S23.E10: A Sticky Situation

[KeithJ]

Quote

The chefs face a blind taste test; in a special dinner service, both teams must prove they have what it takes to stay in the competition.

Airs: Thu, Dec 5, 2024

[KeithJ]

More crying tonight.

Egypt was so pumped and sure about the blind taste test and then he got three wrong?

That steak that went out to Lamar was medium?  That looked rare to mid-rare to me.

Also, that last chicken that went out, unless it was a light or something, the right half looked a little pink.

At least the correct two were nominated.  Weird that Gordon made the team choose who to go.

 

[DoctorK]

I have always liked the blindfold palate tests because they are directly related skills needed to be chefs, and the results are pretty much cut and dried. However I despise the junk part of pouring sticky food products and shooting breakfast cereal on other competitors. It is inherently stupid, not fun or funny, and wastes time.

I also watched Gordon cut open one steak that was supposed to be rare but the centers were raw (bluish/purple), same with one of the beef wellingtons that I watched closely (and rewound to watch again) same problem, the whole center (about 1/3 of the meat) was raw. I also watched him send out scallops that were slightly browned around the edge but visibly raw and gelatinous in the middle.

Finally, I wasn't watching the red team very closely but from what I saw Anne Marie communicated OK but Amanda literally ignored her when Anne Marie asked her repeatedly about timing for something.

Oh well, another week gone by.

 

[seacliffsal]

I would really like Ann Marie to leave as her interviews drive me a bit crazy as she is just...a lot.

I agree about disliking the 'pour junk over the contestants' aspect of the blind taste test, but do like the actual tasting component.  It's the same reason why I stopped watching Masterchef Junior-I get that Gordon thinks kids like that kind of thing, but he needs to consider his entire audience.

At this point, I like Whit and maybe Joe for the win (I still like Egypt, but he is inconsistent with his communication).  Hannah could also be a contender.

[mojoween]

The visual of this particular blind taste test for this season was funny, though, when one red person had syrup, but the entire blue team was covered in syrup or all of the yuck.

Very disappointed in the Hexclad commercial when GR says “the convenience of non-stick” in a calm, soothing voice.  They really should have capitalized on “THAT’S WHY IT’S CALLED NON-STICK!!!!”

I knew Kyle was going to say he knew Lamar Odom because of Khloe Kardashian, and I laughed anyways.  Also it’s always nice to see Lamar looking safe and healthy.  Also also yeah his steak was ultra-pink.

Joe.  Your ruminating is annoying.

But but.  Ann Marie is overall not strong enough.  Brittany wasn’t my favorite either, but man they were harsh.

[mlp]

1 hour ago, mojoween said:

But but.  Ann Marie is overall not strong enough.  Brittany wasn’t my favorite either, but man they were harsh.

I just can't picture Ann Marie being a head chef anywhere unless she's the senior of two cooks at the corner diner.  I'd much rather work with Brittany although I understood why the others had problems with her.  I hope Ann Marie goes next.

2 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

I agree about disliking the 'pour junk over the contestants' aspect of the blind taste test, but do like the actual tasting component.  It's the same reason why I stopped watching Masterchef Junior-I get that Gordon thinks kids like that kind of thing, but he needs to consider his entire audience.

I absolutely hate that.  I've always wondered if that nonsense is why Graham Elliot left the show.  So demeaning.  Those stunts also look like a lot of food waste even if most of the stuff they pour isn't actually food.  Not a good look.

[Trey]

39 minutes ago, mlp said:

Those stunts also look like a lot of food waste even if most of the stuff they pour isn't actually food.  Not a good look.

Yeah, I hate wasting food even as you say, it's not good food.

Ann Marie is really growing on me but I don't think she's going to be around much longer.  How many times has she been nominated for elimination already?

[Fostersmom]

Okay, these people have been gone, what, 2 weeks from their families? Maybe 3? The melt downs are ridiculous. What are the going to do if they actually win and have to move to Connecticut and their families can't join right away? At this point, none of them are overly impressing me, with the women only having a slight edge over the men. 

[cameron]

Totally agree about everyone's remarks about the overdone/underdone food.  Does Gordon Ramsay really think that we don't know how to cook or wouldn't notice those glaring discrepancies.

[Colorado David]

omg that dessert room - willy wonka would have been proud

[Red Bridey]

Ugh, I enjoy the blind taste test but I LOATHE the spillage on teammates. Kyle has a completely unwarranted high opinion of himself, doesn't he? There's no way I see him as any kind of executive chef in any of Gordon's restos. They might as well just eliminate the black coat competition and annoint Egypt now. He's the only one that's at all competent. 

And there is no way I'd go to a fancy restaurant to watch a bunch of cooks yelling times at each other or the head guy yelling back at them and throwing food on the floor. That's what walls are for. 

[Colorado David]

On 12/6/2024 at 9:01 AM, mlp said:

 

I absolutely hate that.  I've always wondered if that nonsense is why Graham Elliot left the show.  So demeaning.  Those stunts also look like a lot of food waste even if most of the stuff they pour isn't actually food.  Not a good look.

agree. it makes it seem like a circus rather than a 'legit' restaurant. and i know its all a show,but still one could keep it more dignified - the UK version of Kitchen Nightmares never had to resort to parlor tricks for entertainment. 

[ljenkins782]

On 12/6/2024 at 8:08 AM, seacliffsal said:

I would really like Ann Marie to leave as her interviews drive me a bit crazy as she is just...a lot.

I agree about disliking the 'pour junk over the contestants' aspect of the blind taste test, but do like the actual tasting component.  It's the same reason why I stopped watching Masterchef Junior-I get that Gordon thinks kids like that kind of thing, but he needs to consider his entire audience.

Yeah, I dislike the food pouring part as well. A. it's not fair for someone else to suffer because your palate sucks and B. I would think it's a huge disadvantage to the contestants who get shit poured all over them and then have to do a blind taste test. I imagine that stuff they're covered in smells and that feels like unfair interference. 

Ann Marie's crazy eyes and unhinged confessionals are wearing ever thinner, she needs to go soon. I just can't imagine anyone taking her seriously as a head chef after watching this season.

On another note, I just tried a Gordon Ramsay restaurant this weekend and it was so not worth the price. The beef Wellington was such a disappointment, it looked like it came frozen out of a box. The French onion soup was good and the sticky toffee pudding was much better than expected, but the Wellington (the most of expensive dish by far) was meh at best. 

[Red Bridey]

You know, the Wellington never looks appealing to me, and it's something I would consider ordering because there's no way I'd ever attempt to make one!

[ljenkins782]

11 hours ago, Red Bridey said:

You know, the Wellington never looks appealing to me, and it's something I would consider ordering because there's no way I'd ever attempt to make one!

Oh yeah, I've looked up the recipe before and it looks like a real process, no thanks. 

But on TV, it looks like the pastry around it is browned and semi-thick, in real life, it looked kinda like a thin layer of barely cooked pie dough. It tasted good enough, but it just wasn't as amazing as I was hoping for that price.

[Yeah No]

14 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

On another note, I just tried a Gordon Ramsay restaurant this weekend and it was so not worth the price. The beef Wellington was such a disappointment, it looked like it came frozen out of a box. The French onion soup was good and the sticky toffee pudding was much better than expected, but the Wellington (the most of expensive dish by far) was meh at best. 

I had the Wellington at the Foxwoods restaurant and it was OK but nothing to write home about. The sticky toffee pudding was as good as I'd had in Ireland which is hard to do! I was also disappointed in the scallops. I never thought slicing them in half was a good idea and after having them I still don't think it is.

30 minutes ago, ljenkins782 said:

Oh yeah, I've looked up the recipe before and it looks like a real process, no thanks. 

But on TV, it looks like the pastry around it is browned and semi-thick, in real life, it looked kinda like a thin layer of barely cooked pie dough. It tasted good enough, but it just wasn't as amazing as I was hoping for that price.

I used to make it a lot but I used a simplified "shortcut" recipe using filet slices, ready made paté and store bought frozen puff pastry. The most time consuming thing was making the mushroom duxelle, but it was relatively simple. I haven't made it in a while, but you're making me want to do it!

It's actually an old Rachael Ray recipe:

https://www.rachaelrayshow.com/recipes/individual-beef-wellingtons-recipe-from-rachael-ray

There are also YouTubes with demonstrations.