Category — iron chef

Everyone appears to be killing Iron Chef Australia today except Channel 7. The Daily Telegraph reports the show which was a spin off of the cult Japanese show will not be renewed for a second season.

But can someone tell Channel 7 that as they are still saying ”no decision has yet been made” on the future of the show.

I thought the show had potential but with good iron chefs, and a great judging panel. However I did find Grant Denyer and the American Chairman superfluous.

If Seven do flick this, maybe they could think of doing an Australian version of Top Chef. Where professional chefs battle it out for the title of Top Chef.

Curtis Stone is currently the host of Top Chef Masters in the US.

The real star of the night was the truffles, oh and Jose who was  Guillame Brahimi’s sous chef tonight. Get him on Ready, Steady, Cook NOW! He managed to take camera time from the not so shabby Guillami and that is quite a skill.

I like the challenger Dan Hong as well, and he created tension with the dashi custard saga. Would it or wouldn’t it set.

Both of the competitors paid homage to the original iron chef and used plenty of truffles, it was pureed on top of soup, shoved under chicken skin, and sliced over eggs.

The judging:

Dan Hong’s food looked great and the judges mainly agreed.

He cooked:

Sashimi of Tuna with Buddha’s Delight – “raw fish, raw mushroom… this is fantastic” said Simon Thomsen.

Dashi custard with Tempura mushroom – “that was worth the wait, there is custard and there’s custard, and this is custard.” said Simon. “This is perfection,” said Larissa Dubecki.

Fragant mushroom broth “Surf and Turf” – “Another absolute cracker” said Leo Schofield.

Roast mushroom sandwich with lashings of truffle. “Breakie fry up a bankok playboy might have after a big night.” said Larissa. Actually it looked pretty ordinary.

Gulliame Brahmi cooked:

Marron with truffles;

Chicken with tombe of mushroom – oh and truffles in the chicken – I need a defibrilator said Larissa It is beautiful but so rich.

Tortellini of peas with morels sauce – “Ethereal said Simon “Tortellini melts in your mouth.”

Poached Marron – “Pickling of the mushrooms is delicious” said Leo.

Guillame Brahimi won by three points, and it was probably was the egg dish that cost Dan the win.

It will be a surprise if Channel 7 renew the show as the ratings barely reached the million mark. Here is my blog post from last week which outlines what I would do to fix the show. However I suspect that post is now irrelevant.

UPDATE: Iron Chef won’t be renewed as it only rated 768,000 last night. (Source: Mumbrella)

So Grant Denyer wasn’t allowed to help challenger Sascha Meier shake a fry pan when he had badly cut his finger, but he can bump out the first aid nurse out to try and put a bandaid on him. Personally I would have found Grant plating up squid dishes much more amusing. I am surprised he knew what it was considering it was not round or crumbed.

Last week Iron Chef dived in the ratings to below one million, and the silence has been deafening on whether Channel Seven will be renewing it. It is a pity as it could/should have been a winner.

Five things I would do to fix it:

• Get rid of Grant Denyer, expand the Chairman’s and Richard Cornish’s role to cover whatever the host is meant to do;
• Get better challenges, again tonight Sascha Meier was completely out of his league;
• Get rid of the audience they are superfluous;
• Allow there to be more banter between the judges or show it;
• Mix up a person to sit with chat with Richard Cornish each week either a food expert or just someone interesting.

The positives about the show is that they do show a lot of the cooking, and the cast is fairly strong. Also the Iron Chefs are fantastic cooks.

Tonight Neil Perry showed just how good he can cook. His ingredient combinations were mouthwatering. Whereas his competitor from Ba Ba Lu in Victoria seemed to stick to his tried and true recipes.

Neil Perry served up:

• Raw Squid, iberco ham, and parsnip salad and black bean custard – “Very few Australian chefs would have the chutzpah to serve this dish” said Leo Schofield. “Incredibly clever” said Simon Thomsen. Larissa said it looks like a children’s fairy tale, I am not sure which ones she has been reading.
• Salad of confit squid with asian chicken “Liked textures” said Larissa, Simon implied it had too much chilli.
• Squid Ink Noodles – “Very sexy dish” said Simon.
• Braised squid stuffed with octopus – ” Wonderful flavour” said Leo

Sasha cooked:

• Octopus and squid  paella with black squid ink “beautiful paella”  said Leo. Loved the crust but lacking the fully developed flavour.
• Peruvian style ceviche – “So pretty” said Larissa. “Lightness that is a wonderful contrast to the other dishes.
• Pork and squid meatballs –  ”reminded me of nappy time” said Simon. “Larissa thought the squid flavour faded to the back ground
• Char Grilled Octopus – “sex on a plate” said Larissa and she did look like she was getting a buzz.

Neil easily won scoring 49 out of 60 and Meier 40 out of 60 his dishes were not that  original nor looked as beautiful on the plate.

Next Iron Chef French gets his second go in the kitchen stadium. It is the final episode, and I doubt we will see anymore.

Iron Chef Guy Grossi was beaten tonight by challenger Herb Faust. Was I surprised? No, as Channel Seven had decided to tell us the result of the show in the preview after last weeks episode.  Why was that?

Herb Faust is the chef at Scotch College at Perth, which I suspect because of his win will increase the waiting list for the boarding school, conversely it could also open the debate about the Government funding formula for non-government schools, if the quality of the ingredients he was cooking with was anything to go by.

Another irritation was the gasping about Herb making a lamb tartare and how unusual it was, however raw lamb is pretty standard in Lebanese cuisine. I call it kebbe but @simonthomsen kindly corrected me by telling me it is kibbeh nayah. That is why he is a world renowned food critic, and I am plankton on the blogging food chain.

Anyway kibbeh nayah is delicious if you ever get to try it and it is pretty standard at Lebanese restaurants in Sydney.

Maybe Guy Grossi lost because the judges kept on seeing all the blood going into his food as he kept cutting himself. Either he was drinking too much wine during the show or it has been a good decade since he has had to do the prep of his food.

The other thing is it de rigeur if you are a foodie to gush over offal? Personally I cannot stomach it, I once threw up part of pigs ear in a two hat restaurant after I realised what I was eating. For the record I did make it to the toilets.

Guy Grossi cooked:

• Smoked Lamb Carpaccio – with the smoke coming with the lamb – Simon Thomsen said he “thinks of carpaccio as thinly sliced”.
• Lambs Brains with Bresola Salad – Leo Schofield  said “possibly the best brains I have ever had”.
• Spiced Lamb Ragu – Larissa Dubecki got a iron Chef hair in hers (yes that was a negative thing), and Simon thought the meat was too tough.
• Costolette D’Agnello – lamb cutlet wrapped in pork caul fat- “you have captured spring” said Simon.

Herb Faust cooked:

• Lamb Tartare With Sheeps Milk Bavoir – the presentation was sensational, and Leo thought it was “delightful”.
• Rosemary Skewered lamb sandwich – “You have taken a great kebab and made it fantastic” said Larissa
• Sticky braised lamb roll which was an upmarket chiko roll. Something all of this years Masterchef contestants would have wished they had don on the chiko roll challenge. “Beautiful” said Larissa.
• Vine leaf Roast –  ”seen a sense of fun, sense of whimsy, and exhuberance.” said Simon Thomsen.

Anyway Herb Faust flogged Guy Grossi 44/60 and 50/60 picking up the point in taste, and in originality. Well done Herb, and Guy’s sous chef are probably going to get sacked for being beaten by a chef from a boarding school.

Grant Denyer was happy to have Chris Badenoch as a challenger as he could look him in the eye.

Even though Chris would have been happy about all the publicity the show was giving his new cookbook The Entire Beast, he was always going to lose.

It was a no brainer on who was going to win, Iron Chef French, Guillame Brahimi a trained chef had two trained sous chefs to assist. Whilst Chris had, his partner Julia Jenkins both untrained, and his sous chef Hugh, who I presume is trained even though Julia was telling him how to cook raspberries with sugar. With only having an hour to prep and cook it meant Chris and Julia were not going to be able to fit as much in the allotted time.

As usual Julia is the bridesmaid never the bride. When she was Masterchef Australia when she beat the chef and was fast forwarded to final’s week and taken from our screens. Her profile never rose to he heights of the other contestants. And now she is again playing second fiddle.

If Channel 7 renew the show they need to put in some serious challengers. There is no tension as you know who is going to win each week.

On the plus side if they do an Australian production of Top Chef they could do worse with having Larissa Dubecki and Simon Thomsen on the judging panel.

Tonight the main ingredient was chocolate.

Both did two savoury and two sweet dishes. I thought it a tad unfair that the iron chef pre-prepped Gingerbread for his emulsion, whereas Chris made his chocolate cake for his dessert from scratch.

Iron Chef French made:

• Carpaccio of venison which Leo Schofield thought was close to perfection.
• Whole veal sweetbread with gingerbread and chocolate sauce. I thought Larissa was looking uncomfortable whilst chewing the  sweetbreads, but ended up being very positive about the dish.
• White chocolate mousse with raspberries and a granita was a pre-dessert. Larissa said it was too sweet for a pre-dessert.
• Chocolate tart with vanilla bean icecream. It looked sensational, however I agree with Simon Thomsen who said “It is good, but does not push the boundaries of chocolate as I would like to see it.”.

Chris cooked:

• White Chocolate egg encased duck liver parfait – “I really like the orange in the dish” said Simon. Did anyone else think it was similar to Heston Blummenthal’s dormouse dish on one of his medievil episodes?
• Leo was critcal about presentation but was positive about the taste.
• Venison and Chocolate cigars – Simon called it a chocolate sausage roll, and Larissa liked the nut sauce. I think we can say this dish was not a success.
• Chocolate Porter Pannacotta with framboise jelly. “This pannacotta is harder then the plastic on a Hollywood starlet” said Simon. And he meant that as a negative thing.
• Chocolate Cake with sour cherry beer sauce which the judges really liked, will we see it on his new restaurant menu?

The iron chef won, and it was telling that he beat Chris by five points on taste. However Chris can take heart that he beat him in originality of his dishes.

Mildly entertaining episode, but next week Channel Seven gave a spoiler in their preview by saying “And you thought an Iron Chef could not be beaten.” If this is the case did I really need to know before the show?

Channel Seven will be expecting an influx of  Masterchef fans to start watching Iron Chef Australia when Chris Badenoch takes on Guillame Brahimi on the show next week.

TV Week reveals Chris and his sous chef and real life partner Julia Jenkins will be on the episode airing November 2.

Chris Badenoch said it was harder than Masterchef.

The article states:

“I think it’s harder than anything that’s ever been on Masterchef,” he says.

“An hour for four dishes is crazy in anybody’s language. The pressure is a whole different ball game.”

He also says about cooking with Julia:

“We cook together all the time, so being familiar with someone in the kitchen makes your life a whole lot easier,” He explains. “We don’t clash at all [when we're cooking]“.

And on those pesky engagement rumours:

“Who knows? We’re happy as we are at the moment,” Chris says cryptically. “There’s no marriage on the cards – yet.”

And on their new restaurant Josie Bones:

“It’s coming along really well – we’re madly painting at the moment and it’s all happening,” Chris reveals. It’s very exciting, but terrifying at the same time! It’s our baby at the moment. We’ll hopefully be open just before Christmas, so it will be a very busy festive season!”

If Iron Chef was the NSW Public Service they would be trimming the fat from the cast of this show.

Either Grant Denyer or Chairman Kanga’s nephew is surplus to requirements. I feel sorry for him apart from doing the big reveal of the ingredients he sits at the judges table and does not even get to taste the dish nor reveal the winner. What is the point of him?

Also he deserves to be sacked for not making more out of the competitor’s restaurant name Phore.

Or more to the point what does Grant Denyer add? Richard Cornish could just do the commentary by himself or with a different judge each week.

Ok so I didn’t know zucchini flowers could be different genders, but at least I know what foie gras is.

On the plus side I thought there was a bit more rapport between the judges this week, however would it kill Larissa Dubecki to crack a smile occasionally, however I am in awe that she can gush over deep fried pate and still be a size 8.

Simon Thomsen is getting some good quips in, however he needs some styling advice. The shirt with the heavy check pattern with the paisley tie did not work.

Well and Leo is just Leo, a person who has lived a refined life with enthusiasm.

Anyway onto the competition….

It was Iron Chef Italian Guy Grossi versus Judyta Slupnick owner and head chef of Phore Restaurant in Adelaide. I don’t want to be East Coast centric, but is this chef a name in South Australia? On the plus side at least the show stumped up a female chef. But gee I would have liked to have seen Christine Mansfield or Kylie Kwong go head to head with him.

Now THAT would have had me sitting on the edge of my seat.

She spent 10 minutes getting the abalone prepped and then had to pound it like it was schnitzel.

Guy Grossi served:

• Duck liver parfait with a rose jelly which Leo thought was perfect.
• Duck Egg Omlette with asparagus, and consomme – Larissa loved the three elements.
• Duck and mushroom tortellini – Larissa was concerned that it was lacking in originality as it was on the Grossi Florentino menu, but Simon thought that was fine.
• Spice Roasted Duck Breast with Zucchini Flower stuffed with foie gras – Simon thought it was the equivalent of the deep fried mars bar, completely over the top.

However I thought Guy was just paying homage to the original Iron Chef who are profligate with this high end ingredient.

Judyta Slupnick (Head Chef and owner of Phore Seasons):

• Duck and abalone roulade – the abalone did get soft and was liked by all of the judges.
• Braised Duck Pasta – Larissa and Leo thought it was underseasoned.
• Duck cooked three ways – Simon wanted more pate in his deep fried pate toast, however Larissa thought hers was fine.
• Duck Egg Pancakes with Cherry and Rhubarb – Larissa got sentimental over because of her heritage.

Guy Grossi  flogger her getting 48/60 to Judyta’s 41/60.

The challengers need to have more experience, as Leo Schofield confirmed  the 36 year old chef was inexperienced. Though rumour has it Guy Grossi does get knocked off in one of the episodes coming up.

In programming gold Chris Badenoch, from Masterchef Australia Series One will appear as a competitor on Channel Seven’s Iron Chef.

I am sure the production company and SEVEN will be canny enough to put him up against Neil Perry, Iron Chef Australia/Asia after the snaffu that Neil got himself earlier this year about the Masterchef contestants. The uber-chef  said (see previous blog post here) that the Masterchef contestants would struggle to survive in a real kitchen, and that it was a “game show”.  Neil later said he had been misquoted.

It will be interesting to see if Chris will be able to produce four dishes in an hour as his food philosophy is very meaty, slow cooking. But he will have his partner in life and of his new restaurant, Julie Jenkins, to be his sous chef. I will just be watching the show for that dynamic.

The Herald Sun states:

Badenoch and Jenkins are now business, as well as romantic, partners. Josie Bones will be a beer bar with matching food.

“All the doubters out there have been proven wrong,” Badenoch says.

“We’re doing the restaurant together and it will be a combination of our ideas.”

Badenoch says he relished the chance to return to television.

“It (Iron Chef) was the opportunity to push myself,” Badenoch says.

“It’s one thing cooking against other amateurs (on MasterChef). Going up against guys of this calibre (Perry/Grossi/Brahimi) is a rare opportunity.”

Victoria’s Sacha Meier, Head Chef and manager of Lorne’s Ba Ba Lu Restaurant and Bar, will also be one of the challengers onIron Chef.

Other challengers are Sydney’s Dan Hong (Head Chef, Lotus Bar and Bistro), Adelaide’s Judyta Slupnick (Head Chef and owner of Phore Seasons), as well as Perth’s Matt Stone (Head Chef, Greenhouse Restaurant) and Herb Faust (Head Chef, Scotch College).

Iron Chef will screen on Channel 7 in mid-October.

Neil Perry talks to TV WEEK about his role on Iron Chef and his comments on this season of Masterchef.

The article says:

You’ve Turned down TV gigs in the past – what drew you to Iron Chef?

I’ve always watched the Japanese [version] and I have a lot of respect for what the guys do, so I thought it was a real honour to be asked to be an Iron Chef. I just didn’t realise how hard it was going to be!

How worried are you that you’ll be beaten by the challengers?

Oh, tremendously! Being an Iron Chef means I’ve got absolutely nothing to gain and everything to lose.

Is it tougher than Masterchef?

I don’t know. It’s completely different, as it’s professional against professional, whereas Masterchef is about amateurs. The ferocity of [the challenge] – four world-class dishes in an hour – is really pressurised and I think the level of cooking that people [will] see might be a little more extraordinary than on Masterchef.

While you said your quotes were taken out of context, were the Masterchef producers angry that you described their contestants as “nobodies”?

I spoke to the judges and the producers and they all know exactly what I said. It upset me a little bit because [the article] missed the point, which I still stand by – that all these contestants coming off the show are terrific, but they really need to utilise that 15 minutes of fame and really work hard. I am 53 and I ‘m still working really hard to be relevant in this business.

Do you think people like Julie Goodwin will stick around?

Julie Goodwin will have her moment in the sun, but I don’t know if it will continue – I hope it does. With reality TV, there are always new contestants ready to take your spot, [but] if you own restaurants and work really hard at it, you have more longevity.

Why weren’t you at the Masterchef grand final?

I was invited, but Sundays are off limits as it’s the only time I get with my family. I only get about 40 days a year to spend with them, so I just couldn’t give that day up.

Do you feel bad for spending so much time away from your kids?

Yeah, you’re really torn. It can be really difficult, because I often don’t see my kids in the morning, as they’re not up when I leave, and then they’re in bed when I get home. I miss a lot.

What kind of dad are you?

Too relaxed! My wife calls me “the yes man”. My girls wrap me around their little fingers and pretty much get whatever they want.

Does it put a strain on your marriage?

No, we just work it out. We’ve had to realise that this is the life we’ve chosen. We do try and take time out together for date nights, plus we love having Sunday lunch with the girls. Josephine’s boyfriend, Matt, comes along now, so it’s an extended family.

Are you cool with her dating?

Yeah, I’ve learnt to cope! She’s happy and he’s a good kid. There are plenty of ratbags out there, and she’s not out gettign drunk.

Will you retire in the near future?

I think I’d honestly still love to be working in restaurants when I’m 80! It’s a lifestyle.

You’re a keen Twitter user – where do you find the time to tweet?

Just in the office doing all my work before I hit the kitchen! When the Masterchef drama happened, people were just so vehement and vile towards me on Twitter.

How did that make you feel?

You can’t take it personally, but, yeah, it does hurt. In my twenties, I’d probably have tried to punch them out, but at 53, you just go, “Wow, these people really have nothing else going [on] in their lives.

Gosh I hope that last comment wasn’t aimed at me… but I think he makes a good point about there will always be more reality TV stars to take someones place.

Channel Seven have really been pushing the reality shows this year, and yes I think that is a positive thing. When they announced Iron Chef Australia viewers of the original version immediately were excited but wary, particularly when Grant Denyer was announced as the host.

However it looks like it may be an OK move as a person who has been a the filming thinks he was fine in his role, and it appears from his comments casting of the show is working. This show has the potential to rock.

They said:

Well I was at a taping last night and this is what I have to say. Grant Denyer was ok. He doesn’t claim to know anything about food. He’s the announcer and he has Richard Cornish doing the main commentary (who was very good). His role is to ask the questions the viewers would ask, and I thought he did that quite well.

The big news is that the guy who plays Chairman Kaga’s nephew in Iron Chef America (Mark Dacascos) is back as the Chairman for Iron Chef Australia. He plays exactly the same role.

· After a couple of hours of pre-records with the audience, they finally got down to the hour battle. I won’t spoil it all for people, but the Iron Chef was Guy Grossi and the challenger did very well. The secret ingredient was something we as Australians know very well. It was a good choice.

· Grossi was hamming it up big time on and off the camera. He really was a lot of fun. A good choice I think.

· Grossi had an Italian flag on his uniform, leading me to suspect they are calling him Iron Chef Italian. I assume that means Perry will be Asian.

· After the battle the audience could have stayed behind for the judging and verdict but we were advised it could take “another 5 hours at least”. We then all promptly left to go home.

· Kitchen Stadium looks great. Reminiscent of the American one.

· Was very surprised how quiet the battle was. Chefs and soux chefs were working calmly, quietly and methodically. We heard the commentary, but it wasn’t exactly booming.

· A couple of interesting differences. The judges said something small to camera each (which we didn’t hear) but that was all. No commentating on the action like they do on the Japanese version.

· There was no floor reporter like there was on both the Japanese and American versions. Grant Denyer did a little interviewing from the floor but Cornish had to rely completely on his monitors (and shouting down to the kitchens) to get his information.

· The soux chefs on both sides got announced and brought in like the challengers. This was an interesting addition.

All in all, I think the format works in Australia and that it will be hugely popular. I did think, though, that the taping was fairly dull. It was disappointing we couldn’t be there for all of it. Being there for the pre-records and the bits before the battle wasn’t that interesting and the battle itself was so calm it was a bit unexciting (although it smelt wonderful).

I am starting to get excited about Iron Chef Australia now and it is rumoured to be starting next month.