07x12 - Gastro-nauts

[bunniefuu]

Previously on Top Chef...

We are going
to the Nationals baseball game

and going to run
our own concession stand.

There's no way
we can all do six orders

and put the food out.
Chill out, please.

Chill out.
No, I don't have to chill.

I don't have to do
a [Bleep] thing.

You're the bad boy
on the show.

I'm pissed. I mean, like,
I don't work for you.

I do my own thing.

I'm worried about my tuna.
It looks a little Gray.

I could have
probably helped Amanda,

but I'm helping myself.
[chuckles]

I would definitely line up
for both of your dishes,

but as there
can only be one...

Ed.
Thank you.

Amanda, please pack
your knives and go.

This season
one outstanding competitor

will take the title
of Top Chef

and the grand prize--

a feature
in Food & Wine magazine

and a showcase
at the Food & Wine classic

in Aspen,

$125,000 to help turn
their culinary dreams

into reality,

furnished by Dial Nutriskin.

Top Chef Season Seven--
Hail to the Chef.

[Rock music]

It's a new day.
I'm happy to be here.

There's been 13 Chefs
that have fallen.

You know, there's only five
of us left.

Amanda left yesterday.

I didn't think
she would make it this far.

But there were some times
I didn't think

I would make it this far.

I've dodged some big b*ll*ts.

And, you know,
there's one challenge left

here in D.C.

Before the finale,
one person is going home.

Dude, you got to turn on
the toaster.

I thought I did.

Everyone's really anxious.

We just want
to get down to business.

It's time to cook now.

Mm-hmm.

We've never been apart

for more than,
like, a couple of days.

Oh, wow.
It's sort of strange.

So I come home at the end
of the day...

Right.
And not have someone

to discuss the day with.

I really miss my husband.

One of the reasons I feel
like I have accomplished so much

in my life at a young age
is because I have him.

So this is a big part
of my life now

and a big challenge,
and it's hard for me

[voice breaking]
Not to have him be a part of it.

I was divorced
last year.

We had a son together,

but her family
is all about saving face.

And they just didn't believe
in my profession.

I should have been
a lawyer, a doctor.

And, eventually, it just weighed
too much on the relationship.

My passion is cooking,
and I kept my eye on the prize.

I'm gonna win Top Chef.

There hasn't been a doubt
in my mind ever since I started.

All right, guys,
let's check out.

Go get 'em, tiger.

It's a wonderful day.

We arrive
at the Hilton kitchen,

and to the left is a table
with wine glasses

and obviously a selection
of wine.

Wine is one of my biggest,
biggest passions,

so I feel really excited
about this.

Good morning, Chefs.

Please welcome Food & Wine
Editor in Chief Dana Cowin.

Dana Cowin knows
a lot about food

and a lot about wine.

And I happen to be friends
with her on facebook

for some odd reason,

even though she doesn't know
who the hell I am.

I would say
that 10% of pairings

are just awful,

and 10% of pairings
are genius.

So what we're looking for

is for you to hit
that magical 10%.

Your quickfire challenge
is to choose one of those wines

in front of you
and create an amazing dish

to pair with it.

I pick the first knife,
which I'm thrilled about.

Lord have mercy.

This is not my strength.

I have a wine guy--
is what I call him--

at the restaurant.

I don't normally have
to do the pairs.

My husband, Rick, is our
sommelier at the restaurant,

so we're pairing food and wine
all the time.

That gives me
a little leg up here.

And, Chefs, this is your final
high-stakes quickfire.

The winner
of the quickfire

will be going to London...

Wow.

And staying for six nights

at the London Hilton

on Park Lane,

including airfare,
courtesy of the Hilton Hotel.

I would love to win a trip
to London.

My wife has never been
to Europe,

and I'd love to be able
to take her there.

Your time, Chefs,
starts now.

Tiff, can I use your peeler?
Yeah.

When I taste the wine,
I'm noticing pepperiness,

fresh berries,

and a little bit of plum.

I want to do
a braised pork belly,

because I think Merlot will cut
the richness of the pork,

and I think it'll eat
really well together.

Angelo, do you have
star anise?

No, I do not.
I do not.

Biggest difficulty
in making this

is braising the pork
properly.

We only have one hour.

But I'm gonna go for it.
I'm gonna take that risk.

So the pressure cooker
will have to do.

Does anyone have any thyme?

I need one sprig
of thyme.

I picked the Federalist
Dry Creek Zinfandel.

It's a lot of deep-red fruit

and some really beautiful
Spice notes.

So I'm gonna make

a spice-rubbed wild boar
tenderloin

with a blue cheese emulsion.



The atmosphere
in the kitchen's intense.

I think
it's really hitting us

that this is the last set
of challenges in D.C.

And we all need
to bring our "A" game.

Ed, is this yours?

No.
I just love wine.

I go to vineyards a lot.

Understanding wine helps you
become a better Chef,

because you can pick up
the nuances of flavors.

So I end up picking
the Evolution from Oregon.

It tastes very similar

to a Riesling
with a rich demeanor,

and those wines pair well
with Foie gras.

Thank you.

Parmesan cheese.

I'm totally pumped
about last night's win.

Still feeding off
of that excitement.

I see
a beautiful wagyu rib eye.

The flavors
of this wagyu rib eye

are really nice, rich,

so I figure that would go great
with the red wine.

The sauce is going.
Let's blanch the vegetables.



I chose a Shiraz
by Two Hands.

I really enjoy
a bold flavor,

this kind of
caramel undertone.

And I thought,
"this could go great

with, like, a rib eye."

I'm really excited
about this challenge,

because today's prize
is a trip to London.

I'm already going to Paris.

It sure would be nice
to go to London too.

Hit 'em both up,
you know?

[Laughs]


[bleep], man.

I decide to open
my pressure cooker

and check to see
if my pork belly is ready.

And I realize that there's
no way it's gonna happen.

What the [Bleep]
Am I gonna do?

So it's time
for a change of plans.

I run over, grab quail,
break it down.

Slight change
of game plan.

Same everything,
except use quail.

Seven minutes, okay?

I definitely feel
the pressure.

What the [Bleep] else
should I put

in this mother[Bleep] [bleep]?

I know quail won't stand up
to the red wine,

but I don't have a choice
but to do that.

Two minutes left.
Does anyone have the ice out?

Behind. Black pepper?
Yeah.

I'm pretty frustrated.

I'm pretty concerned, because
I don't have enough time.

Things aren't coming out
exactly the way I want.

My station's a mess.

Whose stuff is this burning?

I'm pissed off.

Three, two, one...

Time's up.
Hands up.

Utensils down.

Hi, Tiffany.

What wine did you have?

I had the Two Hands Shiraz.

I did a cocoa

and black-pepper-crusted
wagyu tenderloin

and did a spring Risotto
to go with that.

Your meat is cooked
beautifully.

Thank you.
Thank you.

So I did a grilled quail

with shaved apples
and a fennel salad

that has a little fennel frond,
apple vinaigrette,

and cilantro.

Quail could go
with white wine or red wine.

I mean, the quail's quite--
quite delicate, really.

Serving Dana Cowin

a bad pairing--
I mean, Food & Wine editor.

I mean, it doesn't get
much worse than that.

I'm gonna pour you
the Evolution.

What I have here
is sauteed Foie gras

with black salt,
a cumin and basil broth,

and a fennel salad.

That's an interesting dish.
Thank you.

So I have the Federalist
Dry Creek Zinfandel.

I have wild boar tenderloin,

a little blue cheese emulsion,
and a mache salad.

And the foam is?

It's a blue cheese emulsion.

You had the Italian wine.
Yes.

That's why I decided to do
a nice grilled wagyu rib eye,

spring potato Risotto,

with a wild mushroom ragout.

I definitely wanted
to do something

with some good bold flavors.

Thank you very much, Ed.

Okay.
Nice to meet you.

How did our Chefs do?
Overall, really well.

Who was
the least successful here?

I think
the least successful pairing

was Kevin's.

The quail
was beautifully cooked,

but the pairing
with that Merlot,

it wasn't really
the perfect match.

Kelly, your dish,
I felt

that the addition
of the blue cheese foam

took it off the chart
a little bit.

Now for some good news.

Angelo, I thought
that your pairing

had a nice contrast there

between the crispness
and lightness of the wine

and something that was really
a bit heavier

with the Foie gras.
Thank you.

Tiffany,
the seasoning worked

really beautifully
with your wine.

The reduction was elegant.

Thank you.

Dana, please announce
the winner.

I have to say
it's going to be...

The final challenges
will take place...

Wow.
Wow.

This is awesome.
I want to be there.

When I think
about the pairing that I want

to have again tomorrow,

I have to say
it's going to be...

Angelo's.
Damn.

Thank you very much.
Thank you.

I haven't won
in three challenges,

you know,
so having the momentum

to go into the final challenge,
this is--this is key.

So, Angelo,
you're going to London.

Thank you so much.
I really appreciate that.

Angelo wins again.

Maybe he's got his mojo back.

Only four of you
will move on

for the chance to make it
to the final judges' table.

And the stakes are higher
than ever,

because for the first time
in Top Chef history,

we'll be going international.

Wow.

Cool.

The final challenges
will take place...

In Singapore.

Wow.
Wow.

Wow.

I feel asian inside 100%.

I mean, I tingle
when I think about it.

Just to be in singapore--
I've never been before.

More so than ever,
I want to win this.

This is the final four
of Top Chef

going to Singapore.

Like, this would be awesome.

To find out about your
final elimination challenge

here in D.C.,
we're sending you

to NASA.

Holy cow.

You'll get the details

at the
Goddard space flight center.

When I was 13 or 14,
I went to space camp,

and I'm sort of a space nerd.

I am just excited
I get to go to NASA.

Good luck.

[Dramatic music]

♪ ♪

welcome
to Goddard space flight center.

I'm like,
"whoa, oh, my gosh."

Everything just looks
like the movies.

That's the only way
I can describe it.

It's pretty awesome.

I want to introduce you

to NASA scientist
vickie kloeris.

Hello, Chefs.

I manage the food system

for the international
space station.

This room
is a command center

for space-flight communication,

and we have a message
for you.

Hello, Chefs.
I'm NASA's tj creamer,

along with my crewmate,
NASA's Tracy Caldwell Dyson

on the international
space station.

You know,
NASA's food scientists

work to ensure
we have a wide variety

of food to keep us healthy

and happy
during our missions.

First and foremost,
a very important staple--

coffee with cream and sugar.

We have scrambled eggs
that we can also rehydrate.

And the all-time-ever
favorite--

chicken fajitas.

To see them up
on the screen,

up in space in outer space
talking down

to us on earth,
pretty surreal.

Space food has come a long way
since our first missions,

but we're always looking
for new, flavorful meals.

So we here at NASA
have a challenge for you.

Design a dish
that's truly out of this world.

You'll be creating a dish
that follows the guidelines

for dining in zero gravity.

The winning dish
will be reproduced

at our space food systems
laboratory in Houston

and will fly to the station

during an upcoming
space-shuttle mission.

sh**t for the stars, Chefs.

Both:
Good luck.

I think this is awesome.

For me to have my food go
into space would be really cool.

You'll be cooking
for a table of eight

that'll include astronauts,
NASA scientists,

and the judges.

We have a very special guest.

He actually left his footprints
on the surface of the moon.

It's buzz aldrin.

Second man down on the moon.

I mean, that's pretty badass.

I'm so excited to serve
buzz aldrin.

I'd love to hear
what he thinks about my food.

We want you to make
an amazing dish

that can be served
in zero-gravity.

We do have a couple of things
that we normally look at

when creating
freeze-dried formulations--

not a high, high level of sugar,

because it doesn't freeze-dry
super well,

and then also very large pieces
of ingredients

tend to not freeze-dry
as well.

And a lot of our astronauts
say that spicier things on orbit

taste really good.

I'm nervous about this.

To take food
that we normally do down here

and make it something
that's delicious

and something that can be served
in outer space,

I can't even wrap my head around
how they eat up there.

Other than that,
you're pretty much open

to whatever your imagination
will come up with.

We can start shopping now.

[Laughing]
You b*stard.

Hello.
Hola.

Like, four racks.

To have a dish
that I did

available in space
would be absolutely crazy.

Rack of lamb, mint...

I want to fully embrace
the challenge.

The astronauts said that, like,
they kind of enjoy spicy food.

I want to go 100% moroccan
on this thing--

a lot of good, cool flavors.

I'm looking
for preserved lemons.

I've seen them here before.

Short ribs?
Yeah.

You have boneless short ribs?

What's your freshest
whitefish?

Freshest whitefish?
I'd say halibut.

Where is the olive oil?

The stakes are high here.

No one wants to be the last one
in D.C. to go.

Four of us will move on
to the finale in Singapore,

and one of us will go home.

Coconut, lemongrass...

Time is of the essence.

At this point,
we are so close to Singapore

that, you know,
we can almost taste it.

Heads up, please.

How much
is the dry, aged beef?

I come from a food family.
I mean, this is what we do.

I mean,
this is what my wife does.

This is what my dad
and my mom did.

When I was listening
to the astronauts,

I noticed that they liked things
that were comforting,

things that reminded them
of home.

The strategy is to cook food

that's warm and comforting
and down to earth.

Thank you.
Have a nice day.

You too.

Behind.
Hot.

Is that you behind us walking?
I think so.

How was that feeling?
Magnificent.

We're cooking
for astronauts.

So I'm pretty excited.

First thing I do
is get the mussels cold.

I did it.
You missed me.

You guys missed it.
Tiff did it--

the moonwalk.
[giggles]

I've never actually attempted
to freeze-dry anything,

but NASA is freeze-drying
just about everything.

So, you know, I hope my dish
will freeze-dry well.

Kevin, is that
your pepper mill?

Can I use it?

It's make it or break it,

and I really want to just
serve something amazing.

I need to make sure
all my flavors are on point.

It would be
extremely embarrassing

not to go to Singapore.



I know a lot of the other people
are doing dishes

that are outside the box,
like, very ethnic.

And I'm doing
something more mainstream,

more America.

So that's always a concern.

[Bleep].

I've had
some very rough times here.

But I'm still here.
I'm a fighter. I'm resilient.

I'm going to Singapore.

This sauce is banging.

Like, I could drink
this whole bowl right now,

so I'm very excited.

My dish is simple,
but very, very flavorful.

When you're cooking
from the soul,

it doesn't have to be, you know,
some big method

of 1,500 hours.

It just needs
to be flavorful.

Is that right?

Yeah.

Hey, Chefs.

Hello, Chef.
How's it going, Chef?

What's this about here?

It's a little diagram
for tomorrow.

That's it?

I'm gonna do
some braised short ribs.

Okay.
[laughs]

Yeah.
What was that look for?

No--no--no reason.

I tell him
about the short ribs,

and he makes this face.

And I'm like,
"oh, God, here we go."

When vickie spoke to you,

what about some
of her suggestions

are you working into this?

I really made
a conscious effort

to go light on the sugar.

Okay.

Hey, Kelly.
Hi, Chef.

How are you?
How you doing?

I'm good. Thanks.
You cooking for space?

Absolutely. I've actually been
really into space

my whole life.
Wow.

That's either really cool
or really nerdy.

It's both, I think.
[laughs]

So what are you doing?
So I'm gonna make

a pan-roasted halibut

with an artichoke
and fennel barigoule.

Okay, cool.
We started out with 17 people.

We're down to five.

Did you think
you'd get this far?

I would be lying
if I said

that there weren't times
when this was really hard.

Cool. All right, well,
we're not done yet.

Thank you, Chef.

Hey, Ed.
Hey, Chef.

How you doing today?
What's going on?

So what dish
is gonna get you up in space?

Going to the middle East
a little bit.

So I wanted to do
a duo of lamb

and a couscous croquette.

I didn't see

too many middle eastern
astronauts up there.

You know, they said something,
that they like Spice--

spicy stuff, you know.

That's right.
All right, good luck.

All right, we'll see ya.
Hey, Tiffany.

[Laughs]
Hey, Chef.

I decided to do
a little pan-seared halibut

with a curry--
a red curry.

Is this the kind of food
that you normally cook?

I really do enjoy eating it,
and I do cook it

at the restaurant as well.
Okay.

You've been coming on
really strong.

No, you know,
I just thought

the flavors that I was given
was a little mild,

and I thought I just needed
to step it up a little bit more.

Let you get back
to whatever you're doing.

See you tomorrow.
Good luck.

Thank you, Chef.
Hey, kev.

How are you, Chef?
I'm all right. How you doing?

A little bit nervous.

A little nervous?
Why is that?

Cooking space food,
I mean,

it's just...
All right.

You know, we got to think
outside the box

a little.
What are you doing?

I have
a grilled New York strip

with a bacon-jalapeño
marmalade,

corn puree, more American.

Mm-hmm. Why did you go
in that direction?

Just 'cause I listened
to what they said.

You know, they like
the comfort foods,

although it'll be refined.

But it's still the same flavors
that they're used to.

All right.
All right?

I'll see you tomorrow.
Thank you, Chef. Thank you.

All right, Chefs, we'll see
you tomorrow. Good luck.

Thank you, Chef.
Good night, Chef.


everybody.

Behind.

Tomorrow's a big day,
because winning this challenge

guarantees you
in the final four.

And I'd love to have my dish
served up in outer space.

Five seconds.

Oh, tiff,
it got too cold.

Tiffany grabs her mussels,
and they had frozen,

so now they're not usable.

This is definitely a wrench
for her.

I see
that all the mussels are dead.

They're all frozen solid.

No!

Beaumont...

We have a problem.

I threw away those mussels.

Well, you just cook, like,

food that tastes
really, really good.

Mm-hmm.

I don't think
it's out of control.

I know
that I'm a good cook,

but I've made mistakes.

I'm a fighter.
I'm resilient.

It's probably something
I got from my mom.

My mother passed away
six years ago.

We took her off
of life support,

and she just kept fighting
and fighting.

So I'm gonna keep fighting.

So we come downstairs,

and there's a little note
on the counter.

"Chefs, your ride to the final
destination is outside.

And the winner of the challenge
gets to take it home."

[Laughter]
Shut up.

Let's go. Go see.

That's awesome.

Nice.
Whoo!

It's a beautiful, jet-black

Toyota avalon
with all the bells and whistles

and leather seats
and navigation.

Scoot. Scoot.

Ooh, that's clean.
Wow.

This puppy is mine.
Like, oh, my God.

It's awesome.

Roll down the windows.
Very nice.

Leather seats.
Y'all ready?

Let's do it.
Let's go.

Ange, take care
of my car, okay?

[Laughs]

So we pull up

into the Ronald Reagan
international trade center.

I'm amped.

The challenge is to create food

that can be eaten up in space.

This is it.
No heat lamp.

We have one hour
to cook,

and there's five Chefs left

and only four seats
to Singapore.

That fifth person,

that person that's not going,
is gonna be crushed.

Chefs.

All:
Thank you.

Behind.

You okay
if I put this up to 400?

Yep.
I'm fine with it.

Behind, behind,
behind, behind.

The table sucks.

We have spacing issues.

Everyone's kind of on top
of each other.

They didn't bring
that other table in here?

Mm-mm.
We have to bring it.

You want to grab it?
Hot.

Coming around the corner.
Corner. Corner.

Go.

There we go.
Perfect. Beautiful.

The atmosphere
in the kitchen's intense.

I think
it's really hitting us

that it's
kind of anybody's game.

I think the final four,
at this point,

would be myself, Angelo,
Tiffany, and Kevin.

Somebody's gonna have
to outcook me

in order to send me home.

Okay, what's my time?

Hot.

So what I decide
is I'm going

to just try
to finish off the broth

in a different way
and just go

without the mussels.

I really want to go
to the finale.

I have come a long way.

In tenth grade,
I started working at ihop.

And they told me that ladies
could not be in the kitchen.

I decided I'm just gonna work
harder than everybody else

on the side of me
and, sure enough,

got myself in the kitchen.

I'm not going down
without a fight.

Right behind.

I want that Toyota,
to be honest with you.

[Laughs]

The braising liquids
are reducing down.

I'm there
lacquering this baby.

In my head, I'm like,
"oh, my God, it's too sweet.

It can't be too sweet to go
into the space station."

You cannot make
any mistakes whatsoever.

I'm cooking the rack of lamb,

and I decided to leave
a good chunk of the actual layer

of fat on top
of the lamb.

I think it is a risk,

but I still feel very strong
about the dish.

Kelly,
if you need room here...

[Bleep].

This plating
is gonna be really a hassle.

We're not paying a whole lot
of attention

to each other
in the kitchen.

This is eight plates

that have to go out perfectly.

Coming over
on a burner.

Have a seat.

Welcome
to the Ronald Reagan building

in the international
trade center.

Is that you
behind us walking?

I think so.

How was that feeling?
Magnificent.

Oh, [Bleep].

God damn it.

Okay, guys,
thank you.

I'm so excited
for who we're serving.

Buzz aldrin is staring
at me.

And Anthony bourdain,
you know,

he's not afraid
to share his viewpoint.

And I'd love to hear
what he thinks about my food.

Hi, Kelly.
I'd like to introduce you

to your judges and diners
for this evening--

Anthony bourdain, Chef, author,
and world traveler,

one of the first moonwalkers,
buzz aldrin,

astronaut Sandy Magnus,

our food scientist
vickie kloeris,

and astronaut leland Melvin.

Please tell us
what you've made.

I've made
a pan-roasted alaskan halibut

served with an artichoke
and fennel barigoule

and a sourdough and parsley'd
salsa-verde salad as a garnish.

Thank you. Enjoy.
Thanks.

Very good.

All right, now we wait.
[laughs]

It's really well done.

I mean,
the fish is nicely cooked.

That's very nice.

What was the first thing
you ate in space?

You really don't want me
to say tang, do you?

[Laughter]

Vickie, how you
gonna freeze-dry this?

You couldn't have
this much extraneous fluid

in space.

Well, if they can put
a man on the moon,

they can probably figure out
how to freeze-dry this.

One of the textures that we
miss in space is crunchy.

The crunchy aspect
of the artichokes

would be really nice
just because you miss that.

The nerves, the adrenaline--

everything starts kicking in.

It's a great feeling.

I'm doing it.

Okay, guys?

Tell us what you've made.

I took us
on a trip to Morocco.

A nice little yogurt-marinated
rack of lamb,

a little eggplant puree,

and then a crispy couscous
croquette and a little hummus.

Enjoy.

So what do you do
with the bone?

One of the things that people
forget about is trash.

You're used
to just taking it outside,

and it magically goes away,
but we can't do that.

It's really flavorful.

Everything is well-cooked,
well-seasoned.

It's too complicated
for me.

It's too many different textures
and flavors.

I just want to express
my disappointment

with my comrade, the ripper,
over here.

[Laughter]
I've been to Morocco,

and I think Ed nailed it.

I'm glad you all

don't agree totally
all the time.

I guarantee I want it
more than anybody here.

You know, you look at some of
the other Chefs that are here.

They already have a lot
going for them.

They've worked
for celebrities,

or they've got
their own business.

I don't have that.

And I'm trying to get there.

I made
a grilled New York strip.

Underneath is a corn puree,

a little bit of pine leaf
sprinkled on the plate,

and crispy vidalia onions.

Please enjoy.

[Indistinct chatter]

How's the cutlery in space?

Spoons are very important.

I still have my spoon...
You still have your--yeah.

From Apollo 11.
Tom...

What did you think
of Kevin's dish?

Kevin did a nice job
cooking the meat.

I think it's well-seasoned.
The sauce works pretty good.

The challenge would be

that it's pretty much
gonna be impossible

to maintain the crispiness
of those onions.

It would be a challenge,
but I'd love to eat it in space.

Don't get me wrong.
[laughs]

This is really good.

How long were you up there?


Wow.

There was a cosmonaut
from Russia

who was up there
for a year.

It was interesting. He went up
when it was the soviet union,

and he came back,
and it was Russia.

Sounds like a sitcom
to me.

Yeah. Could be.

I definitely gave it
all that I have

under the circumstances.

If I would have done
something different,

I would have had my mussels
on the plate.

I did a little bit
of a pan-seared halibut

over coconut curry,
steamed Jasmine rice,

and a little bit
of wild pea shoots.

Thank you.
Enjoy.

I'm not too excited
about the shiitake

mixed with the rice
and the coconut sauce

and then even the pea shoots.

I don't see the connection
and everything coming together

to elevate the halibut.

There's one ingredient
in this dish

that's really singing to me--
the fish sauce.

Vickie, do you get requests
about what to send?

We have a shuttle
that's supposed to launch.

I have a list this long
from the crew members

of the stuff they want.

Our last flight,
we took up ice cream

for the station crew.

Did they share
any with us? No.

[Laughter]

Beef goes at 3:00.

That is correct.

Mushrooms goes at 6:00.

Today we have
a ginger-lacquered short rib

served with a pea puree,

horseradish creme fraiche,

and pickled mixed mushrooms.

Enjoy.
Thank you very much.

Very tasty,
and then when I got

the pickled mushroom,
what a surprise!

But I can see
where it would be difficult

to keep those together

in some space dish.

Tom, what did you think
of Angelo's dish?

I didn't care
for the candied ginger.

It was too sweet.

But other than that,
I mean, I think

it's a very successful dish.

I think it's very flavorful,
and it is very, very elegant.

Although
the pickled mushrooms

bring some contrast
and lightness,

but it's a tiny bit
too acidic for me.

Well, I'm shocked
by Ripert's dark, cynical,

snarky, and negative
worldview,

because I found this...
[laughter]

Wow.

It's all about love
and optimism for me now,

because I got to tell you,
I thought this dish

was very sophisticated

and, I think, might actually
be easily adaptable

to a extraterrestrial
situation.

You know, it's been
a long journey,

and I'm finally here,
and I--

I just feel like I just put
my heart on the plate,

you know,
so it's very emotional for me.

I'm worried about my dish.

But there's nothing I can do
at this point.

I want to thank all of you

for sharing your great stories
about the space program.

Thank you all.

I took actually
a very submissive role.

The short ribs--I felt
like I made love to them.

I have no idea
what you're talking about.

This is your potato
underneath here?

Correct.

We're done serving,

and we're heading
to the judges' table.

Was this the best dish
that I ever cooked in my life?

Absolutely not.

Is it [Bleep] enough
to go home?

I don't know.

Where did this go
on the plate?

I think everyone is just feeling
a bit of relief.

It's not in our hands anymore,
and I think everyone's feeling

a little fear, too,
because there are

five amazing dishes
on that table.

What is this?
Bordelaise.

I'm tasting
some really good food,

but I'm still pretty confident
about my food.

You know, Angelo made
a beautiful dish,

but his short ribs
were a little bit sweet for me.

All right, guys,
let's go.

Yep.
Let's do it.

Judges' table, yeah?

Yay.

I don't have any regrets
with what I've done,

but I won't be proud
until I make it to Singapore.

Anything other than that
is a failure.

First off, you guys did
an amazing job today cooking.

The difference between the
winner and loser's really small.

So nice work.

Ed.
I embraced

what the astronauts said.

You know,
they enjoyed spiciness.

I don't know how often
do they think,

"would I like to go
to Morocco?"

But it's something different.

You had a lot of things
going on on that plate,

any one of which,
had they gone wrong,

could have really hurt you.

Having traveled in that part
of the world,

you know,
I think you pulled it off.

I thought the dish
was way too complicated.

However, I recognize
your talent

and the fact that you have done
a very good dish.

These are a lot
of ingredients,

and I think
that you can get away with that

if everything is done well.

And everything was.

Tiffany.

How did you cook the fish?

I pan-seared it
and finished it in the oven--

just salt and pepper.

Fish was nicely cooked.

Two little things that
you could have done without--

the tomatoes,
'cause they were kind of mealy,

and the skin on a pepper,
it's bitter.

I think if you would have put
a little bit of lime juice

or maybe a little bit
of lemon juice

or some acidity in your sauce,

it would have made the dish

maybe even brighter.

Originally, the curry was
supposed to have mussels in it,

and I was gonna open up
the mussel broth inside,

but the mussels were frozen.

I would have liked to have
seen a stronger-tasting fish

to match up against a sauce
that I frankly found quite good.

Kelly.
You nailed those artichokes.

They were cooked as nicely

as I've ever seen
an artichoke cooked.

Thank you.
That means a lot.

I'm wondering,
have you been to provence

and learned the technique there?

I have,
and I adore the food.

It's close to my heart.
It shows.

Angelo.

The crystallized ginger--
it was too sugary for me.

That was the only thing
that I thought was too sweet.

I took actually
a very submissive role

in creating this dish.

I really wanted
to focus on precision.

The short ribs--I felt
like I made love to them.

I mean,
I constantly heated them up.

I glazed them.

And then when I thought
I glazed them enough,

I reglazed them, and then...
[laughs]

I have no idea
what you're talking about

describing the dish really.

I just know
that I loved it.

I like the topping of
the short rib with the juniper

and the crunchiness
that it had.

Thank you very much.

Kevin.

The steak
was perfectly cooked.

The jalapeño bacon gave it
a nice little kick.

I actually really enjoyed
that relish.

I liked the dish a lot.

Only negative thing for me

was I prefer the steak
to be cut a little thicker.

My only complaint would be--

you know, we're talking
about sirloin steak here.

I think you might have played it
a little safe.

My approach was to give them
something from home,

something familiar.

So that's the road
that I took,

was to give them steak.

We'll call you back
in a bit.

It's gonna be interesting.

I mean, at this point,
it's so close

that it's subjectivity
at this point.

Who's going to Singapore,
and who's staying home?

Ed was trying
to create a moroccan dish.

These flavors
were all very clear

and very delicious.

And also, I thought

the presentation
was amazing as well.

To me, it was very busy,
very complicated.

So many things could have gone
horribly wrong with that plate.

To my mind,
he nailed 'em all.

I think he showed
good technique.

You know, you're asking these
people to cook their hearts out.

This guy cooked his heart out.
He did.

My favorite dish
was the one from Kelly.

I thought she cooked
without safety net,

because if you miss one
of the aspect of the recipe,

she was gone.

Yeah, I agree with you,
but her tightrope

was about that wide, you know?

Listen, I loved that dish,

but I think points
should be given

for originality.

In terms of originality,
you're right.

It's a classic.

I really loved
Angelo's plate of food.

I thought
it was a beautiful dish.

I just don't understand
the jar

of candied ginger.

I do know

that I liked Angelo's dish
a lot, a real lot.

The combination
of the juniper

with the bread crumb
and ginger,

I thought, was very original
and very unexpected.

When you listen to Kevin talk
about his dish,

he actually really
paid attention

to what the astronauts
were asking for.

He wanted to give them something
that was reminiscent of home.

I think Kevin did that.

I actually liked that dish.

The steak for me
was cooked to my taste.

And the onion rings
were perfectly fried,

and they were
very, very, very delicate.

But sirloin...

It's Top Chef.
Sirloin, for God's sake.

Let's move on to Tiffany.

I loved the curry sauce,

and I also liked
her fish sauce.

I like fish sauce too,

but she also cooked pea shoots
with it,

and that really k*lled
the flavor

and the freshness
of the pea shoots,

and therefore
completely canceled

the effect that you want
to have.

Tom, do you think
she overcompensated

for the lack of mussels

by using extra fish sauce?

That type of food is,

especially if you're using
fish sauce,

it's supposed to be
really bold.

She was looking
for authenticity,

and I think she tried
to deliver it.

You know, it's just the thing
I have with peppers.

If you're starting
to do fine food,

you have to remove it.

It's bitter.

I think
what it really illustrates

is that all five of these dishes
are very good.

You know,
we're splitting hairs here.

I think we know
what we have to do.

Yes?

All right, let's get them all
back here.

Tonight's winning Chef

gave us a dish that was truly
out of this world.

Not only will your dish
be served

at the international
space center,

but you've been invited
by NASA

to watch one of the two
remaining space-shuttle launches

at cape canaveral.

Tony, please announce
the winner.

This was
a very tough call,

'cause there was a lot
of good food tonight.

Angelo gave us
an out-of-this-world dish.

Congratulations.

Nice job, Chef.

Oh, my God.

While you're watching
the launch

at cape canaveral,
you'll be way too riveted

with my new book
to pay attention.

Congratulations.
Wow. Oh, my God.

Thank you so much.

And enjoy
your new Toyota avalon.

So I won this sweet car,
the Toyota avalon,

and my food is gonna be
in outer space.

It's too much to embrace as
a human, to be honest with you.

I need--I need to breathe
for a little bit

and process everything.

Thank you.
Thank you so much, Jesus.

You left us with
a really difficult decision.

Kevin...

Love the idea that you
started with a home dish

but definitely elevated it.

Gave us some great flavors.

Kelly...

You made it look effortless.

Tiffany, the flavors just leaped
off the plate.

Thank you.

Ed, you gave us

just a tremendous plate
full of flavor.

I wish all four of you
could come with us,

but unfortunately,
we can only take three more.

Tiffany, please pack
your knives and go.

Thank you, lord Jesus.
Thank you.

Thank you very, very much
for the opportunity.

The worst part
is you made it that far.

I'm leaving.

You're leaving?
Yes.

Are you serious?
Mm-hmm.

It's okay.

Good job, guys.

[Kelly laughing]

Congrats, everybody.

I'm gonna miss you.

Tiffany--
she's just great, you know.

She's awesome.

She brought so much energy
to the competition.

You know, she just knew
how to cook.

You just have to know
that you did good.

Whew.

Bye, y'all.

I'm just happy to have done it.
I'm happy to be a part of it.

[Voice breaking]
Just so close.

Next on Top Chef...

Welcome to Singapore.

All:
Thank you.

It's extremely nerve-racking
being here.

There's so much at stake.
What's wrong with you?

My biggest goal is to kick
Angelo's a*s.

I need to go
to the finals.

Don't [Bleep] touch
my [Bleep].

You guys only have
four dishes?

You think that's enough?

If it was hectic before,
it's crazy right now.

[Bleep].
What the [Bleep] am I gonna do?

Unfortunately,
one of you has to go.