I'm Bobby Flay.
Each week, one brave chef will try to take me down in my house.
-I'm not worried about Bobby. -What?
-[crowd gasps] -Ooh!
This culinary battle is going to shake down in two rounds.
Round one, to get to me,
two contenders have to go through each other,
using an ingredient of my choice.
Let's do it!
[Bobby] Two people that know me well
will decide who's got the skills to beat me.
Round two, I go head-to-head with the winning contender.
It's their turn to surprise me with their signature dish.
-Go! -[singing] Friendly competition!
-Is that distracting? -This is going to be the first one I don't finish.
-Flay's in trouble! -Whoo!
-[Bobby] Bottom line? -No!
Everyone's out to beat me.
-Yeah! -[clapping]
All right, everybody, throw your hands in the air
for two very talented troublemakers,
Chef Anne Burrell,
and the hip hop icon Lil Jon.
[audience cheering]
Yeah!
[cheering and applause]
You all know what we came to do today!
Beat Bobby Flay!
[Anne laughs]
I'm just kidding!
-Right! -[Bobby] Lil Jon's in the building.
I've been waiting for this moment for years.
Well, since we met at a bar.
-[Bobby] Well-- -So we met at a bar.
[laughter]
We literally met at a bar!
And we had lots of shots of tequila.
-Yes. That's how we bonded. -[Bobby] Yes we did. Exactly.
That's what we did. But I was surprised that you knew who I knew was.
-Of course! -Well, I mean...
Any black man from the south
-knows how to cook. -Okay.
So, I love to cook, so of course I know you.
Anne is a great partner for you, 'cause she's been here many times...
-And we dressed kind of similar today. -[Bobby] Yes, you do.
I know, we didn't even plan it.
[Bobby] I think it's time to get this thing going on.
-What do you think? -[Lil Jon] Let's go!
[Anne] Our first contender is the executive chef
at Southampton's Wishbone Farms.
Give it up for Eva Pesantez!
[cheering]
[Lil Jon] All right!
Our next contender is taking his competitive nature
from the tennis court
to the kitchen!
-[Bobby] Okay. -[Anne laughs]
From Atlanta, Georgia, my hometown!
-Okay. -Executive chef,
I'm the best announcer ever!
-[laughter] -Executive chef,
Robert Butts.
[cheering]
Good evening, Eva, Robert.
How are you guys doing tonight?
-Great. -Good catch.
You got Anne Burrell and Lil Jon in the house. It's pretty good.
-ATL all day. -ATL all day. Okay.
[laughter]
[Bobby] Here's the way it's gonna work.
I'm gonna put 20 minutes on this clock.
I'm gonna give you an ingredient of my choice.
And you must make that ingredient the star of your dish.
And that ingredient is...
queso fresco.
-[audience] Ooh! -[applause]
Okay guys, 20 minutes to say, "Hey, yo!"
to this queso fresco.
-[bell dings] -[cheering]
[Lil Jon] Queso fresco?
-Queso fresco is a hard one. -I know it is.
[Bobby] Queso fresco is a dry cheese.
I like to sprinkle it on, like, a Mexican dish.
-It doesn't melt. -It doesn't melt. Barely.
Okay. Let's see what we're gonna do here.
Robert! How are you feeling?
So, what I'm thinking about doing, is actually a dip.
Interesting.
I don't cook with queso fresco often,
but my plan is to actually melt the cheese,
and make a dip with tomatoes,
bell peppers, onions, garlic, and fried tortilla chips.
And a little tequila, since you like tequila.
-Ding, ding, ding! -[all laugh]
Growing up in Atlanta is a vibe.
We love to have a good time.
Our food is good, our culture is good.
And it actually triggered my passion for food.
Upon finishing culinary school,
I moved overseas for a year,
and had to live in the south of France to train.
I moved back to Atlanta. I started working in some well-known restaurants.
Today, I am the executive chef of Twisted Soul Cookhouse and Pours.
We do southern comfort food with a global modern twist.
Mr. Flay, I respect you and all your accolades,
but now it's time to show you what the south can do.
Eva, what you got going on over there?
[all laugh]
I'm doing fried queso fresco
with a tomatillo and avocado salsa.
It's for you, Bobby.
-Okay. -Interesting choices.
-Okay. -Okay.
Yeah, good one, Bobby!
[all laugh]
[Eva] I grew up in Brooklyn, New York,
and my first word was hot,
because I was always on my mother's hip in the kitchen.
I didn't go to culinary school,
but I started cooking professionally after college
and I just fell in love with the whole scene.
In 2021, my brother and I opened up Wishbone Farms.
My style of cooking is pretty broad.
I grab from Middle Eastern food,
Asian food, South American food.
I wanna beat Bobby to show that you don't have to be
a celebrity to put out great food.
All right, coming up on 15 minutes!
Mm, smells good here already.
You're sauteing all these veg, they're going in your dip?
-[Robert] Going in my dip. -And then where does the queso fresco come in?
When I add my cream into it,
I'm going to, like, slowly add my cheese into it,
to melt it and kind of bring it together.
Just a heads up. Queso fresco? It doesn't melt.
-Think of it more in terms of feta cheese. -Mm-hmm.
I might just change my dish now.
I wanna see you do well.
Taste everything, make sure it's delicious.
So I'm going in a different direction now.
I'm doing a seared chicken thigh,
with a rare pepper queso fresco salsa and fried wontons.
Kind of like a deconstructed taco, in a away.
Talk to me about what you're doing.
I'm gonna make a little salsa Verde with some avocado.
Fry the cheese.
What are you doing with the blue corn tortillas?
[Eva] I'm just gonna deep fry it for a little extra crunch.
Oh, nice. You have 13 and a half minutes.
Good luck, both of you!
[cheering]
What I don't know is if I think Robert is so familiar with it.
-Now I see him with some sort of meat over there? -[Lil Jon] Chicken.
I'm seasoning it with smoked paprika,
garlic powder, onion powder, and a little bit of cumin.
Kind of Mexican spices, to bring out that flavor of the queso fresco.
[Eva] I really quickly dredged the queso fresco in my seasoned flour and eggs.
So, deglazing my sauce with a little bit of tequila
will actually bring out the flavors a little bit more.
[cheering]
Man, I see fire. It's time for me to go in there.
[laughter]
Burn it down, Robert.
ATL. What you got going on?
So right now, what I did was, I took some chicken,
I'm gonna top it with the tequila, red pepper kind of sauce.
So how is the queso fresco gonna be the main part of the dish?
I'm gonna incorporate it both into my sauce,
and on top as, like, a little garnish for the chicken and everything.
Okay, you have seven minutes.
-Seven minutes. All right. -I'll let you get back to it.
[Eva] I grab the blender and I throw in tomatillos,
charred onion, jalapeno and garlic.
You look really comfortable over here.
-Robert looks stressed as hell. -[Eva] I am. I am.
Now you just kind of coasting through the neighborhood.
[Eva] I'm gonna just fry up some of the cheese,
finish it off with little crispy tortillas.
-Sounds really delectable. -I'm not gonna disappoint.
[Eva] Times almost up. I drop my queso fresco into the deep fryer.
[Lil Jon] I'll let y'all get back to it.
[Robert] I'm adding in my queso fresco.
I want my salsa to be bold and really saucy.
Two minutes to go! Get it on the doggone plate!
[laughter]
[Eva] I pull my queso fresco out of the fryer,
and it's looking beautiful.
Nice and golden brown,
with a light, crisp texture to it.
Get it onto the plate, put on my salsa Verde.
As I go to plate the last two,
I realize I used one of those pieces to taste.
One minute!
Ah, that was stupid.
I realize I'm one queso fresco short.
Uh-oh. That's a big mistake.
I really quickly cut another wedge, dredge it, and get it to the fryer.
I check my chicken, it's perfectly cooked. Thank the Lord!
What is this gonna taste like?
[Robert] Top it with my queso fresco salsa,
finishing it with some wonton chips,
[all chanting] Ten, nine...
[Eva] At the last second, I pull the last wedge out of the fryer,
get it onto the plate,
top it with tortillas, and I'm done.
-[all chanting] Two, one! -[bell dings]
[cheering]
Robert, Eva, I just wanna see now which dish is the best dish.
Chef Eva, what did you make?
I made a fried queso fresco,
with a tomatillo and avocado salsa.
[audience laughing]
I had to make sure she don't die.
-[laughter] -[Anne] Right. Thank you.
I wasn't sure how well this was going to work out.
-Sorry. -She is dying!
[laughter]
[Anne] The queso fresco is surprisingly tasty.
The sauce was magnifique!
It was very good.
I could personally go for a lot more crunch,
'cause the little crispy edges and stuff is good!
Thank you.
-All right, Robert. -[laughs nervously]
-What the hell is this? -[laughter]
Ah, so...
Is it Mexican? Is it Chinese?
What I have here is a seared chicken thigh,
topped with a rare pepper kind of queso fresco salsa.
A little bit of fried, crisp wontons for some crunch.
[Anne] Chicken is seasoned very nicely.
I would like acid and a little bit of something spicy.
I do like the pepper sauce,
and I do love you thinking out-of-the-box with the wontons.
But I don't see no queso fresco.
-[chuckling] -[Lil Jon] It's not enough.
-Let's have a little meeting. -Excuse us.
Me and Anne have reached a decision.
The chef moving forward is...
Chef Eva!
[cheering]
I do wish I just would have added a little more queso to that salsa.
But I cooked for Lil Jon. Yeah!
You know what I liked about you,
is that you were not stressing out.
And to beat Bobby,
you have to be calm, 'cause it's his doggone show.
[laughter]
All right, Eva. Did you ever think you were gonna have
Lil Jon and Anne Burrell on your team?
Never. Very excited.
What are we cooking tonight? What is your signature dish?
My signature dish is...
-Meatloaf. -Meatloaf.
You don't think Bobby knows
how to make meatloaf 23 different thousand ways?
-No. -Whoa. Bobby!
[laughter]
On that note, there's 45 minutes on the clock
and your time starts now!
[Lil Jon] Yeah!
Have you ever made meatloaf?
I can't remember.
[laughter]
I love meatloaf, but it's gotta be crusty and juicy.
I'm making a meatloaf with creative flavors.
It has kimchi. It has gochujang glaze.
It has a shiitake mushroom and sesame salad.
I just love those flavors.
I just feel like meatloaf needs, like, impact.
Eva, why is this gonna beat Bobby Flay?
Because it's not your momma's meatloaf.
-It's not your momma's meatloaf! -I like that.
-Well, damn! -[laughter]
[Eva] So I'm making a Moroccan inspired meatloaf
with ground lamb and ground beef,
minted yogurt sauce, salsa Verde,
and spiced potatoes.
Eva has a tremendous amount of spices.
[Eva] Cinnamon and clove, cumin and coriander.
Growing up, we lived near a Middle Eastern market.
These flavors always remind me of going to that market with my mother.
Bobby, tell me what your flavor profile is for this?
Korean flavors.
-Korean! -[Lil Jon] Korean!
I sauteed fresh ginger, garlic, some shallots.
I chopped up the kimchi and I put that in with the aromatics,
and that's gonna be folded into
ground pork and ground beef.
Then I'm gonna add a little gochujang,
sesame oil, soy sauce,
fish sauce, some bread crumbs, some eggs.
That's gonna be my mixture.
Eva, where are you going with this?
I'm using Moroccan flavors.
-Moroccan flavors! -[Lil Jon] Oh, I like that.
Everything about Morocco is amazing.
[Eva] The biggest challenge here is making sure
the meatloaf is fully cooked.
First, I chop up parsley and cilantro.
I'm using both ground beef and ground lamb in my meatloaf,
because lamb is very traditional in Moroccan cooking.
I'm seasoning it with warm spices,
along with some eggs and Panko bread crumbs.
I form my meatloaf into small little loaves,
so I can make sure they're cooked all the way through.
-[Lil Jon] Can I get the party started? -[Anne] Yeah, I think so.
[Lil Jon] Since I'm in the building,
that mean it's gotta be a party,
so let's get this party started!
[cheering]
Yeah!
Bobby, can you dance?
-Can I dance? A little bit. -Yeah!
Well, dance! We wanna see you dance!
[cheering]
I think you definitely need some tequila.
You know what?
Let me get some bottle service in this place.
[cheering]
That's what I do. You feel me?
[Bobby] Yes, I feel you.
[Lil Jon] All right. Time for a shot, Bobby.
[cheering]
I wanna go have a shot.
Cheers.
[Bobby laughing]
What is going on here?
He, he knows how to enjoy life, let's put it that way.
I love this!
[Bobby] So I put the meatloaves into some cast iron pans
that I've had in the oven.
When the meat hits the pan,
I want it to start forming a crust.
-Whoo! -[Lil Jon] You want another one?
[Bobby] Yeah, put it in there.
[Anne] Great. I don't want to be left out here.
Thank you!
-Eva, do you want a shot? -[Lil Jon] Eva, you want one?
-Come on. -Here you go!
Here's to your win.
[Bobby] Cheers, everybody.
[Lil Jon] So, Bobby.
Why, why Korean?
Korean meatloaf? Why?
I wanna bring some flavor to it.
I've actually made this dish once before, like nine years ago,
and now I definitely don't remember how to make it.
[laughter]
That, I didn't expect.
I'm definitely feeling that tequila.
Lil Jon has done his job, which is to start the party.
-Yeah! -[Bobby chuckling]
-Bobby, you're leaning. -I know. [laughs]
Coming up on 20 minutes.
[Bobby] My meatloaf is baking.
I'm gonna start working on my meatloaf salad.
[laughs]
I'm going to start working on my shiitake mushroom salad.
-There's no way I'm finishing today. -Yeah!
It has soy sauce, scallions,
cilantro, sesame oil,
black and white sesame seeds.
Eva, you gonna make it? How are you doing?
I've gotta beat him!
[Eva] I'm using the potatoes,
seasoned with cumin, coriander,
and get them onto a sheet tray and into the oven.
She is moving faster than I have seen her move all freaking day!
I run to the pantry and grab pomegranate molasses.
And I mix in a little ketchup and a teeny bit of brown sugar.
That's smart because that will caramelize on the outside,
-and make a nice little, sweet kind of crust. -Right.
A traditional glaze would be like a ketchup glaze of some sort.
So this is kind of like the creative version of that.
Gochujang, honey, soy sauce,
a little tangerine juice and sesame oil.
Bobby, should we get this party going again? What do you think?
Yeah!
-No. -[laughs]
Next, I get started on my salsa Verde.
Cilantro, parsley, garlic,
a little cumin and coriander, lemon juice.
This is the bright dipping sauce
for the roasted potatoes.
I mean, there's only nine and a half minutes left.
[Eva] I check on my meatloaf.
It's looking perfect.
I brush it with pomegranate glaze.
You're doing awesome. How are your potatoes doing?
They're not going to have as much color as I want.
Do you want to throw them in the deep fryer, maybe?
-I like you. -[Anne clicks tongue]
-Just, yeah, throw those in there and get them done quick. -You're amazing.
I want these potatoes to be nice and crispy,
so I gladly take her advice.
[Bobby] I'm going to put an egg on top,
which is to enrich the meatloaf.
You only got seven minutes, Bobby.
You don't look like you're ready.
I'm not ready.
Like, 20 minutes ago, I knew what I was gonna do with these shallots,
and now I don't remember.
-[laughter] -[Anne] All right.
But I'm just gonna keep cutting them until it comes back to me.
I mean, exactly! I mean, what are you gonna do with that many shallots?
All right, give me one more shot. 'Cause I think if you give me one more shot...
-[cheering] -Wow. I did not have that on my bingo card!
[laughter]
All right, there you go.
[cheering]
Whoo!
What's going on with these eggs?
-They're good. They're slow cooking! -[Anne] Okay.
Oh, the crispy shallots.
So it's very thinly sliced shallots,
some rice flour batter, and then into the fryer.
My meatloaf is still a few degrees under where I need it to be,
and I'm starting to panic a little bit.
[Anne] Four minutes!
I really quickly make my minted yogurt sauce.
Take some Greek yogurt,
zest some lemon, cumin, coriander, mint.
I want to use the yogurt to cool down
the warm spices that are in the meatloaf.
[Anne] That is smart,
because it's very traditional to go with lamb.
You're just so smart!
[Lil Jon] Looks like she's got a great fry on the potatoes too.
[Eva] The potatoes are looking crispy and golden.
At this point, my heart is racing.
I'm just waiting on the meatloaf.
-[Lil Jon] Two minutes left! -Bobby, you gonna finish this time?
[Bobby] I'm trying!
I take my meatloaf out. They're nice and crusty.
The glaze has become part of the meatloaf,
and then I put the fried egg on top.
-[Lil Jon] Time? -Ninety seconds.
-[Lil Jon] You want another shot? -[both laugh]
[Bobby] Some of the mushroom salad, some crispy shallots,
a little gochujang. Done.
Eva, you gonna make it? How are you doing?
It's now or never, and I need to get my meatloaf.
[Anne] Get them on the plate!
[Eva] Brush it with a little more of the pomegranate glaze,
and finish with some fresh parsley.
[all chanting] Ten, nine,
eight, seven, six,
five, four, three,
two, one!
[Anne] That's it, and job is done!
[cheering]
You don't really put these things together as a possible life experience.
Lil Jon. Korean-flavored meatloaf.
Moroccan meatloaf. Tequila shots.
Yeah, that was never in the script. [laughs]
Tonight's challenge was meatloaf.
And staying sober.
One of these chefs failed that challenge!
[all laugh]
And now we'd like to introduce you guys to your judges.
First up, founder of Mad Hungry and my good friend,
Lucinda Scala Quinn.
[applause]
Chef, and owner of Butterfunk Biscuit Company,
Chris Two-First-Names Scott!
[laughter]
Cookbook author and chef, Aliya Leekong.
[Lil Jon] Yeah!
Please start with the first meatloaf in front of you.
All right. Aliya, what are your thoughts?
I love Korean spices.
It's got a lot of heat, but it's really beautiful.
The meatloaf is not too overmixed,
it's perfectly cooked.
The mushrooms, while delicious, and I love a shiitake,
get lost because of how powerful this meatloaf is.
You can taste the fragrant spices
of the garlic, the ginger,
and I love the sear on it,
but the one thing about it
is that it's spicy,
and all you can taste is hot.
Anne, this is not my momma's meatloaf.
No, it's not Rose's meatloaf.
[Lucinda] But I will say that I love the crispiness.
The spice is strong,
but I love it. I'm here for it.
The only thing I'm not feeling is the mushroom side,
which is a little bit sort of soft,
but other than that, I love it.
Please try the second meatloaf.
Aliya, what do you think?
I love that sweet pomegranate molasses glaze that's on top.
And I love, like, a labneh,
or like a thickened yogurt, particularly with mint.
This meatloaf was overmixed.
It's tight. It's not as moist as I'd like it to be.
I'm definitely tasting North Africa up in here,
and you can taste all that fragrance right here.
The potatoes, to me, don't really interact
that much with the overall dish.
This dish came at me like
a meatloaf world that I could kind of understand.
I love the idea of a tangy counterpoint,
and that was a little bit too sour tangy to me.
Judges, thank you for your comments.
It's now time to cast your vote.
[Bobby] I mean, my meatloaf, it's got some heat.
Probably because...
...I've been drinking a lot of tequila today. [chuckles]
The judges have voted.
The winner is...
Bobby Flay.
[cheering]
Thanks, Eva. I'll come and see you in South Africa.
Thanks.
Thank you, Eva. Thank you, Eva!
Make some noise for Eva!
[cheering]
Man, this dish speaks volumes.
The tenderness in this meatloaf is wonderful.
Keep on cooking your story, bro.
Thank you very much.
Even after we tried your strategy
of shots, shots, shots, shots!
He still won.
[Lil Jon] He was a zombie for, like, ten minutes,
and he still won.
He pulled it together at the end.
-[Anne] Bobby Flay...[laughs] -Whatever.
My meatloaf made the judges say, "Hey..." Wait, wait. [laughs]
[cheering and laughing]