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I have $100,000
of cold hard cash in this case.
4 chefs get $25,000 each.
Yeah, baby!
If they want to leave this kitchen
with any of the cash,
they have to survive three culinary challenges
and each other.
Women stick together.
No, they don't.
In a game where sabotage is not only encouraged...
You'll be able to force one of your opponents
to do all of their cooking on a camp stove.
...it's for sale.
$5,000.
10 grand.
Ooh.
It's a game we like to call...
[ Laughs ]
..."Cutthroat Kitchen."
-- Captions by VITAC --
Closed Captions provided by Scripps Networks, LLC.
CHEF KWON: My name is Jason Kwon.
Prior to me being a chef, I was in finance in New York.
So, I've always been about high risk, high reward.
CHEF MARQUIS: My name is Rene Marquis.
I'm an executive chef in the United States Army.
I came to this competition
for one reason and one reason only --
I am gonna show America that military chefs can cook.
CHEF LIZETTE: I'm Chef Lizette.
If I had to choose any animal in the jungle,
I would be the lioness.
She is precise,
and she knows how to go for her prey.
You're a serious bunch.
Come on. Lighten up a little bit.
I'm George Kyrtatas.
I was voted as one of the top four Greek chefs in the world,
but when people look at me,
they don't really see all the years of experience.
They see this 34-year-old nice guy from New Jersey,
and that's a good thing.
Only girl. How cool.
You, too.
You're gonna need it.
Hello, chefs.
Welcome to "Cutthroat Kitchen." The rules are simple.
There will be three cooking rounds.
At the end of each, one of you will be eliminated.
Before each round, I will assign a dish.
You will then have one minute
to shop for your ingredients in our pantry.
And then the fun part --
We're going to have ourselves a little auction,
where you will be able to bid on some devilish devices
you can use to derail your opponents.
Of course, if we're gonna have an auction,
you're gonna need some money,
and I happen to have here $100,000
of cold hard cash.
Each of you will receive $25,000
to bid with throughout the competition.
Hey, now!
But bid smart, chefs,
because whoever is left standing at the end of the day
only gets to keep the money they have remaining.
Chef, get your cash.
CHEF MARQUIS: $25,000 --
This is about 1/3 of my year's salary
as a service member in the military.
ALTON: $25,000.
Feel it.
Smell it.
Understand its power.
Now, our first cooking round.
I think that I would like
a grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup.
CHEF KYRTATAS: There's not a day that goes by
that I don't make a grilled cheese.
If I don't put it on special,
I'm making it for my kids and my family.
I think I've got this one in the bag.
You've already got a recipe in your head.
You know you can make it in 30 minutes,
and I guarantee you, you can shop it in one minute.
Oh, and that one minute begins...now.
CHEF MARQUIS: I love shopping in 60 seconds
'cause that's about how long it takes me
to do all my Christmas shopping.
I'm grabbing a loaf of Pullman bread.
I'm gonna get at least two different types of cheese --
a sharp cheese and a mild cheese.
I've got to make sure I get the butter,
because you need butter to make the perfect grilled cheese.
ALTON: 30 seconds.
So, when we're in the pantry, it is ferocious.
It is every person for themself.
So, I'm going for chilies that will add a unique twist.
Also, goat cheese, which will add a nice texture to the soup.
ALTON: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
[ Chuckles ] Oh, I love a close finish.
CHEF KWON: I look down in my basket,
I realize I don't even have butter.
How do you make a grilled cheese sandwich without butter?
ALTON: Time to have a little bit of fun.
First item -- I call this "choose your weapon."
There's good news and there's bad news.
The bad news is,
we're gonna take away all your knives.
The good news is,
whoever wins this particular item
will be able to decide which of these tools they will use,
and they'll be able to assign the other tools
to their competitors.
So, give me $500.
$800.
$2,200.
There's a lot of bidding and it happens quickly,
so you have to have a game plan.
And my strategy is to spend money.
I got $3,700 from Chef Kwon.
$5,200.
$5,200.
$5,300.
$5,300 going once. Going twice.
Sold to Chef Lizette for $5,300.
Bring me my money.
[ Chuckles ]
Here you go!
I'm really glad that I got the chef's knife,
because it's really gonna compromise
the way the other chefs cook.
And here you go, Chef.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
Chef Lizette comes over and hands me the cheese scraper.
What am I supposed to do with this?
CHEF LIZETTE: My plan is take out Chef Marquis.
The biggest guy gets the smallest little tool.
I will take this and I will chisel my way to victory.
I wanted to give him the smallest little tool
since he had the biggest ego.
Chef Kwon, enjoy.
Chef Lizette just gave me a wire cutter,
so I can see she's trying to screw me over.
So, in the second auction, I want to complicate her life.
ALTON: Our second item.
[ Chuckles ]
This is almost meaner than the last one.
If you win this item,
you will be able to choose one of your opponents
who will use these kiddie tools exclusively
to prepare this kiddie dish.
All of their hand tools and utensils
and pots and pans
will be replaced by what you see right here,
except what you were just issued by Chef Lizette.
These mini cookware items are a pain in the ***...
$2,000.
...just like Chef Lizette.
$3,000.
$3,900.
Chef Kwon, are you in for $4,000?
$4,000.
$4,900.
I got $4,900. Do I get $5,000?
$5,000, the current bid for Chef Kwon.
$5,100.
I got my $5,100. Do I get my $5,200?
I got my $5,200. $5,200 going once.
Going twice.
Sold to Chef Kwon. Come up, sir.
Get your tools and bring me my money.
Thank you.
So, the challenge that I see
with these little kitchen tools is,
I don't have the variety of big pans
that I would like to make the soup,
but I'm not gonna let it intimidate me.
ALTON: And we will move now to the third item.
Aerosol cheese.
Whoever wins this can of aerosol cheese
will be able to walk up to one of their opponents
and use it to replace all the cheese in their basket.
CHEF KYRTATAS: It's a grilled cheese challenge.
"Cheese" is in the name.
You can't make a grilled cheese with this
that's gonna be edible.
$3,000, Chef.
ALTON: $7,000.
I'll take it for $8,300.
$8,300 -- the current bid to Chef Marquis.
At the beginning, I'm like, "Yeah, I want this."
But then, the other chefs just started going crazy over this.
$12,000.
[ Laughter ]
Yeah.
You don't have to bid that high.
$12,000 for a can of aerosol cheese.
Going once. Going twice.
Sold to Chef Lizette for $12,000.
Good for you.
She deserves it.
I don't know if you're insane or just very, very good.
CHEF LIZETTE: $12,000 for a can of cheese.
It's pricy, but I never cook with processed foods,
so I wanted to make sure
that I didn't have to deal with that processed cheese.
Here you go, my friend.
Thank you very much.
ALTON: Now, make sure
that you take all of Chef Kyrtatas' cheese away
and bring that to me.
CHEF KYRTATAS: My knives are taken away,
I've got this stupid cheese scraper thing
that I don't know what I'm supposed to do with,
and I've got this aerosol cheese in a can.
This is a great way to start round 1.
ALTON: You're gonna have 30 minutes.
That time begins...now.
I am, like, thrilled to have a knife.
I've got my baby pans, but that's okay,
'cause I've got baby hands, so I'll make it work.
My plan is to go after the tomato soup
and grill all of the vegetables and the bacon
on this flaming grill.
I have a little baby tongs, so my fingers are getting hot.
I'm gonna have to move quickly
if I don't want to burn them off.
I didn't get a knife. I got this little chisel.
So, I decided to grab the meat slicer,
and I'm gonna use this for my bread.
I look over to Chef Marquis, and he has the slicer.
I feel stupid for not grabbing that first.
My initial strategy is to focus on the soup.
I want to make a tomato pancetta bisque,
so I used the food processor to break down the ingredients.
ALTON: 20 minutes! 20 minutes remaining.
CHEF MARQUIS: Army style.
I'm gonna make the most perfect cheese sandwich
with some Italian cheese,
and I'm gonna get them nice and toasted on the outside
and gooey on the inside.
And my soup's gonna be finished
with a little bit of fresh basil and a little bit of cream.
CHEF KYRTATAS: First thing I do,
I get my chicken stock on the fire.
That's my first goal,
is to make sure that my tomato soup is spot-on.
And the next thing I have to do is cut this bread.
I look at my workstation, and I've got this spatula.
I take my steel
and I start sharpening the edge of it.
I'm gonna turn this spatula into a knife.
You've got to be kidding me.
It's gonna take me a half-hour to cut the frickin' bread.
Chefs, I just want to say before you see this --
I'm not a mean person, but I enable mean people.
And that's why I have this very small butane torch.
CHEF LIZETTE: Oh, my God.
Who wants that?
ALTON: And the winner of this torch
will be able to inflict upon one of his opponents
the necessity to use this exclusively as their heat source
for the remainder of the challenge.
CHEF KWON: The blow torch is a K.O. punch.
It's the blow of death.
CHEF MARQUIS: I'm thinking, "Man, if I can buy that
and I can give that to somebody, it's gonna hurt their feelings."
Who will give me $500 just to avoid that reality?
CHEF MARQUIS: I'm buying this.
If it costs me $15,000, I'm buying this.
Chefs, who will give me $500
just to avoid this very small butane torch?
CHEF MARQUIS: I'm buying this.
If it costs me $15,000, I'm buying this.
$2,500.
$2,500 -- the current bid from Chef Marquis.
Who will give me $2,600?
Chef Kwon's gonna give me $2,600.
$3,000 to Chef Marquis.
CHEF KYRTATAS: I know I've already got my knives taken away.
I know I've already got this cheese stuff.
I don't think that this blow torch is coming to me,
so I just kind of disregard it.
Going once for $3,000. Twice for $3,000.
Sold to Chef Marquis for $3,000. I'm gonna give this to you.
Thank you very much. Here you go, young man.
Boom. I'm done.
I've gotten three out of the four sabotage items
handed directly to me.
How am I supposed to finish making
my soup and grilled cheese
with this toy of a blow torch?
CHEF MARQUIS: So what are you gonna use that big torch for?
What are you gonna cook first?
I can't give you all my secrets.
So I take this blow torch
and I prop it up to heat the bottom of the pan
and then I start whisking in my milk,
my chicken stock, my tomato paste.
It's actually doing a decent job heating it.
What's on fire over there?
CHEF LIZETTE: The grill is turned up all the way,
which was helpful in grilling all my vegetables quickly,
but I didn't turn it down.
And that was detrimental to my bread.
I'm limited on time,
but I'm not gonna let that psych me out.
This is garbage.
I'm freaking out.
I'm halfway through the brioche,
and I still do not have a usable piece of bread.
Chef Lizette took my knives,
so I just grab anything I can
to cut the bread as thin as I can,
but it's just not working.
The closest thing I can make is
a bruschetta-like faux grilled cheese.
I add garlic and fennel
to give it a nice Mediterranean flavor.
CHEF MARQUIS: How's it going, young man?
ALTON: Five minutes. Five minutes remaining.
CHEF MARQUIS: I make the most perfect grilled cheese sandwich
with some white cheddar and some Italian cheese.
I finish my tomato soup and then I just use
about maybe 1/4 of a teaspoon of olive oil
to give it that shine.
Hm. The best damn tomato soup I ever made.
[ Aerosol can squirts ]
Ugh.
[ Chuckles ]
Thank you, Lizette.
You're welcome.
My grilled cheese sandwich is a joke.
I've got this aerosol cheese spray.
My bread is cut like garbage.
I'm trying to heat it up.
I can't even toast it properly 'cause of this butane torch.
ALTON: And, chefs, you've got one minute.
One minute remaining.
CHEF KYRTATAS: In this situation,
less is definitely more.
So, I start hacking this thing down.
I ended up coming up with this little, tiny crouton.
I'm not serving any more than this bare minimum.
ALTON: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
Put it down and step away.
The challenge is finished.
And everybody survived. And look.
Here comes the judge.
Chefs, allow me to introduce Chef Jet Tila.
He's an executive chef.
Today's subject, sir --
grilled cheese sandwich, tomato soup.
Chef Kwon, say "hi" to Chef Tila.
How are you doing, Chef?
So, here we have an interpretation
of grilled cheese as a bruschetta
and a pancetta tomato bisque.
I really like the soup.
It's got a nice creaminess to it,
but because the piece of bread is so large,
it's just really dry.
Okay.
So, if you went for dry, you achieved that,
but you went overly dry, in my opinion.
That's my mistake.
CHEF KWON: I know I look pretty incompetent.
I'm just hoping that the other chefs
had just as much trouble as I did.
Thank you, Chef. Let's move on.
Please describe your dish.
So what I've made today is a traditional tomato soup,
and then my grilled cheese is just a traditional,
perfectly cooked grilled cheese
with Vermont cheddar cheese and a little Peco Romano.
What I really like -- It's crispy.
I like that snap.
I wish there was a little more cheese.
i wish it was a little more melted.
Soup -- big tomato flavor.
The problem I have with the soup is
there's this giant oil slick of olive oil on top.
Thank you. Let's move on.
So, this is Isabelle's roasted tomato soup.
Isabelle is my Yorkshire Terrier.
And then I have here an olive grilled cheese sandwich.
All righty.
Soup flavor -- very good.
On the sandwich, that's absolutely burnt.
It's not browned at all.
I do like all the flavors
and how they come together, though.
Thank you.
Let's move on.
Chef Kyrtatas, tell him about your dish.
I wanted it to be more of a start of a meal,
rather than a meal itself.
So, what I did here was a creamy tomato basil soup
with a grilled cheese crouton that we could dunk inside.
Soup is really nice --
thick, creamy, rich.
Um, this is, uh...
Uh...I'm trying to figure out what this is.
Cheese is interesting. I almost feel like, um...
It's a very processed kind of cheese is what I'm getting.
Um, I like that flavor from my childhood,
but I'm grown up now, and I'm desiring real cheese.
Very interesting, thank you.
Thank you, sir.
CHEF KYRTATAS: There's a good chance I'm going home,
and I'm not happy.
This stinks.
But Chef Kwon's down there,
and, you know, his grilled cheese is way off the mark,
so I just know that I don't want to be the first one out.
Chef Tila, you have dined.
It is now time for you to decide.
One of these fine individuals
cannot continue into the next round.
Who's it gonna be?
CHEF TILA: So the chef that won't be moving on today
will be...
So, Chef Tila, one of these fine individuals
cannot continue into the next round,
and you've got to decide who it is.
I had four very interesting interpretations,
very, you know, different, good flavors, except for one...
...Chef Kwon.
Chef Kwon, I'm afraid I'll need that $19,800 back,
if you please.
Thank you very much, sir. Sorry it had to end this way.
CHEF KWON: "Cutthroat Kitchen" is
definitely more intense than I anticipated.
More than anything,
it's embarrassing to say you went home
for not making a grilled cheese sandwich.
5-year-olds make grilled cheese sandwiches.
ALTON: Chefs, welcome to round 2.
I think I'm gonna stick on the comfort theme.
You're gonna have 30 minutes to make...
Please say something Greek.
...shepherd's pie.
Oh, shepherd's pie, hmm.
Now, and I know that that's just traditionally very simple.
It's just kind of a thickened meat stew
with, you know, some kind of whipped potato action up on top,
but there's a lot of room for, you know, creativity there.
CHEF KYRTATAS: I'm looking at Chef Marquis.
I know he's a military man.
I know he's used to cooking for thousands of G.I.s
in a lot of crazy situations
while bullets are flying overhead.
That man is definitely my biggest competition.
You're gonna have 60 seconds, as always, to shop.
We'll say that time starts...now.
CHEF LIZETTE: My plan is to make a traditional shepherd's pie,
so I'm gonna go after the puff pastry,
the peas, the carrots, the meat, for sure,
kale, leeks, for additional depth of flavor.
ALTON: This gate is going to close in 15 seconds.
I grabbed the beef tenderloin.
Where there's fat, there's flavor,
so I grabbed the Italian sausage.
And the combination of these two will set me apart
from the rest of the competition.
ALTON: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
That's cutting it close. I like your style.
CHEF KYRTATAS: I'm looking at my basket,
and I think I've got all the ingredients I need.
I'm looking at everyone else's basket,
and I see puff pastry, I see peppers.
Where does puff pastry fit in, in a shepherd's pie?
I think I've got this one on lock.
ALTON: Well, now is the fun part.
And our first auction item is...
an empty sack that just so happens to say "potatos" on it.
What is important about this particular sack
is that the winner is going to be able to go
to one of his or her opponents
and confiscate all of their potatoes
and then bring them to me.
CHEF LIZETTE: I knew I wasn't gonna spend all of my reserve cash
on this one item.
I'm hoping that whoever does win this auction item
that they will not take my potatoes.
$7,000, Chef.
$7,000 to steal somebody's potatoes.
Who's gonna give me $7,100?
$7,100? Nobody?
CHEF KYRTATAS: I'm trying to conserve my money.
I don't know if it's the right thing to do,
but that's what I'm sticking with right now.
ALTON: Once. Going twice.
Sold to Chef Marquis for $7,000. Bring me the money, sir.
There's your bag.
Take your time. This is an important decision.
I'm giving this to Chef Lizette.
I start walking over to Chef Lizette,
look in her basket,
see she's got flour, see she's got puff pastry.
If I take her potatoes,
she's still got something to put on top of her shepherd's pie,
so I just keep walking.
[ Chuckles ]
She's got puff pastry.
[ Chuckles ]
Oh, Chef Kyrtatas, you had all the money in the world.
You could have gone there.
Now you've got to make shepherd's pie without potatoes.
CHEF KYRTATAS: He's gunning for me.
He must be really scared that I'm gonna whup him,
'cause he takes my potatoes.
And everyone knows potatoes are important.
ALTON: We're gonna move on to the second item in our auction.
Beef jerky. I personally love beef jerky.
Whoever wins
will be able to walk up to one of their opponents
to exchange all of their meat for beef jerky.
Who will give me $500 for the beef jerky?
$8,500.
$8,500 for some beef jerky.
You're not gonna let that happen again, are you, huh?
I got three out of the four sabotages in that first round.
And now Chef Marquis takes my potatoes.
I learned the hard way.
I was not playing "Cutthroat Kitchen" right.
Sold for $8,500 to Chef Kyrtatas who's finally in the game.
It kind of stinks to give $8,500 for beef jerky,
but it's gonna go to a good cause.
I go straight to Chef Marquis' basket
and not only does he have one meat, he's got two.
That sausage was crucial,
'cause that's where all his flavor
was gonna come from in his dish,
and now he's got to substitute it with beef jerky.
Have fun with that one, buddy.
All right, let's move on to our third item of the day.
Ooh, I didn't see this coming.
Chefs, if you win this simple, little placard,
you will be able to inflict upon one of your opponents
the necessity to create a take on shepherd's pie
that can be consumed by hand.
No utensils will be offered to the judge
for the consuming of this dish.
$5,000!
You will give me $5,000 right here off the bat?
Yep.
Going once for $5,000. Going twice.
$5,100 -- I have a bid for $5,100.
Let's just do $6,000.
Why not?
CHEF LIZETTE: It seemed like these two guys
just wanted to play against each other,
so I let them have at it.
$7,000.
Let's do $7,500.
$7,500.
Who will give me $7,600?
I can give you $8,000, Chef.
$9,000.
$10,000.
$11,000.
$11,000 is the current bid, Chef.
Going once for $11,000.
Going twice for $11,000.
$11,000 is the current bid, Chef.
Going once for $11,000.
He can have it, Chef.
Sold to Chef Kyrtatas for $11,000.
Sir, please bring me my money.
This competition isn't about keeping the money anymore.
It's about beating Chef Marquis.
Sorry, brother.
CHEF MARQUIS: Chef Kyrtatas would have spent more money
to try to get rid of me.
He knows he's got to get through me to get to victory.
But I don't see that happening today.
I can outcook this guy with one hand tied behind my back.
ALTON: In case you've forgotten in all the excitement,
it's your take on shepherd's pie.
You have 30 minutes to create it.
And, uh, that 30-minute cook time begins...now.
I'm bringing the house of pain, ladies and gentlemen.
My plan is to make a traditional shepherd's pie.
So, I have a lovely, hearty lamb,
and I'm focusing on my mashed potatoes
with salt and pepper and cream.
I'd come closer, but I think it might be dangerous.
Watch out.
She's got potatoes all over my station here.
Chef Marquis took my potatoes away,
so now I've got to think of something else to do as a top.
But you know what?
I'm gonna put the healthy spin on it.
I'm gonna make a meringue shepherd's pie.
I go over to the fire,
and I start sweating my vegetable down.
I throw my lamb in.
I'm ready to go.
CHEF MARQUIS: Soldiers have been cooking with dried beef
for thousands of years.
I got to get my beef jerky rehydrated.
The faster it boils, the faster it gets hydrated,
the better it tastes.
I have some of the other key ingredients to shepherd's pie
that some of my competitors don't have.
Yeah, like potatoes, thank you.
ALTON: Chefs, you have 15 minutes.
15 minutes -- half the challenge is over.
Delicious.
[ Both chuckles ]
Get it? Never mind.
CHEF KYRTATAS: At this point,
everything in my frying pan's cooking down nicely.
I'm thinking to myself, "This is a walk in the park."
Are you making another mess on my station?
I am! You'll get over it.
I'll get over it next round when you're not next to me.
So, I'm still feeling powerful, just like a lioness would.
I've already got the base with the seared meat.
I've got the mashed potatoes on top.
And now all I need to do is just put the seal with the dough.
It's delicious. It's beautiful.
So, I'm feeling good with my dish.
ALTON: It's coming back from the dead.
CHEF MARQUIS: It is coming back from the dead, Chef.
I've got my beef jerky rehydrated.
I get the vegetables cooked.
I've got my potatoes creamed, seasoned.
Everything tastes good.
All I got to do now is build it.
I overcame the beef jerky.
Now I have the challenge of not having utensils
to serve the judge their food.
I'm gonna make the spoon out of celery stalk
and some potato chips, so he can use those to eat it.
CHEF KYRTATAS: I see the chips over there,
and if he's gonna make, like, a chips and dip kind of thing,
it's too heavy of an item.
The chips are just gonna snap.
I don't know if he's got the right idea.
I think he might be out of this competition.
Five minutes, chefs.
Five minutes and it's got to be on the plate.
CHEF MARQUIS: Anybody need any help?
I got some time.
I can use a back rub.
CHEF LIZETTE: I'm concerned about the puff pastry,
because I know that underneath it's not cooked
and it hasn't puffed and the top is overdone.
Man, she likes burning [bleep]
CHEF KYRTATAS: I grab my meat mixture
that's got the cream and the vegetables,
and it tastes spot-on.
At this point, I need to start working on the topping.
I'm gonna make a meringue.
I'm grabbing the mixing bowl. I put my egg whites inside.
I put it on high, and I'm whipping.
I'm throwing it in the pastry bag.
I'm going to work.
The egg whites will cook within a couple minutes,
so I should be good on time.
ALTON: 90 seconds, Chef.
90 seconds.
Uh-oh.
Now it's a waiting game.
CHEF MARQUIS: I never heard of having a meringue on shepherd's pie.
I think it's disgusting. I think that if anything,
he should have used the flour
and the eggs and the oil that he had
to make himself a dough,
and he should have baked it like a pot pie.
5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
Put it down and step away. The challenge is over.
CHEF KYRTATAS: The meringue might not be the nicest thing,
but I'm kind of glancing over at the other tables,
and I see Chef Marquis
with this potato-chip dip shepherd's pie thing.
I see Chef Lizette -- Come on.
Why are you burning everything?
There's not a doubt in my mind that I'm in the finals.
And here comes the judge.
Chef Tila, the subject -- shepherd's pie.
I love shepherd's pie. i can't wait.
Let's see what we can do about that.
Come this way.
Chef Marquis, please tell Chef Tila
what you've got going on here.
Well, Chef, I've made a rendition of shepherd's pie.
We have some unique devices you can use --
the root of the celery and the chips to use as a dip
to eat the shepherd's pie.
Enjoy.
It meets my expectation for shepherd's pie.
Mashed potatoes over some minced meat of some sort.
My issue is, um,
I don't really understand the chip or the vegetable.
And my chips are falling apart.
Yes, Chef.
So, if you were gonna give me a hand implementation,
you could have put it in a puff pastry,
sealed it up, made a hand pie.
You could have made these into little cones --
stuffed them in there.
There was a million other ways you could've gone,
and those would have all worked a lot better.
CHEF MARQUIS: I overcame the beef jerky,
but he didn't like the potato chips at all.
I don't think there's anything preventing me
from moving on to the next round.
My shepherd's pie was shepherd's pie.
The other competitors,
they didn't complete the mission.
Welcome.
Chef, explain your dish.
So I have a lovely, hearty lamb shepherd's pie here.
These are hearty flavors that have been reduced.
And so, please enjoy.
So, what I like about your dish is
I do get the minced pieces of meat.
I get vegetables.
I like that you've got all the herbs in there,
and that really brings a nice aroma out of it.
The problem I have is,
I'm not really understanding this topping here.
To me, it looks like
maybe a piece of pastry that went awry,
and it's burnt.
Okay. Thank you, Chef.
Chef Kyrtatas, please tell Chef Tila what you've done.
I did my version on a shepherd's pie.
It's got the lamb.
It's got the vegetables and everything.
But in order to keep it just a little bit lighter,
instead of using the mashed potatoes on top,
I just browned a nice, little meringue on top.
Um, open mind --
I'm going in for the taste.
Your protein is chopped decently.
It's cooked decently.
Your vegetables are well done.
Your seasoning is good and balanced.
I'm really lost on this meringue.
It doesn't make me want to eat any more.
It's a strange dish.
It's a very strange interpretation of shepherd's pie.
Thank you, gentlemen.
CHEF KYRTATAS: He doesn't like the meringue.
Guess what. Neither do I.
But I can't tell you I didn't have potatoes.
So, Chef, I got one question for you --
Whose money is coming home?
So, I got one question for you --
Whose money is coming home?
I have to send the chef home who had every single component
but couldn't execute any of them correctly.
So, I'm sorry, Chef Lizette.
Chef Lizette, sorry to see you go.
I'm afraid I'm going to need
the remainder of your cash, please.
You did spend. I'll give you that, ma'am.
CHEF LIZETTE: I do wish I had beat these guys,
because there is so much ego in this kitchen.
And as a woman, especially Mr. Army,
I would have loved to attack him a little bit more
and send him home crying.
I absolutely made an impression in the kitchen.
I was this close.
Chefs, welcome to the final round of "Cutthroat Kitchen."
Chef Kyrtatas, you are currently holding on to $5,500.
CHEF KYRTATAS: They always say,
"You throw enough money at something, and it'll fix it."
Well, I threw $19,500 at Chef Marquis,
and he's still here.
I guess I'm gonna have to take him out in the final round.
Bring it on.
Chef Marquis, you're holding on to $15,000.
There's gonna be a difference in this round --
We're going to actually do the auction during the cooking.
So, once you shop,
you're immediately gonna head out,
and your cook time will begin
the moment that the shopping time is over.
You're gonna have 30 minutes to cook me an egg roll.
[ Chuckles ]
Guess whose never made an egg roll before.
This guy.
It's gonna be a fun one.
You'll have 30 minutes to achieve this miracle.
And you're gonna have 60 seconds, as always, to shop.
That shopping time begins...now.
I want to find some kind of a protein.
What's a quick, easy thing to put in?
Shrimp.
ALTON: Gentlemen, 15 seconds -- this gate closes.
There's no sense having a good egg roll
if you don't have a good sauce to put with it.
I grabbed some sweet chili sauce,
some soy sauce, some rice wine vinegar.
ALTON: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
And your cooking period begins now.
I'm making a chicken egg roll
that's got cabbage, carrots, celery, onions,
and some ground chicken meat.
First thing I have to do making this egg roll is
I got to get my meat cooked,
and then I get my vegetables sliced.
I used to make a lot of egg rolls
when I was a teenager growing up in Maine.
I worked at a Chinese restaurant.
Yeah, you've made Chinese food.
I've never made an egg roll in my life.
Chef Kyrtatas was in trouble
the minute we stepped into the same kitchen together.
Now he knows he's in trouble.
CHEF KYRTATAS: I'll be fine. I've got this.
With my Greek background,
I'm used to rolling things in some kind of dough,
like phyllo or something like that.
It can't be that much different.
Gentlemen, I have an item to bid.
I have this really attractive pair of red dish gloves.
Your opponent could cook the rest of the time in these gloves
for $500.
I can't work with these gloves.
Look at these hands.
They're not that big. I'm bidding on this.
$1,000.
$1,800.
$1,800 -- the current bid.
I will give you $2,000.
I think I'll give you $2,100.
$2,500.
$3,000 is the most I got.
$3,100.
$3,200.
Going once for $3,200.
Going twice for $3,200.
CHEF KYRTATAS: At this point in the competition,
he's got three times the money I have.
He can outbid me all day long.
I need to save my money.
ALTON: Sold to Chef Marquis for $3,200.
I'm gonna take this money,
and you give those gloves to him.
Oh, thank you, sir.
Everything else you do in this challenge
will be wearing those red gloves.
He's done. Put a fork in him.
CHEF KYRTATAS: These things are giants.
My hands are sweaty.
They're awkward. They're uncomfortable.
It's like Bozo the Clown the Dishwasher
are on my hands.
I'm gonna provide two sauces for my egg roll.
One straight out of the bottle, because I know it's good.
And then I'm making an Asian soy sauce
with green onions and hoisin.
If the Chef doesn't like one of my sauces,
he may like the other sauce.
Chefs, I have another fine item for you to consider.
I have here a fortune cookie.
You'll be able to give this fortune cookie to your opponent,
and they will have to do
whatever the fortune inside says.
And trust me, it's not a good thing.
Who will give me $500 for the fortune cookie?
$600.
$600 for a fortune cookie.
$2,000.
At this point, I don't care if I don't have any money left.
$2,100.
$3,000.
$3,000 for a fortune cookie.
Going once. Going twice.
Sold.
Chef, here's your $3,000 fortune cookie.
Why don't you just take that over
and give it to your opponent so he can enjoy his cookie.
Thank you.
"Time stands still for no one.
"You are not time.
YOU stand still for 5 minutes."
[ Laughs ]
A five-minute penalty.
One sixth of the cooking time.
[ Exhales sharply ] It's gonna be tough.
CHEF KYRTATAS: I'm making a shrimp egg roll
with some bell peppers, some baby bok choy,
some radicchio chopped up in there.
I can't even hold my shrimp.
How am I supposed to wrap an egg roll with these gloves?
CHEF MARQUIS: Well, you won't burn your hands, Chef.
That's always a plus.
I grab my carrots and my peppers.
I put it in for just about 30 to 40 seconds,
just enough to soften them a little bit.
So that way, when you bite into the egg roll,
they're not still raw.
You need a hand?
Here you go.
Here you go.
I'm gonna give you the gloves in a second.
No, no.
You already got me for five minutes.
This five minutes is priceless,
because I'm having a lot of difficulty
rolling up my spring rolls,
and he's just standing there.
He can't do anything.
So, it's gonna kind of even us up a little bit.
I think it was 3 grand well worth it.
ALTON: 4, 3, 2, 1.
Go.
And you have 9:54 total.
Use it wisely, Chef.
You got to move like lightning.
You've got to move quick.
But I can roll egg rolls so quickly
that I used to make about 300 an hour
when I worked at a Chinese restaurant.
CHEF KYRTATAS: I'm rolling my egg rolls.
I'm having so much difficulty.
I look over at Chef Marquis,
and he's like this egg-rolling machine.
I would tell you to do things wisely, too,
but you're wearing clown gloves and that makes it hard.
The more I try to work with these gloves,
the more I hate you right now.
Don't be mad at me
'cause you don't know how to make a damn egg roll.
So we have our egg rolls rolled.
Mine are beautiful -- nice and tight.
I'm gonna get a pot --
just enough oil in the bottom of the pot
to cover the egg rolls
so I can get them cooked crispy fast.
CHEF KYRTATAS: I pull these egg rolls out of the oil,
and they are fried perfect.
Look at them.
They're beautiful.
Maybe these egg rolls are gonna be
the best egg rolls I ever make.
ALTON: 3, 2, 1.
Put it down and step away. The challenge is over.
Fat lady's getting ready to sing.
The challenge is egg rolls.
Gentlemen, if you would please both bring your offerings up.
CHEF KYRTATAS: We both walk our dishes over to Chef Tila,
and I'm looking at his dish and I'm looking at my dish --
I don't know who's gonna win.
I mean, I think we're smack-dab tie.
Chef Marquis, please tell Chef Tila about your dish.
Chef, what I've made is a chicken egg roll,
and I've made two sauces --
a sweet chili sauce and a soy dipping sauce.
What I like is the vegetables are nice and tight.
The chicken's cooked well.
It's actually rolled well, as well.
The problem I have --
You made a sweet chili sauce,
or you poured the bottle of the sweet chili sauce
into the dish?
The chili sauce was in the pantry, Chef.
Gotcha. Just wanted to make sure.
Like the flavor of the egg roll.
The egg roll was composed really well.
It was what it was supposed to be.
What I didn't like -- I didn't understand
why the cabbage was on the plate.
Sweet chili sauce, while absolutely delicious,
doesn't show any "chefy" quality to it at all.
CHEF MARQUIS: This is an egg roll competition,
It's not an egg roll sauce competition.
I don't think that could send me home.
Thank you.
Chef Kyrtatas, if you could tell Chef Tila about your dish.
I made for you a shrimp egg roll
with a sweet and spicy dipping sauce.
The dipping sauce --
very tasty, strong notes of hoisin.
The shrimp is cooked well.
The vegetables were thoughtfully cut.
The roll itself -- not very tight.
I want to tell Chef
I had to wear these ridiculous dishwashing gloves.
That's why my spring rolls
might not be wrapped as tight as they could be.
But I know flavor's there, so I think I'm safe.
Thank you.
The only reason that Chef Kyrtatas would win
is if I died right now.
Well, now that you've had some nice egg rolls,
I'm afraid it's time for the hard part.
I need you to make a decision.
Who gets to go home with their cash,
and whose cash comes back into the briefcase?
Wow.
So, let me start by saying
you guys both made really delicious egg rolls.
So, it really comes down to the details.
Chef Kyrtatas, the sauce was strong,
but your rolls were a little loose and not quite perfect.
Chef Marquis, one of my biggest pet peeves
is when a chef tells me he makes sauce,
but it really comes out of a bottle.
So, at the end of the day...
...sorry, Chef Kyrtatas,
you were edged out by just a hair.
[ Grunts ]
Chef Kyrtatas,
I'm afraid I'm gonna need that cash back.
Thank you, sir.
Sorry about that.
Thank you.
Chef Tila says my name... and my heart sinks.
I was so close.
This was my first egg roll ever.
Yeah, I was successful, but I still got eliminated.
So, Chef Marquis, congratulations, sir.
Pretty significant amount of cash.
This is awesome. This is tremendous.
I just won "Cutthroat Kitchen." I won $11,800.
Yeah!
What a great experience it was being here
and showing America
that soldiers in the military can cook.
We get 30 days of paid leave vacation
in the military every year.
This is probably one of the best 30 days I've ever taken.
Hooah!
ALTON: Hungry for more "Cutthroat Kitchen"? Go to...