You know, Hunter, some of the most
incredible, global dishes
aren't compared to restaurants.
No, they are served at homes around the world.
If my bubby knew I was making mashed potato mujadara...
So, instead of our usual line-up of professional chefs,
we've invited three obsessed people
to cook world cuisines
steeped in the real deal epic flavors they grew up on.
This is an opportunity of a lifetime.
Unfortunately, our Grocery Games
spell 'trouble' in any language.
- Oui, monsieur. - Sacrebleu.
It's all part of the month-long
real cook invasion of food lovers in Flavortown.
That is phenomenal.
[Hunter] Get ready for global food fanatics tonight,
on Guy's Grocery Games.
All right, Hunter, let's meet our Global Food Fanatics.
Now, first up, we have Emerson Bartolome,
San Diego surfer who started
cooking Filipino food as a kid,
and now cooks it for his own kids.
[Emerson] I am a IT manager
for the University of California, San Diego.
And I'm a Global Food Fanatic,
because I cook amazing Filipino food.
So, I'm bringing my traditional Filipino islander recipes to Flavortown,
so I can show my daughters
the importance of culture in food.
I'm gonna ride this wave through Flavortown.
[Guy] There he is, brother.
What up?
Next up, Giangi Townsend.
A French-Italian food blogger who loves sharing
fresh and simple French recipes with the world.
I'm the blogger, founder of Giangi's kitchen.
And, I am from Phoenix, Arizona,
but I was born and raised in France.
I spent my summers in Italy.
So, I like to bring a little bit of the two
combined flavors.
I'm thoroughly thrilled to shop Flavortown.
Are you kidding me? This is a dream come true
for so many of us.
I'm excited to do this.
[Guy] There she is.
We're triple G, you're Giangi.
Thank you, that's right.
Get it?
And, finally, Jordan Urnovitz,
named Central Arizona's Top Home Chef.
Now, he loves to cook the Mediterranean
and Middle-eastern cuisines that are part of his roots.
After winning the Arizona home top chef,
I was actually invited to cook at a bunch of different
non-profit organizations.
Good opportunity for me to cook my food for a good cause.
Growing up in a Jewish household,
the thing that always connected us
was food.
Super perfect for Global Food.
I'd like to read about it, study it,
learn the ingredients.
My strategy going in today
is really just put the love into the food here
that I put in the food at home.
[Guy] Bring it.
Nice banana shirt.
Welcome, everybody, really nice to have you.
- Thanks for having us. - Thank you.
Normally, we start here Flavortown market,
it's professional restaurant chefs
that are behind those carts.
[Hunter] But, all this month,
we're giving real people
a chance to show us what they can do,
making real dishes
here in Flavortown market.
[Guy] And, tonight, we've invited
Global Food Fanatics
to share their world cuisines
that are also their life-long passion.
Here's the sad state of affairs.
Besides the fact that Hunter is taller than me.
- It's okay. - Um,
the person with the lowest score
at the end of the first round will be eliminated.
But, the chef with the highest combined score
at the end of both rounds
will receive a guaranteed $10,000 win.
Plus, a return ticket to Flavortown
to compete against two other
food fanatics for up to $20,000.
[speaking French]
So, for your first challenge...
[all laughing]
I want you to hit the judges with your very best
international repertoire
of your signature global dish.
Chefs, we are asking you
to make one of your signature global dishes,
playing one of our signature grocery games.
A little something we call...
'Keep it sample'.
- Keep it sample. - [Guy] Keep it sample.
So, we've got four sample tables
around Flavortown market,
offering food items that satisfy
the most toothpicky of eaters.
Toothpicky of eaters,
-that's not bad, not bad. -Thank you very much. Thank you.
[Hunter] Check out all the gourmet sections
at the top of your shop, though,
because you're gonna have to use
two of those sample ingredients in your dish.
30 minutes to make your signature global dish
featuring sample items.
Okay?
- [Guy] You ready? - Ready.
All right, now, out of the three of you,
which two do you think will be the one that
goes for all the money?
[Hunter] It's-- when they watch it, they...
We have to come up with a better plan, okay?
Dude, whisper next time. Say it here.
Let's mime it.
Ah, pizza bagels!
Number one pizza bagels in all of America.
Try one.
They tasted good, but I'm not gonna cook with them.
So, I run over to the next table.
[woman] Mini chicken corn dogs.
If you're trying to make
a delicious international snack,
it's sweet, it's salty,
it's got everything that you need.
Look at this, a little mini chicken corn dog.
It's crunchy, breading, salty...
[Jordan] I grabbed the mini corn dogs.
Yeah, I go to the grocery store
and I just hope to myself,
"Please, have mini corn dogs
that I can put in my global dish."
[man] Think inside the box.
They may not look like real potatoes,
but they are.
Or, they were in a previous life.
Get the cash with my mash.
Come on, up the stakes with my flakes.
Pretzels? Pretzels?
- No? You good? All right. - I'm sure.
[Jordan] My global dish, today, I'm making...
Chicken, chicken, chicken.
Shawarma on top of a mujaddara...
What's up, Guy?
with a side of Turkish ezme.
Mujaddara's traditionally a rice and lentil dish
with Middle-eastern spices infused in it.
Ezme is a Turkish salad.
We would think of it as, like, a salsa.
Right now, I'm thinking mini chicken corn dogs
can somehow go into the ezme.
The instant mashed potatoes
are definitely going in the mujaddara.
Think they'll play really well with the lentil.
The rice it will help to really act as a thickener.
I think the Flavortown market is incredible.
I've seen the show a million times.
'Keep it sample' is the one I didn't wanna see.
Having four samples
that you don't previously have any knowledge of,
and having to incorporate that into a dish
that you cook all the time
is very difficult in under 30 minutes.
You're gonna love these, try one.
Crisp up nice in the oven, or in the microwave.
[Giangi] Pizza bagel's absolutely...
[giggles]
A little sweet and salty for your international food today.
It's a corn dog!
So, I'm not gonna use a corn dog,
but who doesn't love free samples?
Of course, you need that,
that's quality product right there.
Giangi, I got these delicious pretzels right here.
They're filled with peanut butter.
And, I can also get some fish crushed.
Put some fish...
For my signature global dish,
I am being inspired
by a French dish called 'Sole Almondine'.
[speaking French]
Which is a sole with crushed almond on top of it.
Gonna be the pretzels instead of it.
Um...
That's gonna be a challenge.
Are you having a panic attack yet, or you good?
Oh, yeah, I'm having a major panic attack.
Look at you, are you kidding me?
You're cool as a cucumber.
That with that mashed potatoes,
so that brings that out.
I'm gonna use these mashed potatoes.
I'm really gonna have to
doctor them up with some cheese,
which is very French.
I'm thoroughly thrilled to shop Flavortown,
because it's the challenge of thinking on your two feet,
and creating something
that you have no idea what you're gonna be creating,
and just doing it.
Okay, I think I'm done.
Chef, you got 25 minutes to start cooking.
You gotta start moving.
Hey, by the way, judges,
whatever you don't give away, you have to eat.
[Emerson] A Filipino dish out pizza bites,
I had to pass right through that sample table.
Make sure you let that little thing of pepperoni
really disintegrate on your tongue.
And they're gone.
Signature dish. Signature dish.
I have to make a favorite global dish.
And, one of my favorite dishes is
Filipino Pork Adobo.
[woman] Try it.
Don't judge a book by the...
Why don't you take one with you?
Oh, okay, I see how it is.
[man] Come on, you need that.
That's quality product right there.
You two, look at that, I'm three for three.
You don't use mashed potato
in traditional Filipino cooking.
Filipino pork adobo is typically served with rice.
So, I'm gonna substitute the rice
with instant mashed potatoes.
There's one more.
[Hunter] Hey, we got Pretzels, we got Pretzels right here.
They're salty, they're crunchy,
they're creamy, with peanut butter.
They're so bomb.
You can use 'em on anything.
Perfect.
And, I think I can use these Pretzels
as a thickener for the adobo sauce.
Want more Pretzels?
- I'm good. - [Hunter] You can take some home.
Let's do this. Let's do this.
You know what that delicious
locally made milk is missing?
These have equally diced cheese and pepperoni.
[man] Yeah, those look delicious.
Gotta take those Pretzels out.
Meat tenderizer.
Meat pounder, not here.
For my signature global dish,
I'm making chicken shawarma
on top of mujaddara with a side of Turkish ezme.
Chicken shawarma is a middle-eastern spiced chicken
that's typically marinated for a long time,
and cut off the spit.
I'm gonna try and make it in under 30 minutes
in Flavortown.
[Guy] Chef, the only thing I will caution you about
on that big pieces of chicken
is cooking it in time.
You may wanna throw a sheet tray on top of it.
That would be a great idea, Guy, I appreciate that.
Thank you very much, sir.
Got it.
[Jordan] Super great tip.
That's a home-cook hack that we don't typically use.
It's just amazing to me as a home cook
to think I even have an opportunity
to come on a show like this
and show the world the food that I can cook.
It'll be nasty, but it'll be fine.
While my chicken's on the grill,
I'm gonna work on making sure that
I've got the rice and lentils going for the Mujaddara.
Once my rice is toasting,
and the lentils are in the pot,
add in the mashed potatoes.
Because, I'm thinking the mashed potatoes
can help thicken the mujaddara in a short amount of time.
If my bubby knew I was making mashed potato mujaddara...
it would be the end of that.
You know, I'm just saying,
they're cooking and you guys are supposed to be judging.
I'm cooling down here in the dairy isle.
Just trying to slang some PBs.
Pizza bagels.
[Guy through microphone] Attention, all judges,
all judges, please return to the judging station.
All right, let's go.
And, quit eating and drinking in aisle ten, all judges.
Gotta do everything around here.
Okay, so, first of all...
So, who better to talk about world cuisine
than our world-class judges.
Exactly, and we have Troy here too.
An authority of the world and...
- How do you say it? "Herbs"? - "Herb".
- [Guy] Herbs and spices. - [Hunter] ...way better than I do.
[Hunter] Aarti Sequeira.
Acclaimed cookbook author
and co-host of Food Network's The Kitchen,
- Jeff Mauro. - Great to be here, gentlemen.
And, award-winning food writer
known throughout the world by his nickname persona non grata
Illinois, Troy-boy Johnson.
Hey, Hunter,
I brought you a gift.
If you're gonna hang out with him all day,
you're gonna need this. Pass that down for Hunter.
Watch out, Hunter. This is gonna be exploding.
- And, moist. - It's soft.
What is it?
[Troy] It's just a little pocket eggs.
[all exclaiming]
Uh-oh. Why would you do that to yourself?
Oh, God, I smell the egg.
[laughing]
[Hunter] I don't know what to do with that.
So, I'm gonna walk away.
[Aarti laughing]
Okay, we've got food fanatics in the kitchen today
to show us what they're made of
and to take us on a little trip around the world,
which, I for one,
am wicked excited about.
- Amen to that. - Yeah, dude.
[Guy] 22 minutes, chef. 22.
There's gonna be some things burning here in a second,
right now, it's just time.
Hey, hey, hey, I heard that.
Salt and pepper.
So, for my signature global dish,
I'm going to be making a French dish called
'sole almondine' with some mashed potato.
How long does it take for the mashed potato to cook?
I'm starting with the mashed potato,
and first, a cup of milk.
And I don't know how they're going to taste
so I will give myself enough time to
do something with them.
Butter.
All righty, I'm trying to do the mashed potatoes...
It's very French.
Never cooked as a kid.
I wouldn't get into that room
if my life depended on it. [laughing]
I decided to get into cooking
because I was tired of not eating well.
And, then, it kind of snowballed
and I got into more intricate cooking.
And here I am.
If I win that $20,000,
I would love to have a brand-new refrigerator.
A refrigerator that I can just open.
And, it's not so deep, and...
Yes, and that will make a difference in my kitchen and my cooking.
Instant mashed potatoes are just boring, I'm sorry.
But, by putting some garlic in it,
with the Morbier cheese,
with tons of gooey butter in it,
I'm doing everything in my power to make this
instant mashed potato taste decent.
Mm, I think this is my biggest challenge ever.
[whistles]
[Guy] What are you making, chef?
I'm making a classic Filipino dish called
pork adobo.
- Got it. - Yeah.
Okay, so, you got mashed potatoes and Pretzels,
those are going in there?
- [Emerson] Yes, sir. - [Guy] All right, buddy.
[Emerson] The difference between a Filipino adobo sauce
and a Latin sauce is that
Filipino adobo sauce is comprised of soy sauce,
vinegar, garlic,
and bay leaves.
I'm the oldest in my family
and I took a lot of interest in cooking in the kitchen
when my mama would cook dinner for us.
My love for food has taken me
cooking for friends, family,
and taken me as far as being on Guy's Grocery Games.
I never thought I'd be cooking here, period.
This is an opportunity of a life-time.
[whoops]
All right, judges, usually in the kitchen,
we have a lot of executive chefs that compete.
These are real-life chefs from home.
It's kind of like, you're at your home watching it,
you can sit there as an armchair quarterback
and say, "I would have done this. I would have done that."
Well, now, you're in it. What do you do?
[Jeff and Aarti] Yeah.
[Jordan] The mini chicken corn dogs are going into the ezme.
Ezme is a traditional Turkish salad or salsa.
And, I've never had a salsa I didn't like
that didn't have hot dogs.
But, I will add some fresh herbs
based with tomato.
So, I've actually been to Israel only once in 1995.
My bubby took me as a part of my bar-mitzvah trip.
That's the first time I really got to eat the culture's food
in the actual culture's setting.
I fell in love with it before,
but that's really what did it for me.
[Guy] What is this mixture right here?
This is the hot dog ezme.
And, hot dog typically goes in it?
Hot dog is a big ingredient in it.
Oh, my God.
There is so many vast flavors.
Hunter, you gotta come try this.
[Guy] Wow, that's flavor.
12 minutes.
12 to go, guys.
[Aarti] Have you done this before?
I competed, like, seven years ago.
- I think, I... - It was like an all-stars thing.
I took down the competition.
Season seven of Food Network Star
and I'm gonna take down the competition, here, today,
in Guy's Grocery Games.
The chef that will be checking out will be...
chef Mauro.
I didn't win.
- [laughing] - [Troy] Mm-hmm.
[groans]
[Giangi] Now, I'm ready to make my crust for my fish.
So, I'm taking my peanut butter filled Pretzels,
and I'm going to crush them to a little pulse.
French food is simple
and incorporating a sample
can be quite of a challenge.
Ready for some noise?
We do not have peanut butter stuffed Pretzels in France.
[Aarti] Okay, so, I'm a little nervous about Giangi's dish.
Only because she has very clean, mild flavors.
Sour cream, potatoes, little bit of cheese, fish.
And, then, the one-two punch of peanut butter Pretzels.
I think that's going to be super-sweet.
They're going to be on display.
[Giangi] I've never put peanut butter on a fish before.
I don't eat peanut butter.
So, I'm adding some garlic and some parsley,
just to give it a little help.
Because, I cannot have sweet peanut butter
crusted sole.
Stop it. Stop it. Stop it.
Food in France is not just about feeding the soul,
but it's just time to spend with your family,
with your friends, with your loved one.
Turn this puppy over.
I started my blog,
because I wanted to bring to people
how you can easily make a French and Italian meal,
so you can make it every night at your own family.
I've never made such a mess cooking.
Come on, you, cook.
Eight minutes! Eight to go! Gotta be plated.
Take some of these Pretzels.
Peanut butter Pretzels.
Perfect, that'll work.
Filipino adobo typically does not have peanut butter.
I'm hoping it's gonna add some flavor
and some thickness to the sauce.
Now that my pork adobo sauce is reducing,
I'm gonna start on my sample table ingredient,
instant mashed potatoes.
I wanna treat instant mashed potatoes like I'm cooking rice,
so I don't wanna add anything,
except some butter.
That way, I can flavor the mashed potatoes
with the pork adobo sauce like I would do with my rice.
If I win the $10,000 today,
I'm gonna put it towards
my daughters' future education.
It'll help them pursue their dreams.
[Guy] Three minutes!
Three minutes to plate.
[Jordan] Who needs a spit when you got a sheet tray?
Perfect.
The first thing I put down
is the mashed potato mujaddara.
On top of that, I chopped up the chicken,
and laid it evenly across the mujaddara.
Huh.
And, on the side, I'm gonna put my hot dog ezme.
I can't believe I'm saying 'hot dog ezme'.
[Guy] 90 seconds!
[speaking French]
Dear clock, stop, and give me five minutes.
Done.
I'm taking my fish out of the pan
and it's perfectly crusted.
Then, I add the mashed potato to the plate.
Now, I'm chopping parsley, garlic,
pepper corns, lemon zest, altogether,
to go on top of the fish,
so it gives them a little bit of a different oompf to it.
[Guy] 45 seconds!
All right, I'm gonna go ahead and plate the dish.
First, I get my instant mashed potatoes down on the plate.
I pull out my pork adobo out of the fryer
and it was perfect.
I'm pouring my adobo sauce
right over that instant mashed potato.
This dish is my heritage on a plate.
Five, four, three, two, one.
That's it!
Dang!
[Guy] Welcome to the store, chefs.
- Nicely done, everybody. - [whoops]
All right, let's see if the judges gobble up
your global dishes. Follow me.
Right to the judges.
All right, judges, this is game one
of Global Food Fanatics 'Keep it sample'.
Up first, we have chef Jordan, what did you make for us?
Hey, judges, so I made you a grilled-chicken shawarma,
a little bit of mujaddara.
Mujaddara's got mashed potatoes in it.
And a corn hot dog ezme.
I gotta say, whipped hot dog
sounds like wrong part of the county fare.
- You pulled it off. - Thanks, chef.
[Troy] You used the mashed potatoes
which was a very good purchase from the store.
The flavor on that marinade that you got on your chicken,
you managed to pull that off in just 25 minutes.
First of all, you nailed the char on the chicken.
I love all vertical meat.
I'm kind of amazed that you got the mujaddara done
in this amount of time.
The plus and minus here is that I don't taste
the corn dogs in the ezme at all.
Okay, good kick-off.
Up next, chef Giangi, what do you have for us?
I kept a very simple...
with the samples that I received,
I made a Pretzel crusted sole,
with mashed potatoes
that I just, kind of, lift 'em up a little bit
with some French cheese in there.
Just to give it a flavor.
I haven't touched a boxed mashed potato...
we'll see, in probably 50 years.
Woah, and you've only been on this planet for 32.
Exactly, see.
Sole needs a really quick pan-fry to keep it
so delicate and light.
In this fish, it's perfectly cooked.
It's just melt-in-your-mouth.
You get the contrast of textures from
the pulverized peanut butter Pretzels.
The green pepper corns
are my favorite part of this dish.
I think that's a dynamite move,
because the heat in that pepper corn
tames that sweetness of that peanut butter in that Pretzel.
Thank you.
The mashed potatoes...
you know, I wanted to see you transform them,
instead of just kind of recreate them on the plate.
Well, thank you. Thank you for the feedback.
And, next, finally, chef Emerson.
What did you make for us?
So, the global food dish I chose to make today
is a Filipino pork adobo.
And, I chose to use the Pretzels
to add a little bit of creaminess to it
and thicken up the sauce.
And, then, I used the mashed potatoes
as a replacement for the starch.
Traditionally, you use rice.
And, then, the sauce from the pork adobo,
was used to top the mashed potatoes as a gravy
to give it a little bit more flavor.
Adobo is like the knocking-on-heaven's-door Filipino cuisine.
That is phenomenal.
[Jeff] I loved the kind of carnitas-esque vibe
you brought by flash-frying that pork.
I got a surprise bone here on my plate.
I love, actually, that you
gave us this little piece here with the bone.
To me, that feels very authentic
and it feels like home.
You don't waste anything and this bone adds flavor.
You know what the potatoes are missing here...
pretty much everything.
You just dumped the flakes in there
and you didn't even season it, man.
Because it's a sample ingredient,
we need you to do something with it.
Okay, thank you, everyone.
We're going to ask the chefs to leave now,
so the judges can deliberate.
And, we'll call you back as soon as we have your scores.
Thank you. Thank you for the opportunity.
- Thank you. - Thank you.
[Guy] Judges, who gained the Triple-G global gameplay
and the goods?
All right, judges, let's go get the scores totaled up
and get them posted to the board.
I'll say this.
Your love for your culture and your love for your cuisine
was not lost in translation
on these crazy games.
Let's go to Emerson first.
Out of 20 points, 15 in gameplay,
16 in taste,
seven in plating.
A total of 38.
A good score.
Giangi,
14 in gameplay,
15 in taste
seven in plating.
36. Two points behind.
Jordan, it's left up to you, buddy.
You've gotta get better than a 36
to stay in the competition.
16 in gameplay, strong.
17 in taste, really big.
Seven in plating,
- for a 40. Congratulations. - [all clapping]
Congratulations.
Giangi, that leaves you four points behind the leader.
And, for that, we have to say goodbye.
But, I'll tell you what, it was great to have you.
- Thank you very much. - Thank you very much.
Come on, what a pleasure.
[Giangi] I didn't win, but I'm honored to be here.
Not a chance in a lifetime that I will ever use
instant mashed potatoes again after today. Never.
So, Hunter, what we have here
is the Filipino food fanatic...
Versus the Middle-eastern master over here.
That's right, and this round is gonna determine
who wins 10,000 bucks
and a return trip to Flavortown market
to play for up to $20,000 more.
- That was easy for me to say. - [Hunter] That's a big deal.
For your final challenge,
I want you to give the judges
a satisfying serving of...
World comfort food.
- I like that. - That's what we want.
Give us a world comfort food that is authentic to you.
Something that's comfort to you.
Dad, in most of the world,
people don't even use, like, shopping carts.
If you go to, like, farm stands,
you go into the farmer's market
you go into the local grocery store...
[Guy] Hunter, I pick up what you're laying down.
Chefs, go ahead and stand in front of your carts, please.
- [Guy] What are you thinking? - You know what?
I saw something over here, down the aisle
just not too long ago that was left out by a customer.
Oh, okay, sounds good.
Oh, the big handheld bag.
We had these made for my mom.
I only got one of these.
But, I do have...
Oh, man.
This is 'Think small'.
All the ingredients you wanna shop for
for your authentic global comfort food
has to be able to fit in this bag. [scoffs]
Oh.
One bag.
One trip.
30 minutes to shop, prepare and plate
your world comfort food.
I'm gonna give the 'three, two, one'
and then you give the 'go', okay?
[Hunter] Okay.
So, we covered all the rules with the bags.
- Doing all that, the all that-- yeah. - Yeah.
They do not wanna play or what?
I don't know, do you guys wanna play?
- Yeah. - We're ready.
Yeah.
[Hunter] Let's play.
[laughing]
- That was good. - Ah, yeah.
They got us outsmarted the first round,
take 'em to Flavortown.
That was a good one.
What I really like to do, is I like to cook
global food with a Middle-eastern take.
So, when I think of comfort food...
Ground lamb!
First two things that are coming mind are
shakshuka, bolognese.
Ground lamb, ground lamb, ground lamb, ground lamb.
Ground lamb.
So, I'm gonna do a rendition of a shakshuka bolognese
over an Israeli couscous.
- Hi, Guy. - Hello.
[Jordan] Shakshuka will embrace all the good spices
from North Africa and Middle-east.
It'll really allow me to get a lot of flavor
in such a small bag.
Think small. Think small. Think small.
So, the challenge is think small.
And, I've seen the game.
And, I knew the bag was small,
but I didn't realize it was that small.
I do need several ingredients.
I don't think I can make 'em all work.
Can't fit the huge onion in my bag,
so I grab the cippolinis.
Some cippolinis.
Comfort food to me is just
something you can eat in your pajamas,
whether it's something like
shakshuka that you eat for breakfast,
or something like a hearty bolognese
that you can eat at night when it's super cold.
So, I thought why not take both dishes
and put them together.
- [Jordan] Acceptable? - [Hunter] Oh, yeah.
[Emerson] Cooking at Flavortown is definitely
on a whole other level.
But, when I think of comfort food
you think of warm belly type food
that means it's nap time.
Chicken broth.
For my world, comfort food, I'm thinking
Filipino arroz caldo.
All right. Saffron.
Filipino arroz caldo is a Filipino rice porridge.
But, I have to think small.
What am I gonna be able to fit inside here?
Does it all have to fit inside this bag?
Yeah, but let me show you something, come here.
Think smart about this. Hold on a second.
Slow yourself down. SLow your roll, son.
Hold that.
All right, so let's go first
with thing big, old, heavy,
dense thing on the bottom, okay?
Wedge the chicken in there.
Get in there, wedge it.
- There you go. - Yeah.
- Now... - Now, you have more room.
My man. My man.
- Come on. - My man.
[Emerson] All right.
If you're gonna watch the show, you gotta learn
a little tricks of the trade here, folks.
Thank you kitchen angel.
It is so hard to fit all of the ingredients
in that tiny, little bag.
But, this dish was so important to me to make,
because this was one of the dishes
that I cooked a lot of,
growing up with my mom.
Cooking arroz caldo is my mom, it's me,
it's my family, all in one dish.
All right.
[Guy] What would be a good comfort food, Hunter?
[Hunter] Chili.
I'll have chili.
What, chili?
No, that's not global comfort food.
Well, you have 25 minutes,
so I don't know what you're gonna make, but...
I don't need negative energy.
You're right, I'm sorry. I apologize.
What are you thinking?
[Guy] I was going meatballs.
[Hunter] Meatballs are great. I love meatballs, yeah.
Meatballs and what?
Meatballs with garlic bread, or...
[Guy] I like the way you're thinking.
Bucatini.
There we go.
Parmesan cheese.
Dad, do you think you can do this in 22 minutes?
[Guy] Can I do this in 22 minutes?
Meatballs? I don't know.
Global comfort food, what do you guys think?
Comfort food is...
it usually does have some super-strong
- flavors to it. - Yeah.
Salty, cheesy, tomato-y...
It's a whole experience.
Yeah, you're not like, "I'm going light tonight."
You know what I want tonight is some diet comfort food.
- No. - Just doesn't work.
[Hunter] My dad's cooking, so I'm gonna wander around.
Okay.
[Guy] 21 minutes left.
[Emerson] I'm making a traditional
comfort food growing up
and that is called arroz caldo.
When people think of porridge,
people think bland, thick, ricey, goopy soup.
That's not what this is.
Filipino arroz caldo is going to be
bright and creamy, delicious.
Traditionally, I would finely mince this garlic
and throw it in there,
but I just didn't have the time.
- Emerson's making arroz caldo. - [Aarti] Wow.
[Jeff] Very typical Filipino dish.
- Very comforting. - Yes.
And, you think about it, comfort food in any language,
- it's soup. - Usually involves this sound.
[slurps]
- [Jeff] You know what I mean? - That's...
[Emerson] Gonna add a bit of saffron and just let it go.
You know, the only thing I'm worried is
about the rice cooking in time.
- Emerson, how are we doing? - Yes.
[Emerson] Doing great.
[Hunter] How long is that gonna take to cook?
"Simmer 20-25 minutes."
I'm cutting it.
Oh, man.
We'll see.
- That's risky. - Yeah.
Do you have a backup plan just in case?
[Emerson] Uh...
it's gonna work.
Good luck.
[Emerson] Cooking this arroz caldo is a huge risk.
I'm putting everything inside this pot.
And, if this rice doesn't cook in time,
I'm done.
Goodbye $10,000.
Probably gonna get up right to the minute.
[Guy] 20 minutes to make pasta meatballs.
I gotta get some onions
going down for the meatballs, actually.
Sure could've used more garlic.
Umami coming from the mushrooms.
Fresh tomato sauce.
I used all my garlic.
15 minutes.
[Jordan] I love shakshuka.
I don't usually make it where it fits in a small bag.
But, we're gonna make it work.
Love the flavors.
Okay, what are we making?
We're doing a take on a lamb shakshuka.
And then instead of the pasta,
I'm using Israeli couscous.
Usually I'd use, like, tagliatelle or pappardelle,
but we're just going with couscous.
I'm gonna make a little garlic lemon tahini sauce for it.
- [Hunter] Very nice. - [Jordan] Yep.
Let's not lose for salt.
It's not a traditional shakshuka
and it's not a traditional bolognese.
But, it is a super big bowl of comfort.
Traditionally, shakshuka is a tomato based sauce,
but I'm gonna opt for harissa instead.
[whoops]
Man, that's good. Way better than tomato sauce.
Gonna really help give that extra flavor.
A little bit of spice.
Guy, you like spice.
Let's go big with spices.
Zaatar.
Baharat.
An Iraqi spice blend.
Next, I'm gonna work on my Japanese eggplant.
So, I seared the eggplant separately in its own pan
just to get a little bit of char
onto the outside of the eggplant.
Nice little bit of char in the eggplant.
I totally geek out on food.
As far as my cookbook collection goes,
I probably have over 200 cookbooks.
I watch Food Network all the time.
The night my son was born,
my wife was in labor for almost 36 hours.
And, the only thing we watched in the room
was Triple-G.
It was on from the minute we got to the hospital
until the minute my son was born.
So, Guy was kind of there for the birth.
If that's not comfort food, I don't know what is.
- [Emerson] Jordan, you good? - [Jordan] I'm good, man.
Great, man.
Nine-and-a-half minutes left.
Hey, can you make the clock go up about five more minutes?
- I appreciate it. - I wish, bro.
I need it too.
- You done? - No. No, no, no.
Waiting for that rice to cook.
That's impressive if you pull it off.
Hey, Emerson, now, you know what they say about porridge.
You know, watching porridge boil.
It's all right. There's nothing you can do, right?
Nothing I can do, man.
There's nothing left for me to do
but wait for this rice to cook.
So, what I'm gonna do
is I'm gonna fry up some onions.
cooking some fried onions.
I took this risk,
'cause this dish means so much to me.
Arroz caldo was one of the first things
I learned how to cook.
Being in the kitchen with my mom,
I know that this dish
will win me that $10,000.
Oh, I am really cutting this short.
I might have bit off too much to chew on this one.
Bread crumbs.
Let me just handle this for a second.
Okay.
So, this is... In our family,
this is our comfort food.
I mean, meatballs...
And, we make them, we make them by the 100.
[Hunter] Yeah, we make a lot of meatballs. That's for sure.
My fryer's not on on my station.
I'm borrowing a station.
Coming over.
- Chef, you using your fryer? - [Jordan] Nope.
[Guy] Fantastic.
This is what we call
expediting the process, right here.
I got 350 degrees,
cooking all the way around it.
And, I am sweating.
[Hunter] Six minutes.
Six minutes and six seconds.
-I'm sorry. I'm sorry. -Don't rush me, Hunter. Don't rush me.
[Hunter] You got an extra six seconds in there, that's right.
[Jordan] So, now I'm gonna work on my tahini sauce,
which is really just tahini, garlic,
little bit of lemon juice, water to thin it out.
And, I just keep whisking until it's the consistency
that I want.
[Aarti] I'm curious about the lamb shakshuka.
Shakshuka's usually meatless, right?
- It's more focused on the vibrant tomatoes... - [Aarti] Yes.
[Aarti] I don't wanna be a purist about this,
but I do think that there's something about
the runny, rich yolk
mixing with that tangy, bright tomato sauce.
That is the essence of shakshuka.
So, it's fine that he's adding the lamb to it,
but I hope he has an egg.
[Jordan] Got my tahini sauce ready,
the lamb's cooking,
I'm gonna get to work on my eggs.
Traditionally, with shakshuka,
the egg is baked right into the shakshuka itself.
That's a new one.
I love a good fried egg.
I'll put a fried egg on anything,
including my shakshuka.
All right.
[man] You got double eggs?
[Jordan] Three of 'em.
You ever seen that?
I've never seen that.
Three out of four eggs, double eggs.
- Yeah. - I can't believe that.
Hopefully, that's a good luck
- charm for you. - [Jordan] I hope so.
[Jordan] So, my son, Azar, just turned three last week.
He gave me a little good luck charm.
So, I've been carrying around
the little pachycephalosaurus,
which is actually his favorite dinosaur.
If I win today, the big reason I'm here
is 'cause I want my wife and my son Azar
to experience what that's like to be in Israel.
Marissa's never been. Azar's never been.
It's been 26 years for me, can't wait to go back.
[Guy] Two minutes! Two minutes flat.
[Jordan] First thing I put down is my fluffy couscous.
Then on top of that,
I add my lamb ragu.
And, then, on top of that,
I add my perfectly double-yolk fried egg.
Just a little drizzle of tahini sauce.
Little dusting of the zaatar and baharat.
And, chopped parsley for color and texture.
Layer the flavors.
[Guy] 90 seconds.
Okay, I don't know if these are finished.
Yeah, they didn't make it.
Now, it's bolognese.
The meatballs didn't finish,
so I had to improvise through the situation.
[Hunter] Doing meatballs in 12 minutes
is pretty difficult, so.
[Guy] Not the smartest idea I've had.
[Hunter] All right, chefs. One minute.
Guy, kitchen angel,
can I have more time, please?
It's time to plate. I have no more time.
And, is the rice done?
I scoop my arroz caldo into the bowls.
I top it with my green onion.
Add those crushed chicharrones
and my fried onions.
I didn't have any time to taste it,
so I hope the rice is cooked.
And, I'm hoping that this works.
[Hunter] Five, four,
three, two, one.
That's it, stop cooking.
[Hunter] Very nice. Very nice.
You guys were hustling on that one.
Dude, that looks dope. Dope.
[Hunter] Look at contestant number three
- beating the clock. - Well, look at this.
-A huge dish -Oh, my Gosh.
So...
Oh, you are taut. Look at you.
[Guy] Oh, I got killed on this one.
What you had was meatballs,
veal, pork, beef.
Reggiano parmesana,
panko breadcrumbs, egg,
fresh basil, fresh oregano,
all put together and going.
Except that I ran out of a little bit of time.
I went bolognese with it.
So, a little more parm and a little touch of cream.
And, that was 18 minutes.
Dear God.
Very nervous serving stuff like this to Jeff.
[Aarti] Aw, I know, you're sweating!
Oh, I was working it over there.
And, it's great bolognese,
even without you telling me
that you had zero intentions of making bolognese.
[Guy] 'Cause, I bit off too much than I could chew.
I know you weren't comfortable,
but this is comforting.
[Guy] All right, judges, here we are,
game two of our Global Food Fanatics,
they got to play a little 'Think small'.
Well, we all got to play a little 'Think small'.
Holy moly.
First up, chef Jordan, what do you got for us?
So, I'm a Middle-eastern cook
and a Mediterranean cook.
This is my rendition
of a lamb shakshuka bolognese.
I went with Israeli couscous on the bottom, like,
that's my ultimate comfort food.
Troy, did you get a double egg?
I got a double egg.
Aarti, did you get a double egg?
- [Aarti] Sure did. - [Jeff] Yeah.
You did a good decision in not liking Jeff.
Nobody took my pizza bagels
and then I get one egg.
Jordan, whether it's a shakshuka
or a bolognese,
the one thing that ties those two dishes together
is the tomato gravy.
That idea of having this gravy that you would sop it up
and it gets a little bit messy.
That, to me is comfort food.
And, that's what's missing from your dish.
Jordan, this is not shakshuka,
but it is awesome.
The texture of the Israeli couscous pops in your mouth.
And, your lamb is cooked perfectly.
It all just plays so nicely together on this plate.
[Troy] I don't miss the tomato sauce at all.
Couscous is basically massage pasta, right?
It just feels good in your mouth.
It's all that texture, you know.
And, it's really well done.
Did you hear what he said about couscous?
It's massage pasta.
Yeah, it's boba pasta.
It is boba pasta.
All right, not to be outdone, chef Emerson.
So, the dish I decided to make today
is a traditional comfort food that I grew up with,
arroz caldo.
It's a Filipino-style rice porridge,
cooked with chicken, ginger, garlic, onion,
and is topped with some chicharrons.
Emerson, I got bad news for you, brother.
I'm moving in.
[laughing]
That is a really great comforting dish.
Especially with that back noted ginger
that cuts through, what is really, kind of,
a almost creamy chicken soup.
You took a really big risk here.
Because, all of your ingredients were in that pot.
And, I think it paid off.
I took a bite of that
and it was almost overwhelming how much flavor you packed
into this beautiful bright, yellow bowl.
The rice is right to the edge.
Right just overcooked perfectly
that you want in, kind of, that stewy porridge.
My biggest complaint,
I got some giant cloves of garlic in there,
so I am making out with zero people today.
Thank you.
Thank you, judges. Thank you, chefs.
You guys did awesome.
Please, we're going to send you back
so the judges can deliberate.
Great job, guys. Thank you.
Did anyone's comfort food
give them a comfortable lead?
Let's talk about Jordan's first.
He really took from a lot of different cultures
and put 'em into on plate.
But, his shakshuka was not.
I was totally comfortable with his riff on it.
I thought that he'd seasoned the lamb really well.
Shakshuka and bolognese is about the sauce.
And, that was sorely missing in Jordan's dish.
Emerson's dish was so comforting.
[Troy] Who knew that you could stare at a dish for so long?
[all laughing]
And, have it come out so good.
[Jeff] He did. He really did.
But, there was some unrefinement.
He was like, "Oh, I usually mince the garlic."
[Guy] Thank you very much.
Let's get these scores totaled up.
Hunter, get it post to the board
and let's call the chefs back in.
All right, judges, thank you.
You have been treated to a very special experience
here in Flavortown Market.
We were bringing in the real cooks,
who, I think, personally,
have come in and competed
like restaurant cooks.
So, big round of applause to the both of you.
- [all clapping] - [whoops]
A lot going on in this comfort food round.
Let's take a look.
Jordan in the lead, two points.
15 in gameplay.
17 in taste, nice.
Seven in plating, for a total of 39.
A total of 79 points.
Congratulations.
Only dropping one point from your first round.
Emerson, you need more than a 41.
Going to gameplay.
16.
- Taste, 18. - [man] Woah.
Plating, eight.
- 42 points. - [Aarti] Wow.
[Guy] 80 points for the win!
[all exclaiming]
[Guy] Oh, wow!
[Troy] Nail-biter. Nail-biter.
Emerson, congratulations,
that is a big come-from-behind win.
Jordan, congratulations for a big first round lead.
I'm sorry there's not two winners,
but Jordan, it was great to see you cook.
Thank you, chef.
[Jordan] Even though I didn't win,
what an experience.
I'm just a home cook.
I didn't go to culinary school.
I don't own a restaurant.
But, I got to come here and play in Flavortown
and that was incredible.
Well, there you have it ladies and gentlemen.
Meet our Global Food Fanatics winner
chef Emerson.
[all cheering]
Congratulations.
Thank you.
Buddy, not only did you just win $10,000,
but you also have a return trip
to Flavortown Market to compete against
two other Food Fanatic winners
and a chance at winning up to another $20,000.
So excited and nervous.
[all laughing]
[Emerson] This is beyond my wildest dreams.
My wife and my two kids inspired me
to make these dishes today.
I owe it all to them.
[Guy] I'll tell you what,
the competitors that are coming in here,
these food fanatics from around the country
are the real deal.
And, you wanna see what's gonna happen?
You gotta tune in.
We got one more round to go
and then, the big finale.
And, someone's gonna get a shot at up to 20,000 bucks.
We'll see you guys next week.
Triple-G. Adios.
- [all cheering] - Well done.
Congratulations.