Another four chefs. Another three baskets.
Another $10,000. Let's meet tonight's competitors.
MICHAEL GILETTO
executive chef for a country club and former competitive
bodybuilder |
ALINA EISENHAUER
pastry chef and former personal trainer |
JACKIE LEE
mega yacht private chef |
TODD MILLER
executive chef |
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...
- executive chef Amanda Freitag
- "The Cooking Loft" host Alex Guarnaschelli
- dynamic chef & restaurateur Geoffrey Zakarian
Round 1: APPETIZER. First up... Peanut
butter, Granny Smith apples, jumbo shrimp.
You have 30 minutes... Get going!
Michael: Butter Poached Shrimp with Vegetable
Salad
Alina: Thai Peanut Sauce with Sautéed Shrimp
Jackie: Soy Peanut Butter Shrimp with Apple Chutney
Todd: Poached Shrimp with Peanut Sauce & Apple Salad
All of the chefs are going the Asian route. One
is using miso and another, jalapeno. Michael's trying to be different with his
spices. Alina uses the apples with red cabbage for a slaw. Seems like everyone's
got a grasp. Sure it seems that way, but Jackie's making a horrible cabbage
salad underneath. She's just not feeling good at all.
And TIME'S UP. What's on the plate will be
judged.
Michael's shrimp goes over well. Alina's honey
and peanut butter didn't match. Jackie didn't clean her shrimp, and the shrimp
was too heavily spiced. But the best of the lot is Todd, even though his shrimp
is not cleaned.
It looked like Jackie was behind the 8-ball the
whole time, but will that affect her? The first person to be chopped is....
ALINA! She put a lot of heart and soul into the dish, but the honey and peanut
butter was too sweet and heavy for the dish.
Round 2: ENTREE. Next up in the mystery
boxes are... kielbasa, pepperoncini, fingerling potatoes, and tarragon.
Thirty minutes in this round... GO!
Michael: Gnocchi
Jackie: Kielbasa Mixed Grill
Todd: Kielbasa Sandwich
Michael is going out in left field while the
others grill it up. Michael's gnocchi is going up against Todd's sandwich. Todd
comes to the rescue with tongs as Jackie is missing hers. She ends up blending
her mixed grill in a battle of the blenders with Michael. Everything's coming
together until Michael's water isn't boiling anymore. The pillows of love aren't
floating to the surface as they should be. Meanwhile, Todd is building his
sandwich, wondering how he's going to add the potatoes. It's all down to the
wire...
And... TIME. Everyone's done to a certain degree.
Jackie's textures are winning raves. It all came
together rather cleanly. Todd's flavors are full, but Geoff sees it as more of a
super tapas. Michael's dish is too small for an entree.
All three dishes had their shortcomings and their
successes. That said, the second person to be chopped is... TODD. It really
wasn't an entree, and there was no progression from course to course.
Round 3: DESSERT. It's the final cookout,
and in the $10,000 dessert round is... Marshmallow spread, chocolate puff
cereal, semisweet chocolate chips, and dried strawberries.
Thirty minutes to make something happen... GO!
Michael: Quick Brownies
Jackie: Crepes with Chocolate Strawberry Cognac Sauce
Jackie is cooking as if her life depended on it,
while Michael's bumbling all over his kitchen. Jackie can really whip up a
crepe, while Michael's starting with candied orange zest, accoutrement of puffed
chocolate, and revived strawberries. He's way past done. Jackie, though, is
making one crepe too many on a dish, she thinks.
But what do the judges think? The judges thought
that Michael should've concentrated more on his dish, as it's 20% burnt.
Jackie's ingredients are playful, but a little large.
So here we are. On one hand, we have a mountain
of crepes over a mole hill of brownies. All of Michael's food was done well, but
that browned really killed it. Jackie's first course was sloppy, but it came
together by dessert.
So who's your $10,000 chef this week? The final
person to be chopped is... MICHAEL. The gnocchi really got the judges going, but
it was all lost on the dessert.
Which means that Jackie Lee may be staring down
the barrel of a rematch, but right now, she's $10,000 richer! How sweet it is!
Next week, another three servings lead to the
sweet taste of victory for another chef, while his or her opponents are left...
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.