The Jet Stream: Old meets molecular

Jet Tila

Thursday, Aug. 27, 2009 | 3:34 p.m.

I do like the group of chefs this season; there’s a lot of talent that can be appreciated by professionals and is still entertaining to non-professionals. It seems like the "Top Chef" folks are refining their craft every season! And I’m so thankful that this season is in Las Vegas. There couldn’t be a better time for this show to be here. This is a great food city, and thanks, "TC," for highlighting not just the culinary destinations and talents of this town, but for reminding America of how fun and sexy this place is!

Craps quickfire…too fun!

If I rolled a two, what would I have made? I think a lot of us were pondering that. So my stab at it is cold cauliflower soup topped with olive oil and sea salt (if sea salt was the salt provided).

Kinda boring, but I think if you cook cauliflower correctly, and get past the fiber and water. It’s easy to pull umami out of it. (Umami is one of the basic tastes sensed by receptors on the tongue. Generally thought of as savory or meaty.) It has such a depth of flavor when tortured with heat and moisture. Then salt helps bring out its true flavor…good or bad. That would be my two-ingredient quickfire.

Michael’s nitro gazpacho was very clever, old meets molecular. That dish doesn’t just show he’s a thinker, it shows that he wants to tell a story with his dish. I know it’s only two challenges in, but big ups to Mike V - a badass dish!

Then Bryan, Michael’s brother, comes in with a savory macaroon play on chips and dip. Dude pulls out chips and guacamole with a macaroon and corn nuts?! This was a bold move and clearly he has mad chops. What’s exciting to watch here is the push/pull of “I love you bro, but I want to kick your ass!” I smell a bro vs. bro final.

Bryan gets the “Big Corn Nuts, you seriously did what? You are the man!” award for this week’s dish!

Michael and Bryan - I feel a lot of jealousy and bitterness there. Great casting choice, "TC." These are the guys to watch, but the sleepers in my book are Eli and Kevin. I’m also watching them very closely!

The girls seem to be hurting a little. Jennifer seems to be the only standout on the girl’s side. She can cook, but I don’t think we’ve seen her best yet.

Ashley spent too much time being bitter about the “institution” issue. Look, I am an advocate for anyone being able to marry anyone they want, but c’mon, Ashley. THIS IS "TOP CHEF!" Did you forget the thousands of people you had to go against to get here? For now, leave your politics at home and just kick some ass! It seems your panna cotta isn’t the only thing that’s bitter. A lot of us are on your side, but you are here to cook. Ginger is bitter. Bay leaves en masse are bitter. Steeping in milk to pull out all the aroma and bitterness and have it set up in a gelatin custard? This girl can cook as demonstrated by her watermelon but needs to focus a little more.

On the hand, Hector’s tofu dish was truly badass! Tofu, lemon-lime, tequila ceviche and guanjillo achiote tortilla – a second runner up to Bryan’s dish in my book! I do know a thing or two about tofu, and this guy is great! First, he picks a curd from a soybean (tofu) as his base, very gutsy. Then, he makes a homemade tortilla with masa (corn meal), a chile guajillo and achiote? It was easy to miss that he makes the tortilla dough, presses it out, then has to cook it on a flat top to set it (not shown on TV) and fry it into a chip! This is not easy stuff. Then he breathes flavor into naturally bland tofu with lemon, lime and tequila. And let’s not forget his quickfire dish - serrano ham with date carpaccio. I’d eat anywhere that this guy is cheffing!

Now, for the “what were they thinking?” dishes.

Ashley, Quickfire: Grilled Lamb with apricot mastrada

Not good, lamb was so thin and raw it should been called bone in lamb carpaccio with some chunky apricot stuff.

Jesse, Quickfire: Scallops with chimichurri and smashed garbanzo beans with toasted garlic

Scallops are a great test to see if the chef is competent in cooking seafood. Forget the pan for a moment, we know she could have used a better pan, but it looked like an anodized aluminum pan. She could have used a little hard flour. One secret I like to use is chickpea flour. Dry the scallop very well, dust it in chickpea flour lightly on the two flat sides then sear it in a super hot lightly oiled pan. You want pan contact to get some caramelization. I see a lot of people use way to much oil when searing scallops. You might as well be shallow frying! A well-seasoned small cast iron or French steel pan would be perfect for searing the perfect scallop.

Fashion standout of the week:

Tom Colicchio rocking the Neo "Matrix" shades and the "Miami Vice" T-shirt/sport coat combo…nice!

Predictions:

I think we are gonna see the weaker cooks fall by the wayside as the weeks come! Jessi and Preeti, beware. There’s just too much talent this season, and it’s humble, focused talent. No drama queens and kings yet. Maybe as the weeks come and go and chefs get more comfortable, their true colors will show. Regardless of the dramas and craziness to come, we will most definitely be the beneficiaries!