Alex Vs. America (2022–…): Season 1, Episode 2 - Alex Vs. Beef - full transcript

[narrator] Alex Guarnaschelli

is one of the best competition
cooks in America.

[Alex] I'm an Iron Chef.

I've beaten Bobby Flay
in his own kitchen.

There isn't a chef who's
more competitive than I am.

Michael Jordan plays basketball.

Serena Williams plays tennis.

Tiger Woods plays golf.

I cook.

Simple as that.

People always want to know
what's next.



This is it.

It's almost impossible
to beat her one-on-one.

So each week she'll be battling
three of America's best chefs

at the same time.

I think I can beat her.

I need my shot at Alex.

The gauntlet has been
thrown down.

[Eric] Chefs will be hand-picked
from across the country.

Each with a mastery
of a specific type of food.

They are all coming here
with one goal.

To beat Alex.

I'm winded.

Can't turn back now.

[Alex] I know I have
a target on my back,



and I wouldn't have it
any other way.

[Eric] So right now, three
of the best beef experts

in the country are preparing for
a culinary battle of their life time.

[Kevin] I'm from Oklahoma City,

the beef capital of the world.

Chef Alex might be amazing
at what she does,

but beef is what I do.

[Demetrius] No one in this country
is doing things with beef that I am.

I bring those island
flavors that I love

to push the envelope
and use a lot of creativity.

I am fearless and fearless
is dangerous.

[whispering] Chef Alex doesn't even
know what today's theme is about.

She's gonna find out
pretty quickly.

The stakes are high.

[Alex] There are three experts

out there, right now,
getting ready.

I want everybody
that comes here,

to learn and grow and be
exhilarated by the experience.

And I want them all to lose.

[Eric] Buckle up, guys.

Your chef, Alex Guarnaschelli.

[Eric] Hey, chef.

So, you know we never
make it easy on you, chef.

They cannot wait
to challenge you,

in a beef showdown.

Beef. All right!

Oh, yeah.

We have some of America's
three best

beef chefs that I'd like to
introduce you to.

Chef Kevin is a executive chef
from Oklahoma City.

The Oklahoma Gazette name him

the best chef of 2020.

I've been watching you
for a long time.

Only a couple of years,
I'm not that old.

[all laughing]

[Eric] Chef Demetrius Brown
from Atlanta, Georgia.

He's a Johnson & Wales grad,

and he was also
an Eater Young Gun nominee.

You're an Eater Young Gun?

I always wanted that.

[Eric] This is Chef Yia
from Dallas, Texas.

Chef Yia has received
a Rising Star nomination,

and she's also run some of the
top steakhouses in Dallas.

I mean, if you can cook
in a steakhouse in Dallas,

watch out guys.

It's time to lock horns.

You three chefs will be
competing against Alex

preparing a beef dish.

We have two beef experts

coming here to the kitchen
to taste your dishes.

We'll do a blind tasting.

And we'll rank them,
one through four.

The chefs that cook
the top three dishes,

are moving on
to the money round.

And the fourth chef,

will not.

Even if that's you, Alex.

I get no respect around here.

Since you are all here
to challenge Alex,

you guys actually get
to pick the challenge.

Let's do it, guys.

[Kevin] The goal is to
take down Chef Alex.

And I think it's going to be
a huge advantage for us

to be able to pick what we're
going to be cooking with.

[Eric] So the first thing
you'll be choosing,

what kind of beef
you'll be using.

We have ground beef.

Chuck.

And a tri-tip.

What do you guys think?

[Demetrius] I think chuck
has a lot more flavor.

There's several things
you can do with it too.

Tri-tip is too lean,
it's gonna be dry.

I like the tri-tip.

But I don't want to say that
coz then they won't pick it.

Ground beef is out.

Ground beef is out?

Coz anything can turn
into ground beef.

Are you agreeing with that?
Demetrius? Yia?

- [Yia] Yeah.
- [Eric] All right.

Tri-tip is something people
don't see a lot.

[Yia] I'll say tri-tip.

[Eric] So tri-tip?

I'm outvoted for.
Yeah, tri-tip.

- Tri-tip it is?
- [Kevin] Yes.

If I were picking for myself,

I would've picked the tri-tip.

Coz that's that
ground-up basically.

And if you get 15 minutes,

where are you
with that giant haunch?

That can't make you feel good

knowing that's what she would
have probably picked, right?

[Eric] So what goes with beef?

[Yia] Potatoes? Veggies?

[Eric] Potatoes.
And a lot of 'em.

Frozen tater tots.

Frozen sweet potato fries.

And frozen hash browns.

These are the only form
of potatoes that you can use.

I'm thinking hash browns.

I'm kind of leaning towards
sweet potato fries.

We can be more creative,
think outside of the box.

I disagree.

I love this.
They don't get along.

[Eric] I need an answer.

Two of us have sweet potatoes
and she has hash browns.

Yeah.

We're going sweet potatoes.
This is how democracy works.

All right. [laughs]

[Kevin] Sorry, Yia.

No, you're not.

[Eric] Now let's find out
what you'll be making

with the tri-tip
and the sweet potato fries.

Something that is hand held,

or an upscale appetizer.

Two completely different
styles of dishes, right?

[Kevin] Mm-hmm.

I think, with what we have,

it kinda suits upscale.

I have to take a walk.

I'm gonna let Yia take this one.

- Amuse-bouche.
- [Demetrius] Amuse-bouche?

- [Yia] Yeah.
- Let's do it.

Upscale appetizer.

Just gonna pace around
like a puma.

- You feel confident?
- Yes.

[Eric] Last, and most important,

how much time
do you guys wanna use?

You can go from anywhere
between one minute,

and 60 minutes.

The longer you give yourself, the
longer you give Chef Alex as well.

- I think an hour is too long.
- [Kevin] Absolutely.

- Forty minutes?
- [Kevin] Between 30 or 40.

I wanna say 40, coz 30
might be against us.

I want 40.

I've seen Chef Alex make
some really delicious meals

in less time.

Forty minutes is good.

[Eric] Forty minutes.
All right guys,

only three of you
will survive this round.

- Including me?
- Including you.

- I can't work like this.
- [Eric chuckles]

Whoever wins first place
in this round,

gets to exclusively choose

all of the options
in the next round.

Even if that's Chef Alex.

All right guys. You have
all the rules,

only one thing left to do.

- Yes?
- Start cooking.

Go!

[Eric] I'm not sure if these three
chefs played it to their hands

of to Chef Alex's hands,

because she would've
picked the tri-tip.

I mean, we're doing fine dining,
this is Chef Alex's wheelhouse.

And the fact that they've given
her 40 minutes on the clock,

that's all the time she needs.

[Alex] Beef, it's a diva.

It does take and need a lot.

You don't want to lose
the meatiness.

It's the Lady Gaga
of the meat world, you know?

I'm gonna make
brioche toast with steak.

- Ooh.
- With a little bearnaise,

with mushrooms,
sweet potato puree,

and caviar.

This cut of beef
is not fatty or rich.

And I just wanna add richness.

That's what would happen
in an upscale place.

The tri-tip needs to be quick
seared, and cooked, and rested.

And then, in my opinion,
thinly sliced.

So that it's got
a nice mouth-feel.

Chef Alex is cooking
against me right now

and I see her eyes, and she's
not playing around.

So, I need to dig deep.

- Come on.
- Can't turn back now.

Do a little chermoula
marinated beef tataki,

with a sweet potato
habanero puree,

with a grilled radicchio slaw.

Paprika for my chermoula sauce.

It's a African like, marinade.

I can't just put a steak
and potatoes on a plate,

I need to make something
that's unique.

Got a lot of pressure on me,

but I'm banking on my creativity

to really beat Chef Alex
on this one.

In a mortar and pestle,
I got onions, garlic,

cilantro, parsley, paprika,
cumin, turmeric.

Get it all married together.

Guys, we're cooking steak,
we're looking for flavor

especially with the tri-tip

it doesn't have as much
as the fat content, right?

So you have to be
able to marinade.

You have to be able to impart
a little bit of your flavor.

Hopefully, this is where
the chefs' styles can come in.

Where they can show a little
bit of their technique,

and also show a little bit
about where they're from.

[Yia] I'm from Dallas, Texas.

And in Texas, beef is king.

Plus, I was raised in the
countryside of Puerto Rico,

I'm not gonna
over complicate it.

I'm using my background in
Puerto Rican cuisine and all that stuff.

Simple, salt and pepper,

I don't want to overpower,
the beef is the star here.

I'm making herbed butter steak

with sweet potato puree
and cilantro crumbles.

Butter always, there's never
enough butter in the world.

To add Latin spice I just
put garlic and cilantro in it.

Made a herbed butter
while I baste it.

[Eric] Chef Yia has like five
ingredients on her station,

I don't know how much flavor
she's looking to impart into this dish.

Alex cooks with such precision,

and I'm going to beat her
with pure creativity.

So what I'm gonna do
is confit my beef.

In that beef tallow?

It's gonna help amplify
that beefy flavor.

- Understood.
- And then sweet potato, brown butter gnocchi.

I like it, man.

[Demetrius] To flavor my
confit I'm adding bay leaf

and I'm adding habanero.

Beef tallow also gonna help it
keep a little bit more moist,

because tri-tip
isn't the most fatty

cut of meat you can get.

I want to try and keep this
as tender as possible.

I can smell the beef fat,
I can smell the tallow

that Chef Demetrius
is working with.

It smells like a steakhouse
in here.

[Demetrius] Alex,
she's formidable,

she's very good
at what she does.

Looking fierce.

[Kevin] She's got
her game face on.

I'm watching Chef Alex cook.

She doesn't flare out
when she's in the kitchen.

She brings it. I gotta take it
up another notch.

I'm here to take Chef Alex's
name off that map today.

So to make sure our tasting
is completely fair,

our expert judges will be
doing a blind tasting.

We want to make sure they have no
idea what's happening in the kitchen.

So they're actually
outside right now.

Judge Michael Voltaggio is a
James Beard Award nominee,

and co-owner of the
critically acclaimed

Voltaggio Brothers Steak House
at the MGM in Maryland.

And our other judge
is Cara Nicoletti.

Cara is a fourth generation
butcher, and owner of Seemore,

a sustainable meat
and sausage company.

Right now, three chefs
are up against Chef Alex,

in a beef showdown.

They chose tri-tip steak,

frozen sweet potato fries,

they have 40 minutes to cook,

and they're trying to do this
all in an upscale appetizer plate.

With the tri-tip,

it's really important that you
rest it after you cook it.

Make sure that you're
slicing it properly,

It has a bunch of different
ways that the grains go.

When you're thinking
about appetizer,

you want it to be
the appropriate portion,

but also, that's your opportunity
to show off presentation.

It needs to look beautiful.

- Definitely.
- Both the tri-tip and sweet potato fries

are really humble ingredients,

so we're gonna wanna see how
they can really elevate that.

All right. I'll see you guys
in a second.

[both] Thank you.

[Alex] The three chefs think

sweet potato
is gonna trip me up.

But, this is my craft.
I take it seriously.

Whip up the fries into a puree
with a little brown butter.

A little bit of butteryness
to bolster the meat.

I definitely want to make
a bearnaise sauce

because this cut of beef
is not fatty,

and I just want to add richness.

So I whisk some
egg yolks with water,

and then I add a reduction,

which is the classic way
to make bearnaise

you just reduce some shallots,
tarragon and red wine vinegar,

and that acidulates the sauce.

[Eric] Making a bearnaise is
something that you have to stay there,

and work at it, whisking,
whisking, whisking.

Very smart cooking.

Chefs, how are we doing?

Silence.

[Kevin] Got my radicchio going

just want to add a little bit
more character to my dish.

The charred leeks, charred
radicchio go into a little slaw,

Kinda bring everything together.

Chef Kevin, you mentioned about
the respect you have for Chef Alex,

you think this dish right here
is enough to beat her?

I'm bringing every little
knowledge that I have

when it comes to beef
and I feel pretty confident.

- [Kevin] But we'll see, man.
- [Eric] All right.

[Kevin] I got a little onions,
garlic cooking,

to add a little savoriness
to the dish.

Just wanna have
a little heat in here.

I want to take these frozen
sweet potato fries,

and turn it into a habanero
sweet potato puree.

I really want to take away the
sweetness of the sweet potato,

down south the rich,
fattiness of the dish.

[Yia] Little bit of brown sugar,

to enhance that flavor.

Kinda want to make
it like a puree,

and then chili flakes
to make that little...

I used coconut milk.

It's a familiar flavor for me

coming from Puerto Rico.

And it helps balance
that sweet component.

Sweet potatoes and steak
is a classic, simple

steakhouse staple.

You have one shot to beat
Chef Alex in her kitchen,

and you have to pull out
all of the stops.

Fantastic. Like home.

[Eric] I'm not sure Yia has enough
going on in her station right now

to actually get to that point
to beat Chef Alex.

[Yia] I am frying cilantro.

I want to use it as a garnish.

But I don't want it
to overpower the whole dish,

the cilantro flavor.

I don't wanna
over complicate things.

In a competition, I just wanna
keep it simple.

If she's going simple,
it's going to be very easy

for the judges
to pick apart this dish

if it is not cooked
the way it should be.

How's it going, Demetri?

[Demetrius] It's going
real gravy right now.

I don't know who the judges are,

but I feel like
what I have to offer,

anybody's gonna like. It's
accepting for any kind of palate.

You're making gnocchi with
the sweet potato fries.

- Oh yes.
- I love it.

- Thank you, thank you.
- Very smart, man.

I hope the judges
will love it too.

[Demetrius] I think
it's creative enough

to where nobody is gonna
do what I am doing.

- Okay.
- And it's also gonna taste good.

[chuckles] All right.

[Eric] I love how inventive
this is right now.

So, he's using
the sweet potato fries,

blended it up, added
a little bit of flour,

got a little bit of body to it.

And now he's making
a gnocchi out if.

Which is really, really smart.

So, I'm straining
all my gnocchi.

Now what I'm going to do
is sear all these off

in a little bit of beef tallow
and brown butter

to get a nice crust
and a nice sear on it.

Now, I'm gonna take
these sea beans,

and I'm just gonna char them
super, super hard.

That's gonna be
a little bit of salinity.

I don't wanna overpower
with a lot of sea salt,

so I wanna use some kind of
a natural salt flavoring.

[Eric] Ten minutes left,
chefs. Ten minutes.

[bleep]

Chef, did you burn something?

[Alex] Steak's overcooked.

The steak's overcooked.

Steak's overcooked.
The steak's overcooked.

[Eric] Chef Alex just
cooked her tri-tip.

She just rested it
and cut into it

and noticed that it was over.

So, you start all over again.

I'm just hoping that
within six minutes,

she has enough time
to rest it again,

slice it, and serve it
to the judges.

Two and a half minutes left,
chefs, two and a half minutes.

You have to slice it thinner.

I really wanna make
sure that this dish

is plated elegantly to really
showcase upscale appetizer.

I've got the thinly sliced
tri-tip lined out,

layering it with
watermelon radish,

with my little radicchio slaw,

and topping it off with my
sweet potato habanero puree.

[Alex] I'm trying to cook more
steak, but it's not going to be done.

And it's not going to be rested.

And a tri-tip
does not forgive you

if you don't let it rest coz
it's a tough cut of meat.

So I just cut around the edges,

and I bury it with a little
bit of the pan drippings

mixed with shallots and mustard

to hide it a little bit.

[Yia] Yay! It's what I want.

Right now, I'm looking
for something people would pay

a high price for.

Something that will look pretty.

I'm gonna finish the steak
with flake salt.

Again, simple.

You don't need
to reinvent the wheel.

Just play with the colors.

[Eric] Guys, we have
a minute left.

[Demetrius] It's nice
and tender.

I wanna make this as
beautiful plate as possible.

So I get the sea beans
down first.

And then I add the gnocchi
on top of that.

I place my thinly sliced tri-tip

right on top of the gnocchi.

I shave some parmesan because
that's gonna add those nutty notes.

[Alex] So on the bottom
of the plate,

I have the sweet potato puree,

and I'm just
dotting that around.

I want there to be
a lot of little flavors.

That's part of what high-end is.

Then I dot some really acidic
red wine vinaigrette

with mustard and then
the bearnaise sauce.

Then I add caviar.

[Eric] Five...

Four...

Three...

Two...

One...

That's all, chefs.

I'm sad because I'm concerned
that my steak is overcooked.

And I didn't get an opportunity
to finish cooking more.

[Kevin] She had
more time than us?

No.

Looks awesome, chef.

I hope so.

That was very impressive
what she's done in 40 minutes.

[Eric] All right, chefs.

It's time for you to write down
you menu on the description cards.

And I'll be bring you back in once
the judges are finished deliberating.

Thank you, guys. Good job.

Mm, I love this. Flaky salt.

- [Eric] This is it. Yeah.
- [Alex] Mm-hmm.

[Alex] Interesting.

[Eric] Like gnocchi.

[Alex] So cool.

[Eric] It's not
a bad idea, right?

Is there sauce?

So, I don't know
about the sauce though.

Yeah, looks very, very dry.

And then Chef Kevin went tataki.

- Oh, I love that.
- Yeah?

Oh, I think he won.

[Alex] It was a really
hard round.

The tri-tip, I overcooked it.

They picked
a fine-dining appetizer,

and then a really like,
tough cut of meat.

What's going Cara and Michael?
What's the deal?

Hi!

Welcome, welcome, welcome.

- You can smell it.
- Smells really good.

That's all I got,
a little smell.

Did you guys check out
Chef Alex's dish?

What do you guys think?

Think it looked really clean
and elegantly plated.

So, think I'm
a little bit nervous.

And it's pretty.
Lot of colors.

- I knew she was good but--
- [Demetrius] Yeah.

[Demetrius] She surprised
me on that.

[Eric] The chefs picked tri-tip,

frozen sweet potato fries,

they decided to make
an upscale appetizer,

and they only had 40 minutes.

Okay.

So let's see what the first
chef has in store for us.

[Eric] A chermoula crusted
beef tataki,

with grilled radicchio slaw,

fried onions, chimichurri,

and a sweet potato
habanero puree.

[Alex] I love Kevin's plate.
I think it looks beautiful,

fancy and fresh.

Tri-tip is usually
for grilling season, right?

Yup.

But then to roll it up
into that little package,

and present it into that
sort of fine-dining dish,

[Eric] Yeah.

[Michael] They nailed
that part of the dish.

-[Eric] Sweet.
-[Cara] Absolutely. It looks so elegant.

-There's a lot of different
layers of texture to it, -Yeah.

[Cara] It is rare.

Which is good.
It's not overdone.

You don't wanna
overcook a tri-tip.

Mine is sliced perfectly
against the grain.

When you take something
like sweet potato fries,

puree, that's a way
to repurpose it.

I like the habanero in there.

I think adding that level
of spice is nice.

But another flavor
could've gone into it.

I personally would like
a little bit more acid.

But I think it's delicious.

Thank you, guys. We're gonna
move ahead to the next dish.

[Eric] Our second dish
is tri-tip toast,

with grainy mustard, bearnaise,

and a sweet potato caviar.

[Alex] They're in there judging
my dish, and I can't sell it to them.

Drives me nuts.

I'm hearing "mms" and "wows".

- It's got a lot of acid, which I really love.
- Okay.

[Cara] The puree is beautiful.

This is trippy to me
and I'll tell you why.

I mean, it looks like
a fine-dining dish,

you look at it and your like,

okay, I'm in a
Michelin star restaurant.

Then you taste it and it tastes like
that West coast hamburger shop.

[Eric laughs]

[Michael] So, this goes casual

but more towards upscale.

I think the steak
is slightly over.

Yeah. I think it could be
a little more rare,

But this is like this
luxury little

scavenger hunt that you really
have to go through and find

all the favors.
There's lots of

little treasures
buried in there.

Thank you. We're gonna
move on to the next dish.

- It's delicious.
- Really good.

So, chefs, the dish that
we have in front of you is...

Wise Cooked Tri-Tip with brown
butter Sweet Potato Gnocchi.

And, they wanna note

The Tri-Tip was Confit

in Beef Tallow and the
Gnocchi was also cooked

in brown butter and in Tallow.

[Alex] Demetrius's plate,
I loved

with the sweet potato fries.
I think, it really

transformed that ingredient
and made it upscale.

For me, this was the best use
of the sweet potato because

making a puree is
an obvious choice.

And, that is
actually a surprise.

- Surprise in the good way?
- I thought it was gonna be like a gummy mess.

- Really?
- But, it's...

- super light and...
- Okay!

I mean, to Confit something, especially,
something as large as a Tri-Tip...

- Yep.
- In 40 minutes...

Is impressive.

But, I'm not really sure
how much it added.

Yeah, the meat was almost
kind of boily taste, a little bit.

I want

always a much harder sear.

This is a little bit like,
blonde on the outside.

And, I would have liked
some sort of sauce.

Tie it together, I think.

Okay.

My favorite part
was actually the Sea Beans.

The Sea Beans are so good.
[giggles]

It's time to move on
to our next one.

Chefs, in front of you,
you have a herbed butter steak

over Sweet Potato Puree
and Cilantro Crumbles.

[Alex] Gia's minimalist.

So, we'll see how that goes.

Sometimes, that super, slick
and simple appetizer wins it all.

With forty minutes, I would've
expected to see a bit more on the plate.

That being said, I think the
Tri-Tip is cooked beautifully.

I like the char on the outside.

It's got a nice medium
rare on the inside.

This chef definitely knows
how to cook a piece of meat.

I would say that the Tri-Tip
is super aggressively salty.

I think it's because there's
maybe some molten salt on top.

The sweet potato puree had
some sweet flavor added to it.

So, they balanced, but alone,
the steak was too salty for me.

I actually love the sweet
potato mixed with the Cilantro.

It's like a flavor that I...

didn't realize I like
so much until I just ate it.

But, I feel like, maybe the chef
struggled a little bit with the clock.

All right, guys. You can't be
rubbing elbows with the chefs.

So, I'll politely kick you
out of the kitchen.

- You're not gonna let us watch?
- [all laughing]

But, I'll see you guys in a few.

- Thanks.
- Of course, thank you guys.

Chef Alex's dish looked like
a Michelin Star fish for sure.

If I make it to the next round,

I'll need to bring it
even harder.

All right, chefs.
Come on in.

First, the good news.

The judges debated about
first and second...

between Chef Kevin

Chef Alex.

The judges came to a decision.

And, the decided that
the first ranked dish...

is from...

Chef Alex.
Congratulations.

- Wow!
- [chuckles]

So, the judges were impressed with your dish
and thought it had an upscale presentation.

But, also had a really great comfort food bite
that you get at your favorite burger spot.

They thought, your
dish was delicious.

Those payoffs really
worked out. [laughs]

So, Kevin, congratulations,
that means you're second.

- Of course, you're moving on the money round.
- Sure, thank you.

So, between third and fourth
was also a debate.

But, the judges did have to
pick the chef that finished fourth.

And, that chef, unfortunately,
has to leave the kitchen right now.

That chef is...

Unfortunately, Chef Demetrius,
you're gonna have to leave the kitchen.

Chef, ultimately, it was the sear
on the Tri-Tip they were looking for.

They wanted a little bit more
char on the outside.

Understood.

I thought your dish
was beautiful.

Thank you, I appreciate it.
Thank you guys, good luck.

- Thank you.
- Good luck.

- So, Gia, congratulations.
- Thank you.

You finished third, and that means you're
making your way into the money round.

The judges thought your dish
was a little too minimalistic.

But, they also thought, you had the
best cooked Tri-Tip in the entire round.

So, this time in the Money
Round, you're cooking to earn

some serious cash.

And some serious
bragging rights.

But, that's only if, if you
could beat Chef Alex.

So, the rules of the
money round are simple.

Any chef whose
final dish outranks Alex's

will earn money.

If you ranked first,

you win 10 grand,

If you rank second,

and Alex ranks third,

you're winning $5,000.

But if Alex finishes first,

you both go home

with zero.

So, this time,
you two hang back,

Chef Alex gets to
pick the entire... [grunts]

Of course!
[laughs maliciously]

If there are
any sweet potatoes...

I was gonna say, like I bet she's
gonna pick sweet potatoes. [laughs]

Let's see what...

- she gets to decide.
- Oh!

- Wagyu!
- So, here's the beef that we have to choose from.

We have a Filet Mignon.

Long bone ribeye steaks.

And, Wagyu Strip.

I love the Wagyu, but, I
wouldn't wanna put it on a plate.

With like a wedge of lemon
and vinegar.

Just leave it as it is.

- That's it.
- And, that simplicity and that richness

- actually scares me.
- Okay!

The long bone ribeye,
I'm obsessed with it.

But, it's hard to cook.

And, the Fillet is
like a snooze fest.

- [laughs] - Is there any
more meat back there?

These are the only option, chef.

Can't believe, I'm gonna say it.

I'm gonna say, Fillet.

- Going with Fillet?
- I am.

All right, fillet it is.

[Alex] Considering that
we have other ingredients,

the Fillet Mignon is like the blank
canvas, is probably the smartest.

Strategically.

All right. What's next?

Check it out.

- Oh!
- Oh, God!

Here are the condiment
that you have to use.

Ketchup.

A classic Steak Sauce.

And, some blue cheese dressing.

The blue cheese is
like really tough.

- That's a worry.
- That is very true.

And, steak sauce to me
is like readymade.

It's kinda hard
to undo it or add to it.

It's like done.

Ketchup, you can tweak
in a million directions.

Ketchup, it is.

Hmm, all right.

So, this might be where the
wheels fall off, who knows?

[exhales]

Let's find out what
you'd be making and...

How much time
you have? [grunts]

You can decide to cook a late
night plate and get 25 minutes.

A breakfast plate
and do 30 minutes.

Or a full dinner.
Protein, starch and veg.

For 35 minutes.

I'm not about
anything in the twenties.

So, just so you know, it's
between dinner and breakfast,

because of the time.

Dinner has the most time. But, obviously
the judges will be expecting a lot more.

All right, breakfast.

Breakfast, it is.

Looks like we have
the makings of a very

interesting second round.

- I can't wait.
- Your time starts...

Now.

Butter milk.

The Filet Mignon is
like the blank canvas.

And, you can add it
with other stuff.

You know, breakfast, if you
have steak, you have eggs, that's it.

I wouldn't be
cute about that but...

I don't just want the old
steak and eggs with ketchup.

Making cornbread.

With Golden Raisin ketchup jam,

And, fried eggs for steak.

Au Poivre.

I'm making cornbread,
cause I love that.

And, I thought it would be
great with the ketchup jam.

I love baking.
I find it relaxing.

It's just something you put
in the oven.

That extra homemade touch.

And, I think, in competition situation,
when you have something from scratch,

it's just exciting.

So, chef, are you disappointed
you finished...

- Second.
- You were almost there, man.

You know, I was almost there.
But, with one round, under my belt,

I feel a little bit more
comfortable in the kitchen.

Second nights can be
very boring, you know.

I can't stick to just
regular old steak and eggs.

So, I'm taking
Steak and Eggs Benedict.

And, turn into something
that's elevated.

I need to make sure
that I have a lot flavors.

I'm gonna sear it
on a really hot iron skillet

with some herbal flavors
and garlic and butter.

We need to add some fat, but,
with just salt, pepper

it's gotta be the
most boring cut of steak.

You got to add
some flavor to it.

Chef Alex and Chef Kevin, are
both doing the Steak and Eggs dish.

So, really at the
end of the day.

How are you elevating? How
are you separating yourself?

- Doing good, Gia?
- Living the dream.

I am thinking...

Steak Hash.

Yeah, a lot of veggies,
potatoes.

Nice egg on top.

Remember what the judges
said about your dish last round.

Being minimalistic.

So, obviously, we wanna step
things up, right, for the next round.

Yeah, I mean, it's a different type
of challenge and not fine dining.

- Definitely, small is not gonna be working.
- Right.

I know that I had to be
more creative and not...

minimalistic.

I just need to figure out
how to step up my game.

Hash is very simple,
on the fly, breakfast.

You can just grab anything in
your pantry and throw it together.

Taste delicious and it looks

very impressive too.

I'm searing the steak first.
Make sure that it's nice and brown.

A lot of butter.

Steak out. I still wanna
use that fat that is

left and the crust from

the steak and I wanna
incorporate that into my veggies.

In Texas, we put Jalapenos in
everything, gives it that South-West twist.

For a nice little heat.

The theme is breakfast.
They have 30 minutes.

We have two Steak and Eggs
dishes going up against a Hash dish.

Aside, from the fact, that
you're cooking against Alex and...

It's been pretty intimidating
as well. I mean, all these

cameras, all these people here.

Literally, in the middle
of your way.

As you try and make the
meal of your lifetime...

is not easy.

Seventeen and half minutes,
chefs. Seventeen and half.

Chef Alex, had complete ranks
to pick what she wanted.

And, she chose, Filet Mignon,

Tomato Ketchup and the chefs
are making breakfast

in 30 minutes.

Did I bring Steak over here?

I don't think I took steak.

I love breakfast. It's my
favorite meal of the day.

And, I like Steak and Eggs.

But, I think the
Filet needs stuff.

So, I pepper and coriander
across my steak.

I don't wanna do too much.

But, I want the steak to
have a little bit of personality.

Coriander is delicious.

And it's really good to offset
the heat of the black pepper.

Chef Alex is working
with the Steak au Poivre.

Classic dish. And, this is one of the
reason why she's so difficult to beat.

She can Pull from French
Cuisine, Italian Cuisine,

Classic American.

She has it all. A big challenge
for these Sous Chefs right here.

With ketchup, you can take
in a million direction.

So, I cook, Ketchup with
Golden Raisins and Vinegar.

Just puree it with
a little Apricot Jam.

The ketchup can
make things sweet.

So, I think to myself, I kind of want
some Bacon in this conversation.

In put some of that ketchup
puree into the bacon shallot mix.

So, I'm using the
ketchup in two places.

Making a little Ketchup
Vinaigrette and adding

Champagne Vinegar, garlic.

And, ketchup and some
cherry tomatoes.

Add a little freshness
to the dressing.

To really hide that
ketchup flavor.

Just has to beat Alex.

I got big plans for that 10
grand. I got two kids to feed.

Got a new restaurant to open.

I cannot back down
this challenge.

Hey, Gia, what are you
doing with the Ketchup?

- I can't tell you.
- Uh, oh!

It's a secret guarded
by my ancestors.

You wanna see
something cool. kids?

It's just something we do
in Puerto Rico a lot.

- Mayonnaise and...
- Ketchup, yep.

Puerto Rico, we put it on everything.
Like from, rice to anything fried.

- All right.
- I put hot sauce in it too.

- Yeah!
- [chuckles]

I'm a Puerto Rican Chef
from Texas.

Puerto Ricans love Ketchup.

We put it in everything.

Seven minutes left, chefs.
Seven minutes.

I think
a little bearnaise sauce.

Lemon zest.

A little lemon juice.

White wine.

I really need this to pop.

I'm adding basil, I'm
adding charred green onions.

Peppers, anchovies.

All right. Let's get whisking.

I'm one dish away from taking
out Chef Alex Guarnaschelli.

Can't stop now.

I'm nervous.

I feel, like I'm not factoring
in that I wanna fry eggs.

And, that takes time.

And, I don't really have it.

Pretty good.

We're gonna create a
crispy consistency at the end.

And, kinda, like a nice
edible garnish.

Tobacco Onions is something
that we use in Dallas a lot.

The flour, I seasoned it

with Paprika and Chili powder.

Like a barbecue smoky flavor.

Chef Gia's the only chef, that's a
different approach to a Steak and Eggs,

by doing a Hash.

She's frying an egg and
hopefully, putting it right on top.

2:45, chefs. 2:45.

[Alex] I think I might be doing
too much and I'm just worried.

I'm not get everything
on the plate in time.

And, I still have to fry eggs.

Ninety seconds left, Chefs.
90 seconds.

The first thing I get
on the plate is a grilled...

Next, I add my

arugula Salad with a Ketchup
Vinaigrette. Then, I add my

sliced Filet with
a poached egg on top.

And bearnaise over the steak.

Breakfast of champions.

I use my Caribbean
Cocktail sauce

in the bottom and then,
my Steak and Potato Hash.

And. then, I topped it
with a fried egg.

And crispy onions.

I put the sauce in the
bottom of the plate, but, I think

everybody deserves to
have a little extra.

Forty seconds, Chefs.

Damn it.

I'm fighting the clock
on this one. I've got

seconds to go.

I plate couple of fried eggs and
some slices of the Pepper Steak.

Maybe, I've done too much
here. But, I'm all in already.

And, just hustling to get
everything together.

Ten.

Nine.

Eight.

Seven.

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Sit. Money round is done,
guys. Congratulations.

[sighing in exhaustion]

When Alex finishes cooking, you
never really know how she's feeling.

I mean, she's winning
every week so...

This game face has thrown
me off. It's a strong poker face.

Chefs, it's that time.

Go ahead and take
your menu cards.

Write down your
description of your dish.

Then, you got to bounce.

I'll call you back
when the judges are done.

This was a hard one.

I could see your plate
looks delicious,

but, I can't tell
if you're happy.

It looks stunning.

Eternally dissatisfied
with everything.

Especially, myself.

Did you see what Chef Alex did?

- Everything.
- [giggles]

She went all out. Extra.

She did everything extra.

-She did a whole... breakfast platter.
-I went there...

It was pretty impressive.

Hopefully, it's about
the flavors.

- Yeah!
- And, not the amount of food you put in.

[both laughing]

We'll see.

[Alex] I got carried away. I went
in the rabbit hole with the theme.

Which happens to me sometimes.

I just did too much stuff.

Wow!

This is a very
interesting round, judges.

The winning chef got to
pick all the ingredients.

And, this what they chose.

Filet Mignon.

Tomato Ketchup.

And, lastly, they
made breakfast.

And, they had
30 minutes to do so.

All right. Let's go ahead
and talk about this first dish.

Infront of you, you have
Steak Eggs Benedict.

Pan seared Filet.

A charred green onion bearnaise.

Arugula and Tomato Salad.

Ketchup Vinaigrette.

Poached Eggs.

Very exciting. I think,
it's beautifully plated.

Looks like a beautiful poach.

Gorgeous.

I like Kevin's

whole Egg Steak situation.

And, I love the Hollandaise.

When I walked up,
I saw breakfast.

- Eggs Benedict.
- Yep.

Uh, saw the Filet,
which is cooked

brilliantly.

The salad is nice, but, I
felt like it was, sort of, forced

to use the Ketchup
in the Vinaigrette.

I do have to admit, I do really
like the Tomato Vinaigrette.

I think it's really

bright and acidic and like,
a little bit sweet.

Filet, in general, is never really
gonna be my first pick for a cut.

Because, it doesn't have
a ton of flavor, but...

this dish made up for that
in a lot of other ways.

There's a lot of brightness.
It's beautiful.

Conceptually, I think,
it's a really

smart and a really good dish.

It's also a little safe.

To poach an egg,
to cook a Steak,

everyone here should know how to do
that and this chef executed that perfectly.

And, so, what I was
looking for is something else

- that was gonna wow it with the ketchup.
- Hmm.

I personally think that this is
very impressive in 30 minutes.

- Okay.
- It was just the perfect bite.

Sounds like we're ready
to move on to the next dish.

[producer]
All right. That's cut.

That's really good.

I feel like that
might have been Alex's.

All right, chefs. The second
dish we've in front of you.

This Chef is calling it the
South-Western Steak Hash with crispy

Tabasco Onions

and a Caribbean Cocktail Sauce.

I thought Gia was...

miles above what she did
in the first round.

This I felt, she relaxed
a little bit.

Showed a little bit
of her roots.

Showed a like more...

personal, more connected
to her cooking.

Um, and, I think,
that's really key.

For me, texturally,
this thing eats...

incredible.
You've got...

the crispy onions,

you've got the meat, you've got
the creamy sauce on the bottom.

- The egg is cooked perfectly.
- Yep.

I would say, the salt and
the acid are both great on it.

Um, it is delicious.

- Seasoned well.
- Seasoned well.

For me, the sauce is
the best part of the dish.

I think, it's creative.
I think, it's flavorful.

I can taste the Ketchup, but...

- I don't just taste ketchup.
- Yep.

I don't know that,

with the Filet Mignon,
that the best move

is to chop it up
into small pieces.

Yeah, cause, you can't
control the cook temp of

each little piece
either, obviously.

So, these are all
kind of overcooked.

Um, it's like, it kind of
hurts me a little, to see it.

- Ooh!
- Chopped up in a Hash.

I think they made the Ketchup

much more front and center,
they did a great job with that, but,

if we're talking about
this was, like

- a meat centric challenge, no.
- Yeah.

Cool.

Let's go ahead and move
on to our last dish, guys.

Whoa!

- Okay!
- [giggles]

Last but not least, Chefs.

We have our final dish,

We are calling it,
Fried Eggs plus

fillet, with pepper and yellow
tomato ketchup bacon Jam.

Cornbread

and Apricot Golden Raisin
Ketchup Jam

Have a really nice char on that
steak, so much, so that it was like,

- crunchy in my mouth.
- Nice.

I mean...

- This is really fun to eat.
- Mm-hmm.

I think the Filet is
treated masterfully.

I like this, little
Jam thing over here too.

Having the ideas to put all of
these together into a dish is...

especially, only in
30 minutes is incredible.

Very, very impressed
by the cornbread.

Even, really impressed by this Onion
Jam and the steak is just cooked perfectly.

I think, it is like the,
Classic Diner Breakfast.

- Quite elevating.
- Yeah.

And, I think that
this was, was pretty creative.

- I mean, when I saw it, I was thinking hot sauce.
- Okay!

- It looked like hot sauce.
- Yep.

And, then, when I tasted it,
it tasted sweet.

So, if that somehow had a
little more acid and heat into it,

could have been a
big opportunity to

really incorporate that into all
the other elements of the dish,

- in a less, sort of, sweet way.
- Yeah.

I think, the flavor's there, just
needs a little more balance.

All right, guys. It's gonna come down
to who made the best Beef Breakfast.

Best Beef Breakfast.

Everyone cooked
really well today.

I loved that we tasted blind.

It's like, we're just going
completely on...

flavor.

Well, here's the fun part.

It's no longer blind. You guys can
actually stay and figure out who won.

You're going to be standing
right next to me on the side.

- Uh, oh! [laughing]
- Okay.

Chefs, come on into the kitchen.

From Oklahoma, Chef Kevin Lee.

From Texas, Chef Gia Medina.

From New York City,
Chef Alex Guarnaschelli.

Welcome back.

These are the judges that
have been ranking your dishes

all night long.

All right, judges. I'm sure, you're
dying to know who cooked what?

So, Chef Gia made,
the South-Western Hash.

It was Chef Kevin
that made the Benedict.

- Oh, wow!
- Wow!

So, that obviously means, Chef Alex
made the Fried Eggs and Cornbread dish.

Let's get down to how,
you guys ranked the dishes.

In 3rd place...

I'm sorry, Chef Gia.

It was really flavorful,
well-seasoned...

our only critique
really was that,

it wasn't the
best use of the Filet.

But, overall, really delicious,
really comforting dish.

Thank you, Chef.

You again.

[all laughing]

The Chef that finished first...

was...

the Chef from Oklahoma.

Chef Kevin, congratulations.

- [clapping]
- Congratulations.

You won $10,000 man.

- Oh, man!
- [clapping]

We really loved that dish a lot.

That Charred Onion
bearnaise was delicious.

The meat was cooked so well.

We actually thought that
Alex made the Benedict.

- We did.
- Yeah!

That's how good it was.

- We're both like, all right, it's obvious.
- Yeah.

- That Chef Alex made the dish.
- I was so shocked.

- You see, how shocked their face was?
- Fully convinced.

Yeah!

-Thank you guys. Thank you, Chef.
-Congrats.

I just beat
Chef Alex Guarnaschelli.

One of the best Chefs
of America.

Just being in her presence
was a dream.

This is just the
icing on the top.

Really proud of
what I've done today.

- Congratulations, hug it out.
- Thank you, Chefs.