Top Chef?

[Jeff G.]

The picked the right loser.. They couldn't even eat hers. I was really surprised they didn't know what Chicken Picata was.. Pretty basic and really easy to make good...

I was really surprised to see the big guy put mashed potatoes in a Soufle... Wow what a dunderhead move.. It think he was thinking quiche..

[ironchef]

Originally Posted by jennyema

I thought she admitted they were salty, meaning she had tried them and served them anyway! What's worse?

Maybe? I thought that she said that she had only tasted the cauliflower component, and not the shrimp.

[mudbug]

Couldn't stay awake long enough _ I even missed the rerun of the Project Runway finale that came on right before TC. Dang! thank God for reruns.............

Foul mouths? in Chicago? what didja expect???

[Weeks]

I rather liked Richard. He seems to have the skills to back himself up. Dale I'm not so sure about, though his dishes were complex.

[GotGarlic]

Originally Posted by ironchef

Maybe? I thought that she said that she had only tasted the cauliflower component, and not the shrimp.

I found a blog that says she did taste the shrimp and knew they were salty: My monkey could do that: Top Chef 3/12/08--"Anything You Can Cook I Can Cook Better" summary

I think I remember her saying that, too.

[jennyema]

Originally Posted by GotGarlic

I found a blog that says she did taste the shrimp and knew they were salty: My monkey could do that: Top Chef 3/12/08--"Anything You Can Cook I Can Cook Better" summary

I think I remember her saying that, too.

I watched it again last night and she did say she tasted it and knew it was salty.

So, to you, is knowlingly serving inedibly salty food worse than not having the common sense (or not giving a hoot) to taste it before serving?

I guess I'd have to say it is.

[ChefJune]

Originally Posted by jennyema

I watched it again last night and she did say she tasted it and knew it was salty.

So, to you, is knowlingly serving inedibly salty food worse than not having the common sense (or not giving a hoot) to taste it before serving?

I guess I'd have to say it is.

Whether or not it is worse is not the issue. She would have had nothing to serve the judges at that point if she hadn't served the salty shrimp. She was far better off taking the chance they would judge someone else's dish worse than hers, than to have served them nothing!

[smoke king]

Originally Posted by ChefJune

Whether or not it is worse is not the issue. She would have had nothing to serve the judges at that point if she hadn't served the salty shrimp. She was far better off taking the chance they would judge someone else's dish worse than hers, than to have served them nothing!

Well put, Chef June

[ironchef]

Originally Posted by ChefJune

Whether or not it is worse is not the issue. She would have had nothing to serve the judges at that point if she hadn't served the salty shrimp. She was far better off taking the chance they would judge someone else's dish worse than hers, than to have served them nothing!

Also, even if her shrimp was seasoned correctly, her presentation was horrible. The thing is, she had 90 minutes to prep and cook. Unless she had only four pieces of shrimp (one for the judges and one for the camera plate), she should have had more than enough time to sear off some test pieces in order to get the seasoning right.

In any event, she didn't even serve scampi, much like Ryan and the other girl didn't serve picatta. Scampi (the "classic" Italian-American version that everyone knows) usually consists of shrimp in a garlic, butter, white wine, and/or lemon sauce. She marinated her shrimp in just parsley (why in the **** would you marinate something in just parsley???) and sauteed it. The judges didn't even touch on that fact, or maybe it was edited out since there was so much about her dish that was just wrong.

[GotGarlic]

Originally Posted by jennyema

I watched it again last night and she did say she tasted it and knew it was salty.

So, to you, is knowlingly serving inedibly salty food worse than not having the common sense (or not giving a hoot) to taste it before serving?

I guess I'd have to say it is.

Yeah, you're right. According to the Food Network recipe I looked at, it takes 20 minutes to prep and cook shrimp scampi. She could have made it four times and eventually gotten it right, if she'd known what to do. I did think she seemed a little young (26) to be in this competition, although I don't know much about "Top Chef" - the other night was the first time I watched it.