S22.E08: Cooking For Your Life

[jewel21]

Quote

Tensions rise as the chefs face their most difficult challenge yet: communication. The contestants are each assigned to cook one of the top five cuisines in America, but the challenge gets turned on its head and shines the spotlight on a select few contestants. While the losing team sifts through trash, and the winning team enjoys massages and a surprise meal, no one is safe from a one-on-one meeting with Chef Ramsey.

Airdate: 11/16/2023

[chicagofan]

Shut up Jason. Shut up Devon. Shut up blue team in general.

Kinda surprised that Jason was the first to be safe since he made the cardinal mistake of cutting his filet. But then I was pretty sure Devon would go since he cut his into 6 pieces. Plus he's had some shaky services.

[mojoween]

Aww man.  I has a sad.

I wonder if Jason talks to other people the way he talks to himself.  He is just exhausting.

[AZChristian]

We have tentative plans to go to Hell's Kitchen in Las Vegas in late March.  If Jason wins this season and becomes the head chef there, we'll go somewhere else instead.  He's just not someone I want to support.

[Pepper the Cat]

Can’t stand Jason or Carmen. 
I was really surprised that Carmen was not up for elimination as I think she is the weakest person (I refuse to call her a chef) there. 

[xcrayon2215x]

Carmen was back to being irritating. I liked Devon but the last two weeks were really bad so I understood why he went home. More contestants are talking about family it seems.

[KeithJ]

How did the red team end up with Sandra as the last person in their kitchen? She can't even remember an order 10 seconds after Gordon calls it out.

Jason should not have won the first elimination mainly because he sliced his filet.  That's a huge no no and I don't really know why Gordon didn't give him more grief about it.  It wouldn't have changed the overall outcome but it would have been nice to see Jason put in his place.

As always, there just aren't very many likable people left.  They are all just so full of themselves.  I'm rooting for Leigh but I have a feeling Gordon will cut her at the end due to lack of experience but let her keep her jacket.

[GHScorpiosRule]

I love Ryan, but butter chicken is NOT the same as Chicken Curry! And correct me if I'm wrong, but the Indian dish was supposed to be chicken curry, yes?

Carmen's chicken curry looked burnt and more like a pseudo tandoori chicken-where was the gravy?

And that did NOT look like any basmati rice I've ever seen or cooked myself*.

Ahem.

That said, I really didn't understand that challenge. How could one person cook all those meals within the time remaining?

THAT was the prize for winning the challenge? I thought I would have to backtrack from last week's post-thinking they were going to some spa to be pampered, get massages, etc. But playing with those...massage tools they had to use themselves ON themselves?

Does the show no longer have the budget for the really cool and amazing prizes for winning challenges?

Oh Gordon! Why are you feeding Jason's delusions? Or are you setting him up?

*Full Disclosure: I'm Indian myself so my opinion is coming from a place of knowledge.

And that preview for next week? Sandra looks absolutely STOOPID.

[Tango64]

That was a ridiculous challenge. I couldn't even keep track of what was going on as the viewer, and to expect one person to do all those dishes at once was crazy. 

The guy who butchered his filet should have gone home. My pet peeve is a restaurant serving me a sliced steak (unless it's fajitas). Do not cut my mf'ing steak. I don't want a cold, dried out ribeye. I want to cut it as I like, savoring the different portions as I want. But doing that to a filet mignon is a violation several magnitudes higher.

Edited November 17, 2023 by Tango64
typo

[milkyaqua]

4 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I love Ryan, but butter chicken is NOT the same as Chicken Curry! And correct me if I'm wrong, but the Indian dish was supposed to be chicken curry, yes?

I didn't understand that either.  As little as I know about Indian food, I'm pretty sure the two aren't the same so I didn't understand why he wasn't called out on it.

Agree with, how the heck was Sandra the last person left in the kitchen?  Huh?  Also, Carmen is still annoying and wasn't she the one that messed up Atoye's dish?  I'm glad that Dahmere was able to talk her down after her meltdown.

As for the elim challenge, Jason may know how to cook but he's still annoying and that more than anything is why his team put him up but of course he thinks it's because he's such a threat in the kitchen.  He truly is delusional.  I wasn't exactly sure why Gordon thought Sandra serving mushrooms with a steak was so strange regardless of what it was called.  I've never been to a steak house and been served a sliced steak unless it was one of those big 22 oz meant to be shared steaks.  Devon was on borrowed time but I was sorry to see him go.

And yes, what is up with these lame challenge prizes?

[jabRI]

1 hour ago, milkyaqua said:

I wasn't exactly sure why Gordon thought Sandra serving mushrooms with a steak was so strange

Maybe the horseradish? Its like she wanted to fusion everything her Dad liked. If it was a toddler, you might make a pb&j with fruit loops, for example?

[milkyaqua]

26 minutes ago, jabRI said:

Maybe the horseradish? Its like she wanted to fusion everything her Dad liked. If it was a toddler, you might make a pb&j with fruit loops, for example?

Perhaps but I still didn't think it was that odd. I mean I know people make horseradish sauce to serve with prime rib but maybe that was just me, lol.

[mlp]

I wasn't at all impressed with Gordon's little talks with the contestants.  He said basically the same things to every one of them.  It was all theater for the viewers.

That chaotic challenege was ridiculous.  It was maybe OK with a person or two short but HK is not a diner.  Making one person try to keep track of what they and everyone else was doing was just mean. 

Dahmere looks like a winner. 

 

[Spicysweet]

Dahmere was so kind and supportive toward Atoye after her meltdown. So touching! I thought that was extraordinary and how a real leader acts. Bravo!

[Chicago Redshirt]

20 hours ago, AZChristian said:

We have tentative plans to go to Hell's Kitchen in Las Vegas in late March.  If Jason wins this season and becomes the head chef there, we'll go somewhere else instead.  He's just not someone I want to support.

I went to HK when I was in Vegas a few months back. I think there is next to no chance that Jason wins this season, but even if he does, and even assuming he actually is running things when you're there (as opposed to either having just a nominal role or being quietly kicked to the curb), I think you should still go.

That said, I think the odds are you won't have to worry about it too much. I'll be surprised if Jason makes it even to the black jackets. 

My prediction for who those are:

Dahmere

Ryan

Jonathan

Sammi

Donya.

I expect they'll go in roughly that order too.

8 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I love Ryan, but butter chicken is NOT the same as Chicken Curry! And correct me if I'm wrong, but the Indian dish was supposed to be chicken curry, yes?

Carmen's chicken curry looked burnt and more like a pseudo tandoori chicken-where was the gravy?

And that did NOT look like any basmati rice I've ever seen or cooked myself*.

Ahem.

That said, I really didn't understand that challenge. How could one person cook all those meals within the time remaining?

THAT was the prize for winning the challenge? I thought I would have to backtrack from last week's post-thinking they were going to some spa to be pampered, get massages, etc. But playing with those...massage tools they had to use themselves ON themselves?

Does the show no longer have the budget for the really cool and amazing prizes for winning challenges?

Oh Gordon! Why are you feeding Jason's delusions? Or are you setting him up?

*Full Disclosure: I'm Indian myself so my opinion is coming from a place of knowledge.

And that preview for next week? Sandra looks absolutely STOOPID.

I thought of you when watching this...I was like, "She's not going to be impressed with her Oirish boo."

I think the idea was to emphasize communication by having the brigade tell one member how to juggle what was necessary for those 5-10 minutes of their dishes. But like people said, that seems to be tailor-made to be a terrible job for Sandra.

2 hours ago, mlp said:

I wasn't at all impressed with Gordon's little talks with the contestants.  He said basically the same things to every one of them.  It was all theater for the viewers.

That chaotic challenege was ridiculous.  It was maybe OK with a person or two short but HK is not a diner.  Making one person try to keep track of what they and everyone else was doing was just mean. 

Dahmere looks like a winner. 

 

Dahmere's supporting of Atoye seemed to me telegraphing his eventual win.

I actually think that it's likely that the chefs did take Gordon's platitudes to heart. And it is also possible in his (say) 10 minute one-on-ones he said more personalized things to each but HK didn't opt to show them.

[GHScorpiosRule]

1 hour ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

I thought of you when watching this...I was like, "She's not going to be impressed with her Oirish boo."

😂😂😂😂

No, I wasn’t. The butter chicken looked good, but that’s not what he was supposed to be making!

[NJRadioGuy]

3 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

Dahmere's supporting of Atoye seemed to me telegraphing his eventual win.

It's his to lose at this point. If he completely melts down is about the only way he'll be gone before the finale. Even if he doesn't win, he's guaranteed a high level job in the industry; you just know some good restaurant owner or chef de cuisine will snatch him up the minute he leaves if he doesn't win. Jonathan is very talented in his own right, as is Ryan. Ryan will likely earn a black jacket, and I could see Grrrr offering him a position at one of his restaurants after he's eliminated. He's still in Cork, so would he even be able to get a work visa to the U.S. if he won? With all of Gordon's restaurants in continental Europe I could see Ryan on the line at any one of them.

Dahmere I think could very easily become a lot more than just a winning contestant if he's really as good as he appears at this stage. Gordo sees something special in him and maybe he could follow in Christina's path.

[Yeah No]

15 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I love Ryan, but butter chicken is NOT the same as Chicken Curry! And correct me if I'm wrong, but the Indian dish was supposed to be chicken curry, yes?

No, they are not the same but the term curry is being used in a more general sense.  Don't shoot me because I personally hate it when people correct me about my own culture's cuisine, but I always remember learning that a curry was a general term for any dish using an Indian spice blend, although there are many different spice blends out there that can be called "curry blends".  So butter chicken, while the sauce and spice blend differs from other curries is still a curry.

I checked and several articles online confirm that Butter Chicken is indeed a type of curry dish.  Chicken Tikka Masala is also considered a curry dish.

 

[Yeah No]

On 11/16/2023 at 10:20 PM, AZChristian said:

We have tentative plans to go to Hell's Kitchen in Las Vegas in late March.  If Jason wins this season and becomes the head chef there, we'll go somewhere else instead.  He's just not someone I want to support.

Don't worry, at this point he's probably just there because he's the most hateable person on the blue team.  I hate how I am that cynical but this show is always doing stuff like that.  He just happens to be good enough as a cook to keep around just to annoy us, LOL.

As I posted about over a month ago I went to the new HK restaurant at Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut and it was great so you should definitely not miss it.  I would go even if Jason was there because I wouldn't miss that opportunity.  But like I said, I seriously doubt he'll win.

Dahmere has been my prediction for the past two episodes and this episode made him look like a really wonderful person too so he's my pick.  Honestly, his pep talk with Atoya brought me to tears!

[AZChristian]

13 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

I went to HK when I was in Vegas a few months back. I think there is next to no chance that Jason wins this season, but even if he does, and even assuming he actually is running things when you're there (as opposed to either having just a nominal role or being quietly kicked to the curb), I think you should still go.

That said, I think the odds are you won't have to worry about it too much. I'll be surprised if Jason makes it even to the black jackets.

We've already been to HK Vegas once, and would love to go back.  The food was amazing.  I hope you're right, and that Jason doesn't even make it to the black jackets.

[KeithJ]

On 11/16/2023 at 9:20 PM, AZChristian said:

We have tentative plans to go to Hell's Kitchen in Las Vegas in late March.  If Jason wins this season and becomes the head chef there, we'll go somewhere else instead.  He's just not someone I want to support.

This season was filmed in early 2022 so, theoretically, the winner should already be there unless they don’t bring them on until after the show airs which would really suck for the winner waiting almost two years to start your job.

[AZChristian]

6 minutes ago, KeithJ said:

This season was filmed in early 2022 so, theoretically, the winner should already be there unless they don’t bring them on until after the show airs which would really suck for the winner waiting almost two years to start your job.

Or, if Jason wins, it will suck for the restaurant where he works now to have to keep him for almost two more years.  LOL.

[GHScorpiosRule]

9 hours ago, Yeah No said:

No, they are not the same but the term curry is being used in a more general sense.  Don't shoot me because I personally hate it when people correct me about my own culture's cuisine, but I always remember learning that a curry was a general term for any dish using an Indian spice blend, although there are many different spice blends out there that can be called "curry blends".  So butter chicken, while the sauce and spice blend differs from other curries is still a curry.

I checked and several articles online confirm that Butter Chicken is indeed a type of curry dish.  Chicken Tikka Masala is also considered a curry dish.

 

I’m sorry. but they aren’t the same. Hence the different names for each type of dish. We use spices for practically every vegetarian and non-vegetarian dish. Most have gravy or “curry” in them. If Gordon wanted any chicken dish, that sign should have specified as such.

Otherwise every dish that has a curry base would be:

•  Chicken* curry
• butter chicken curry
• chicken tika masala curry
• Chicken Korma curry
• chicken vindaloo curry

That’s just silly. And maybe I’m just being nitpicky, but I still say Ryan got it wrong because Chicken Curry is a very specific dish.

Just my opinion.

*or Lamb or Goat or chick pea (chole). Kidney beans (Rajma), egg, etc.

[nitrofishblue]

To be honest I have found this season to be really really lame. Just a bunch of very weak overall chefs. Must be the worst season so far. If these are the best of the chefs that applied I feel sorry for those not chosen.

[seacliffsal]

I was surprised when Donya took herself out of the challenge (Gordon told the women because they had 1 extra person to sit someone out).  She said she couldn't cook any of the dishes and I was surprised because even without much experience one could make a steak taco (maybe not win but could make one).  So, either she doesn't have a lot of experience or she sat out thinking she was 'saving' herself from possible elimination.  Either way I think it doesn't bode well for her.

[Yeah No]

4 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I’m sorry. but they aren’t the same. Hence the different names for each type of dish. We use spices for practically every vegetarian and non-vegetarian dish. Most have gravy or “curry” in them. If Gordon wanted any chicken dish, that sign should have specified as such.

Otherwise every dish that has a curry base would be:

•  Chicken* curry
• butter chicken curry
• chicken tika masala curry
• Chicken Korma curry
• chicken vindaloo curry

That’s just silly. And maybe I’m just being nitpicky, but I still say Ryan got it wrong because Chicken Curry is a very specific dish.

Just my opinion.

*or Lamb or Goat or chick pea (chole). Kidney beans (Rajma), egg, etc.

OK, you're entitled to your opinion and I apologize for how you feel about it, but I confirmed it with many reliable sources on the internet.  And I kind of have confidence in Gordon's knowledge on the subject, although his terminology may be influenced by European usage of the term.

To tell the truth I was confused about it myself years ago when I saw people referring to different Indian dishes as curries, which prompted me to look it up.

I also think calling something a "chicken curry" probably refers to a dish made with a generic pre-made curry powder blend, which probably originated in Europe as Europeans attempted to imitate Indian cooking.  I know the French have their own "mild" version of a curry powder that they use in dishes called "vadouvan" that they created as their own interpretation of a general Indian curry powder.  Of course dishes made with these spice blends are not traditional Indian dishes originating in India.  Similar to the way many Italian American dishes were invented in the US, not in Italy.

Here's a site that lists different types of curry dishes which include butter chicken, chicken tikka masala and many more:

https://www.sidechef.com/articles/1635/popular-types-of-curry/

Here's a site from an Indian restaurant in Denver that lists types of curry dishes:

https://www.littleindiaofdenver.com/blog/six-popular-types-indian-curry/

The list goes on and on.

I found this question/answer on Quora on the subject to be fascinating and informative:

https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-masala-and-curry

I think calling something a "curry dish" as a general placeholder for several different dishes with Indian spice blends originated with Europeans, which perhaps may be the source of the confusion.  It also may depend on where you come from in India as to what terminology is used.  I've noticed similar with Italian Americans.  Southern Italian Americans are more likely to use "gravy" while those from other regions use "sauce" to refer to the same thing.  Or it may even depend on what neighborhood you grew up in in the US too.  But a "gravy" is actually a kind of stew with some kind of protein in it, but it isn't called a stew.  It's just that the braising liquid is tomato sauce, not a broth or thickened broth combination.  But there are different types of gravies too.  My grandma used to make chicken gravy, squid gravy, even snail gravy, all in tomato sauce in addition to the kind with the traditional beef and pork!  But she still called every one of those dishes a "gravy".

It's also similar to calling something which actually has a more specific name a stew, but in general it's still a stew, which refers to the manner of cooking and general composition.  Examples include Cassoulet, Beef Burgundy, beef bourguignon, Gumbo, Etoufee, etc.  Again, many websites include these dishes on their lists of types of stews.

Edited November 18, 2023 by Yeah No

[GHScorpiosRule]

I’m not going to argue with you about this @Yeah No. I’ve said everything up thread.

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I’m not going to argue with you about this @Yeah No. I’ve said everything up thread.

OK, just to clarify, I was not intending to cause an argument.  🙂

[oliviabenson]

Ryan is so pretty it hurts. 

[bluepiano]

On 11/17/2023 at 1:34 PM, mlp said:

Dahmere looks like a winner. 

I think there are some good chefs on the women's team, but I don't see any of them having the combination of experience, skill, and leadership qualities to be a Head Chef for GR. Sandra comes the closest, but I don't think she has the right temperament and flies off the handle too easily.

On the men's side, I think that both Dahmere and Ryan clearly have what it takes, and maybe Jonathan too. I don't remember a season where one team had such an edge in terms of qualified Head Chef candidates. (Of course, watch now, one of the women will win).

Echoing what others have said, some of the prizes for the winning team in the challenge have been pretty lame. Tomahawk throwing? Really?

As for Currygate, I've always thought that "curry" was a generic term that encompassed multiple Indian dishes, so Ryan slides by on a technicality.