Original subtitles

I'm bobby flay.

Each week, one brave chef will try to take me down in my house.

I'm not worried about bobby.

-What?! -Ooh!

This culinary battle is gonna shake down in two rounds.

Round 1 -- to get to me,

two contenders have to go through each other

using an ingredient of my choice.

Let's do it!

Two people that know me well

will decide who's got the skills to beat me.

Round 2 -- I go head-to-head with the winning contender.

It's their turn to surprise me with their signature dish.

-Go! -♪ friendly competition! ♪

is that distracting?

This is gonna be the first one I don't finish.

-Flay's in trouble! -Whoo!

Flay: Bottom line... Aah!

...Everyone's out to beat me.

[ bell dings ]

alright, it's "go" time in this kitchen.

You guys ready?

And here to hit me with everything they've got,

my pal chef scott conant

and actress and comedian cheri oteri.

Cheri oteri is a legend from "Saturday night live."

it's great having her here 'cause she's funny,

and then scott's not, but we still love scott.

Robert... Yes.

...William flay. Well, that's me.

I've waited a long time for this day.

I've been watching you. Have you?

I haven't just been watching you.

I've been studying you.

You may want to get a restraining order, bobby.

[ laughs ]

your hair is really perfect tonight.

I'm not looking in his eyes.

I'm looking at --

my eyes are down here.

Alright?

"cheri, they're here, okay?"

[ laughter ]

let's bring out some chefs.

Bobby, he became an executive chef at 21,

and he hasn't slowed down since.

From dallas, texas, nick walker.

Yeah, yeah!

Nick's a tall drink of water, scott.

Yes, he is.

Our next contestant comes from a long line of bosnian butchers,

so you know cooking is in her blood.

From st. Louis, missouri, executive chef senada grbic.

[ cheers and applause ]

I'm not messing with her.

♪♪

nick and senada, how are you tonight?

-Wonderful. -Doing great.

What kind of food do you cook in your place?

I specialize in bosnian.

Cevapi, lepinja, pljeskavica...

[ laughs ]

[ laughs ]

nick, you're good, right?

Yeah.

I'm gonna put 20 minutes on the clock,

and you must make an ingredient of my choice

the star of your dish.

And that ingredient is...

Gooseberries.

Whoo!

Gooseberries, they're nice and sweet

and aromatic when they're cooked.

What am I gonna do with this right now?

I've never worked with gooseberries before.

I'm so nervous.

Flay: Cheri and scott will decide which one of you

goes up against me in round 2.

Alright, guys. Gooseberries in 20 minutes.

I have goose bumps just thinking about it.

[ bell dings ]

[ cheers and applause ]

you ready? Ready.

Flay: It has a husk on the outside.

Obviously you don't eat that part of it,

and they're delicious.

I think they're gonna treat them like tomatoes in a way,

'cause they are part of the tomato family,

just sweet and tart.

I would make a salsa out of it, probably,

pair it with a grilled piece of swordfish.

I would sauté them and maybe do a bruschetta

and then a little bit of prosciutto with that.

Oh, nice.

In my kitchen, when we run out of gooseberries,

that's when it's time to panic.

[ laughter ]

nick: I'm a toast connoisseur,

so I'm making a gooseberry brioche toast

with ricotta and fresh herbs.

Nick is getting taller by the minute.

For my gooseberry jam, I'm kind of blistering them

with white wine, salt, and sugar.

My philosophy is, keep it simple,

get past this round, and get in bobby's face.

Growing up, my mother and my grandmother

were always cooking in the kitchen.

I was always very interested in it,

mostly because I love to eat.

After culinary school, I worked for some michelin star chefs

like josé andrés and bruno davaillon,

and I've done james beard dinners.

People have always doubted me because of my age,

but I've got the skill set to be one of the best.

I'm gonna bring it today.

-Senada, how are you? -I'm good.

-How are you? -I'm awesome.

What are you making, first of all?

I am gonna do some gooseberry spaetzle... Spaetzle.

...And then with some gooseberry reduction sauce.

Senada: Spaetzle are egg noodles.

At the restaurant, we probably make at least 75 pounds a week.

Did you puree some gooseberries into that?

I did. I pureed some gooseberries on milk,

seasoned it, and make a perfect little spaetzle.

-Love it. -Awesome.

My dad comes from a long line of butchers,

and my mom comes from a long line of strong female chefs.

In 1992, the war broke out in bosnia,

and in st. Louis, my parents helped by cooking food

for anywhere from 50 to 100 refugees.

Watching them float around the kitchen was like magic.

When I was 12 years old,

my parents opened up grbic restaurant,

so I've been cooking amazing bosnian cuisine my whole life.

Bobby, you have no idea what you're in for.

I grab some beautiful brioche,

and I slather about as much butter

as I know the bread will hold on it...

A lot of butter.

...And slap it right on the griddle.

Conant: Chef, how you doing?

We are gonna do a brioche toast

with some gooseberry marmalade and ricotta.

Those gooseberries are gonna be the forefront star of the dish.

Oh, yeah.

Who's rooting for nick?

[ cheers and applause ]

alright, chefs. 12 minutes and 30 seconds.

For my gooseberry reduction, I get some vegetable stock,

a little honey, and then to set off the sweetness,

I add a little bit of calabrian chilies.

Senada, she's making spaetzle,

so it's a noodle made with eggs and flour.

It's like a dumpling batter, right?

It's a batter that you kind of press through

directly into boiling salted water,

and then it's sautéed afterwards.

-Deschtetzle? -Spaetzle.

Spaetzle.

[ laughter ]

-spaetzle. -Spaetzle.

Nick is doing a gooseberry marmalade on toast.

I like that.

Only 6 minutes left.

Senada: I add my spaetzle to my pan with lots of butter,

salt, pepper, but adding gooseberries

and doing a sweet and spicy sauce

is definitely not traditional.

Are you nervous about nick?

I'm not nervous.

Nick: Oh, you should be.

When you know as much about the balkans

as I do, you can talk.

Oh, snap.

[ laughs ]

now, nick, geez louise.

Yep, yep.

Do you think you can take robert william down?

Robert william? Oh, yeah, absolutely.

I'm cheering for you both, guys.

Whoo.

I take my reduction and I blend it up.

It has the perfect amount of sweet

and the perfect amount of heat.

Under 3 minutes, chefs.

Nick: So I cut down my brioche

and start slathering on some creamy ricotta.

I spoon the gooseberry jam,

and I feel like I want to add some extra fat.

I see some guanciale, or cured pork jowl.

Slices of fat.

And then I grab the torch.

When you heat up guanciale,

it kind of gives a nice melty consistency,

and I think it brings out some of that salty, hammy flavor.

Senada: I put a nice spoonful of the spaetzle

in the center of my plate,

and then I take my gooseberry reduction,

swirl it around the edges.

All: 10, 9, 8...

Finish with parmesan and lots of black pepper.

All: ...5, 4...

Nick: Top the dish with some basil and tarragon.

All: ...2, 1.

[ bell dings, cheers and applause ]

sha-ding.

[ laughs ]

[ bell dings ]

chefs, listen, we really want to see bobby beat tonight.

He needs to be knocked down a lot of pegs.

[ laughs ]

chefs, it's all gonna boil down

to what you did with the gooseberries.

Senada, what did you make?

I made gooseberry spaetzle

with sweet and spicy gooseberry reduction.

Mmm.

I love that you put some of the gooseberries

actually in the spaetzle.

It's a little heavy on black pepper.

That may be traditional,

but I think it's still a little bit too much.

I love it.

I love the sauce, and I've learned a new word today.

More spaetzle, please.

[ laughter ]

chef nick, tell us what you made.

Today I made a gooseberry and brioche toast

with ricotta, guanciale, and some fresh herbs.

♪♪

I think the touch of guanciale over the top

is a great foil to the acidity

and the sweetness of the gooseberries.

It adds a nice funk.

I love the sweetness with the salt,

but I was afraid of the funk.

But you know what?

I'm down with the funk.

My tongue is still dancing.

This is spectacular.

Give us a minute to discuss,

and we'll talk about it, let you know.

♪♪

[ laughter ]

oh, I didn't know what you were doing.

You're blushing. Wow.

My goodness.

These are two very different directions.

It's crazy. Very creative.

Round 2 is gonna be tough, that's for sure.

The chef that's moving forward to beat bobby is...

Chef nick.

[ cheers and applause ]

good luck.

I had a lot of fun with it, and I really did what I love.

And I gave it all I had.

Good job. Thank you.

Conant: The gooseberries that you created --

such great flavor that you coaxed out of them.

Sweetness, texture, and acidity, you crushed it on all levels.

Let's do this.

♪♪

alright, nick. Congratulations.

Hold on one second.

[ laughter ]

♪♪

this is so much better. Nick, congratulations.

You did a great job.

♪♪

alright. What is your signature dish?

What are we cooking?

My signature dish is...

Pork chops and applesauce.

Oh.

I know how to make that.

It's the one dish that my mother used to make for me

when I was a kid.

Unfortunately, cheri and I do not get the honor

of judging round 2.

We're bringing in three culinary professionals

to do a blind taste test.

Whatever dish they like best will win.

45 minutes on the clock, and you're time starts...

Right now.

[ cheers and applause ]

[ bell dings ]

♪♪

pork chops and applesauce,

there's probably nothing more iconic americana.

And apples really work well with the fattiness of the pork.

Oh, yeah.

Flay: I always had a double chop on my menu,

whether at mesa grill or bar americain.

So it's two bones for one order,

and I'm gonna cook it with some red chilies,

make a pan sauce with some bourbon,

and a green apple and roasted green chili applesauce.

Pork chops and applesauce -- got it.

Nick: My take on this classic is smoking the chops,

serve it with some braised cabbage

and sweet and sour apple chutney.

Shout-out to my wife. I love you.

But me and the swine, we got a special relationship.

So I'm feeling really good.

My mother would cook them to a point of --

we just chewed and chewed and chewed,

and we just loved the applesauce to help wash down the chop.

[ laughs ]

flay: You don't want to overcook them.

You don't want to undercook them.

I want it to be, like, medium to medium-well.

I'm gonna season those with salt and pepper,

and I'm gonna crust them in a cast-iron pan first.

Nick: So I grab my chops after I've cut them,

and I wrap the whole pan in plastic wrap.

Then I grab my smoking gun with some applewood chips.

He's smoking them.

Oh, he's using applewood chips.

Applewood adds a hint of sweetness, as well.

Very clever.

Boy, that smell is beguiling.

Or is that you?

I smell like pork and smoke?

It's nice.

I've got my chop smoking, so I start my braised cabbage.

And I start slicing away.

And then I grab a yellow onion, and I julienne that really thin.

We get that into the pot, chicken stock, some vinegar,

and we get cooking.

Flay: The thing about pork chops is you want them

to be as tender as possible,

so then I'm adding chicken stock and some bourbon to the pan.

This is gonna create some steam

and help them stay nice and juicy.

And I cover them with a sheet pan

'cause I don't have covers for these cast-irons

and I just put them in the oven and let them braise.

Conant: I'm gonna go in.

Chefs, there are 36 minutes on the clock.

Nick, what's the word, brother?

Who is in the audience cheering for you today?

I got my wife, emily, and my family over here.

Alright.

You got married just a few weeks ago. I did, yes.

Good thing you didn't call bobby for marriage advice.

That's all I'm saying.

[ audience groans ]

scott, I have a ton of marriage experience.

[ laughter ]

you're just looking at it the wrong way.

[ laughter ]

conant: Alright, bobby. What do we got going on here?

So I'm doing double-cut pork chops.

That's your move.

It's kind of like a reverse cooking method.

I seared them in a pan first. Yeah.

I'm gonna braise them until about they're 3/4 of the way done,

and then I'm going to finish them on the grill,

get them nice and crusty.

Nick, did you hear what he's doing with those pork chops?

Not interested.

[ audience groans ]

okay.

Alright. Good luck, chefs.

31 minutes on the clock.

♪♪

nick's hair is redder than bobby's.

Bobby, you remember when your hair was the same color

as nick's all those years ago?

Not really? When you were delivering papers on the street?

I wasn't delivering the papers. I was stealing them.

Let's get it right.

Ooh, tough guy.

[ laughter ]

♪♪

what gang was that?

[ laughter ]

get your newspaper off the porch quick!

Flay's coming!

[ laughter ]

♪♪

what am I doing?

[ bell dings ] I forgot what I was making.

Conant: So pork chops and applesauce.

Bobby's doing something I've never really seen before.

Picking up the check.

[ laughter ]

he's kind of doing a roast, braise, grill.

It's a lot of cooking techniques...

There's a lot of stuff going on. ...For one little pork chop.

Could play into our hands, so to speak.

Nick: I've got granny smith apples in the pan

with sugar, chili flakes, and star anise

for my sweet and sour apple chutney.

I grab the bottle of apple brandy, and it's flambé time.

[ crowd cheering ]

now, there's the flambé that I've been waiting for.

That was impressive.

Under 25 minutes, guys.

[ cheers and applause ]

now, nick, I don't know if you've noticed,

but we're wearing the same shirt.

We are, yeah. Yes.

That's how much I'm rooting for you.

I appreciate that.

Nick: I would've liked to let the pork chops

smoke a little longer,

but I know I got to start searing some pork.

That smell is unbelievable.

Get these searing here in a minute.

I'm gonna ask your new bride

what's gonna happen at home if you lose tonight.

Oh, man.

Well, he's gonna win today,

so let's not get ahead of ourselves.

[ cheers and applause ]

I love you.

Aw.

I smell babies.

Oh, yeah. We're making a baby tonight.

[ laughs ]

-is he blushing yet? -Now I'm really sweating.

[ laughter ]

flay: I'm using granny smith apples that I cooked with sugar,

cinnamon, ginger, and some tangerine juice.

I throw them into the food processor

with the roasted green chilies.

Any excuse for me to use a roasted green chili,

it's happening.

Mmm. Oh, my goodness.

Flay: This is my green chili applesauce.

Oh, my gosh. That's good.

It's not that good.

Want to see some pork chops? Yes.

Oh, wow.

Then I'm gonna paint them with a marinade

and then grill them.

That's hot. Thank you.

Bobby, you're bringing the pork back.

Give nick some encouragement.

[ cheers and applause ]

flay: So I'm making a very flavorful marinade,

and I want the smoky chipotle, paprika flavors

to kind of cook into the meat.

10 minutes, chefs. 10 minutes.

Nick: So I flip my pork chops, and it's basting time,

so I add some garlic gloves,

some thyme leaves, and whole lot of butter.

I think butter-basting it is the way to go

because it's bringing more fat to the table.

Fat equates to flavor.

But bobby, he is bringing a lot of other spices to it,

which add to the flavor profile.

I'm gonna make a pan sauce with some bourbon,

some aromatics like ginger, garlic, shallots,

some veal demiglace, and chicken stock,

and I'm just gonna let that cook away.

Nick, how you feeling, man?

I'm good. I'm great.

I pull my pork chops out of the cast iron so they can rest.

Now I got to get my salad together with a garnish.

I've got my mustard frills and my baby gala apples

because they've got some sweet undertone.

I squeeze some fresh lemon juice,

some olive oil -- super simple.

Flay: I crust my pork chops on the grill.

They look delicious. And then...

Bobby just grabbed the pomegranate.

I'm gonna a relish.

Pomegranates, green chilies, and some fresh mint,

I think, go really nicely together,

kind of ties it all in.

Alright, guys. Let's hear it for nick.

Let's go.

Alright, nick. What do we got, my friend?

-Can we taste your sauce? -Absolutely.

But it's gonna have that sweet, acidic,

and kind of chutney flavor.

Oh, my god.

The star anise is beautiful.

Wow, that is delicious.

And our smoked pork chops we're getting ready

to slice here in a minute.

You don't need us over here. You got this.

Two minutes left.

[ cheers and applause ]

[ spoon clatters ]

bully.

So I'm slicing my pork chops.

They're at a nice medium, perfectly cooked.

Flay: I decide to keep them whole.

I just feel like people want some heft to the pork chop.

I put the sauce over the pork,

then I put some of the green chili applesauce.

♪♪

nick: Cabbage has got to go down first.

Next, the pork chops and the apple chutney.

25 seconds.

Flay: And then some of the pomegranate relish on top.

Bobby, do you know that you have a fire

going on in your station?

Yep, I'm cold.

All: 10, 9...

Nick: I garnish with the mustard frills and the shaved apples.

Bobby, from all the way up here, I can already see the victory.

...3, 2, 1.

[ cheers and applause ]

nick's looks gorgeous.

But bobby's double-cut pork chop looks good.

You better simmer down, now.

[ bell dings ]

cheri: Bobby, nick, congratulations.

Right now, we'd like to introduce you to the judges.

The chef and owner of mp taverna and kefi, michael psilakis.

Host of "sara's weeknight meals," sara moulton.

And executive chef jeremy salamon.

[ applause ]

judges, please start with the first pork chop

and applesauce in front of you.

♪♪

psilakis: I really like this dish a lot.

It feels very restaurant, chef-y.

There's sweet, sours, acidity,

and there's a lot of texture here.

The pork is undercooked, unfortunately.

Moulton: I like the cabbage very much --

nice sweet and sour element there.

The pork is very juicy.

I agree. It is slightly undercooked.

And I'm just not getting the smoke.

I really love the mustard greens.

I think it added a nice freshness to the dish,

and I also thought that the pork chop

could use a little bit more smoke,

but otherwise than that,

I think it was really just a beautiful,

elevated take on a classic.

Conant: Thank you, judges.

We're gonna have you switch your plates.

♪♪

I love the applesauce.

It has char-roasting flavor.

You got this bourbon sauce going on over there,

and all together, it's really good.

But I think if the pork was cooked five minutes less,

this would really be a special dish.

This applesauce is off the charts.

I just love that heat.

I think the sweetness in the sauce

goes nicely with the pork.

Unfortunately, it is overcooked,

but it's so exciting otherwise.

This dish is pretty fabulous.

I'm a huge fan of this applesauce.

I would, like, love to bathe in it.

There was a good amount of heat and sweetness.

I thoroughly enjoyed the pomegranates.

All the flavors worked really well together.

Judges, we are gonna ask you to please take a vote.

Nick: If I were to go back,

I would've let the pork chops smoke a little longer,

but I just went head-to-head with one of the best,

someone that I really look up to.

I put out a dish that was just as good as his.

The judges voted, and it is not unanimous.

Cheri: And the winner is...

♪♪

...Bobby flay.

[ cheers and applause ]

thought you had me.

Alright, I'm astonished you did overcook,

but it was so flavorful, I didn't care.

I mean, that applesauce is off the charts, really delicious.

Thank you.

Nick: It's been an honor just getting to go up against bobby.

Humbled to be here.

Bobby goes from stealing newspapers

to stealing the wind in my sails.

My pork chop went "wee, wee, wee"

all the way home for the win.

[ cheers and applause ]

♪♪