Alex Vs. America (2022–…): Season 1, Episode 3 - Alex Vs. Spicy - full transcript

Alex Guarnaschelli
is one of the best

competition cooks in America.

I'm an Iron Chef.

I've beaten Bobby Flay
in his own kitchen.

I won.

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 wanna know
what's next.

This is it.

It's almost impossible
to defeat 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.

♪ Yeah, we were
Born ready ♪

♪ Yeah, we were born wild ♪

Chefs will be handpicked

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.

This can be the plate that
takes out Alex first round.

Alex, you done?

Y'all in trouble.

♪ Yeah,
We were born ready ♪

I know I have
a target on my back

and I wouldn't have it
any other way.

♪ Get ready because
We're bringing the fight ♪

♪ Come on ♪

Three spice masters
from across the country

are here to challenge
Chef Alex Guarnaschelli

in a spicy food battle.

Spices are my life.

Growing up in the Southwest,
we use chilies all the time.

I spend so much time
learning spice

and this competition
is tailor-made for me.

I will show Chef Alex how
I use spices in my own way.

Chef Alex is the best,
but I am the king of spice.

You know when you go
to the beach

and you don't know
if the tide's out or in?

Is there a big sandbar?

If I go in the water,
is there gonna be a big drop?

I'm feeling that
unpredictability today.

This arena is built for me
to succeed or fail

and that's why it's so intense.

She's one of America's
most accomplished chefs.

Please welcome Iron Chef,
Alex Guarnaschelli.

I've never stood in
front of an Iron Chef before.

The nerves are there.

So Alex, I bet
you're wondering

what you're gonna be
cooking tonight.

Yeah, that'd be nice.
That'd be helpful there.

You got any hints?

Uh, so in front of you,
you have three spice masters.

Okay then.

Tonight, it's all about
the spicy food.

Chef Samantha
is from Scottsdale, Arizona.

Hello.

Chef Samantha has two
James Beard nominations.

Well, that's more than me.

Including Best Chef
of the Southwest.

From Washington, DC,
we have Chef Martel Stone,

also known as the Duke of Spice.

Food & Wine Magazine
says he makes

one of the best chicken
curries in all of DC.

And lastly, Chef Alex,
we have Chef Kasem

from Northern California.

He is the owner of seven
acclaimed Thai restaurants.

- Seven?
- Seven.

- Wow.
- He's also earned

the San Francisco Weekly Award

for the best Thai restaurants
in 2019 and 2020.

First up, the Survival Round.

You all will be preparing
an original spicy dish.

Backstage, I have two
heavyweight judges

waiting to try your dishes.

But the key is, they're gonna
be judging completely blind.

The chefs that cook
the top three dishes

in the first round will survive.

And unfortunately,
the fourth chef will not.

- Even if that's you, Alex.
- Noted.

So I'm not picking
what the challenge is,

- you guys are.
- Ooh.

You guys ready
to see your options?

- Yeah.
- Yes.

So since obviously this is
a spicy competition...

Wow.

You guys are gonna be
picking the type of chilies

you're gonna be using.

How about if we don't pick any?

Nope.

Each basket represents
a different level of spice

on a Scoville range.

So these chili peppers range
from 1,000 to 10,000 Scoville,

like these jalapenos right here.

We have another basket
with chilies

between the 10,000
and 25,000 range,

chilies like Serrano,
Aleppo peppers as well,

or we have chilies in the
50,000 to 100,000 range.

These are your classic
type chilies right here.

I do love Thai spice.

I wanna know how much
we're gonna make this hurt.

I think we should go
with this one.

It's the most mild.

Do you guys think we're giving
it away to Chef Alex?

I think first time,
we're just gonna go

super light and just see
where she at,

just feel it out a little bit.

It might come to an advantage
for Chef Alex, you never know.

I know how to increase
or decrease them,

so either way,
I'm really familiar with it.

Yeah, let's go with number one,

one to ten thousand
Scoville level.

It's mild but it has
a little sweetness too.

All right. Here it is.

All right, guys. We'll see
what protein you're using.

We have ground turkey,

chicken breast,

and pork tenderloin.

I'm thinking
definitely the pork.

Pork is great.

I love the umami taste,

the fatty that bring
the spices together.

I think we'd just go
with pork tenderloin.

- What do you think?
- Pork it is. I like pork.

My least favorite protein.

Are you messing with them

or it really is
your least favorite?

I'm not telling.

So we got the peppers,

we got the proteins out the way.

You're gonna need to cook

with either rice

or a plain roll.

We eat rice and beans all
the time in my household, so.

- Right.
- I feel comfortable with it.

Although I love a hoagie,

I think I'll... I gotta
go with rice.

So the rice has the sweetness
and then the creaminess

that will turn down and pair
out with the spices.

You choose rice.

So guys, last but not the least,

may be your most
important decision.

Ah.

How long
do you wanna cook?

You guys get to pick between
one and sixty minutes.

Think about this.

How much time
do you wanna give yourself,

but then also, how much time
are you gonna give Chef Alex?

Two hours.

- Forty-five?
- Forty-five?

That's...

Forty-five minutes
is a long time.

- Yeah.
- Thirty-five...

You're giving Chef Alex
45 minutes to cook?

- Yeah, I know.
- 35?

- Thirty?
- Thirty?

The key to victory

is don't overcook
the pork tenderloin,

don't make mushy rice,
and get as much heat

as you can into the dish
without overdoing it.

That's actually the challenge.

I butterfly two
tenderloins, pound them out,

I put Espelette pepper
right on the meat, egg,

breadcrumb, and I'm just
gonna make a cutlet.

I'm gonna just slice that up
and just put it

over a basmati rice
super-floral pilaf

with some shallots
and some herbs

and vinegar and lime zest.

I just have it almost be
like a rice bowl

with crispy fried pork.

Ah.

- Something tells me...
- Just cooking some rice.

That you have either
something up your sleeve

or you might be
a little bit nervous.

- Talk to me.
- Both.

Okay. All right. That's fair.

Definitely both, you know what I
mean? Well, you seem relaxed.

Must be nice to, you know,
just be chilling.

It's cooler on this side,
I'll be honest.

I know I wanna put
my rice in the oven

and bake it like a pilaf.

I don't know if perfect rice
is gonna guarantee me

a victory, but I know
imperfect rice

can send me packing.

Alex is a gifted
chef that I've always admired

but this is a spice battle.

She is Italian, I'm Mexican.

I think I got this one.

I'm making Puerco al Pastor.

Ha.

I have all my chilies lined up
for a couple different

marinades and salsas but
first, I need to get my rice going

for cilantro lime rice.

Also, I wanna make salsa macha.

I'm making my marinade.

I have a little bit
of cumin seed.

I have a little bit of achiote.

I'm gonna do a little bit
of vinegar,

distilled white.

It's traditional

and then I have some oranges
that I'm gonna add to it.

Chef Samantha,
she's used to these peppers.

I mean, her real house
is anchos and chipotles,

but what you really need
to get the most

out of those peppers is time.

You want it to bloom,

you want it to blossom
into its own flavors.

I don't necessarily know
if 25 minutes

is all the time that she needs.

I want them cooked
all the way through

without losing its natural
fat and juiciness,

so I'm actually gonna throw it
in there with the marinade.

I want to get a lot
of flavor in the pork

so I'm just gonna sear
with a little bit of Suya.

Suya is a peanut powder
based spice,

seen a lot in West Africa.

I plan on grilling tenderloin

with coconut and cilantro rice.

Being a DC chef, I see cultures

from all over the world.

It has inspired me to be
the chef that I am today,

so I decided to go
with ground nut stew.

Ground nut stew is made
with garlic, ginger, onion,

a little bit of tomato product,

some habaneros, and reduced down

with some peanut butter
and chicken stock.

So I'm gonna add
a little bit of Fresno

and jalapenos to my stew,

add a little more flavor to it.

So another thing when it comes
to making this dish

in this competition specifically

is the rice, right?

You don't wanna
overcook the rice.

You don't wanna undercook
the rice either.

Another point to note, guys,
you wanna rinse that rice.

You wanna make sure
that you eliminate

all that excess starch, we're
not looking to make a risotto.

We're making rice
straight to the point.

Chef Kasem, I see umami,

- I see spice...
- Yes.

I see a little bit
of vinegar and acidity.

Mmm-hmm.

But I don't see that heat, man.

I am making
the chili curry paste,

that going to turn my pork
into the Thai red curry stew.

Also, I'm going to make
turmeric rice.

My inspiration for this dish

is from my childhood memory.

The way that my grandparents

teaching me how to make thing
from scratch,

especially curry paste.

I grab dry chili,
two red jalapenos, garlics,

and then all the spices
like cumin seed, fennel seed,

toast it until it's released
out the oil

and then I blend it together
to make a curry paste.

Wow.

And the touch
of coconut milk, whoo.

For my rice, I go with Thai
long grain rice.

Easy to cook
but in my specialty,

I blend it with turmeric
curry powder

and I put a little bit of clove,

a touch of bay leaf
and cumin seed.

Not everybody can cook chili
but I'm the expert,

so that's why I'm going
to beat Chef Alex.

Going for a first
round knockout.

It's distinctly possible

that I can get eliminated.

Alex, you done?

It's very bland.

The rice is so undercooked.

If you're licking it off
the back of your teeth,

that is undercooked.

Chefs, we have just about
20 minutes left.

I'm gonna talk to the judges.

To ensure that our judging
is completely unbiased,

our judges don't know
who's cooking what.

Our judges are not even
in this building.

We have world-class chef,
Antonia Lofaso,

whose spicy expertise
is on display

at her three legendary
LA hotspots.

She's joined by James Beard
award-winning, Bricia Lopez,

who shows a mastery of spices

at her family-run
restaurant, Guelaguetza.

Judges, thank you so much
for being here.

Well, thanks for having me.

It is a spice competition.

Play with the spices.
I wanna feel...

- Yeah.
- Some of the heat.

And I wanna see
direction on a dish.

Not just some random
stuff on a plate.

It can't just be random.

There has to be like
an actual, like, building...

Yes, building of flavors
and, yes, execution,

but that there's
a point of focus...

Yeah.

And that there's actually
direction to the dish.

My thought is, I'm gonna
drizzle all these things on the rice.

There's little bits
of vinegariness

and lime and acidity.

I just wanna slice off
the shishito peppers,

and have that super-floral
note in the rice.

You can't have enough peppers.

The Fresno chilies,
I just thinly slice them

It's such a hard balance.

It's like a tightrope.

Beating one of these chefs
wouldn't be easy for Alex

normally and now she's got
to do it times three.

I mean, I'm really hoping
she pulls through.

She's right now juicing some
peppers, very interesting.

I love that. Right.
I love using a juicer.

Cooking in the same
kitchen as Alex feels

very stressful, but amazing.

She's one of my idols,
so I'm excited.

Pineapple is crucial
because the sweetness

will balance this smoky,
spicy pork.

So I wanna make a pineapple
salsa element.

I'm gonna grill it until
it's charred on the side.

Chef Samantha,
she's killing it right now.

So much flavor,
so many textures as well,

which I absolutely love.

Freshness, brightness,

so I'm excited to see
what she has to pull off.

It'll be nuance of spice

because I'm gonna tame it
with a bunch of nuts.

Don't fret, I'm not gonna
kill anybody today.

I'm gonna make a salsa macha.

Salsa macha is traditional
in the south of Mexico,

nut-based sauce

with a bunch of dried chilies.

Martel, how you doing?

- Breathing and blinking.
- Perfect.

We're close.

We're close.

Keep going, baby.

Nope. Not going like I wanted.

Change of plans.

So the pork isn't
searing the way

I want it to on the grill.

It's not hot enough,

so I'm just gonna go
to a traditional sear

inside this pan,
finish it off in the oven.

Can't take down an iron chef

with improperly-cooked
pork tenderloin.

I need the judges
to understand, feel, taste,

and see that the dish
that I'm putting out

is flavorful
and technically sound.

This dish has to be over rice,

so I decided to go
with a brown rice.

I wanted to cook it
with coconut milk

which will speak
to the region of cooking

that I'm trying to do,

West African
and Caribbean cuisine.

Cooking rice
in a competition and setting

is extremely difficult.

It's very, very risky
and it can either be, like,

an amazing dish
or it can be terrible.

So much on the line.

Not only is there $10,000,

there's the bragging
rights as well, taking down

Alex Guarnaschelli,
an Iron Chef.

So I wanna make a herbaceous
element for this dish

because it's gonna be
so heavy and spicy,

so I'm making a very,
very light chimichurri.

I start with some parsley,

some cilantro
including the stems.

I also added just a few
Fresno chili seeds,

adding to the dimensions
of heat.

Chefs, we have 10 minutes left.

I got curry cooking.

My rice is up and running.

And now, is to work with pork.

I grab the pork loin,
I do the small slice,

I put the curry paste
to stir-fry with the pork,

so it has the fat that
released out,

umami taste to the dish.

Don't really want
to beat an Iron Chef,

but I look at Chef Alex,
she's just like tornado

in her own kitchen.

I hope my flavor is good
enough to beat Alex.

We have less than
five minutes left, Chef.

Less than five minutes.

The judges ranked your dishes,
one through four.

The chef that's not
gonna be with us is...

Chefs, two minutes left.

Two minutes.

Guys, do not forget
to bring the heat.

Think about how well you plate.

My cooks would look
at me crazy if they saw

how I was chopping these chives.

Because I'm always
getting on them about

how they need to be
as uniform as possible.

The thing
about pork tenderloin

is it likes to play
tricks on you.

Chef Samantha is kind
of braising

her pork right now.

I'm hoping that she keeps
in mind that that pork

I've got a lot of garnishes.

I'm in garnish overdrive.

Herbs, shallots,

too much stuff,
and I don't care.

I think it's distinctly possible

that I can get eliminated
in the first round.

These are specialists
in spices and I am not.

But I'm gonna do my best
to have that not happen

because my name
is in lights above me.

Looks amazing.

It's going good.

I lay the pork down
nice and shingle

so that they can see
the doneness of the pork

is perfect.

To finish the dish,
I have some of that acidic

and spicy chimichurri

and I pour on my ground nut stew

which is the amazing part
of this dish.

This can be the plate that
takes out Alex first round.

Going for a first
round knockout.

Chef Martel
has a beautiful plate.

He's thinking about how the
dish is going to eat, right?

Really, you wanna get
that perfect bite,

get a little bit of that rice,

little bit of that peanut stew,

little bit of that pork as well.

I really, really love
what he's doing right now.

I am just pushing through it.

I'm focused.

I wanna get this food
on the plate with my style

and what I really believe in.

Chef Samantha, how spicy
would you say your dish is?

It depends on your tongue.

I start plating my rice,
cutting my pork,

fanning it on my plates,

and I'm very happy
with the way it turned out.

I put down my turmeric rice.

And next, my pork curry, dill,

Thai basil, and bell pepper.

My curry is gonna beat Alex.

Alex, you done? I'm done.

I take my pork cutlets
and I layer that in slices

and then I take
my chipotle mayonnaise

and I just sprinkle that around.

Ten, nine, eight, seven...

Whatever you have on the plate

is what the judges
are going to eat.

Three, two, one.

Hands up. That's it.

You guys are clearly
sweating up a storm.

Hopefully, the dishes bring up
some of that same heat.

You each have a menu card
on your station.

Fill those out.

That's the only thing
the judges are gonna know.

Thank you, guys.

I need you to leave the stage
and I'll call you back

when I know what's up.

All right.
So whose dish is this?

This is Chef Kasem.

- What do you think?
- Fancy.

It looks really
pretty and juicy.

Hmm.

- This is...
- This is Chef Martel's plate.

- Hmm. Very pretty.
- It is pretty. Yeah.

- I like that.
- That's gorgeous.

Let's see this rice.

- It's really good.
- All right, Alex.

We gotta get the judges in.
I gotta get you outta here.

I'm being given the boot.

- I gotta get you outta here.
- All right.

I think my dish is strong.

I think my dish can really...

Can take out Alex.

Each one of us took our roots,
our heritage...

- Mmm-hmm.
- True.

And brought it to the plate
table and I think

that give us advantage
to maybe beating Alex.

Yeah.

My big concern for everybody
including myself is the rice

and I know that sounds silly
'cause it's supposed to be

about spice and pork
and everything else

but a little toothy,
undercooked,

or underseasoned rice
and you're out.

That's the kind
of competition this is.

It gets really granular
'cause the talent is so good.

- Hi.
- Hi.

Antonia, Bricia, how are you?

Now that you're actually here
on set, what do you think?

It's beautiful.
I love the knives.

Yeah, it's cutthroat.

So the chefs had to make
a dish with chilies

between the 1,000
and 10,000 Scoville range.

They also used pork tenderloin

and they chose to make
a dish over rice.

And they chose 35 minutes
to do all of this.

So your first dish, guys.

Pork tenderloin al Pastor

with lime rice and salsa macha.

I was so impressed with how
elegant all the plate-up was.

Respect to Samantha,

I thought that dish
was just beautiful.

It's super vibrant.

The star of the dish
is the pork.

The pork is beautifully
cooked...

which is very hard to do

in pork tenderloin
even in 35 minutes.

I think the salsa macha
definitely has chilies,

it has nuts, it has olive oil.

It's a crunchy, beautiful,
nutty sauce

but the pork needs
a lot more seasoning.

- Mmm-hmm.
- It's very bland.

The whole dish is actually
wildly underseasoned.

- Right.
- All right, guys.

Here is our next dish.

A pork tenderloin cutlet
with chipotle, basmati rice,

and fresh herbs.

There are 80 things
I wish I had been able to do

that I didn't do.

- Yes.
- I love the fried on the pork,

- I love the crust.
- Mmm-hmm.

It's so crunchy
and it's satisfying.

The spice level was perfect

- because I think the...
- Yeah.

Fresnos that
they pickled on top,

if you get one of those two,

it brings heat
but not overpowering.

- Right.
- I think the rice is cooked absolutely perfect.

I like that they went basmati.

- There's a nuttiness to it...
- Absolutely, yes.

- Love basmati.
- That plays so well

with the crispy pork

but the sauce
did need more heat.

I agree.
I need a little bit more.

All right, guys.
Looks like we're ready

to move on to the third dish.

I kind of wanna continue
eating this, to be honest.

It is really good.

We have classic
Thai curry,

red chili paste,
and turmeric rice.

Kasem, I thought his rice
looked really beautiful,

the color.

I thought it was super inviting.

This has been the dish
that throws the most spice

- so far.
- Hmm.

So well-balanced
with the coconut milk.

I think it's beautiful.

It's definitely spicy but not...

- Yeah.
- To the spice

where I wouldn't be able
to finish this whole thing.

I actually think that the pork
is wildly overcooked

but I think the flavor
of curry is delicious.

I don't think
the heat's too much.

Thank you, guys.

- Oh, that's pretty.
- Yeah.

We have a roasted
pork Suya,

spicy ground nut stew,
herb chimi,

and coconut milk rice.

I thought Martel's was the most

sort of exciting to look at.

The plate, it was so intricate,

it was so involved.

Oh, my God. That's delicious.

- It's delicate, it's velvety.
- Yup.

And then you have
the perfectly fried crust

on the pork.

I need to be alone
with this dish

for, like, five minutes.

It's really delicious.

That chimi on top,
there is herbs

and that intense vinegar...

- Mmm-hmm.
- Works so well

because the peanuts
are so creamy

and there's the spice
definitely in the peanuts.

For me though,
the rice is so undercooked.

If you're licking it off
the back of your teeth,

that is, like, it's undercooked.

Maybe they needed
their 45 minutes.

- They needed that 45 minutes.
- Yeah.

All right.
Let's clear these plates.

So guys, I really need to know,

who's staying and who's going?

All right, Eric.
Standby.

All right.
Welcome back, chefs.

The judges ranked your dishes,
one through four.

Chef Samantha,

Chef Kasem,

one of you finished third

and unfortunately,
the other chef

will be headed out.

The chef that's not gonna be
with us is...

Chef Samantha.

Judges thought you could
have brought a little bit more heat.

Your pork was very
underseasoned.

- Nice job.
- Congratulations.

- Good luck, guys.
- All right.

- Good luck.
- Nice meeting you.

Pleasure meeting you.

Hmm. Pleasure.

Chef Kasem, congratulations.

Obviously, you'll be cooking
in the next round.

So clearly that means
Alex, Martel,

you two had the top two dishes.

You wanna know who won?

No.

You sure, Alex?

You actually finished first.

The judges thought
your fried pork was bright,

crispy, and delicious.

They really enjoyed
the chilies that you used.

They thought it brought
great freshness to the dish.

Congratulations.

- Thank you.
- Congratulations, guys.

You passed through
the Survival Round,

which means you guys
are moving on

to the Money Round.

You're cooking to earn
some serious cash,

maybe some bragging rights
in there as well.

- Oh, yeah.
- Nice.

The rules of the Money Round
are simple,

any chefs whose final dish
outranks Alex's

will earn money.

If you finish first,
you will earn $10,000.

If you finish second
and also outrank Alex,

you will win $5,000.

But if Alex's dish ranks first,

you're both going home
empty-handed.

So now, Chef Alex,
all by herself,

gets to pick
the final challenge.

Chef, let's do it.

Dammit.

We'll be taking the heat
to the next level,

literally.

Take a look.

So we have peppers
at a much higher

Scoville range.

We have 100,000
to 350,000 range,

that's where you have
chilies like the habaneros,

chilies the in range
from one to 1.5 million,

which are like scorpion
and ghost peppers.

They're so pretty.

- Gorgeous.
- How can they be so deadly?

Extremely deadly.

And we have chilies
from 1.5 to two million.

Whoo.

That's your Carolina Reaper
right there.

Ah.

This pepper is 200 times
hotter than the habanero.

I think we're gonna kill
the judges if it's too hot.

My instinct is to go
with the least spicy

so we can ramp it up
and control it better.

Chef Alex is going
with the first level.

- Very good.
- Do not get it twisted.

They are still going to pack
a lot of heat.

Mmm-hmm.

Let's see what type
of protein we're cooking with.

We have bone-in pork chop,

rack of lamb,

and whole branzini.

I mean, that fish is great
'cause it's mellow.

- Yes.
- And so it can take on

a lot of flavors,

but I'm, like, leaning
into the lamb or the pork.

Mmm-hmm.

And that pork looks so good

but we just did pork.

I'm gonna go with the lamb.

I think it'll be good
with the chilies.

All right. Mmm-hmm.

You can do so much
with that rack of lamb.

The most important question
obviously is,

what are you guys making
and how much time do you have?

All right.

Hmm.

So you can either do take-out
in 30 minutes

or fine dining, in 45.

I always like time
over any other thing.

Forty-five it is.

Dinner for two
with some candles.

So what are you
waiting for? Go.

All right.

We're going straight
with chilies

like the habaneros

and even though
this is the lowest level

from what they had the options
to choose from,

we're still getting
a lot of heat.

So we wanna see that heat tamed

in a really beautiful way.

I wanna start
by cooking my lamb.

I wanna get it cooking.
I wanna let it rest,

I'm gonna put it back.

It's a tough protein to cook,

a lot of fat, cooks unevenly.

If your lamb's overcooked
or dry or this or that,

game over.

The question is,

how am I gonna incorporate
the chili?

I want the spice to be
on the meat for sure,

so I'm gonna rub my rack of lamb

with powdered
scotch bonnet chilies

and then make a fresh peach
and rocoto chili paste sauce.

So you're getting the peach
taste on one hand

but you're also getting
that heat

from that chili paste.

How do you feel after the win?

You're only as good
as your last plate.

I love that.
You're already focused

- on the next one.
- Onto the next, my friend.

Yeah, not even
celebrating the win.

- I mean...
- I got all of America.

I'm exhausted.

I wanna make a potato
cake to go with the lamb

that looks labor-intensive

'cause I think fine dining
looks labor-intensive.

And then I wanna do
little braised artichokes

'cause I love lamb
with artichokes.

I won The Next Iron Chef
cooking a rack of lamb.

Why not, you know,
lightning strikes twice.

- Martel, how you doing?
- I'm doing great.

I think it's a winning dish.

Got a little coriander,

a bit of allspice,
some anise seeds,

some fennel,

and then just a little bit
of whole cinnamon

that I'm gonna break up
in there.

There's so much more to spice
than just heat.

There is the balance of flavor,

there's the smokiness,
and I feel like a curry

has so many different
dimensions.

So I'm doing a spiced lamb

with a spicy coconut curry,

a herb gremolata,

and a little bit
of smoked plantain grits.

I think taking your time
and building a curry

versus using one out of a can
or a base

offers a lot more
depth of flavor.

All right.

Going low and slow
with everything.

And it also shows
my fine dine experience.

I'm going in with a little bit
of habanero.

For the curry,

I have onions, ginger,
garlic, and habanero

sweating down inside of my pan.

Finishing off my curry
with a little bit of turmeric.

A little bit of coconut milk,

and the trusty dried mushroom,

which gives that umami
to my sauce.

While my curry is reducing,

I'm gonna get started
on my lamb,

so I break my lamb down,

take the loin directly off
of the rack

and I get it seasoned
very well with curry spices.

Hopefully not frying lamb

'cause that would crush
my spirit

if I lost to another fried dish.

The lamb needs to be cooked
to perfection.

And sprinkle with Southern
East Asian spices.

I like habanero.

I used to challenge myself,
like, how many

that I can chew in one time.

I enjoy myself crying

after six or five of them.

I'm gonna make habanero
with pear sauce.

I'll also make a fennel salad

to cut the fat of lamb
and a garlic artichoke puree.

Growing up in Thailand,

I've been watching the Iron Chef

my whole entire life.

The kids who see people
holding knife

swinging around
and then you close your eyes

and then you dream about it.

That is me.

Everyone out here is cooking
with their heart,

with their soul.

It's the bragging rights.
I mean,

you have the opportunity
to go up against

one of the most-renowned chefs

in this country.

To beat Alex in her own space,

that's bragging rights
you can take to the grave.

Guys, we're nearly
halfway there.

Twenty-one minutes left
on the clock.

Rack of lamb,

just cooking it,

moving it around.

Anything concerning you?

Pretty much everything.

I hope I'm gonna be done.

That's what's worrying me
and we're gonna flip it over

right now.

Undercooked is the worst.

That's the only thing
you can't recover from,

if the potatoes themselves
are undercooked

and you put it on a plate.

For my peach sauce,
I put the peaches

in the blender with a little
olive oil

and then I simmer it
on the stove a little bit

just to reduce it

and then I sink that rocoto
chili paste into the peaches

for some tingly heat.

Careful. Everything
is insanely hot here, okay?

I think if I can
make a chili sauce

that fits with these
artichoke hearts

that are braised in champagne
'cause it's fine dining,

and the potato cake
and the lacy edges,

and the lamb is cooked
well enough,

I'm gonna be fine.

In my restaurant,
I do a dish with plantains

but also like the flavor
of banana as well,

so I'm just gonna do
a grilled banana grit.

I just have a hunger
to be great.

I have a hunger to be the best.

And what better way
to prove that

than going up against the best?

Inside of the grits right now,
I have shallots,

black garlic, butter,

and I'm cooking them down
with heavy cream, milk.

I'm gonna finish
the entire thing off

with a half and half plantain
and banana puree.

The banana grits
are gonna taste like

some of the best grits
you've ever had.

There's gonna be some sweetness

that will balance out
the spiciness in the dish.

Fine dining is every
single component

being well thought out

and that's what I'm doing.

Chefs, we have 10 minutes left
on the clock, 10 minutes.

I'm gonna make
a habanero puree sauce.

The way that I'm looking for
is the sweetness from pear

that complements the habanero.

And I also used the garlic seed

to give creaminess to the sauce.

We have exactly three minutes
left, chefs.

Three minutes.

Woo-hoo-hoo.

Mother of pearl,

I just tried the chili paste
and it is hot.

The clock's running down,
I plate my lamb,

the potatoes, the artichokes,
and then I finish

with a drizzle of peach
rocoto sauce.

It's fine dining,
it's gotta look like

a whole composed dish.

Ninety seconds left, chefs.

Ninety seconds to get
your plates out.

It is. It is. That's the one.

I think that's what we call her
everywhere else, "The One."

Honestly can't believe
I'm cooking

and I can see Alex Guarnaschelli

right in front of me.

I have 90 seconds to where
I can take down an Iron Chef.

I cut my lamb, topped off
with the gremolata.

I add in just a little bit
of the banana grits.

There's the sweetness,
the spice.

This dish is my winning dish.

Medium.

It look nice.

Looks like he allowed
that rack to rest a little bit

before he cut into it.

Looks like the perfect
pink center.

I do the three layers,
the artichoke puree,

and then habanero
with pear sauce

and then finish it
with the lamb jus.

Fifteen seconds, chefs.
Fifteen seconds.

I throw in my lamb
and I finish it

with curry sauce.

Five, four, three, two, one.

That's it, chefs.

Good job.

All right, chefs.
You know the deal.

It's time to head out
of the arena.

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

Phew.

No. It doesn't look good?

Rack of lamb's
really hard to cook

especially when it's this small.

We'll see.

I don't know. Was it?

- The lamb looks great.
- The lamb looks good.

Hmm. This is beautiful.

- I love this.
- This is Chef Martel's. I mean...

I don't think I won.

I almost lost myself
but I keep telling myself

why I have to stop,
think and then keep moving.

Yeah, Alex isn't winning
at this point.

- Yeah.
- We... I think we put

way too much effort, and detail,

and flavor in this dish.

Not to say she didn't
but it's not the same.

She's not cooking
the same type of food.

- She's not using spice in the same way.
- Mmm-hmm.

I just can't tell
how this round's gonna go.

It's impossible to say who won.

This is a whodunnit
and we don't know the ending.

All right.
We got it rolling, rolling.

Stand by.

A rack of lamb is so fancy.

The chefs chose rack of lamb.

They chose a Scoville scale
between 100,000 and 350,000

and they chose to cook it
45 minutes to present to you

a fine dining dish.

So this is what we have
in front of you

from our first chef,

Bali curried lamb
has habanero pear sauce,

a garlic artichoke puree,

lamb reduction,
Asian cucumber fennel salad.

Kasem's dish was so interesting,

very dramatic.

It is edgy and modern,

and the lamb looked stunning.

Starting with the lamb,
I love that they did

a little bit of, like,
a mustard crust.

The lamb is cooked,
I think, exceptionally well,

and the plating is gorgeous.

This looks like a fine dining
dinner just off the gate.

- Mmm-hmm.
- But there's a few missteps

with those purees and sauces.

The sauce by itself,

it's getting overpowered
by the habanero

'cause I am getting that
heat off the bat.

I think the pear
was an interesting choice

'cause pears actually
aren't inherently very sweet.

- They aren't.
- I would have loved to see it

more in sort of a dried fruit.

I think that would have been
a smarter play.

Yup. Well, ladies, thank you.

We're gonna move on
to the next dish.

Thank you, sir.

Ooh.

Chefs, in front of you,

we have a scotch bonnet
rubbed rack of lamb

with champagne
braised artichokes,

Pommes Anna,

and a peach-rocoto chili sauce.

I think I did nail
the fine dining piece.

I think powdering
the meat itself

and then creating this sauce
with the peaches

to temper the heat
of the chilies makes sense.

I'm just hoping the judges
agree with me.

Right off the bat,
this is what I would expect

if I went to a fine
dining restaurant.

This peach habanero sauce,
just absolutely perfect.

- Mmm-hmm.
- I was scared that cooking

the rocoto with scotch bonnet
and habanero

that it was gonna be so much

that it would really overshadow

the elegance of a rack of lamb
but it is very well executed.

The lamb is maybe
a tad bit overcooked.

I think it's more
in the high medium.

Okay.

The precision in
the sliced potato...

- Yeah.
- Is incredible.

It is a little underseasoned
in the center,

but it's a great dish.

All right, guys.
The next dish.

Save me that one.

So the last offering
that we have for you.

We have a spiced lamb curry,
roasted banana grit,

and they're asking you
to squeeze

a little bit of lemon
on that curry sauce.

Martel's dish looked homey,
and comforting,

and elegant,

and if his tastes
are as good as the textures

I see he has
and he brought the heat,

I'm done for.

For me, it was
an exceptional dish.

The curry's surprisingly
not as spicy as I thought

it was going to be.

I love the crust on top.

I'm a fan of crust
in rack of lamb.

I would've liked
a little more heat though.

I think aesthetically,

there's a lot of precision
in the plating.

You've got a beautiful
amount of grits.

You've got beautiful
medallions...

- Mmm-hmm.
- Of the lamb

but it has this sort of
rustic feel to it.

So I'm not saying
that it's not fine dining

but it definitely feels
a lot more rustic.

- Okay.
- You are getting heat

in the curry, which is lovely.

It's beautifully seasoned.

- Okay.
- But I think sort of an echo of the heat

somewhere else
would have been helpful.

That being said though,
this is phenomenal.

- Mmm-hmm.
- All of these dishes

have been exceptional.

This is gonna be very hard.

The jury is out.

They're in there eating,

I'm out here sweating.

So here's the good news,

I'm not kicking you out anymore.

You actually get to stay here
and see who won.

Are we gonna, like,
look Alex in the eye?

Yeah. Yeah.
Pretty sympathetic.

God! I don't wanna be here
if I...

No, I'm not... I'm leaving.
I'm not staying.

You guys go
on four, then live.

All right, chefs, come on in.

These are the chefs who've
been cooking for you all day.

From Washington, DC,
Chef Martel Stone.

From California,
we have Chef Kasem.

The Iron Chef, you may know her,

Chef Alex Guarnaschelli.

Good to see you, Chef.

Obviously, these judges
need no introduction,

but I'm gonna do it anyway.

This is Bricia Lopez,

the James Beard award-winning
authority on Oaxacan cuisine.

And this is acclaimed
restaurateur

and all-around culinary badass,

Antonia Lofaso.

So these two judges had no idea

who's cooking these dishes.

They were judging
completely blind.

So let's find out
who cooked what in this round.

Chef Kasem made the Bali lamb.

Chef Martel made the lamb
with banana grits.

And it was Chef Alex who made
the scotch bonnet lamb.

So chefs, you all cooked
great dishes

but these judges did have to
rank them one through three.

The dish that finished
in third place

was cooked by...

Chef Kasem.

I thought your lamb was cooked
absolutely perfectly,

but the habanero was a lot.

We wish that it was mellowed
out with maybe like

a currant or prune
instead of a pear.

Thank you. Hey. Thank you.

Congratulations.

Thank you so much, Chef.

- Nice to meet you.
- You did great.

Amazing work.

Thank you, Chef.

So it's pretty fitting.

You two were the top chefs
in the first round,

now in the second as well.

So the chef who won

and had the first ranked
dish is...

Congratulations, Chef Alex.

You did well. Thank you.

You did a great job today.

Appreciate that, Chef.
Thank you.

Lamb was cooked beautifully.

I thought that the curry
was exceptional,

but the dish itself
doesn't bring a lot of heat,

to be honest.

And I don't know if this plate
screams fine dining.

Chef Alex...

My gosh, that sauce
made the whole dish

and the crust on your lamb
was exceptional.

- Thank you.
- Chef Martel,

not an easy feat to be cooking
alongside royalty.

- You should feel so proud.
- I'm proud of myself.

I'm proud of all the chefs
and I'm super excited.

Aw.

Thank you so much.
Thank you.

- Well done, Chef.
- Yay, Chef!

- Can we go give her a hug?
- Yeah. Why not?

- I am so stressed out.
- Well done.

Well done.

- You did it.
- Thank you.