Welcome to Fire Masters.
Where three chefs will take on three blazing culinary challenges.
Whoo, it's taco party.
Let's go.
Two will be eliminated,
and the last chef standing will go head to head agains
one of our Fire Masters judges,
battling for the chance to win $10,000.
-All right, all right. -And to earn their place as a Fire Masters champion.
I know you don't want me to eat that.
That is a excellent dish.
-Speed. -Let's do this.
-Skill. -Whoo.
Scorching competition.
We gotta get going.
This is Fire Masters.
Three chefs are battle read to fight for the title of Fire Masters champion
Let's meet them.
First up, John Leung from Calgary, Alberta.
I'm an online food host, originally from Hong Kong.
I have been cooking professionally for seven years now.
Before, I was working in the office saying,
"What am I doing with my life?"
I love cooking so much. Why not do it professionally?
I am ready to bring some flavors to the world.
Hello, chefs. Thank you for having me.
Next, La-Toya Fagon from Toronto, Ontario.
I'm the executive chef and owner of Twist Catering Services.
Both my parents are from Jamaica,
so that was the food that I grew up with
that I really love.
You know, in my early 20s, I decided to go to culinary arts school
and here we are, 17 years later.
I'm ready to come into this Fire Masters arena tody
and bring some of that Caribbean flavor and Caribbean heat.
Hey, judges.
And last, Alain Lemaire from Miami, Florida.
I'm the executive chef with Sensory Delights Catering.
Originally, I am from Port au Prince, Haiti.
Grilling is something very close to the Caribbean
Haitian food is pretty much bold, in your face.
and this is my style of cooking.
To my other competitors, y'all better put your best foot forward
because I'm bringing the hea
Chefs, welcome to Fire Masters.
Here's how it's all going down.
There will be three rounds of competition.
In the first two rounds, you'll be competing against one another.
And at the end of each of these rounds,
one of you will be going home.
In the third and final round, the last chef standing
will go head to head against one of our judges.
For the chance to win $10,000 and the title of today's
Fire Masters champion.
Speaking of judges, here's who you'll need to impress.
Chef Kevin Bludso is an award winning pitmaste
and cookbook author,
and is the owner of the popular Bludso's Barbecu
with locations worldwide.
What's up, chefs?
Let's get our smoke on today.
Oh, yeah.
Chef Nicole Gomes is an award winning chef
and the owner of the renowne Cluck N Cleaver restaurant
in Calgary, Alberta.
Hi chefs. I'm excited to see what you cook up today.
-Thank you. -Thank you.
Chef Roger Mooking is a globally inspired celebrity chef,
author and live fire cooking expert.
What's up, chefs.
Don't be shy out there, just bring the flavor.
Absolutely.
Chefs, I hope you're ready to fight the flame
because it's time to make sparks fly.
In this first wildfire round, you'll create a signature dish
that showcases your personality on a plate.
You will each have your own top of the line grill station
and use of our Fire Masters firepit
as well as access to our fully stocked pantry.
Your dish will be judged on presentation, creativity
and of course, taste.
Chefs, are you ready?
[all] Yes.
You've got 30 minutes on the clock
and your time starts...
Now.
-Go, chefs. -Do it.
-Go. -Come on now.
Let's do this.
For my signature dish, I'm making a charred banana leaf snapper.
Ooh.
With spicy ti-malice.
Making a little rice with lemongrass on the bottom.
Right now, I'm doing my seasoning base
for the fish, which we call epis.
Scallions, parsley, some thyme, some garlic,
some jalapeno peppers.
This is my signature dish because it brings me back home.
Growing up in Haiti, it used to be one of the dishes
that my mom used to make.
So, it brings a lot of memories.
It brings the tropics out.
[La-Toya] My signature dish I'm making a scotch bonnet infused tomato chicken
with a fragrant rice with a charred corner avocado salsa.
First thing I'm gonna do is get those tomatoes,
the corn, the shishito peppers
and that scotch bonnet all on that charcoal grill.
This signature dish just screams Chef La-Toya.
We got a little bit of Jamaican heat going on here,
we got some Caribean flavors
-Let's just hope it all comes together. -[Dylan] Let's do this.
For my signature dish, I'm making fiery cumin lamb pancakes
with Saskatoon berry hoisin.
I got nice, lean pieces.
After I get my lamb cubed, I'm getting my spices
all blended up.
Cumin, black peppercorn, cinnamon,
five spice powder and my secret little ingredient,
red and green Sichuan peppercorns.
This is my signature dish because it's spicy.
It's sweet, it's sassy, it's me on a plate.
Whoo.
I'm using banana leaves.
I'll add some fresh thyme, my scallions, my parsley
and some fresh lemons and limes.
Adds a extra layer of protection.
And flavors, I don't want the heat to scorch the fish.
If the fish gets scorched, then I'm screwed.
I think that's a good strategy with the banana leaf like that.
It's not going to stick, it'll be moist and tender,
catches a little bit of smoke, you know.
-And protecting the protein. -Yeah, and protecting the protein.
[La-Toya] I gotta get those chicken thighs out of that pit.
I'm removing the skin off this chicken,
then I'm going to season it up with a little bit of salt
a little pepper, some garlic put some lemon juice.
Normally, I'd like to keep the fat on it
like, since it's going into a sauce.
Nobody wants a rubbery skin.
I need to pick up the pace here. I need to get my rice going.
She gotta get that chicken on there, man.
Those thighs should be going on right now.
I love chicken thighs.
Nice meat, little bit more fat content, takes smoke real, real good.
I would hate to get over there.
Thirty minutes in and all I get is some chicken, tomato
and a pepper on top of it. I'd be a little disappointed.
Okay, let's go.
[John] This is called Pok Chang in Cantonese.
It is a savory chive pancake.
Add a little shrimp paste.
Give it a little spice right there.
Oh, yeah, baby. Whoo.
Chef John, what about this dish is going to impress
the judges and get you to the next round?
It is spicy. It's got great flavors.
It was taught to me by my grandmother.
My grandmother inspired me to start cooking
and you know, I have not looked back since.
Chef, smelling good so far. Looking forward to seeing this dish.
Thank you so much.
Pulse. Forgot pulse. Dagnabbit.
Chef Alain, I saw you had those beautiful banana leaves,
that snapper over here.
This seems like a dish you're very familiar with.
I am pretty familiar with it. Yes.
In Haitian culture, it's a lot about fresh ingredients,
spices, so I'm making a ti-malice sauce to go on the top.
-Looking forward to seeing this dish. -Awesome. Thank you very much.
Ooh, time's ticking.
Gotta get this rice going.
I got to saute up my onions get a nice base for flavor
for that rice.
Rice is a staple in West Indian, Jamaican cuisine.
Whether it be steamed rice, fragrant rice, rice and peas.
So, I really better get this rice right.
Oh, baby.
I'm putting all my lamb onto the firepit with a high heat.
Get that nice char. I got to get this done.
I cannot go home on the first round.
Skewer's on. Whoo.
15 minutes left, chefs. We're halfway through.
I have some baby zucchini and baby squash, some fresh thyme.
I want to add these vegetables because I want to add
an extra element to the dish. You know, balance it out.
This rice, it's taking forever.
I need to make my tomato sauce.
Scotch bonnets are gonna go nicely with that tomato,
with the acidity, but give it some heat for my chicken.
Just took out the seeds.
Scotch bonnet peppers are no joke.
You can completely destroy the dish and kill your palat
Listen up, Chefs, only 10 minutes left.
It's time to start making some pancakes.
This is from my grandmother who taught me how to make this.
Watch that thyme, John.
Nine minutes. Yes.
Come on, faster.
Oh, my God, come on.
-I think Chef John is having problems with his pancake. -Is he?
-Yeah. -[Kevin] Is the grill not hot enough?
[John] Seriously, get in your game.
[John] My first pancake is an absolute disaster.
Oh, my God. Come on.
Come on, John, seriously get in your game.
No, this is not good.
I got to start the pancake batter all over again.
I have no time for this right now.
Whoo, that peel is hot.
I go check on the fish.
-Good, good. -Fish is looking great.
The skin is still on.
To finish my dish, I want to add some fresh thyme,
garlic and then put them under ti-malice sauce
to add extra depth of flavor
We're gonna get this chicken off,
I think it has enough smoke in it.
So I'm gonna get this into the sauce,
I really want it to take in that tomato and scotch
and shishito pepper flavor.
Two minutes left, chefs. Time to hustle.
Oh.
The rice is what's worrying me.
I really should have put this rice on first.
I don't think it's gonna cook on time.
One more pancake.
Time is not on my side right now.
I am still making pancakes.
I gotta get the plate together.
Chefs, only one minute left. Get your food on the plate.
-Let's go, chefs. -We got one minute.
Rice is undercooked, but I got to get going.
-She said the rice was undercooked. -Undercooked?
[John] Man, come on. You can do this.
-Ooh. -This is stressing me out.
Don't lose sight now, John.
Ouch. Hot.
-Ten... -[all] Nine, eight, seven, six,
five, four, three, two, one.
-All right. -Time's up, chefs.
Whoo!
[all clapping]
[La-Toya] Feeling a little b nervous.
The chicken doesn't look the way that I wanted it to look,
but, hopefully, it is really palate pleasing.
I'm feeling pretty comfortab about my dish.
I want the judges to see the depth of flavors.
I'm looking at my plate and everything is there.
I am hoping the judges taste the bold flavors
served with love.
Chef John, please tell us what you prepared for the judges.
This is fiery cumin lamb pancakes with Saskatoon berry hoisin.
My pancake looks a little bit different than everybody's.
A little smaller, a different color.
Yes, that was a little bit of a struggle.
I actually did a lot of spicy shrimp paste.
Oh, okay, I saw you throw one in the garbage
and it had the shrimp paste in it, I take it?
-Yeah. -It wasn't coming together, it looked like.
No, it wasn't.
Chef John, I was watching your flow
and I watched you falter a couple of times.
You step back, take a deep breath
and started getting down for what you know how to do
and it showed on the plate. That is an excellent dish.
The heat on my lamb is perfect.
All those flavors came together.
Flavor-wise, everything is really good.
This pancake should be a little bit thinner, more even.
-Yeah. -And it's not fully cooked.
Ooh.
-Thank you very much, chef. -Thank you very much.
I'm really worried the pancake might be my Achilles heel.
Ooh.
Chef La-Toya, can you please tell us what you made for the judges in this round?
[La-Toya] I made a scotch bonnet-infused tomato chicken
on a bed of fragrant rice with an avocado and corn salsa.
[Kevin] Chef La-Toya, I love the colors right off the bat,
but before we taste, we already got a problem.
I'm 6'3", 295 pounds.
Okay.
-And who got the smallest pieces of chicken? -[all laughing]
-On his plate. Look at that. -It's a small...
Oh, my goodness.
-Chef La-Toya. -Yes.
You have the opportunity to infuse the flavor
of the cooking method which is the fire
-and the smoke into this. -Add wood chips to that charcoal grill,
a little bit more char on everything
would've really screamed, like, more Fire Masters.
-Okay. -I love tomatoes and Scotch bonnet.
I think it's a really great combination,
but the rice, as you probably already know, was undercooked.
-Yeah. Thank you, Chef. -Thank you.
[La-Toya] I came here to bri some Caribbean flavors.
I'm just hoping the flavors that are there are getting me
to the next round.
Chef Alain, can you tell us what you made for the judges, please?
I did a charred banana leaf snapper with a spicy ti-malice
over rice and some charred vegetables.
You put thyme in it, which is great,
but there's so many sticks of thyme.
-Yeah. -And I know you don't want me to eat that.
No, not at all. Time got the best of me.
I wasn't able to take them off.
Chef Alain, I love fish and I love rice,
but the grilled vegetables I feel is an afterthought.
There's no char on them.
If you were to move onwards, I would suggest adding more
of the fire in all your elements.
The fish had good flavor.
I love that your skin was pretty much still intact.
The sauce is real good on it.
And I really love that heat in it.
-Thank you, Chef. -Thank you.
And thank you, chefs.
Let's give the judges a couple of minutes to discuss
and we'll call you back when we're ready.
[Alain] I'm feeling pretty comfortable with my dish.
The only thing I feel a little bit iffy about is the vegetables.
Judges, now that you've had a chance to taste
all three dishes, how'd these chefs do?
I thought all three chefs got to step it up.
Yeah, it showed on the plate.
-Yeah. -For sure.
Get excited about this, you on stage at your concert today.
Let's talk about Chef La-Toya's dish.
[Roger] Chef La-Toya's dish is, like, a very comforting dish.
[Kevin] I thought the presentation was there.
I love the idea of it, but pretty homestyle.
Overall, I felt that it was just lacking flavor.
Tell me about Chef John's signature lamb dish.
[Kevin] I love that Chef John had such a simple plate,
but had such a wow factor.
There was so much flavor going on,
but my chive pancake, part of it was rubbery
and undercooked.
But overall, a really tasty dish.
How do you feel about Chef Alain's snapper dish?
[Kevin] I really liked the ti-malice sauce.
I like the heat with it.
Chef Alain's to me did not speak Fire Masters arena.
My ti-malice sauce was really chunky onion
and too raw.
-At least, char it then cut it. -I love that Chef Alain
used the technique with the banana leaf.
Unfortunately, his heart was just not into putting the veg on the plate,
because he didn't do nothing to it.
Well, it certainly was an interesting wildfire round.
-Have you made a decision? -[all] Yes.
Let's call the chefs back in.
Chefs, in this wildfire round, you were asked to create a dish
to show your personality on a plate.
Judges, whose signature dish was the best in this round?
The chef with the best dish is...
Chef John.
-[gasps] -[all clapping]
Congratulations, Chef John.
You will have an advantage going into the next round.
Thank you so much.
Judges, it's down to Chef Alain and Chef La-Toya,
who will you be sending home?
[La-Toya] I really, really want these judges to give me a second chance.
I just have so much more to bring.
[Alain] My heart is just pounding.
nobody came here to lose. Definitely not me.
The chef who will be going home is...
Judges, it's down to Chef Alain
with his charred banana leaf snapper and ti-malice sauce.
And Chef La-Toya with her scotch bonnet-infused tomato chicken.
Judges, who will you be sending home?
The chef who will be going home is...
Chef La-Toya.
Chef La-Toya, I'm sorry to say you've been eliminated
from the competition and it's time to leave
the Fire Masters are.
-Thank you, judges. -Good luck, guys.
Thank you.
[La-Toya] Competing in Fire Masters definite made me a better chef.
It took me way out of my comfort zone.
I learned a lot and, you kno I still feel like I walked away a winner.
Chefs, welcome to the crossfire round.
This round is a head to head battle
where you'll both be cooking with the same protein.
Get ready for...
-Duck wings. -Oh, my...
Whoo, baby.
Each of you must create a duck wing dish
that features a different ingredient.
Chef John, as the winner of the first round,
you get to choose whether you'd like to use jalapenos
in your dish or take a chance with what's hidden under the crate.
Whoo.
I'm gonna pass on the jalapenos
and take a chance.
All right, Chef John, you'll be making
a duck wing dish with...
-bourbon. -Oh, wow.
I like bourbon to drink, but my experience
cooking with bourbon? Nada.
Chef Alain, you'll be making duck wings with jalapenos.
Giving me jalapenos is like giving a kid cake. [laughs]
Chefs, are you ready?
Let's do this.
You've got 30 minutes back on the clock.
And your time starts...
-Now. -Go, chefs. Let's go.
Whoo.
Where's the honey? Where's the honey?
Oh, top left, right there.
For my dish, I'm making spicy Korean style
bourbon duck wings
with a hot grilled corn, cabbage slaw.
All right, baby. Let's go to Korea!
I'm gonna start butchering my duck wings.
So, I take the wing, cut it into three pieces.
The tip goes away. Wing and flap into the marinade.
Time for some flavor.
Gochujang, honey, soy and bourbon.
Whoo! It's time to party.
Bourbon's my ingredient.
I got to make this shine.
We're gonna make some magic happen today, friends. Whoo.
I have to make sure my duck wings are cooked properly
in half an hour.
All right, all right.
I'm making smoked jalapeno mango duck wings
with leeks.
I have to highlight the jalapeno.
The first thing I have to do,
smoke them before I add them to the glaze.
If you smoke them, you get better flavors out of them.
Ground cloves, red pepper flakes.
Next, I put the wings in the pan because
I want to get that crispy skin.
I've never cooked duck wings in my life before,
so I'm a little nervous.
[Dylan] The crossfire round is underway.
Let's talk about the star ingredient here, duck wings.
Duck wing's kind of tricky because the flat
doesn't have quite a lot of meat and the drum
has quite a lot more meat on it,
so getting them cooked evenly is a whole thing.
You got to be real careful on the slow cook
because you can make the skin real rubbery.
You gotta be careful on a fast cook because it still has to be tender.
I can char this corn here.
Getting it nice and charred for my hot slaw.
Whoa, I'm noticing the char on the wings.
It's happening way too fast.
-His wings might be burning. -And there's so much honey in the sugar
-from the Gochujang. -And now, on the hot grill,
like, they're getting burned.
[John] I move it from the hottest heat to a lower heat,
hoping, hoping, hoping it doesn't over char.
After the wings have a good sear,
I moved them to the fire pit.
I remember the judge telling me that I need to use more fire,
more smoke.
So, I'm gonna bring it.
Chefs, listen up. 15 minutes left.
We are halfway through the cook.
Got 15 minutes to go.
Oh, yeah, look at that.
I'm thinking how am I gonna get more flavors
into the duck wings?
Citrus and duck? Great friends.
Get some lemon woodchips.
Yeah, lemon wood.
Let's see we can get some citrusy flavor
onto those duck wings.
[Alain] After the wings are done in the fire pit,
I put them back on the gril and I add some wood chips.
I use pecan chips because they go well
with the sweetness.
Close the lid. Smoke, baby.
I'm worried for both of them because, like, wings.
I've seen them kind of go on the heat,
not go on the heat, come off.
Especially duck wings, you can braise and sear all you want.
-Eventually, you got to cook 'em. Know what I mean? -[all exclaiming]
10 minutes left, Chefs. It's go time.
Oh, snap, this is beautiful.
I chuck on my honey bourbon glaze.
I put in a little bit more bourbon.
Tossing some toasted sesame.
Oh, she's a beauty glaze.
Sesame glaze, baby.
I think Chef Alain is at a disadvantage with the jalapeno.
There's so many glazes and sauces you can do with bourbon.
So, I think Chef John lucked out
and got the perfect ingredient for this challenge.
To highlight the jalapenos, I'm going to add them
to the mango glaze.
This glaze, it's the secret sauce of the dish.
You know, sweet, sour, but little spice.
Five minutes left. Let's hustle.
Go, chefs!
I look in front of me and I got way too many things to do.
Take those wings off the charcoal grill,
get 'em back to nice and hot.
I have to start plating.
Put the leaves in the bottom
Pull my wings of the grill.
I'm starting to dip them in my glaze.
Chefs, you've got one minute left.
Only 60 seconds. Come on, let's go.
Perfect.
There you go, John. There you go.
-Ten... -[all] Nine, eight, seven, six,
five, four, three, two, one.
Time's up, chefs.
Whoo!
[Alain] Time's up.
It's looking juicy, looking flavorful.
This is a wing that I would love to eat.
[John] In the corner my eye I see the bourbon honey glaz
and I'm, like, [exhales]
I forgot it.
This could send me home.
Chef John, can you tell us what you made using duck wings
and bourbon in this round?
What I have made for you is spicy Korean style
bourbon duck wings.
Chef John, I don't think this is the best presentation
because mine is kind of charred, kind of burned.
But, charred and burned are two different things.
It can look burned like right now.
But, as long as I got some good flavor.
John can still be my guy.
Chef John, I think it was a wise choice to split the wings
from a wingette to a drumette.
The wingette is at a rate temperature to eat.
However, my drumette in particular was quite undercooked.
Oof.
Chef John, I saw you put lots of gochujang and lots of honey,
but somehow, there's not a lot of flavor.
Your surprise ingredient of the crate was bourbon,
but I really don't get a lot of bourbon here.
Yikes.
-Chef John, thank you very much. -Thank you. Thank you.
If I had gotten the honey bourbon glaze on,
that flavor would have been through the roof.
Chef Alain, tell us what you made for the judges
using duck wings and jalapeno?
[Alain] I made smoked jalapeno and mango duck wings.
Chef Alain, looking at your plate.
I see you've left the wingettes on.
I imagine you want us to just dig in.
-Dig in, yes. -And give it a go.
-Yes. -Okay.
Chef Alain, you got a lot of flavor.
I taste the duck and I taste the jalapeno.
But I would love to see a little bit more of the glaze
on the meat.
What I had to do was kind of dip it to get the flavor.
Chef Alain, the glaze that you made is excellent.
We can taste the jalapenos.
I would have liked a little bit more on mine.
Okay.
I see you seasoned your duck wings in a small bowl
and just, you know, spread these things out, man,
because when I got down to the duck,
I didn't hardly taste any seasoning.
-Thank you very much, Chef. -Thank you.
-And thank you, Chef. -Thank you.
Let's give the judges a couple minutes to discuss.
-We'll call you back when we're ready. -All right, thank you.
I feel that my smoky flavors with the jalapenos
will be enough to get me to the next round.
Judges, the crossfire round is complete.
Two unique duck wing dishes here.
One chef preparing them with jalapenos
and the other with bourbon. How'd they do?
It's real close between Chef John and Chef Alain
because both their wings were exactly the same
as far as undercooked and just under achieved.
Chef John's dish coming together like that,
I wanted it to be so good.
And, you know, in the end, it kind of just fell flat.
[Roger] It was very disappointing because Chef John
put stuff that I know is loaded with flavor,
but they actually had a beautiful char.
[Kevin] They had great color on those wings,
but that was a very tough challenge.
How did Chef Alan's dish turn out using duck wings and jalapenos?
The jalapenos were there.
[Kevin] I thought that the jalapenos just gonna overpower it
and it's gonna be horrible.
But it wasn't, I was pleasantly surprised with that.
But, Chef Alain dropped the ball on seasoning the duck wing.
This might just come down to who use their ingredients
the best way, because to me, both of them dropped the ball
on the duck wing.
-Sounds like you've made a decision. -Yeah.
-Let's call the chefs back in. -All right.
Chefs, in this crossfire round,
you were asked to make a dish with duck wings
and either jalapenos or bourbon.
The winner of this round will receive a Napoleon portable grill
and move on to the final round to face off against one of our judges.
Judges, who will be moving on to the final round?
The chef who will be moving on is...
Chef Alain.
-[all clapping] -Thank you, thank you.
Round three. Yes. [laughs]
I am coming for that $10,000.
Chef John, thank you very much.
You filled the arena with your energy and creativity.
You cooked your heart out today,
but unfortunately, you've been eliminated
from the competition and it's time to leave
the Fire Masters are.
-Bring home the cheddar, my friend. Do it, do it! -Thank you.
Competing on Fire Masters has shown me
there's a lot of work for me ahead.
But I've shown the world what I'm able to do.
I'm leaving the arena with my head held high.
Chef Alain, in the first two rounds,
you showed the judges you sure know your way
around a grill.
But now, it's time for the ultimate test.
In this final round, you'll be going head to head
against one of our Fire Masters judges.
And the judge you will be facing off against is...
Chef Roger Mooking.
[laughs] You ready?
-Whoo. -Ready.
Chef Roger is big time chef. He's very talented.
He knows his flavors.
I know he's gonna bring it.
So I'm excited to go against him.
-You ready, papi? -Yeah.
The Caribbean challenge right here.
Chef Alain.
Chef Roger.
You're about to face off in the feast of fire.
Chefs, in this final round, you must create a family style feast
inspired by the theme...
Street food.
Hmm. Oh.
[Dylan] It's time to get fired up for on the go eats
packed with flavor from around the world.
I love street food because they focus a lot
about local flavors.
[Roger] Everywhere I go, I hunt down the street foods
So I'm gonna be bringing a lot of those influences to the cook today.
The stakes have never been higher.
So, you'll each have a sous chef to help you create your feast.
This meal will be tasted blind,
which means none of us will be here to watch you cook.
When we do return, I'll be taking Chef Roger's seat
at the judge's table.
But, chefs, before you get started,
I've got a hot twist for you.
Next to the fire, there are two stands.
Choose a stand and light it on fire to reveal
a style of dish you must include in your feast.
Chefs, are you ready?
Yes.
There's 45 minutes on the clock.
And your time starts...
Now.
-What a great... -Street food?
-I know. -So many ways you can go.
Ooh.
Make it spicy.
Thank you. [whoops]
[laughs]
[Roger] I have to make something on a stick.
Ooh, let's go.
What am I going to cook though? [laughs]
Pork, onion, sherry and vinegar.
Right, let's go.
Street food can be anything, as long as it has local flavors
that you can just grab and go.
Got the shrimp, duck eggs.
-You're always gonna need butter. -Yeah.
And the steak.
What else was I thinking?
Sesame oil.
For my street food main, it's going to be
Sherry glazed grilled pork kebabs with peanuts
and chilies.
One of my sides is going to be shrimp dumplings
in chili oil with fresh herb
My other side's gonna be fire roasted potato salad
with duck egg and togarashi
And for dessert, it's a stone fruit hand pie
with five spice emulsion.
Awesome.
For the dumplings, I'm making the shrimp filling.
I pureed two thirds of the shrimp
with Chinese cooking wine, soy sauce, fish sauce
and cilantro stems.
And then I take the remaining shrimp
and I chopped them up, so when you bite into it,
you get these different textures inside of the dumpling.
So, we're gonna put that in, like, a chili oil.
Got a lot to do.
First things first.
For my street food feast, I'm making chargrilled flank steak
with spicy chimichurri.
My first side is going to b smoked bok choy
with spicy soy marinade.
My second side, I'm making some Cajun roasted baby potatoes.
And for dessert, sweet plantain
bread pudding with rum sauce.
First things first, I take the steak.
Season them well with salt and pepper
and then I just throw them on the firepit.
So, I can get that nice char
Growing up in Haiti, you would go to a street merchant
and they'd be grilling meats
That is what I wanted to represent.
Come on, baby. Let's go.
The Feast of Fire is here.
Street food, I mean, the possibilities are absolutely endless.
Chef Alain has certainly been stronger every round.
I think we could see some really incredible things
from him in this round.
If Chef Alain focuses on flavor,
he has a good chance.
He's from Haiti.
There's more street vendors in Haiti than restaurant.
So, I know he knows how to get down.
But he's up against Chef Roger Mooking
who is an expert when it comes to live fire.
He's traveled a lot and he knows flavor.
I'm sure Chef Roger is gonna have somethin' incredible.
I want to see smoke. I want to smell it. I want to hear music.
Let's take it to the streets. This is a street fight.
Let's go.
So, my sous chef is starting with potato salad.
Double foil, needs double foil.
The potatoes are wrapped up and just thrown right into the coals.
There's a little bit of wate in there,
so it can take the really aggressive heat.
[sous chef] Potatoes are on.
Then, in a second foil packet, red onions, garlic, shishito peppers.
Let those fire up in the foil and then they're going to render
the flavor for the potato salad.
Let's go, baby.
I check on the steak.
I need a little more heat because I'm looking for extra char.
So, lower it down.
Behind you.
And I have to make sure I make it spicy.
So I'm going to make a chimichurri.
I blend garlic, parsley, cilantro, sweet peppers,
olive oil and Scotch bonnet peppers.
I'm going to make it spicy with a Caribbean twist.
Bada bing, bada boom.
Okay, so we got the skewers, cilantro stems.
Yeah.
So I gotta make something on a stick.
So I'm making Sherry glaze grilled pork kebabs.
As I'm putting them on the skewers.
Oh, snap. Come on!
My meat is not sticking.
I need thicker swords.
What am I going to do? 'Cause I gotta make something
on a stick.
Oh, I know what to do. Where's the foil here?
-Right there, I think. -So, wrap it in foil,
put those on the grill
and once they set up,
then I can remove the foil and get the grill marks
and the char and that smoke
I'm about to throw the plantains right now.
I started focusing on my plantains.
I want to cook them ahead of time
because they're going to be a part of my bread pudding.
I'm roasting them in the cast iron skillet
with some unsalted butter.
So they can get some nice caramelization.
Let's go.
[Roger] While I'm boiling the shrimp dumplings,
my sous chef starts working on the stone fruit
for the hand pies.
All right, heading to the fire.
I want to put them on the grill, flat, face down,
so they can cook quickly.
[sous chef] Whoo, it's hot.
Gotta use the grills out here, right?
Chef, that's on. I'm gonna go get the pie iron.
[Roger] Thank you.
Twenty minutes.
Next step is smoking the bok choy.
We're in the Fire Masters arena.
I want to bring smokiness.
While they're smoking, I'm gonna make a spicy soy marinade.
Assignment is make it spicy. So I'm gonna give it to them.
[laughs]
-Get those stone fruits and just chop rough. -Yeah.
It's time to cook the hand pies.
Pie irons are, like, live fire camping tool.
My sous chef lays out the dough
and then adds the stone frui
with a little bit of flour and sugar.
Put it on the grill and hope that the pastry cooks.
-Let's build. -Okay.
I'm building my sweet plantain bread pudding.
I'm buttering my skillet.
Adding the bread with the crema glaze,
top it off with chocolate squares and finish with
the roasted sweet plantain.
And then we bake it in the grill.
Next, we'll make a quick rum sauce.
After we plate, we're going to just glaze it with it.
Yeah.
15 minutes.
[Roger] Okay, skewers.
I go to check on my kebabs. I opened the foil.
-Oh, no. -And it's a disaster.
One of them falls apart.
This is the Feast of Fire.
I gotta make street eats that's on a stick.
So, if that don't get the food on the stick.
It's gonna be a bad scene for Mr. Roger Mooking,
the Fire Guy.
-Oh, no. -I'm having issues
with my kebabs, they're falling apart.
The meat close to the skewe was not fully cooked.
If it was fully cooked, that would have been set on there.
So I'm just gonna let them finish cooking,
but time is ticking, so I need them to cook fast.
Let's go, baby.
I take the steak of the gril so they can rest.
Very important that my main protein is cut right
because it should be the highlight of the feast.
[all] Ten minutes.
[Roger] I'm starting to plat the shrimp dumplings with the chili oil.
Everything's cooked perfectly, juicy, tender, moist.
These dumplings are going to shine in this meal.
Delicious.
My bok choys are done smokin
Lightly tossed them in that spicy soy marinade
with some black and white sesame seeds.
Beautiful.
Yeah.
[Dylan] Five minutes, chefs.
[Roger] I'm grabbing my potatoes and they're falling into the firepit.
Uh-oh.
I have to scoop up as much of the potatoes as possible.
Add all of the aromatics and Japanese mayo.
Then I plate it up.
All right, I'm gonna slice the steak.
Steak is rested.
Nice char on the outside.
The judges are gonna love the steak.
Two minutes.
Beautiful.
My skewers are set up fully,
so I'm blazing the kebabs with my honey
and sherry vinegar reduction
Come on, look at that.
One minute. One minute.
-We can put a sauce on it first, then all the garnish... -Yeah.
Beautiful.
Let's go, baby.
Alain...
Perfect.
[judges] Ten, nine, eight, seven, six,
five, four, three, two, one.
Whoo!
-Good one. -Thank you.
Time's up.
I'm pretty happy with the plates,
not gonna lie.
And they asked for a street food party, so...
Gave 'em a street food party
[Alain] I'm looking at my dishes, I delivered
on making it spicy.
Smoke, grilling, char.
This is $10,000 worth of a feast.
Our long-awaited street food Feast of Fire has arrived.
This first chef has prepared Sherry glazed pork kebabs
with peanuts and chilies.
Shrimp dumplings in chili oil and fresh herbs.
Fire roasted potato salad with duck egg and togarashi
and we'll finish off with stone fruit hand pie
with five spice emulsion.
And this chef had to make one of their courses on a stick.
This meat on a stick reminds me of Thailand, Vietnam.
The flavor of these pork kebabs is really quite nice.
I liked the taste. I liked the sweetness,
but I just think that could have been a little fattier,
just a little bit more smoke.
[Nicole] The dumplings are delicious.
The texture and flavor of the filling is spot on.
The chef put some fresh herbs on top
when mixed with the chili oil, it really brings
a dynamic flavor profile to them.
But, when I think Fire Maste arena, smoke, fire,
I don't really get that out of that.
There's definitely char in that potato salad.
The potatoes are tender and got flavor
especially with that duck egg in it.
Do we see street food in these dishes?
I definitely see street food in the dumplings
and the pork kebabs.
-But, potato salad... -Yeah.
I don't really consider it street food.
[Kevin] Where I come from, potato salad is street food.
I mean, most barbecued, fried chicken on the streets,
-they got potato salad or coleslaw with it. -That's fair.
I think that's the best thing about this theme.
Street food is different all over the world
-and we've all had a different experience. -That's right.
Absolutely.
Let's head down the street and see what's on the menu for dessert.
[Dylan] We're having stone fruit hand pie with five spice emulsion.
[Nicole] Oh.
I like the look of this right off the hop,
I can see that it's got a nice toasted crust
on the outside. Some stone fruit, peaches, plums.
I'm looking for some sweetness from somewhere.
It's very tart.
For me, it's actually quite balanced.
I'm just glad that the pasty's cooked.
This chef was on the right track with their street food feast.
Let's see what the second chef has in store.
Looking forward to it.
Our second feast has dropped and this smells incredible.
This chef has prepared for us chargrilled flank steak
with spicy chimichurri.
Smoked bok choy with spicy soy marinade,
Cajun roasted baby potatoes
and we'll finish off with sweet plantain bread pudding with rum sauce
There's definitely smoke on this bok choy
which is quite lovely.
[Kevin] And you can see the spices in the chimichurri.
[Dylan] When it comes to a cut like flank steak,
if you like medium rare, cooking into a medium
helps break it down and makes it a little bit
easier to chew.
But I'm looking at this and it's gone way past a medium.
It's well done, but the chimichurri is so delicious.
[Dylan] They made a good choice with the kind of potato.
They're crispy on the outside, nice and creamy on the inside.
But then, once you get inside, it just no flavor to it.
-It's a roasted potato. -[Dylan] Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
I'm liking that grill on that bok choy.
Nice grill season, right?
The wateriness kind of bounces the smoke.
-He's got a little spice on that bok choy too. -Yeah.
In this feast, the chef had to make one of their dishes spicy
and I think they've accomplished that.
Clearly, this chef grew up on bring the heat street
'cause that bok choy and that steak got some heat to 'em.
-However, does it scream street food? -Not really.
Bok choy, I don't know. The potatoes, I don't know,
but I definitely see street food with the steak
in the chimichurri sauce, so...
-One more dessert for the road? -Yes.
Let's do it.
[Nicole] That looks sweet enough for you.
-[Kevin] Oh, I love bread pudding. -Yeah.
I do like that this chef incorporated a layer of chocolate
and then the ripe plantains on top.
These flavor profiles work really well together.
They said it was rum sauce, but I didn't taste any rum
or anything in it.
[Nicole] Do you think this is street food?
Plantain definitely when you go to the Caribbean,
but a bread pudding? Certainly not.
This is a restaurant dish.
Yeah.
Well, we've had two really unique twists
on our street food theme.
We're gonna have to break these feasts down dish by dish.
Let's take a look at the main dishes.
[Nicole] The first chef's main course
was definitely more street food-esque
and a little more complex in flavor and composition.
[Kevin] The steak was an excellent tasting steak.
I thought the chimichurri on top was good.
It was just over cooked.
The char really brought that arena into that dish.
Moving on to the first round of sides.
I really feel that the first chef
missed the opportunity to incorporate
the Fire Masters Arena in that dish.
The flavor of that bok choy with the smoke
and the seasoning on that.
I mean, that was some of the best I've ever had.
I would have to go with that.
Now it's down to the battle of the potatoes.
The first chef preparing that potato salad
with duck egg and the second chef
with the roasted potatoes.
The Cajun roasted potatoes should have had way more flavor.
It was just a perfectly cooked potato and that was it.
[Dylan] The first chef's fire roasted potato salad
had a nice creamy texture.
The potatoes were done right.
-I mean, that was a delicious dish. -Mm-hmm.
Let's take a look at the desserts head to head.
If I had to choose one, it would be the hand pie over the bread pudding
purely because the hand pie's more street food like to me.
[Dylan] I get where the second chef was going
by trying to incorporate plantains, to make it
more of a street food dish.
But I don't think that they really got to the destination
they were going for.
Judges, two amazing street food feasts
filled with a ton of flavor and two very different interpretations.
Some big hits and misses in each of them.
It's a tough call, but I think we've made our decision.
-Yeah, we have. -Yes.
Let's call the chefs back in.
[Roger] Even though I have a decade's worth of experien
cooking over fires.
The most delicious stuff is going to win.
I'm an inch away from $10,000.
I used all the grilling elements in the Fire Master arena.
What else can you ask?
Chefs, both of your street food feasts
stopped us in our tracks with dynamic and tasty dishes.
As you know, these feasts were tasted blind.
In the first feast, we loved the shrimp dumplings.
They were perfectly seasoned pockets of flavor.
However, we felt the pork kebabs were a bit dry.
In the second feast, we love the smoked bok choy
with the soy marinade.
It gave us a perfect amount of heat.
However, we felt the Cajun roasted potatoes lacked flavor.
Although both of your feasts took us on delectable culinary journeys,
in the end, there can only be one winner.
Tonight's winning feast is...
The first feast with the pork kebabs and shrimp dumplings.
[all clapping]
[Roger] It feels good to wi today's Feasts of Fire.
I'm proud of the feast I put up today.
Mad respect to Chef Alain.
Good fight, my friend.
I just maybe out flavored him. [laughs]
Congratulations, Chef Roger.
You've successfully defended your Fire Masters title.
Chef Alain, a dynamic day in the Fire Masters arena.
Thank you for showing us a taste of Haiti
-and all of your talents -Appreciate it, thank you.
There's no shame in losing to a Fire Master.
But, if we ever have to compete against each other again,
it's gonna be a different outcome next time.
[laughs]