Thoughts on Top Chef Season 7 Episode 6: Cold War

If you have not seen this week’s episode of Top Chef, read no further. This post contains spoilers!

How’d you guys like this Top Chef episode? Here are my random thoughts. Would love to hear yours!

• HAIL TO THE CHEF! That line is growing on me.
• Quickfire Challenge! Aaah it’s Michelle Bernstein! I admittedly just know her through Top Chef.
• Weird proteins are on the table. Was that a crocodile head?
• Andrea isn’t happy to see Michelle Bernstein. She says they have a rivalry, being both Miami chefs. Catty!
• Quickfire challenge: Prepare a dish with the exotic proteins. Ta-da! It’s the dreaded knife block!
• New thing I learned today: White Kidneys aren’t kidneys but testicles! Let’s see how Angelo makes this dish sexy.
• Kelly reminds me a little bit of Meg Ryan. I’m growing very fond of this simple but kickass lady.
• “Testicle marshmallow,” that’s what Angelo’s doing with the “kidneys.” Er. That hardly sounds appetizing.
• Emu eggs?! They look awesome but look so hard to open. Was Amanda using a saw?
• QUICKFIRE TWIST! “Please take over the proteins to your left!” Padma announces. Aaaand here are the final Quickfire dishes:
  • Tamesha: Duck Tongue in Broth with Mirepoix, Lime and Sriracha > Hey, this sounds like it’ll work. Spice and heat go well with duck right?
  • Andrea: Wild Boar & Risotto with Dried Cherries, Almond, Mushrooms and Red Wine > Boring. Then again Andrea was so pressured by her Miami “competition” Michelle. The flavors are beautiful, Michelle says, but it’s a little chewy. It crushes our Miami cheftestant.
  • Tiffany: Foie Gras with Caramelized Apples and Toasted Pecans, Brandy-Caramel Sauce > Sounds safe and delicious!
  • Alex: Ostrich barded in caul fat and basil with mushroom duxelle and balsamic glaze. What’s “barded”? *dictionary lookup* Something like armored apparently. Another new thing today.
  • Kevin: Duck Testicles Meuniere with Beet & Licorice Puree. What’s meuniere? Let me look it up… “Rolled in flour and fried in butter.” I think ANYTHING would taste good “meuniere” style!
  • Angelo: Seared crocodile with ginger, garlic and chiles. Hey, this bowl looks familiar. Angelo’s used this same bowl in a previous quickfire! Beautiful flavor, texture is off, Michelle says.
  • Stephen: Seared Frog Leg, Frog Leg confit, tomato grits and blackened bourbon sauce
  • Kenny: Rattlesnake Francese and Rattlesnake Cake with leeks, bacon and curry sauce
  • Kelly: Emu Egg Omelet with Goat Cheese and Harissa Vinaigrette. I wonder what Emu egg tastes like?
  • Amanda: Roast Llama, Sauce soubise with Leek, Date and Bacon Compote. When you say Llama, I think Sims 3. Poor llama.
• JUDGING TIME! Least successful: Stephen’s frogs legs were insipid, Alex’s ostrich was dry. Andrea’s boar needed more cooking. Mind games, Andrea!
• Good dishes: Kelly’s creamy emu egg. Tamesha’s duck tongue was smart and light. Amanda’s beautiful job with llama. Is the winner KELLY? KELLY? Great balance on the plate… and it’s Kelly! Yay! She now has immunity. I’m so happy for her! She won immunity with an omelet! Reminds me of Stephen (Season 1) and his perfect omelet. Was that at the Top Chef All-Stars? Prepare an egg dish using only one hand? Yes, I am a Top Chef addict.
• Elimination Challenge: Chefs must prepare a cold dish. Is ceviche a cold dish? Because if it is and the chefs prepare it, it’ll be like a flashback. There were so many ceviches the past season.
• They’ll be divided into two groups and… sorry, I really get lost in these instructions. Special surprise: “You’re going on a cruise! On the maritime version of Air Force One!” So they can plan their  “Cold War” strategy. Aaaaah. *cymbal crash*
• Okay I get the instructions now. They’re divided into 2 teams. Each team will taste the other’s food, then they choose one chef to win on the opposite team and one to lose. Mind games seems to be the theme of this episode.
• Am I watching Survivor?
• So Angelo’s giving other people unsolicited advice. Makes you wonder if he’s sincere or manipulative.
• SHOPPING TIME! Angelo says cold food needs more robust flavors. He sees the sockeye salmon and says “sexy!” again. There isn’t an episode that he doesn’t say “sexy.”
• Andrea says she wants to prove herself with this challenge, especially since she and Michelle were contemporaries, but she decided to have kids, then Michelle went forward. Something like that. It’s like now, she’s out to prove to Chef Bernstein that she’s super good. I don’t blame her!
• Amanda’s running around like crazy in the kitchen (hope she just doesn’t run into Hung of S3!). Tamesha says about Amanda “I can probably strangle her in a heartbeat” so calmly it’s scary.
• During the interviews (what do you call those head shot interviews?), Tamesha sounds like she has a cold. Or has just cried. Does that means she got eliminated? Dun dun dun.
• Amanda gives Alex a bit of her chicken gallantine to taste… he asks about seasoning but keeps silent about the cartilage he catches. MIND GAMES I TELL YOU! So here’s what the chefs made:
  • Amanda: Chicken Galantine with Mache and Plum Chutney. It looks so bland.
  • Kevin: Tuna & Veal with Romaine Leaves, Pine nuts and Mediterranean Condiments
  • Kenny: Duo of Lamb <– This guy loves duos doesn’t he? Grilled lamb salad and Lamb Carpaccio with Black Eyed Pea Hummus. Meanwhile, doesn’t it mean that when you prepare twice as many dishes as expected that you have double chances of failing too? Unless you’re really confident that you have double chances of winning. Kenny has the confidence anyway.
  • Alex: Sous Vide Lamb with Red Beet Puree and Tzatziki.
  • Ed: Sockeye Salmon on Pumpernickel Bread, Cucumber Vichyssoise and Cream Cheese > Ooh la la! I want to try this!
• Judging time! These chefs are tough on one another! Tiffany thought Kenny’s lamb was chewy. Angelo didn’t like the okra and carpaccio combo. Tamesha says tzatziki was heavy. Amanda’s galantine wasn’t cold enough and bland and had cartilage. Kevin’s Surf and Turf needed acid. Angelo said the pumpernickel was like a sponge. The group chooses the most successful dish to be Kevin. Least favorite: I’m sure it’s Amanda. Wrong me. Everyone hates Kenny’s dish. Yeah yeah. Scheming? Sabotage?
• Trivia! Ed and Angelo used to date the same girl. Okay. Irrelevant to the show. Let’s move on. Group B cooks now with Group A judging.
  • Tiffany: Peppercorn Crusted Ahi Tuna in Gazpacho Sauce with Cucumber and Arugula Salad
  • Angelo: Poached Sockeye Salmon with Cilantro and Chile in Pineapple Tea. First time I’ve heard of that kind of tea.
  • Andrea: Tartare Trio: Steak, Tuna with Chile Oil and Mushroom-Fennel with Roasted Beets
    
  • Stephen: Chilled Beef with Crispy Rice and Jalapeno Oil
  • Tamesha: Scallops with Pickled Rhubarb, Cilantro, Basil and Long Pepper in Rhubarb Jus
• Let the sabotaging, er, judging begin! They found Tiffany’s dish to be refreshing, Andrea’s needed more seasoning. Stephen: Where’s the beef? Tamesha: Too spicy. Very strange Tom says. Angelo: Couldn’t appreciate flavor of salmon. Winning: Tiffany. Losing: Angelo I’m sure. Oh wait, Tamesha.
• STEW ROOM! Padma slithers into the stew room and calls Tiffany and Kevin. They’re both nominated for the win, and the judges agree with their peers on how they were judged.
• Gail loved the texture of Kevin’s dish. Most refreshing dish is Tiffany’s. But the WINNER is Kevin. Go go go couscous boy! Woah, prize. He got a 6 day stay at Hilton Hawaii. LUCKY LUCKY!
• Judges wanna see Tamesha and Kenny. Tamesha’s critique: There was a dish but hard for them to find it, per Tom. Woah Michelle really hated Kenny’s dish, all the components of it.
• And… who’s going? Tamesha. She looks really shocked. Oh man, poor girl. Tamesha wishes she took a little more control of her dish even if “Angelo’s like a mentor.” Was he really a mentor? Dum dee dum.  There goes Angelo’s first victim… I think.  This reminds me of Carla Hall vs. Casey during the S5 finals.

The dish I wish I  could taste:

Hmmm… none actually. I guess cold dishes don’t appeal to me. I’m curious how Emu egg and Duck White Kidneys taste though.

Meanwhile…

Amanda’s dish may look worse than Tamesha’s, but Tom Colicchio says it wasn’t. Read his blog entry on the last episode!

Harold’s engaged! Ilan’s having a baby! Dale’s sous chef is fellow cheftestant Sarah! Check out what past cheftestants are up to.

Hi! I'm Toni Tiu, and I've been blogging at at Wifely Steps since 2003. This started as a blog to help newly weds adjust to married life. It has evolved into a home and parenting blog. I write about things close to my heart -- good eats, good reads, family, marriage, and the little things that make everyday happy.