06x05 - Camping

[bunniefuu]

[Padma]

Previously on

Top chef...

This is

A high-stakes quickfire.

The loser will be going home.

At this point,

I'm trying to just reach up

Through this bog

Of self-doubt.

Jesse, please pack your knives

And go.

For your

Elimination challenge,

You'll create

A six-course meal

For some of the best

French chefs in the world.

[Michael]

This could be



The most important plate

I've ever cooked

In my career.

[Hector]

I feel a little nervous



About our meat.

I may have to cut it

In a hurry.

[Bryan]

I know



My brother would like



To kick my a*s



In this challenge,

And I'm not gonna

Let that happen.

[In french] I really like it.

And the winner is...

Bryan.

Was there a lot of bacon

In the braise?

I put a little bit

Of bacon in it.

It was very strong.

[Gail] everyone's meat

Looked like it had kind of been

Hacked up.

-Yeah.

-Hector...

Please pack your knives

And go.

[Padma]

At stake



For the winner,



A feature



In

Food & wine

Magazine,



$, Of merchandise



Provided by macy's,



A showcase at the annual



Food & wine

Classic in aspen,



And $,

To help turn their

Culinary dreams into reality,

Furnished by the makers



Of the glad family of products

And the title of top chef.

[Rock music]

♪ ♪

Let me ask questions here.

Do you see yourself, like,

Changing, like, your dish

And all that kind of [bleep]

Based upon who the judge is?

I don't think

It's so much who the judge is,

But what the challenge is.

[Michael]

I think there's



A couple chefs here

That aren't as talented

As some of the chefs

That have actually left already.

You know,



You have hector going home.



He's a pretty strong cook.



Robin hasn't



Really shown us too much.



I mean, she's still here,



But I think



The most talented chefs here



Are probably mike,



My brother,



And... Myself.



I've worked



For a lot of great chefs.



And when I was ,



I received one michelin star.



I don't brag about that,



But I have passion



About what I do.

And nobody can ever

Take that away from me.

[Mattin]

The last



Elimination challenge,



That's the first time



I go on the bottom.

Me being french,

Cooking french food,

There should be no--

No mistakes.

I was born in france,



But I grew up in a farm



In the basque country.



When you grew up



With no tv and no toys,



Nothing else to do



Besides cooking.



I now have



My own restaurant,



Which got, like,



Best new restaurant



From

Food & wine

Magazine.



So I can see how I can be



The top chef, no problem.

It's just a matter

Of being concentrated

And stick to my--

My style.

[Ashley]

I really miss



My family

.



Last night,



My older brother had a baby.



So I'm calling my brother



To make sure that it's okay.



-[Justin]

Hello?

-Hi, justin.

Hi, ash.

How are you doing?

I'm doing great.

Good.

She's in my arms and



She's looking at me.

Congratulations.

Congratulations to you, ash.



Knock 'em dead.



[Ashley]

Growing up



With a twin brother



And an older brother,



Pretty much the only thing



We did was compete



Against each other.



If one of my brothers



Were a chef and he were here,

It would be an all-out w*r

In the kitchen.

-[Justin]

All right.

-Okay, I love you.

-

I love you too, ash.

-Bye.

[Beep]

[Kevin]

So we walk



Into the

Top chef

Kitchen



At the beautiful m resort,



And there's tim love.



He likes taking



Traditional southwestern food

That's more rural and stuff

And incorporating it into, like,

A fine dining sort of setting.

Please say hello to your

Guest judge for this round,

Chef tim love.

-[Everyone] hi, chef.

-[Robin] how you doing, chef?

Tim is the chef and owner

Of the lonesome dove

Western bistro

In fort worth, texas.

So to reward

Our many loyal fans,

For the first time

In six seasons,

We've given them the chance

To pick today's

Quickfire ingredient.

They got to choose



Between rattlesnake,



Cactus, and kangaroo.

% Of the votes

Went to cactus.

[Tim] cactus is

A wonderful ingredient.

Most people really

Don't mess around with cactus,

'Cause you know what?

It hurts.

So I've got

A little advice for you:

Be careful.

[Laughter]

[Mattin]

I have never worked



With cactus.



In the basque country,



There's absolutely no cactus.

I wasn't even sure

You can actually eat cactus.

For your

Quickfire challenge,

You have minutes

To make something succulent

With these succulents.

Oh, and this is

A high-stakes quickfire,

Which means one of you

Will win $,

From the m resort.

However, no one,

Including the winner,

Will receive immunity.

Your time starts now.

Good luck.

I've got minutes

To work with an ingredient

That I've touched

Once or twice.

But quickfires,



I've been pretty strong with.



I've won $,



Already once.



If I win another $,,



That's $,.

You know, I'd like to collect

As many of those chips

As I possibly can

Before I leave here.

[Mike]

Cactus is like



An aloe plant,



So it's very, like, gooey.



People think



That if you blanch it,



It takes the goo out.

People say if you grill it,

It takes the ooze out.

But it doesn't. So the key

Is you want to cure it

Like you would cure,



Like, salmon. When you submerge



Your salmon in salt,



It pulls all the liquid out.



So that's the same mentality



That I'm gonna take



With this cactus.

I'm not even gonna cook it.

I'm gonna serve it raw.

So, uh, it'll be beautiful.

[Mattin]

I'm, like, so nervous.



I never cut a cactus before.

It's just so slimy

And has needles in it.

And so that's why



I'm not trying to go too fancy.

And I'm thinking, like,

Cactus and tequila will go

Well together.

So I'm going to pickle



The cactus in the tequila.

-Guys, minutes to go, .

-

[Jennifer] thank you.

-[Robin] whoa!

-[Clatter]

Wet spot.

[Larine]

At this point,



I'm thinking



That the cactus is gonna be



A component to the dish.

Because I don't know

How to work with it,

I'm not sure how to make it

The star of the show.

Hot behind you.

[Laurine]

I'm starting



To feel like,



Instead of comparing myself



To everybody else



In the challenge,



Just to be true to myself

And to produce the best food

I can produce.

[Ash]

What I've decided



To make is a sope.



I mean, that's something



You buy on the street



In mexico city.



Cactus works



With latin flavors.



And to be honest,



I've got a little bit of hector



In my head right now.

So I'm hoping I'll be able

To channel that a bit.

[Ash] anyone seen

The tortilla press, no?

[Ash]

Well, one of the



Difficulties I run into is



That we don't have



A tortilla press.



So I am gonna have trouble



Pressing the bread

The way I wanted to.

I don't know

What I'm doing.

[Ron]

In haiti,



Cactus is so poisonous,



So we stay the heck



Away from them.



Never cooked cactus before.



So I'm using the cactus



In a sauce.

Maybe I can pull an upset?

I don't know.

Seconds.

[Padma] utensils down, hands up.

-Hi, laurine.

-Hi, padma.

-[Padma] meet chef love.

-Hi, chef.

How are you?

[Laurine]

I put the cactus



In a salsa.

I also have a pork chop

That I basted

With an achiote glaze.

The achiote's great.

Thank you.

What I have is a little bit

Of smoked pork tenderloin.

And then a cactus marmalade



On top.

A little slimy, but good.

Thank you, chef.

Sure enough,

Tim makes a comment

That the cactus is kind

Of slimy,

Which I don't know--

Cactus seems like

It's always slimy.

-I have no idea.

-

What'd you do for us?

I took the red cactus

And made a coulis.

In the avocado roll, I did



A cactus and coconut ceviche.

-Thanks.

-Thank you, chef.

I wanted to sort of

Tease out some sweetness

From the cactus, so I made



Cactus jelly doughnuts.

You got a sweet tooth, huh?

I don't, but she does.

-It's a good doughnut.

-Thanks.

[Padma] this looks nice.

What is it?

So today we had cactus.

You know, I've worked

With it before.

I marinated it, like,



Ceviche-style with some tuna.



I served it



Over a little pipian,

Which is a mexican,

Seed-based sauce.

I'm not following the relish

On the side too much,

But the rest

Of the plate is nice.

Appreciate it, chef.

I did a chipotle swordfish

With a mango and papaya



Crab salad.

Where's the cactus?

It's in the sauce.

Did you have fun?

-Yes, I had a lot of fun.

-Perfect.

I prepared a halibut

And cactus ceviche,

Also a tempura of the cactus.

Have you worked

With cactus before?

I have not.

-Thank you.

-[Bryan] you're welcome.

So I decided to do sort of

A play on a grilled cheese.

I made some rather

Thick tortillas

To kind of be the bread.

And the cactus is just diced up

Inside the grilled cheese.

He just kind of looked at me

Kind of pissed off

That I made him eat this food.

-Hi, jennifer.

-How are you?

So I did a warm chorizo

And cactus salad

With queso fresco.

Thank you.

I have, uh,

The red cactus here, a puree,

Cactus with bread crumbs



And, uh, halibut



With pickled cactus.

And I pickled it

With tequila and lime.

I'm a fan of tequila.

-Good.

-[Padma] thank you.

So who were the ones who were

Least successful with cactus?

Ash.

[Tim]

I got no cactus flavor



Out of it.

The tortilla was really thick.

It was really dry in the mouth.

Michael, your dish...

Unfortunately, I felt it was



Like two trains coming



Together.

It just didn't work for me.

The last one is ron.

Not only was your fish



Way overcooked,

But the crab tasted rancid

In my mouth.

How about

Some good news now?

-I'm all about good news.

-Okay, who's on the top?

Laurine, your flavors

Were really, really nice.

I thought it was a great,

Great dish.

Thank you, chef.

Mike isabella.

I think

You're the only person

That really classically

Prepared the cactus,

Adding the mexican sauce.

I think it was a really

Well-prepared dish.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Mattin...

I'm a man from texas.

I love tequila.

But I think you're one

Of the only two people

That showcased

The cactus itself.

Very well prepared.

Chef love,

As our guest judge,

You have the honor

Of announcing our winner.

This was

A very difficult ingredient.

But for me, the winner

Had to be the person

That really showcased

The cactus the best.

[Sighs]

-Mike.

-Yes!

Whew!

The monkey off your back.

I won grand from m resort.

I feel great,

Grand richer.

But, uh,



The main thing was winning,



To let everyone know



That I'm gonna be

One of the dominant figures

Of the competition.

[Michael]

Mike isabella wins.

He worked

With the product correctly,

And he deserves

To win this one.

I'd rather be able to put

Together interesting flavors

Than to be able to take

The slime out of cactus.

I don't care so much

About that.

For your

Elimination challenge,

You're gonna be

Preparing lunch outdoors

On a ranch

For two dozen cowboys.

You can make any kind

Of dish you like,

As long as it's high-end.

The ranch is pretty rustic,

So to get your head

Wrapped around

What you'll be working with,

Tim has set up

Your accommodations for tonight

On the ranch.

[Ash] I'm a little frustrated,

Because we have no idea

What equipment

We're cooking with.

But I feel like it does even



The playing field.

I mean,

We're all good chefs,

But are we

All great innovators?

Then tomorrow,

Starting at : a.m. Sharp,

You'll have

An hour and minutes

To prep and cook

Before everyone arrives.

Remember, just 'cause

We're in the hills doesn't mean

You got to compromise

Any of your food.

I expect it to be

Well-prepared,

Well-cooked,

And well-presented.

Good luck.

Can I see the one in back?

-This one?

-No, the one in back.

[Ashley] we will be cooking

Outside.

My wheels start turning,



And I think



That there's not really



Gonna be a kitchen.



Hopefully, we'll have a grill.

Maybe there'll be

Some boiling water.

How much does this weigh?

[Ashley]

I'm making



A seared halibut with bacon,

An avocado mousse,

Lettuce, and tomato.

My favorite lunch is



A club sandwich,

So those are kind of the flavors

That I'm going for.

Can I see the one

With the tag in it,

The pork roast?

I feel pretty good

With this challenge.

Do you have more arctic char

In the back?

[Laurine]

As a caterer,



You're going into these venues

That may or may not

Have kitchens,

And so I've learned to be

Kind of a macgyver

When it comes to cooking.

[Eli] can you cut off the end

And let me see

-The inside real quick?

-Sure.

[Eli]

I was originally gonna do



This tuna sandwich



With some potato chips,



But then I realized

That a fryer is not necessarily

A ubiquitous thing on a ranch.

So I decide to go

With a different accompaniment.

Five minutes!

[Michael]

I know that I'm one



Of the best chefs



In the competition,



But I was in the bottom



In the quickfire.

So I was a little bit shocked.

[Michael] I'm thinking,



You know, the desert--

It's probably gonna be hot.

I want to do something cool

And refreshing.

[Michael] I'll take the four

Biggest filets of this cod.

[Michael]

Black cod is kind



Of fatty,



Almost like chilean sea bass.

So it will hold up well

In any conditions.

[Cashier] that puts you over,

Cents.

- Cents?

Take off one.

[Jennifer] thank you very much.

I hate not knowing



Where we're cooking



Or what the conditions



Are gonna be like.

It's just really frustrating.

What the hell are we doing?

[Mattin] where we're going

Might be really hot,

'Cause, like, today is, like,

Exceptionally, like, hot.

I think it's gonna be

-, Degrees.

-Yeah.

[Mattin]

We're driving



To the ranch,

And it's desert, hot,

Cactus everywhere.

[Mike] I'm stoked to see

What our cook space is gonna be

For tomorrow.

-I don't care if it's--

- You know what it's gonna be.

I'm just hoping.

I got one piece of meat to cook.

That's it.

[Mike] I see tents and tepees.

-[Mike] oh!

-[Ashley] oh, man.

-[Bleep].

-No way.

[Bleep] that with a spoon.

Get the [bleep] out of here.

Really?

[Mike] I don't want to sleep

In no tepee.

[Eli] is padma sleeping

In a tepee too?

I'd just like to know.

[Robin] welcome to the old west.

We finally arrive to a place

Called sandy valley ranch,

And, like,



There's nothing out there.

It looked like a scene

From a horror movie.

-[Ashley] there's our fire pit.

-[Eli] oh, yeah.

That's what we're cooking on

Right there. Yes, sir.

The "kitchen" which

We're gonna be working out of

Is four fire pits



In the ground,



Some cast-iron pans,



Some really,



Um, crappy plates--



Not conditions that



I would ever want to work in,

And they're not conditions that

I think are good for the food.

[Robin] this thing's

Pretty awesome, actually.

It's awesome, dude.

[Robin] I know.

I'm super psyched.

[Robin]

We're roughing it.

The pantry station is

A chuck wagon.

Nice.

And then, you know, there's

A little makeshift lean-to

Where we can put

Some prep tables.

-[Robin] welcome to our home.

-[Laurine] all right.

[Laughing]

I grew up in idaho.

I'm an outdoor girl.

I mean, I spent a month

In the woods.

I am so down with that.

[Robin]

When I'm in kitchen,



I'm a**l about being clean,

But I love getting dirty,

And I love being out in nature.

[Mattin] we're camping, guys.

I love camping, you know.

I've been camping

My whole life.

[Mattin]

In the basque country,



The village was,



Like, people.



So it's very small.



So I really grew up in a farm



With chickens, pigs,



And things like that.

So back to the roots.

I love it.

[Ashley] hey, it's an outhouse.

I feel right at home.

I grew up in the middle

Of the woods, literally.

So the outhouse is



Familiar to me.



We were really poor



Growing up.



My mom was a single parent.



We were definitely



On food stamps.



It was really tough,



But at least I can cook

In these conditions.

-[Triangle ringing]

-That's what you do.

Okay, so here's

The next question.

Who's got the keys

To the highlander?

'Cause I'm staying

In there tonight.

I don't camp.

I don't believe in camping.

I think it's asinine.

I think that we got

Electricity for a reason.

This is my idea

Of a living hell.

[Eli] know the worst part

About this?

This is gonna convince

My girlfriend

That I'm gonna go camping

With her.

[Bleep].

[Mike] go get them, big ron!

He's taking the tree apart.

Why is he taking

A tree apart?

I don't know.

I'm tenting with ron,

Bunking with ron as it were.

So ron breaks off some sticks



And puts them



In front of our tent,

And he tells me that

That's a voodoo thing

That's gonna keep

The snakes away.

[Chuckles] I don't really

Believe in voodoo,

But anything to keep

Snakes away, I'll take it.

[Michael] this is the voltaggio

Household right here, man.

[Michael]

Bryan and I



Are competitive,



But at the same time,

We want to support each other

Through the process.

[Michael] I got satellite tv

In here.

[Bryan]

I used to camp



When I was more of a teenager.

And as a family thing

It was, you know, with friends

Who would go camping.

And, you know,

I'm excited about this,

'Cause it's been a long time.

So we actually have

To sleep in that?

Yeah.

[Bryan] michael's

Never really gone camping.

Also, I don't think

That he's prepared

For cooking out on a grill.

[Michael]

For the first time



Since I've been here,



I really feel like I've been



Taken out of my element.



Who wants to cook



In a dust-filled desert?



But I think a great chef



Can adapt to any environment



And produce



Under any condition.

[Mattin] ah, this is nice.

[Mike] ash is saying

That there's

No animals on the desert,

And I'm saying there might be

Some bobcats or mountain lions.

[Ash] I used to be

An animal psychologist...

[Laughing]

Before I started cooking,

After the acting career.

[Mike] are there bears out here?

Bears?

Bears are sweet.

[Eli] there might be wolves

Or cougars up in the hills.

[Mike] cougars,

Keep food by the tent,

And there's gonna be

Cougars tonight.

-[Robin] is this humorous?

-No, no, it's not.

[Bryan] even though

We're having fun

Hanging around

The campfire,

Obviously the reality is,

Tomorrow, you know--

Tomorrow's

Elimination challenge.

-[Mattin] good night, guys.

-[Bryan]

So I think



Everybody's gonna head to bed



A little bit early.

-Come on, sweetie pie.

-I'm coming, honey.

[Mike] there were chefs...

-[Laughing]

-Cooking in the desert.

[Belches]

[Ash] anyone seen

The blair witch project?

[Laughing]

I need some more sunscreen.

Who's not gonna

[Bleep] up today?

Like, who's not gonna have

A major technical problem today?

[Eli]

For



The elimination challenge,

We are going to be cooking out

By some big pit fires

In the middle of the desert



At the sandy valley ranch.

[Ash] whoo!

Boy, I am comfy now.

[Laughing]

[Eli]

It's



Also million degrees.

It's around the surface of venus

In temperature and texture.

We're just gonna be trying



To bang it out

And try to stay hydrated

And conscious.

So, what,

We have an hour and ?

This is gonna be

[Bleep] awesome.

[Eli]

Before we know it,



: Rolls around,



And it's time to show up



And play ball.

[Triangle ringing]

[Bryan] who's going home

Today?

[Mike] I'm going home

On the range.

[Bryan]

As time starts,



Everybody starts



Quickly gathering things.

[Eli] thanks for getting me

Those potatoes by the way, d*ck.

[Mike] you pushed me

Out of the way.

[Bryan]

An hour



And minutes is pretty tight,

But in my mind,

I have each step.

So as long as I stick

To my timeline,

I think I'm set up.

Holy [bleep], this is hot.

[Ashley] I know from experience

Cooking with an open flame,

It's very hard to control

Your temperature.

My strategy is to keep



The grill covered



With cast-iron pans,

And then that's gonna help sort

Of even out the temperature.

[Robin]

This is chaos.

I mean, we're working on

These teeny little stations...

Table, pastry brush.

[Robin]

And, you know,



Scrambling left and right.



Everybody's tripping



Over everything.



[Mattin]

I'm making



A ceviche three ways

With a margarita to go along

With the ceviche.

A ceviche is basically raw fish

Cooked by the acidity

Of the lemon.

I come up



With a dish like that,

Because we have,

Like, fire pits on the floor,

Which is very difficult to use.

Nice and hot!

[Mattin] I don't have anything

To cook, really,

So I'm feeling pretty good.

I need lady luck today.

[Ron]

I have been



In the bottom so much.



Today, it's time



For me to be on top.

My dish is

Coconut-lime ceviche,

Plus the juice



From the coconut,

I'm gonna make,

Like, an island mojito...

Something simple,

Something refreshing.

I know they're gonna love it

On a hot day.

I'm gonna hit a home run.

Come on, [bleep] doggy.

Anybody have a [bleep] sword?

Yeah, I'm a little scared.

[Jennifer]

Ron is screaming



For a sword.

[Ron] you have a sword?

I don't know who even has

A sword in their knife kit.

Hey, now.

All I know is coconut juice is

Seriously, like, flying

All over the place.

-[Jennifer] time, time?

-[Ash] .

[Mattin] ?

That's ridiculous.

[Michael] hey, can I use

That citrus reamer, mattin?

You know,

There's that old saying,

"If you can't take the heat,

Get out of the kitchen."

I think

This is a little extreme.

I'm gonna make dashi,

Something that's

Very traditional in japan.

I don't necessarily think



I should change the way I cook



For the people



That I'm cooking for.

Cowboys are cowboys.

I'm not cooking

For the cowboys, though.

When a guest comes



Into your restaurant,



You don't create a menu



Based on where they come from.

You cook your food, and they

Either like it or they don't.

[Laurine]

I'm noticing that I'm



The only person



Really out



At the grill

At this point.

Everyone else is

Under the shelter.

Having lived



In colorado on a ranch,

I had a little more experience

On the southwestern food.

Both ron



And mattin are doing ceviches.

And to me,

That just doesn't seem

Like you're out on the ranch,

You're working really hard,

And you want to go have

A plate of ceviche.

Here, little prawns,

Have fun getting drunk.

[Robin]

I didn't want to choose



Pork or do barbecue,

Because I figured a lot

Of people would go that route.

It seemed obvious.

I'm doing

Grilled romaine salad

With drunken prawns.

And I wish we had some tongs.

[Robin]

Even though



We expect them



To want steak and potatoes,



A hearty romaine salad



Actually makes you feel good,



And you don't feel heavy,

And you want to go back to work

After you eat.

You guys, we're at minutes.

[Bryan]

I'm going to make



A roasted pork loin,

And I'm gonna set it

Over a corn polenta

With braised dandelion.



Dandelion is



A really nice bitter green.



So this morning,



To get organized,



You know, pretty much stared



At the grill for about an hour

And kind of got an idea of

Where I wanted to place things.

I have a lot of components,



And my biggest concern



Is making sure

That I can maintain heat

On all of them.

[Laughing]

[Ashley]

It has to be,



Like, degrees

.



And then when you factor in



The fact that your face

Is, like, you know,

This far away from the fire,

I'm gonna say

It's about million degrees.

But I know how to cook



A piece of halibut.

I mean, it's

Pacific northwest cuisine.

Three minutes.

[Eli]

Time's running out,



And I'm just trying



To make sure

That I'm ready to put up the

Food as soon as they come to us.

[Laurine] seconds!

[Bryan] this is actually the

Closest I've been in plating,

And we get down

To the last few seconds,

And I'm just preparing my dish.

[Laurine] four seconds!

-Four?

-Four.

-[Triangle ringing]

-Time's up!

[Padma] lunch is served.

We're looking forward

To an amazing meal.

[Ashley]

The ranchers start



To arrive,



And they're, um--



I'm gonna go ahead and say



They're a motley crew.

They've probably been ranchers

Their entire lives,

And, um, they've been growing

Their beards since they were .

They're hungry,



And I want to make them happy.

[Ashley] how are you guys?

-Hungry?

-Yeah.

[Ash] let's get you a plate.

Y'all want a bourbon-glazed

Chicken paillard

-With succotash?

-Okay.

The plat's a little warm.

Is that too warm for you?

-[Woman] I got it.

-It looks delicious.

[Woman] it does look good.

[Ash]

I think I could be



A rancher.



I mean, I like walking around

And looking at cows

And lassoing things.

I wouldn't mind being a chef



On a ranch.

Are we getting much sand,

Do you think, in our meal today?

[Ash] you are working

With food service professionals.

If there's a grain of sand,

You'll have your money back.

[Laughter]

Hello, chefs.

What do you have for us today?

It's kind of a spin

On a traditional lamb gyro.

We got some pork tenderloin



That we marinated



In cumin and yogurt,

Served over

Some fresh romaine

And an apple

And fennel tzatziki.

I did a tuna sandwich

With sun-dried-tomato

Mayonnaise on it

And then a little radish salad.

I tried to get

Southwestern flavors,

So I have

Some sauteed arctic char.

I have a tomatillo salsa

And then the corn and tomato

And grilled onion salsa.

-[Gail] great.

-Thanks to all of you.

Thanks.

All right, let's dig in.

[Padma] mike does greek food

A lot,

So I don't think this is

A stretch for him at all.

[Tim] I think it's good,

But it's not exciting to me.

There's no pizzazz in it.

I don't want to call

My grandmother

After I eat or anything and go,

"Wow, you wouldn't believe

The sandwich I had."

But it--i mean,

The meat's cooked good.

Mm-hmm.

It was very good,

But it wasn't

As interesting to me

As the other dishes.

This is laurine's

Southwestern arctic char.

[Gail] flavorful.

The salsa's really nice.

I like the salsa and the corn.

I like the use of the grill,

And I like the flavor that got

Into the potato from the grill.

It was good.

I did a baked potato

On the grill,

Which is really

[Bleep] ballsy.

[Laurine]

I felt really good

Being in the top

Of the cactus challenge,

And I think I just need a win

To make me feel

Like I can really compete

With the other chefs

In this competition.

All right, so this

Is eli's tuna sandwich.

Tuna's sort of a strange choice

For the ranch.

[Padma] it could use

More flavor,

Especially this--

This radish salad.

It just brings nothing

To the plate.

The fish was good,

But the bread was pretty hard.

So I couldn't really eat it

As a sandwich.

What are you making?

I'm making a grilled chicken

Paillard with a corn succotash.

The chicken is brined



And then glazed



With a little bourbon.

I'm making

A three-way ceviche--

A salmon apple, a spicy tuna,

And a corn cod ceviche.

I'm working on finishing

My last one for you guys.

I've got

A grilled romaine salad

I'm doing



With some drunken prawns,



Some spicy-chicken



Italian sausage.



Kind of went southwest.

-Thank you, guys, very much.

-Thank you.

Bon appetite.

Should we try

Mattin's ceviche first?

Come on, tim,

You're our guest.

-You know, after you, please.

-I appreciate that.

You're starting

With the cod, huh?

It's a little fishy.

Tom's walking away.

[Tom] it's still very raw.

I mean, it's really--

It's gross.

- It's gourmet, no?

-[Laughter]

[Mattin]

This is a great dish.



It looks good.

I know that

They're gonna notice

That there's a lot

Of work in it.

Everything I put on the plate



Come out like I wanted.

Let's have robin's shrimp.

-[Tom] can I remove that?

-There's a plate for you.

-It's terrible.

-Yeah.

It tastes like I just sucked

On a piece of chlorine,

Come on, prawns.

[Robin]

I'm actually



Really upset at myself.



I didn't taste my prawns



Until after I had given

The plates to the judges,

And they were not good.

[Padma] let's try

Ash's chicken breast.

[Tom] at least this dish is

A little more sensible.

[Tim] I think

The succotash is great.

A little too much bacon,

I think.

And you taste

The bacon grease.

I'm tasting a lot

Of bacon grease.

The succotash was good

For a succotash.

The chicken...eh.

Now it's up to god.

-No, it sounds delicious.

-Good. Yeah, cheers.

Have a good day, guys.

-How you doing, bryan?

-Doing well.

[Padma] what did you make today?

Um, I made

A roasted pork loin,

Served with corn polenta,



Dandelion greens,



Glazed rutabaga,



And, uh, oyster mushrooms.

I have snapper with

A cold salad of duck confit,

Daikons, carrots,



And some tomato water,

Which has a little bit

Of spice in it.

I was inspired

By my favorite sandwich,

Which is a club sandwich.

I just have a little



Avocado mousse, tomatoes,



Braised romaine, bacon,



And seared halibut.

See you later.

[Tim] I think bryan's dish is

Very appropriate.

It's very nicely cooked.

I would feel confident camping

With that man.

If you have a good game plan,

You can actually put together

A nice plate, even out here.

-The rutabaga...

-[Woman] with the polenta.

With the polenta

Tastes really good.

[Padma] let's move on.

Jen--her slaw's great.

It's actually

Perfectly cooked.

I think she thought it through,

And it was creative

And, you know,

A little bit different.

-It doesn't jump out at me...

-No.

But everything about it

Tastes good.

It's really good.

I like it.

Ashley also did fish.

She did a halibut

With an avocado cream.

The avocado's

Actually pretty good.

This is the best thing

That ashley's done so far,

For sure.

Well, maybe

She's the dark horse.

Oh, it's so colorful.

-It's surprising how much it

Tastes like a club sandwich.

Right.

[Michael] break the fish up

And eat it all together

With the watermelon

And the broth.

Okay. You have

An asian-cooking background?

I have an

Everything-cooking background.

-Okay.

-[Laughing]

[Ron] hello,

How we doing today?

I did a coconut-lime

And mango ceviche

And a little



Hatian coconut mojito

With the coconut juice.

[Kevin] what I have is

Cast-iron-roasted duck breast.

I made a sals--



Similar to a mole,



Ancho and chocolate



Underneath it.



On top, I have a little bit



Of a cold salad.

I have some

Tequila-marinated watermelon.

Basically what I did was

I made a very traditional dashi.

So I started



With kombu and bonito,



Made a stock out of it.



Then I took some black cod,



Cured it with miso and mirin,

And then just cooked it

With a little bit of flour,

So it's kind of like

A japanese fish fry.

Thanks, guys.

I say we start

With ron's ceviche.

[Tom] ceviche, fish, and duck.

Actually, of all the ceviches

We've had today,

This is probably one

Of the better ones.

[Tom] yeah, it's just

A little sweet,

But, yeah, I think

I agree with you.

-The c*ck's terrible.

-It's disgusting.

The ceviche's excellent.

The ceviche is definitely,

I think, hands down,

Like, the best.

I think michael's dish is

Really tasty.

I love the shiitake flavors.

I love the broth.

It's nice and refreshing.

I like the dish.

It's just unexpecting,

Sort of.

-Yeah.

-It's good.

[Michael]

I feel pretty good.

The ponzu and the dashi,

To me, taste amazing.

So I know

That I'm not gonna lose today

Because my food doesn't

Taste good.

This looks so pretty.

[Jon] yeah.

And I love kevin's use

Of, you know, kind of a mole.

The duck is nice and cooked.

[Padma]

The duck is beautifully cooked.

I'm not sure what this one is,

But I like the tequila.

[Laughter]

[Padma]

We have a lot to talk about.

But I think it's better

That we get

Ourselves and the chefs

Out of this heat

-And get back to judges' table.

-Sounds good to me.

I call first shower.

Hey, there's two shower heads.

I'll be in there with you.

[Laughing]

Let me get in a quick game.

I'm actually really excited,

Because there's

A horseshoe pit here.

I'm gonna go ahead

And proclaim right now

That horseshoes is one

Of the most entertaining things

That has ever been created.

This is like my idea

Of [bleep] heaven.

-You redneck.

-I know.

[Ashley]

In addition to being



An amazing chef,

Kevin, somehow, could be

A championship horseshoe player.

[Scoffs]

He's pretty good.

[Kevin]

Who has a regulation



Horseshoe pit in their yard?

No one, that's the answer

To that question.

And yet, I had one growing up.

[Ashley] that's game.

[Kevin] that's game right there.

When we were prepping

Earlier today, like, I smelled,

Like, bad seafood.

[Ashley] the minute the cooler

Opened, I was like...

[Mike] yeah, I don't know

Whose it was.

"I hope that's not me."

Something did not smell good.

[Light laughter]

[Padma] can we please see...

Laurine, ashley,

Michael, and bryan?

Thank you.

All right, good job.

[Suspenseful music]

♪ ♪

Congratulations, chefs.

You had

Our favorite dishes today.

[Tom] ashley, you have

A big smile on your face.

Feels-- feels a little better

To be up here, huh?

No, yeah, it's much better

On this end than the other.

I know it's probably a little

Bit of a tough challenge

Out there,

But at the same time,

It seemed like you guys

Had a lot of fun with it.

[Padma] ashley, let's start

With you.

It's tricky cooking fish

In that environment,

And I think you did

A nice job with it,

And it's probably

Your strongest dish to date,

-So nice job.

-Thank you.

[Padma] bryan.

I was just really impressed

At how focused the dish was

And how focused you were.

It felt, to me, like

A real restaurant-quality dish,

But perfect for outdoors

-In the middle of the desert.

-Thank you. Thank you.

[Padma] laurine.

[Tim] I like the way

You used the grill.

I could taste the flavor

Coming through.

It seemed a bit simple,

But I think the simplicity is

Really what made

The dish shine.

Thank you.

[Padma] michael.

I wanted to take

White-tablecloth ingredients

And bring them to

A nontraditional environment.

I didn't know it was gonna be

That nontraditional showing up,

So I was really nervous

When we arrived to the kitchen.

[Tom] I enjoyed the dish a lot.

I thought it was cooked well.

The flavors

Really worked together well.

It was very unexpected too.

Thank you, chef.

Tim, as our guest judge,

Please do the honors

Of announcing our winner.

I think all the dishes

Were done really well,

And I think they were really

Well received

By my friends out at the ranch,

But there was one dish

That I feel like

Really represented the things

That I looked for

And the criteria that we put out

For this challenge.

That was bryan.

Thank you, chef.

Thank you very much.

[Padma] congratulations, bryan.

Thank you.

Now I need you to send back

Some of your colleagues.

I feel really good.

This is my third

Elimination challenge

That I've won.

It does come down to flavor



And execution of the dish.



It's cool



Between michael and i,



But, you know, even though



His dish was great,



Every time we stand



At the judges' table together,

You know, I seem to win.

So I think he's getting

A little upset about that.

[Laughs]

Oh, god, I can't handle

Being on the bottom.

I can't get yelled at today.

[Applause]

He had a good dish.

They want to see robin, ron,

And mattin.

-[Ashley] okay?

-[Bryan] go get them.

-Go get them.

Good luck. Good luck.

-[Michael] fight the fight.

-Good luck.

[Suspenseful music]

♪ ♪

The three of you had

The most disappointing dishes

At the ranch today.

Let's start with you, robin.

We're feeding cowboys,

And i, of course,

Immediately thought

Of barbecue.

So I wanted to play

Off the idea of a steak,

But I didn't want to do a steak

Or a typical barbecue plate,

And I love sausages,

And I did a drunken prawn.

You seem to be explaining

A completely different dish

Than what you served us.

Right.

I mean,

"I wanted to play off steak,

So I decided to give you

Sausage and shrimp."

That's ridiculous.

That shrimp was not good--

I mean, really not cooked

To the point of us being worried

About eating it.

Somewhere in there,

There could've been a good dish.

You just

Didn't put it together.

Not making excuses,

I'm not proud

Of what I put out today.

I'm gonna assume that you're

Not surprised to be here.

-Absolutely not.

-And I would assume

You're probably not surprised

That this dish could

-Send you home.

-I am.

[Padma] mattin...

Tell us about your dish.

Were you happy with it?

Yeah, I was very happy,

And I'm actually very surprised

To be here.

-Really?

-Yes.

Did you taste those ceviches?

-Yeah.

-You have chunks of cod

That are still raw and other

Ones that are--are cooked.

It was just

So poorly put together.

[Tim] that cod ceviche--

I mean, tom was so generous as

To let me try the plate first.

I'm not well from it.

I'm flippin' sick, man.

[Padma] ron.

I actually thought the ceviche

Was pretty good.

I didn't understand

The sauce on the side at all.

[Tom] we all found it

To be a little sweet.

Both the sauce was sweet,

And the ceviche was sweet.

But that aside,

That drink, I got to tell you,

Was one of the worst things--

I don't drink!

I just...

Didn't want that coconut

To go to waste.

That coconut drink

Really was bad.

It was bitter and acidic.

If you just made ceviche,

You probably wouldn't be here.

No, I agree with that.

We have some talking to do.

We'll call you back

When we have our decision.

-[Padma] thank you.

-[Tim] thanks.

-Thanks.

-You're welcome.

Whoo-hoo.

No, we don't know,

But they didn't like

The ceviche that much.

[Padma] ron--

Of the three,

His main component

On his dish

Was the most edible.

I didn't mind the taste

Of ron's ceviche at all.

It was a little

On the sweet side.

Wasn't that bad.

That drink was really--

The drink was horrible,

And the presentation was just--

I don't know

What the heck it was.

I just...

[Laughing]

I will never make a drink again.

Between mattin and robin,

Who had the worst dish?

You know, honestly,

I thought robin's dish was

Just completely uncomposed.

She just didn't know

How to make a dish

Out of those ingredients.

Her salad was a soggy mess,

And the shrimp had



A really strange flavor.



It had a sourness to it.

[Jim] once I took

A bite of that,

The rest of the dish didn't

Even exist to me.

And she really knew

That it was poor,

Yet she did nothing

To sort of compensate for it.

She tried to throw

A bunch of bacon on it,

Which, you know, hey,

Does fix most things,

But it failed this time.

-And then mattin--this guy.

-It's shocking.

I actually think

Mattin was clueless

About anything he did wrong

With that dish.

He's way outside of his limits

Of what he's capable of doing.

He doesn't understand

That instead of giving us

Three things sort of half-a*s,

Give us one thing



That's really great.



But the biggest problem is



He claims



He tasted each



Of those ceviches



And thought they were good.

Yeah, that's my biggest

Problem with the whole thing.

I tried to do too much,

Three different ways.

Should've focused on one

And, you know, make it amazing.

-We're in agreement?

-%.

-Okay, let's get them

Back out here.

[Pensive music]

♪ ♪

[Suspenseful music]

♪ ♪

So, chefs,

Today's elimination challenge,

You were asked to come

To the ranch

And cook for tim

And of his guests.

You had a full night

Under the stars

To think

About what you were doing,

And perhaps

It was too much time to think

And you overthought things,

But there are several reasons

Why you're all here.

Ron...

We all thought the ceviche was

A little on the sweet side,

And your drink was just

Really not good at all.

Mattin...

I got to say,

That food was not very good.

The ceviche

Just seemed very, very fishy

And not flavorful.

Robin...

Somewhere in there,

There may have been a good dish.

You just weren't able

To produce it,

That coupled with the fact

That the shrimp were really bad.

Not something you want to serve

At a ranch or really anywhere.

♪ ♪

Mattin...

Please pack your knives and go.

Okay.

-[Padma] good luck to you.

-[Mattin] thank you.

-Thank you very much.

-Nice to meet you.

-Pleasure.

-Tom.

You know, I was very happy

In some challenges.

This one,



I just kind of fell short.

Maybe a ceviche

Wasn't the best for cowboys.

-[Ashley] oh.

-[Mattin] yep.

You guys, good luck.

This is totally not



Gonna change how I cook.



I cook basque food.



You know, it's like,

I'm still gonna do

What I love to do.

Bye.

Take care, guys.

Of course I'm upset.

I didn't want to be leaving.

I mean,



It's an amazing experience,



And I met



Some very interesting people.

I mean, I'm sure

They're gonna miss me.

I mean...

[Laughing]

[Padma]

Next on

Top chef...

Please welcome

Penn and teller.

I don't use magic in food.

[Michael]

I have a few tricks



Up my sleeve.

-How'd you do that?

-I'm busy, chef.

-Leave me alone right now.

-[Thud]

-[Bleep].

-[Man] you guys okay?

-Oh, no.

-My pressure cooker explodes.

My station's covered

With crap now.

That just [bleep] sent me

Way over the [bleep] edge.

Oh, hold on.

[Jennifer]

I'm disappointed



In how my plate looks.

I might be going home.

It looks like a couple

Of bull's testicles.

[Padma] I've actually had

Bull's testicles.

-I'll bet.

-[Laughter]