bit of rabbit that we had all day.
53:03So that was it, yeah.
53:05Otherwise, it's been an absolute pleasure.
53:06It's been a pleasure cooking for you all, actually.
53:08I'm sad, of course, obviously.
53:10It's been a pleasure.
53:11Anthony, thank you very much.
53:13Thank you very much.
53:13I took advantage of this opportunity to be on Top Chef, to push myself,
53:17to, you know, do some things out of my comfort zone.
53:20All right, guys.
53:20It was me.
53:21Aw.
53:22Man.
53:23Oh.
53:25I said anybody but you, even any of them.
53:28I can proudly say I was me consistently.
53:30You know, even though I'm leaving the competition, I'm leaving it in a positive light.
53:35I didn't win, but I am still proud of myself and what I did.
53:44Next time on Top Chef.
53:45Hey.
53:46Wow.
53:48There's no trip to the Carolinas without visiting Asheville.
53:51Oh, hey.
53:51No way.
53:52Awesome.
53:53Before you feed your biggest crowd yet, 200 diners.
53:56Ooh.
53:57Ooh.
53:57Ugh.
53:59We're going to the woods.
54:01Can somebody move these trees out the way?
54:02I can't get to my mise en place.
54:04Ah!
54:05There you go.
54:06I'm a strong woman.
54:07I hear the people.
54:09I just never cook for 200 people in the woods.
54:11You just try to hold on for dear life.
54:13Fighting for our lives.
54:15Watch the snake over there.
54:16Oh.
54:17Oh my God.
54:18Oh my God.
54:19No, no, no, no.
54:20No, no, no.
54:21Who?
54:25Oh my God.
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