Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend (2022) s01e01 Episode Script
Battle Street Food
1
[dramatic music plays]
So, feeling hungry, old friend?
Hungry
for battle!
What a coincidence, because
that's exactly what's on the menu.
[cheering and applause]
Welcome, everyone. I'm Alton Brown
and your long wait is over.
The king of culinary competitions
has returned.
And I'm Kristen Kish. Along with Alton,
we'll be guiding you through
the exciting cooking combat.
Iron Chef is back.
[chef] Ooh-ah!
[Alton] The epicurean experience
started in Japan in 1993.
And here, the tradition continues.
Let's do this, guys.
[chef 1] Come on, girls, come on.
[chef 2] Let's push.
[people exclaim]
[chef 3] Comin' in hot.
[chef 4] Let's go.
[chefs chuckle and exclaim]
[Alton] The challenging chefs,
already at the top of their games,
come to Kitchen Stadium
to prove themselves
against the Iron Chefs,
the greatest gastronomic talents
on the planet.
Hey, what's all that noise over there?
The sound you're gonna hear
in your nightmares!
[Kristen] In this storied kitchen,
fierce battles will be waged,
edible masterpieces will be created,
and new legends will be forged.
-We got a plate.
-[screams excitedly]
[Alton] Each challenger
that steps up to battle
is fighting to earn the most coveted title
ever bestowed in Kitchen Stadium.
They're trying to win that.
[heavenly choral music plays]
[dramatic drumbeats build]
The Golden Knife
that declares to the world
that they are the very first Iron Legend.
Live sturgeon!
Chocolate!
Game birds!
-[chef 1] Get it!
-[chef 2] Whoa!
[Kristen] After a series of hard-fought
head-to-head culinary battles,
only our most successful challenger
will get the opportunity
to take on all five Iron Chefs
Zester, there you go.
[Kristen] in an epic battle royale
with the chance
to be crowned the Iron Legend.
Welcome to Kitchen Stadium.
This isIron Chef.
[cheering and applause]
Every challenger that steps up
to do battle here
is fighting to earn the title
of the very first Iron Legend.
And who will they be battling
for the title?
Our very own Iron Chefs.
Some of the world's most renowned
culinary heavyweights,
handpicked by our distinguished Chairman.
Now, for our first challenger.
He is talented. He is brave.
Please welcome Chef Mason Hereford.
[cheering and applause]
[Alton]Hailing from New Orleans,
he's worked in some
of the finest restaurants in the world,
but he rocketed to fame
with his unconventional sandwiches
which led to his latest eatery
being named the best
new restaurant in America.
[Mason] I don't think
I'm a traditional chef.
I spent a lot of time in fine dining,
a restaurant called Coquette
in New Orleans,
and I was always trying to get those
funny, reminds-me-of-being-a-kid,
gas-station ingredients on the menu.
Didn't always work.
I grew up dreaming
of opening a sandwich shop.
We did it. I own Turkey and the Wolf
and Molly's Rise and Shine in New Orleans.
My cooking style is playful,
occasionally funny.
I love to cook food that's nostalgic.
I like to cook things that remind me
of being a kid.
Chef Hereford, welcome.
What's up? Thanks for having me.
[audience chuckles]
Chef Hereford, do you think
you can withstand the pressure
from one of my Iron Chefs?
Yes. I think I do.
I have five culinary giants
to choose from.
For you, I have picked someone
known throughout the world.
To beat this chef, you'll have to bring
impeccable food!
[Gregorian-chant-style music plays]
Please welcome Iron Chef
Curtis Stone!
[rock music plays]
[cheering and applause]
[Mason] Oh!
[Alton]Originally from
the beaches of Australia,
he now makes culinary waves in Los Angeles
with his award-winning style:
simple, seasonal, and always stunning.
Please welcome Iron Chef Curtis Stone.
[Curtis] I've been cooking my whole life.
I think about virtually nothing but food.
I have restaurants here in the States.
Maude, our little one in Beverly Hills,
we change the menu every single month
and we base it around one ingredient.
Gwen is a butcher shop and a restaurant,
whole-animal butchery,
and then we cook
exclusively over a live fire.
But most importantly,
what we put on that plate
is gonna taste insanely good.
My sous-chefs would describe me
as a lovely guy
who's very carefree and easygoing.
[chuckles]
That's not true.
You're gonna see a very different side
of Curtis Stone in Kitchen Stadium today.
I think the bright lights
are gonna dim the smile.
I'm here to win.
Iron Chef Stone. Welcome.
Thank you very much.
Good luck to you both.
If you are seeking the scrumptious soul
of a cuisine,
you must head to the streets!
[relaxing plucked strings play]
[dramatic drum beat builds]
Oh, wow.
To cook our secret ingredient
lamb!
There is one element
that unifies all food cooked on the street
and that is
fire!
Yes,
all five of your
street-food-inspired dishes
must be kissed by the flame
in a different way.
Chefs, you will have just one hour
to make five fiery lamb
street-food-inspired dishes.
And your first dish
will be due within 30 minutes.
So now,
with an open heart and empty stomach,
I say unto you in the words of my uncle
Allez cuisine!
[Alton] And battle street food is on
here in Kitchen Stadium.
[Mason] Watch it.
[Curtis chuckles]
The challenger, Chef Hereford,
and Iron Chef Stone,
immediately running for the lamb
with their respective teams.
[Mason] So you grab a couple of those.
-[Mason] Three?
-[woman] What else?
I wanna mention we need to utilize fire
in all five courses.
And at the end of the day, the final dish
must involve fire in its presentation.
[Mason] Hearts are over here.
[woman] I'm taking 'em all.
What else we want, brains?
We are mere minutes into the battle
and these chefs have got to serve up
their first dishes
within the first 30 minutes.
Their remaining four dishes
will be judged at the end.
-[Mason] We're good. Let's go.
-Okay.
[Alton] The challenger Chef Hereford
and Iron Chef Curtis Stone
bring down one of those lambs.
These are Dorper Lambs.
It's a hybrid lamb
that was developed in South Africa,
known for its very fast growth.
I think of my mates in Melbourne
that are Greek
and they'd have these wicked barbecues
with something cooked on a spit.
Maybe we spit-roast it.
We gotta get one thing done in 30 minutes.
-Seared tartare.
-Toast the spices, yeah.
The lamb saddle.
Make some sort of raw preparation.
-Kibbeh nayyeh.
-Kibbeh nayyeh.
Hearts, we'll grill really thin.
Something else for the rib eye.
We're the sandwich people.
-We gotta make a sandwich.
-We'll make a sandwich!
I wanna use the toughest pieces.
The shank. Maybe this neck.
And I'll flame grill it. Let's do it.
We're on freakin'Iron Chef!
[women] Whoo!
-We're not drinking yet, fellas.
-Ready?
[Alton] This is going
to be a very interesting battle
given how different these two chefs are.
[Kristen] And of course,
a crucial component to Kitchen Stadium,
our judges.
Let's say hi to our honorable
and discerning palates:
Nilou Motamed,
Andrew Zimmern
and our very special guest,
award-winning food journalist,
the ever-so-charming Francis Lam.
[Alton] Now we can see Iron Chef Stone
immediately starting
to score the neck meat.
Interestingly, most of the lamb
raised in America
goes either to restaurant chefs
or is shipped to other countries,
namely Greece and Ireland, where they eat
a heck of a lot more lamb than we do.
-[Zimmern] Here comes the saw.
-The saw has emerged.
[Curtis] Just like in the butcher shop,
we cook with every single piece of it.
[Kristen] He knows what he's doing.
Growing up in Australia,
he's had plenty of lamb, I'm sure.
[Alton] I'm certain.
The challenger, Chef Hereford,
also breaking down the whole lamb.
Chef Hereford
has classical French training.
Look at how he's butchering that lamb.
There's finesse, technique.
This is lamb belly getting chopped up
to go into the grinder
for our second course.
Add in a little leg meat with that.
Then I'm gonna attack the loins
for that first course.
In Australia, we eat a lot of lamb.
We love it.
It's one of our favorite ingredients.
It's amazing that we got it today.
I'm super stoked.
The challenger, Chef Hereford, it looks
like he's cutting the entire muscle group
from the front rib section
back to the saddle.
I'm getting the loin
and the rib eye off now.
[Kristen] Let's talk about sous-chefs.
When you think of who you trust
to bring in an arena like this,
to help you,
to be your left and right hand
when you are too busy
using your left and right hand,
you have your sous-chefs.
Chef Hereford brought along
the chefs who work with him
at Molly's Rise and Shine, which is
one of his restaurants in New Orleans.
There's sous-chef Liz.
Just gonna, like, blast the spices.
It's gonna be awesome.
[Kristen] And sous-chef Colleen.
She's got some tenderloin pieces there,
uh, and some tomatoes,
onions, and green peppers.
I'm not sure where that's headed.
[Alton] Let's go back
to the Iron Chef side of the world.
He's using the charcoal blower.
You know what it kinda looks like,
is the candle-putter-outer thing.
Yes. It does look
like a very large candle snuffter
which he's using to blow
thebinchōtanJapanese oak charcoal.
This gives you a very clean burn,
very high heat, not a lot of smoke
and it burns evenly
to maintain temperatures.
Okay, so I'm caramelizing this lamb,
'cause I want some color.
I wanna get a beautiful flavor on that.
-How you doing, Osiel?
-Very good, Chef.
[Kristen] On Iron Chef Stone's team,
he brought his chefs from Gwen,
his restaurant and butchery
in Los Angeles.
That's sous-chef Osiel. He's clearly
done this kind of knife work before.
He's boning out the leg,
at least that's what it looks like.
We also have sous-chef Gareth
on the Iron Chef side.
Sous-chef Gareth, what you up to?
[Gareth] We've got
a little lavash cracker goin' on,
so a little semolina dough,
and then we're gonna bake this
for the first bite.
[Alton] So, they're going to have lavash
with, oh I don't know, lamb
for their first course.
We'll have to see how
that's gonna come together.
We've got a Searzall
out over on Chef Hereford's side.
That, of course, is a propane device
that uses interlocking screens
so that the flame heats the screen
creating something like a broiler.
-[Kristen] Chef Hereford.
-[Mason] Yo.
[Kristen] What's that spice rub?
[Mason] Pink peppercorns,
coriander, black peppercorns.
[Kristen] Ah, got it.
We're trying to burn the spices
on the outside of this thing,
introduce a little fire into the dish.
Then I'll put it in the blast chiller,
chop it up and make tartare.
[Kristen] Okay, Chef Hereford's
making a tartare
and I'm definitely gonna bet
that that's his first course.
[Nilou] Do you see across the way,
Mason is using a pizza oven?
So some really high-heat cooking.
[Alton] Colleen is cooking up
her tenderloin, tomatoes, onion
and peppers.
I'm trying to do walking tacos.
[Kristen] Okay, a walking taco.
That is a classic American street food.
So for those of you who haven't been
to a high school football game in a while,
a walking taco is basically
all of your favorite taco ingredients
served with, and thenin,a chip bag.
They're a staple in the South,
and I heard a rumor
that they're one of The Chairman's
favorite late-night snacks.
Sous-chef Colleen almost
set her towel on fire.
-That could be a problem.
-Man.
We might need some fireproof towels.
[Alton] Looking at the Iron Chef's side,
sous-chef Gareth has ribs
with some sort of spice rub.
[Andrew] Those are the ribs.
-Now I'm getting hungry.
-Yeah.
[Alton] And those are now
going into the pressure cooker.
Lamb is everywhere.
I'm losing what the actual chunks are.
Are those back legs or front legs?
I'll go down there and find out.
Alright, shanks, neck meat.
Alton, what's happening?
There's a lot of meat going on here.
-Okay, yeah. Got it.
-There's still fur on this one.
-[Andrew] Fantastic.
-Oh yeah.
Chef, those are just the forelegs, right?
Osiel is butterflying the back legs
over there.
We'll turn that into a gyro.
Greek-style sort of souvlaki.
Thank you for not saying "gee-ro."
I'd have to make fun of you all day long.
Thanks for letting me know.
Alright, so we'll be seeing a gyro
for the Iron Chef's second course.
-[Mason] You got mayonnaise?
-[Colleen] Wanna catch it?
Yeah.
Thank you.
First thing you do
when you open mayonnaise,
you throw away the lid
because you know you'll eat it all.
Just like ice cream.
[Kristen] Okay, hold on, wait a second.
I'm looking over at sous-chef Colleen
and that is definitely a squirt gun.
[Colleen] Squirt guns are ready.
Squirt guns. These are words
I've never used in any Kitchen Stadium
and I've been in all the Kitchen Stadiums!
[Alton] What's in the gun?
Squirt, grapefruit soda,
it's a palate cleanser.
-[Alton] You're squirting Squirt.
-Exactly.
Got it.
-[Curtis] How you doin' over there?
-[Gareth] Good.
[Alton] Over on the Iron Chef's side,
I see sous-chef Gareth working with
what looks to me like bulgur wheat.
Perhaps there's a kibbeh happening here.
If there is ground meat and barley,
then that's what's going to happen.
[Alton] Kibbeh, of course,
is a Middle Eastern dish
of raw lamb, bulgur wheat and seasoning.
-[Kristen] I'm gonna go see.
-[Alton] Where first?
Good. Go to Curtis' side.
I'll keep up
with what's going on over here.
[Kristen] Chef Stone,
I'm getting cumin seeds.
Cumin, now we've just roasted it.
This is gonna go a little later,
but I've got to get it pressure cooking.
Uh, we're doing an Indian
sort of cinnamon-scented curry.
We're gonna use the shank and the neck.
[Andrew] Well, if you've got lamb,
it walks right into a curry and says
-"Let this be my final resting place."
-Yeah.
[Nilou chuckles]
Okay. So I've got my lamb curry workin'.
Okay, here we go, pressure cooker.
I'm gonna lock it down.
[Francis] Forty minutes left is not
a lot of time in a pressure cooker.
You're pushing the limits.
[Alton] Kristen now coming
from the challenger's side.
This is the toasted Searzall situation
you were working on.
Yeah, so we seared off one of the loins
and I'm going to chop it up
and make a tartare.
What's the binding agent?
Mayonnaise, chopped up anchovies
to bring out the funkiness of the lamb.
Shallots, lemon juice,
and then a bunch of the spices.
I mean, I like it.
You gotta butter both sides.
[Alton] Big hunks of white bread,
like, pullman loaf
down on the flattop
over on Chef Hereford's side.
We're obviously gonna
to have a sandwich of some type.
Number one, the guy has a sandwich shop.
[giggles]
What is your take on what you saw
down on the floor?
[Kristen] On the Iron Chef's side,
there's a seriousness and urgency.
It is like Michelin Star-kitchen urgency.
[Alton] It's that head-down
"doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo!" Go, go, go.
Over on Chef Hereford's side,
they seem a bit more chill.
-That's 'cause they've been drinking.
-Good point.
Cheers, bud.
[Alton] Alright, three minutes 29 seconds
to get that first course up to the judges.
And don't forget, fire has got
to be involved or it just doesn't count.
[Andrew] Kissed with fire, lamb is ideal.
[Nilou] I want it to have
like a big, wet smooch with fire.
-That's weird, Nilou.
-[Andrew] She's very passionate.
I'm of the Middle East, we love
-[Francis] Big smooches with fire?
-Yeah.
[Alton] Okay. Look at this.
Sous-chef Gareth is putting a blowtorch
to the dried-up lamb fat.
So, what he did
was he rendered down some lamb fat
and he mixed it with tapioca maltodextrin.
Thing about tapioca maltodextrin
is it can turn almost any fat to a powder,
but I've never seen anybody char it.
I bet this will be the fire component
of his first dish.
So, he's made charred lamb-fat powder!
-[Kristen] Dreams come true.
-Which I would snort.
[chuckles]
[Kristen] On the challenger's side,
Chef Hereford now has some chips out.
Chef Hereford, what are you doing?
We have a sandwich on our menu
that's covered in chips.
-It's one of the flagship menu items.
-[Kristen] Why salt and vinegar?
I decided the perfect vehicle
would be a salt-and-vinegar Pringle.
It's the right shape.
It's now a handheld edible food,
so I'm kind of trying
to street food-ify tartare a little bit.
Hopefully the judges are okay with that.
[Alton] Over on the Iron Chef's side,
we can see sous-chef Gareth.
He's still working on the kibbeh
for the first course.
He really needs to hurry at this point
with only a couple of minutes left.
I guess that that's going to go
with the lavash crackers
that we saw earlier.
[Mason] Course is ready to go.
[Alton] Chef Hereford is finished
with his first course.
He is headed out to the judges' table
where Kristen is standing by.
-How's it going?
-Good. I'm nervous.
Oh, you're going to be fine.
[Kristen] Mason, tell us about this dish.
So I wanted to get something done fast.
We did a tartare, but I knew
tartare wasn't traditionally street food
so I tried to make it a pick-up,
grab-on-the-go type situation.
Please enjoy.
And this is a palate cleanser.
Squirt that in your mouth.
That's a squirt gun full of Squirt.
The drink that tastes like grapefruit.
-What cut of lamb?
-[Mason] That's the loin.
So for the fire, we seared the outside
of the tartare before we chopped it.
-[Francis] Okay.
-I'll get the real juice when you leave.
[Mason] Okay, bye!
Francis, what do we think?
I am kind of amazed by the balance
of acidity and fat and salt.
Those three elements
are really sort of incredible
and especially if you're using
a salt-and-vinegar Pringle,
it's like he actually calibrated
the rest of it to match that.
My only complaint is that
the tartare was a little bit cold.
I think the flavors are fantastic,
but if it was a little bit warmer,
more of the fat would come through,
more lamb flavor would come through.
The one thing that I would say
is I'm not getting that kiss of the fire
as much as I would like.
Understood. Andrew?
[Andrew] The seasoning
and all of the acidity in the powder
that is used on the Pringle
knocked back the lamb flavor a little bit,
but I will tell you it was delicious.
-I'm just happy.
-[Nilou] Yeah, joyful.
Food should make you happy.
I'd have another one.
And did the squirt gun add or deter or
[Nilou] It was actually such a smart move
because it really was a palate cleanser.
It was like a Zamboni for your tongue
and you want to go back for another bite.
Iron Chef Stone is shortly behind him.
-[Curtis] How you doing, Gaz?
-[Gareth] Uh, lamb's up.
Spoon's there for tasting, Chef.
[Alton] And we've gotta get the plates up
in 30 seconds.
Iron Chef Stone, you're scaring me.
Oui,Chef.
-[Alton] That needs to be up
Don't"Oui,Chef" me,
I know what that means. [chuckles]
Alright, uh, there's that charred
powdered lamb fat going down
and his lavash cracker.
Iron Chef Stone, you have ten seconds.
Nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four, three
-Hello.
-Why, hello.
Wow. Gorgeous.
-[Nilou] Beautiful presentation.
-Thank you.
This is some first course.
-Chef, what'd you make?
-[Curtis] Kibbeh nayyeh.
We've taken the lamb saddle,
minced it with a variety
of different herbs.
We made a quick lavash, we spiced that,
we torched the lamb fat, we turned it
into a maltodextrin powder.
So you'll get that bit of char.
-You made the lavash?
-We did.
-Go, go, go!
-[Andrew] Wow.
[Francis] Keep cooking, Chef.
-Nilou, what are your thoughts?
-This is beautiful.
The flavor is stunning,
but kibbehs that I've had before
have been a little less watery than this.
This feels a tiny bit looser
than what I'm accustomed to.
This is brilliant in so many ways.
Presentation, technical acumen,
and I like the creativity
of the fire-kissed fat
turned into a powder.
-Francis, what are your thoughts?
-I think the flavors are fantastic.
To make this lavash
in that amount of time,
it's beautiful, it's crisp,
it's cooked beautifully,
the spicing on it. It's real tasty.
You've tasted both dishes.
Now it's time to do the numbers.
I'm going to go back up to Alton.
Judges, you can award a total of 25 points
for this first course.
Thank you. Thank you, Kristen.
Okay.
[Alton] Right, we have 27 minutes
and 12 seconds left
for each side to plate four more
street-food-themed lamb dishes.
And where'd we leave off?
The Iron Chef has a Greek gyro
with the lamb leg
that Osiel butterflied and marinated
in rosemary, garlic and marjoram
and he has a lamb-neck curry.
Then, of course, the challenger,
Chef Hereford, is making walking tacos.
And look, is is that a heart?
[Mason] Yes, sir, yeah.
Strips of hearts to go on the grill.
You might go, "Ooh!"
but they are nowhere near as kind of gamey
or organ-y as say, liver.
They're clean tasting.
The lamb heart you can grill really fast,
and 'cause we're under time constraints,
we're trying to bust it out real quick.
I'm about to have lamb hearts
for you, Liz.
Great. Thank you.
Kristen, where I thought
you, like, left the building.
I was up there eating with them.
Just kidding.
So now, I'm going to make some skewers
out of these lemongrass.
[Kristen] Over on the challenger's side,
I see lemongrass
in the capable hands of sous-chef Colleen.
[Alton] They took their lamb
and put it through the grinder.
It's got lamb shoulder in it
and I think there's
some belly meat in there.
With the lemongrass, I'm thinking Thai,
I'm going street food.
-[Alton] It makes sense.
-[Kristen] Colleen, what are you planning?
[Colleen] We're going to do
a charred, minced lamb salad.
[Kristen] I like it. I dig it.
And we have lemongrass
on Iron Chef Stone's side.
[Alton] We've got it on both sides.
[Curtis] All the flavor of the lemongrass
is all the way down here in the stem.
Make sure it's nice and clean,
and then treat it like your worst enemy.
That's what he's smashing right now,
to open up the flavors.
[Curtis] And here
we've got some lemongrass working,
a little salt.
-I need a little bit of turmeric.
-What you got, Iron Chef?
A little cayenne pepper,
some lemongrass, some garlic,
some cumin, some coriander.
I'm doing a marinade for the satay.
-Did you say a satay?
-Yeah.
[Alton] Thank you
for letting us know what you're doing.
That's very, very helpful.
Hey, what's that noise over there, Curtis?
That's the sound you're gonna hear
in your nightmares.
[chuckles]
[Kristen] I see the Iron Chef's sous-chef
Osiel is putting that lamb meat on a spit
and that's gotta be for their gyro dish.
That's a bold move, because there's
not a lot of time to cook that meat.
-[Osiel] The meat's all set.
-[Liz and Colleen whoop]
[Curtis] Party going on over there.
Guys, we're on the wrong side.
Holy smokes, that looks like roti
over on Chef Hereford's side.
We're going to do roti paratha,
an open-faced sandwich
that's going to have lamb heart.
[Kristen] Okay, Alton, the hearts
are gonna go with the roti.
These are the hearts. We did a little salt
and a little berbere spice.
[Alton] Ah, berbere, of course,
used a lot in Ethiopian cuisine.
Strong, complex flavor.
Can also be smoky and sometimes bitter.
Hey, how are we on time?
[Kristen] Chefs, you have 22 minutes
and nine seconds left
in this street-food battle
here in Kitchen Stadium
with lamb as your secret ingredient.
[Alton] And since The Chairman
never makes things easy,
he's requiring each dish
to be touched by fire
and the last dish has to involve fire
in the final presentation.
No easy feat in 60 minutes.
[Kristen] Definitely not.
[Alton] Looking down
on the Iron Chef's part of the world,
he's working on his satay
and using a waving motion
so that hopefully what he's going to get
is kind of a range of doneness textures
depending on what's closer to the fire.
What you doin' over there?
I'm gonna marinate it.
So that is goin' into my bag.
[Kristen] That was the marinade
he made earlier,
with turmeric, lemongrass,
he had some fish sauce in there,
lime and coconut.
[Alton] The best they can do at this point
is use that vacuum pressure
to really squeeze those flavors
into the meat.
It's kind of a speed-marinade move.
[Kristen] We can see sous-chef Gareth
is forming some kind of dough.
He definitely has masa in there,
so I have an idea of what it might be,
but I don't want to say anything yet.
Chefs, you might like to know this:
The Chairman snuck down the scores
for the first dish.
-[Liz] Oh God!
-[Alton] Currently in the lead is nobody!
It's a tie!
[sous-chefs whoop]
[Alton] Nineteen points
to nineteen points,
so no one will have an advantage
going into the rest of the dishes
with the judges.
Guys, congratulations
on tying these big shots.
-[Liz] I know!
-[Mason] You're amazing. I love you.
[Kristen] Becoming an Iron Legend
is no joke
and Chef Hereford's off to a solid start.
[Alton] Iron Chef, thoughts?
Uh, that puts more pressure on me
now we're tied.
I can tell that the man can cook,
with his talented team over there.
But I'm not scared.
[Kristen] Iron Chef Stone
releasing the pressure
from his pressure cooker,
and that's got the lamb curry in there.
Sous-chef Gareth's taking his lamb ribs
out of the pressure cooker.
Ribs in an hour is pretty risky,
but they do look delicious.
[Alton] He also took
that masa and water dough
and is cooking them with fat,
so that's arepa,
which, of course,
a very popular street food
in Venezuela and Central America.
[Kristen] Over on the challenger's side,
I see something very familiar
and those are Frito bags.
Sous-chef Colleen
is taking that walking-taco mixture
that was in the pizza oven
and putting it in the bag.
She added guajillo
and morita chilies in there
and of course, there's Fritos.
The one thing about plating,
or I guess I should say bagging,
is that you don't want things
to get mushy,
so they've gotta be careful.
[Alton] Alright, so let's break this down.
Okay, on this side,
we know they have the walking taco.
[Kristen] They also have
some sort of grilled-lamb salad.
[Alton] Of course,
and the grilled-lamb-heart roti sandwich
and I'm not sure what else.
[Kristen] Okay, on the Iron Chef's side,
he has that gyro spinning around
and that lamb-neck curry.
[Alton] He also has his satay
marinating in that bag,
and he has an arepa.
-You gonna fry those, Chef?
-[Osiel] Yeah, we are.
[Alton] He's a Southern boy,
I'm a Southern boy.
That is the sound of chicken-fried steak
getting ready to happen.
-[Kristen] Ten minutes!
-[Mason chuckles]
Ten minutes?!
Don't panic, but panic anyway.
This is gonna be, like,
down to the last second I think, Liz.
Iron Chef Curtis, where do you feel
you are right now in the scheme of things?
A little behind where I would like to be,
Alton, I'm not gonna lie,
but I'll get there.
[Alton] Osiel at the back station
has a dough.
I did not even see him make that.
[Osiel] I'm grilling
the pita bread right now.
[Alton] Okay, pita, okay,
now that's gotta be for the gyro.
-[Mason] You grind the rice powder?
-[Liz] You know it.
[Alton] On the challenger's side,
Chef Hereford is mixing up his lamb salad.
He has some rice powder in there,
herbs, lime leaf.
Uh, maybe kind of the school of a larb?
Mm, yeah.
[Alton] Which is
like a Thai-style chopped-meat salad.
Usually very highly spiced.
[Kristen] Breading station's now out
with sous-chef Liz,
and that's for their chicken-fried lamb.
Chef Hereford is now plating a larb salad
in an old-school lunch box?
Alton, what's happening
over on the Iron Chef side?
[Alton] What the Iron Chef
just put on the yakitori grill,
that is the very thinly sliced tenderloin
that had gone into the vacuum bag.
[Kristen] Which I assume is now his satay.
[Alton] Over on the challenger's side,
Chef Hereford right now
[Kristen] Is that a dinosaur?
That's a dinosaur.
It's the first time I've seen a dinosaur
used as a plating device
in Kitchen Stadium.
What is that about?
[Kristen] Here's the thing
about Chef Hereford is that he is playful,
he loves whimsical plating,
he likes to get you involved.
-[Alton] He's a ten-year-old boy!
-[chuckles]
[Kristen] That's gonna be carrying
that lamb-heart roti sandwich.
Uh-oh.
-We got a problem.
-Uh-oh.
-[Mason] What's wrong?
-We got no heat on the fryers.
[Alton] Oh. That's a That's a tough one.
With so much going on,
maybe they forgot to turn it on in time.
You got five minutes and 20 seconds.
Put a very shallow pot of oil
on high heat.
-[Liz] You grabbing that, Colleen?
-[Colleen] Yeah, I got pans.
[Alton] They're gonna need to pivot,
because those fryers can
take up to 15 minutes to heat up.
Looks like they are
triaging that situation.
Do you notice the change
in the atmosphere here?
-You could hear a pin drop.
-Yes.
It is go time.
[Curtis] Getting the curry out.
It's looking pretty good.
It's caught just a little.
That's okay. That'll add
to that beautiful smoky flavor.
[Kristen] Lots of action
on the Iron Chef's side.
His sous-chef Osiel
now making sure he gets the perfect slice
with the proper doneness,
and that's for their gyro dish.
-[Mason] We gotta get a steak in a pan.
-[Liz] I'm doing it.
[Alton] What's happening
with that chicken-fried lamb?
[Kristen] Sous-chef Liz
went into the fryer,
wasn't working, took it out,
didn't think it was gonna be done.
-Went straight into a pan fry.
-I love when people adapt.
[Kristen] I just hope
they nail the cook on that meat.
Two minutes!
[Alton] Over on the Iron Chef's side,
the thinly sliced leg meat
that was on the spit,
now some of that went on to the pita
and it got some garnishes.
Now the satay is down.
Now that looks simple,
but to make one
that's really unforgettable,
that requires flavor knowledge
and technique.
Hey, where's the mustard?
Looking over on the challenger's side,
is that a freaking train, Kristen?
-It's a train on a track in a plate.
-In a plate.
[Kristen] We gotta give him
a hand with plating.
Literally a hand, and those hands
right now are getting a walking taco.
-Taste everything, guys, taste it.
-[Gareth] Yes, Chef.
[Alton] Okay, looking over
at the Iron Chef's side,
the arepa got plated up
with some of the rib meat
that sous-chef Gareth cooked
and I think that's now under a dome
getting some smoke.
[Gareth] Yep. Good.
Thirty-five seconds left
for all the food to be finished.
[Kristen] Chef Hereford dressing the bread
with the mustard sous-chef Liz made.
-[Mason] Has anybody got sugar?
-[Liz] Right in front of you.
[Alton] A lot of plating needs to happen
and I'm concerned.
-[Curtis] Coming through.
-[Alton] It's moving so fast.
-It's hard to keep track.
-Behind.
[Alton] Five, four, three, two, one.
The cook is over.
[chefs whoop and cheer]
[cheering and applause]
[Curtis sighs]
[Curtis] I feel
like I just got into a fight,
but it was a good fight,
it was lots of fun,
and I'm going to do my team
and my restaurants proud.
Flavor's there. It's gonna taste amazing.
Can't wait for them to taste it.
[Mason] That hour felt like ten minutes.
It was wild but, you know,
we got it up before they said, "One."
Or whatever they said.
[chuckling] So we got there!
[heavenly choral music plays]
[dramatic drumbeats build]
Judges, Kristen, welcome to the large
and impressive round table.
I feel as though we should be knights,
but we're not,
but we're gonna do
some mighty fine eating here.
As our first chef,
Chef Hereford, comes up,
keep in mind
that because of your judging so far,
that first dish is split.
Nineteen points to both chefs,
so it's an even race at this time.
But remember, we're gonna be
awarding points based on taste,
presentation, and use
of the secret ingredient.
We have 75 more points
to allot in the next four dishes
that will eventually make up
the hundred points for each chef.
So let's start with Chef Hereford.
Okay, my friends.
I must tell you it is an absolute honor
to cook for you guys,
as much as it is an honor
to cook in Kitchen Stadium.
Alright, I am feeling some good vibes.
Chef Hereford, what was your
general approach to the challenge?
We wanted to use
different parts of the lamb
and we wanted that street-food theme
and then fire in every course
and we want you guys to have fun,
feel like kids, eat out of a lunch box.
Chef, tell us about this one.
[Mason] So this dish is a larb
from Laos or Thailand.
We ground up the lamb and we skewered it
on a piece of lemongrass,
cooked it over the coals,
get a little bit of that fire on there,
chopped it up
and then lime leaf, lemongrass, shallots.
What cut of lamb did you use for this?
Shoulder and belly.
There is a lot of intense flavor
that you've packed into this dish
and I absolutely love the fact
that you gave us more herbs
to make it really feel like you were
having a street-food experience.
-Thank you.
-Francis.
Typically larb is not made
in a caramelized way.
It's kind of sautéed with a little water.
In this case,
adding that little bit of brown flavor
is a nice complement to the flavors.
Fire is a seminal piece of judging
for this challenge.
Maybe you got a good char-y bite.
I did not,
but the grind,
the amount of fat, it was perfect.
As you can see, empty plate.
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
You can bring us another course.
-Alright, I'm on it.
-Delicious.
[Nilou] The yum factor is high.
-Alright.
-Frito pie.
-Here we go again.
-Oh!
Chef Hereford, what is this?
[laughter]
So this is what?
Sort of an American street food of sorts,
known as the walking taco or Frito pie.
It's a bag of Fritos
with some stuff in it.
Today we made it out of lamb,
so we took the tenderloins,
we wanted something that was
gonna cook fast and still stay juicy.
We cooked it in a pizza oven
under the open fire
with guajillo and dried morita chilies,
onions, garlic, cumin, coriander,
made a bit of a gravy of sorts.
That sauce with those chilies
is one of the better things
that I've eaten in a long time.
-Thank you so much.
-Playful and fun.
The bagging is challenging
because it was a little bit of a mush.
Maybe the chew on the meat
was a little tough.
The lime, the beautiful chili
and tomato sauce,
it so went well with, like,
the industrial, calibrated-to-perfection,
fried aftertaste of the Frito.
All those toppings sat on that base
and just kind of rode off into the sunset.
Francis Lam will be
authoring my tombstone.
[laughter]
Chef Hereford,
bring on the next one, please.
Oh, my pleasure. Thank you, guys.
Here, let's give him a hand.
[judges laugh and groan]
[Mason] Get outta town!
Alright, guys.
Oh!
-She's cute.
-[Andrew] My goodness.
Ooh.
Chef Hereford, do tell us
about your Jurassic offering here.
Yeah, as someone who saw Jurassic Park
four times in theaters,
I thought we would plate on a dinosaur.
The dish is roti paratha lamb heart
served as an open-faced sandwich.
Sandwiches are sort of our love language.
So we took the lamb heart, we grilled it,
we tried to get a good char on it,
a little bit of berbere spice,
an Ethiopian spice,
and then just dill, cilantro.
I wanted meat plus fire, right?
And this delivered on that.
The heart of the animal is one of
the most famous street foods in the world,
just not in this country.
I think what's really cool about heart
is it really tastes like the halfway point
between muscle meat and organ meat.
-[Nilou] Mm.
-Totally.
-Beautifully cooked.
-Thanks.
Thank you, Chef. Next course, please.
You really get that char,
which I've been kind of missing
along the way,
so this is a great moment of char.
Um, it's a really interesting dish.
-The bitterness is
-[Nilou] It's too much.
-I have bitterness issues.
-We all have baggage, it's okay.
Are we thinking the bitterness
has to do with the way he charred
or flame-broiled anything?
I think it's the berbere.
Berbere doesn't do that though.
Any un-toasted spice
will carry a bitterness
until you put a little heat on it.
[Alton] Yes.
[Kristen] I'm not sure.
Perhaps it has something to do with it.
[Alton] Very much so.
The last course on a cart.
It is your fifth and final course,
which means you have to bring
some form of flame close to our face.
Not that close to our faces.
What did you make
and what are you gonna fire away on?
[Mason] Uh, we've got
a chicken-fried-lamb-steak sandwich.
We've got a mustard,
we covered it in sugar.
-I'm going to brûlée it.
-[Nilou] Mm!
[Mason] And it's gonna taste
like a honey mustard on the sandwich.
And then there's a lemon on a train
'cause I think it's adorable.
You can squeeze the lemon on the steak.
-Fire away.
-[Mason] Oh! Thank you.
Oh yeah, that's working.
-[Mason] There we go.
-[Nilou] Oh, it's real nice.
[Francis] That is a brûlée torch
like no other.
[Andrew] It's fantastic!
[Mason chuckles]
So what is the sugar
that you put on top of the mustard?
Granulated, regular old sugar.
It's a very spicy mustard recipe,
so it should balance out nicely.
[Kristen] Andrew?
That smell of the brûléed mustard
was fantastic.
I'm a mustard fan, so this
played right into my wheelhouse.
-[Mason] Thank you.
-I'm stealing that.
-I'm gonna usemytorch.
-There you go, yeah.
[Andrew] Great!
This was actually probably the most
successful use of fire.
The flavor of burnt sugar
you can essentially only get
-[Alton] Yeah.
-by using an actual flame.
-Thank you.
-[Kristen] Nilou.
I have a kind of obsession
with the perfect sandwich.
-I know you do too.
-Sure.
But the idea of getting
the crispy, the salty,
the sweet, the crunchy, the tangy.
I just got a pretty close to perfect bite.
I will say my meat is overdone.
[Mason] Gotcha.
But the crunch of the breading
is unbelievable.
I think the meat was probably perfect
before I brought the torch to the table.
-Thank you, Chef.
-Thank you so much.
This place rules. Thank you so much.
-Thanks, Mason.
-Thank you, Chef.
This is a very compelling journey
we've been on with Chef Hereford.
He has told us his story,
and now the question is whether
he told the story of the ingredient.
Well, he doesn't have
to tell a perfect story,
he has to just tell a better one
than Iron Chef Stone.
-Oh-ho!
-Oh, yeah.
[Nilou] Talk about making an entrance!
A smoky one.
That's really pretty.
Before we get to the particulars
of this dish,
tell us something, Iron Chef Stone,
about your general approach
to the challenge.
We thought we'd take you
all around the world,
which we're gonna do today.
A whole lamb is a big challenge
in 60 minutes, but one that I welcome
because we love
breaking down whole animals
at my butcher shop and restaurant.
We've tried to serve you dishes
from the neck to the shank,
and everything in between.
Tell us about this dish.
[Curtis] So this is an arepa,
a wonderful dish from South America.
Underneath that cloche,
and you're welcome to pick it up,
there's a bit of that smoke.
The arepa, we actually make
with masa of course,
and then cook it on a flat, flat griddle.
The lamb ribs is what we used here,
where we fast cooked them
in the pressure cooker.
There's a little crema
and pickled onion as well.
-Anyone who cares enough about an arepa
-Mm!
to crisp it up this nicely
really loves an arepa.
It's It's It's delightful.
The lamb? Perfectly cooked,
smokey, fiery, loved it,
but this is what won me over.
A cloche filled with smoke
is gonna jazz us up,
but what I just taste
is what I would wanna have
if I was sitting on a low stool
in the back alley somewhere.
Thank you, Iron Chef.
We'll be ready for your next course.
This, for a second dish,
is really going places.
Iron Chef Stone,
please tell us about this dish.
[Curtis] For my third course,
I went to India.
I made a beautiful lamb curry.
-[Andrew] This is the neck?
-[Curtis] Mm-hmm.
Of all the cuts on the lamb,
there is no piece of lamb
I would rather seen turn into a curry.
[Alton] You also had the four legs
in that pressure cooker?
[Curtis] I did.
We're eating mostly neck.
From what I'm getting,
a lot of gelatin probably
came off of those legs as well.
[Curtis] That was the strategy.
The only thing that I wished
I had a little more of
was fire, smoke, in there.
I mean, it is at that point
where the collagen is melted,
it feels silky, you feel it in the sauce,
but there's still bite.
-And there's still chew.
-Ooh!
Iron Chef, thank you.
We look forward to the next course.
-Thank you so much.
-Thank you.
This is exquisite.
I don't know that it's street food.
No. When I think of street food,
I think of food
that is accessible, affordable.
It doesn't have to be in a street stall.
To me, this is certainly elevated,
but very much in the street-food canon.
[Alton] Iron Chef Stone,
tell us about this dish.
Thank you, Chef.
[Curtis] You'd have this after a few beers
in a taverna in the Greek islands
or somewhere throughout Greece.
For our fourth course we did a gyro
and what that is is a lamb leg
that we butterfly,
we marinate and we spit roast,
and then we serve it in a homemade pita,
some tomatoes, a garlic-scented tzatziki.
Ooh!
To do the pita and to nail that,
and I taste the fire on that pita.
The restaurant that I go to in Athens
to get what I feel
is the best version of this in the world,
this might have bested that.
-Wow.
-Thank you.
The lamb is so tender and smoky
all at the same time.
I do think the marjoram
was a smidge strong
and I am not sure about the tomato.
Okay.
-We'll be ready for your next course.
-Thank you.
We know this was spit fired.
Can you taste it?
-[Andrew] Without a doubt.
-[Nilou] No question.
Iron Chef Stone, it's your final dish.
Whatcha got?
My trip around the world with street food
wouldn't be complete without a satay.
It's very humble, very simple,
but one of the most fabulous things
that you can eat.
[Nilou] Thank you.
[Curtis] So what we've done
is a lamb satay,
we've marinated them
in a mixture of turmeric,
lime, some fish sauce, coconut.
We've made a satay sauce
that you have on your plates there.
Talking and grilling
at the same time is hard.
I know. I I
I didn't realize it was this hard,
but I've got a newfound respect.
Which cut of meat did you use?
Uh, this is the filet.
And this is what went into the vacuum bag
for a bit of a speed marinade.
That's correct. Yes.
By marinating this
and sucking all the air out of it,
you're pushing all those flavors into it.
Then the slow cook.
I can taste every single ingredient
that's gone into here.
-It's beautifully done.
-Thank you.
It's dynamite.
This sauce, delicious, aromatic.
Still a little sweet for my taste,
but, eaten with the lamb,
with that smoke flavor, it's lovely.
It was as good as any satay
I've had anywhere in the world.
Wow, thank you.
Brilliant choice of marrying a recipe
to all the different cuts that you used.
That's tricky in an hour
with the whole animal.
This is a very intimidating table.
It's magic to hear those words.
Thank you so much.
Iron Chef, thank you very much.
Thank you so much.
[judges] Thank you, Iron Chef.
Alright, judges, you have dined
and now, you've got to do your part
in paying the dinner tab.
Now we dash.
And you do that, not with cash,
but with the numbers
you're going to put on those cards.
So, Kristen and I are
heading up to our spots.
You head to yours, do your job.
-[Nilou] Alright.
-[Francis] Where do we leave a tip?
[Alton] Will it be Chef Hereford's
whimsical take on the secret ingredient
or Iron Chef Stone's
globally inspired menu
that comes out on top
in this lamb street-food battle?
Mr. Chairman, the fate of these chefs
is in your hands.
It's the moment of truth.
As predicted, this was a street fight.
Chef Hereford.
Iron Chef Stone.
Only one of you have raced
down the road to victory today.
And that chef is
Iron Chef Stone.
[cheering and applause]
-Great job, brother.
-Well done.
[Alton] Well, there you have it,
ladies and gentlemen.
The Chairman has declared Iron Chef Stone
the winner of this street-food battle,
with the judges scoring at 85 points
to 78 in favor of the Iron Chef.
Both chefs created
such beautiful meals for us,
but what gave Iron Chef Stone the edge
was his use of all parts of the lamb,
his masterful cookery
of the secret ingredient
and through his menu that took us
on a culinary journey around the world.
Thanks to our amazing combatants,
Chef Hereford and Iron Chef Stone,
for a fiery street food fight
for the ages. [chuckles]
Remember, our most successful challenger
will return for a final showdown
against all five Iron Chefs
to compete for a chance to be
crowned the Iron Legend.
Chairman, any final words?
For our next battle,
cooking is a full-contact sport,
especially when the food
comes into contact with
my belly!
-[whistle blows]
-[man] Hut, hut, hut!
[gasps]
Game on.
[men grunt]
[closing theme music playing]
[dramatic music plays]
So, feeling hungry, old friend?
Hungry
for battle!
What a coincidence, because
that's exactly what's on the menu.
[cheering and applause]
Welcome, everyone. I'm Alton Brown
and your long wait is over.
The king of culinary competitions
has returned.
And I'm Kristen Kish. Along with Alton,
we'll be guiding you through
the exciting cooking combat.
Iron Chef is back.
[chef] Ooh-ah!
[Alton] The epicurean experience
started in Japan in 1993.
And here, the tradition continues.
Let's do this, guys.
[chef 1] Come on, girls, come on.
[chef 2] Let's push.
[people exclaim]
[chef 3] Comin' in hot.
[chef 4] Let's go.
[chefs chuckle and exclaim]
[Alton] The challenging chefs,
already at the top of their games,
come to Kitchen Stadium
to prove themselves
against the Iron Chefs,
the greatest gastronomic talents
on the planet.
Hey, what's all that noise over there?
The sound you're gonna hear
in your nightmares!
[Kristen] In this storied kitchen,
fierce battles will be waged,
edible masterpieces will be created,
and new legends will be forged.
-We got a plate.
-[screams excitedly]
[Alton] Each challenger
that steps up to battle
is fighting to earn the most coveted title
ever bestowed in Kitchen Stadium.
They're trying to win that.
[heavenly choral music plays]
[dramatic drumbeats build]
The Golden Knife
that declares to the world
that they are the very first Iron Legend.
Live sturgeon!
Chocolate!
Game birds!
-[chef 1] Get it!
-[chef 2] Whoa!
[Kristen] After a series of hard-fought
head-to-head culinary battles,
only our most successful challenger
will get the opportunity
to take on all five Iron Chefs
Zester, there you go.
[Kristen] in an epic battle royale
with the chance
to be crowned the Iron Legend.
Welcome to Kitchen Stadium.
This isIron Chef.
[cheering and applause]
Every challenger that steps up
to do battle here
is fighting to earn the title
of the very first Iron Legend.
And who will they be battling
for the title?
Our very own Iron Chefs.
Some of the world's most renowned
culinary heavyweights,
handpicked by our distinguished Chairman.
Now, for our first challenger.
He is talented. He is brave.
Please welcome Chef Mason Hereford.
[cheering and applause]
[Alton]Hailing from New Orleans,
he's worked in some
of the finest restaurants in the world,
but he rocketed to fame
with his unconventional sandwiches
which led to his latest eatery
being named the best
new restaurant in America.
[Mason] I don't think
I'm a traditional chef.
I spent a lot of time in fine dining,
a restaurant called Coquette
in New Orleans,
and I was always trying to get those
funny, reminds-me-of-being-a-kid,
gas-station ingredients on the menu.
Didn't always work.
I grew up dreaming
of opening a sandwich shop.
We did it. I own Turkey and the Wolf
and Molly's Rise and Shine in New Orleans.
My cooking style is playful,
occasionally funny.
I love to cook food that's nostalgic.
I like to cook things that remind me
of being a kid.
Chef Hereford, welcome.
What's up? Thanks for having me.
[audience chuckles]
Chef Hereford, do you think
you can withstand the pressure
from one of my Iron Chefs?
Yes. I think I do.
I have five culinary giants
to choose from.
For you, I have picked someone
known throughout the world.
To beat this chef, you'll have to bring
impeccable food!
[Gregorian-chant-style music plays]
Please welcome Iron Chef
Curtis Stone!
[rock music plays]
[cheering and applause]
[Mason] Oh!
[Alton]Originally from
the beaches of Australia,
he now makes culinary waves in Los Angeles
with his award-winning style:
simple, seasonal, and always stunning.
Please welcome Iron Chef Curtis Stone.
[Curtis] I've been cooking my whole life.
I think about virtually nothing but food.
I have restaurants here in the States.
Maude, our little one in Beverly Hills,
we change the menu every single month
and we base it around one ingredient.
Gwen is a butcher shop and a restaurant,
whole-animal butchery,
and then we cook
exclusively over a live fire.
But most importantly,
what we put on that plate
is gonna taste insanely good.
My sous-chefs would describe me
as a lovely guy
who's very carefree and easygoing.
[chuckles]
That's not true.
You're gonna see a very different side
of Curtis Stone in Kitchen Stadium today.
I think the bright lights
are gonna dim the smile.
I'm here to win.
Iron Chef Stone. Welcome.
Thank you very much.
Good luck to you both.
If you are seeking the scrumptious soul
of a cuisine,
you must head to the streets!
[relaxing plucked strings play]
[dramatic drum beat builds]
Oh, wow.
To cook our secret ingredient
lamb!
There is one element
that unifies all food cooked on the street
and that is
fire!
Yes,
all five of your
street-food-inspired dishes
must be kissed by the flame
in a different way.
Chefs, you will have just one hour
to make five fiery lamb
street-food-inspired dishes.
And your first dish
will be due within 30 minutes.
So now,
with an open heart and empty stomach,
I say unto you in the words of my uncle
Allez cuisine!
[Alton] And battle street food is on
here in Kitchen Stadium.
[Mason] Watch it.
[Curtis chuckles]
The challenger, Chef Hereford,
and Iron Chef Stone,
immediately running for the lamb
with their respective teams.
[Mason] So you grab a couple of those.
-[Mason] Three?
-[woman] What else?
I wanna mention we need to utilize fire
in all five courses.
And at the end of the day, the final dish
must involve fire in its presentation.
[Mason] Hearts are over here.
[woman] I'm taking 'em all.
What else we want, brains?
We are mere minutes into the battle
and these chefs have got to serve up
their first dishes
within the first 30 minutes.
Their remaining four dishes
will be judged at the end.
-[Mason] We're good. Let's go.
-Okay.
[Alton] The challenger Chef Hereford
and Iron Chef Curtis Stone
bring down one of those lambs.
These are Dorper Lambs.
It's a hybrid lamb
that was developed in South Africa,
known for its very fast growth.
I think of my mates in Melbourne
that are Greek
and they'd have these wicked barbecues
with something cooked on a spit.
Maybe we spit-roast it.
We gotta get one thing done in 30 minutes.
-Seared tartare.
-Toast the spices, yeah.
The lamb saddle.
Make some sort of raw preparation.
-Kibbeh nayyeh.
-Kibbeh nayyeh.
Hearts, we'll grill really thin.
Something else for the rib eye.
We're the sandwich people.
-We gotta make a sandwich.
-We'll make a sandwich!
I wanna use the toughest pieces.
The shank. Maybe this neck.
And I'll flame grill it. Let's do it.
We're on freakin'Iron Chef!
[women] Whoo!
-We're not drinking yet, fellas.
-Ready?
[Alton] This is going
to be a very interesting battle
given how different these two chefs are.
[Kristen] And of course,
a crucial component to Kitchen Stadium,
our judges.
Let's say hi to our honorable
and discerning palates:
Nilou Motamed,
Andrew Zimmern
and our very special guest,
award-winning food journalist,
the ever-so-charming Francis Lam.
[Alton] Now we can see Iron Chef Stone
immediately starting
to score the neck meat.
Interestingly, most of the lamb
raised in America
goes either to restaurant chefs
or is shipped to other countries,
namely Greece and Ireland, where they eat
a heck of a lot more lamb than we do.
-[Zimmern] Here comes the saw.
-The saw has emerged.
[Curtis] Just like in the butcher shop,
we cook with every single piece of it.
[Kristen] He knows what he's doing.
Growing up in Australia,
he's had plenty of lamb, I'm sure.
[Alton] I'm certain.
The challenger, Chef Hereford,
also breaking down the whole lamb.
Chef Hereford
has classical French training.
Look at how he's butchering that lamb.
There's finesse, technique.
This is lamb belly getting chopped up
to go into the grinder
for our second course.
Add in a little leg meat with that.
Then I'm gonna attack the loins
for that first course.
In Australia, we eat a lot of lamb.
We love it.
It's one of our favorite ingredients.
It's amazing that we got it today.
I'm super stoked.
The challenger, Chef Hereford, it looks
like he's cutting the entire muscle group
from the front rib section
back to the saddle.
I'm getting the loin
and the rib eye off now.
[Kristen] Let's talk about sous-chefs.
When you think of who you trust
to bring in an arena like this,
to help you,
to be your left and right hand
when you are too busy
using your left and right hand,
you have your sous-chefs.
Chef Hereford brought along
the chefs who work with him
at Molly's Rise and Shine, which is
one of his restaurants in New Orleans.
There's sous-chef Liz.
Just gonna, like, blast the spices.
It's gonna be awesome.
[Kristen] And sous-chef Colleen.
She's got some tenderloin pieces there,
uh, and some tomatoes,
onions, and green peppers.
I'm not sure where that's headed.
[Alton] Let's go back
to the Iron Chef side of the world.
He's using the charcoal blower.
You know what it kinda looks like,
is the candle-putter-outer thing.
Yes. It does look
like a very large candle snuffter
which he's using to blow
thebinchōtanJapanese oak charcoal.
This gives you a very clean burn,
very high heat, not a lot of smoke
and it burns evenly
to maintain temperatures.
Okay, so I'm caramelizing this lamb,
'cause I want some color.
I wanna get a beautiful flavor on that.
-How you doing, Osiel?
-Very good, Chef.
[Kristen] On Iron Chef Stone's team,
he brought his chefs from Gwen,
his restaurant and butchery
in Los Angeles.
That's sous-chef Osiel. He's clearly
done this kind of knife work before.
He's boning out the leg,
at least that's what it looks like.
We also have sous-chef Gareth
on the Iron Chef side.
Sous-chef Gareth, what you up to?
[Gareth] We've got
a little lavash cracker goin' on,
so a little semolina dough,
and then we're gonna bake this
for the first bite.
[Alton] So, they're going to have lavash
with, oh I don't know, lamb
for their first course.
We'll have to see how
that's gonna come together.
We've got a Searzall
out over on Chef Hereford's side.
That, of course, is a propane device
that uses interlocking screens
so that the flame heats the screen
creating something like a broiler.
-[Kristen] Chef Hereford.
-[Mason] Yo.
[Kristen] What's that spice rub?
[Mason] Pink peppercorns,
coriander, black peppercorns.
[Kristen] Ah, got it.
We're trying to burn the spices
on the outside of this thing,
introduce a little fire into the dish.
Then I'll put it in the blast chiller,
chop it up and make tartare.
[Kristen] Okay, Chef Hereford's
making a tartare
and I'm definitely gonna bet
that that's his first course.
[Nilou] Do you see across the way,
Mason is using a pizza oven?
So some really high-heat cooking.
[Alton] Colleen is cooking up
her tenderloin, tomatoes, onion
and peppers.
I'm trying to do walking tacos.
[Kristen] Okay, a walking taco.
That is a classic American street food.
So for those of you who haven't been
to a high school football game in a while,
a walking taco is basically
all of your favorite taco ingredients
served with, and thenin,a chip bag.
They're a staple in the South,
and I heard a rumor
that they're one of The Chairman's
favorite late-night snacks.
Sous-chef Colleen almost
set her towel on fire.
-That could be a problem.
-Man.
We might need some fireproof towels.
[Alton] Looking at the Iron Chef's side,
sous-chef Gareth has ribs
with some sort of spice rub.
[Andrew] Those are the ribs.
-Now I'm getting hungry.
-Yeah.
[Alton] And those are now
going into the pressure cooker.
Lamb is everywhere.
I'm losing what the actual chunks are.
Are those back legs or front legs?
I'll go down there and find out.
Alright, shanks, neck meat.
Alton, what's happening?
There's a lot of meat going on here.
-Okay, yeah. Got it.
-There's still fur on this one.
-[Andrew] Fantastic.
-Oh yeah.
Chef, those are just the forelegs, right?
Osiel is butterflying the back legs
over there.
We'll turn that into a gyro.
Greek-style sort of souvlaki.
Thank you for not saying "gee-ro."
I'd have to make fun of you all day long.
Thanks for letting me know.
Alright, so we'll be seeing a gyro
for the Iron Chef's second course.
-[Mason] You got mayonnaise?
-[Colleen] Wanna catch it?
Yeah.
Thank you.
First thing you do
when you open mayonnaise,
you throw away the lid
because you know you'll eat it all.
Just like ice cream.
[Kristen] Okay, hold on, wait a second.
I'm looking over at sous-chef Colleen
and that is definitely a squirt gun.
[Colleen] Squirt guns are ready.
Squirt guns. These are words
I've never used in any Kitchen Stadium
and I've been in all the Kitchen Stadiums!
[Alton] What's in the gun?
Squirt, grapefruit soda,
it's a palate cleanser.
-[Alton] You're squirting Squirt.
-Exactly.
Got it.
-[Curtis] How you doin' over there?
-[Gareth] Good.
[Alton] Over on the Iron Chef's side,
I see sous-chef Gareth working with
what looks to me like bulgur wheat.
Perhaps there's a kibbeh happening here.
If there is ground meat and barley,
then that's what's going to happen.
[Alton] Kibbeh, of course,
is a Middle Eastern dish
of raw lamb, bulgur wheat and seasoning.
-[Kristen] I'm gonna go see.
-[Alton] Where first?
Good. Go to Curtis' side.
I'll keep up
with what's going on over here.
[Kristen] Chef Stone,
I'm getting cumin seeds.
Cumin, now we've just roasted it.
This is gonna go a little later,
but I've got to get it pressure cooking.
Uh, we're doing an Indian
sort of cinnamon-scented curry.
We're gonna use the shank and the neck.
[Andrew] Well, if you've got lamb,
it walks right into a curry and says
-"Let this be my final resting place."
-Yeah.
[Nilou chuckles]
Okay. So I've got my lamb curry workin'.
Okay, here we go, pressure cooker.
I'm gonna lock it down.
[Francis] Forty minutes left is not
a lot of time in a pressure cooker.
You're pushing the limits.
[Alton] Kristen now coming
from the challenger's side.
This is the toasted Searzall situation
you were working on.
Yeah, so we seared off one of the loins
and I'm going to chop it up
and make a tartare.
What's the binding agent?
Mayonnaise, chopped up anchovies
to bring out the funkiness of the lamb.
Shallots, lemon juice,
and then a bunch of the spices.
I mean, I like it.
You gotta butter both sides.
[Alton] Big hunks of white bread,
like, pullman loaf
down on the flattop
over on Chef Hereford's side.
We're obviously gonna
to have a sandwich of some type.
Number one, the guy has a sandwich shop.
[giggles]
What is your take on what you saw
down on the floor?
[Kristen] On the Iron Chef's side,
there's a seriousness and urgency.
It is like Michelin Star-kitchen urgency.
[Alton] It's that head-down
"doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo!" Go, go, go.
Over on Chef Hereford's side,
they seem a bit more chill.
-That's 'cause they've been drinking.
-Good point.
Cheers, bud.
[Alton] Alright, three minutes 29 seconds
to get that first course up to the judges.
And don't forget, fire has got
to be involved or it just doesn't count.
[Andrew] Kissed with fire, lamb is ideal.
[Nilou] I want it to have
like a big, wet smooch with fire.
-That's weird, Nilou.
-[Andrew] She's very passionate.
I'm of the Middle East, we love
-[Francis] Big smooches with fire?
-Yeah.
[Alton] Okay. Look at this.
Sous-chef Gareth is putting a blowtorch
to the dried-up lamb fat.
So, what he did
was he rendered down some lamb fat
and he mixed it with tapioca maltodextrin.
Thing about tapioca maltodextrin
is it can turn almost any fat to a powder,
but I've never seen anybody char it.
I bet this will be the fire component
of his first dish.
So, he's made charred lamb-fat powder!
-[Kristen] Dreams come true.
-Which I would snort.
[chuckles]
[Kristen] On the challenger's side,
Chef Hereford now has some chips out.
Chef Hereford, what are you doing?
We have a sandwich on our menu
that's covered in chips.
-It's one of the flagship menu items.
-[Kristen] Why salt and vinegar?
I decided the perfect vehicle
would be a salt-and-vinegar Pringle.
It's the right shape.
It's now a handheld edible food,
so I'm kind of trying
to street food-ify tartare a little bit.
Hopefully the judges are okay with that.
[Alton] Over on the Iron Chef's side,
we can see sous-chef Gareth.
He's still working on the kibbeh
for the first course.
He really needs to hurry at this point
with only a couple of minutes left.
I guess that that's going to go
with the lavash crackers
that we saw earlier.
[Mason] Course is ready to go.
[Alton] Chef Hereford is finished
with his first course.
He is headed out to the judges' table
where Kristen is standing by.
-How's it going?
-Good. I'm nervous.
Oh, you're going to be fine.
[Kristen] Mason, tell us about this dish.
So I wanted to get something done fast.
We did a tartare, but I knew
tartare wasn't traditionally street food
so I tried to make it a pick-up,
grab-on-the-go type situation.
Please enjoy.
And this is a palate cleanser.
Squirt that in your mouth.
That's a squirt gun full of Squirt.
The drink that tastes like grapefruit.
-What cut of lamb?
-[Mason] That's the loin.
So for the fire, we seared the outside
of the tartare before we chopped it.
-[Francis] Okay.
-I'll get the real juice when you leave.
[Mason] Okay, bye!
Francis, what do we think?
I am kind of amazed by the balance
of acidity and fat and salt.
Those three elements
are really sort of incredible
and especially if you're using
a salt-and-vinegar Pringle,
it's like he actually calibrated
the rest of it to match that.
My only complaint is that
the tartare was a little bit cold.
I think the flavors are fantastic,
but if it was a little bit warmer,
more of the fat would come through,
more lamb flavor would come through.
The one thing that I would say
is I'm not getting that kiss of the fire
as much as I would like.
Understood. Andrew?
[Andrew] The seasoning
and all of the acidity in the powder
that is used on the Pringle
knocked back the lamb flavor a little bit,
but I will tell you it was delicious.
-I'm just happy.
-[Nilou] Yeah, joyful.
Food should make you happy.
I'd have another one.
And did the squirt gun add or deter or
[Nilou] It was actually such a smart move
because it really was a palate cleanser.
It was like a Zamboni for your tongue
and you want to go back for another bite.
Iron Chef Stone is shortly behind him.
-[Curtis] How you doing, Gaz?
-[Gareth] Uh, lamb's up.
Spoon's there for tasting, Chef.
[Alton] And we've gotta get the plates up
in 30 seconds.
Iron Chef Stone, you're scaring me.
Oui,Chef.
-[Alton] That needs to be up
Don't"Oui,Chef" me,
I know what that means. [chuckles]
Alright, uh, there's that charred
powdered lamb fat going down
and his lavash cracker.
Iron Chef Stone, you have ten seconds.
Nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four, three
-Hello.
-Why, hello.
Wow. Gorgeous.
-[Nilou] Beautiful presentation.
-Thank you.
This is some first course.
-Chef, what'd you make?
-[Curtis] Kibbeh nayyeh.
We've taken the lamb saddle,
minced it with a variety
of different herbs.
We made a quick lavash, we spiced that,
we torched the lamb fat, we turned it
into a maltodextrin powder.
So you'll get that bit of char.
-You made the lavash?
-We did.
-Go, go, go!
-[Andrew] Wow.
[Francis] Keep cooking, Chef.
-Nilou, what are your thoughts?
-This is beautiful.
The flavor is stunning,
but kibbehs that I've had before
have been a little less watery than this.
This feels a tiny bit looser
than what I'm accustomed to.
This is brilliant in so many ways.
Presentation, technical acumen,
and I like the creativity
of the fire-kissed fat
turned into a powder.
-Francis, what are your thoughts?
-I think the flavors are fantastic.
To make this lavash
in that amount of time,
it's beautiful, it's crisp,
it's cooked beautifully,
the spicing on it. It's real tasty.
You've tasted both dishes.
Now it's time to do the numbers.
I'm going to go back up to Alton.
Judges, you can award a total of 25 points
for this first course.
Thank you. Thank you, Kristen.
Okay.
[Alton] Right, we have 27 minutes
and 12 seconds left
for each side to plate four more
street-food-themed lamb dishes.
And where'd we leave off?
The Iron Chef has a Greek gyro
with the lamb leg
that Osiel butterflied and marinated
in rosemary, garlic and marjoram
and he has a lamb-neck curry.
Then, of course, the challenger,
Chef Hereford, is making walking tacos.
And look, is is that a heart?
[Mason] Yes, sir, yeah.
Strips of hearts to go on the grill.
You might go, "Ooh!"
but they are nowhere near as kind of gamey
or organ-y as say, liver.
They're clean tasting.
The lamb heart you can grill really fast,
and 'cause we're under time constraints,
we're trying to bust it out real quick.
I'm about to have lamb hearts
for you, Liz.
Great. Thank you.
Kristen, where I thought
you, like, left the building.
I was up there eating with them.
Just kidding.
So now, I'm going to make some skewers
out of these lemongrass.
[Kristen] Over on the challenger's side,
I see lemongrass
in the capable hands of sous-chef Colleen.
[Alton] They took their lamb
and put it through the grinder.
It's got lamb shoulder in it
and I think there's
some belly meat in there.
With the lemongrass, I'm thinking Thai,
I'm going street food.
-[Alton] It makes sense.
-[Kristen] Colleen, what are you planning?
[Colleen] We're going to do
a charred, minced lamb salad.
[Kristen] I like it. I dig it.
And we have lemongrass
on Iron Chef Stone's side.
[Alton] We've got it on both sides.
[Curtis] All the flavor of the lemongrass
is all the way down here in the stem.
Make sure it's nice and clean,
and then treat it like your worst enemy.
That's what he's smashing right now,
to open up the flavors.
[Curtis] And here
we've got some lemongrass working,
a little salt.
-I need a little bit of turmeric.
-What you got, Iron Chef?
A little cayenne pepper,
some lemongrass, some garlic,
some cumin, some coriander.
I'm doing a marinade for the satay.
-Did you say a satay?
-Yeah.
[Alton] Thank you
for letting us know what you're doing.
That's very, very helpful.
Hey, what's that noise over there, Curtis?
That's the sound you're gonna hear
in your nightmares.
[chuckles]
[Kristen] I see the Iron Chef's sous-chef
Osiel is putting that lamb meat on a spit
and that's gotta be for their gyro dish.
That's a bold move, because there's
not a lot of time to cook that meat.
-[Osiel] The meat's all set.
-[Liz and Colleen whoop]
[Curtis] Party going on over there.
Guys, we're on the wrong side.
Holy smokes, that looks like roti
over on Chef Hereford's side.
We're going to do roti paratha,
an open-faced sandwich
that's going to have lamb heart.
[Kristen] Okay, Alton, the hearts
are gonna go with the roti.
These are the hearts. We did a little salt
and a little berbere spice.
[Alton] Ah, berbere, of course,
used a lot in Ethiopian cuisine.
Strong, complex flavor.
Can also be smoky and sometimes bitter.
Hey, how are we on time?
[Kristen] Chefs, you have 22 minutes
and nine seconds left
in this street-food battle
here in Kitchen Stadium
with lamb as your secret ingredient.
[Alton] And since The Chairman
never makes things easy,
he's requiring each dish
to be touched by fire
and the last dish has to involve fire
in the final presentation.
No easy feat in 60 minutes.
[Kristen] Definitely not.
[Alton] Looking down
on the Iron Chef's part of the world,
he's working on his satay
and using a waving motion
so that hopefully what he's going to get
is kind of a range of doneness textures
depending on what's closer to the fire.
What you doin' over there?
I'm gonna marinate it.
So that is goin' into my bag.
[Kristen] That was the marinade
he made earlier,
with turmeric, lemongrass,
he had some fish sauce in there,
lime and coconut.
[Alton] The best they can do at this point
is use that vacuum pressure
to really squeeze those flavors
into the meat.
It's kind of a speed-marinade move.
[Kristen] We can see sous-chef Gareth
is forming some kind of dough.
He definitely has masa in there,
so I have an idea of what it might be,
but I don't want to say anything yet.
Chefs, you might like to know this:
The Chairman snuck down the scores
for the first dish.
-[Liz] Oh God!
-[Alton] Currently in the lead is nobody!
It's a tie!
[sous-chefs whoop]
[Alton] Nineteen points
to nineteen points,
so no one will have an advantage
going into the rest of the dishes
with the judges.
Guys, congratulations
on tying these big shots.
-[Liz] I know!
-[Mason] You're amazing. I love you.
[Kristen] Becoming an Iron Legend
is no joke
and Chef Hereford's off to a solid start.
[Alton] Iron Chef, thoughts?
Uh, that puts more pressure on me
now we're tied.
I can tell that the man can cook,
with his talented team over there.
But I'm not scared.
[Kristen] Iron Chef Stone
releasing the pressure
from his pressure cooker,
and that's got the lamb curry in there.
Sous-chef Gareth's taking his lamb ribs
out of the pressure cooker.
Ribs in an hour is pretty risky,
but they do look delicious.
[Alton] He also took
that masa and water dough
and is cooking them with fat,
so that's arepa,
which, of course,
a very popular street food
in Venezuela and Central America.
[Kristen] Over on the challenger's side,
I see something very familiar
and those are Frito bags.
Sous-chef Colleen
is taking that walking-taco mixture
that was in the pizza oven
and putting it in the bag.
She added guajillo
and morita chilies in there
and of course, there's Fritos.
The one thing about plating,
or I guess I should say bagging,
is that you don't want things
to get mushy,
so they've gotta be careful.
[Alton] Alright, so let's break this down.
Okay, on this side,
we know they have the walking taco.
[Kristen] They also have
some sort of grilled-lamb salad.
[Alton] Of course,
and the grilled-lamb-heart roti sandwich
and I'm not sure what else.
[Kristen] Okay, on the Iron Chef's side,
he has that gyro spinning around
and that lamb-neck curry.
[Alton] He also has his satay
marinating in that bag,
and he has an arepa.
-You gonna fry those, Chef?
-[Osiel] Yeah, we are.
[Alton] He's a Southern boy,
I'm a Southern boy.
That is the sound of chicken-fried steak
getting ready to happen.
-[Kristen] Ten minutes!
-[Mason chuckles]
Ten minutes?!
Don't panic, but panic anyway.
This is gonna be, like,
down to the last second I think, Liz.
Iron Chef Curtis, where do you feel
you are right now in the scheme of things?
A little behind where I would like to be,
Alton, I'm not gonna lie,
but I'll get there.
[Alton] Osiel at the back station
has a dough.
I did not even see him make that.
[Osiel] I'm grilling
the pita bread right now.
[Alton] Okay, pita, okay,
now that's gotta be for the gyro.
-[Mason] You grind the rice powder?
-[Liz] You know it.
[Alton] On the challenger's side,
Chef Hereford is mixing up his lamb salad.
He has some rice powder in there,
herbs, lime leaf.
Uh, maybe kind of the school of a larb?
Mm, yeah.
[Alton] Which is
like a Thai-style chopped-meat salad.
Usually very highly spiced.
[Kristen] Breading station's now out
with sous-chef Liz,
and that's for their chicken-fried lamb.
Chef Hereford is now plating a larb salad
in an old-school lunch box?
Alton, what's happening
over on the Iron Chef side?
[Alton] What the Iron Chef
just put on the yakitori grill,
that is the very thinly sliced tenderloin
that had gone into the vacuum bag.
[Kristen] Which I assume is now his satay.
[Alton] Over on the challenger's side,
Chef Hereford right now
[Kristen] Is that a dinosaur?
That's a dinosaur.
It's the first time I've seen a dinosaur
used as a plating device
in Kitchen Stadium.
What is that about?
[Kristen] Here's the thing
about Chef Hereford is that he is playful,
he loves whimsical plating,
he likes to get you involved.
-[Alton] He's a ten-year-old boy!
-[chuckles]
[Kristen] That's gonna be carrying
that lamb-heart roti sandwich.
Uh-oh.
-We got a problem.
-Uh-oh.
-[Mason] What's wrong?
-We got no heat on the fryers.
[Alton] Oh. That's a That's a tough one.
With so much going on,
maybe they forgot to turn it on in time.
You got five minutes and 20 seconds.
Put a very shallow pot of oil
on high heat.
-[Liz] You grabbing that, Colleen?
-[Colleen] Yeah, I got pans.
[Alton] They're gonna need to pivot,
because those fryers can
take up to 15 minutes to heat up.
Looks like they are
triaging that situation.
Do you notice the change
in the atmosphere here?
-You could hear a pin drop.
-Yes.
It is go time.
[Curtis] Getting the curry out.
It's looking pretty good.
It's caught just a little.
That's okay. That'll add
to that beautiful smoky flavor.
[Kristen] Lots of action
on the Iron Chef's side.
His sous-chef Osiel
now making sure he gets the perfect slice
with the proper doneness,
and that's for their gyro dish.
-[Mason] We gotta get a steak in a pan.
-[Liz] I'm doing it.
[Alton] What's happening
with that chicken-fried lamb?
[Kristen] Sous-chef Liz
went into the fryer,
wasn't working, took it out,
didn't think it was gonna be done.
-Went straight into a pan fry.
-I love when people adapt.
[Kristen] I just hope
they nail the cook on that meat.
Two minutes!
[Alton] Over on the Iron Chef's side,
the thinly sliced leg meat
that was on the spit,
now some of that went on to the pita
and it got some garnishes.
Now the satay is down.
Now that looks simple,
but to make one
that's really unforgettable,
that requires flavor knowledge
and technique.
Hey, where's the mustard?
Looking over on the challenger's side,
is that a freaking train, Kristen?
-It's a train on a track in a plate.
-In a plate.
[Kristen] We gotta give him
a hand with plating.
Literally a hand, and those hands
right now are getting a walking taco.
-Taste everything, guys, taste it.
-[Gareth] Yes, Chef.
[Alton] Okay, looking over
at the Iron Chef's side,
the arepa got plated up
with some of the rib meat
that sous-chef Gareth cooked
and I think that's now under a dome
getting some smoke.
[Gareth] Yep. Good.
Thirty-five seconds left
for all the food to be finished.
[Kristen] Chef Hereford dressing the bread
with the mustard sous-chef Liz made.
-[Mason] Has anybody got sugar?
-[Liz] Right in front of you.
[Alton] A lot of plating needs to happen
and I'm concerned.
-[Curtis] Coming through.
-[Alton] It's moving so fast.
-It's hard to keep track.
-Behind.
[Alton] Five, four, three, two, one.
The cook is over.
[chefs whoop and cheer]
[cheering and applause]
[Curtis sighs]
[Curtis] I feel
like I just got into a fight,
but it was a good fight,
it was lots of fun,
and I'm going to do my team
and my restaurants proud.
Flavor's there. It's gonna taste amazing.
Can't wait for them to taste it.
[Mason] That hour felt like ten minutes.
It was wild but, you know,
we got it up before they said, "One."
Or whatever they said.
[chuckling] So we got there!
[heavenly choral music plays]
[dramatic drumbeats build]
Judges, Kristen, welcome to the large
and impressive round table.
I feel as though we should be knights,
but we're not,
but we're gonna do
some mighty fine eating here.
As our first chef,
Chef Hereford, comes up,
keep in mind
that because of your judging so far,
that first dish is split.
Nineteen points to both chefs,
so it's an even race at this time.
But remember, we're gonna be
awarding points based on taste,
presentation, and use
of the secret ingredient.
We have 75 more points
to allot in the next four dishes
that will eventually make up
the hundred points for each chef.
So let's start with Chef Hereford.
Okay, my friends.
I must tell you it is an absolute honor
to cook for you guys,
as much as it is an honor
to cook in Kitchen Stadium.
Alright, I am feeling some good vibes.
Chef Hereford, what was your
general approach to the challenge?
We wanted to use
different parts of the lamb
and we wanted that street-food theme
and then fire in every course
and we want you guys to have fun,
feel like kids, eat out of a lunch box.
Chef, tell us about this one.
[Mason] So this dish is a larb
from Laos or Thailand.
We ground up the lamb and we skewered it
on a piece of lemongrass,
cooked it over the coals,
get a little bit of that fire on there,
chopped it up
and then lime leaf, lemongrass, shallots.
What cut of lamb did you use for this?
Shoulder and belly.
There is a lot of intense flavor
that you've packed into this dish
and I absolutely love the fact
that you gave us more herbs
to make it really feel like you were
having a street-food experience.
-Thank you.
-Francis.
Typically larb is not made
in a caramelized way.
It's kind of sautéed with a little water.
In this case,
adding that little bit of brown flavor
is a nice complement to the flavors.
Fire is a seminal piece of judging
for this challenge.
Maybe you got a good char-y bite.
I did not,
but the grind,
the amount of fat, it was perfect.
As you can see, empty plate.
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
You can bring us another course.
-Alright, I'm on it.
-Delicious.
[Nilou] The yum factor is high.
-Alright.
-Frito pie.
-Here we go again.
-Oh!
Chef Hereford, what is this?
[laughter]
So this is what?
Sort of an American street food of sorts,
known as the walking taco or Frito pie.
It's a bag of Fritos
with some stuff in it.
Today we made it out of lamb,
so we took the tenderloins,
we wanted something that was
gonna cook fast and still stay juicy.
We cooked it in a pizza oven
under the open fire
with guajillo and dried morita chilies,
onions, garlic, cumin, coriander,
made a bit of a gravy of sorts.
That sauce with those chilies
is one of the better things
that I've eaten in a long time.
-Thank you so much.
-Playful and fun.
The bagging is challenging
because it was a little bit of a mush.
Maybe the chew on the meat
was a little tough.
The lime, the beautiful chili
and tomato sauce,
it so went well with, like,
the industrial, calibrated-to-perfection,
fried aftertaste of the Frito.
All those toppings sat on that base
and just kind of rode off into the sunset.
Francis Lam will be
authoring my tombstone.
[laughter]
Chef Hereford,
bring on the next one, please.
Oh, my pleasure. Thank you, guys.
Here, let's give him a hand.
[judges laugh and groan]
[Mason] Get outta town!
Alright, guys.
Oh!
-She's cute.
-[Andrew] My goodness.
Ooh.
Chef Hereford, do tell us
about your Jurassic offering here.
Yeah, as someone who saw Jurassic Park
four times in theaters,
I thought we would plate on a dinosaur.
The dish is roti paratha lamb heart
served as an open-faced sandwich.
Sandwiches are sort of our love language.
So we took the lamb heart, we grilled it,
we tried to get a good char on it,
a little bit of berbere spice,
an Ethiopian spice,
and then just dill, cilantro.
I wanted meat plus fire, right?
And this delivered on that.
The heart of the animal is one of
the most famous street foods in the world,
just not in this country.
I think what's really cool about heart
is it really tastes like the halfway point
between muscle meat and organ meat.
-[Nilou] Mm.
-Totally.
-Beautifully cooked.
-Thanks.
Thank you, Chef. Next course, please.
You really get that char,
which I've been kind of missing
along the way,
so this is a great moment of char.
Um, it's a really interesting dish.
-The bitterness is
-[Nilou] It's too much.
-I have bitterness issues.
-We all have baggage, it's okay.
Are we thinking the bitterness
has to do with the way he charred
or flame-broiled anything?
I think it's the berbere.
Berbere doesn't do that though.
Any un-toasted spice
will carry a bitterness
until you put a little heat on it.
[Alton] Yes.
[Kristen] I'm not sure.
Perhaps it has something to do with it.
[Alton] Very much so.
The last course on a cart.
It is your fifth and final course,
which means you have to bring
some form of flame close to our face.
Not that close to our faces.
What did you make
and what are you gonna fire away on?
[Mason] Uh, we've got
a chicken-fried-lamb-steak sandwich.
We've got a mustard,
we covered it in sugar.
-I'm going to brûlée it.
-[Nilou] Mm!
[Mason] And it's gonna taste
like a honey mustard on the sandwich.
And then there's a lemon on a train
'cause I think it's adorable.
You can squeeze the lemon on the steak.
-Fire away.
-[Mason] Oh! Thank you.
Oh yeah, that's working.
-[Mason] There we go.
-[Nilou] Oh, it's real nice.
[Francis] That is a brûlée torch
like no other.
[Andrew] It's fantastic!
[Mason chuckles]
So what is the sugar
that you put on top of the mustard?
Granulated, regular old sugar.
It's a very spicy mustard recipe,
so it should balance out nicely.
[Kristen] Andrew?
That smell of the brûléed mustard
was fantastic.
I'm a mustard fan, so this
played right into my wheelhouse.
-[Mason] Thank you.
-I'm stealing that.
-I'm gonna usemytorch.
-There you go, yeah.
[Andrew] Great!
This was actually probably the most
successful use of fire.
The flavor of burnt sugar
you can essentially only get
-[Alton] Yeah.
-by using an actual flame.
-Thank you.
-[Kristen] Nilou.
I have a kind of obsession
with the perfect sandwich.
-I know you do too.
-Sure.
But the idea of getting
the crispy, the salty,
the sweet, the crunchy, the tangy.
I just got a pretty close to perfect bite.
I will say my meat is overdone.
[Mason] Gotcha.
But the crunch of the breading
is unbelievable.
I think the meat was probably perfect
before I brought the torch to the table.
-Thank you, Chef.
-Thank you so much.
This place rules. Thank you so much.
-Thanks, Mason.
-Thank you, Chef.
This is a very compelling journey
we've been on with Chef Hereford.
He has told us his story,
and now the question is whether
he told the story of the ingredient.
Well, he doesn't have
to tell a perfect story,
he has to just tell a better one
than Iron Chef Stone.
-Oh-ho!
-Oh, yeah.
[Nilou] Talk about making an entrance!
A smoky one.
That's really pretty.
Before we get to the particulars
of this dish,
tell us something, Iron Chef Stone,
about your general approach
to the challenge.
We thought we'd take you
all around the world,
which we're gonna do today.
A whole lamb is a big challenge
in 60 minutes, but one that I welcome
because we love
breaking down whole animals
at my butcher shop and restaurant.
We've tried to serve you dishes
from the neck to the shank,
and everything in between.
Tell us about this dish.
[Curtis] So this is an arepa,
a wonderful dish from South America.
Underneath that cloche,
and you're welcome to pick it up,
there's a bit of that smoke.
The arepa, we actually make
with masa of course,
and then cook it on a flat, flat griddle.
The lamb ribs is what we used here,
where we fast cooked them
in the pressure cooker.
There's a little crema
and pickled onion as well.
-Anyone who cares enough about an arepa
-Mm!
to crisp it up this nicely
really loves an arepa.
It's It's It's delightful.
The lamb? Perfectly cooked,
smokey, fiery, loved it,
but this is what won me over.
A cloche filled with smoke
is gonna jazz us up,
but what I just taste
is what I would wanna have
if I was sitting on a low stool
in the back alley somewhere.
Thank you, Iron Chef.
We'll be ready for your next course.
This, for a second dish,
is really going places.
Iron Chef Stone,
please tell us about this dish.
[Curtis] For my third course,
I went to India.
I made a beautiful lamb curry.
-[Andrew] This is the neck?
-[Curtis] Mm-hmm.
Of all the cuts on the lamb,
there is no piece of lamb
I would rather seen turn into a curry.
[Alton] You also had the four legs
in that pressure cooker?
[Curtis] I did.
We're eating mostly neck.
From what I'm getting,
a lot of gelatin probably
came off of those legs as well.
[Curtis] That was the strategy.
The only thing that I wished
I had a little more of
was fire, smoke, in there.
I mean, it is at that point
where the collagen is melted,
it feels silky, you feel it in the sauce,
but there's still bite.
-And there's still chew.
-Ooh!
Iron Chef, thank you.
We look forward to the next course.
-Thank you so much.
-Thank you.
This is exquisite.
I don't know that it's street food.
No. When I think of street food,
I think of food
that is accessible, affordable.
It doesn't have to be in a street stall.
To me, this is certainly elevated,
but very much in the street-food canon.
[Alton] Iron Chef Stone,
tell us about this dish.
Thank you, Chef.
[Curtis] You'd have this after a few beers
in a taverna in the Greek islands
or somewhere throughout Greece.
For our fourth course we did a gyro
and what that is is a lamb leg
that we butterfly,
we marinate and we spit roast,
and then we serve it in a homemade pita,
some tomatoes, a garlic-scented tzatziki.
Ooh!
To do the pita and to nail that,
and I taste the fire on that pita.
The restaurant that I go to in Athens
to get what I feel
is the best version of this in the world,
this might have bested that.
-Wow.
-Thank you.
The lamb is so tender and smoky
all at the same time.
I do think the marjoram
was a smidge strong
and I am not sure about the tomato.
Okay.
-We'll be ready for your next course.
-Thank you.
We know this was spit fired.
Can you taste it?
-[Andrew] Without a doubt.
-[Nilou] No question.
Iron Chef Stone, it's your final dish.
Whatcha got?
My trip around the world with street food
wouldn't be complete without a satay.
It's very humble, very simple,
but one of the most fabulous things
that you can eat.
[Nilou] Thank you.
[Curtis] So what we've done
is a lamb satay,
we've marinated them
in a mixture of turmeric,
lime, some fish sauce, coconut.
We've made a satay sauce
that you have on your plates there.
Talking and grilling
at the same time is hard.
I know. I I
I didn't realize it was this hard,
but I've got a newfound respect.
Which cut of meat did you use?
Uh, this is the filet.
And this is what went into the vacuum bag
for a bit of a speed marinade.
That's correct. Yes.
By marinating this
and sucking all the air out of it,
you're pushing all those flavors into it.
Then the slow cook.
I can taste every single ingredient
that's gone into here.
-It's beautifully done.
-Thank you.
It's dynamite.
This sauce, delicious, aromatic.
Still a little sweet for my taste,
but, eaten with the lamb,
with that smoke flavor, it's lovely.
It was as good as any satay
I've had anywhere in the world.
Wow, thank you.
Brilliant choice of marrying a recipe
to all the different cuts that you used.
That's tricky in an hour
with the whole animal.
This is a very intimidating table.
It's magic to hear those words.
Thank you so much.
Iron Chef, thank you very much.
Thank you so much.
[judges] Thank you, Iron Chef.
Alright, judges, you have dined
and now, you've got to do your part
in paying the dinner tab.
Now we dash.
And you do that, not with cash,
but with the numbers
you're going to put on those cards.
So, Kristen and I are
heading up to our spots.
You head to yours, do your job.
-[Nilou] Alright.
-[Francis] Where do we leave a tip?
[Alton] Will it be Chef Hereford's
whimsical take on the secret ingredient
or Iron Chef Stone's
globally inspired menu
that comes out on top
in this lamb street-food battle?
Mr. Chairman, the fate of these chefs
is in your hands.
It's the moment of truth.
As predicted, this was a street fight.
Chef Hereford.
Iron Chef Stone.
Only one of you have raced
down the road to victory today.
And that chef is
Iron Chef Stone.
[cheering and applause]
-Great job, brother.
-Well done.
[Alton] Well, there you have it,
ladies and gentlemen.
The Chairman has declared Iron Chef Stone
the winner of this street-food battle,
with the judges scoring at 85 points
to 78 in favor of the Iron Chef.
Both chefs created
such beautiful meals for us,
but what gave Iron Chef Stone the edge
was his use of all parts of the lamb,
his masterful cookery
of the secret ingredient
and through his menu that took us
on a culinary journey around the world.
Thanks to our amazing combatants,
Chef Hereford and Iron Chef Stone,
for a fiery street food fight
for the ages. [chuckles]
Remember, our most successful challenger
will return for a final showdown
against all five Iron Chefs
to compete for a chance to be
crowned the Iron Legend.
Chairman, any final words?
For our next battle,
cooking is a full-contact sport,
especially when the food
comes into contact with
my belly!
-[whistle blows]
-[man] Hut, hut, hut!
[gasps]
Game on.
[men grunt]
[closing theme music playing]