1 00:00:01,227 --> 00:00:03,002 All right, it's time to get Chopped. 2 00:00:03,004 --> 00:00:04,962 We pulled social media stars 3 00:00:04,964 --> 00:00:06,463 that normally cook behind the camera. 4 00:00:06,465 --> 00:00:08,298 Say hi, guys. 5 00:00:08,300 --> 00:00:09,758 We got the sauce, you know? 6 00:00:09,760 --> 00:00:11,301 What is he doing? 7 00:00:11,303 --> 00:00:13,095 Making a TikTok mid-Chopped 8 00:00:13,472 --> 00:00:15,305 -Let's go! -[yelling] 9 00:00:15,307 --> 00:00:17,516 It needs to taste good, it needs to look good! 10 00:00:17,518 --> 00:00:20,269 Whoo! What have I gotten myself into? 11 00:00:20,271 --> 00:00:22,604 They don't get to do a second take. 12 00:00:22,681 --> 00:00:24,606 Oh, my God. 13 00:00:24,608 --> 00:00:26,692 There's no escaping the stress and the pressure. 14 00:00:26,944 --> 00:00:28,418 I'm terrified. 15 00:00:28,420 --> 00:00:30,529 I don't know if you're even supposed to shuck 'em. 16 00:00:30,531 --> 00:00:33,323 I can't really think straight. But what else is new? 17 00:00:33,325 --> 00:00:35,325 Is this dish going to go viral? 18 00:00:35,327 --> 00:00:37,244 Oh, that's looking money, baby. 19 00:00:37,246 --> 00:00:39,163 My knees are weak. 20 00:00:39,165 --> 00:00:40,664 Oh, my gosh. 21 00:00:40,666 --> 00:00:41,707 Let's make this happen. 22 00:00:42,251 --> 00:00:44,043 [clock ticking] 23 00:00:45,463 --> 00:00:46,712 I'm a Syrian-American, 24 00:00:46,714 --> 00:00:48,714 and I'm all about big, bold flavors. 25 00:00:48,716 --> 00:00:49,798 Remember, if their color don't change, 26 00:00:49,875 --> 00:00:51,366 no flavor was gained. 27 00:00:51,368 --> 00:00:53,635 I'm a cook and the founder of The Golden Balance, 28 00:00:53,637 --> 00:00:56,138 the online collective of all my favorite recipes. 29 00:00:56,215 --> 00:00:58,974 I currently have 4.9 millio TikTok followers, 30 00:00:58,976 --> 00:01:01,435 1.3 million Instagram followers. 31 00:01:01,437 --> 00:01:02,436 Honey chicken tenders. 32 00:01:02,513 --> 00:01:04,146 These were absolutely incredible. 33 00:01:04,148 --> 00:01:06,190 I'm ready to push myself to the limit, 34 00:01:06,233 --> 00:01:08,233 compete against other content creators, 35 00:01:08,235 --> 00:01:09,943 and make all the people that support me proud. 36 00:01:10,020 --> 00:01:11,820 That is a 10 out of 10 experience. 37 00:01:16,077 --> 00:01:18,952 Let's make one of my all-time favorite dinners. Chicken Piccata. 38 00:01:18,954 --> 00:01:21,371 I'm Alix Traeger, I'm a content creator. 39 00:01:21,415 --> 00:01:23,248 Add in your wine. Lemon juice. 40 00:01:23,250 --> 00:01:24,875 Most of my cooking videos 41 00:01:24,919 --> 00:01:27,044 center around viral food trends. 42 00:01:27,046 --> 00:01:28,962 Not only how the food tastes 43 00:01:29,039 --> 00:01:30,380 but visually, how it looks. 44 00:01:30,424 --> 00:01:32,508 Hakuna Piccata! 45 00:01:32,510 --> 00:01:36,178 My followers have come to expect a lot of laughs. 46 00:01:36,180 --> 00:01:37,179 [clattering] 47 00:01:37,181 --> 00:01:38,847 Maybe a spill or two. 48 00:01:38,849 --> 00:01:41,642 But hopefully making somethi delicious in the end. 49 00:01:41,718 --> 00:01:45,062 My strategy is to keep my cool and keep my confidence. 50 00:01:45,064 --> 00:01:49,108 I am going all in, and I'm bringing home the wi 51 00:01:51,654 --> 00:01:52,736 [H Woo Lee] I am a chef content creator 52 00:01:52,738 --> 00:01:54,338 based in Los Angeles. 53 00:01:54,340 --> 00:01:55,823 I have a video series calle Cooking For Myself. 54 00:01:55,825 --> 00:01:57,432 [clapping] 55 00:01:57,434 --> 00:02:00,202 Most of my recipes are fusing of different flavors 56 00:02:00,279 --> 00:02:03,080 from different countries, and I try to make dishes 57 00:02:03,082 --> 00:02:06,250 that usually seem out of reach more attainable. 58 00:02:06,961 --> 00:02:08,368 I like to compete. 59 00:02:08,370 --> 00:02:10,087 I feel like I'm good at working under pressure. 60 00:02:10,089 --> 00:02:14,049 I feel energized. I really wanna win Chopped. 61 00:02:14,969 --> 00:02:16,543 [Tway Da Bae] I was born in Vietnam, 62 00:02:16,620 --> 00:02:19,721 and I create really easy-to-follow recipes onlin 63 00:02:19,723 --> 00:02:22,015 focusing on Vietnamese cuisine. 64 00:02:22,092 --> 00:02:25,394 I'm super-passionate about sharing my culture. 65 00:02:25,396 --> 00:02:28,689 I am 100% very competitive. 66 00:02:28,765 --> 00:02:31,942 I am buckled in, ready to kill it. 67 00:02:31,944 --> 00:02:34,903 Say it with me. Canh Kho Qua Bitter melon soup. 68 00:02:34,905 --> 00:02:36,738 Cheers. [slurps] 69 00:02:36,740 --> 00:02:38,365 -So excited. -Whoo! 70 00:02:38,442 --> 00:02:39,741 Say hi, guys. 71 00:02:39,818 --> 00:02:43,036 [both] I'm so excited! 72 00:02:43,038 --> 00:02:45,038 -Wow. -Oh, wow. 73 00:02:45,115 --> 00:02:46,957 -Wow. -This is so cool. 74 00:02:47,001 --> 00:02:48,542 -Hey, guys! -Hello! 75 00:02:48,544 --> 00:02:50,419 -[Maneet] Welcome! -Oh, my God! 76 00:02:51,755 --> 00:02:52,838 [Ted] You're already at it. 77 00:02:52,840 --> 00:02:54,381 Always gotta get that content. 78 00:02:54,383 --> 00:02:55,632 [laughs] 79 00:02:55,634 --> 00:02:56,633 [Ted] Hello, everyone. 80 00:02:56,635 --> 00:02:58,051 -Hi! -Hi, Ted. 81 00:02:58,053 --> 00:03:00,012 [Ted] Your followers are used to 82 00:03:00,014 --> 00:03:01,680 eating with their eyes first. 83 00:03:01,682 --> 00:03:06,018 So our judges are expecting every dish to be Insta-worthy. 84 00:03:06,094 --> 00:03:07,394 -Got it? -Insta-worthy. 85 00:03:07,396 --> 00:03:08,854 Got it. 86 00:03:08,856 --> 00:03:10,814 -[Ted] All right, chefs, it's time. -We're doing this. 87 00:03:11,984 --> 00:03:13,233 Open your appetizer basket. 88 00:03:13,235 --> 00:03:14,443 [Tway] Whoo! 89 00:03:14,445 --> 00:03:15,903 Oh, man. 90 00:03:15,905 --> 00:03:18,405 [Ted] The mandatory ingredients are baked feta. 91 00:03:18,407 --> 00:03:21,033 Oh, wait! This is familiar. 92 00:03:21,109 --> 00:03:22,951 [Tway] Is this like the baked feta? 93 00:03:22,953 --> 00:03:24,453 [Alix] This is all the rage, yeah. 94 00:03:24,455 --> 00:03:25,829 [Ted] Mussels. 95 00:03:25,831 --> 00:03:27,998 I'm screwed. [laughs] 96 00:03:28,042 --> 00:03:30,500 I've never worked with a mussel in my entire life. 97 00:03:31,295 --> 00:03:32,628 I'm terrified. 98 00:03:33,380 --> 00:03:35,172 [Ted] Micro mizuna. 99 00:03:35,216 --> 00:03:36,715 -[Ahmad] Micro greens. -[Tway] Okay. 100 00:03:36,792 --> 00:03:38,550 And I have no clue what this is. 101 00:03:38,552 --> 00:03:40,427 [Ted] And a raindrop cake. 102 00:03:41,222 --> 00:03:43,305 Okay. 103 00:03:43,307 --> 00:03:46,266 Warning, this first 30-minute round 104 00:03:46,268 --> 00:03:47,851 tends to fly by. 105 00:03:47,895 --> 00:03:49,811 Also, time starts now. 106 00:03:49,888 --> 00:03:52,564 -[Ted] Let's go! -[Maneet] Go, go, go! 107 00:03:52,641 --> 00:03:53,941 -Whoo! -Oh, my gosh. 108 00:03:54,735 --> 00:03:56,652 [Tway] Oh, my God, we're doing this. 109 00:03:58,864 --> 00:04:00,822 [Ted] Maneet, Geoffrey, you are joined by 110 00:04:00,899 --> 00:04:03,659 online cooking instructor and Chopped champion, 111 00:04:03,735 --> 00:04:05,744 Chef Joe Sasto. Welcome, Joe. 112 00:04:05,746 --> 00:04:08,080 -Thank you for having me. Very excited. -[Maneet] Welcome! 113 00:04:08,082 --> 00:04:10,290 [Joe] I think what makes this so hard here today 114 00:04:10,367 --> 00:04:12,793 is that we pulled social media stars 115 00:04:12,869 --> 00:04:14,294 that normally cook behind the camera, 116 00:04:14,296 --> 00:04:15,712 and challenge them to do something 117 00:04:15,714 --> 00:04:18,048 where they don't get to do a second take. 118 00:04:18,050 --> 00:04:20,092 [Geoffrey] Yeah, like, this is real and there's no escaping 119 00:04:20,094 --> 00:04:22,052 -the stress and the pressure. -Uh-huh. 120 00:04:22,346 --> 00:04:25,305 One portion, two portions. 121 00:04:25,307 --> 00:04:27,724 As a content creator, it feels really cool 122 00:04:27,726 --> 00:04:29,601 to compete against other content creators. 123 00:04:29,678 --> 00:04:32,521 But when I'm making my video I have nothing behind me. 124 00:04:32,523 --> 00:04:34,022 But in the Chopped kitch 125 00:04:34,024 --> 00:04:35,482 there's a clock, and there's all the judges. 126 00:04:35,484 --> 00:04:37,234 I really just have to zone everything out 127 00:04:37,278 --> 00:04:39,027 and bring my A game. 128 00:04:41,073 --> 00:04:44,074 I'm making baked feta lingui with a side of mussels. 129 00:04:44,118 --> 00:04:46,034 Add some depth of flavor. 130 00:04:46,829 --> 00:04:48,203 Chili powder. 131 00:04:48,205 --> 00:04:49,529 So, to make my sauce I'm gonna grab 132 00:04:49,531 --> 00:04:51,039 the tomatoes, the garlic, the shallot, 133 00:04:51,041 --> 00:04:52,666 from the baked feta, 134 00:04:52,668 --> 00:04:54,960 and I'm gonna start developing all that beautiful flavor. 135 00:04:55,037 --> 00:04:56,545 I want it to be silky smooth. 136 00:04:56,547 --> 00:04:58,630 Ahmad, is this dish going to go viral? 137 00:04:58,632 --> 00:05:00,632 I hope so. 138 00:05:00,634 --> 00:05:04,303 [Maneet] You know, in addition to taste, creativity, 139 00:05:04,305 --> 00:05:08,432 we are also looking at these dishes being Insta-worthy. 140 00:05:08,475 --> 00:05:11,768 All of these social media stars are stars 141 00:05:11,770 --> 00:05:15,689 because they have managed to entice people 142 00:05:15,766 --> 00:05:17,524 through just the screen 143 00:05:17,601 --> 00:05:20,110 with how beautiful their food looks. 144 00:05:20,112 --> 00:05:21,820 And that is pretty much the expectation 145 00:05:21,897 --> 00:05:23,655 -that we have right now. -Uh-huh. 146 00:05:23,657 --> 00:05:25,490 Okay. 147 00:05:25,492 --> 00:05:29,036 So, raindrop cake is a Japanese-inspired dessert. 148 00:05:29,038 --> 00:05:31,747 It's essentially water flavored with sugar, 149 00:05:31,782 --> 00:05:32,873 and then it's set with agar 150 00:05:32,875 --> 00:05:34,875 And it looks like a raindrop 151 00:05:34,951 --> 00:05:38,003 -So it could somehow throw some people off. -[Geoffrey] Yeah. 152 00:05:38,005 --> 00:05:39,254 [Ahmad] How you feeling already? 153 00:05:39,256 --> 00:05:40,922 -[Tway] I feel great. -I'm in my zone. 154 00:05:40,999 --> 00:05:43,216 All right, let's do it, let's get it. 155 00:05:43,293 --> 00:05:45,469 I'm really excited to see the mussels, 156 00:05:45,471 --> 00:05:48,847 because in Vietnamese cooking there is a lot of seafood. 157 00:05:48,924 --> 00:05:50,766 And I want to steam my mussels 158 00:05:50,842 --> 00:05:54,227 in a broth with the raindrop cake. 159 00:05:55,606 --> 00:05:58,815 I am making a raindrop-cake steamed mussel 160 00:05:58,817 --> 00:06:01,401 with baked feta and tomato crostini. 161 00:06:04,990 --> 00:06:06,948 Oh, love that! 162 00:06:07,025 --> 00:06:09,117 I can't really think straight. [laughs] 163 00:06:09,119 --> 00:06:11,244 Oh, my gosh! [laughs] 164 00:06:11,246 --> 00:06:13,413 What have I gotten myself into? 165 00:06:13,490 --> 00:06:14,864 Okay. 166 00:06:16,627 --> 00:06:19,503 I know mussels are often served with linguine. 167 00:06:20,214 --> 00:06:22,798 I'm making linguine with mussels 168 00:06:22,874 --> 00:06:24,257 in a white wine tomato sauce 169 00:06:24,259 --> 00:06:26,426 topped with dressed mizuna. 170 00:06:27,638 --> 00:06:30,764 I'm also gonna add in tomato in the baked feta. 171 00:06:34,853 --> 00:06:36,561 Does anyone have panko breadcrumbs? 172 00:06:36,563 --> 00:06:38,313 -[Alix] I have them! -You do? 173 00:06:38,315 --> 00:06:39,856 Thank you. 174 00:06:39,900 --> 00:06:41,400 Oh, my God. 175 00:06:41,402 --> 00:06:43,318 I've never cooked with mussels, 176 00:06:43,320 --> 00:06:45,070 but I'm thinking it'll work really well fried. 177 00:06:45,147 --> 00:06:48,573 I'm making fried mussels with a tomato sauce. 178 00:06:48,650 --> 00:06:51,701 So, I grab a knife and I tr to start shucking the mussel 179 00:06:51,745 --> 00:06:55,038 I've actually never worked with mussels. 180 00:06:55,082 --> 00:06:57,791 I don't know if you're even supposed to shuck 'em. 181 00:06:57,826 --> 00:07:00,377 It's not quite coming out the way I want. 182 00:07:00,421 --> 00:07:02,629 Is there, like, a call-a-friend line thing? 183 00:07:04,258 --> 00:07:05,966 [Ted] H Woo is shucking his mussels. 184 00:07:06,042 --> 00:07:07,926 He's shucking his raw mussels. 185 00:07:08,003 --> 00:07:09,803 [Ted] Which you really don't need to do. 186 00:07:09,880 --> 00:07:11,179 You just need to heat them. 187 00:07:11,181 --> 00:07:12,639 [both] And they'll open themselves. 188 00:07:12,716 --> 00:07:14,182 [Ted] Very obligingly. 189 00:07:14,217 --> 00:07:16,059 Not the time to learn how to do this. 190 00:07:16,937 --> 00:07:19,354 Shucking the mussels is not working. 191 00:07:19,431 --> 00:07:20,814 And then I realize you're probably supposed 192 00:07:20,816 --> 00:07:22,399 to steam them! [laughs] 193 00:07:25,237 --> 00:07:26,528 I need wine. 194 00:07:27,197 --> 00:07:29,030 Cooks, just under 20 minutes to go. 195 00:07:29,032 --> 00:07:32,200 Whoo! Where does the time go? 196 00:07:34,121 --> 00:07:35,954 [Ahmad] Okay. 197 00:07:36,031 --> 00:07:37,706 As I'm tasting my sauce I feel like it needs 198 00:07:37,708 --> 00:07:39,332 a little bit more depth of flavor, 199 00:07:39,334 --> 00:07:41,835 so I add some sriracha to give it a nice little kick. 200 00:07:42,838 --> 00:07:44,504 Oh, that's looking money, baby. 201 00:07:46,925 --> 00:07:48,717 I grab some of that raindrop cake 202 00:07:48,719 --> 00:07:51,178 and I toss it into the sauc just to add some sweetness. 203 00:07:51,254 --> 00:07:52,596 Mussels going in. 204 00:07:54,349 --> 00:07:56,641 Gotta flick that wrist a little bit. 205 00:07:56,643 --> 00:07:59,561 Okay, cooks, less than 10 minutes to go here. 206 00:07:59,563 --> 00:08:01,855 [Tway] I'm making a spread for my crostini, 207 00:08:01,857 --> 00:08:06,151 and I blend up the feta and the tomatoes together. 208 00:08:07,738 --> 00:08:11,865 I have close to 600,000 TikTok followers, 209 00:08:11,942 --> 00:08:14,493 360,000 Instagram followers 210 00:08:14,495 --> 00:08:15,869 It's a lot of eyes. 211 00:08:15,871 --> 00:08:18,121 And it can get really scary sometimes. 212 00:08:18,123 --> 00:08:21,166 But what really, like, grounds me 213 00:08:21,168 --> 00:08:25,003 is knowing that these peopl are inspired by me. 214 00:08:25,005 --> 00:08:26,296 Whoo! 215 00:08:26,298 --> 00:08:27,714 These look great. 216 00:08:27,791 --> 00:08:29,341 Seven minutes, okay. 217 00:08:31,011 --> 00:08:34,721 I love feta, so I have the idea to make breaded fet 218 00:08:34,798 --> 00:08:37,265 using the roasted soy bean powder 219 00:08:37,342 --> 00:08:38,517 from the raindrop cake. 220 00:08:38,519 --> 00:08:40,477 This is a little bit of a risky move, 221 00:08:40,479 --> 00:08:41,561 because I don't know if the cheese 222 00:08:41,638 --> 00:08:43,396 is gonna explode from this. 223 00:08:43,473 --> 00:08:45,732 I'm just praying that this works. 224 00:08:45,809 --> 00:08:48,443 [Maneet] Alix took the feta cheese, coated it, 225 00:08:48,445 --> 00:08:49,945 and threw it into the fryer. 226 00:08:49,947 --> 00:08:52,155 -Oh, I like that idea. -Which is a great idea. 227 00:08:53,534 --> 00:08:55,575 [H Woo] My mussels are now finally opening up, 228 00:08:55,652 --> 00:08:57,018 so I'm battering my mussels 229 00:08:57,020 --> 00:08:59,871 in a classic flour, egg, and panko mixture, 230 00:08:59,873 --> 00:09:01,414 and drop them in the deep fryer. 231 00:09:03,085 --> 00:09:05,252 To go with my mussels, I'm making a sauce 232 00:09:05,254 --> 00:09:06,878 from the baked feta. 233 00:09:06,880 --> 00:09:08,838 I'm using the tomatoes, the shallot, 234 00:09:08,873 --> 00:09:10,382 the garlic, and the olive oi 235 00:09:10,458 --> 00:09:12,926 Raindrop cake doesn't have much of a taste, 236 00:09:12,928 --> 00:09:14,970 so I'm hoping that I can put it into the sauce 237 00:09:14,972 --> 00:09:16,930 as a thickener. 238 00:09:17,474 --> 00:09:19,432 Chefs, five minutes to go. 239 00:09:19,434 --> 00:09:20,976 No way! 240 00:09:20,978 --> 00:09:23,937 It is flying. 241 00:09:23,939 --> 00:09:27,691 Time is running out, and whe I go to check on my broth, 242 00:09:27,693 --> 00:09:29,985 half of it is burnt. 243 00:09:30,061 --> 00:09:32,487 [gasps] Oh, my God. 244 00:09:32,564 --> 00:09:34,114 There's no way that I could 245 00:09:34,116 --> 00:09:36,783 cook these mussels in the broth. 246 00:09:36,785 --> 00:09:39,411 It's not a broth at this point. 247 00:09:40,581 --> 00:09:42,914 I'm starting to really freak out. 248 00:09:43,417 --> 00:09:45,208 I think I [bleep] up. 249 00:09:46,378 --> 00:09:48,295 [clock ticking] 250 00:09:54,845 --> 00:09:56,303 Come on! 251 00:09:57,556 --> 00:09:58,796 [Tway gasps] 252 00:09:58,873 --> 00:10:01,725 The sugar and the sake that's in the broth 253 00:10:01,768 --> 00:10:02,851 is completely burnt. 254 00:10:02,853 --> 00:10:04,269 I have to start over. 255 00:10:04,346 --> 00:10:07,814 All I can do now is to toss and start over. 256 00:10:07,816 --> 00:10:09,316 Back in business. 257 00:10:09,318 --> 00:10:11,401 Okay, less than two minutes to go, folks. 258 00:10:13,655 --> 00:10:16,031 [Ahmad] Micro mizuna, I'm thinking to kind of 259 00:10:16,107 --> 00:10:17,991 dress them up with a little bit of olive oil, 260 00:10:17,993 --> 00:10:19,367 and just give them a little bit more love. 261 00:10:19,369 --> 00:10:21,286 And then I take out my tweezers, 262 00:10:21,363 --> 00:10:22,978 and I'm like, I need to make this look pretty. 263 00:10:24,374 --> 00:10:27,459 [Maneet] I'm really impressed with Ahmad's move right now. 264 00:10:27,461 --> 00:10:30,295 He is looking at it being Insta-worthy. 265 00:10:30,297 --> 00:10:31,921 [Ted] That is lovely. 266 00:10:31,965 --> 00:10:33,256 I'm stealing that. 267 00:10:33,258 --> 00:10:34,924 [Alix] Micro mizuna. 268 00:10:34,968 --> 00:10:36,301 They're micro greens, 269 00:10:36,378 --> 00:10:38,637 and micro greens tend to have a nice, like, 270 00:10:38,713 --> 00:10:40,096 peppery flavor. 271 00:10:40,098 --> 00:10:42,474 And so I think they will go really great 272 00:10:42,476 --> 00:10:44,392 alongside my pasta. 273 00:10:44,394 --> 00:10:46,061 So I'm gonna dress them 274 00:10:46,063 --> 00:10:48,063 in some olive oil and lemon juice. 275 00:10:48,065 --> 00:10:49,230 Whoo! 276 00:10:50,359 --> 00:10:52,692 One minute to go, chefs. 277 00:10:53,612 --> 00:10:56,029 [Tway] I'm going to dress up this mizuna. 278 00:10:56,031 --> 00:10:58,823 Olive oil, little bit of citrus. 279 00:10:58,825 --> 00:11:01,159 -[Maneet] Come on, guys! -[Joe] H Woo, get it on the plate. 280 00:11:01,161 --> 00:11:02,719 [H Woo] Time's running out. 281 00:11:02,721 --> 00:11:05,205 I decide to use the micro mizuna in my sauce 282 00:11:07,084 --> 00:11:08,500 -Let's go. -Oh, my goodness. 283 00:11:08,502 --> 00:11:09,751 -[Maneet] Come on, let's go. -Oh, my gosh. 284 00:11:09,828 --> 00:11:11,086 -[Ted] 30 seconds! -It needs to taste good. 285 00:11:11,162 --> 00:11:12,587 It needs to look good! 286 00:11:12,589 --> 00:11:14,047 My knees are weak. 287 00:11:15,425 --> 00:11:17,634 [Ted] Stay in the zone till the end, chefs. 288 00:11:18,470 --> 00:11:22,722 10, nine, eight, seven, 289 00:11:22,799 --> 00:11:26,267 -six, five, four... -Oh, my God. 290 00:11:26,269 --> 00:11:30,397 ...three, two, one. Time's up. 291 00:11:30,473 --> 00:11:31,648 -Whoo! -[applause] 292 00:11:31,650 --> 00:11:32,857 Oh, my God. 293 00:11:34,069 --> 00:11:35,860 What a wild ride. Well done. 294 00:11:35,862 --> 00:11:39,364 My heart is beating as fast as that round. 295 00:11:42,869 --> 00:11:44,869 [H Woo] You know, I learned one thing here, and it's tha 296 00:11:44,871 --> 00:11:46,663 you don't just shuck a musse 297 00:11:46,707 --> 00:11:49,249 You just gotta cook it first I hope they love it. 298 00:11:49,325 --> 00:11:50,709 I doubt they will. 299 00:11:51,336 --> 00:11:54,212 Okay, this is my final dish. 300 00:11:54,214 --> 00:11:57,340 [laughing] Look at the mess I made! 301 00:11:57,342 --> 00:11:58,866 Classic Alix. 302 00:11:58,944 --> 00:12:00,844 -Actually crazy. -[H Woo] That was actually crazy. 303 00:12:10,814 --> 00:12:13,398 [Ted] You have arrived at the chopping block. 304 00:12:13,400 --> 00:12:16,526 You worked with a first basket of baked feta, 305 00:12:16,528 --> 00:12:22,115 mussels, micro mizuna, and a raindrop cake. 306 00:12:22,150 --> 00:12:24,909 Ahmad, would you please tell us about your appetizer. 307 00:12:24,986 --> 00:12:26,995 I made a creamy tomato linguine 308 00:12:26,997 --> 00:12:28,121 with a side of mussels. 309 00:12:28,874 --> 00:12:30,198 I love making pasta. 310 00:12:30,200 --> 00:12:31,732 Anything with a lot of carbs, I'm a fan of. 311 00:12:31,734 --> 00:12:34,544 But I'm not used to cooking mussels, only building them! 312 00:12:34,546 --> 00:12:36,546 [all laugh] 313 00:12:36,548 --> 00:12:38,590 -That wasn't planned, I promise! -[chuckles] 314 00:12:38,592 --> 00:12:39,924 So, what got you into cooking? 315 00:12:39,926 --> 00:12:42,218 Just growing up, I always loved eating, 316 00:12:42,220 --> 00:12:44,345 so I would just always spend my time watching Food Network. 317 00:12:44,422 --> 00:12:46,723 And then after high school I had gained a lot of weight, 318 00:12:46,725 --> 00:12:48,007 and I started losing weight eating good food, 319 00:12:48,009 --> 00:12:50,018 and I thought I would share it with the world. 320 00:12:50,094 --> 00:12:51,186 [Geoffrey] It's a good plate of pasta. 321 00:12:51,188 --> 00:12:52,979 It's restrained, which is good. 322 00:12:52,981 --> 00:12:54,647 It's a very nice cook on the mussels. 323 00:12:54,649 --> 00:12:56,983 The sauce is good, I like the fact that the sweet 324 00:12:56,985 --> 00:12:58,485 balanced nicely against the sriracha. 325 00:12:58,487 --> 00:12:59,986 Thank you very much. 326 00:13:00,063 --> 00:13:05,450 Ahmad, it is a deceptively simple dish that you've given, 327 00:13:05,527 --> 00:13:09,120 but the amount of time that you took to develop flavors 328 00:13:09,122 --> 00:13:11,498 in that sauce, you can taste that. 329 00:13:11,500 --> 00:13:13,124 It all comes together very well. 330 00:13:13,293 --> 00:13:14,942 [Joe] I like this dish. 331 00:13:15,020 --> 00:13:17,337 The way this looked, I thought was very social-media-worthy. 332 00:13:17,413 --> 00:13:19,005 It was craveable. 333 00:13:19,007 --> 00:13:21,132 I feel like the pasta itself 334 00:13:21,134 --> 00:13:22,675 could be seasoned a little more. 335 00:13:22,677 --> 00:13:25,970 But overall, a really great appetizer to start this off. 336 00:13:26,047 --> 00:13:27,096 Thank you very much. 337 00:13:27,098 --> 00:13:28,515 Next up, Tway. 338 00:13:28,517 --> 00:13:31,768 I made raindrop-cake-steamed mussels 339 00:13:31,770 --> 00:13:34,854 with baked feta and tomato crostini. 340 00:13:37,275 --> 00:13:38,733 These mussels... 341 00:13:40,237 --> 00:13:41,986 are absolutely delicious. 342 00:13:41,988 --> 00:13:43,738 [sighs with relief] 343 00:13:43,740 --> 00:13:45,949 -They're cooked perfectly. -Thank you. 344 00:13:46,576 --> 00:13:48,368 [Joe] Your use of the raindrop cake, 345 00:13:48,444 --> 00:13:50,912 pairing it with the broth, with the mussels, 346 00:13:50,989 --> 00:13:52,247 stroke of genius. 347 00:13:52,249 --> 00:13:53,331 I love that with the flavors 348 00:13:53,333 --> 00:13:54,415 of the sake and the fish sauce. 349 00:13:54,417 --> 00:13:55,792 Thank you. 350 00:13:55,794 --> 00:13:57,210 [Geoffrey] Um... 351 00:13:57,287 --> 00:13:59,504 The broth is good. 352 00:13:59,506 --> 00:14:02,298 But the trick of the basket is you take the feta, 353 00:14:02,300 --> 00:14:04,425 and somehow make it go with this. 354 00:14:04,553 --> 00:14:06,427 Basically you just slathered this on top 355 00:14:06,504 --> 00:14:08,054 and, like, called it a day. 356 00:14:09,307 --> 00:14:11,474 So, Tway, a lot of people might not realize 357 00:14:11,476 --> 00:14:13,518 that achieving social media prominence 358 00:14:13,520 --> 00:14:14,668 takes a lot of work. 359 00:14:14,670 --> 00:14:16,437 Can you talk about how you've done it? 360 00:14:16,439 --> 00:14:19,107 I've honestly always loved the camera. 361 00:14:19,109 --> 00:14:22,318 And I share mostly Vietnamese food, 362 00:14:22,320 --> 00:14:23,436 because I think a lot of people 363 00:14:23,438 --> 00:14:25,613 are intimidated by Vietnamese cooking. 364 00:14:25,615 --> 00:14:28,199 And my goal is to make people feel like 365 00:14:28,276 --> 00:14:31,703 -it's attainable to do. -[Ted] Wow. 366 00:14:31,779 --> 00:14:34,372 Thank you, Tway. Next up, H Woo. 367 00:14:34,374 --> 00:14:36,791 So, here I have fried mussels 368 00:14:36,793 --> 00:14:40,044 with a tomato, raindrop cake sauce. 369 00:14:44,301 --> 00:14:48,011 I like the sauce. It's sweet, and the bread's very good. 370 00:14:48,013 --> 00:14:50,013 I must say, it is Insta-worthy. 371 00:14:50,015 --> 00:14:52,307 Um, I think it's a good appetizer. 372 00:14:52,309 --> 00:14:54,058 Thank you, Chef. 373 00:14:54,060 --> 00:14:57,061 Let's start by talking about the sauce. 374 00:14:57,939 --> 00:15:01,316 The sauce is incredible. 375 00:15:02,485 --> 00:15:05,987 But the thing with mussels is that you cooked it twice. 376 00:15:05,989 --> 00:15:07,030 -Right? -I did. 377 00:15:07,073 --> 00:15:09,240 So it became tough. 378 00:15:09,242 --> 00:15:12,410 I think those mussels were your biggest pitfall. 379 00:15:12,487 --> 00:15:15,246 But they are totally redeemed by that sauce. 380 00:15:15,248 --> 00:15:17,290 -Well done. -Thank you, Chef. 381 00:15:17,292 --> 00:15:20,168 Thank you, H Woo. Finally, Alix. 382 00:15:20,170 --> 00:15:22,879 So, my starter is linguine 383 00:15:22,881 --> 00:15:24,964 with a white wine and tomato sauce, 384 00:15:24,966 --> 00:15:28,134 with breaded feta, AKA "breada." 385 00:15:28,136 --> 00:15:30,261 Is that a new trend that you're going to start? 386 00:15:30,263 --> 00:15:33,222 Right breada, yeah, it's the new TikTok trend. [laughs] 387 00:15:34,225 --> 00:15:35,850 [Maneet] Alix, you might be on to something 388 00:15:35,852 --> 00:15:38,978 with this breada. That is delicious. 389 00:15:38,980 --> 00:15:43,149 Deep-fried cheese can always be a very risky move, 390 00:15:43,226 --> 00:15:45,360 because if you haven't coated it properly, 391 00:15:45,436 --> 00:15:48,112 it can just seep out into the fryer. 392 00:15:48,114 --> 00:15:51,157 -So that was expertly done. -Thank you. 393 00:15:51,159 --> 00:15:53,910 Yeah, I second the breada was very good. 394 00:15:53,912 --> 00:15:55,495 But pasta's one of the hardest 395 00:15:55,497 --> 00:15:56,829 things in the world to cook properly. 396 00:15:57,248 --> 00:15:58,873 And so when you grab it, 397 00:15:58,875 --> 00:16:00,333 you're grabbing, like, Kryptonite. 398 00:16:00,335 --> 00:16:02,293 And no one cooked the pasta correctly. 399 00:16:02,295 --> 00:16:03,586 No one put salt in the water. 400 00:16:03,588 --> 00:16:05,797 It's a classic mistake. 401 00:16:06,716 --> 00:16:10,051 I don't know about you judges, but my mussels 402 00:16:10,053 --> 00:16:11,511 could have been cooked slightly less. 403 00:16:11,513 --> 00:16:13,972 But that micro mizuna, the way you dressed it, 404 00:16:13,974 --> 00:16:15,807 I really appreciate that. 405 00:16:15,883 --> 00:16:18,518 It added that freshness and it really kind of helped balance out. 406 00:16:20,397 --> 00:16:21,896 Tell us about your online work. 407 00:16:21,898 --> 00:16:24,524 So, I actually have always loved to cook. 408 00:16:24,600 --> 00:16:27,902 I am self-taught and I'm accident-prone, 409 00:16:27,904 --> 00:16:31,155 -and spill and make messes. -[Ted laughs] 410 00:16:31,157 --> 00:16:34,617 And a big part of my platform is making mistakes, 411 00:16:34,619 --> 00:16:36,327 but at the end of the day, I just like 412 00:16:36,329 --> 00:16:38,413 to have a lot of fun in the kitchen. 413 00:16:38,489 --> 00:16:41,207 [Ted] I love that you all have this message that we all 414 00:16:41,284 --> 00:16:43,710 -deserve a place in the kitchen. -Yeah. 415 00:16:49,175 --> 00:16:50,383 [Ahmad] What's worrying me is the fact that 416 00:16:50,460 --> 00:16:52,135 I didn't salt the water properly. 417 00:16:52,137 --> 00:16:55,346 But I think H Woo might be on the chopping block, 418 00:16:55,348 --> 00:16:57,724 just for the fact that he overcooked those mussels 419 00:16:59,561 --> 00:17:01,811 [H Woo] I'm feeling more unsure than confident. 420 00:17:01,813 --> 00:17:05,314 I'm confident in my unsureness, so... 421 00:17:10,530 --> 00:17:12,321 [clock ticking] 422 00:17:18,580 --> 00:17:22,290 So, whose dish is on the chopping block? 423 00:17:22,292 --> 00:17:25,293 [intense music playing] 424 00:17:28,715 --> 00:17:30,923 Oh, my God. 425 00:17:31,000 --> 00:17:34,343 [Ted] Alix, you've been chopped. Judges. 426 00:17:34,387 --> 00:17:37,180 Alix, you didn't have enough salt in the water 427 00:17:37,223 --> 00:17:38,681 when you cooked the pasta. 428 00:17:38,716 --> 00:17:42,018 And the mussels were overcooked. 429 00:17:42,062 --> 00:17:44,312 And so we had to chop you. 430 00:17:44,388 --> 00:17:46,230 Thank you so much, chefs. 431 00:17:46,307 --> 00:17:48,191 -[applause] -Good luck, Alix. 432 00:17:50,028 --> 00:17:51,627 [Alix] I'm a little disappointed, 433 00:17:51,629 --> 00:17:54,030 but if you watch any of my videos you know that 434 00:17:54,074 --> 00:17:57,408 I make mistakes, and I think that's what cooking is about, 435 00:17:57,410 --> 00:17:59,035 and that's what life is about. 436 00:17:59,079 --> 00:18:00,411 Chopped! 437 00:18:04,125 --> 00:18:06,626 The vibes are immaculate at the moment. 438 00:18:06,702 --> 00:18:08,002 He's always about vibes. 439 00:18:08,079 --> 00:18:10,421 [Ted] Tway, Ahmad, H Woo. 440 00:18:10,423 --> 00:18:13,049 Time to acquaint yourselves with this second basket. 441 00:18:14,636 --> 00:18:16,302 Oh, my God. 442 00:18:17,222 --> 00:18:18,930 Open it up. 443 00:18:19,641 --> 00:18:21,724 -What? -Eurgh! 444 00:18:22,102 --> 00:18:23,893 What is this? [chuckles] 445 00:18:23,895 --> 00:18:26,896 -[Ted] It's rainbow brownies -[Tway] This is weird. 446 00:18:26,940 --> 00:18:28,523 You also have lamb loin. 447 00:18:28,599 --> 00:18:30,441 Ah. Lamb loin, that's my baby. 448 00:18:30,518 --> 00:18:33,778 All right, this looks like some sort of beet hummus. 449 00:18:33,780 --> 00:18:35,404 [Ted] Beet hummus. 450 00:18:35,406 --> 00:18:38,199 And 15-hour potatoes. 451 00:18:39,661 --> 00:18:41,035 [Tway] Good luck. 452 00:18:41,746 --> 00:18:43,538 [Ted] 30 minutes for the entrée round. 453 00:18:45,500 --> 00:18:47,708 -Clock starts now. -[Maneet] Go, go, go! 454 00:18:47,710 --> 00:18:48,709 -Let's go! -Whoo-hoo! 455 00:18:48,711 --> 00:18:50,253 On your right. 456 00:18:50,255 --> 00:18:52,421 [Ted] Judges, the basket almost has 457 00:18:52,423 --> 00:18:53,881 a little bit of a Middle Eastern feel to it 458 00:18:53,883 --> 00:18:56,134 with the hummus and the lamb. 459 00:18:56,136 --> 00:18:58,010 Is that the direction that you would take? 460 00:18:58,012 --> 00:18:59,011 I don't see why not. 461 00:18:59,088 --> 00:19:00,462 I grew up on lamb. 462 00:19:00,473 --> 00:19:02,140 It's basically a rack of lamb without the bones. 463 00:19:02,142 --> 00:19:04,183 [Tway] Oh, this is beautiful. 464 00:19:04,185 --> 00:19:07,854 The trick is that it doesn't have a lot of fat on it. 465 00:19:07,930 --> 00:19:10,648 So the chances of it getting overcooked 466 00:19:10,650 --> 00:19:12,441 is very, very high. 467 00:19:13,278 --> 00:19:14,652 [Ahmad] All right, let's do this. 468 00:19:14,654 --> 00:19:16,654 So, I'm excited to see that lamb loin. 469 00:19:16,656 --> 00:19:18,364 It does not have a lot of fa 470 00:19:18,366 --> 00:19:20,616 so I wanna introduce some fa as some seasoning. 471 00:19:21,202 --> 00:19:22,910 I'm making spiced lamb loin 472 00:19:22,912 --> 00:19:24,620 with a beet vinaigrette Fattoush. 473 00:19:26,082 --> 00:19:27,999 I add a little bit of olive oil and mint, 474 00:19:28,001 --> 00:19:29,584 and I start butter-basting the lamb. 475 00:19:29,660 --> 00:19:30,710 [Ted] That's good. 476 00:19:34,966 --> 00:19:37,216 [sizzling] 477 00:19:37,293 --> 00:19:39,677 [Tway] I've never had lamb in a quesadilla before, 478 00:19:39,754 --> 00:19:41,470 but I love trying new things. 479 00:19:42,432 --> 00:19:43,973 I'm feeling it. 480 00:19:43,975 --> 00:19:47,518 So, I'm making a lamb and potato quesadilla 481 00:19:47,595 --> 00:19:49,937 Oh, that smells great! 482 00:19:52,567 --> 00:19:54,108 To go with my quesadilla, 483 00:19:54,185 --> 00:19:56,360 I am making a hummus and brownie sauce. 484 00:19:56,437 --> 00:19:57,945 [slamming] 485 00:19:57,947 --> 00:19:59,363 [Geoffrey] She's making a quesadilla. 486 00:19:59,440 --> 00:20:01,449 And she's using the rainbow brownie for a sauce. 487 00:20:01,525 --> 00:20:03,284 -Oh, interesting. -Interesting, yes. 488 00:20:03,286 --> 00:20:04,660 My word exactly. 489 00:20:04,704 --> 00:20:06,996 That could either be a stroke of genius, 490 00:20:06,998 --> 00:20:09,123 or a huge mistake. 491 00:20:12,503 --> 00:20:14,045 [Joe] We have the rainbow brownies. 492 00:20:14,047 --> 00:20:15,922 If there's anything that the Internet loves, 493 00:20:15,998 --> 00:20:18,424 it's rainbows. And so these aren't just brownies, 494 00:20:18,459 --> 00:20:21,385 they're brownies and cookies layered together. 495 00:20:21,387 --> 00:20:24,430 [Maneet] I would probably powder the rainbow brownies, 496 00:20:24,432 --> 00:20:25,723 -make a spice blend. -[Joe] Dry it out. 497 00:20:25,725 --> 00:20:27,600 And then dry rub that on the lamb. 498 00:20:27,602 --> 00:20:29,435 -Use it as a crust to roll the loin in it. -Yeah. 499 00:20:29,512 --> 00:20:31,145 Yeah, that's a very, very good idea. 500 00:20:35,026 --> 00:20:36,817 [H Woo] Rainbow brownies. 501 00:20:36,894 --> 00:20:39,070 I think certain foods should stay on social media 502 00:20:39,146 --> 00:20:40,196 and out of the kitchen. 503 00:20:40,615 --> 00:20:41,797 [chuckles softly] 504 00:20:41,799 --> 00:20:43,950 I'm kinda just winging it right now. 505 00:20:43,952 --> 00:20:46,661 But lamb loin will work really well fried. 506 00:20:46,737 --> 00:20:48,204 I am cutting up the brownie 507 00:20:48,206 --> 00:20:51,207 and putting it into a buttermilk batter. 508 00:20:51,209 --> 00:20:53,376 And I wanna pound out this lamb 509 00:20:53,378 --> 00:20:54,460 so it can get really thin. 510 00:20:54,462 --> 00:20:58,673 [forcefully pounding lamb] 511 00:20:58,675 --> 00:21:01,259 I hear H Woo going to town on this lamb. 512 00:21:01,335 --> 00:21:03,886 He's just bashing the goofy out of it. 513 00:21:03,930 --> 00:21:05,179 You getting wild over there, H Woo? 514 00:21:05,256 --> 00:21:06,806 I'm getting a little crazy right now. 515 00:21:07,934 --> 00:21:12,103 I'm making lamb katsu with beetroot yogurt dip. 516 00:21:12,179 --> 00:21:15,773 Katsu is a very popular Japanese breaded cutlet. 517 00:21:17,068 --> 00:21:18,859 That's good. 518 00:21:20,196 --> 00:21:22,488 [Maneet] The beet hummus, the flavor is delicious. 519 00:21:22,490 --> 00:21:24,490 But if they add something 520 00:21:24,567 --> 00:21:26,701 lighter to it like sour cream or yogurt, 521 00:21:26,777 --> 00:21:29,954 we will get a very bright pink, 522 00:21:30,031 --> 00:21:31,831 fluorescent-pink-looking sauce. 523 00:21:31,907 --> 00:21:33,249 [Ted] Yeah, and iridescent pink is not... 524 00:21:33,251 --> 00:21:34,917 Not the most appetizing color. 525 00:21:34,919 --> 00:21:36,961 But I think that would be very good as a vinaigrette. 526 00:21:37,038 --> 00:21:38,504 [Ted] I think that's a great idea. 527 00:21:39,924 --> 00:21:41,257 [Ahmad] There we go. 528 00:21:41,301 --> 00:21:43,342 I'm making a beet vinaigrett 529 00:21:43,419 --> 00:21:47,054 So I add some olive oil, som lemon juice, Dijon mustard. 530 00:21:47,056 --> 00:21:48,514 And I'm gonna take 531 00:21:48,516 --> 00:21:50,766 the chocolate chips on top of the rainbow cake 532 00:21:50,768 --> 00:21:52,476 and I'm gonna microplane the 533 00:21:52,478 --> 00:21:53,978 inside the vinaigrette. 534 00:21:54,055 --> 00:21:55,354 Okay, that's pretty good. 535 00:21:55,356 --> 00:21:56,897 Right behind you. 536 00:21:56,899 --> 00:21:58,899 I wanna win Chopped for my parents. 537 00:21:58,901 --> 00:22:00,943 They came from Syria 40 years ago. 538 00:22:00,987 --> 00:22:02,469 And when I told my dad 539 00:22:02,471 --> 00:22:04,405 I wanted to make content, he was there for me. 540 00:22:04,407 --> 00:22:06,574 When I told my mom I wanted to cook in her kitchen 541 00:22:06,576 --> 00:22:08,617 and make a mess, she was there for me. 542 00:22:08,619 --> 00:22:11,829 My parents have always been support of who I want to be 543 00:22:11,831 --> 00:22:13,122 And that's why I'm here toda 544 00:22:13,124 --> 00:22:15,333 Holy... Time is flying! 545 00:22:15,409 --> 00:22:17,877 [Tway] I'm seasoning the hummus with 546 00:22:17,879 --> 00:22:19,253 a squeeze of orange juice, 547 00:22:19,255 --> 00:22:22,340 some orange zest, and then some cilantro 548 00:22:22,416 --> 00:22:24,300 and some green onions. 549 00:22:25,386 --> 00:22:27,303 I have seen these 15-hour potatoes 550 00:22:27,347 --> 00:22:29,180 all over social media. 551 00:22:29,256 --> 00:22:31,390 It's literally like really, really thin layers 552 00:22:31,392 --> 00:22:33,601 of potatoes that's fried. 553 00:22:33,636 --> 00:22:35,186 And I'm using the 15-hour potatoes 554 00:22:35,188 --> 00:22:36,812 in my quesadilla filling. 555 00:22:38,816 --> 00:22:40,566 I am very competitive. 556 00:22:40,568 --> 00:22:43,778 Being an immigrant, being a child of immigrants 557 00:22:43,780 --> 00:22:45,488 has instilled in me, 558 00:22:45,531 --> 00:22:49,492 hard work and dedication will get you so, so far. 559 00:22:49,494 --> 00:22:52,203 And winning Chopped would be amazing. 560 00:22:52,205 --> 00:22:53,829 Let's ground this. 561 00:22:57,460 --> 00:22:58,918 [H Woo] I'm pan-frying the lamb 562 00:22:58,994 --> 00:23:00,285 and they look golden brown, 563 00:23:00,362 --> 00:23:01,754 so I take 'em out, put 'em into the oven 564 00:23:01,831 --> 00:23:03,381 so they can stay warm. 565 00:23:05,343 --> 00:23:07,218 And I'm making a yoghurt sau with the beet hummus, 566 00:23:07,294 --> 00:23:09,553 chopped herbs and mint. 567 00:23:10,431 --> 00:23:11,931 I started cooking while I was in college, 568 00:23:11,933 --> 00:23:14,308 and learned from recipes that I found online. 569 00:23:15,395 --> 00:23:18,646 So, I have close to a million followers on TikTo 570 00:23:18,722 --> 00:23:21,524 and around 250,000 on Instagram. 571 00:23:21,567 --> 00:23:23,442 Being in this competition means a lot. 572 00:23:23,444 --> 00:23:26,946 I hope that it inspires others to start cooking more. 573 00:23:26,948 --> 00:23:28,989 Less than 10 minutes to go. 574 00:23:28,991 --> 00:23:30,658 [Ahmad] H Woo, how you feeling? 575 00:23:31,160 --> 00:23:32,159 Feeling pretty good, you? 576 00:23:32,236 --> 00:23:33,327 -You vibing? -Vibing. 577 00:23:33,329 --> 00:23:36,580 I feel like everyone's zoned in. 578 00:23:36,582 --> 00:23:38,707 Fattoush is a traditional Middle Eastern salad. 579 00:23:38,709 --> 00:23:40,251 Usually has a lot of sumac, onion, 580 00:23:40,253 --> 00:23:42,211 and some deep-fried pita bread. 581 00:23:42,213 --> 00:23:44,547 So instead, taking the 15-hour potato, 582 00:23:44,549 --> 00:23:46,132 I'm gonna deep-fry them to kind of 583 00:23:46,134 --> 00:23:47,633 imitate the deep-fried bread 584 00:23:47,635 --> 00:23:49,168 I'm behind you. 585 00:23:53,182 --> 00:23:55,599 [Tway] I have to start assembling my quesadilla 586 00:23:55,601 --> 00:23:58,978 with the lamb, potatoes, mozzarella. 587 00:23:58,980 --> 00:24:00,855 And I go to check on my brownies 588 00:24:00,857 --> 00:24:03,691 and I realize they are burnt. 589 00:24:03,726 --> 00:24:06,193 God, I burnt my brownies! Damn it! 590 00:24:06,195 --> 00:24:07,778 I need more brownies. 591 00:24:07,813 --> 00:24:10,030 Hey, Tway, how are the rainbow brownies coming over there? 592 00:24:10,107 --> 00:24:11,532 [Tway] I burnt them! 593 00:24:11,534 --> 00:24:13,325 [Joe] Are you gonna be able to recover from that? 594 00:24:13,402 --> 00:24:14,994 Of course. 595 00:24:14,996 --> 00:24:16,495 Luckily I still have some brownies left. 596 00:24:16,497 --> 00:24:18,038 I just restart. 597 00:24:18,040 --> 00:24:20,291 Less than two minutes to go, folks. 598 00:24:22,336 --> 00:24:24,795 [H Woo] Typically katsu's kinda served with a potato salad. 599 00:24:24,797 --> 00:24:26,714 I wanna make a Mediterranean potato sala 600 00:24:26,716 --> 00:24:28,841 out of the 15-hour potato. 601 00:24:28,918 --> 00:24:32,219 Mixing it with horseradish, lemon juice, mayo, and olive 602 00:24:34,682 --> 00:24:36,098 [Ahmad] I go to check on my lamb 603 00:24:36,142 --> 00:24:37,349 and I'm so disappointed. 604 00:24:37,351 --> 00:24:38,851 It slightly feels overdone. 605 00:24:38,853 --> 00:24:40,311 I'm actually really nervous 606 00:24:41,022 --> 00:24:42,813 [Maneet] Presentation matters, guys! 607 00:24:42,890 --> 00:24:45,733 Make sure the dishes are Insta-worthy. 608 00:24:47,236 --> 00:24:49,778 -[Ted] Keep on keeping on, folks. -[clapping] 609 00:24:49,822 --> 00:24:51,880 -[Maneet] Come on! -[Ted] 10, nine... 610 00:24:51,882 --> 00:24:53,782 -Right down to the end, use every second on that clock. -...eight, seven, 611 00:24:53,784 --> 00:24:58,037 six, five, four, three, 612 00:24:58,039 --> 00:25:02,416 two, one. Time's up. 613 00:25:02,493 --> 00:25:04,043 [applause] 614 00:25:04,119 --> 00:25:07,046 Marvelous, marvelous, marvelous, marvelous. 615 00:25:08,299 --> 00:25:10,591 The brownies definitely threw me off. 616 00:25:10,593 --> 00:25:13,719 But I think my lamb has great flavor. 617 00:25:13,721 --> 00:25:16,096 So, fingers crossed. 618 00:25:18,726 --> 00:25:20,842 [clock ticking] 619 00:25:28,528 --> 00:25:32,571 Social media stars, in the entree round, we asked you to make main dishes 620 00:25:32,648 --> 00:25:39,662 with rainbow brownies, lamb loin, beet hummus, and 15-hour potatoes. 621 00:25:39,664 --> 00:25:41,830 And we're starting with you, Ahmad. 622 00:25:41,832 --> 00:25:47,545 So I made a spiced lamb loin with a beet root vinaigrette Fattoush, 623 00:25:47,547 --> 00:25:49,880 topped with crispy potato crouton. 624 00:25:49,957 --> 00:25:53,842 Just to give off that, uh, Fattoush feeling of that fried bread. 625 00:25:59,183 --> 00:26:05,271 I was expecting, um, Fattoush, and I got Fattoush-lite. 626 00:26:05,273 --> 00:26:11,193 Fattoush is leftover pita that's dried with sumac, onion, lemon, garlic. 627 00:26:11,195 --> 00:26:12,444 I think it was good, it's just that without 628 00:26:12,521 --> 00:26:15,155 the lemon, the sumac and the onion, 629 00:26:15,157 --> 00:26:17,283 it doesn't have, uh, the oomph of a Fattoush, 630 00:26:17,285 --> 00:26:19,618 but I love the thought process. 631 00:26:20,955 --> 00:26:26,166 -Have you made this beet hummus vinaigrette before? -I have not. 632 00:26:26,243 --> 00:26:28,711 -It's very good. -Thanks. 633 00:26:28,713 --> 00:26:31,297 [Joe Sasto] It has a great balance of acid and creaminess. 634 00:26:31,299 --> 00:26:36,051 I love the potatoes on top. It adds a wonderful kind of crouton texture to your salad. 635 00:26:36,053 --> 00:26:37,553 Thank you, Chef. 636 00:26:37,555 --> 00:26:40,264 On the lamb, how did you use the spices? 637 00:26:40,266 --> 00:26:43,684 I marinated it with a little olive oil, mint leaves. 638 00:26:43,686 --> 00:26:50,232 Yeah, it did get dried out and also, the spice on top, it almost got burnt, 639 00:26:50,234 --> 00:26:53,444 and that's where the bitterness is coming from. 640 00:26:53,520 --> 00:26:56,071 Thank you, Ahmad. Tway, we'll taste your dish next. 641 00:26:56,073 --> 00:26:59,199 I made a lamb and potato quesadilla 642 00:26:59,201 --> 00:27:02,119 with a hummus brownie dipping sauce. 643 00:27:04,165 --> 00:27:06,749 Look at this plate, pink salsa... 644 00:27:07,960 --> 00:27:10,294 ...at first glance may seem kind of weird, 645 00:27:10,296 --> 00:27:13,797 but it actually on the black cast iron plate, made me wanna dive right into it. 646 00:27:13,832 --> 00:27:15,190 Thank you, Chef. 647 00:27:15,192 --> 00:27:18,260 The color of the sauce that you have over here 648 00:27:18,304 --> 00:27:22,181 definitely makes this dish social media worthy. 649 00:27:22,257 --> 00:27:24,808 -Right. -[Maneet Chauhan] But with the lamb I would have 650 00:27:24,885 --> 00:27:27,811 suggested cooking it to only rare, 651 00:27:27,888 --> 00:27:31,065 cutting it and then putting it in there and searing it 652 00:27:31,067 --> 00:27:35,944 because you're cooking the lamb twice, and being such a lean piece of meat, 653 00:27:35,946 --> 00:27:39,031 it overcooks very easily. 654 00:27:39,033 --> 00:27:40,866 -Thank you, Chef. -[Geoffrey Zakarian] Did you taste this dipping sauce? 655 00:27:40,868 --> 00:27:43,410 Um, no, I didn't. 656 00:27:47,625 --> 00:27:49,725 Tell me what you think. 657 00:27:51,796 --> 00:27:56,590 There's way too much going on it. It becomes like a train wreck in Times Square. 658 00:27:56,667 --> 00:28:00,928 It's so much going on, so you gotta, like, taste as you go. 659 00:28:02,014 --> 00:28:04,098 Thank you, Tway. Finally, H Woo. 660 00:28:04,174 --> 00:28:07,768 I have here a take on a lamb katsu, 661 00:28:07,845 --> 00:28:11,772 a horseradish potato salad, and then the sauce 662 00:28:11,774 --> 00:28:13,816 is a beetroot hummus with yogurt sauce. 663 00:28:15,236 --> 00:28:17,528 Where is the brownie? 664 00:28:17,604 --> 00:28:19,988 [H Woo Lee] I cooked the brownies in buttermilk, 665 00:28:19,990 --> 00:28:22,950 and then dipped the lamb in the buttermilk, 666 00:28:22,952 --> 00:28:25,093 then I battered it and fried it. 667 00:28:25,095 --> 00:28:28,747 The lamb again is a little overcooked, but the breading on that lamb is excellent, 668 00:28:28,749 --> 00:28:32,626 and very imaginative to put the brownie into the buttermilk. 669 00:28:32,628 --> 00:28:36,714 -Thank you, Chef. -The beet hummus sauce, it's delicious. 670 00:28:36,716 --> 00:28:43,011 The lamb is overdone, but because it's fried, it doesn't come across as dry. 671 00:28:43,013 --> 00:28:45,597 -Thank you, Chef. -This is a beautifully composed plate, H Woo. 672 00:28:45,599 --> 00:28:49,101 The potato salad, I think is incredibly creative. 673 00:28:49,103 --> 00:28:51,311 What I don't like is the olives, 674 00:28:51,388 --> 00:28:55,482 and I just don't think it works with kind of those greasy, heavy potatoes. 675 00:28:55,484 --> 00:28:57,484 It's kind of like fat on fat on fat. 676 00:28:57,561 --> 00:29:00,112 -You need some freshness. -Thank you, Chef. 677 00:29:01,282 --> 00:29:03,866 [Tom Allen] Now enough of all this tension and critiquing, 678 00:29:03,909 --> 00:29:05,367 do you guys wanna take a selfie or something? 679 00:29:05,369 --> 00:29:06,618 -Yeah. -Let's do it. 680 00:29:06,620 --> 00:29:07,619 -Okay, here. Give it to me. -[Allen] Okay. 681 00:29:07,621 --> 00:29:08,820 [Tway] Okay. 682 00:29:08,822 --> 00:29:10,138 [Allen] Maneet, you should be in the picture. 683 00:29:10,140 --> 00:29:11,874 [Chauhan] Oh, I am so being in the picture. 684 00:29:11,876 --> 00:29:14,126 -[Ahmad] She is the picture. -[Chauhan] Yeah. Let's go. 685 00:29:15,504 --> 00:29:18,714 -[Chauhan] That's how selfie are taken, guys. -[all laughing] 686 00:29:32,104 --> 00:29:35,647 So whose dish is on the chopping block? 687 00:29:42,782 --> 00:29:45,991 Tway, you've been chopped. Judges... 688 00:29:45,993 --> 00:29:49,411 Tway, while we loved the idea of the quesadilla, 689 00:29:49,413 --> 00:29:52,372 the lamb was a little dry and overcooked, 690 00:29:52,449 --> 00:29:55,417 and that pink salsa, it was just a little too sweet, 691 00:29:55,419 --> 00:29:58,712 and not balanced, and so we had to chop you. 692 00:29:58,714 --> 00:30:01,799 Thank you, Chef. Bye guys. Good luck. 693 00:30:01,801 --> 00:30:05,594 -[H Woo] Good luck. -[all clapping] 694 00:30:06,764 --> 00:30:09,640 [Tway] Ugh, this experience has been incredible. 695 00:30:09,642 --> 00:30:13,435 I feel like I can conquer anything now that I have gone through Chopped. 696 00:30:13,479 --> 00:30:15,203 [chuckles] 697 00:30:18,108 --> 00:30:23,320 This final round, I can believe I'm here. It's a blessing. 698 00:30:23,322 --> 00:30:27,908 Ahmad, H Woo, will you like what's in this final basket? 699 00:30:27,910 --> 00:30:29,451 There's only room for one. I got this. 700 00:30:29,495 --> 00:30:30,702 I'm ready to take this one home. 701 00:30:30,779 --> 00:30:32,162 [Allen] All right. Let's do it. 702 00:30:35,960 --> 00:30:37,209 Open it up! 703 00:30:38,504 --> 00:30:40,212 -[blows air] -[Ahmad] Oh, look. 704 00:30:40,214 --> 00:30:42,714 -[H Woo] Okay. -The dessert is already made. 705 00:30:42,716 --> 00:30:46,009 -[Allen] A cotton candy cake. -[H Woo] Who invented this? 706 00:30:46,011 --> 00:30:46,844 [Ahmad chuckles] 707 00:30:47,137 --> 00:30:48,846 Is this Nature's Cereal? 708 00:30:50,766 --> 00:30:53,308 -[Allen] Nature's Cereal. -[H Woo] Oh, my God. 709 00:30:53,310 --> 00:30:54,685 [Allen] Bergamot. 710 00:30:55,729 --> 00:30:58,856 -[H Woo] Wow. -[Allen] And croissant doughnuts. 711 00:31:00,234 --> 00:31:02,693 -This is ridiculous. -[Allen] 30 minutes. 712 00:31:04,655 --> 00:31:05,921 Time starts now. 713 00:31:05,923 --> 00:31:07,531 -[Cauhan] Chefs, let's go! -[Zakarian] Go! 714 00:31:07,608 --> 00:31:09,491 -[judges clapping] -[H Woo] Here we go. 715 00:31:13,998 --> 00:31:17,416 On social media, desserts, especially colorful, 716 00:31:17,418 --> 00:31:18,792 over-the-top desserts are so popular. 717 00:31:18,869 --> 00:31:20,878 Vanilla extract. 718 00:31:20,880 --> 00:31:26,758 This cotton candy cake, all that this is is different layers of cotton candy 719 00:31:26,760 --> 00:31:29,177 layered up in the form of a cake. 720 00:31:29,179 --> 00:31:31,388 [Sasto] Cotton candy's just sponge sugar... 721 00:31:31,390 --> 00:31:33,181 -[Zakarian] Yeah. -...so essentially we're giving them sugar... 722 00:31:33,225 --> 00:31:34,433 -[Chauhan] Sugar. -...for the dessert round. 723 00:31:34,435 --> 00:31:35,934 [H Woo] Yep. 724 00:31:37,521 --> 00:31:39,813 That's ridiculous. [chuckles] 725 00:31:39,815 --> 00:31:43,150 Cotton candy is easy to incorporate into an ice cream. 726 00:31:43,226 --> 00:31:45,110 I'm making cotton candy and ice cream. 727 00:31:49,366 --> 00:31:51,700 Bergamot is a Mediterranean citrus fruit. 728 00:31:51,702 --> 00:31:53,702 Definitely gonna use this in the ice cream. 729 00:31:55,956 --> 00:31:58,582 [Chauhan] H Woo has over the last two courses 730 00:31:58,584 --> 00:32:02,836 really shown us that, uh, he has a very controlled 731 00:32:02,838 --> 00:32:05,213 and a very refined approach to cooking, 732 00:32:05,215 --> 00:32:08,884 beautiful plates that look absolutely Insta-worthy. 733 00:32:08,886 --> 00:32:10,576 [Ahmad] H Woo, how are you feeling? 734 00:32:10,578 --> 00:32:14,348 [H Woo] I'm vibing. I feel I'm being a little crazy here. 735 00:32:14,350 --> 00:32:18,477 Ahmad sort of exudes this sunshine of food and cooking, you know? 736 00:32:18,553 --> 00:32:21,104 He just loves to cook, and I love seeing that. 737 00:32:23,692 --> 00:32:26,276 [Ahmad] I've never made a cheesecake before, 738 00:32:26,278 --> 00:32:28,946 but I feel like you cannot go wrong with some cream cheese. 739 00:32:28,948 --> 00:32:31,573 Bergamot is giving me some lemon vibes, 740 00:32:31,617 --> 00:32:34,242 and I'm dusting it into the cream cheese. 741 00:32:34,244 --> 00:32:37,162 I'm adding some confectioner's sugar, some vanilla extract, 742 00:32:37,164 --> 00:32:39,247 and I'm gonna toss in a litt bit of heavy cream 743 00:32:39,249 --> 00:32:41,458 just to give it some silky smoothness. 744 00:32:42,544 --> 00:32:44,294 Twenty minutes to go, folks. 745 00:32:46,590 --> 00:32:48,423 [Sasto] Nature's Cereal is o of those things 746 00:32:48,425 --> 00:32:50,801 that is a direct product of the internet. 747 00:32:52,179 --> 00:32:57,057 It is a mix of berries, usually with coconut water poured over it. 748 00:32:57,059 --> 00:32:58,433 It's a gimme basket ingredient for the dessert round. 749 00:32:58,435 --> 00:33:00,702 [Chauhan] It's-- Completely. 750 00:33:00,704 --> 00:33:02,887 [H Woo] I'm using the berrie from the Nature's Cereal to make a compote, 751 00:33:02,889 --> 00:33:07,943 and I get them into a sauce pan with, um, bergamot rinds water and sugar. 752 00:33:12,241 --> 00:33:15,325 [Ahmad] I'm gonna repurpose the Nature's Cereal into a reduction. 753 00:33:15,327 --> 00:33:17,661 I'm straining out a little b of that coconut water, 754 00:33:17,738 --> 00:33:21,206 then I'm gonna toss in the cotton candy instead of sugar. 755 00:33:21,283 --> 00:33:23,166 Zest and juice. 756 00:33:23,168 --> 00:33:26,003 I'm also zesting and juicin the bergamot into the reduction. 757 00:33:26,079 --> 00:33:27,504 I guess the most. 758 00:33:27,923 --> 00:33:29,339 Less than 10 minutes to go! 759 00:33:30,968 --> 00:33:33,427 -H Woo, are you making ice cream? -[H Woo] Yes, sir. 760 00:33:38,017 --> 00:33:40,475 [Sasto] These croissant doughnuts, uh, incredibly popular. 761 00:33:40,477 --> 00:33:43,145 Essentially it's a croissant dough, 762 00:33:43,147 --> 00:33:46,398 punched out into the shape of a doughnut and then fried 763 00:33:49,570 --> 00:33:52,279 [H Woo] With the croissant doughnuts I'm cutting them up 764 00:33:52,281 --> 00:33:53,613 and then making a chocolate orange sauce 765 00:33:53,615 --> 00:33:55,991 to help bring some flavor out in them. 766 00:33:58,746 --> 00:34:00,895 Behind, behind. 767 00:34:02,624 --> 00:34:04,958 [Ahmad] For my cheesecake crust, I'm takin some Graham crackers, 768 00:34:04,960 --> 00:34:08,712 the croissant portion of the pastry, and I'm gonn blend them together. 769 00:34:09,923 --> 00:34:13,842 So, uh, Ahmad right over there is making a no bake cheesecake. 770 00:34:13,886 --> 00:34:17,387 He's going to use the croissant doughnut as the base, 771 00:34:17,389 --> 00:34:19,723 -and then build a cheesecak on top. -[Sasto] Interesting. 772 00:34:20,017 --> 00:34:21,641 Four minutes to go! 773 00:34:21,718 --> 00:34:23,101 [H Woo] There's not much time at all 774 00:34:23,178 --> 00:34:24,853 [Allen] We're getting down to the wire here. 775 00:34:24,855 --> 00:34:26,855 [H Woo] I go to check on my ice cream and... 776 00:34:28,567 --> 00:34:30,275 ...it just splatters all over me. 777 00:34:30,277 --> 00:34:31,568 -[Allen] Oh, wow. -What is he doing? 778 00:34:31,645 --> 00:34:33,311 Let's not touch that early. 779 00:34:33,313 --> 00:34:35,697 H Woo has just gone ahead and opened the ice cream machine, 780 00:34:35,699 --> 00:34:38,658 and the ice cream is not set. 781 00:34:38,660 --> 00:34:41,995 [H Woo] I have two of the basket ingredients in this ice cream. 782 00:34:41,997 --> 00:34:44,306 I need it to turn out perfectly. 783 00:34:54,885 --> 00:34:58,303 [H Woo] I go to check on my ice cream, and it jus splatters all over me. 784 00:34:58,305 --> 00:35:00,430 -Oh, God. -Oh, my God. 785 00:35:01,809 --> 00:35:04,059 [H Woo] My ice cream is not even close to being ready. 786 00:35:04,478 --> 00:35:06,394 I hope that's fine. [chuckles] 787 00:35:06,897 --> 00:35:09,106 [Ahmad] This berry sauce needs to thicken. 788 00:35:09,108 --> 00:35:12,442 My plan is to have several levels of flavor and textur in this cheesecake, 789 00:35:12,519 --> 00:35:14,945 so I take my cheesecake crust, I put it on the bottom of the dish, 790 00:35:15,021 --> 00:35:17,531 then I start piping my cheesecake filling on top. 791 00:35:18,784 --> 00:35:20,617 [Sasto] Don't forget about your ice cream. 792 00:35:20,694 --> 00:35:23,078 H Woo is going to wait 'till the last second to get the ice cream out. 793 00:35:23,080 --> 00:35:24,604 H Woo, you have to pull your ice cream out. 794 00:35:24,606 --> 00:35:26,373 I'm praying for that ice cream. Behind, behind. 795 00:35:26,375 --> 00:35:27,624 [Chauhan] Okay, come on, come on! Let's go, let's go! 796 00:35:27,626 --> 00:35:29,668 Make sure everything's on your plate. 797 00:35:29,670 --> 00:35:32,546 Time's running out. I hope that the ice cream has set. 798 00:35:32,622 --> 00:35:35,173 -[Chauhan] Okay, come on! -One minute to go! 799 00:35:35,208 --> 00:35:37,843 [Chauhan] Not a lot of time! [clapping] 800 00:35:37,845 --> 00:35:40,303 Okay, come on, come on! Let's go, let's go, let's go! 801 00:35:40,305 --> 00:35:42,264 [Sasto] Make sure everything's on your plate, all the components. 802 00:35:42,266 --> 00:35:45,267 [Allen] All right, final seconds of the final round! 803 00:35:45,310 --> 00:35:49,354 Ten, nine, eight, seven, 804 00:35:49,356 --> 00:35:55,819 six, five, four, three, two, one. 805 00:35:57,114 --> 00:35:58,446 Time's up. 806 00:35:58,448 --> 00:35:59,948 -[Sasto] Wow. -Whoo! 807 00:35:59,992 --> 00:36:01,658 -[judges clapping] -[Ahmad] Hey. 808 00:36:01,735 --> 00:36:03,827 -[H Woo] Oh, my God. -You all right? Sup, baby? 809 00:36:03,862 --> 00:36:05,478 That was scary. 810 00:36:06,874 --> 00:36:09,833 I'm looking at Ahmad's dish and it looks fantastic. 811 00:36:09,910 --> 00:36:12,794 [Ahmad] I look at H Woo. It seems like he's pulled off ice cream, 812 00:36:12,796 --> 00:36:15,755 but I think this is a $10,000 dish. 813 00:36:15,757 --> 00:36:18,842 I came up with something that I'm pretty proud of, honestly. 814 00:36:24,683 --> 00:36:29,269 H Woo and Ahmad, that last basket was a lovely one. 815 00:36:29,346 --> 00:36:36,610 A cotton candy cake, Nature's Cereal, bergamot and croissant doughnuts. 816 00:36:36,612 --> 00:36:38,778 H Woo, please tell us about your dessert. 817 00:36:38,780 --> 00:36:42,824 Chefs, on your right is a cotton candy and bergamot ice cream, 818 00:36:42,868 --> 00:36:45,994 and on the left is a croissant doughnut 819 00:36:45,996 --> 00:36:47,829 with an orange chocolate sauce underneath, 820 00:36:47,831 --> 00:36:50,332 and on top is a Nature's Cereal reduction. 821 00:36:51,043 --> 00:36:54,878 H Woo... this is really good. 822 00:36:54,955 --> 00:36:57,756 -Thank you. -[Chauhan] The consistency of the ice cream is lovely, 823 00:36:57,832 --> 00:37:01,968 it's velvety, it is everything that an ice cream should be. 824 00:37:01,970 --> 00:37:06,306 And the chocolate sauce and the Nature's Cereal sauce, 825 00:37:06,308 --> 00:37:10,936 nice, flavorful, clean, and when I have everything together, 826 00:37:10,938 --> 00:37:13,104 it's a very sophisticated bite. 827 00:37:13,106 --> 00:37:16,691 -Thank you, Chef. -Um, I disagree. 828 00:37:17,653 --> 00:37:19,194 I don't like your ice cream. 829 00:37:20,989 --> 00:37:22,948 And chopping doughnuts and throwing 'em in chocolate 830 00:37:22,950 --> 00:37:25,742 is not my idea of a dessert, it's like, Hail Mary. 831 00:37:28,622 --> 00:37:30,038 [Sasto] I'm gonna land somewhere in the middle. 832 00:37:30,040 --> 00:37:33,166 It's eye-catching and ice cream. 833 00:37:33,168 --> 00:37:35,669 The texture on it's great, but in the cotton candy 834 00:37:35,745 --> 00:37:38,046 and the bergamot you put in there, it gets lost. 835 00:37:38,048 --> 00:37:39,965 Had you just used a little bit of zest, 836 00:37:40,041 --> 00:37:43,176 you really would have gotten that floral and aromatic quality. 837 00:37:43,178 --> 00:37:46,429 -Got it. Thank you, Chef. -Thank you, H Woo. Finally, Ahmad. 838 00:37:46,431 --> 00:37:49,391 Chefs, in front of you is a cheesecake, 839 00:37:49,393 --> 00:37:51,851 and then the reduction on to is Nature's Cereal. 840 00:37:51,853 --> 00:37:54,062 I did a bergamot juice zest 841 00:37:54,064 --> 00:37:56,439 and then I took all that top layer cotton candy, 842 00:37:56,441 --> 00:37:58,525 and I put it into the reduction instead of sugar. 843 00:37:58,527 --> 00:38:00,944 [Zakarian] It's pretty, no question about that, 844 00:38:00,946 --> 00:38:03,989 and I think that it's a great idea, and I think the composition 845 00:38:03,991 --> 00:38:05,865 -is very smart. -Thank you. 846 00:38:05,867 --> 00:38:09,077 -Ahmad, have you used bergamot before? -My first time. 847 00:38:09,121 --> 00:38:10,620 You would have had me fooled. 848 00:38:11,248 --> 00:38:13,540 Um, I love your use of bergamot. 849 00:38:13,616 --> 00:38:19,337 It is restrained, but you still taste it, and I love the way that this looks. 850 00:38:19,414 --> 00:38:21,589 It's incredibly social media worthy. 851 00:38:21,633 --> 00:38:23,591 I think this is a really fun, creative dessert. 852 00:38:23,593 --> 00:38:25,117 Thank you so much. I'm honored. 853 00:38:25,119 --> 00:38:28,054 I love the idea that you took the croissant doughnut, 854 00:38:28,056 --> 00:38:31,182 and you made it into the crust, 855 00:38:31,184 --> 00:38:34,436 but I think you could have taken it to the next level by toasting it 856 00:38:34,479 --> 00:38:36,980 because when you have the cheesecake, you want that crunch, 857 00:38:37,057 --> 00:38:38,523 you want that baked base. 858 00:38:40,360 --> 00:38:42,560 [Allen] Okay, Ahmad, thank you. 859 00:38:44,531 --> 00:38:48,658 The judges must choose just one winner, and this does not seem like an easy call. 860 00:38:48,660 --> 00:38:50,976 We'll bring you back soon. Thanks. 861 00:38:53,081 --> 00:38:58,418 Judges, even worse than being chopped, these social media stars risk being unfollowed 862 00:38:58,420 --> 00:39:00,879 by people who didn't think they performed well here. 863 00:39:00,881 --> 00:39:02,005 Could that happen? 864 00:39:02,082 --> 00:39:04,716 -Well, uh... -No. 865 00:39:04,793 --> 00:39:06,926 I think they are going to gain more followers. 866 00:39:07,003 --> 00:39:09,971 Ahmad's dessert was a very rendition of a cheesecake. 867 00:39:09,973 --> 00:39:13,391 It was elegant, and he made a beautiful, like, parfait in the glass. 868 00:39:13,393 --> 00:39:18,271 H Woo, on the other hand, I know that you did not like the texture of the ice cream. 869 00:39:18,273 --> 00:39:21,107 I do think that the texture of the ice cream was great. 870 00:39:22,277 --> 00:39:27,947 In round one, H Woo did not know how to cook with mussels. 871 00:39:27,949 --> 00:39:29,449 [Zakarian] Yes, they were overcooked. 872 00:39:29,451 --> 00:39:30,742 [Chauhan] But the sauce that he created 873 00:39:30,744 --> 00:39:32,702 with the baked feta, it was delicious. 874 00:39:32,737 --> 00:39:35,580 I thought, though, uh, Ahmad did a really good job with the pasta, 875 00:39:35,582 --> 00:39:37,749 you know, other than it need more salt and water, 876 00:39:37,751 --> 00:39:39,918 -but his mussels were cooked perfectly. -[Chauhan] Yes. 877 00:39:39,920 --> 00:39:43,129 -[Sasto] They were. -Where Ahmad sort of fell down was on his entree. 878 00:39:43,131 --> 00:39:46,049 -[Sasto] Mmm-hmm. -[Zakarian] That beautiful, expensive lamb loin, 879 00:39:46,051 --> 00:39:49,844 his spice rub got, like, really acrid smoky burn. 880 00:39:49,846 --> 00:39:54,557 But what Ahmad did amazingly was take that beet hummus 881 00:39:54,559 --> 00:39:58,478 and make that light, fresh vinaigrette out of it. 882 00:39:58,480 --> 00:40:00,146 [Sasto] He transformed the ingredien 883 00:40:00,148 --> 00:40:02,440 Think that H Woo's katsu, the crust was great, 884 00:40:02,517 --> 00:40:05,193 and he was very successful in his beet yogurt sauce. 885 00:40:05,237 --> 00:40:07,487 Unfortunately the lamb was overcooked. 886 00:40:07,489 --> 00:40:10,740 I don't think either one of 'em made too many mistakes 887 00:40:10,742 --> 00:40:12,450 that is gonna make this an easy decision. 888 00:40:12,527 --> 00:40:14,702 It's a very close neck and neck battle. 889 00:40:24,589 --> 00:40:27,632 I want this so badly for the people that support me, 890 00:40:27,634 --> 00:40:30,051 which is friends, family and followers. 891 00:40:30,053 --> 00:40:31,594 I'm just praying for the bes 892 00:40:32,722 --> 00:40:37,225 Holy [bleep]. I'm feeling anxious. [chuckles nervously] 893 00:40:38,186 --> 00:40:41,062 So whose dish is on the chopping block? 894 00:40:51,074 --> 00:40:54,492 H Woo, you've been chopped. Judges... 895 00:40:54,494 --> 00:40:57,704 H Woo, in the first course, the mussels, which was the star of the dish, 896 00:40:57,706 --> 00:40:59,205 really were overcooked. 897 00:40:59,207 --> 00:41:01,416 On the second course, the lamb was overcooked. 898 00:41:01,418 --> 00:41:04,127 The potato salad was a good idea, 899 00:41:04,129 --> 00:41:09,132 but the olives kneaded very heavy for us, and so we had to chop you. 900 00:41:09,468 --> 00:41:10,884 Thank you, Chef. 901 00:41:10,886 --> 00:41:12,051 -[Ahmad] Come here. -[both chuckling softly] 902 00:41:12,053 --> 00:41:12,677 [H Woo] You did a great job. 903 00:41:12,679 --> 00:41:18,266 [clapping] 904 00:41:18,268 --> 00:41:21,728 This didn't go the way I wanted, but I'm just so grateful to be here 905 00:41:21,804 --> 00:41:23,480 and to experience all this. 906 00:41:23,482 --> 00:41:24,647 It's been a great time. 907 00:41:27,319 --> 00:41:28,726 [Allen] And that means, Ahmad Alzahabi, 908 00:41:28,728 --> 00:41:31,488 you are the Chopped champio, congratulations. 909 00:41:31,490 --> 00:41:32,547 -[Zakarian] Yeah! -Thank you so much. 910 00:41:32,549 --> 00:41:33,806 -[Chauhan] Whoo! -[all clapping] 911 00:41:33,883 --> 00:41:35,399 -Oh, my God. I appreciate it. -[all clapping] 912 00:41:36,870 --> 00:41:40,538 [breaking up] Shout out to my parents. Just makes me cry. 913 00:41:40,540 --> 00:41:45,126 To my followers everyday who support me, and I'd never knew I'd be here. 914 00:41:45,253 --> 00:41:47,328 It's crazy. 915 00:41:47,330 --> 00:41:50,089 I just won Chopped, baby. It's just the craziest feeling in the world. 916 00:41:50,091 --> 00:41:51,966 Thanks so much. 917 00:41:52,001 --> 00:41:54,427 Big breath in, I won Chopped. 918 00:41:54,513 --> 00:41:57,305 Just so emotion, and, so, bless you.