# Iron Chef America question **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 17, 2005, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-america-question/326646 "2005-10-17T20:22:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2005, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-america-question/326646/1 "2005-10-17T20:22:47Z")
Okay, I know I’m a Johnny-come-lately to the Iron Chef genre, but I’ve caught a few episodes of ICA in the last few weeks and I’m hooked. Asparagus ice cream! Crawfish coffee! I have a question about the show’s logistics. I have a hard time swallowing (heh) that the chefs are given a surpise secret ingredient, and in the time it takes for a commercial break they have planned 5 gourmet dishes _and_ successfully communicated their plans to their staff of assistant chefs. Once the secret ingredient is revealed ("… velveeta!"), how long do the chefs have before the 1-hr clock starts ticking? ---
**Author:** ![Jpeg\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/4bbf92/32.png) [@Jpeg\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jpeg_Jones)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2005, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-america-question/326646/2 "2005-10-17T20:51:38Z")
I believe the contestants are informed before the show about maybe three _possible_ secret ingredients. It’s not a total surprise, in other words. I think they start in as soon as the ingredient is revealed. ---
**Author:** ![Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/f19dbf/32.png) [@Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Only_Mostly_Dead)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2005, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-america-question/326646/3 "2005-10-17T20:54:41Z")
I’m probably going to be beaten to the punch looking for cites: > [@\[http://msnbc.msn.com/id/8717337/](#): > > ([http://msnbc.msn.com/id/8717337/](http://msnbc.msn.com/id/8717337/)) ]A Food Network spokesperson tells us that the chefs are given a list of five ingredients in advance, knowing only that the secret ingredient will be taken from that list. We’re told that this was the practice on the original “Iron Chef” as well as “Iron Chef America.” I know there are more, better, “official” cites, to include the [Official Book](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0425194078/qid=1129582358/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-9641812-8914469?v=glance&s=books&n=507846). On preview, I was indeed beaten. ---
**Author:** ![Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/f19dbf/32.png) [@Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Only_Mostly_Dead)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2005, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-america-question/326646/4 "2005-10-17T20:56:44Z")
Buggered the coding. [This MSN article](http://msnbc.msn.com/id/8717337/) > [@](#): > > A Food Network spokesperson tells us that the chefs are given a list of five ingredients in advance, knowing only that the secret ingredient will be taken from that list. We’re told that this was the practice on the original “Iron Chef” as well as “Iron Chef America.” I know there are more, better, “official” cites, to include the [Official Book](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0425194078/qid=1129582358/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-9641812-8914469?v=glance&s=books&n=507846). ---
**Author:** ![Runestar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/74df32/32.png) [@Runestar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Runestar)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2005, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-america-question/326646/5 "2005-10-17T21:01:17Z")
I’m looking forward to an episode where the secret ingredient is Pop Tarts. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2005, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-america-question/326646/6 "2005-10-17T21:06:53Z")
No cites, but I believe that in the Japanese version the chefs had some time (fifteen minutes, perhaps) between the unveiling of the secret ingredient and “Allez Cuisine” to plan a menu and game plan. I’m guessing the American version has a prep period.