My Tasty TV Treat: Top Chef Masters (The Recap)

June 26, 2009 9:39 pm

My Tasty TV Treat: Top Chef Masters (The Recap)

My husband is a religious viewer of the popular cooking show Top Chef on Bravo, in turn making me a weekly watcher as well. This summer the network has put a bit of a spin on the show by putting 24 of the world's top class chefs up to many of the challenges that past competitors have endured. Since they are all already "Top Chefs," the series is appropriately named, Top Chef Masters.

As regular Top Chef followers know, each episode ends with an elimination. The premise for Masters is that each episode airs four chefs at a time, each competing for the one chance to advance to the next round. After the six individual winners are selected, it is then that the eliminations begin dwindling down to the title of "Top Chef Master." "The prize?" as they like to say in the opening credits, is $100,000 to the charity of the chef's choice.

There are some new faces at the Judge's Table, but unlike during the regular season, these judges are a mainstay during the first episodes. Kelly Choi, the face of Eat Out New York enters the world of prime television as the hostess of the show. Along side of her are acclaimed New York restaurant critic, Gael Greene, Saveur magazine, James Oseland and British restaurant reviewer, Jay Rayner.

With the basis of the show laid out, here is a slight recap of the first two episodes (for those who may just begin to join the Top Chef fan club, or for those awaiting to see a recognizable chef who has already been let go).

Episode 1: The Masters Get Schooled

The Chefs:

Chef Tim Love – Lonesome Dove, Fort Worth, TX

Chef Christopher Lee – Aureole, New York, NY

Chef Michael Schlow – Radius, Boston, MA

Chef Hubert Keller – Fleur de Lys, San Francisco, CA

Quickfire Challenge: Dessert

Each of the chefs have 60 minutes to produce a dessert plate to be critiqued by the toughest dessert critics around, Girl Scouts. Picked apart by the petite selection committee (especially the red head), Hubert Keller came out on top earning five out of five stars.

Elimination Challenge:

The Quickfire Challenge was mere child's play as the next challenge graduated to college. With a limited budget, and limited space the chefs were to create a meal in a dorm room with the use of a microwave, a hot plate and a toaster oven.

Bump in the road: Even though Chef Tim Love unknowingly stored his menu items in the freezer overnight, he managed to keep his cool (after a few choice words), and pushed through quite admirably.

However, Hubert Keller took the title of this challenge as well and thought outside of the box.

Episode 2: The Lost Supper

The Chefs:

Chef Elizabeth Faulkner – Citizen Cake, San Francisco, CA

Chef Wylie Dufrense – WD-50, New York, NY

Chef Graham Elliot Bowles – Graham Elliot Restaurant, Chicago, IL

Chef Susan Tracht – Jar, Los Angeles, CA

Quickfire Challenge:

Create an amuse-bouche using only the items found inside of a vending machine. These chefs took "processed" ingredients to a whole new level (Dr. Pepper aoli anyone?) creating little dishes to "tickle the palate,"while Wylie Dufrense took the use of the "f" word in one minute off the charts. Susan Tracht was the winner of this challenge creating a simple fried shallot and micro green salad.

Elimination Challenge:

The writers and producers of the hit TV show Lost are on the same bandwagon as my husband, religious followers of Top Chef. A few sat at the Judge's Table to review the Masters challenged of creating a plate inspired by the show.

A few of the chefs seemed a little "lost" themselves having never seen the show, but Susan Tracht humbly navigated her way to the winner's circle by creating a dish chock full of secluded island food. A plate of Risotto with Uni, Clams and Prawns, Wild Boar Strip with Oyster Beer Sauce, Mango Corn Salad would be among my list of items that I would take.

Through the first two of the episodes , it is interesting to watch each of the chef's level of intimidation rise when presented in front of each of the judges. As a professional cook myself, I am aware of this feeling, and find it kind of relaxing in a way to see these top dogs humbled by others.

Stay tuned weekly to Behind the Burner to read more about the experiences on Top Chef Masters.

—Hailee Moore