It's a new season in the Chopped Kitchen. A new wad of $10,000 cash money is on the line. And a new batch of chefs are awaiting the chopping block. Tonight, we have these four...
 

Jason Robertson New Orleans owner/caterer, Headwaters

Gerald Chin Las Vegas chef de Cuisine, Cosmopolitan Las Vegas

Nealy Frentz Covington, LA chef/owner, Lola Restaurant

Shawn Smilie Las Vegas executive chef, Aria Citycenter

Tonight on the panel.

- Latin Indian fusion freak Maneet Chauhan
- Executive chef Amanda Freitag
- Superstar restauranteur Marc Murphy

In this competition, the baskets will contain leftovers, food that might have been thrown away, but instead will be transformed into amazing dishes.

Round 1: APPETIZER (20 minutes). The first basket of the night has... leftover matzo ball soup, mac & cheese, fried onion blossom, and a submarine sandwich.

... and you have 20 minutes... and they start now.

Jason: White Wine Basil Mac & Cheese with Fried Matzo
Gerald: French Onion Soup with Crispy Mac & Cheese
Nealy: Macaroni Cake with Matzo
Shawn: Open Face Hero Sandwich with Matzo Cheese Sauce

Jason's matzo comes off as a polenta, and the basil gave a nice freshness. The sandwich did not meet the transformation quotient of the judges. Gerald's mac & cheese take is a complete dish with depth of flavor, but it could've been a little thinner and a little cleaner and a little tighter. Nealy's cake was well composed, but it's small for an appetizer. It needed acidity as a balance. Shawn's sauce elevates the sandwich and the cake is well composed, but the dish was too large.

The first chef... to be chopped... is... SHAWN. It wasn't creative enough.

Round 2: ENTREE (30 minutes). Our three remaining chefs are now taking on the challenge of the entree box... Leftover from last night are a ribeye steak, mashed potatoes, ketchup packets, and a Greek salad.

Thirty minutes... Get to it!

Jason: Beef Stew with Veggies
Gerald: Charred Steak Tostada with "Greco de Gallo"
Nealy: Grecian Tacos

Gerald's flavors are well integrated, but it needed some more sauce. The dish also needed one singular flavor to pop. Nealy also had a taco dish, light, fresh, crunchy, but the creativity could've been a little higher. And Marc needed to have a sauce to the side. Jason added a salad, which was a big mistake, because it was not dressed and it became wilted. The flavors are hearty, but it would've been a nice meat and potato dish.

The next chef... to be chopped... is... JASON. The flavors were there, but the salad didn't do him any favors.

Round 3: DESSERT (30 minutes). Leftovers become dessert... and perhaps 10 large. The ingredients are leftover ice cream sundae, old bananas, stale tortilla chips, and a flat cola.

We're half-an-hour away from a big money moment.

Gerald: "Fat Elvis" Peanut Butter Ice Cream with Bananas
Nealy: Hummingbird Cake with Tortilla Brittle

Nealy's cake is delicious, but it needed more icing and/or something refreshing, like berries. Gerald's ice cream is "ridiculous". It blends well with the bacon.

Leftovers. Both chefs elevated those already prepared dishes, and it's pretty much a dead heat.

The final chef... to be chopped... is... NEALY. That was a hard decision, but her appetizer and entree flip flopped. This was decided over the whole dinner.

That gives us our first champion of season 11, GERALD CHIN! Here's a "soignee" $10,000 check!

Now our attention turns to the next battle. One player is going to be paid, and the other three are going to be CHOPPED.

To see extras from this episode, or to apply to be a contestant on "Chopped", visit the official website at www.foodnetwork.com/chopped.