Tonight on Chopped, Ted Allen introduces the four chefs that will be competing for $10,000 and the title of “Chopped Champion.” The Chefs must use gummy candy and corned beef in their appetizers, a sweet and sour ingredient in their entrée and almond flour in their desserts.

The judges for tonight’s competition are as follows;

• Aaron Sanchez
• Amanda Freitag
• Maneet Chauhan

The Chefs competing for the title and $10,000 tonight are as follows;

• Chef Tony Kang – N.Y.C
• Chef Brian Howard – Las Vegas
• Chef Jesse Kramer – N.Y.C.
• Chef Cory Bahr - Louisiana

Ted Allen told the Chefs that they will be judged on Creativity, Taste and Presentation and they must use all of the ingredients in the basket in some way.

APPETIZER ROUND
He tells them that they have 20 minutes to complete the round and has them open their baskets which includes the following ingredients;

• Corned Beef
• Gummy Fried Eggs
• Baby Corn
• Black Olives

After the Chefs completed their dishes they were presented to the Judges and given the following critiques;

Chef Tony prepared Smoked Corned Beef w/ Sweet & Sour Corn Sauce. The judges said his corned beef was a little tough. They said he was creative and the flavors were great and his presentation was spot on.

Chef Brian prepared Corned Beef Taco w/ Tabbouleh Salsa. The judges said they enjoyed his flavors he incorporated into his dish but his corned beef was also tough.

Chef Jesse prepared Corned Beef Salad w/ Gummy Egg Vinaigrette. The judges said he did the best job with the corned beef and gummy egg and the corn was great but he showed no creativity.

Chef Cory prepared Pan Fried Corned Beef w/ Vegetable Hash. The judges said his presentation was excellent. They said his corned beef was tough and the white truffle oil did not go with the dish.

After deliberation the judges chopped Chef Jesse for too much salad and not enough basket components and no creativity.

ENTREE ROUND
Ted Allen told the Chefs they have 30 minutes to complete the round and has them open their baskets which includes the following ingredients;

• Striped Bass
• Jerusalem Artichokes
• Cream Of Mushroom Soup
• Sour Lemon Candy

After the Chefs completed their dishes they were presented to the Judges and given the following critiques;

Chef Tony prepared Pan Fried Bass w/ Mushroom Fritter and Arugala Puree. The judges said he needed another texture element but his presentation was beautiful and his dish was creative. They said his lemon sauce was too acidic.

Chef Brian prepared Pan Fried Bass w/ Sun Chokes 3 Ways. The judges said they liked how he prepared the artichokes in three different manners but his fish was under cooked. They liked his presentation.

Chef Cory prepared Seared Bass w/ Artichoke Puree and Vietnamese Salad. The judges said his fish was cooked very good and his salad was great but just breaking up the lemon candy and sprinkling it on the dish did not transform the candy. They did not like the truffle oil on his dish.

After deliberation the judges chopped Chef Brian for under cooked fish.

DESSERT ROUND
Ted Allen told the Chefs they have 30 minutes to complete the round and has them open their baskets which includes the following ingredients;

• Spearmint Candy
• Knodel (dehydrated potato dumpling)
• Almond Flour
• Raisins on the vine

After the Chefs completed their dishes they were presented to the Judges and given the following critiques;

Chef Cory prepared Grandma’s Bread Pudding w/ Mint Julep Sauce. The judges said the bread pudding was delicious but slightly under cooked. They liked the mint julep sauce.

Chef Tony prepared Almond Chocolate Cookies w/ Spearmint Powder and Knodel Gelato. The judges thought his dish was too dry because there was not enough gelato on the plate but loved the flavors and spices he used.

After careful deliberation and a look at all of the courses they chopped Chef Tony and awarded Chef Cory the $10,000 and title of “Chopped Champion.”

images courtesy of foodnetwork.com