Chopped 2017: That Dish Was Just Offal

[meowmommy]

Do the cheftestants actually get to choose whether to compete in these special tournaments?  Because Ted asked one of them why he wanted to compete in Alton's challenge, and I thought they pretty much got assigned luck of the draw unless it's a special theme that plays into their area of expertise or demographic (like food truck owners or military cooks).

In this latest round, it felt like the judges were just picking the least worst, as nobody seemed to do a very good job. 

[spiderpig]

On 11/1/2017 at 8:46 PM, jcbrown said:

Watching last night's episode and have to post that people who pronounce mutton as ,"mu'un" get on my last nerve. I know it's regional but it still annoys me. I used to work with a woman who referred to the closure on her clothes as bu'uns and that drove me a bit nuts, too. It's called a consonant, people!

before I get banned to the Pet Peeves thread, let me interject how much I hate hearing "impordand".

OK, back on track - I just caught up on the grilling competition and have to say how much I loathed watching those big sweat drops hanging from Jim's nose.

Ugh.  Barf. I can't even go into a gym because the mere smell of sweat makes me ill.

Edited November 4, 2017 by spiderpig
sweat. yuck.

[awaken]

Nib-salt is my new favorite thing.  Especially when paired with mu-un!  

I really liked chef Kashi!  Would love to see her again.  I"m sorry she didn't win.  

[WritinMan]

On 10/11/2017 at 0:37 PM, wings707 said:

I found it. I like Alton and miss him on Food Network Star or whatever competition show he was on.  Tyler Florence is a dud.  

Tyler may not be the most charismatic of hosts, but as a chef he's one of the best on The Food Network.

On 10/11/2017 at 7:04 PM, Maverick said:

Alton is a dick.

As the host of Good Eats he was funny and seemed to enjoy himself. The same for his YouTube channel. As a judge, he's a completely different Alton Brown, and not particularly likeable.

[WritinMan]

Wow...dried tarantula...

[JR Labrador]

After watching Gavin's preening putzery on full display , he could be the best cook on Earth and I wouldn't eat his food even if I was held at gunpoint.  

[mlp]

I was soooooooooooo relieved that Gavin and his ugly beard didn't win.  What a jerk.  Poor loser too. 

I really liked the fellow who won and I was very happy for him.  He looked absolutely exhausted by the dessert round.  I liked Nick too but I figured he was doomed as soon as he said "risotto."  That never works out well.

[GaT]

Who won the dessert round with the tarantula? It must have run over because my DVR cut off right as the dessert round finished.

[LazyToaster]

15 hours ago, GaT said:

Who won the dessert round with the tarantula? It must have run over because my DVR cut off right as the dessert round finished.

The guy who has struggled with MS won - I think his name was Chris.  Very likeable guy and I was really tired of Gavin.  

[Jaded]

19 hours ago, JR Labrador said:

After watching Gavin's preening putzery on full display , he could be the best cook on Earth and I wouldn't eat his food even if I was held at gunpoint.  

I was so happy to see him loose. No surprise that the last time we saw him he whined about how wrong he thought the decision was.

I was even happier that Chris won and that this challenge was finally over. I am burnt out on Chopped and only started watching regularly last year. 

[spiderpig]

On 11/8/2017 at 1:01 AM, GaT said:

Who won the dessert round with the tarantula? It must have run over because my DVR cut off right as the dessert round finished.

My DVR cut off too!  Could you hear me swearing wherever you are?

I managed to find it On Demand, though even then it was interrupted by one of those mandatory broadcast alerts.  (More swearing...)

I was happy to see Gavin get the Loser's Edit when he smugly said he wouldn't eat any of the other chefs' dishes and knew he had it in the bag.

Insufferable creep.  Couldn't be bothered to shake the winner's hand.  Anybody remember where he works so I can remember to avoid it if I'm in the area?

[awaken]

Ugggg.  Raw sweetbreads. Chipol-te. Expresso.  

[cooksdelight]

I made a point to watch last night because Jonathan Scinto was on. We’re friends on Facebook and I knew he had been on Masterchef also. He’s a riot to talk to, I don’t remember him from MC at all. Anyway, he said something this morning about lima beans being his undoing, so when I saw the first basket had frozen lima beans in it, I was waiting to see how he ruined them. LMAO, boy, did he ever!!

[Wings]

Dave Martin is one of my most favorite chefs from Top Chef!   It was good to see him again even though this show doesn't allow us to see much of anyone's personality.  I did see a glimmer. 

On another episode, a grain that no  one knew to pop, is nuts.  This is why I am not that fond of this show.  I like to see chefs make fabulous food without the stupid stuff.  

[SterlingSilver36]

I was happy to see Dave, too.  My holiday gift for him would be a self-confidence boost.  Maybe winning Chopped will help.

After Ted told us it was a cocktail / small bites challenge and they introduced Dave, I expected Sommelier Stephen to be the next cheftestant through the door!

Are chefs expected to know how to pair cocktails and food?  I wouldn't have had a clue.  Sometimes it seems like Chopped matches contestants' strengths to the special theme and other times it will be like 3 Italian chefs and 1 gluten-free chef on a "pasta in every round" episode.  It's inconsistent enough to keep me wondering if the selections are random or carefully planned.

[Wings]

3 hours ago, SterlingSilver36 said:

I was happy to see Dave, too.  My holiday gift for him would be a self-confidence boost.  Maybe winning Chopped will help.

After Ted told us it was a cocktail / small bites challenge and they introduced Dave, I expected Sommelier Stephen to be the next cheftestant through the door!

Are chefs expected to know how to pair cocktails and food?  I wouldn't have had a clue.  Sometimes it seems like Chopped matches contestants' strengths to the special theme and other times it will be like 3 Italian chefs and 1 gluten-free chef on a "pasta in every round" episode.  It's inconsistent enough to keep me wondering if the selections are random or carefully planned.

Dave seemed confident to me.  Well, as good as it gets for him.   On Top Chef he was a mess but he seemed to deal with that well.  LOL  

Bold.  Sure!  I can do that.  Try, I bet you can, too.  It is not a chemical combo mystery.  

I would love to see more small plate challenges.  That is how I love to eat. 

Given gin for dessert was to throw them off.  Who drinks gin after a meal?   

Edited December 20, 2017 by Wings

[chabelisaywow]

lol the whole time I was waiting to hear ................ "I'm not your bitch, bitch."

[cooksdelight]

I love Dave. I keep a jar of his fantastic chocolate sauce (see Amazon) in my cupboard at all times.

[Wings]

48 minutes ago, chabelisaywow said:

lol the whole time I was waiting to hear ................ "I'm not your bitch, bitch."

I love, love, love this about him.  We saw a peek into that part of him when Amanda complained about the strength of his drink.  He relied, "hello, it is a martini!"   

[spiderpig]

Who was the Betty Boop judge with the Minnie Mouse voice?

(Sorry - I'm feeling crabby today.)

[meowmommy]

I'm just glad that this show apparently takes hours to tape, because I'm just imagining each judge after downing four drinks in the first round, three in the second, and two in the third, plus whatever booze they threw into the food itself. 

Dave's aged a bit.

10 hours ago, SterlingSilver36 said:

Sometimes it seems like Chopped matches contestants' strengths to the special theme and other times it will be like 3 Italian chefs and 1 gluten-free chef on a "pasta in every round" episode.  It's inconsistent enough to keep me wondering if the selections are random or carefully planned.

Half expected on this cocktail theme to have a Mormon, a recovering alcoholic and Carrie Nation among the competing chefs.  I mean, this is the same show that assigned strawberries and shrimp to a chef with deadly allergies.

1 hour ago, spiderpig said:

Who was the Betty Boop judge with the Minnie Mouse voice?

(Sorry - I'm feeling crabby today.)

Isn't that Lauren, the dancing chef who finished second in the Chopped Grand Champions tournament?

Edited December 21, 2017 by meowmommy

[mlp]

Quote

Who was the Betty Boop judge with the Minnie Mouse voice?

That was definitely Lauren although she did look quite different (and better) with her hair down rather than pulled straight back like she had it the first time around.  If I heard right, she's now an event planner.  I didn't much care for her the first time and last night didn't change my mind.

[meowmommy]

Memorable Chopped contestant passes away.

Quote

“Not only did Hiep let us shoot at her brand new restaurant, she also offered to cater for us,” he said by email. “When we showed up, she had closed the restaurant and cooked up a feast for the cast and crew. There was no way that the indie budget I gave her could have afforded us all that.”

[Wings]

5 hours ago, meowmommy said:

Memorable Chopped contestant passes away.

I have to pay to read the article. How did she die?

[RedRobin]

3 hours ago, Wings said:

I have to pay to read the article. How did she die?

From the article:

 

Hiep Thi Le, who escaped Vietnam on a fishing boat when she was about 9 and a dozen years later became an unlikely movie star when she was cast as the central figure in Oliver Stone’s 1993 film “Heaven and Earth,” died on Tuesday in Los Angeles. She was 46.

The cause was stomach cancer, her friend Quentin Lee said.

[Wings]

3 hours ago, RedRobin said:

From the article:

 

Hiep Thi Le, who escaped Vietnam on a fishing boat when she was about 9 and a dozen years later became an unlikely movie star when she was cast as the central figure in Oliver Stone’s 1993 film “Heaven and Earth,” died on Tuesday in Los Angeles. She was 46.

The cause was stomach cancer, her friend Quentin Lee said.

Thank you.  Wow and on Chopped too?  Must have meant they had a celebrity addition.  NY Times has good articles but not often enough to subscribe.  

Edited December 25, 2017 by Wings

[spiderpig]

This makes me think of the very sad story of Dr. Haing S. Ngor.  Survived the Killing Fields, won an Oscar, and was murdered outside his LA apartment.  So much suffering.  

Wishing everyone Peace on Earth, although you sometimes have to wonder.

[meowmommy]

2 hours ago, Wings said:

Must have meant they had a celebrity addition.  NY Times has good articles but not often enough to subscribe.  

IIRC, she was on just a regular edition, but told a little bit of her story during the show.  That's why her name clicked with me when I read the article.  Sorry, forgot about the paywall.  I don't actually subscribe but somehow they let me read.

[ZoqFotPik]

I'm glad Chef Blue Pigtails was the first to go. It was very distracting watching those things flop around her work area. I was expecting one to land in the food. I'm actually surprised the judges didn't say anything.

Gee, I wonder if the guy who mentioned, and kept mentioning, that he knows Marcus Samuelson is going to win.

[meowmommy]

And continuing in the FN tradition of not acknowledging the existence of Top Chef, a judging panel featuring not one but two TC cheftestants (Tiffani and Angry!Dale) who are coyly identified as "accomplished competitive cooks."

[spiderpig]

Now we are into a five-week frying competition.  I wonder if they will have to rotate the judges more frequently to avoid heart failure.*  I didn't notice any scrambling to get to the deep fryer, so maybe the show added some equipment for this  arc?

*I love fried food, but appetizer,  main course and dessert is a bit much.

[mlp]

They did add fryers.  They're on the left of the leftmost station from the viewers' vantage point.  They've done it before when everyone had to fry in a round so I knew where to look for them.

I didn't realize that every round in this tournament was going to involve frying.

Edited January 8, 2018 by mlp

[RealityCheck]

16 hours ago, spiderpig said:

Now we are into a five-week frying competition. 

Not exactly. Ted explained at the top of this episode the Gold Medal competition consists of four heats: frying, grilling, baking, & speed.  The winner of each heat competes in the 5th week for the $50,000 prize.

[Kyanight]

On 3/5/2017 at 11:56 AM, Hockeymom said:

What would be really great, would be if it was a blind taste test. If they actually judged on merit, not on the back story.

I SO agree!  That is my chief complaint about Beat Bobby Flay.  Even if the judges didn't see each dish as it was plated they would STILL know who made which dish by Bobby and his opponent's  facial expressions when they give their constructive criticism.  

[mlp]

Quote

they would STILL know who made which dish by Bobby and his opponent's  facial expressions when they give their constructive criticism.  

Heck, I'd know because Bobby puts peppers in everything possible.  If I were going to compete (assuming I was a chef), I'd put peppers in everything myself to throw the judges off.

[ZoqFotPik]

Shortening the clock for one round of a five round tournament doesn't seem very fair to me.

Also, this is more of a general comment, but I could do without Alex's over exaggerated facial expressions especially when time starts to wind down and her screaming about getting everything on the plate. 

Edited January 17, 2018 by ZoqFotPik

[Jaded]

5 hours ago, ZoqFotPik said:

Shortening the clock for one round of a five round tournament doesn't seem very fair to me.

It was making me nervous. I thought there would be more injuries then the one that occurred due to all of the rushing around and using sharp objects. 

[JessDVD]

I haven't watched Chopped much other than background TV in the last year or two but I happened upon the gold medal one over the weekend, and I actually found myself enjoying it. Normally I hate the 5-round ones (and I agree with posters upthread that the $50k price for first and everyone else gets nothing so you might win but get nothing, is crap), but the premises they've put on all the rounds so far were interesting additions. The clock shortening one was a little on the unfair side but that one guy still finished entree with time to spare! I liked all 4 in the baking round and wanting to try all their dishes, even the ones with ingredients that I don't like.

The judges acting like this is the most important meal they will ever eat in their lives and saying things like "Leaving the pureed lima beans off of your duck tongue appetizer was unforgivable", continues to be the most annoying part of this show.

[Jaded]

I'm glad that pompous asshat was the first one to go tonight.  I hated the smug look they always had on their face.

[TDT]

On 1/17/2018 at 11:18 AM, ZoqFotPik said:

Also, this is more of a general comment, but I could do without Alex's over exaggerated facial expressions especially when time starts to wind down and her screaming about getting everything on the plate. 

There needs to be a drinking game for this..for each time either she or another judge says this(or a variation thereof)..that dramatic"tension-building" music doesnt help either,its not like the chefs are trying to defuse a bomb lol

[cooksdelight]

Fortunately, the chefs don’t hear the dramatic music when they are cooking. Just Alex screaming.

[Kyanight]

I LOVE this show!  So sad not many people talk on the Chopped message board.

[Wings]

I have no problem with Alex.  I adore her and she can cook circles around all of these judges.

I have come to despise Aaron.  I want to grab a small piece of flesh on his face and twist it until he yelps.   

[cooksdelight]

Marc is my favorite. I bought his last cookbook, and since we’re friends on Facebook, I asked him if he’d mind sending me a signed bookplate. It arrived a few days later. The guy is a treasure.

[Wings]

1 minute ago, cooksdelight said:

Marc is my favorite. I bought his last cookbook, and since we’re friends on Facebook, I asked him if he’d mind sending me a signed bookplate. It arrived a few days later. The guy is a treasure.

I like Mike too, very much. Samuelson as well. 

Scott was on Beat Bobby Flay today and he said, as he watched, those raw onions are all you are going to taste!  So funny that.he violently hates them 

[cooksdelight]

If you know any kids who are interested in competing, contact this casting company.

[nitrofishblue]

The NOLA show was interesting. I can't recall the last time a chef forgot an ingredient and went on to win. Her second dish must have been something else if Marc said he didn't miss the okra.

[AAEBoiler]

2 hours ago, nitrofishblue said:

The NOLA show was interesting. I can't recall the last time a chef forgot an ingredient and went on to win. Her second dish must have been something else if Marc said he didn't miss the okra.

Yeah, I usually roll my eyes when the losing chef says, "the judges made the wrong decision" but that was flat out wrong! Who knows, adding the okra might have messed her dish up!

[nitrofishblue]

That was a tough choice to make. The losing chef actually had only one good dish and that was the first round appetizer. His second round dish was panned for not highlighting the basket ingredients. He featured and focused on the blackened sausage and that was not in the basket plus the serving was very small for an entree. Plus there was an issue about not having some sort of sauce to help the flavors. All three judges made the same observations. He had issues with his dessert. The winner really did a better job all around despite forgetting the okra.

[ZoqFotPik]

On 2/7/2018 at 3:35 PM, nitrofishblue said:

I can't recall the last time a chef forgot an ingredient and went on to win.

I think it's happened only one other time. Season 13 episode "Unsung Heroes".