Iron Chef Gauntlet returns with a battle that forces the chefs to get outside the box and create sweet and savory dishes with some unique ingredients.
This week in the Iron Chef Gauntlet chairman’s challenge our brave culinary warriors had to create two dishes, one savory and one sweet. Of course Alton Brown didn’t hand the chefs some simple bland neutral ingredients, no these were some bold choices. On the altar, we had beets, fish sauce, black beans, sesame seeds, and blue cheese.
In the end, it was once again Chef Sarah Grueneberg who won the challenge with her beets. This makes two weeks in a row that Grueneberg has won the chairman’s challenge, after being last in the challenge in week 1.
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The other side of that coin was Michael Gulotta. Gulotta came in last in the challenge and would face elimination in the cook-off for the first time. Who would Gulotta face though? Once again Grueneberg would get to pick who to send into the elimination battle. Last week Grueneberg sent in Chef Jonathon Sawyer to face Chef Shota Nakajima. This week Grueneberg picked Nakajima. This meant Nakajima would be in the elimination battle in back to back weeks.
Nakajima admitted that he was tired, but was determined to do his best. The secret ingredient gods were also kind to the classical Japanese chef when they presented the challengers with octopus.
You might think that the battle was all but decided with octopus in the hands of Nakajima, but Gulotta wasn’t going to go down without a fight. In the end, the judges gave a split decision and Nakajima won on points. It was the end of the road for New Orleans’ own Chef Michael Gulotta.
With Sarah Grueneberg winning back to back chairman’s challenges and Shota Nakajima winning back to back elimination battles it’s becoming clear who the frontrunners in Iron Chef Gauntlet are. The chefs probably shouldn’t get cocky though, there are still three Iron Chefs waiting in the wings.
What did you think of this week’s Iron Chef Gauntlet? Let us know in the comments below.