Chopped 2019: Put Down the Chopsticks

[ZoqFotPik]

I knew the first guy was toast as soon as he said he thought he was safe in the waiting room. It's funny they did a bargain basket episode right after an episode with a5 wagyu. I guess that's how they paid for it.

[spiderpig]

On 10/22/2019 at 10:48 PM, Gramto6 said:

They haven't been too bad. At least no JZ eating sweets with chopsticks! All the sweets kind of make my teeth ache. I do prefer the savory competitions, but this was OK too.

Me too!  They have enough dessert programs on this net and I don't have a sweet tooth.

On 12/18/2019 at 8:28 PM, ZoqFotPik said:

I knew the first guy was toast as soon as he said he thought he was safe in the waiting room. It's funny they did a bargain basket episode right after an episode with a5 wagyu. I guess that's how they paid for it.

Yeah - we Primetimers are onto the editors shenanigans.  Although I enjoyed this ep much more than the unending Halloween and Thanksgiving baskets.

[Aileen]

WTAF was Chopped Sweets? It was a nightmare from start to finish and I don’t need Scott as a host.

[mlp]

6 hours ago, Aileen said:

WTAF was Chopped Sweets?

I was wondering that myself.  Scott was acting as both host and judge.  Regular Chopped hasn't been on for a couple weeks but I've been assuming it's because of the holiday scheduling.  I hope Ted isn't leaving the show.  It won't be the same without him.

[spiderpig]

4 hours ago, mlp said:

I was wondering that myself.  Scott was acting as both host and judge.  Regular Chopped hasn't been on for a couple weeks but I've been assuming it's because of the holiday scheduling.  I hope Ted isn't leaving the show.  It won't be the same without him.

 I love Ted.  Maybe he's fed up with the stupid gimmicks.

[libgirl2]

On 12/31/2019 at 7:29 AM, Aileen said:

WTAF was Chopped Sweets? It was a nightmare from start to finish and I don’t need Scott as a host.

I didn't like it. I prefer to see savory dishes. I think this might be a new show in the Chopped universe.

I have a 2016 episode of Chopped on and GZ is using a fork and knife! He started that silly chopstick act when Martha Stewart came on!

[Maverick]

 I think Chopped Sweets is a completely separate show, kind of like Chopped Junior.   The set is lit and decorated different and only has two judges instead of three...hopefully rotating judges.  Thiago bugs me almost as much as Dan who FN has been pimping as a judge lately.   For some reason they're also trying to make Scott Conant work as a pasty guru (which makes no sense given all the real bakers they have to find something to do with) so I guess that's why he got the host/judge role to make the connection back to main Chopped.

 I saw a commercial tonight for featuring Ted for new Chopped episodes touting how much harder the baskets are going to be this year so he's not going anywhere.   Unfortunately Martha was in the commercials (complaining that the ice cream was too salty) so she's sticking around too.    At least there's no one rapping 'there's a new judge on the Chopped scene'.

[mlp]

26 minutes ago, Maverick said:

 I saw a commercial tonight for featuring Ted for new Chopped episodes..........................

I came here to say the same thing.  I feel better now.

I don't care for Thiago either but I do like Dan Langan.  He was practically a kid when he first showed up on Cupcake Wars.  He's worked hard and become quite successful at a very young age.  I give him a lot of credit.

[Maverick]

 I'm sure he's good at what he does, but I can't stand him as a judge.   As I mentioned in another thread, he's basically the Melissa D'Arabian judge of the baking shows.  He's always delivering a negative comment (even if the product is near flawless).   I know all the judges do this sometimes, but he does it all the time and has this condescending way of saying it...just like Melissa.  

[Gramto6]

Arrgh! I just have to stop watching the episodes with Martha Stewart in them! Pleeeze a tostada with chopsticks?? I can't even imagine what the last round will bring!

[libgirl2]

10 hours ago, Gramto6 said:

Arrgh! I just have to stop watching the episodes with Martha Stewart in them! Pleeeze a tostada with chopsticks?? I can't even imagine what the last round will bring!

As soon as I saw her, I knew I would be annoyed. How the F do you eat a tostada with chopsticks? I get wanting to make sure the individual ingredients are fine, but the point is how they go together!  I fell asleep before dessert. How did that go? 

[Brookside]

If I were on Chopped eating everything with chopsticks, I have lots of friends who wouldn't hesitate to tell me how I came across as a complete dick.  And I'd stop.  I guess all Zacarian's friends are too sycophantic to tell him the truth.

[carrps]

WooHoo. I "know" Chris Kollar the winnah! His stepmom is the lady who cleaned/restored some oil paintings for me. Last year, she was telling me about his becoming a chocolatier. I've had his chocolates, and they're awesome. So glad he wasn't a jerk!

If that poor woman hadn't oversalted her ice cream, I think would have won. But that sounded nasty. I now tend to avoid "salted caramel" because it usually is waaay over salty, and the salt dominates the entire dish. I'm so not with Maneet on loving those salt bombs. A little salt can truly elevate at dish. Too much and it's inedible (for me).

 

[libgirl2]

I saw Martha was on again last night but decided to watch------ she used a fork!! Yes, its a miracle!!!! 

[mlp]

4 minutes ago, libgirl2 said:

I saw Martha was on again last night but decided to watch------ she used a fork!!

Maybe someone at FN has been reading the boards.  Finally.

I enjoyed the episode with the college kids.  They were more talented than some of the regular contestants.  I was also happy with the order of elimination and I liked the winner.

[libgirl2]

2 minutes ago, mlp said:

Maybe someone at FN has been reading the boards.  Finally.

I enjoyed the episode with the college kids.  They were more talented than some of the regular contestants.  I was also happy with the order of elimination and I liked the winner.

Maybe they were reading here?? I just know the first thing I thought was "holy crap! She's using a fork!!"

those kids really were talented. 

[xaxat]

I wonder if Jeffery went to chopsticks as a method of personal portion control.

I watched an old episode recently, filmed when he was still using a fork, and he was taking some healthy sized bites.

[Gramto6]

7 hours ago, xaxat said:

I wonder if Jeffery went to chopsticks as a method of personal portion control.

I watched an old episode recently, filmed when he was still using a fork, and he was taking some healthy sized bites.

That could well be a point. I've noticed on The Kitchen he often passes on some of the dishes or only eats a bite.   

[Rammchick]

20 hours ago, xaxat said:

I wonder if Jeffery went to chopsticks as a method of personal portion control.

I watched an old episode recently, filmed when he was still using a fork, and he was taking some healthy sized bites.

That could be, but as mentioned before, it appears that the primary reason for using chopsticks instead of metal utensils is that the metal can impart a taste to the food.  In a competition, you'd want to taste a dish exactly as intended, rather than being aware of some off flavors.  Whatever.  Seems ridiculous on this show in particular!

[libgirl2]

57 minutes ago, Rammchick said:

That could be, but as mentioned before, it appears that the primary reason for using chopsticks instead of metal utensils is that the metal can impart a taste to the food.  In a competition, you'd want to taste a dish exactly as intended, rather than being aware of some off flavors.  Whatever.  Seems ridiculous on this show in particular!

Then use a plastic fork and spoon. 

[xaxat]

2 hours ago, Rammchick said:

That could be, but as mentioned before, it appears that the primary reason for using chopsticks instead of metal utensils is that the metal can impart a taste to the food.  In a competition, you'd want to taste a dish exactly as intended, rather than being aware of some off flavors.  Whatever.  Seems ridiculous on this show in particular!

I've never bought that theory. The most prestigious cooking competition in the world is the Bocuse d'Or. (Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud have managed the US team in the past.) The judges there don't use chopsticks and the dishes are magnitudes more complex than Chopped.

 

Edited January 16, 2020 by xaxat

[libgirl2]

10 minutes ago, xaxat said:

I've never bought that theory. The most prestigious cooking competition in the world is the Bocuse d'Or. (Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud have managed the US team in the past.) The judges there don't use chopsticks and the dishes are magnitudes more complex than Chopped.

 

I have never seen chopsticks used on any cooking competition but for Chopped. 

[Gramto6]

7 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

I have never seen chopsticks used on any cooking competition but for Chopped. 

Well, they have been used when the food offered is Asian. I've seen them on Iron Chef several times, but only with Asian food and definitely not with ice cream!!

[Rammchick]

On 1/16/2020 at 11:21 AM, xaxat said:

I've never bought that theory. The most prestigious cooking competition in the world is the Bocuse d'Or. (Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud have managed the US team in the past.) The judges there don't use chopsticks and the dishes are magnitudes more complex than Chopped.

 

Don't kill the messenger, folks.  I didn't say it was my theory, or that I believed it, I just saw it on Reddit.  Someone posted that who seemed to be in the know 😉