The chefs get an unusual wake-up call in the appetizer basket: gummy fried eggs. Will they be able to successfully transform this novelty candy into something that tastes good with corned beef? Then a sweet-and-sour surprise in the entree round sends the chefs running to the pantry to find suitable complementary ingredients. The two chefs who make it to a fiercely competitive dessert round must make do with knodel and almond flour.
The chefs need to have guts when they discover poultry intestines and red miso in the first basket. The ingredients are less daunting for the entree round, but some big technical flaws are disappointing to the judges. And two talented competitors advance to the dessert round with something to prove with candied nuts and kombucha as mystery ingredients.
It's a chocolate lover's dream competition: Chocolate in every course! Will the chefs take well to this sweet challenge? The appetizer round is a heart-stopping affair with a romantic gift as the centerpiece of the basket. The three chefs who advance to cook the second course have a love/hate response to the thematic ingredient. And when the chefs are given a molded chocolate novelty item in the dessert round, they battle to prove who can finish strong.
Three of the chefs go in a very similar direction with the first course, and yet the judges find creativity in the variety of flavors in their seafood sausage appetizers. In the entree round, the chefs must integrate tiny pasta and a powerful liqueur into their dishes. In the dessert round, when one competitor's plans fall apart, will there be enough time to redirect?
In this first-of-its-kind Chopped tournament event, the competition goes west for a fierce five-part showdown, where the greatest griller of them all will walk away with $50,000. In the appetizer round, what will the first four grill masters make for the judges with cookies and yak steaks? A giant surprise awaits the competitors in the entree basket, as one chef must muster up the confidence to create a dish using an ingredient he has never prepared and another ingredient he cannot stand. Chocolate meets fruit in a desert dessert duel; will everything go peachy for the competitors?
Four new master grillers step up to the challenge, fighting for a chance to compete in the $50,000 finale. But who will be able to hatch a successful plan in the first round with hatch chile taffy and Hawaiian blue prawns in the basket? Then, after the remaining competitors serve up their rack of boar entrees, the judges debate the relative complexity of flavors in the three dishes. Some delicious Italian surprises await the finalists, but perfect desserts will be difficult to execute in a windy, intense final round.
When the chefs confront the first basket, their degrees of expertise with tuna belly come into play. Lamb top round is round two's mystery protein, and it's a mystery whose dish the judge like least, until the cloche is lifted. With cayenne pepper and canned pumpkin desserts in the works, one chef has some serious difficulties and races to get everything onto the plate.
Four masters of the open flame compete for a chance to make it to the $50,000 finale fight. Advancing past the first round will require a lot of hard work in just 20 minutes, including opening oysters and defrosting blocks of creamed spinach. A tropical fruit lightens things up in the entree basket. Then with marshmallows in the dessert basket, s'mores come to mind for one of the last two chefs. Will the judges enjoy the campfire-inspired creation?
Four grill masters face off for the last slot in the $50,000 finale. Will anybody lose their cool when they spy something called speculoos in the first basket? During the entree round, the competitors strive to make kick-butt pork butt dishes, which also include fruit leather. Can the two remaining chefs grill up some terrific desserts using every meat lover's worst nightmare?
The champions of the first four Chopped Grill Masters competitions return to compete for $50,000. The fierce fight to the finish begins with an appetizer basket of sardines and canned Sloppy Joe filling. Steaks are served up in the entree course, but the chefs' success with the other ingredients gives the judges much to think about. The final two chefs draw from family memories when they open up the last basket of the tournament and must grill some do-or-die desserts.
When the first basket contains licorice, licking the competition on creativity becomes the chefs' main challenge in the appetizer round. The competitors get a jolt of energy in the form of espresso powder, which they must match with flank steak for their entree dish. When it becomes clear that neither finalist's polenta and sherry dessert is a sure thing, who will become the Chopped Champion?
