- Previously on "next level chef"...
Today, you'll all be creating a next level fish dish.
- Let's go.
- All your pancetta is on the floor over here.
- What the--ah!
- The most outstanding dish tonight was
The halibut three ways.
[applause]
- Let's go, matt.
- The dish that I am eliminating tonight is matt.
- [exhales]
- I'm proud of preston, man.
You know, he's 19 years old.
He's chasing a dream.
- Tonight...
The game is about to change.
You're now individuals fighting to become the next level chef.
- This is what I came for.
- Guys, time to push.
[utensils clattering]
- Stock went down. He didn't turn that handle in.
- I'm screwed.
- This is to all the people that doubted me.
[blows raspberry]
[intense rock music]
♪ ♪
[dramatic music]
♪ ♪
- Welcome back, guys. Line up.
Are you all ready to level up?
All: Yes, chef!
- Because as I told you,
The game is about to change.
The team competition is now over.
You're individuals
Fighting to become the next level chef.
- Now only you can save yourself from elimination.
- Show time, baby! This is what I came for,
Cook as an individual.
So from this point moving forward, watch out.
- If you cook a great dish,
You'll earn your way up to the top.
But screw things up,
And you will tumble down to the basement.
- The team match is over.
Actually sort of excited about that because
As an individual, I perform very well.
- Now that you're safety net has gone,
So too are the protection of those next level pins.
So, tucker, nuri, step forward.
Hand me those pins back.
- I can't believe chef ramsay just took my pin.
- Thank you, tucker.
Thanks, nuri.
- I miss my pin. My apron is so naked now.
It's like "naked and afraid," like--
[sighs]
- The three of us still want someone from our team
To win this competition.
But in order to choose the right person
To become our next level chef
And win that coveted mentorship from all three of us,
We need to get our eyes on everyone
And really determine who is the best of the best.
No one starts the climb from the top.
So today, that top-level kitchen is closed.
[dramatic music]
- That leaves only the middle kitchen and the basement.
And in order to determine which kitchen
Each of you will be cooking in today,
Nyesha, gordon, and I looked at every single one of
Your performances in this competition so far.
- I'm worried because I have missed
The platform twice in a row.
I'm thinking I'm going back to the basement.
- The following people have been the top performers so far
And will be cooking on the middle level.
Tini,
Pilar,
Nuri,
Tucker,
Mehreen, and...
[inhales]
Omi.
- I'm at a loss for words.
I'm like, que, que, que? Wha-- que?
- That means vinny,
Shay, preston,
Chris, and michelle,
You'll all be cooking in that basement today.
- I don't deserve to be in the basement.
Although I've never had a top dish,
I haven't had a bottom dish either.
So I'm thinking,
Maybe I need to step it up and prove myself.
- To truly get to that next level,
You need to expand your horizons even further.
So today, we are going global.
♪ ♪
Each of you are going to create your take
On a signature dish
From a country around the world.
- I'm an italian cook.
So if I get that opportunity,
I'm gonna nail it all day long. [laughs]
- One of the best ways to understand a country's culture
Is by sampling their most iconic signature dishes.
- Whether it's pho from vietnam,
Feijoada from brazil,
A country's signature dish, it's like their culinary flag.
- Now, when that platform comes down,
There'll be 11 boxes
Labeled with the name of the country.
You've got to select the country you want.
But here's a twist: You won't know
Which dish you're gonna be cooking
Until that challenge begins.
So with only two floors and three of us,
Nyesha and I will both be on the middle floor today.
Head to the elevators.
You're going up to that industrial kitchen
On the middle floor,
And nyesha and I will meet you there.
Let's go.
- [whispering] let's go, baby. Let's go, baby.
I'm happy that I'm in the middle.
But I don't intend on staying there long.
I intend on moving my way up.
♪ ♪
- I go here. This is my station.
- I go here.
There is a shift in the atmosphere.
There are no longer teams,
No more good vibes.
♪ ♪
- They put me in the basement.
I honestly don't a [bleep].
Look, life gives you lemons, you gotta make lemonade.
It's a survivalist mentality right now.
- Ah, baby. - Woo, woo, woo.
- Here it is. Back in the game.
I want that top dish so badly.
I need the validation that like, you're a rock star.
You belong here.
You don't belong in the basement.
- Look what I got. [laughs]
- Good job, vinny.
- Hi, basement. How you doing?
Missed you. [laughs]
- All right, where the frick are the tongs at?
I have more than-- all right, good.
I have--I have been blessed. Look at these.
- This is tough for these chefs.
Now it's important because
You're gonna be judged on your individual merit.
So your individual performance is gonna determine
Where you cook and that is crucial.
Make no mistake about it. The basement sucks.
- Good luck, guys. - All right. Let's go.
- Thank you, chefs. - Let's go, everyone.
Rally up. You want to come over here, shay?
I want all of you to succeed, and you've all done things
Remarkable in this competition, all right?
All: Thank you, chef.
- Let's go. - Hi, chef.
- You good? - Yes, chef.
- Excellent.
- You want to earn that top level?
It's up to you. You gotta go get it today.
All: Yes, chef.
- Chef stretch, which country you hoping for?
Where--where do you want to go?
- Uh, thailand. - Thailand.
Omi, where would you go?
- España. - Ah.
- I really hope I see Spain.
I would love to give my twist on a paella.
[hydraulics whirring]
- Guys, the platform, it's starting to move.
When that turns green, we're gonna go for it, ok?
Go, guys. Let's go.
- I run
And I see Spain.
And somehow, tini, tiny, mighty jumped over me
And grabs the Spain box.
- Hurry up. Get a box. - Ok.
So now I'm like, muchacha!
I am pretty sure I scraped my knee.
- I picked Spain.
I grabbed it 'cause I like to pick stuff
I don't know how to cook, for some reason.
- What have you got? - Jamaica, chef.
- Oh, my god.
What have you got?
- Italy, chef. - Italy, man.
Spain, right? - Yes, chef.
- What have you got?
- India. - India!
Big man, what'd you get? - Thailand, chef.
- Thailand. You asked for it.
- Yes, chef. - You got it, yes.
[hydraulics whirring]
- Oh, I see it move a little.
- Here we go.
- Go!
- It feels like the hunger games.
Everybody's running to the middle.
- I go around the platform and grab a box
Without even seeing what country it is...
- Have you tasted the food before?
Have you been to that place?
- Just hoping to god
That it's something that I can work with.
- All right. Michelle, what do we got?
- Canada, eh? - Hey, ok. All right.
Vinny, what country do you got?
- Sweden. - Sweden.
- Shay, what do you got? - I got austria.
- And--and, what do you know about austria cuisine?
- I want to make a schnitzel.
I'm hoping for a schnitzel. - Ok.
Chris? Greece!
- [laughs] - wow.
- Preston? - I got morocco.
Don't have a lot of experience with morocco, but...
- Ok. - I'm gonna make a tasty dish.
If you grab a box that you've never cooked with before,
You're possibly going to elimination.
So there's a lot at stake for me right now.
- Ok, guys, your 40 minutes starts now.
Let's go, guys.
- [cheering]
Shark, shark, shark, shark.
Ooh, red snapper. Ok, ok, ok.
- Tikka, tikka!
I've never made chicken tikka masala.
[laughs]
But we just gonna roll with it. [laughs]
- What have we got?
- Veal cutlet, pasta.
We got some parm in here. Parmigiana.
- Woo! Pad thai, baby.
- Right, what'd you get?
- Kebabs from lebanon. - Wow.
I'm very excited. - Good.
So that kebab needs that flavor, that profile,
That seasoning. - Yes.
- How do you say it? Pae--"pi-lay-a"?
- Teeny, tiny, are you kidding me?
- Don't know what paella is.
I don't know what that is. - Get yourself organized.
- What is paella?
I've never been to Spain.
I don't know how to cook Spain--
Spanish food?
I have never cooked paella.
And I'm just like, I don't know what the [bleep]
I'm doing at this point.
- What did you get? - I got paella.
And I don't know what paella is.
- Think about it as a sort of--
Almost like a-- a risotto with shellfish.
- I'm just like, oh.
I probably look so stupid right now
Compared to everyone else.
- You've surprised many in this competition.
There's a lot of chefs in your situation.
- I was never a good student.
I was always getting bad grades.
And then I found cooking, and it changed everything.
Then I got on tiktok, and it's just straight hate.
Everyone's like, "you can't cook."
But I just cook with my heart.
- Listen, those comments--
Never, ever, ever give them a second
Of your valuable time on that.
- Yes, chef. - Ok?
- That little pep talk, it just means a lot,
Especially coming from gordon ramsay.
- Ok?
Good luck. Come on. You got this, yeah?
- So this is to all the people that doubted me.
[blows raspberry]
- Yes.
Triple yes.
Quadruple yes.
Defo yes.
- Welcome to the "blaisment," everyone.
You wanted Italy, didn't you?
- I did, but I know how to make a meatball.
I'm italian, so we're gonna nail this today.
- Yes! Yes! - We're gonna nail this today.
I know nothing about swedish food.
But I make the best meatballs ever,
Next to my daughter madison.
She makes better meatballs than me,
But I'm a close second.
Let's go.
- Lingonberries, lingonberries.
- Oh, I never heard of those. - That's all right.
- What the hell is a lingonberry?
I have no idea about lingonberries.
I'll figure it out later.
- Thinking of them like pomegranates
Or cranberries is smart, ok? Get going. Get going.
- Get really thin, baby.
[banging]
- All right. What do we got, shay?
What do you got? - Schnitzel!
I've made schnitzel. It's been a long time.
I've eaten a lot of schnitzel. I'm ready.
- All right, chris, what do you got?
- I got greece. I got souvlaki.
- Listen, I feel like these flavors are in your wheelhouse.
- This is absolutely in my wheelhouse.
- All right. Keep going. You got this, right?
All right, preston, or should I say "im-preston"?
Uh, what do you got going on?
- I'm not really sure what to do with these.
I don't have a lot of experience with this cuisine.
I have morocco,
And the signature dish is tajine.
I've never cooked or eaten tajine before.
So I am a little bit worried with that factor.
- This is a tajine, ok? - Yes, chef.
- So this is how-- this is how it's cooked.
It's cooked in this container, ok?
- Perfect. - It's all about keeping
All of those flavors in here.
You got it? - Yes, chef.
- Ok, boom.
- Chef, I got a beautiful ribeye.
- Ok, and-- - I got flour
To make the gravy for the poutine.
- How are you gonna treat that steak?
- I want it to be elevated,
So I'm trying to imagine the plate,
Because poutine's not something that I typically think of
When I think elevated food.
I love poutine,
Especially at 3:00 a.M. After a lot of tequila.
But how the hell am I gonna make this a next level dish?
- Think about what has to done--be done first.
Think about what has to be done first.
The gravy and the potatoes, right?
- Poutine?
God. Just kill me.
- Michel, big jeopardy here.
She's got poutine, which is like a pub-y,
Very rustic sort of dish.
And she's gonna do a french fry.
French fries are so hard to make.
Very impressive if she pulls it off,
But that dish sometimes is too rustic.
Can she elevate poutine?
- 25 minutes left, team, ok?
- Heard, chef. - Heard, chef.
- What are we doing with this chicken skin, omi?
- It's going to be a little bit of baking soda
To crisp it up really nice. - Be careful.
It tastes pretty horrible, ok? - Yeah?
I have never cooked indian food before.
I don't even have any indian spices at home.
- Is this a dish that you've made before?
- Yes, chef.
My nonna used to make it for me in the kitchen...
- Oh, are you italian? - All the time.
I am, chef. - Wow.
- My family's from the southernmost part of Italy.
- Yes. - Kind of by the boot.
- My favorite chili. - [speaks italian]
I grew up in nonna's kitchen.
You know, my grandfather would be out in the garden,
You know, harvesting vegetables,
And she would cook them.
And I would get to stir things
Or help on noodle day or on sauce day.
She was such an inspiration,
And I just really wanted to be just like her.
That's where my love of cooking came from.
She was always cooking for me in the kitchen.
And I never knew that being a professional chef
Was kind of a thing I could do
Until I saw women like you doing it and crushing it
And kicking those boys asses.
And so I was like... - All day, baby.
- You know, I want to do that, so...
- You're doing it. - That's what I'm doing, chef.
- You know you're doing it.
- Let's go. Let's go, team!
- I thought that was a hole. I'm stupid.
I thought that hole in the top of the tajine was a vent
For things to go into the pot.
I realize there's no hole there.
That's just the roof of the pot.
So I'm a little bit embarrassed.
- All right, looks like you're developing
Big flavor over there. Any concerns?
- Tastes good. - It's good. I love it.
You're a wizard, harry. Let's go.
[magical music]
- All right, listen, we're looking for
The next level chef down here, ok?
I want success from all of you.
Michelle, have you cooked the potatoes yet?
- Oh, they're done. - Yeah, they're done.
You got to get 'em out of there, ok?
[sizzling]
- Whoa.
- Andale, mami.
- Relax. [chuckles]
- 15 minutes left, guys.
15 minutes. - Heard, chef.
- What protein do you got? You got shrimp?
- I got shrimp, chef. - Good.
- I'm gonna use the head to start building the flavor
In the sauce, the shrimp shells, garlic,
Seafood stock, salt.
- Ok. Good luck, young man.
- Thank you, chef. - Careful with the sweetness.
You need to balance that out, ok?
- Ok, yes, chef.
- There's levels to this competition.
- Yes, chef.
I've never made a jerk marinade for fish.
So this is definitely new. I said I wanted to push myself.
- You know I'm counting on you, right?
- Yes, chef.
But I'm stressed out.
- What'd you think? - You can see
Who's the professional chef, who's the home cook,
'cause it's all about how you organize your mind.
[pot clatters]
- Gosh.
- Damn, what happened there?
- Stock went down. He didn't turn that handle in.
- Dang! What did I just do, man?
I'm screwed. I'm absolutely screwed.
- [bleep].
[dramatic music]
[pot clatters] - oh, my god.
- Damn, what happened there?
- Stock went down. He didn't turn that handle in.
- Let's go, let's go, let's go. It's all right. Let's go.
- Chef stretch, what's going on, bud?
- I just knocked it by walking past, chef.
It wasn't stable on there.
- Yeah, but that doesn't matter.
That is an excuse.
You have to set yourself up for success.
You know what I mean? - Yeah. Let's go, let's go.
- Nuri's stock just fell on the floor.
And that's a thing. Nuri doesn't stop down
And take a breath and focus on his plan ahead.
I need you to stretch that talent.
I need you, chef stretch. You got this this.
- This is a little bit too easy.
So let's start with our mid-round mayhem.
That platform's descending with 11 international ingredients.
Try to select the ingredient that's gonna enhance your box.
One ingredient only, understood?
Let's go.
- I look over and the first thing I see is
A black truffle, and I'm all, "yoink."
- It's not stopping for long.
- I see a birdseye chili.
I need that extra level of heat.
I need more heat.
- I'm looking around.
But I didn't see anything that I need.
- One only.
- And I just grab honey.
Damn, I should have got the cabbage!
How am I gonna use honey?
Cabbage, that would've been perfect.
- One ingredient that's going to enhance your dish.
- I see sobrasada,
And I grab that sobrasada so fast it's not even funny.
- One amazing ingredient.
- I grab red cabbage.
But I don't want a mid-round drop,
Unless it's like straight booze and I can have a drink.
[laughs]
- So, preston, what did you grab in the mid-round?
- I grabbed tahini.
- That should work in there even if it's like,
As a little drizzle or something on top, right?
Ok, I love it. - Chef, I don't have a lot of
Experience with couscous. So I--do I soak it first,
Or do I just throw it straight in?
- Steam it up, ok?
You do want it to be fluffy.
This is a crucial learning moment for preston
Because it's not a fancy dish with little leaves and dots.
It's not preston's strength.
Big challenge for him.
- Ten minutes to go, yes?
Now you start getting that base in there, ok? You good?
- Yes, chef. - Yeah? Feeling better now?
- Yes, chef. - Good girl.
- What do we have here, nuri?
How are we cooking the shrimp?
- Um, I'm just gonna lightly pan sear 'em.
- And be careful with these chilies.
They're very spicy... - Ok, heard, chef.
- When you start using those seeds, ok?
- Okay, heard, chef. - So make sure you taste it.
- I tried to remove some of them.
- Yeah, yeah. - Right, how you feeling?
- Feeling good, chef. - We're good?
- Just waiting till the last minute
To put that red snapper on, chef.
- Smart. I love that confidence, ok?
- Thank you, chef. - Good.
- Guys, time to push. - Seven minutes to go.
Ok, that's still rare.
Touch it. Touch it. - I can do medium-rare, right?
- I'd put it back in the oven for two more minutes.
You know what I mean? I would put back in--
You got the heat in the tray now, haven't you?
- Sure. - Yeah?
- Behind. Coming down, coming down.
My veal comes out of the pan fry--
I'm like, "mm, super rare. Perhaps raw."
I think all of us are feeling the time crunch.
It's stressful.
- Tucker's just pulled out her veal
And it's raw in the middle.
She is up against it. - Yep.
- Three minutes left. - Heard, three minutes.
- Means we're plating very, very soon.
All right, how we doing on our gravy?
- It's salty, but--
- Ok, listen.
I don't think it's salty
Because you're gonna have these sweet lingonberries.
- Yes, sir. - Have you eaten one yet?
Have you tasted it? - I have not.
- Oh-- - I will.
- Please! Please. - I was gonna sugar 'em.
- It's your--it's your whole thing on the line here.
You're gonna taste it and you're gonna be like,
Oh, it's too tart, right? - Yep.
I'm an idiot.
Taste the lingonberry towards the very end.
If I'd known that, ten minutes,
I would've made a nice little jam out of it.
My thoughts are, "I'm in deep trouble."
- We are down to two minutes to go.
- This fish is taking forever.
Oh, my god.
- Next time, just leave it on the skin side, chef.
- Yes, chef.
- For the first time in the competition,
I feel like I'm really struggling.
- What's the plan, tucker?
It's raw, so what's the plan?
We're gonna slice and--
- We're just gonna use the outside slices, chef,
Not any of that inside slice.
- Keep it going, guys. Yes?
Keep it going.
- You're letting it rest right now.
- Turn that off. Turn that off. Turn on.
- The chefs are both coming to me being like,
"chef, I'm worried about your veal."
So now I'm worried about my veal
'cause they're worried about my veal.
- Turn it on.
- Now we're all worried.
- Let's go! It's time to plate!
- Behind. Right behind you guys.
- Time to plate now? - Yes, time to plate now!
- I'm starting to envision how I want to present the dish,
Which is the part that I'm most concerned about.
How do I make it look pretty?
- 90 seconds left! - Yes, chef.
[hydraulics whirring] - platform's on the move.
- Gotta go, girl. Gotta go. It's undercooked.
[bleep] damn!
- I try to flip it over.
The flesh is just like tore up. It just looks horrible!
This is the worst day to have chef ramsay there
In the kitchen with me.
- 45 seconds to go.
- Platform's here. Platform is here!
No one can miss the platform.
Three seconds!
Michelle, do you have enough sauce?
Is there enough gravy?
- My plate was not clean, but I got it on there.
- Platform's here, guys. Come on. Let's go.
Gotta go. Mehreen, gotta go, girl.
[tense music]
Ten seconds, let's go.
You've still got ten seconds of cooking.
Let's go. - Come on, pilar, you got this.
- We're like looking at the fish
With ten seconds to go.
I might have like the smallest piece of little fish.
My plate looks horrible.
- Five--
- There's five seconds left,
And pilar is still cooking.
Pilar, like, get your dish on that platform.
Come on, pilar! Come on. Come on.
- One--you got to go, girl. You got to go.
- The plate barely gets on the platform,
And thanks to chef stretch, he tipped it up there.
- Man! [applause]
♪ ♪
It just wasn't my day.
I'm so frustrated with myself.
I'm just--I want to cry.
- Well done.
Your first individual challenge;
The heat is on.
But looking at these dishes in front of us,
You did very well.
Richard, nyesha, shall we? - Please.
- Let's start on the middle floor.
- So, first up, we have a trip to Italy,
The veal parmesan.
- Flavor-wise, beautiful, delicious.
Pasta's slightly too thin.
- Great use of truffle, which is unexpected.
- Bold execution here with cooking the veal chop whole.
But an amazing take on a veal parmesan.
- Nonna would be so proud of me right now.
I did her justice today.
- Ok, next up,
The lebanon box with lamb kebab.
- I don't see a kebab here.
- Yeah, so chef made a play on a pot pie with a short dough.
- Smart move not going down the kebab route.
The flavors are there.
- Ok, next up, we have a paella,
Trip to Spain.
- Wow. Seasoning's spot on.
- All of the seafood's cooked beautifully.
- Paella, never cooked it before.
I've never even seen it before.
Then they loved it? Ooh, I'm just so relieved.
- We have a trip to jamaica
With a jerk red snapper.
- Sadly, the dish looks unfinished,
Like it's missing 2/3rds of that fish.
Rice needs more seasoning.
- I'm not getting any of those jerk spices
That kind of almost make your nose run a little bit.
- I just expected more.
- I'm normally very proud of my plate.
And that was not a professional chef's plate.
- Next, we have thailand with a pad thai.
- It's bloody hot.
Second, third, fourth mouthful,
I'm not too sure if that's gonna be overkill.
- Yeah, it's that birdseye chili.
- Fricking birdseye chilies!
What the hell, man?
Why did I put another chili in there?
- [exhales]
- Oh, dude, what are you doing?
♪ ♪
- This is a chicken tikka
With a fresh cucumber condiment on the side.
♪ ♪
- The tikka is delicious.
It's fragrant. It's floral.
It's got the right amount of heat.
- Yeah, the cilantro is a little too much
For what the dish is, I think,
But the rice and the sauce, delicious.
- The fact that I am getting this type of feedback
On this dish that I'm cooking for the first time,
I am feeling amazing. [laughs]
- Shall we head down to the basement?
- Please. - Let's.
Near and dear to my heart, the swedish meatball
With gravy and mash.
The cabbage is from the mid-round drop.
The lingonberries are so, so tart.
[tense music]
Sort of sucking some of the other flavors away.
- Meatballs, just a touch too tiny.
The smaller you make them, the quicker they dry out.
- Ok, next up, we head to canada with a poutine.
♪ ♪
- This is elevated.
Ribeye is cooked beautifully.
There's no two ways about that.
- My favorite part is actually the fries, right?
There a little bit crispy.
You get these-- it's kind of nice to
Create your perfect bite.
- Honestly, I feel like someone's pranking me.
To hear such positive things
About this poutine that I made--
I'm just on, literally, cloud nine.
Canada, eh? [laughs]
- Ok, and here we have a lamb souvlaki.
A yogurt sauce, dill, lamb shoulder.
- Pretty nice seasoning on this.
Lamb's a little bit too tough.
- I would love to see a little bit more tenderness
In this protein.
- All right, and over here, we are off to austria
With a pork schnitzel.
- Protein's seasoned beautifully.
- I love the potatoes here.
Fork crust, simple potatoes, tasty.
Ok, over here, we head to morocco
With a classic tajine.
Mid-round drop here was tahini,
Which doesn't look like it made the plate.
I'm not getting all of the flavors of the almonds,
The olives, and raisins.
But the chicken is cooked well.
- The flavors are strange with this dish.
It doesn't feel moroccan.
Couscous for me, it's all bitty and very tight.
But the dish is quite dry.
- I definitely was not expecting that.
I thought the couscous was nice and fluffy.
But, like, I really want to stay in this competition.
- Ok. Well done.
We've got to decide
Who's going up and who's going down.
Richard, nyesha.
♪ ♪
All right, top dishes today... - Yes.
- The tikka. - Tikka was so delicious.
Oh, my gosh. If I ordered that for takeout,
I'd be so impressed.
- I thought the veal parmesan-- it was a fresh take.
- How many veal parmesan dishes
Are you having with black truffle?
The dish was splendid.
- I'd say the dish that surprised me the most
Was that poutine, even without even tasting the meat,
The potato alone--
- But making french fries in 40 minutes
Is really, really tough.
So there's a lot of technique involved.
- Let's talk about the-- - [groans]
- The snapper, the jamaican inspired snapper.
- Yeah, yeah, that broke my heart.
- What happened there by the way?
- It broke my heart.
- She cooked it on a plancha grill.
- I think she just didn't leave herself enough time
On the back end, you know?
- They've got to understand,
To get into that top flight kitchen,
They've got to produce a top flight dish.
- Absolutely.
For me, the pad thai had a nice level of
Depth of flavor, but then this chili is too much.
- They had to grab water. I'm like [bleep].
- The one I was excited to taste but didn't deliver.
The meatballs were so tiny. - Yeah.
Listen, I mean, that wasn't my favorite.
- That cabbage was raw.
- What do you mean? - [bleep].
- And the other one that's borderline for me,
Personally, was that tajine. It was just dry.
- That was not a tajine.
- It's a shame. Well, it's gonna be tight
To get to the top, but I think it's obvious who's going in.
[tense music]
♪ ♪
Nyesha, rich, and I felt there were
Three outstanding dishes today
That have earned their right
To cook in that top-level kitchen.
Those three dishes were...
The tikka from india.
Omi, congratulations.
[applause] - wow.
- Real authenticity.
- Thank you, chef.
[sighs]
I'm about to go up to the third floor.
I'm beside myself right now.
- The next person moving to the top,
The canadian poutine.
Michelle. - Thank you.
[applause]
- Gravy to die for. - Thank you, chef.
- Congrats. - Thank you.
Finally, I got the validation that I needed.
Poutine? I didn't think that
That was gonna happen at all.
- The final person moving to the top level
Is the one who cooked...
The italian veal parmesan.
Congratulations. [applause]
Truffle in a veal parmesan?
Girl, you've got balls.
- I'm really proud of myself, chef.
My nonna would be proud too.
- Very.
- I did my heritage proud.
Nonna is smiling down on me right now, for sure.
- Now, the three bottom dishes.
These chefs will be moving to the basement
For the next challenge,
But not before they cook in that elimination cookoff.
The first dish heading into the elimination is--
- Ok.
The first dish heading into the elimination...
Is the jamaican red snapper.
Pilar, the timing got the better of you tonight.
And we know you can cook better than that.
- I agree.
The thought of someone being eliminated
And that possibly being me--
I'm not ready to go home. I have so much more to prove.
♪ ♪
- The second dish into the elimination...
[tense music]
Is...
♪ ♪
It's the swedish meatballs.
Vinny, your passion is evident.
What we need now is the finesse.
- Yes, chef.
I knew it. I knew I was gonna be here. I knew it.
I'm just--mm-- disappointed.
- This third dish didn't hit the mark.
The final dish in the elimination is...
♪ ♪
The moroccan chicken tajine.
Preston, it missed the mark completely.
- Yes, chef.
- You've been in that elimination before.
You've cooked your way out brilliantly.
You need to replicate that. - Yes, chef, I will.
- Obviously that means
That shay, nuri, tini, chris, and mehreen,
You'll be starting off in that middle-level kitchen.
Understood? All: Yes, chef.
- Ok. Omi, michelle, and tucker,
Head back to the lounge, put your feet up.
Well done. [applause]
- Good job, guys. - Really good job.
- I am feeling literally, on top of the world.
- Michelle!
Well done, girl. - Thank you. [laughs]
- Ok, pilar, vinny, and preston, stay here.
The rest of you head into the elevator, please.
- Only the strong survive, baby.
It feels really good to be safe.
But now I'm telling myself,
"all right, man, you gotta get to that top level now."
- Now, for tonight's elimination,
You're cooking a classic french dish,
Duck a l'orange...
- Huh?
[chuckles]
You don't serve that in the firehouse often.
- That we want you three to modernize.
Understood? All: Yes, chef.
- Right, from now on until we reach the finale,
Each of us will take a turn overseeing
The elimination cookoff,
While the other two will blindly taste the dishes.
The very best of luck, all of you.
Off you go. - Good luck, chefs.
♪ ♪
- This is like my ride-or-die moment right now.
If I don't cook something to perfection,
I'm definitely going home.
- I know we're not a team, but like,
Half my team's in the elimination right now.
It's not amazing.
[cheers and applause]
- It's $250,000 on the line.
I ain't just doing this for me.
I'm a single mother. It's just me and my baby.
She just has me to depend on.
Today is not the day for me to go home.
[cheers and applause]
- Right, you guys feeling good?
Yes? - Yes, chef.
- Ok. Listen and focus.
- I am going against two pros
That probably make duck l'orange in their sleep.
But I'm not intimidated.
You know, I'm the firefighter that won't give up.
I'm gonna cook my heart out tonight, for sure.
- Very best of luck to all three of you, yeah?
- Thank you, chef. - Line up, please. Let's go.
30 minutes to create a next-level duck dish
To keep you in the competition.
Here it comes.
Your 30 minutes starts...
Now. Off we go, guys.
[cheers and applause]
- I work good under pressure,
So maybe this is what I need to just
Put the fire in my gut and focus.
- One minute gone, 29 minutes remaining.
Let's go. Right, young man.
Give me the inside the dish. Where we going?
- So I'm gonna score it, sear the duck fat.
I'm gonna make that into
My sauce as well. - Good.
- I'm gonna just keep it simple,
Don't over complicate things,
And really, just make a tasty dish.
- Right, how you feeling? - Feeling good, chef.
- Good. What you got?
- Try to do it more than one way.
I want to do a candy orange skin...
- Good. - Orange reduction sauce,
And a orange herb salad on top. - Nice.
Ok, make sure we elevate this dish, yes?
- Yes, chef.
- Right, young man, come on.
I've seen some of your best things
In these cook offs, yeah? What you doing?
- I'm gonna pan fry my duck breast.
- Good. - I want to make a nice glaze--
A hot glaze with it. - Smart.
- Mashed potatoes--I've been killing the mashed potatoes.
- Hey, the best mash.
Get those potatoes on, please.
Let's go. - Yes, chef.
- So I saw you put oil in there.
And then I saw you put butter in there. Why?
- Just--just to help it out,
Start it off a little bit, but--
- He added oil to his pan? - And butter.
- Remember, butter burns. - Yes, chef.
- Don't baste something with burned butter, ok?
So be smart, so if it's burning, start again.
I don't want you giving that duck that burnt flavor, ok?
- Watch out. Coming to the sink.
Watch out, watch out.
I'm a little bit concerned with having to reset my pan.
I feel like I lost a lot of those good flavors
That I was getting in that duck.
But I would rather that than have a burned taste in my duck.
- Who's looking strong?
- Pilar. - Why?
- Seems like she's gonna element it,
Using a different-- a lot of different forms
To really, you know,
Show the star of the orange in the duck.
- Mehreen, who's got this?
- Even though preston's never cooked it before,
He looks-- he looks like he's gonna win.
- Interesting.
- Chef ramsay smells so good,
I have forgotten about the duck l'orange.
It just smells like an elegant, smart, scary person.
It smells really good.
I don't know how else to describe it.
- Right, 7 minutes gone, 23 minutes to go.
So when's that duck going on? - Right now, chef.
- There's a secret. Get it on early.
Ah, pilar? - Yes, chef.
- Faster at that duck now.
11 minutes gone,
19 minutes to go.
Pilar, get that duck going, girl, please.
- Yes, chef. It's sizzling, chef.
- Oh, girl, you got to turn that heat up.
That is too low. - Yeah, that's still white.
- Tell me how you're gonna plate this. Where we going?
- I'm gonna do a whipped cream orange sauce on top.
That whipped cream,
I think it's gonna be a great addition
And add beauty to my plate.
- So vinny's whipping cream.
You don't really add that into a fatty duck breast.
Pilar? - Yes, chef?
- This duck is just not moving.
Did you get the pan on straight away?
- Yes, chef.
Not cooking fast enough.
And I'm just like screaming in the inside.
- Crank up the oven. Get it in the oven, please.
- Yes, chef.
- No, that is-- I mean, that is completely raw.
- Chef pilar, if you do not perform,
Your butt is going home.
- Five minutes to go.
This is the dish that will save
Your position in the kitchen.
Preston, duck is resting nicely.
- Yes, chef.
- That's a big weight off your shoulders. Ok?
- Yes, chef.
- He's 19. - He's so talented.
- 19. - Like...
What was I doing at 19?
- At 19, I was busy trying to get my groove on.
- I cannot tell you how important it is,
Slicing that duck at the very last minute.
- Yes, chef.
- Too early, you'll turn it dry.
- Come on, vinny, finish strong, baby.
- Vinny's slicing the duck now. Why now?
It's always the last thing you do
Before it goes on the plate.
2 and 1/2 minutes left.
[tense music]
- Come on, p, let's go, baby.
- Let's go. Let's go. [applause]
- As I'm slicing my duck, I see that nice pink color.
I'm like, thank you.
The duck is cooked perfectly.
- Come on, guys, let's go!
[cheers and applause]
- Off to the races.
- 90 seconds to go. Let's go!
♪ ♪
Well done.
The goodness is on the board.
I want the goodness in the duck.
It's got to stay in the duck.
Make these plates beautiful. Let's go.
- Oh, my god. It looks so good!
- You got this, vinny. - Let's go, vinny.
- I've nailed the duck. Perfect.
I think I got this today.
- 30 seconds to go. Let's go!
Come on, guys.
- Let's go, guys. - 30 seconds.
Sauce, guys. Sauce, sauce, sauce, sauce.
♪ ♪
Ten, nine, eight, seven, six,
Five, four, three, two, one.
Nice job. Well done.
[cheers and applause]
- Way to leave it on the plate, you guys.
- Well done. - Good job, baby.
- Good job.
♪ ♪
Richard, nyesha, welcome back. - Thank you.
- That was an extraordinary, impressive, 30-minute cook.
- Wow.
- Three stunning dishes.
Let's start with this one here first.
This is a duck that was roasted skin side down,
Done with roasted vegetables in duck fat.
- This looks like the cover of a magazine.
It's vibrant, beautiful,
And the gumption and tenacity
To not even slice the duck.
Shows pure confidence.
♪ ♪
- The duck is cooked beautifully.
♪ ♪
- Beautiful, medium-- medium means perfect.
What a modern dish.
I love the control on the sauce.
- She crushed that.
That was executed beautifully.
- This dish,
Duck topped with some light pickles and fried potatoes
Round the outside.
- When you slice a duck,
You don't want to really sort of
Drown it in the sauce.
You should showcase that beautiful cook on the duck.
[tense music]
♪ ♪
- Oh, boy. - Oh.
They all had that face where it was not--
Something's wrong with the sauce.
- I love the jus.
However, for me, it's a little bit sweet.
When you have a rich, fatty duck,
You want something that sort of cuts that fattiness.
- Duck is cooked really, really well.
I like it.
- Our third and final dish.
This is a duck that sits over
A bed of creamy mashed potatoes.
- Um, what is this--
This cream over here? A meringue or--
- Fragrant-scented whipped cream.
- Come on, vin. I hope they love it.
- Me too.
- The cream's a little weird but that's where
A lot of the orange flavor comes through.
- Flavor-wise for me, it's straightforward,
Honest, really beautiful.
♪ ♪
- Nyesha, I want to come to you first.
I need to know,
Which duck dish are you gonna be sending home?
♪ ♪
- The dish that I'm sending home tonight is...
♪ ♪
- Oh, god.
♪ ♪
- For me, it's gonna be the duck with the fried potato.
♪ ♪
- Preston. - One vote on preston.
- Richard?
- For me, the duck that I'm sending home tonight...
♪ ♪
Is the duck...
With the fried potatoes.
♪ ♪
- That dish was cooked by preston.
- Oh, my gosh.
Wow.
- Oh, lord.
- Oh.
- Aw.
- Young man, um, I am devastated.
You absolutely nailed the cook on that duck.
Sadly, the dish is somewhat lacking
As a completed dish.
- I wanted to be the next level chef.
And obviously, it wasn't me. [chuckles]
But taking a step back and reflecting, like,
I did my first flambe with gordon freaking ramsay.
- Your culinary journey is just starting.
- Like, this journey has been so amazing.
I got to experience it with three of
The biggest culinary giants in the world.
Thank you for having me.
- Another one bites the dust.
- Ah. - Yeah.
- Well done. [applause]
Ok? - Thank you, chef.
- Well done.
At 19 years of age,
I, gordon ramsay, was not cooking at that level.
Take this moment and continue the climb.
Good luck, young man.
Take care.
- Hey, I can't wait to see you at your big restaurant
In a couple years.
You're gonna be the best chef on earth,
You know that?
[voice breaking] I'm very proud of my--myself.
[breathes deeply]
I am not a professional cook,
But I just knocked out one of the best prodigies
In the culinary community.
I have a lot of passion,
And here I am, still in the fight.
- [groans]
- I proved that I deserve to be here.
And I'm gonna use this as my motivation.
I'm a underdog but I'm used to that.
- Good job, preston.
- Good job, buddy.
[applause]
♪ ♪
- We've lost one of the most talented youngsters
In the country today.
And this is what you're facing now.
Next time we see you,
It's going up another level.
Good night. All: Night, chef.
- Thank you, chef.
- You too. - You got it.
♪ ♪
- Next time on "next level chef"...
Richard, nyesha, and myself would like to congratulate you
For making it to the top ten.
Come on! [applause]
For today's challenge, we're heading to a place
Where every chef makes their first real impression:
Amazing appetizers.
- If you mess this up, bro, no excuses.
- All right, guys, 40 minutes starts now. Let's go.
- Vinny? - Yeah?
- Be smart.
- I'm in the competition, not you.
- Is that what you grabbed? - Yeah.
- That's a good diabolical laugh.
- [evil laugh]
♪ ♪