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Original Message
"Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by weltek on 07-28-10 at 10:52 AM
Anyone else watch last night?

I enjoyed it. A good, varied judging pannel. I think they made a lot of good calls, and Gordon's soft side came out fairly often.

I think I'll enjoy the season.


-A Tribetastic Creation

Table of contents
Messages in this discussion
"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by vince3 on 07-28-10 at 11:51 AM
The play-by-play for last night is at the end of the Hell's Kitchen ECST...
"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Loree on 07-28-10 at 12:06 PM
I watched it. But I am not big on all the sob stories and auditions. I was hoping they would have given out their 30 aprons by the end of the show. How many eps do we have to watch till they pick them and get to the challenges? I never watch the audtion process of AI either. I am sure I will like it more once they get to the challenges.
"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by weltek on 07-28-10 at 12:09 PM
I kind of assumed we wouldn't see all the aprons handed out, but maybe I'm wrong?


-A Tribetastic Creation

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by foonermints on 08-04-10 at 01:28 PM
I liked the auditions. These people are fun!


foonermint: Hooligan Enabler
..I am SO hoping for Bobert to show up.
*drinks tequila*

"First cutdown?"
Posted by Estee on 08-04-10 at 01:51 PM
Gordon said over half of them will go home in the next episode, and we're starting at thirty... I think we're going to twelve, and then the single eliminations may start.

We've had more than twelve contestants getting extended camera time, though. There were more than a few 'and here I am walking out with my apron' shots, and those are the highest priority for walking out before we ever find out who they were -- but just based on sheer numbers, we're going to lose some people we 'know', quasi-AI style: sorry, but your sob story oversalted the food.

It's going to be a very tense hour -- but at least they're not cooking in three different rooms.

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by foonermints on 08-11-10 at 08:49 AM
It was good to see all those pretentious egg dishes dissed.



Keeper of the NoNiceGorn

"Death By Egg."
Posted by Estee on 08-11-10 at 01:36 PM
Poor Sheetal. 'Here's your main ingredient. Up until this very moment in your life, you have never handled it, considered cooking it, given any thought to seasoning it, and you've certainly never eaten one. Good luck.' No wonder she got flustered with the plates. And more still more foodstuffs she's never dealt with are likely on the way...

For culture and background, this may be the most diverse cast we've ever had on FOX for anything, and you could argue top ten for reality television as a whole. Watching the cooking styles interact is almost primary over any clash of personalities. The later may take a while -- they're still cheering for each other a little too much.

And one person tried a dessert?


"RE: Death By Egg."
Posted by Tummy on 08-11-10 at 01:58 PM
LAST EDITED ON 08-11-10 AT 02:01 PM (EST)

I was sad to see Darryl cut so early. From inspiration to give me your apron in one hour.

edited to say: I'm not sure where I'd put my money were a staredown between Chef Joe Bastianich and Rachel were to happen.

"RE: Death By Egg."
Posted by Estee on 08-11-10 at 02:43 PM
Darryl's dismissal gave us this much: we're not dealing with American Idol. The judges are basing their decisions on cooking: storylines are nice, but they're not mandatory and don't currently rule the show.

Would Darryl have gone through if eliminations were done via public vote? Nasty question. He's got talent -- but this is a 'one bad dish and you're out' situation and if the egg isn't up to par, you don't go far.

And yes, Joe is a great starer -- but I'll give the edge to Rachel. I'm presuming Joe is sane.

"I like it"
Posted by moonbaby on 08-11-10 at 03:09 PM
so far. The DAWs aren't so obvious just yet, and I like that a LOT. Remember when reality tv had real people?

Go you little cheflings!

"RE: I like it"
Posted by weltek on 08-11-10 at 04:50 PM
"Remember when reality tv had real people?"
Barely!

The only issue I have is that the expectation and first elimination for things like knife skill are pretty high for something that bills itself on finding a great at home chef. I'd like to see the contestants given a little more time to master those professional skills.


-A Tribetastic Creation

"RE: I like it"
Posted by jase on 08-12-10 at 00:51 AM
Given the show's title, I think they want to turn everyday people to a top chef if you will. That said, it's understandable that the judging/competitions would be more intense.

I like that they're expecting the very best each and every time the contestants perform a given task. Anything is possible if you push people a little beyond what they know/their comfort zone.

"RE: I like it"
Posted by Tummy on 08-13-10 at 11:27 AM
I said the same think but Rob said he thought that challenge was more about attention to detail. Especially on how long they were giving them to cut a bowl of onions. I now think he was right.
"RE: I like it"
Posted by jbug on 08-13-10 at 11:59 AM
At first I misunderstood how the onion challenge was going to go - and I wonder if some of the contestants did too.

I thought they were all to chop till they were told to 'stop'. meaning they would all be stopped at the same time and then their product would be critiqued at that time. I thought they were expected to have a bowl of chopped onions and a bowl of sliced onions. If this had been the case, I could see some of them not paying attention to the fine detail of the onion - but wanting to get their bowls full.

As they started stopping them one at a time, I realized there was no time limit. You could take all the time you needed, but pay attention to how well you chopped the onion.

"RE: I like it"
Posted by PagongRatEater on 08-13-10 at 05:46 PM
Agree. The contestants seem real and the competition is about what they actually say it is.

Personally, I really like the fact that the shows focus is on the positive aspects of the people moving forward. Too many shows are about making the people who get eliminated, or sometimes don't get eliminated, look stupid and incompetent (see Apprentice).


A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship.

"RE: I like it"
Posted by foonermints on 08-16-10 at 02:33 PM
(see Big Brother)
"Fourteen to eleven."
Posted by Estee on 08-19-10 at 11:21 AM
Doesn't everyone know the first rule of military cooking is 'peel more potatoes'?
"RE: Fourteen to eleven."
Posted by Tummy on 08-20-10 at 10:29 AM
I *boggled at three pans of potatoes. Hell, we probably put away 3 pans of potatoes at family reunions!

I was sad to see the brunett go at the chinese challenge. It seemed she was the one that was looking to always do something different and I think she would have pushed herself. I don't argue that she bombed on that plate but I think she had a lot of potential.

I kind of thought there would be an instructional segment - showing a new technique or something before the elimination challenges. These are after all home cooks - I would figure that part of this would be how will they pick up chef skills.

"RE: Fourteen to eleven."
Posted by weltek on 08-23-10 at 03:48 PM
LAST EDITED ON 08-23-10 AT 03:49 PM (EST)

I also thought we could look forward to a very short instructional demo from the judges before each challenge. Kind of sad there isn't.

There was another cooking reality show that did this earlier in the year...can't remember the name of it.
ETA: I was "Chef Academy"
http://community.realitytvworld.com/boards/DCForumID17/2090.shtml


-A Tribetastic Creation

"RE: Fourteen to eleven."
Posted by JessicaRN on 08-23-10 at 05:15 PM
LAST EDITED ON 08-24-10 AT 02:08 PM (EST)

I liked Chef Academy because there was a chef that was unfamiliar to me and he was a riot. I think Gordon Ramsey is become a cartoon version of himself. I like the other big chef, who was on Master Chef, but the bald guy (I think he is Lydia's son) is trying to hard to be mean. I'm liking this show less and less.

(It bugged me that on one of the challenges, they had them all cook and then only tasted the 2 dishes that they thought looked best to them. How can you have a cooking show without tasting?

(You're right, it was 3)

"RE: Fourteen to eleven."
Posted by Tummy on 08-24-10 at 08:55 AM
I thought it was the top 3 they tasted, but regardless if it was 2 or 3 that part didn't bother me as I saw it as a two part challenge. The first part being how well do you plate and then the top 3 platers went on to the how well does it taste part.

I think they should explain the challenges a little better. First the onion cutting challenge - and now this. It's kind of a mess, isn't it? But I still like it.

"RE: Fourteen to eleven."
Posted by Tummy on 08-24-10 at 08:59 AM
I went back and read that thread and now am sad our cable company didn't carry Bravo last year!
"Worst Cook in America"
Posted by PagongRatEater on 08-24-10 at 10:40 AM
Or something like that was on Food Network and I thought it was pretty good - probably good enough to bring back. They took awful cook and had real chefs teach them how to make real food. Every episode they learned new skills and it made for interesting TV (and some pretty comedic failures as well).

They have an open casting call so maybe it will be back.


A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship.

"RE: Worst Cook in America"
Posted by JessicaRN on 08-24-10 at 02:13 PM
Oh yeah, there was that one also. The Chef Academy took a group of mostly young people with minimal cooking skills and he actually trained them and gave them several failures before they were kicked out of the academy. Chef Novelli was hilarious, in his very French way and some of his techniques looked really good.

The Food Network, Worst Chef show divided them into two teams with coaches. One of the coaches was Anne Burrell, who pops up now and them on the Food Network. The other coach was Chef Beau something or other.

I like Chef Academy better, but then again I usually like Bravo shows the best.

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Estee on 08-26-10 at 10:10 AM
Okay, so maybe it's possible to mix up sorrel and watercress, but how on Earth do you see starfruit as anything other than starfruit? That's the most distinctive shape in the entire produce aisle!
"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Tummy on 08-26-10 at 10:37 AM
LAST EDITED ON 08-26-10 AT 10:39 AM (EST)

Maybe he sees himself as a star in bed and bed equals passion and ... nevermind. Nerves?

I really enjoyed this episode - love the Cat Cora segment. That's what I'd like to see every week - Show and then Do. I'd been fine with more of showing a technique and then letting them incorporate it into their own dish, but this was good.

When it comes to a battle between Jake and Sharone I'm Team Jake but he should have regrouped on the hamburger challenge and changed it up with Sharone's team started trouncing them. From the get go I said Jake's was too plain, those burgers were something you'd get during appreciation day from one of the big truckstops.

I really like Whitney, she keeps it simple and seems to have great instincts.

eta - I was surprised by how easy the items were in High Pressure challenge.

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Estee on 08-26-10 at 10:47 AM
Maybe the lesson of the night was 'some people just don't appreciate good food' -- and a lot of them are reaching for a gear shift. It's cold? It's greasy? It's what they're used to! Bring it on!

Talk about easy items to ID -- how did everyone not go for the catfish on first sight? It's like the starfruit in that no other member of the species has that distinctive appearance. Wide mouth + whiskers = catfish. Did anyone other than Tracy crack open an elementary school biology textbook?

As for Cat... dunno. She came across as a little too arrogant when she was going over everyone's dishes. They're amateurs: they're not going to be up to Iron Chef standards, they need a degree of boost once in a while, and everyone else has recognized that throughout the series. Cat frequently descended to 'you are not me, therefore you can't cook.' And I just finished dealing with Benjamin in the other kitchen, so this was a bit too familiar.

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Tummy on 08-26-10 at 11:58 AM
I told Rob I'd leave the catfish for last as I wasn't sure if they were looking for a specific type of catfish - Flathead vs Channel. But then would have just said catfish and hazard a guess if asked specifics.

Cat does come of as a little arrogant but it seemed she was pleasant while cooking with Sharone.

I'm going to admit something here - I didn't know it was filet mignon. I always thought tenderloin became filet mignon when you wrapped a piece of bacon around it. *shrug And now I know.

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by jbug on 08-26-10 at 01:31 PM
I wondered why they didn't iommediately identify the dried black eye peas and dried pinto beans. There were really a lot of easily identifiable things there - but a few they kept showing that I didn't know & they didn't get to.
Wish they would have named them all at the end.
"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Estee on 08-26-10 at 02:51 PM
I'd guess regional/ethnic issues. I didn't know what the black-eyed peas were until someone else IDed them: they just aren't served around here. And I didn't have a clue about the okra.

I was waiting for a few IDs as well. I kept holding on that one gourd with the long holes going all the way down it -- no luck.

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Tummy on 08-26-10 at 06:52 PM
I didn't know what the gourd was either but I'm pretty sure they showed on some morels. I wonder if they could just have gotten away with saying "mushrooms".
"Here you go"
Posted by Tummy on 08-26-10 at 07:01 PM
LAST EDITED ON 08-26-10 AT 07:04 PM (EST)

Lotus root

and a recipe to go along with it
http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Lotus-Root-Soup

here's another one that looks a little more appetizing -
http://www.gothamgal.com/gotham_gal/2005/06/lotus_root.html

I'm sure I'll never see this ingredient in an Oklahoma market.

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by foonermints on 09-02-10 at 00:05 AM
Slim? Seldom seen Slim? /Abbey

"It looks like a Welcome Plate @ a senior home."

Boy, remind me never to date that gal. What is life without romance?

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Estee on 09-02-10 at 07:35 AM
Poor Sheetal. I wouldn't have blamed her if she'd just walked off the show right there.
"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Tummy on 09-02-10 at 09:08 AM
Between Ramsey offering to throw the crab into the pot for Sheetal and then helping Sharone out with the vacuum packager I think I developed a little bit of a crush on the guy.

Joe on the other hand ...

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by jbug on 09-02-10 at 10:31 AM
& helping (Tracey?) with the handle on the pasta roller.
I'm crushing on Gordon. -)

Notice how they showed Gordon changing his shirt, but the big guy already had his on?

" Mike!"
Posted by foonermints on 09-09-10 at 08:35 AM
What's that on your face?

"RE: Mike!"
Posted by jbug on 09-09-10 at 09:10 AM
Mike was rather frantic when he was cooking wasn't he? Maybe he'll learn to slow down.

Was surprised to see Whitney & Sharone (?) in the final elim challenge. I expected those 2 to make it to the end. Course, when the points were given out by the guest judges/critics, there was no way for their past performances to save them.

"RE: Mike!"
Posted by Estee on 09-09-10 at 10:09 AM
I was just glad to see Sharone go because his departure meant I could finally separate his giant ego from Lee's. Also that there was no chance for their respective giant egos to fall in love, merge, and produce an ego beast the likes of which only EPMB has ever seen.

Did anyone else instinctively groan when the final Pressure Test turned out to be souffle baking? I know enough about cooking to realize they'd been handed the series equivalent of 'Here are two small sticks and a piece of string. Make fire.'

And has anyone ever eaten sculpin? I'd never seen the thing before it came out of the water, and I don't feel particularly eager to get a sample...

"RE: Mike!"
Posted by Tummy on 09-09-10 at 12:35 PM
I was glad Whitney pulled out the win.

Her critics dish looked good, I was kind of surprised that she over seasoned as she's usually careful about that.

Sheetal should have sliced that pound cake into slices and grilled it or something. I thought for sure she was a goner for not finishing. Still can't figure out why Mike slopped on the raw eggwhites.

This show didn't last long enough. I enjoy it way more than Hell's Kitchen.

And I'm going for a Whitney win.

"More Important"
Posted by foonermints on 09-09-10 at 09:28 PM
»And has anyone ever eaten sculpin? I'd never seen the thing before it came out of the water, and I don't feel particularly eager to get a sample...«

Has anyone eaten their liver?


Handcrafted by RollDdice
"That Lieutenant Scheisskopf," Lieutenant Travers remarked. "He's a military genius."

"So who wins?"
Posted by Estee on 09-09-10 at 10:19 AM
I don't think it'll be Sheetal: too focused in a single area. Lee's ego is going to bite him eventually... I think this is down to Whitney vs. David, and those 11.5 stars may have been our ultimate clue.

Also, we always see fire in front of David's face during the closing credits. Gordon does love his fire.

Special guest critic: Anton Ego!

"RE: So who wins?"
Posted by emydi on 09-09-10 at 11:05 AM
I agree 100% with this analysis

I hope David wins it he's been my fave for a while..but look at his competition!


"Whitney Wins!"
Posted by foonermints on 09-16-10 at 03:15 AM
She showed a lot of spunk after dropping that chicken-fried thing, and having to cook a new one in 7 minutes really impressed Gordon.

*sigh* Youth always is favored.

At any rate, I truly enjoyed this show.

Big Brother Finale? Whut?

"RE: Whitney Wins!"
Posted by Estee on 09-16-10 at 08:17 AM
You don't tug on Superman's cape and you don't serve Beef Wellington to Gordon. What was David thinking? Other than his usual internal chorus of I'm a daredevil I'm a daredevil.

If you want to go conspiracy theory on this one, then make 'potential cookbook sales' into one of the judgment criteria: Whitney's emphasis on elevating Southern styles and dessert serving may have more profit potential than David's 'you can make a five-star plate at home'. But in the end, I think that souffle reinvention tipped it for her.

I skipped Survivor and Big Brother to watch this. I'm not sorry, either. I know the better series when I've been watching it for the last month and a half -- and unlike either of those two, this one gave me a cast I could stand. Even Sharone and Lee didn't approach the typical ego of a first-out island boot.

First-season syndrome: they were here to play. Next year -- DAWs.

"I wonder"
Posted by foonermints on 09-16-10 at 09:52 PM
If the cookbook is already at the printers?
If so, my SS recipient will get one, like it or lump it.

»Next year -- DAWs«

Yep, probably a Hulk Hogan look alike, hell may be the REAL Hulk Hogan.


Gone Viral with moonbaby
*Plus someone who used to plan the menu for Fear Factor.

"RE: I wonder"
Posted by weltek on 09-17-10 at 11:19 AM
As we headed into the finals, I was thinking that I'd enjoy a Whitney cookbook rather than David's. A fresh take on Southern food interests me more than another bistro/restaurant dishes at home complicated cookbook.


-A Tribetastic Creation

"RE: I wonder"
Posted by foonermints on 09-17-10 at 09:01 PM
Sign up for Secret Santa and maybe get lucky!
Unless you're pinin' for the Queen.


I like your thoughts on the Whitney/Southern food cookbook. I feel the same way.

"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by Tummy on 09-20-10 at 10:02 AM
Yay - Whitney was my favorite from the first episode. That is all.
"RE: Masterchef (U.S. Edition)"
Posted by kidflash212 on 07-10-16 at 11:10 AM
50!