I like the Australian version much better than the American version, which my wife vastly prefers.
It seems to me that the Australian version is more about the food, while the American version places more emphasis on personality. (I love to cook, and my wife loves to watch just about any flavour of TV elimination game.)
The Aussie version inspires me to try new things - (I’d never heard of pavlova, but I understand why it’s so-called.) I didn’t find it terribly inspiring to watch each contestant try to name the most rudimentary ingredients in chili. (“Beans” was an acceptable answer? Really?) The fecking pot didn’t even have to be there. It was painful to watch them carry on like the last bit was suspenseful - I told my wife “Nobody has said ‘cumin’ yet, and you know it’s in there.” It was like watching the Special Ed version of *Jeopardy *. Zzzzzzz.
My wife doesn’t find the personalities in the Australian version interesting, though – and she complains that it’s too long (because there isn’t all the space omitted for excessive advertising.) Too bad; I enjoy it almost as much as The F Word or Cook-a-long Live.
The guy in charge of the blue team – was it Jake? – is an utter idiot:
The truckers are voting for the other team’s burger.
Ramsay brings you a sample of the prefered burger for you to taste.
Heavy, heavy – time to adjust your menu, right?
Nope. So what if they are the ones judging you? What the hell do they know? Why should you care for their plebian opinions? Stubbornly declare “our burger is better” and refuse to change a thing as your ships sails off the end of the world.
Here you go: Sheetal. She actually gives some great inside insight into the competition. I’m actually surprised that they let her blog so much and actually post in advance of the show. Also, I LIKE Slim. I know that Whitney has the “young but talented” slot all sewn up, but Slim is the same age and nobody ever mentions that’s she’s young.
Whew! Slim was such a waste of space, and the dish that got booted (and her defense of same) were beyond laughable.
But sorry to see Jake go. At this point, we’re winnowing down quickly so I guess his number was up, but booting half the losing team was harsh and perhaps a little arbitrary. Still, can’t think of anyone who’s conspicuously worse that’s still around (and it was nice to finally see Sheetal get a little attention, though doing the crab in was genuinely hard for her). I’m sure she must’ve done other meat dishes while there, no? She said she grew up in a vegetarian household but didn’t say if she was still one or not.
For a Hindu, there’s a big difference between cooking something someone else has killed and butchered, and actually taking a life yourself. I give her great credit for not taking him up on his offer to drop it in the water for her. I was also very surprised by how much he seemed to care.
To my way of thinking, if I pay someone else to kill/butcher for me, I am still causing the death; so I am just as squeamish about buying/handling chicken parts as I am about grabbing a hatchet and heading to the barnyard. But obviously it is very different in her morality.
I hated to see Jake go, but he deserved it. He was hard-headed and stupid about the challenge, and his team should have checked him. I dislike Sharone, but he immediately saw the problems and adjusted accordingly, which is what you need in a chef running a kitchen. Many a restaurant has gone down because the chef/owner “refused to compromise.” Sometimes you have to cook what people will buy.
Glad to see Whitney win, and to win with “rustic” cuisine. That must have been a hell of a chicken breast. I’ve done a million of those country fried chicken breasts. They’re great comfort food. I love them, but they’re not exactly rocket science. Hers must have been outstanding. She has amazing intensity and focus for being so young. Her lack of professional experience showed for a moment when she dropped her first chicken steak on the floor, though. A seasoned line cook doesn’t miss a beat when that happens, and just immediately starts another one (maybe they’ll throw in a “fuck me,” or something, but they know to just start another one ASAP). It took her a few seconds to get un-flustered. No criticisms other than that. Her technique looks flawless, and her focus, food intelligence and palate appear to be exceptional.
That Dave guy was kind of a douche. I felt a tiny bit sorry for him when he cried, though. Still, he should have known better than try to cook Wellington for Gordon fucking Ramsey. That’s like trying to impress Mariano Rivera with your split fastball.
They made the right call with regard to the cookbook, and I’m positive they took that into account. I can far more readily imagine myself making something out of Whitney’s cookbook than David’s.
With regards to Whitney’s poise regarding the dropped chicken breast, there’s a difference between that and a restaurant situation. In a restaurant, that just means someone’s dinner will be a few minutes late (if they even notice it). She had 7 minutes and that’s it to make another entree, something I would have previously considered impossible.
Her poise was actually pretty good. Her ability to focus under pressure was extraordinary. I just think if she’d had professional experience we would have seen the automatic, reflexive rebooting of the dish that professional cooks become programmed to do. She might have save herself a little more time. I believe she had ten minutes left when she booted the first chicken breast, and seven left when she got the next one down. That’s three minutes that a pro would not have lost.
It’s a very slight criticism. I don’t even really mean it as a criticism, just an observation. Her composure was actually pretty amazing over all.
I’m so glad Whitney won, especially against David. It was like sweetness incarnate vs douche sandwich. I was a little surprised that Whitney beat Lee, though. I thought he was gonna go the distance once Sharone hit the bricks.
Hells Kitchen is back again next week already, wow, does Gordon even sleep anymore?
