Chopped on FoodTV *all episodes*

[sushikitten]

Anyone else watching? I think there have only been two episodes thus far, and we've enjoyed both (even though the chef we wanted to win, didn't).

Of course, it's a basic ripoff of Iron Chef, what with the surprise ingredients and timed cooking, but I do like that each course has different surprise ingredients (anywhere from 3-5 for each segment) and that someone gets kicked off after each course.

[jsmeeker]

Yeah.. It uses the very traditional "mystery basket" challenge. Haven't seen an episode yet, but I am told it plays out like the Top Chef Christmas special from 2007. (where someone gets booted as they progess through courses)

[mrmike]

I'm liking it so far. It's not enough of a ripoff of either Top Chef or Iron Chef to annoy me and the pacing is pretty good. I could do without the faux dramatic pause before the reveal of each "chop-ee", but other than that it's not bad.

[TAsunder]

Better than expected. Worth keeping around as DVR filler for now. The best part is the detailed judge comments. If they were random celebs like are so often present on Iron chef, it wouldn't be as enjoyable.

[MikeMar]

Yeah it's a decent show, 30 min to make some of these things is TIGHT, so that is interesting to see

[Aniketos]

I found it interesting that in the first episode, they had a guy who applied to be on Top Chef New York (I recognized him as one of the chefs that didn't make it that went to critique the judges the one episode). When I was reading about this show online before it came out apparently the same guy was on Rocko DiSpirito's the Restaurant (which I never saw.)

He was on the first episode and was eliminated in the second round, think his 15 minutes are up yet?

[moot]

I've caught one episode. Felt like Food Network Challenge meets Iron Chef. I've already got enough Food Network filler on my TiVo, though, so I doubt I'll be season passing it.

[justen_m]

I've watched two episodes now, and I don't know if I'm annoyed or entertained. It seems like every course throws in one ingredient that is really off the wall. None were impossible, but the strange ingredient plus the other three ingredients really limits what one can prepare. I'd also like to occasionally see more time than just 30 minutes per course. Give them an hour and see what the can come up with.

One thing I notice is that the contestants tend to use fewer pantry items than I'd expect, but I think the time limit plays a bit role, and the pantry doesn't seem particularly well-stocked.

I do like the idea of four surprise ingredients, and treat it as a play-at-home game to see what I would come up with. Usually one or two of the contestants ends up making what I would for the first two rounds. For desserts, they usually come up with something quite a bit better than me.

[pmyers]

I'm liking the show. I too try to think of what I would come up with using the ingredients.

[Craigbob]

Ted Allan took this over Top Chef? He is totally wasted here. He could just as easily be replaced by a faceless narrator.

At least have him judge the food along with the other judges.

I like the idea of the mystery items, but overall it is a plae imitation of TC.

[sushikitten]

We try to come up with a dish as well!

I can't believe no one used the bran flakes as a coating to deep fry something. Yes, the one used them in the crab cake thingy, but it wasn't the same.

We would love to, one episode, have Ted say "Okay, judges, it's your turn to whip something up with those same ingredients. You have 30 minutes. GO!" And then have the contestants judge them. I am sure their dishes wouldn't be perfect, either.

I like guessing which chef is going to win from their little personal blurbs at the beginning... I'm 3 for 4 right now.

[Frylock]

Its not the best show, but its better than Ted's other Food Science show, which is almost a direct rip-off of Mythbusters, only focusing on food.

I like it. It moved along at a quick enough pace that its with watching again.

[Queue]

I've just started watching this. Very fun show. I've never watched Top Chef so I don't have a comparison.

And like others I enjoy trying to decide what I would make with the ingredients.

[Frylock]

I gave up on this after a while, mostly due to the judges becoming very annoying.

[WhiskeyTango]

I gave up on this after a while, mostly due to the judges becoming very annoying.

I agree but I still watch. I think it was Scott Conant was very critical of one chef because the dish had red onions and he hates red onions. They just seem too pretentious.

If you watch enough episodes it becomes obvious what they will do with certain types of ingredients. Any weird fruit is used for a sauce/salad/chutney. Any type of bread or cracker becomes a crust/breading.

[TAsunder]

I agree but I still watch. I think it was Scott Conant was very critical of one chef because the dish had red onions and he hates red onions. They just seem too pretentious.

If you watch enough episodes it becomes obvious what they will do with certain types of ingredients. Any weird fruit is used for a sauce/salad/chutney. Any type of bread or cracker becomes a crust/breading.

He hates raw red onions... it remains to be seen what he'd think of red onions actually treated in any way to reduce their strength. Which is what a lot of chefs do / recommend to do.

[magaggie]

If you watch enough episodes it becomes obvious what they will do with certain types of ingredients. Any weird fruit is used for a sauce/salad/chutney. Any type of bread or cracker becomes a crust/breading.
Don't forget french toast for the dessert round :)

[Zevida]

I am addicted to Chopped. This is basically the first food show I've ever watched. I love the concept, the host, the pacing and the format. I am pretty good at picking who I think will win.

I do hate that they overuse fruit in the baskets, I don't like sweet in my savory dishes.

I thought the recent chopped champions series they did recently was weird. Instead of doing four shows with 16 champions them having the winners face off, they had them continue through to face three new people. Just an odd set up.

I still can't get enough.

[jradosh]

Yeah, Handan and I love (and are addicted to) Chopped.

One recent episode we watched had the French and the Irish chefs. Seemed to us that the ingredients they picked clearly favored the French guy. Anyone else think that?

[betts4]

I love this show but always forget when it is on. I watched one last night and one of the main ingredients was celery. It was interesting to see what they did with that.

[sushikitten]

I love this show but always forget when it is on. I watched one last night and one of the main ingredients was celery. It was interesting to see what they did with that.

Um, set a season pass? :p

[betts4]

Um, set a season pass? :p

Yeah I know.... :rolleyes: I need to organize my two tivo's for a bit better usage.

[d-dub]

I always like trying to predict the contents of the mystery basket before they open it:

"Your basket contains... spoiled milk, poisonous mushrooms, and asphalt."

Honestly, I'd like it better if they used difficult ingredients or combinations, and dropped some of the stupid ingredients. Judge: "Wonderful presentation, but this is too sweet!" Chef: "Ummm.... you gave me Twizzlers to cook with."

[jradosh]

I wish they didn't chop-edit the critique section of the show so much. The way the cut some of the comments makes the judges sound robotic (or drunk or something).

[betts4]

I always like trying to predict the contents of the mystery basket before they open it:

"Your basket contains... spoiled milk, poisonous mushrooms, and asphalt."

Honestly, I'd like it better if they used difficult ingredients or combinations, and dropped some of the stupid ingredients. Judge: "Wonderful presentation, but this is too sweet!" Chef: "Ummm.... you gave me Twizzlers to cook with."

I do like that they will have in the baskets things that the Chefs have not heard of before or know how to use.

[magaggie]

At the beginning of every episode, my husband and I carefully watch the little intro reels for each chef, then "pick a horse." It adds an aspect of competition (for us) to the show :)

I had a pretty serious 4 week losing streak, but won the last round!

[sharkster]

I always like trying to predict the contents of the mystery basket before they open it:

"Your basket contains... spoiled milk, poisonous mushrooms, and asphalt."

Honestly, I'd like it better if they used difficult ingredients or combinations, and dropped some of the stupid ingredients. Judge: "Wonderful presentation, but this is too sweet!" Chef: "Ummm.... you gave me Twizzlers to cook with."

LMAO - Now I might like to watch YOUR version, although I sure wouldn't want to be a judge.

I've been watching since the beginning but I must say - I am finding myself a bit bored with the show at this point.

[d-dub]

LMAO - Now I might like to watch YOUR version, although I sure wouldn't want to be a judge.

I've been watching since the beginning but I must say - I am finding myself a bit bored with the show at this point.

You mean you wouldn't want to eat a dessert made from bird phlegm, dirt and Altoids?

[Mr Flippant]

One recent episode we watched had the French and the Irish chefs. Seemed to us that the ingredients they picked clearly favored the French guy. Anyone else think that?I think all those chefs work/live in the UK. The one chef just happens to specialize in french cuisine. Which is of course an advantage in this show as the French will cook/eat just about anything. US southern cooks have a simliar advantage. Chefs from Louisiana are shoe-ins to win everytime. :D

[nickels]

I am not positive, but I think that Iron Chef contestants are given a list of the possibilities that the item could be before they get there so it isn't a total surprise when they announce the "secret" ingredient. In Chopped, it seems to me like they have no idea at all what is in those baskets and have to come up with something immediately.

According to Wikipedia:
Just as with the original Iron Chef, the "secret" ingredient is not truly secret. Both the competitor and the Iron Chef are given a list of three to five ingredients before the battle, of which one will be the secret ingredient.

That makes Chopped more impressive to me then IC.

[balboa dave]

Chopped Champions starts back up this week. It requires a separate Season Pass from Choppped if you don't have one already. Since it features all the winning cheftestants from this seasons's Chopped, I figure this thread will work for this show too.

[Mr. Soze]

I love Chopped in all iterations (regular/champion/redemption/allstar). They pile up on the Tivo but I will watch all of them, even reruns. One I watched yesterday had a guy called Malik who had quite the opinion of himself. The jerks are the best, but there was one guy who was SO nice you just wanted him to win.

[jradosh]

Thanks for the heads up... SP set! :up:

[justen_m]

Jeez, it makes me feel old when I am ready to reply to a thread bump to a thread a couple years old, and see I've already posted to it. I set up my SP, too. I love this show. The play-along-at-home aspect is what makes it a winner for me. I've seen every episode.

I'm most amazed at the chefs who make great dishes when they are allergic to some of the ingredients in the basket and can't taste what they are cooking. Especially the guy fairly recently alergic to an ingredient in both of the first two baskets.

[sushikitten]

We just watched about 6 eps today (we have a huge backlog) and I just have to say that 75% of the chefs were just arrogant d-bags that almost made me want to stop watching the show.

Of course, I think it was exacerbated by A) watching so many eps in one day and B) having watched the British Invasion ep first where all the chefs were so NOT d-baggy and were genuinely nice to each other. Quite the 180 from how all the US chefs react to one another.

[betts4]

We just watched about 6 eps today (we have a huge backlog) and I just have to say that 75% of the chefs were just arrogant d-bags that almost made me want to stop watching the show.

Of course, I think it was exacerbated by A) watching so many eps in one day and B) having watched the British Invasion ep first where all the chefs were so NOT d-baggy and were genuinely nice to each other. Quite the 180 from how all the US chefs react to one another.

I was watching a few of those today too. I loved the ones where they had to grill stuff and couldn't use the stove. :up:

[Zevida]

Sometimes I get really mad when the jerk-face wins. I always want them to go down in flames. One of the jerk-faces who came back on Champions recently thankfully did not win that one.

[Cragmyre]

Jeez, it makes me feel old when I am ready to reply to a thread bump to a thread a couple years old, and see I've already posted to it. I set up my SP, too. I love this show. The play-along-at-home aspect is what makes it a winner for me. I've seen every episode.

I'm most amazed at the chefs who make great dishes when they are allergic to some of the ingredients in the basket and can't taste what they are cooking. Especially the guy fairly recently alergic to an ingredient in both of the first two baskets.

Was this the guy that was allergic to Eggplant? If so, that is William, and he is currently on Hell's Kitchen ( called Will there )

[sharkster]

Sometimes I get really mad when the jerk-face wins. I always want them to go down in flames. One of the jerk-faces who came back on Champions recently thankfully did not win that one.

I'm with you on that! Even if the jerkwad is a better cook I still want him/her gone. It just irks me to see somebody who is supremely arrogant, and/or treats everybody else like crap, win. That sends out the message, to me anyway, that being an asshat pays. It shouldn't.

[d-dub]

I'm with you on that! Even if the jerkwad is a better cook I still want him/her gone. It just irks me to see somebody who is supremely arrogant, and/or treats everybody else like crap, win. That sends out the message, to me anyway, that being an asshat pays. It shouldn't.

In the world of reality TV, jerkwads and asshats are golden.

[sharkster]

In the world of reality TV, jerkwads and asshats are golden.

Yeah, I know but still...

I guess I'm just not in their targeted audience. :o I'm a 'bottom line', 'get to the point' kinda girl. I guess I'd make a pretty boring show as I don't dig the drama and jerky people are profoundly unappealing to me. But I still watch! :D

[WhiskeyTango]

There seems to be a large number of chefs who rank pretty high on the dooshey scale. I wonder if the profession attracts those type of people or if the profession makes those type of people.

[snowjay]

Anyone catch the episode last night where Geoffrey told one of the contestants she disrespected the food and kitchen when she brushed some peelings on the floor in the name of time. She just went back at him and said she was just playing the game. Geoffrey got all offended and said "This isn't a game, it's a serious cooking competition." :rolleyes:

[Zevida]

The judges seem to pick and choose when they want to harp on things.

I remember one episode a chef cut himself, put a glove on, then used his gloved hand to stir something in a pan. The chef refused to eat his food because of the change of blood getting in the food - he should have used a stirrer they said. I watched an episode recently that was very similar where a chef cut his hand, had a glove on, then used the gloved hand to plate all his food. Same situation where the bloodied hand with glove was touching the food, but they had no problem eating that plate. Maybe it is other factors we don't see in the way the episode is cut.

I couldn't believe an episode I watched last night where two chefs put raw red onions in their appetizer, which Scott hates and stated that he hates, and then both of them again put raw red onions in the main course! Um - play to the audience people!

[sushikitten]

I hear you on the blood thing. There has to be more that we don't see. I think if it's a deal killer for them, the rule should be that they MUST stop to get it bandaged.

[cheerdude]

I love it when Scott is one of the judges, because you can almost be sure that red onions are going to be either a) an ingredient or b) used, "incorrectly", by a chef.

[justen_m]

I like when Aaron Sanchez is a judge, because he is the only one that likes spicy food. All the others seem to have palates of 2-year-olds. Jeffery Zacharian, in particular, can't seem to take any heat in his food, and harps on in constantly. Jeffery seems as afraid of spicy food as Scott does of raw red onions.

[cheerdude]

Wonder if anyone has tried to cook/plate a specific dish for a specific judge ... which would probably fail miserably since, I would assume, that the dishes are randomly presented.

[TAsunder]

The episode where they refused to it it because of the blood involved a much more "bloody" wound than is typical on chopped. Plus, he was doing a LOT of things with the hand including vigorous stirring, as I recall.

[d-dub]

There seems to be a large number of chefs who rank pretty high on the dooshey scale. I wonder if the profession attracts those type of people or if the profession makes those type of people.

Chefs (true Chefs, anyway) are to some extent artists who have to put themselves out there in order to keep creating new and creative dishes. At the same time, they are in charge of running a commercial kitchen, and the more popular their food, the more stress there will be because the restaurant will always be busy.

That's not a job for a shrinking violet or someone who doesn't posses a giid dose of self confidence. It's not surprising that top Chefs are frequently over the top in terms of personality, and they're not used to being questioned or taking crap from anyone. And, like any artist, they can be sensitive to criticism.

Obviously, there are many Chefs who are not dooshbags, but it's not surprising that many are.

[d-dub]

The judges seem to pick and choose when they want to harp on things.

I remember one episode a chef cut himself, put a glove on, then used his gloved hand to stir something in a pan. The chef refused to eat his food because of the change of blood getting in the food - he should have used a stirrer they said. I watched an episode recently that was very similar where a chef cut his hand, had a glove on, then used the gloved hand to plate all his food. Same situation where the bloodied hand with glove was touching the food, but they had no problem eating that plate. Maybe it is other factors we don't see in the way the episode is cut.

I couldn't believe an episode I watched last night where two chefs put raw red onions in their appetizer, which Scott hates and stated that he hates, and then both of them again put raw red onions in the main course! Um - play to the audience people!

In my opinion, Scott is being a prima donna when he gets pissy about onions. He's a professional chef judging a cooking competition... he should be able to ignore his personal likes and dislikes of ingredients, and judge the food as presented.

[d-dub]

I like when Aaron Sanchez is a judge, because he is the only one that likes spicy food. All the others seem to have palates of 2-year-olds. Jeffery Zacharian, in particular, can't seem to take any heat in his food, and harps on in constantly. Jeffery seems as afraid of spicy food as Scott does of raw red onions.

The funny thing is that when he was on the "race" contest show teamed with another chef, the other guy always did better at eating the spicy dishes they were challenged with.

[sharkster]

I love it when Scott is one of the judges, because you can almost be sure that red onions are going to be either a) an ingredient or b) used, "incorrectly", by a chef.

Yeah, raw red onions - the apparent bane of his existence. I'm a very picky eater so, even if I were asked, I would not choose to be a judge. Perhaps he should consider the same course (ha!) of action.

[Zevida]

I'm really digging Chopped Champions this time around. I'm glad they fixed the format, I was watching the reruns from the 2009 Chopped Champions and it was weird. Looks like they did one like this one in 2010.

I don't even remember who won #1 and #2 but after watching #3:

I hope Lauren wins the whole thing. I adore her! She is really creative and seems to cook good food. She goes out on a limb without sacrificing taste. I really liked her in the original episode she won and I liked her even more now. Confident without being a cocky jerk, pleasant but tough, and a good chef! Go Lauren!

I looked it up on Wikipedia, I really like Danielle who won #2, but I like Lauren more. They are going to be in a tough battle. I can't remember Wade who won #1 (and I just watched it like a week ago).

[secondclaw]

Concerning the red onions ... I am often curious what would happen if they were part of the mystery basket. Would he still complain ..

[Zevida]

Champions finished!

I am so glad it came down to Lauren and Danielle. I like both of them a lot. I knew that Lauren needed a killer dessert to overtake Danielle's lead but unfortunately her risk did not pay off. I wanted Lauren to win but Danielle deserved it.

[Mr. Soze]

All in all a good result. I was pulling for Lauren also, but I would actually have been OK with any of the last 4 winning.

[jradosh]

All in all a good result. I was pulling for Lauren also, but I would actually have been OK with any of the last 4 winning.

I would have been happy with 3 of the 4. That egotistical cowboy with his "I'm making dessert with one of those women, guaranteed" attitude really annoyed me. :rolleyes:

[Mr. Soze]

I would have been happy with 3 of the 4. That egotistical cowboy with his "I'm making dessert with one of those women, guaranteed" attitude really annoyed me. :rolleyes:I get that - he was #4 of 4 for me also. I thought Lauren was absolutely drop dead gorgeous, so that may have affected me rating her #1 also. ;)

[secondclaw]

Both of them deserved to be in the final round. I actually thought/hoped that Lauren would win ... to me the essence of Chopped is primarily in doing something original / unique with given ingredients and the judges in the past somewhat punished those playing it safe. But oh well ... Danielle deserved to win also ...

[justen_m]

They didn't get too many zany ingredients in the finale. For the app round, I suppose boiled peanuts were the weird thing. I've never seen 'em. Do people normally eat the shells? It seems like they would be very fibrous even after long boiling.

The whole suckling pig in the entree round was one of the best ingredients I've seen.

In the dessert round, everything was applicable to desserts. The bread flour would make a tougher cake than cake flour, and the eggs are something I've never heard of, but still. As they mentioned, sugar, flour, milk, and eggs - the basis for many desserts.

I really liked Lauren's creativity, but historically in Chopped, they don't give enough credit for originality, IMO.

[secondclaw]

They didn't get too many zany ingredients in the finale. For the app round, I suppose boiled peanuts were the weird thing. I've never seen 'em. Do people normally eat the shells? It seems like they would be very fibrous even after long boiling.


Boiled peanuts are popular in the South ... I like them - especially the spicy ones, but I would never have thought to try the shell. I saw an episode of Good Eats where Alton mentioned eating sunflower seeds still in shell ... Nuts ...

[Zevida]

I really liked Lauren's creativity, but historically in Chopped, they don't give enough credit for originality, IMO.

I actually think the judges are pretty hard on chefs who don't think out of the box. However, the food still needs to taste good. On the first two shows Lauren was on, her food was original and delicious. It seems like in the finale her creative risks did not pay off and while her food was original the taste wasn't there.

[cheerdude]

But the thing about Chopped is that, while you are judged on the 1st & 2nd rounds individually, in the final round, you are judged on your overall effort.

I've seen episodes where one chef seemed to have won the dessert round, but lose the overall prize.