| Cleaver Fever | |
| Season 16, Episode 2 | |
 | |
| Air date | June 11, 2013 |
| Winner | Nicole Mummolo |
| Episode Guide | |
| previous Fry, Fry Again |
next Mix and Mache |
To avoid the judges' cleaver fever, the competitors have to work with bacon popcorn in the first round. In the entree round, an injury causes one chef to lose valuable time on his lamb dish. A mashed treat meets floral syrup in the dessert basket.
Contestants[]
- Sevan Abdessian, Chef and Restaurateur, Recess Eatery, Glendale, CA
- Nicole Mummolo, Sous chef, La Puerta Azul, Millbrook, NY
- Raquel Jubran, Executive Chef, The Attic, Long Beach, CA
- Owen Clark, Executive Chef, Gwynnett Street Restaurant, Brooklyn, NY
Judges[]
- Elizabeth Karmel
- Alex Guarnaschelli
- Scott Conant
Meal[]
Appetizer[]
Ingredients: Tuna Belly, Key Limes, Black Radishes, Bacon Popcorn
Sevan's appetizer is Tuna Tower over Radish Bacon Purée. Sevan has the best presentation of the round. His placement of the tuna directly over the purée makes those components too integrated and muddled.
Nicole prepared Tuna Belly & Key Lime Ceviche with Black Radish Chips. Nicole does the best job of anticipating the final product in her appetizer, with great acidity in the tuna. Scott feels the sauce could be developed more, although Elizabeth disagrees. The radish chips don't work.
Raquel prepared Seared Tuna with Black Radish Salad & Citrus Vinaigrette. The judges love her vinaigrette, which ties her salad together. Cooking her tuna was a mistake.
Owen made a Chilled Black Radish & Key Lime Broth with Marinated Tuna Belly. Owen takes creativity for the round, and the judges like his flavors. However, his broth is highly sulfuric and the smell is offputting.
After deliberating, the judges chop Chef Raquel for cooking her tuna and not realizing what she had done to it.
Entrée[]
Ingredients: Leg of Lamb, Toban Djan, Spinach, Lassi
Nicole made Braised Lamb with Toban Djan Lentils & Spinach. The judges like her addition of golden raisins and how she poured some of what she loved into her dish. The lentils turned into mush and her lamb is tough.
Owen made Seared Lamb Leg with Warm Bean and Spinach Salad. The judges are impressed by Owen's dish, giving how badly he had cut his finger while cooking. They like his lassi and spinach purée, although the lassi gets a bit obscured. The primary complaint is that the lamb is at different levels of doneness for each judge.
Sevan prepared Seared Lamb Loin with Toban Djan & Lassi Aioli. Sevan cooks his lamb masterfully, and the judges see the dish as a snapshot of Sevan as a chef on the plate. The use of jarred mayonnaise in the aioli masks the toban djan and lassi, and Scott labels it as the worst idea of the day.
The judges eventually decide not to send Chef Sevan to the dessert round because the mayo in his aioli completely obliterated the toban djan and lassi.
Dessert[]
Ingredients: Rosewater Syrup, Almond Butter, Rambutans, Mashed Potato Candy
Owen made Almond Butter Cake with Whipped Ricotta & Sweet Pickled Rambutans. The judges like his treatment of the rambutans and his cake, even though it stuck to the ring mold and fell apart. Owen forgot to get his mashed potato candy caramel on the plates.
Nicole made Almond Cookie Tower with Rosewaater Ice Cream. The judges love her ambition and her ice cream. Her dessert is cloyingly sweet, Scott saying that it was so sweet so that he got a headache from it.
The judges chop Chef Owen for his sulfuric broth in his appetizer and not getting an ingredient on the plate. Nicole is made the Chopped Champion.
Gallery[]
Notes[]
- Nicole is the first chef in chopped history to give a judge a headache
| Chopped Season 16 | |
| << Season 15 • Season 17 >> | |
| #01 Fry, Fry Again | #08 Sweet Surprises |
| #02 Cleaver Fever | #09 Break a Crab Leg! |
| #03 Mix and Mache | #10 Walk on the Whelk Side |
| #04 Gyro We Go Again | #11 Chopped Family Feud |
| #05 Big Fish, Small Basket | #12 Extreme Halloween |
| #06 Teen Invasion | #13 A Chopped Thanksgiving |
| #07 Mochi Obliged | |