- Previously on "next level chef"...
This season's next level chef will walk away
With a one-year mentorship
And $1/4 million.
- Game on. Time to play.
- I'm looking for the best dish.
This is your first presentation of yourself.
- Let's hustle.
- This is the most intense
Food competition there is. - [bleep]
- My immunity pin's gonna go to nuri.
- Tucker. - Matt.
- The person going home tonight is...
Kamahlai.
- Wow. [applause]
[dramatic music]
We are not going down a floor tonight.
- No, chef.
- We need to get out of the basement.
- I don't trust a single piece of equipment
In this kitchen besides this piece of equipment.
- We're coming up there!
- Ok. See you never.
- If you ignore that advice,
You're going straight to elimination.
- I'm scared of the elimination.
I'm not ready to go home yet.
♪ ♪
[alarm ringing]
[tense music]
♪ ♪
- Welcome.
Let's go, guys. Line up.
- We're down one person. This just means
We gotta come back freakin' swinging.
Team blais is a little shaken, but not stirred.
- Wow. - Look at you all.
- Do the blue aprons look a little more starched
And proper? - Uh, no.
Your team look a little smaller.
[laughter and muttering]
- Ok.
- Now, some of your first dishes left
A lot to be desired.
You let the chaos of that platform
Get the better of you.
- You're cooking for a chance
At a one-year mentorship from the three of us
And a prize of $1/4 million.
So the question is, which one of you wants it the most?
- Y'all have to remember, if you're putting your heart
And your soul into every dish that you create,
You're gonna see it in the result.
All: Yes, chef.
- Let's go. - Let's go.
- Wise words. And heart and soul
Is at the center of today's challenge,
Because you'll be preparing a dish from a country
Where they pride themselves on cooking with so much love,
Passion, and of course, heat--
Mexico.
[all cheering]
[mariachi music]
- Mexican, puerto rican, we're all the same.
Latinos are latinos.
I'm so excited.
- Now listen, whatever you do,
Don't forget to bring the heat,
Because there's nothing worse than a bland enchilada
Or a tasteless tostada.
- Ok, team ramsay, thanks to tucker earning
Best dish last time,
We're cooking in that top-level kitchen.
Head to the elevator, and I'll meet you there in a minute.
All of you, good luck.
- Let's go. - Whoo.
- Let's go, team. - Oh, we are bringing it today.
- Ooh-ooh. [overlapping chatter]
- Let's go!
[all cheering]
[elevator dings]
[all cheering]
- I'm stoked.
The middle kitchen was beautiful,
But you know the top is the best of the best,
And that's where team ramsay belongs.
- All right, trailblazers,
Because we lost the elimination cook,
It's time to shine in the basement.
Head to the elevators. - Let's go.
- See you in the "blaisment."
- The blaisment. - That was good.
[dramatic music]
- We got this.
No one's going home.
- Let's do it.
[elevator dings]
- Here we go. - Let's do it.
- Oh, lord.
- Here we go. See?
It's not so bad.
- Feel how dull these knives are.
- It's just gross.
- Oh, wow, these ovens look [bleep].
[laughs]
I don't trust a single piece of equipment
In this kitchen besides this piece of equipment.
- What are you mashing that's this big?
- Team arrington, April, I gotta say,
You got us to the middle level
With your win in elimination.
Keep that momentum up.
Head to the elevator.
- Yes, chef. - Vámonos.
- We got this. - Watch your head, nuri.
[laughs]
[all cheering]
- Let's go!
Let's go! - Team nyesha!
[elevator dings]
- Let's go. - Let's go.
- Yes!
Ok, ok. - Nice.
- Middle floor, keep me there.
It's like a warm hug.
It just feels good to be there.
- Go, let's go, let's go.
Go. Good luck.
- All right, let's go, team blais.
[all cheer] all right.
Gather round, gather round, right here.
We doing good? All right.
Down here, there's not a lot of things--
Limited burners, wobbly pans.
Ready to go? - Yeah.
- Yes, chef - cool. All right.
- Good luck, yeah. - Same to you, chef.
[elevator dings] - go.
- [cheers] [all cheer]
Line up, line up, line up.
Line up, line up, line up, line up.
Line up.
What I wanna see from my team today
Is confidence.
I wanna see who you are as individuals, ok?
- Yes, chef. - Yeah.
- One, two, three... All: Team arrington!
[all cheer]
- Let's go.
[all cheering]
Let's go.
We're on the top. I wanna stay here now.
- Me too. - Yes, we will, chef.
- See, the two floors underneath, they wanna be
Where you're standing now. - Yes, chef.
- Stay out of that elimination.
All: Yes, chef. - Ok, line up, guys.
Platform's coming. Let's go.
Good luck to you all, yes?
Go! Platform's there, let's go!
♪ ♪
Let's go, guys. - Nice. Talk to each other.
- Because we're at the top level,
I know that I need to grab something
That's worthy of a top-level grab.
I see a gorgeous red snapper,
And I was like, mine.
Cilantro, guys. - Ten seconds.
- Cheese, cheese, cheese. - Cheese.
- It feels a little bit more high-end,
And I can bring those mexican flavors,
That freshness, that brightness,
That goes really well with seafood.
- Right here, right here. - Five, four...
- I want the eel. - Three, two, one.
Go, go, go, go, go!
- Let's go.
Platform's on the move.
Go!
- Excuse me, chef.
- Think about your ingredients.
Grab that protein first.
Work around it.
Let's go. Let's go. Let's go.
- I'm grabbing the pineapple.
I'm grabbing the chilies, the lime,
Some beautiful fish, mahi-mahi.
That's authentic mexican cuisine.
It's flavor, flavor, flavor, baby.
- Five, four... - Garlic.
- Corn. - Three, two, one.
It's still here.
Grab what you need. Go.
Get to your tables. Think about it.
Let's go. Only forward.
- Oh, yeah, let's go. - Only forward.
- Ok, when it turns green, you go.
Blais-ing speed.
Go time.
- The hardest thing about this competition is that grab.
I was writing football routes down.
Like, all right, you two right,
We're going straight up the gut.
That's what this competition comes down to.
- Get those flavors.
Mexican cuisine.
- I see the first protein,
And I grab it.
And I see it's a cow tongue literally bigger than my face.
And I'm like, what the heck
Am I supposed to do with a cow tongue?
- If you can reach it, you can grab it.
If you can reach it, you can grab it.
Ok, back to your stations.
45 minutes.
Let's go.
Matt, what do we got going on here?
- Ground brisket. - Ok.
- Like, a spicy mexican egg breakfast, brunch.
Yes. - Steak and eggs mexican style.
- Yep. - Ok.
All right, chris.
Ok, so you got the whole cornish game hen.
- The whole cornish game hen. - All right.
- I got this guy that I believe is for mole.
- Mole usually takes three days to make.
- Gotcha. - We got 40 minutes.
- Got it. Cool. Sounds good.
I'll make it happen.
- Mehreen. - I have crab meat,
So I was thinking of making some sort of stacked tartare.
- So salsa, tostada, beautiful crab.
Keep going. Keep going. - Perfect. Thank you.
- I like it.
Ok, tini, you got...
- Cow tongue. - It's anything but teeny.
- Anything but teeny. - [laughs]
There's always a gift that comes down to the basement--
Filet mignon, lobster tail.
Maybe sometimes it's beef tongue.
Ok, have you cooked with cow tongue before?
- I have not.
I've never cooked with cow tongue,
But you have to go outside the box.
You have to go outside your comfort zone.
It's called "next level chef."
It's not called "next basic chef."
I'm really here to learn.
My name's tineke, but everyone calls me tini.
I'm 21 years old, and I'm a social media chef.
I was not the best student at all growing up.
I was always getting in trouble, bad grades.
And when I was 16, I was finally diagnosed
With my learning disability.
And then cooking came in,
And everything changed from there.
Ok, so today, I'm gonna make this watermelon
How I would steak.
I started cooking on social media,
Just made a video of me cooking for my boyfriend,
And it absolutely blew up,
Like 20 million views.
And then I came out with my first cookbook
Called "cooking for my boyfriend."
They're all affordable recipes.
I just really want people to know
It really does not matter where you come from.
I don't come from much, but you can make it.
What we say where I'm from, small town, big dreams.
Am I cooking this like a steak or...
- So you're just gonna pull it, chop it up rough,
Warm it up in the pan, and season it.
- Add flavor. Ok. - All right?
- Perfect. - Ok. Keep going.
- Thank you. - I like it.
- Let's go.
Bring the heat. Bring the heat.
Let's get to that top kitchen!
- Ain't nobody going home today.
- Conceptualize. It's gonna come together.
I was looking for tortilla shells,
And the only thing that I could find were these corn husks.
I'm having difficulty envisioning what I want.
I'm out of my comfort zone right now.
I'm alex morizio.
I'm an intensive care unit doctor
In south beach, miami.
I am a home chef.
Guys, let's do it.
I'm coming from a kitchen this big in south beach
And an electric stove.
The basement's an upgrade.
[laughs]
Here's to learning how to cook.
Boom!
My passion for food comes from my upbringing.
Italian roots from the amalfi coast.
Watching mom and dad make a sauce on a Sunday--
Mwah--was heaven.
My life as an intensive care unit doctor is very busy.
It's very pressure packed.
When I get home, there's no better escape
Than being in the kitchen.
And whether it's through medicine
Or through food and cooking,
Both have led me to connect with people.
It's a party tonight.
My family said straight up,
When you get there, don't [bleep] up.
But anyway, putting that aside,
There's no place in the world I'd rather be.
[groans]
- Alex, talk to me.
What did you grab? - I grabbed--I got swordfish.
Guess I'm gonna have to wrap them in these and boil them?
- Corn husk.
- You don't really realize what you have
Until you go back and start sorting everything out.
It's kind of like when you purchase things off amazon,
And you go back upstairs, and you're like,
Is this what I bought?
What did I get here?
- Right? - And it's edible like this.
- No. Taste it, right?
- Ok. - And then you'll know.
- I gotta be honest, I don't make mexican food that often.
I am sweating this challenge out.
So we're not eating the husk? - No.
- Ever? - Ever.
You tasted the husk, right?
It's just a vessel.
- Thank you, chef. - Yeah.
- What am I getting into
With these corn husks?
Oh, my god.
I think I'm in trouble.
- When are you planning to start cooking it?
- The swordfish? - Yes.
- Now. Chef arrington is
Pushing me to the max.
You can bring the horse to the water.
The horse has gotta drink.
So at a certain point, as soon as she leaves me,
I'd better start drinking--
Water or tequila-- more like tequila.
- Let's go, team.
Bring it home.
Where are we going?
- To the top level. Let's go!
- To the top! - All day, baby.
- We are not going down a floor tonight.
- No, chef. No, chef.
- We are definitely staying on top, yes?
All: Yes, chef.
- Good.
Right, vinny, what did you grab?
- I have a ribeye, chef. I'm gonna vacuum seal this
To get the flavors in,
And I'm gonna make a nice little tomatillo.
- Bring the heat. - I'm bringing the heat.
- Gotta feel the heat. - Thank you, chef.
- Right, tucker, tell me about the dish.
What are you doing?
- I have some roasted tomatillo salsa.
I'm gonna pickle a little peppers.
I'm gonna get that in very soon.
- Chicken, that needs to rest.
Remember the secret, nice and crispy?
And getting that really nice and moist as well, yes?
- Yes, chef.
- Preston.
Flank steak, is that what you wanted?
- Yes, chef. - Yeah?
Tell me about the dish. Where are we going?
- So we're gonna probably do, like,
A chilaquiles. I'm gonna start
Making my spicy sauce right here.
- Smart. - I'm gonna do a cold-smoked
Pickled onion on top as well. - Love that.
The inspiration comes from where?
- So this is gonna be from my grandma.
She was from mexico. This has been something
That she makes for us all the time at home.
But unfortunately, earlier this week, she did pass away.
So this is kind of a dish-- - well, I'm sorry to hear that.
- She really just showed the whole family
That love can be shown through your food.
So this is dedicated to her. - I love that.
- The last thing she told me before I came out
To compete is, cook from the heart, have fun,
And just do your best.
And she believed in me.
- If there's ever a time to shine,
It's gonna be tonight, yes?
- Yes, sir. - Good luck, yeah?
- Thank you, chef.
I'm preston from arlington, texas.
I'm a professional chef, and I'm 19 years old.
A lot of people are always surprised about my age.
I'm not even allowed to drink yet.
My college presented me an opportunity for extra credit
To go clean at a tournament
Called the world food championships.
Then they said there was actually
An open slot available for competitors.
I was like, ok, like, might as well,
Like, try it out.
We actually ended up taking it
All the way to the end and winning it.
- ♪ a living legend ♪
- Oh, my! [cheering]
- I was extremely surprised to win.
My alter ego would be clark kent versus superman.
Outside the kitchen, I'm a little shy, a little nerdy.
But once I step inside of the kitchen,
The gloves come off and I'm ready to throw down.
- Right, mark, tell me about the dish.
What are you doing? - I'm gonna do a turkey taco
And a little salsa.
- That turkey needs cooking though, ok?
It's a big thigh. - Yeah. Yes, chef.
- Put some more oil in there as well.
Turkey's dry. - Yes, chef.
- Right. Young lady, tell me about the dish.
What are we doing? - I'm doing a caramelized
Pork belly, some brown sugar, a little bit of water.
- Right. - I unfortunately did not
Grab a starch.
- No. No. - But I am doing
A scallion pancake tostada. - Tostada?
- I'm feeling very stressed.
I did not grab a starch.
But I need to get out of my comfort zone,
Show them that I have what it takes to be next-level.
I'm cassie. I'm from south brunswick, new jersey.
I'm a social media chef, and I'm 28 years old.
Straight out of college,
I auditioned for the brooklyn nets,
And I was with them two seasons.
It really made me who I am today.
I recently decided to pursue being a content creator.
My asian parents did not want to hear that.
They did say, you know, in three months,
If this isn't working out,
Then you really have to get another job.
So I said, ok.
And before three months was up,
I gained 600,000 followers.
[upbeat music]
Going to school, my mom would pack me lunches,
And she would make me chinese food.
I let kids kind of get into my head about,
Like, oh, what is that, you know?
But as I got older, like, I just really
Started stepping into myself.
Why wouldn't I be proud of my culture and my cuisine?
I'm definitely a better cook than my mom now.
She hates to hear it. She hates to admit it.
But everyone knows it.
- All the flavors are there. - Thank you, chef.
- I wish you got a starch, but,
Um, good luck. - I do too.
Yes, chef.
- [exhales deeply] the heat is on.
- [bleep] breathe, cassandra.
[bleep]
- Cassie, she's chosen the pork belly.
But she failed to grab a starch,
So she's making a scallion tostada.
Right now, she's in trouble.
My saving grace, preston.
Mexican cuisine is in his wheelhouse.
And he's got a beautiful flank steak.
28 minutes to go, ok?
- All right, darryl.
- Ok, I have prawn. - What are we doing?
You got prawns. - Uh-huh.
I'm gonna make a pepper sauce cream.
The sauce will be the base.
Bring a little drama to the plate, basically.
- Please bring the drama to the plate,
Because I'm not seeing a lot of mexican ingredients here.
I'll be back, ok? - Ok.
- Let's go.
I'm a little worried right now about darryl,
Because he didn't really grab, like,
The traditional mexican pantry.
He's got prawns, he's got canned olives.
Tini has tongue.
It's actually a gem of an ingredient
Once you get over the fact that it's a cow tongue.
We have to get out of the bottom here
Because I cannot stand listening
To gordon making fun of me, and nyesha's up there
Walking around thinking they just got everything made.
We need to get out of the basement.
Nyesha!
- Richard!
- We're coming up there!
We're on our way up!
- Ok. - Ok.
- See you never.
Only way is up, yes?
All: Yes, chef.
- Hi, chef. - Hi, shay.
- I wanna make, like, a chicken carnitas situation.
- We love a chicken carnita.
How's your tortilla life coming?
- Having trouble with my dough.
- Ok, let's get out of trouble.
- Let's get out of trouble.
- What do you have in your dough?
- It's chicken fat, some butter,
Flour, water, and salt.
I am using that chicken fat in the tortillas
To infuse them with a chicken flavor.
Pretty brilliant, if I do say so myself.
- Keep cooking.
Bring the heat!
- Right, tell me, michelle, what do you got?
- I'm thinking crispy fish, spicy citrus broth.
- Yeah, that's smart. But just make sure
That broth is packed with flavor.
- Yes. - Michelle,
Don't go too early with that snapper.
- Chef ramsay's telling me,
Hold on the fish. Don't cook it too early.
I'm thinking, how much time do we have?
What's going on?
Being that I'm a home cook,
And normally it's a very relaxing experience,
It's just kind of overwhelming.
I'm michelle. I'm a senior brand marketing
Manager from new jersey, and I'm a home cook.
In an italian american household,
Cooking for someone is a love language.
I met my husband in college.
We've been together 11 years.
My husband and I bought our first house
Exactly four minutes away from my parents.
They'd be like, we came.
We brought dinner. We're here.
Now we're 12 minutes away.
For me, cooking is a therapeutic experience.
I have frank sinatra on, my wine glass.
I am in my element.
I wanna see if I can hang
With the big dogs in the kitchen.
I would be lying if I didn't say I was scared [bleep].
- Come on, come on.
♪ ♪
- Get some color in there as well, yeah?
Ok? And taste the seasoning as well, yes?
- Yes, chef.
- Gently, gently, gently, gently,
Gently, because you'll break it.
I said, don't go too early. - Yes.
- That piece of fish took how long to cook?
- Three minutes.
- How long did you have in the challenge?
- 45. - Right.
So when should you put that on?
- Ten minutes before it, max.
- If you ignore that advice,
You'll go straight to elimination, ok?
- Yes, chef. - I don't want you in there.
Just, yeah, slow down a touch and listen.
- Yes, chef. - Ok?
I'm telling you because I want you
To work well and win this thing.
- Yes. - Ok?
Let's go!
[somber music]
- As a home cook, I'm not used
To the stress of the time constraint.
Like, I cook with a glass of wine in my hand and music.
It's always a very relaxing situation for me.
[choked up] I wanna do really good, so.
Oh, god, I'm like, such a mess.
- Every chef needs to adapt.
- Yes, chef. - Yes, chef.
- I need to see all of you
Adapt right now... - Yes, chef.
- Because it's time for the mid-round mayhem.
Coming down shortly is a absolute staple
In mexican cuisine.
Avocados, ten seconds.
- Yes! Let's go. - Let's go, guys.
- Grab limes. - Grab the limes.
- What else is there? What else is there?
Is there anything else? Just avocado and lime?
Stoked to see aguacates.
I can do something with that.
Got 'em. - Well done.
- Let's go, baby! - Extra limes, babe.
- This is the biggest [bleep] avocado I've ever seen.
- I know.
- Guys, avocados!
[all cheering] let's go, let's go, let's go!
- Aguacate! - Make sure you grab
A nice avocado. - Y lima!
[chuckling]
Clearly, I love avocados.
I manifested it today.
- Make sure you grab an avocado that you can use.
- Thanks.
- It's time for the mid-round mayhem!
[all cheering] mid-round mayhem.
Darryl, you got to grab ingredients.
You got avocados. - And limes.
- There's some lime over there.
You gotta use an avocado though.
Make sure it's ripe.
- Yes. - Good job. Ok.
- Oh, my god. - Whoo! Beautiful!
- All right, now, listen, we don't wanna just see,
Like, a slice of avocado on a plate.
- No, no. - Bring it into the dish.
♪ ♪
- I was gonna fry it, or is that no?
- I mean, listen, I think you work it into this mango salsa.
I'm fired up. I wanna beat gordon ramsay.
We're down a player on team blais.
Now this is about getting the best dish
That will get your team safety to then cook on the top floor.
- Matt. - That looks beautiful.
- Crispier? - It looks good.
Maybe just, like, another minute.
- All right, I'll take this one out.
- Talk to me. - Chef, question.
- You need to organize yourself.
- Ok. - You need to slow down.
You got this, ok? Just cook.
- Do you deseed these?
- Did you taste it?
You have to taste it.
Spicy.
- Pretty damn spicy. - Ok.
Nuri? - Yes, chef.
- My man, chef stretch.
- Yes, chef.
- Paint your dish picture for me.
- So I'm gonna do the chicharrones crumble
With the fish skin.
I'm gonna plate the salsa on top of the fish.
- How is the avocado incorporated?
- I'm figuring that out, chef. I'm thinking--I don't wanna
Just do a mash, but I'm figuring it out, chef.
- Hurry up. - Yes, chef.
- Hurry up.
The intensity is high in this kitchen.
Omi, I think that her flavors are gonna be really delicious.
I'm really impressed with nuri, mr. Stretch over here.
He's really bringing it. He seems focused.
He has a vision.
Having a little trouble with alex, communication.
I'm trying to help him,
But there's just some sort of a block here.
- 11 minutes to go, guys, yeah?
♪ ♪
Cassie, what are you making there?
What is that? - I'm trying to make
This quick caramel sauce. I wanna get the pork belly on
Before I throw this in... - Smart.
- Because I do not want this sugar to burn.
- Just don't get it too sweet, yeah?
- It didn't caramelize the way I want.
Should I stick it back in the oven, chef?
- Well, it needs to be a little more caramelized than that,
Otherwise, it'll boil. Come on, let's go.
- Just making sure, chef. - I know, I know.
But I want you to win.
I want you to win. - Yes, chef.
- Come on, baby.
- Michelle, talk to me.
- Can you taste this sauce for me?
Yeah, I just added a little sugar.
It tasted a little sour.
- Yeah, I love that. Can you imagine that
With a little bit of citrus in there as well?
- Exactly. - That's lovely.
♪ ♪
Preston.
- Yes, chef. - I've gotta get some substance
On that plate as well, ok?
I love the aesthetics, but I wanna see
Some proper food on there, yes?
- Yes, chef.
- I wanna win every challenge,
But it's harder to stay on the top
Than it is to climb the top.
I need to make sure my team produce
Some outstanding dishes
'cause that's what separates you from the competition.
Gotta lift this, yeah?
We gotta stay at the top, yes? - Yes, chef.
- We're not leaving, chef.
We're not leaving.
- We're going, but where are we going?
- Top level, chef. - That's what I'm
Talking about. All: Top level!
- Let's go! Let's go!
- Next-level dishes, next-level plating.
Let's go. - Come on, alex.
Come on. Bring it home.
Start thinking about your plates, guys.
Winning dishes, right?
♪ ♪
- This is ready for a menu in la somewhere.
Ok? Let's go. - Don't hype me up.
- Let's go. Mexican cuisine.
Bring the heat, blais-ing heat.
- Blais-ing heat, here we go.
- Two minutes. Darryl, what's up?
Plate it. Plate. - Oh, plating?
- Plate! - Oh, [bleep].
- This is where we finish strong, yes?
All: Yes, chef. - Let's go.
Use a towel.
- Yes, chef.
- Here we go. Put that down.
Work with two hands. Put the pan down.
There you go. Select what you want.
- Yes, chef. - Select the best.
Vinny, put it down. I don't want you to fall over
With that thing, yes?
There you go.
- The platform is on its way down.
Platform's here.
Darryl, let's go, let's go, let's go.
Matt, come on. You got a long way to go.
- I got it. - Platform is here.
Last looks--cilantro, lime?
- This looks sexy. - You got it?
- Yeah. - You got it?
A little bit, yes.
- I think we did good.
- Come on, platform's coming, guys.
Let's go. Let's go. Let's go.
Drive it home.
- I was first to the platform.
I was like, I've had enough of this challenge.
Let me just put my plate down.
- You guys are gonna miss it!
Let's go! Right now.
- Yes, chef. - Right now.
♪ ♪
Put the plate on the platform now!
- [shrieks] - [bleep]
- [cheering] - yes!
- Oh, my god.
- Guys, here we go. - Yes, chef.
- Put everything on that plate. - Let's go, guys.
We gotta go. 15 seconds.
- I'm on far. - Let's go.
Come on, hurry up!
- I'm on the far.
- Ten seconds. - Oh, you go furthest.
You go furthest.
- Preston!
- Let's go!
- Five, four...
- Come on, preston. Come on.
- Preston, you're gonna miss it!
- Preston!
- Come on, preston, you got it, babe.
Right here, right here. - Five, four...
[overlapping chatter] three, two...
- Let's go!
[all cheering]
[dramatic music]
- Ok, well done, all of you.
Really good job.
These dishes really do look mexican.
Shall we taste? Shall we start in the basement?
- All right, let's head on to the basement.
We have here a play off of a tostada
With pomegranate seeds, crab, and a mango salsa.
- This dish looks beautiful.
But man, you take a bite,
And it absolutely wakes your palate up.
- Yeah, we told you to bring the heat.
This dish definitely brings the heat.
- I can't believe I threw something together
In that ugly-ass kitchen,
And gordon ramsay said, this is amazing.
- Over here, we have seared prawns,
Deconstructed tostada with a peppercorn sauce.
- Dish feels a little bit sort of discombobulated.
It doesn't feel like it's a real,
Authentic take on the shrimp.
Red flag for me. - Totally.
- Either you can take the criticism or not.
I'll take anything he gives.
If I could marry gordon ramsay, I would.
That's a joke, now.
[laughs]
- Ok, over here we have mexican-inspired breakfast
Of some ground brisket.
- I grew up eating ground beef tacos.
You can tell the spices are all there,
But you need to amplify them ten times as much.
- Ok, over here we have the cornish game hen
Roasted with some mole flavors.
- The color and the flavor and the crispiness, really good.
- Really, really delicious.
- All right, moving over here,
We have a beef tongue sopes meets birria.
- I saw that big tongue descend down,
And I thanked god none of us picked it up on the top floor,
'cause that is a bitch to cook, let me tell you.
But this is an absolute delight.
The elegance shown is somewhat rare.
I love the pickle and the cabbage,
Whoever cooked this thing.
But they've absolutely nailed it.
What happened in that basement tonight?
'cause you've got a bunch of great dishes.
- I think we got gifted some great ingredients.
- Yeah.
Shall we go on to the middle floor?
Wow, what do we have?
- We have a mahi-mahi
With a duo of chicharrón,
Both pork and fish skin, with a fresh pineapple salsa.
It's really pretty.
- This dish is delicious. Love the salsa.
- It's crunch, it's fresh, it's really beautiful.
- I love it.
- Next up, we have a posole-inspired dish.
This person used the pork steak,
Chicharrón crumble on top.
- Amazing how much flavor you got in there in 45 minutes.
- I love it. It's authentic,
And it takes me straight back to mexico.
- Next up, we have a seared swordfish,
Summer vegetables on top of a corn husk.
- Yeah, I mean, the only salt on this dish
Was the water that the swordfish was swimming in.
- And it just looks a bit weird, presentation-wise.
- I allowed one ingredient
To completely throw me off for 45 minutes.
Can't let that happen.
- Next up, we have the fish taco
With an avocado crema.
- Touch more season, again, when you fry fish.
Season it before and after, really important.
- I wish it had a little bit more of the charred flavor
That reminds me of mexico.
- Next, this tri-tip has been seared.
It has an avocado crema on a flour tortilla.
Beautiful salsa.
- Great cook on the steak. - Mmm.
A little too out of the box with the plating.
So lastly, we have a handmade flour tortilla with a chicken,
A play on carnitas.
- Whoever made that, heat's delicious,
But I'm more impressed with the fact
That they made a fresh tortilla.
That's hard in 45 minutes.
Delicious.
- I would love a piña colada by the pool right now.
- So top floor, [inaudible] chicken.
This thing was beautifully cooked,
And the avocado crema sauce around the outsides.
- Look at the plating. This looks like
It's from a restaurant in mexico city.
- That sauce is so delicious,
I would've just loved to see more of it on the plate.
- This is a pork belly
With a sort of tostada, avocado crema.
Pork was sous vide.
This is supposed to be a scallion pancake,
And the pork sort of caramelized.
- Tastes a little bit like a dessert.
It's so sweet.
My heart is racing, there's so much sugar in that.
- Great shame.
I got excited for the pancake, traditionally,
But it wasn't done properly.
- I was trying to go out of the box,
But clearly, it didn't work for me.
- This is a marinated ribeye
With a chili fried egg on top.
Steak could have done with two minutes less.
It's all about that sear, letting it rest.
This turkey thigh, it was cooked in a skillet,
Slowly basted, super doused with a lot of mexican spice.
- You know, I think you gotta toast those shells
A little bit more so that they're not as chewy.
But I love the flavor here. I love the nostalgia.
- This is a flank steak that was sous vide.
Beautifully seasoned.
Cooked in a skillet.
- Sauce is absolutely delicious.
- Yeah, listen, the flavors are there.
My big worry here is that it's a little bit
Sort of style over substance.
This is the red snapper, cooked skin side down,
And then finished with a broth underneath.
- Skin's a little soggy. Fish is overcooked.
But the aguachile, the broth, super flavorful.
- Can you taste how dry it is? - Yeah.
- I'm scared of the elimination.
I know that I can do better than that,
And I'm not ready to go home yet.
- We got a lot to discuss.
- We do. - Shall we?
Excuse us.
♪ ♪
- Some great highlights, by the way.
I mean, beautiful highlights.
- Honestly, I had seen
So many beautiful dishes out here.
- The cornish hen, I mean, that dish was delicious.
- Cornish hen, delicious, and kind of also,
Like, fine dining looking. - Absolutely.
- Yeah. Big shock for me today was the tongue.
That was the one that I thought
No one was gonna pick up. - Mm.
So delicious. - So brave.
- It's an amazing ingredient.
- Gordon, your chicken--
That chicken dish... - Yeah.
- Visually, was the best dish for sure.
- The cook was exceptional.
I mean, really exceptional.
- I had a challenging time with alex,
That corn husk with the seared swordfish.
- Yeah, a bit like michelle with that red snapper.
- The fish was dry, but the broth was delicious.
- Yeah.
- And cassie, everything was just too sweet.
It just wasn't an authentic mexican dish.
- Tiger prawn, right, it didn't really
Make sense at all. - Yeah.
- Plating hanging off the edge of the plate.
I wonder if he's actually never even had a tostada.
- That's tough. That's very tough.
Let's get one thing clear.
We have gone up a level, all of you.
But only one dish stood out today
That oozed authenticity.
And that dish was...
♪ ♪
From richard blais' kitchen,
The tongue.
[cheers and applause]
- Let's go, baby. - Yes!
Oh, yes!
- I can't believe it. I'm not gonna believe it.
We do not have to go into elimination.
We're back where we started.
It's just so, so exciting.
I keep saying that word, but it's so exciting.
- Tini, there was nothing teeny about that tongue
Or your performance.
Congratulations.
You can head on over to the lounge,
Put your feet up, and you can watch
The elimination cook.
- Thank you. - Good job, tini.
Now unfortunately, we know what that means.
Gordon, nyesha, both of you have to choose
One member of your team to head into the elimination cook-off.
- [sighs]
- Gordon. - This is tough.
I've got good dishes.
Two missed the mark.
♪ ♪
The person I'm gonna put into the cook-off is...
- The person I'm gonna put into the cook-off...
[dramatic music]
Cassie.
- Everything's at stake at this point.
I came in here thinking I have nothing to lose,
But at this point, I feel like I have everything to lose.
I'm good enough to be here, and I'm not gonna give up.
- That dish missed the mark.
It doesn't feel authentic.
I know you can do better.
- Yes, chef.
- Prove it. - Yes, chef.
[overlapping chatter]
- Nyesha, who will you be putting into the elimination?
♪ ♪
- The person that's gonna go into the elimination today...
Is alex.
You let one ingredient throw your entire performance off.
Cook like you want to be here.
- 100%.
- Cassie, alex,
Right now you're headed to the elimination cook-off
Where only one of you will survive to cook another day.
So we're gonna give you another chance to redeem yourselves
With a staple of every mexican kitchen,
Corn.
On that elimination platform will be
Two beautiful bone-in pork chops
And a variety of corn.
Be inspired.
This is your one chance to save yourself.
You two can stay here.
The rest of your teammates,
You can head on over to the elevator.
[overlapping chatter]
- I got it. Thank you, thank you.
♪ ♪
Let's go. Cook your best dish.
- 30 minutes to keep yourself in the competition
And make sure you don't send
Your entire team down to the basement.
Ok? Good luck.
- Thank you. - Thank you, chef.
- All right, both of you, I'll be with you in the kitchen,
And gordon and nyesha will join us after you're done cooking.
Off to the elevators, and I'll see you shortly.
- Come on, cassie. Come on, let's go.
- Come on, alex, you got this.
♪ ♪
- [sighs]
Good luck.
- Good luck. - Same to you.
- I'm ready to fight for my place.
I don't like to lose.
I mean, I know nobody likes to lose,
But I, like, really don't like to lose.
[exciting music]
[all cheering]
♪ ♪
- You got this. You got this. - You got it.
- Let's go.
- You got this. - Strength in numbers, baby.
- You got this. - Strength in numbers.
- The last place that I wanna be
Right now is this elimination.
I do not wanna go home.
[indistinct chatter]
- Ok, how we going, everyone?
You doing good?
Cassie, how are you feeling?
- Confident, chef. - I like to hear it.
I like to hear it. Dr. Alex, is this like
When you're heading into surgery?
- Similar feeling.
I am an intensive care unit doctor.
Pressure is a part of my daily life.
Heartbeat's still at 60.
Ready to go.
Ready to cook.
- Ok, remember, we have to do 30 minutes
To cook a corn-inspired dish.
You want that corn to be featured, ok?
- Yes, chef. - Don't hold anything back.
- Yes, chef. - Yes, chef.
- My dad growing up was always
So excited about corn.
Any time we had corn in the house,
And he came home to eat,
He would say corn, corn, corn!
So no doubt about it,
I'm bringing my dad with me into this challenge.
- When the light's green, you can go.
♪ ♪
It's go time.
Let's go, alex.
Let's go, cassie.
You got 30 minutes.
All right, remember, the platform's not
Going anywhere, ok?
Let's start cooking something.
Ok? - Yes, chef.
- All right, alex, what do we got going on over here?
- Corn three ways, chef. - All right.
- I'm gonna roast one of these corns right over there,
Sauté a little bit of corn, make cream of corn.
- Ok. - And then blend that,
And then I'm gonna do succotash.
- I've never even heard of a succotash.
I'm like, what is a succo-who?
Alex looks confident.
We got this in the bag.
Like, he's not going home today.
- All right, cassie, what are we thinking about here?
- What I'm gonna do is I'm gonna create
A shallot corn butter... - Ok.
- So I can finish a veggie in there.
- Right. Ok.
I like that. I like that.
- I know cassie's gonna crush this.
So I am not concerned,
But also, a little bit concerned.
- Five minutes are gone.
Five minutes are gone. - That's ok.
- Cassie, what are we doing with the pork?
- Hopefully, there's some cornmeal on there.
- Right. - I'm gonna dredge it
And I'm gonna fry it.
I need to do what I do best,
Which is just cook and have fun with it.
I know that once I'm tense, once I put pressure on myself,
That's when I crack.
[all cheering]
- That's what I'm talking about.
When you're seasoning, when you're seasoning,
You're seasoning the meat, right?
Go ahead. There you go. - We got salt bae over here.
- Let's go.
Alex, how are you gonna cook the pork?
- The pork I'm gonna pan sear. - You're gonna pan sear it?
- Yeah, right now. - Ok, but it's seasoned, yeah?
- Yes, sir. $250,000
And a one-year mentorship is on the line.
- Is it sizzling? - You got a loud sizzle?
- You should hear that. I don't hear that.
Pull that out. It's not ready to go.
- This was not what I was looking for.
I need a nice sear in that cast-iron pan.
- It's not hot enough.
No, it's not hot enough.
All: Take it off, take it off.
- [bleep] - it's gotta get hot.
- What am I doing right now?
Come on.
- Yeah, it's sizzling. It's sizzling.
- There we go. [overlapping chatter]
- Let's go, baby!
- That's the cooking gods, baby.
- I do have grace under pressure,
And I do enjoy pressure.
- That is money, buddy. - Mm-hmm.
- Beautiful. - Take it off.
- We're done, done.
- Done. Done. - Turn it off.
- I frickin' love him.
- I'm gonna make a purple cauliflower puree
With some corn in it as well.
- You're gonna put purple cauliflower in the cream,
And it's gonna turn gray.
I mean, you do what you wanna do, right,
But it's a corn challenge.
Ten minutes to go.
- Make sure you taste as you go.
[tense music]
- Money! [all cheering]
- That's the face.
- You know, I feel quite calm.
I'm doing my game.
And the truth is, I'm the same way in the hospital.
- Should I add some cauli-- this to this?
- But like, last second, last second.
Keep the corn fresh and vibrant, right?
- You're doing great, man. - Come on.
- Let's go, baby.
- Ok, we're coming down to the last.
One minute left. One minute left.
- That's nice.
- Don't put too much. Don't put too much.
- Salt and pepper.
- Let's move. Let's move.
- Take the bacon off!
It's a corn challenge!
Let the corn shine.
[all cheering]
- That's right, that's right, that's right!
- Have you tasted everything? Ok.
Alex, have you tasted everything?
- I've tasted everything, chef. - Ok.
- Yes, chef.
- This is a dish that's gonna
Save your life in this competition.
Five, four, three, two, one.
Stop cooking.
[all cheering]
- You killed it. You killed it.
- You killed it, [bleep]. You [bleep].
- My heart and soul was on that dish.
I probably got a little bit corn excited.
I think my dad is still in the back of my head
Screaming, "corn, corn, corn!"
♪ ♪
- Nyesha, gordon, this was intense.
I mean, this morning, we were talking about cooking
With heart and soul, and both of these chefs
Truly cooked with heart and soul.
Let's start with the pan roasted pork chop
And corn four ways.
- So four ways, creamed, succotash--
- Creamed, succotash, charred corn, baby corn salad.
- Whoever cooked this, there's a great sear
On that pork chop.
All the fat's rendered down nicely.
- Wow. - The cook is beautiful.
- It's gorgeous.
- The seasoning on the pork, delicious.
Sadly, for me, this corn with the cream is under-seasoned.
- For me, I see two different concepts at play on one plate,
Succotash and creamed corn.
Maybe choose one lane and just really execute
That one vision really well.
- The second dish, we have a cornmeal-crusted
Pan roasted pork chop with a brown butter corn puree
And a corn and lime salad,
As well as some purple cauliflower.
- Great use of corn.
- Wow.
- I'm not a pork chop master.
I don't cook pork chop a lot,
So I'm kind of nervous.
- That juice on there is dripping.
- Nailed it. - Survey says, yes.
- It's perfect. - Nailed it.
- Amazing echoing of flavors happening.
Beautiful textures coming off of fresh corn
And also pureed corn.
The garnish itself is a little bit overkill.
Don't need it.
- I love the actual cream corn underneath.
That purple cauliflower, it just needed a little bit lift.
It's watery, so it just needs seasoning.
But the pork is nailed.
So it's a tough one.
Two good dishes.
I could be seconds away
From sending my own chef home tonight,
Which would be a disaster.
- It's the tough part of the job now.
Nyesha, which dish would you eliminate?
♪ ♪
- I think one dish drove home the theme of this,
To elevate corn in a few ways.
But which dish would I eliminate?
The pork chop with the succotash
Is the dish I'm eliminating tonight.
- Gordon?
- Corn is in abundance across both plates,
But one of these dishes is just too overcomplicated.
I'm going to eliminate the pork chop...
♪ ♪
With the succotash.
- Unfortunately, the pork with the succotash
Was cooked by alex.
- Oh, he's going home.
- No! - [sighs]
- Alex, you will not be our next level chef.
- Ah, this hurts.
I mean, there's no two ways about it.
I mean, don't let anybody tell you any different.
And as jovial and energetic as I am,
I'm a competitive sob.
- Alex, what I saw from you today,
You have that doctor's touch, for sure.
- Thank you. - It's commendable.
It takes a lot of guts
To come on "next level chef" and compete.
He put himself to the test here.
He willingly came to these kitchens
To put food in front of richard blais,
Gordon ramsay, and myself
Because he loves it.
That's beautiful.
- I leave nothing behind.
This is one of the greatest memories of my lifetime.
And I'm just-- I'm so grateful for all of it.
You gotta be crazy not to wanna do this.
- Cassie, congratulations.
How are you feeling? - Thank you so much, chef.
I'm just really happy to not let you down.
I have so many emotions.
I don't know what to feel, but all I know is,
Can't keep a bad bitch down too long.
- Now, this next challenge may seem simple,
But it's the most difficult on the planet to pull off.
Good night.
All: Night, chef.
- Good job, cassie. - Delicious plate.
♪ ♪
- Next time on "next level chef"...
- Hello, beautiful!
- Today, you'll all be creating
A next-level sandwich.
- What is a next-level sandwich?
I don't know.
- I feel a little complacency 'cause it's sandwiches.
There's not a lot of time.
- I'm just screwing this all up.
- What am I doing? What am I doing?
- If you a shark, you gonna swim.
If you a fish, you gonna get ate.
And I'm a shark.
- Come on, guys, I wanna win this.
I wanna win, come on!
- Come on, platform is here!
- Ah!
- [bleep]