MasterChef – Cooking blind

Great.

So now MasterChef is allowing blind contestants on the competition?

Well … why not?

Christine, the blind amateur cook who put together an obviously outstanding Vietnamese catfish dish with pickled vegetables, knows two things right off the bat: 1) She knows she can cook; and 2) She knows exactly what she’s getting into.

Or does she? Because I have no idea how she’s going to compete without the ability to see. I do know she’s got her work cut out for her. At the first, you have to applaud her. I did … and right away. But how the devil is she actually going to compete blind on this third season of MasterChef … ?!? Cripes! There’s just no possible way. I’ve seen the work that’s put in during the challenges, the wear and tear and intense concentration needed to put out product which bests your opponents. It’s freakin’ difficult when you can see 100%. So just how does she believe she’s going to pull it off with a butcher’s knife and a whisk and a cane? I have no clue. It might be interesting to watch, but I really don’t think she’ll go very far. But I will say this: If ever there was a time I would love to eat my words, this would be that time. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, in the midst of some of the obvious brilliance that came within the hour, there was also stuff like this:

• A chick who talked too much: “I interview serial killers.”
• Gordon Ramsay holding up … something … from a plate and stating, “It tastes like a big toenail.”
• Joe Bastianich‘s hilarious comment, “It’s like gnawing on a rosemary branch.”
• “Well, hello beautiful.” The hopeful contestant (male, who didn’t make it) trying to woo Graham Elliot while Graham taste tested his offering

But best of all was my “favorite” part of the show which immediately made my face screw up just at the mention of what it was:  Frog Leg Egg Foo Yung.

I’ve had some pretty damned fine Egg Foo Yung in my days. I’ve also had some excellent frog’s legs as well. But the two together sound like an unlikely pair. Well, guess what? They were. The gal who concocted that dish (you guessed it) didn’t make it.

But 13 others did. Including Josh, the 24 year-old shrimp etouffee creator whose dish was “a slam dunk” with Graham; Michael the gay Austin, Texas student who obviously kicked ass with his Chinese dumplings; Monti, the single mother with the Puerto Rican Shepherd’s Pie dish featuring a side of twice-fried plantains; and the cocky, “won’t-last-long-at-all” (I’m calling him out as gone shortly) unemployed Ryan of the pressure-cooked short ribs. (Yeah, Gordo was right: This guy has way, way too much time on his hands if he’s using form rings to lay down his sauce to showcase “a perfect presentation.” Talk about your schtick.)

But … a blind contestant … I mean, wow …

Notes:

• I gave kudos to Gordon for dismissing 18-year-old Samantha McNulty. He did her a great service in passing on her and, instead, asking her to continue her dream and to come back the following year when she has a little more seasoning behind her.
• And in a manner of speaking, I was glad Shami and her Zimbabwe roots-cooking didn’t make it either. I respect the “sadza” she created for the trio, but there was something in her demeanor that indicated to me she was a one trick pony when it came to cooking. By that, I mean you take her out of her comfort (food) zone and I don’t think she has a chance in hell on the program, regardless of the fact she believes she can cook. Just a gut feeling.

Additional Quote:

“If you can bring that kind of technique to other kinds of food, you can win this thing.” — Joe to Michael on his Chinese dumplings

Clacked by Michael Noble
on Jun 05, 2012 @ 00:06 EST5EDT