Five figures. Four chefs. Three rounds with three judges. Two (times 10 or
15) minutes. One winner. Let's meet this week's culinary contesti...
JAMES BRISCIONE
New York City
skateboarder & chef instructor at ICE in NYC |
DAVID GOLDWHITE
orig. England
personal chef |
GYPSY GIFFORD
Los Angeles
executive chef, Cafe Pinot |
WILLIAM LUSTBERG
Queens, NY
sous chef, Waldorf Astoria |
The rules are simple.
You're given a mélange of random theme ingredients that must be used in that
dish. You have a given number of minutes of cooking time. After each course, the plate will be
judged on creativity, presentation, and above all, taste. The chef whose plate
scores the lowest after each course will be "chopped". The last chef standing
wins $10,000.
Tonight's judges...
- chef & restauranteur Marc Murphy
- executive chef Amanda Freitag
- Mr. Rock & Roll Chef Chris Santos
Round 1: APPETIZER. In the first
baskets... boxed mac & cheese, artichokes, and tilapia.
This round has 20 minutes... Time starts now!
James: Artichoke Barigoule
David: Roast Tilapia and Stir Fry with Mustard Sauce
Gypsy: Lemon-Marinated Tilapia
William: Artichoke Stew Salad
William's not using the cheese sauce packet.
Pro-Tip: leave the choke out of the artichokes. The judges are going to have to
count the cheese packet amongst the secret ingredients, which may cause William
to worry a bit. Ted also reveals that there is no milk in the pantry today. How
deliciously evil. William's stew turns into a salad. Gypsy and James have an
idea to use sour cream with the cheese package. David says his sauce needs some
oomph. So he supplies.
And that's time. What the chefs have plated is
what the judges will taste.
James' dish gets raves. David surprises with
mustard and cheese, but it's a little too much in the way of quantity. Gypsy
ends up with Tilapia Macaroni Salad. The artichokes didn't really come together.
William added floured tilapia to his salad.
So will William's insistence on not using cheese
package or Gypsy's choke cost them in the end? Or was James or David too safe or
too creative? The first person to be chopped...
... is DAVID. The dish was unappealing. The
portion size was too big, and the sauce was overwhelming.
Round 2: ENTREE. Next up in the fun boxes...
Eggplant, ground pork, poblanos, avocado, and cola.
And we have a problem, as William is allergic to
eggplant.
Thirty ticks on the clock. GO!
James: Pork Burger with Yogurt & Avocado Sauce on
Seared Eggplant Bun
Gypsy: Stuffed Eggplant with Avocado Cream
William: Pork Burger with Caponata
Gypsy starts by steaming her eggplants, while
James is working on coleslaw in cola. Gypsy needs to mellow out her spicy
poblano sauce. James doesn't think she'll be done in time. William... is lost.
He needs a sauce to go with his burger... So he's got avocado mayo. William's
allergy is handicapping him. James switches from the burger concept to an
open-face concept. William stays with burgers. Gypsy plates rather ugly.
And TIME! Second trip to the Chopping Block
coming.
Gypsy's a little medium rare to... not cooked at
all. William's eggplant... is a nice balance to the spiciness of the burger.
James' presentation is wonderful, but the pork was overcooked.
So was William's allergy a hindrance, or is
Gypsy's pork too hard to stomach? The second person to be chopped...
... is GYPSY. She took risks, but there were some
execution issues with both rounds.
Round 3: DESSERT. Time to make something nice and
sweet out of... oranges, grapefruit, chocolate chips, and bacon.
And William is also allergic to grapefruit.
Thirty minutes... start now!
James: Sweet & Spicy Bacon, Cinnamon
Toast, and Sabayon with Chocolate Sauce
William: Bread Pudding with Citrus Salad
William covers the bacon in chocolate. James
spices it up and bakes it... He sees espresso powder... and uses it to make a
sabayon with chocolate sauce. Sort of a breakfast-for-dessert idea. William
takes what little he knows about grapefruit and crafts a salad from that.
Meanwhile, James needs something to go with his bacon and chocolate sauce.
And TIME... This is for money...
William's dessert was excellent and balanced, but
it's undercooked. James' dessert looks sunny, the flavors tie it all together,
but the dessert was missing something.
And now thinking about the overall meals. William
had execution issues, but at the same time, he's had a renegade style even with
his allergies. James's dessert was a piece of art, but there was something
missing. He was frantic through the whole meal, but he played it less safe
throughout the whole meal.
So who's going to win $10,000? The final person
to be chopped is...
WILLIAM. The flavors were good, but the lack of
focus was really her downfall.
But James Briscione, who started safe, but came
out on top, comes home with $10,000? He needs that for a new bride and a baby.
Good luck with both of those.
Next week, we count down from 4 to 1 again as
chefs compete with each other and the mystery ingredients in hopes of not
being.... chopped.
To see this episode in its
entirety, or to apply to be a contestant on "Chopped", visit the
official website at
www.foodnetwork.com/chopped.