I'm Bobby Flay.
Each week, one great chef
will try to take me down in my house.
-This is my show. -Today, it is. Tomorrow, who knows?
-[exclaiming] -Trash talking.
This culinary battle is gonna 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.
It's do or die, Bobby.
[Bobby] Two people that know me well
will decide who's got the skills to beat me.
Yeah!
[Bobby] Round two, I go head to head with the winning contender.
-Let's go! -[Bobby] It's their turn to surprise me
with their signature dish.
What?
-[woman yells] -Don't try this at home.
-[all laughing] -[man] Oh, don't-- you did it, Bobby.
[Bobby] Bottom line...
You're gonna wanna... [screaming]
...everyone's out to beat me.
All right, everybody, it's time for the big show.
Are you guys ready? Let's go.
[audience cheering]
Please welcome two guests who are always red carpet ready.
Food Network's Carson Kressley and Katie Lee.
♪♪ Full speed on our way ♪
♪♪ Say no time for... ♪
Oh, who are you wearing?
This is my beat Bobby battle gear.
[Carson] Slay!
Let's go find out what Bobby is wearing.
He's on the worst dressed list.
Apparently he didn't get the memo that it was a "red carpet episode".
Yes, apparently I didn't.
Have you guys ever been on a red carpet together?
[Carson] I feel like we have.
-Yes, what was it? -I don't remember.
Oscars, Emmys...
I think it was Oscars.
Oh, I remember that.
-We weren't really at the Oscars. -I remember.
-We were Oscar-adjacent. -We were on a rooftop.
-[all laughing] -Where you could see the Oscars.
I had binoculars, we were so far away.
That is so good.
Rough couple years.
All right, any strategy tonight?
Well, we've already out-dressed you.
-[Katie chuckles] -Okay.
-Let's bring out some chefs. -Okay, let's do it.
Our first contender is the chef-owner of Wild Child.
So, we already know he's more fun than you.
-[audience laughs] -[Katie] From Saint Petersburg, Florida,
please welcome Rob Reinsmith.
[Carson] Yeah!
[upbeat music playing]
Whoo!
Our next contender is a former MMA fighter.
From Denver, Colorado, Manny Barella.
[upbeat music playing]
[all applauding]
Where's my fan?
-What's up, guys? -What's up, chef?
-[Bobby] How you guys doing? -Doing great, thank you, chef.
-What's your goal tonight? -To beat you.
What about you?
I'm just here trying to muster the hunger
you used to have 20 years ago.
-[Katie exclaims] -[Rob chuckles]
[audience exclaiming]
[chuckling]
You're very good at trash talking, obviously.
[all chuckling]
All right, I'm gonna give you a single ingredient of my choice,
and you must make that ingredient the star of your dish.
And that ingredient is...
mahi mahi.
[all exclaiming]
[audience applauding]
[Katie] Good ingredient.
I'm just gonna say, he looks happier than you do.
[both chuckle]
Okay, you need to impress Katie and Carson.
And they'll decide which one of you
goes up against me in the second round.
Twenty minutes on the clock.
Remember, to get to Bobby, you must crush this mahi.
-[bell dings] -[audience cheering]
[audience applauding]
It's the fish so nice they named it twice.
-[laughs] -Exactly.
[Katie] Bobby, I gotta imagine
you would make fish tacos in a heartbeat.
Mahi mahi is like, the original fish taco ingredient.
But also, I like a pineapple glaze.
-Oh. -I think mango chutney.
Mango chutney's a good thing
and mahi mahi is a very dense fish.
-[Bobby] You know, in terms of it's texture. -[Carson] Right.
-You overcook it, it's dry. -[Katie] Yes.
-It's really gonna come down to the cook of the mahi mahi. -[Bobby] Mmm-hmm.
My first thought is, I am making Pescado a la Veracruzana,
which is a recipe that is traditionally with white fish.
And, it's a tomato-based sauce.
I add onions, garlic and olive oil.
Once they're cooked, I add capers and olives to it
so they start releasing the flavor.
Manny, what are you making?
Pescado a la Veracruzana,
which is like, a Mexican puttanesca.
That'd be a nice drag name.
[Katie and Bobby laugh]
"Veracruzana."
[Manny] I was born and raised in Mexico.
And, I love food.
So, I decided to go to culinary school
and after graduating, I started working in fine dining restaurants,
from Italian cuisine, Mexican and steakhouse.
And then, in 2022,
I got nominated for a James Beard Award, emerging chef.
In my free time, I've always enjoyed MMA and kickboxing,
and if there's anything that I have learned,
is, if you wanna be the best, you have to go against the best.
Bobby, I'm coming for you.
Mahi mahi has a flavor that's pretty mild.
But, I really want to bring some strong, bright flavors to it,
and blackened mahi mahi tacos
is one of my favorite things on this planet.
[audience cheering]
[Katie] Sixteen minutes on the clock.
[Rob] I grab peanuts.
So, I wanna introduce some of the Southeast Asian flavors
with a mango nuoc cham,
which is a dressing from Thailand.
So, tell me what you're making.
-Blackened mahi tacos on blue corn tortillas... -[Katie] Ooh.
...with a mango nuoc cham,
-cabbage salad. -[Katie] Yum.
[Rob] I wanna season the mahi
with dried ancho and chipotle peppers.
All right, well, I'm gonna let you do your thing.
-I can't wait to try it. -[Rob] Thank you.
I was born in Clearwater, Florida,
and after high school, I was in punk and hardcore bands,
but nothing was really going anywhere.
So, I decided that I wanna go to culinary school.
After graduation, I started work under Todd English,
at this restaurant English Is Italian.
Then, I was in the opening team
at Torrisi Italian Specialties
who were awarded a Michelin Star.
In 2020, I opened Wild Child,
serving fun, innovative cuisine with tropical flavors.
I'm here today to teach my two boys that
you constantly have to challenge yourself,
especially when it's something you love.
It's time to take a ride on the wild side.
Manny, what do you got going in the pot?
Olives, capers, onion, garlic, tomatoes,
Calabrian chiles, I know Bobby like them.
[Katie] Now, how do you feel about cooking this sauce in time?
That's why I started with the sauce,
-so all the flavors, uh... -[Katie] Mmm-hmm.
-[Manny] ...get together. -All right, 13 minutes on the clock.
So, let's get it popping.
Manny is making a veracruzana sauce.
He's using Calabrian chiles,
-to give a nod to the Flay. -[Bobby] There you go.
-You know, I invented the Calabrian chile. -[Katie] I know.
You go to Calabria and they're like,
-"Bobby Flay!" -"Bobby, welcome home."
[Katie] So, Rob is going the taco route
and he's using blackening spices,
it sounds great.
[Rob] Nuoc cham is fish sauce,
sugar, lime juice,
and Thai chilis.
I'm putting my spin to it, adding some fresh mangoes
and serrano chilis.
Next, I grab a cast iron pan
so I can get that nice, even sear on my fish.
I have my sauce going, now, I have to work on the fish.
I just season it with salt, pepper.
I put it inside the oven to get heat coming from both sides.
-Oh, gosh, okay. -[audience applauding]
Ten minutes, you guys.
Hi, Manny.
-[Manny] Hello. -Let's talk MMA fighting.
-Anything with two guys in a cage is kinda... -[Manny laughs]
Sounds good to me.
How long did you do that?
I was just on and off, amateur.
-Right, right, me too. -[Manny] Yeah.
Oh, look at that.
Those look gorgeous.
-Okay, well, carry on. -[Manny] Thank you.
I decide to put a little butter
just so I can start basting the fish
because everything tastes better with butter.
-Hi, Rob. I love your shirt. -Oh, thank you.
[Carson] So, this is some kind of mango sauce?
It is fish sauce, mango, sugar, lime juice and some serrano chilis.
-[Carson] On a corn tortilla? -[Rob] Yeah, blue corn tortilla.
-One of my favorite things. -Okay, beautiful.
Seven minutes, everybody.
[audience applauding]
[Carson] Rob's filets looks really nice and like, brown.
Although, Manny's look very good, too.
Normally, I wouldn't love the sauce.
But, I have to say, I'm worried
-that Rob's looks a little overly complicated. -Mmm-hmm.
So, I'm tasting the sauce, and I put a little bit more Calabrian chiles,
just so it has some kick to it.
And I want to add parsley to brighten the flavors.
[Bobby] Just under three minutes, guys.
[Rob] I know I need to add texture,
so, I go with cabbage,
and I dressed it with mango nuoc cham.
[Carson] What's that white sauce?
Coconut crema.
[Rob] Coconut milk is gonna tie in
the Southeast Asian flavors
and the crema is gonna mellow it out.
Okay, time to build.
I put my fish in the center,
I put the sauce on the fish,
finish it with olive oil and a parsley leaf.
Thirty seconds.
[Rob] I have my toasted tortillas in the plate
with cabbage dressed in my mango nuoc cham.
The mahi mahi on top of that,
coconut crema and some avocado
to give some more richness.
[all] Ten, nine,
-eight, seven, six... -[Rob] Garnish with cilantro and peanuts.
-...five, four, three, two, one. -[bell dings]
[all cheering]
[Manny] I'm looking at my plate,
and I'm just thinking, "That is sexy."
Manny's dish looks amazing.
But, I'm super proud of what I put on the plate.
So, keeping my fingers crossed.
-[Bobby] Good job, chef. -Thank you.
-Chef, we did it. -Yeah, thanks, chef.
Chefs, Carson and I are on a mission to get Bobby beat.
Are both of you up to it?
-Yup. -100%.
So, Rob, tell us what you made.
Chile rubbed mahi mahi tacos
with mango nuoc cham dressed cabbage,
coconut crema and peanuts.
-[Carson] Mmm. -The mahi is nice and juicy,
I like having the crunch of the cabbage.
But, I'm getting a lot of spice.
I didn't mind it, though,
because you do balance it so well
with the coconut crema and the avocado.
But, the peanuts, they probably should've been chopped finer.
-Thank you. -Chef Manny, tell us what you made.
I made a mahi mahi with uh, my version of uh, veracruzana sauce.
Your mahi mahi is perfect.
You got that nice sear on the outside
and it's buttery, delicious, amazing.
-Thank you. -[Katie] It's nicely seasoned.
The sauce has really great flavors.
I think it's slightly undercooked, though.
[Carson] But, it's still really nice and bright
and those pieces of olive and capers
-make for a really, really nice plate. -Thank you.
I think I did enough to move to round two,
because the sauce is the one thing they have to criticize.
Hey, I'll take it.
And the chef going forward is...
chef Rob.
-[all applauding] -Thanks for being here.
Thank you, Rob.
Sucks to lose, but this whole experience
will be on the highlight reel of my career.
So Rob, you had so many different flavors going on
that all worked so well together.
-You gonna do it for us? -Oh, I got it.
I'm comin' for ya.
[audience cheering]
♪♪ Put yo' bets on me bet I win it ♪
♪♪ Fist in the air like I did, yeah ♪
♪♪ Flow like it nobody's business ♪
[Bobby] All right, Rob, congratulations.
-How do you feel? -Ready to attack.
Oh, you're ready to attack? All right, cool.
What will you be cooking tonight?
What's your signature dish?
My signature dish is...
♪♪ Let's go see, bro, R.I.P ♪
Corn empanadas.
-[all gasp] -Ohh!
[audience applauding]
Corn empanadas?
-That's very specific. -[laughs]
Bobby has competed with empanadas
on a few occasions and he has lost.
[Carson] I think a win is
-empa-nada-gonna-happen for Bobby today. -Oh snap!
[Carson] Forty-five minutes on the clock.
And your time starts now.
[all cheering]
Corn empanadas.
Basically, a hand-held pie,
made of a pastry and filled with corn,
-or whatever else the chef wants to add. -Okay.
-You've also gotta have that crispy, crunchy, flaky crust. -[Carson] Hmm.
You can bake it or fry it.
-But fried is always better, right? -It's crunchier.
Rob, why did you choose this as your signature dish?
Uh, my honeymoon, me and my wife, we went to Oaxaca
and we were eating street corn all over the place.
It was like, one of my favorite memories.
-So, is it gonna have, like, a street corn kind of flavor? -[Rob] Yeah.
So, it's like a street corn empanada.
I'm pretty sure that on one of my honeymoons,
I was in Oaxaca.
[all laughing]
-Wow, Bobby. -I'm just playing the percentages.
[Rob] My signature dish is corn empanadas
with chile and lime crema, pickled fresno chiles,
queso chihuahua and Manchego cheese.
My esquites filling is gonna be composed of charred corn
and corn that's sweated in onion, garlic, poblano peppers,
butter and thyme, just to give it that herbaceous back note.
[Katie] Bobby, what is it about empanadas
that trip you up all the time?
-I don't remember. -He's at that age.
That memory's going.
So, to not lose a fourth time, I'm gonna try a different dough.
I think that's the key.
I'm gonna do a corn tortilla dough.
So, it's masa harina, some hot water,
I'm gonna put a little cumin in there as well.
So, it has a little bit more flavor.
So, this is a tricky dish to go up against Bobby with.
Even though he has a history of losing empanadas,
-this flavor profile is right in his wheelhouse. -Right.
I'm making corn empanadas with a corn and goat cheese filling,
a corn and smoked chile sauce,
and a corn and piquillo pepper relish.
[Katie] Do I see grenadine?
Bobby, what are you doing with that?
Making a cocktail.
-You're hoping to bribe the judges? -[Bobby chuckles]
[Bobby] I'm gonna add some pickled shallots.
It gives a little crunch, gives a little sweetness and a little tartness.
So I have, uh, grenadine and some red wine vinegar.
Next on my list, I gotta make a simple dough,
and it's masa harina, water and salt.
I'm using a corn flour because I wanna reintroduce that corn flavor.
-All right, coming up on 38 minutes, chefs. -All right.
[Carson] I'm right here, Rob, if you need me.
So, you're gonna just grill the corn?
[Rob] So, I grill half the corn.
-Mmm-hmm. -And then the other half I sweat
in lots of butter, onion, garlic, poblano peppers.
Oh, and here's the queso chihuahua.
Just like the dog.
-[Rob chuckles] Exactly. -[Carson] Katie knows more about cooking than I do,
but I'm very good at distracting Bobby.
-Keep it up. -Hi, Bobby.
-[Bobby] Hello. -What's the plan with your empanadas?
So, I have a cumin and corn masa dough
that I'm going to stamp back on a tortilla press
-over there. -Okay. We're only cumin.
[Bobby] Carson is one of the funniest people ever.
But, I have to keep reminding myself,
I've lost three times in empanadas,
so, there's a good chance I could lose again.
-[Carson] And you're gonna roll that out? -[Bobby] Yes.
Oh, I have a rolling pin, hold on.
I brought my own.
-Katie, do you have my rolling pin? -I sure do.
-Thank you so much. -[audience cheering]
That is gorgeous.
-You're getting very sleepy. -[Bobby laughing]
You would like to sign over all of your personal assets.
I'm gonna just leave that right there.
-Be careful. -[chuckling]
[Katie] Chefs, under 29 minutes.
[Carson] Bobby's making his empanada dough
-with cumin in it. -[Katie] Mmm.
That'll go so nicely with the sweetness of the corn.
-Is this gonna be your redemption empanada? -Exactly.
Bobby, are you making a sauce? I can't remember.
-[Bobby] Making a corn and smoked chile sauce. -Ohh.
[Bobby] It's onions and garlic, fresh corn,
a little bit of white wine, some water.
Then I add some creme fraiche, some chipotles, and blend it.
Rob has so many peppers,
and he has some street corn that he's grilled.
Corn empanadas showcase all the flavor profiles
from esquites.
It's got the heat, it's got the crunch,
it's got the tang and salt.
So, I add cumin, coriander seed and little bit of turmeric
and then Mexican oregano.
It has very floral notes.
Add it to the food processor.
Then, I take all the kernels off the charred corn
and I add my queso chihuahua to it
because it is the perfect melting cheese.
[Carson] Coming up on 20 minutes.
-Let's hear it for Rob, everybody. -[audience applauding]
Yeah!
-The heat from Saint Pete. -I love that.
Wow, look at all these different chiles going on here.
-Bobby, he's using some of your flavors here. -I like it. Sounds delicious.
[Rob] Now that I got the filling in a good place,
I wanna add a little acidic punch to this.
So, I'm gonna garnish it with fresno chiles.
I've got rice wine vinegar, sugar, water and salt.
-You're frying these empanadas I'm guessing. Right? -Correct.
Yeah, that'll be really good to have that acid to cut through the fat.
-Feel good? -Feeling good.
Great. How's it going, Bobby?
I wanna taste the corn.
-[Bobby] Is it good? -[Katie] It tastes like sweet corn.
But, where's everything else?
I'm gonna put goat cheese, so here's-
-What am I doing? -Bobby Flay's using goat cheese, shocker.
-Yeah. -[audience chuckling]
[Katie] Oh, you got the wine too?
Oh, this is what I like, sauvignon blanc.
Would you bring a little over here?
[audience laughing]
[Katie] Sixteen minutes on the clock.
So, the filling is fresh corn, goat cheese,
some Monterey Jack, fresh basil, salt and pepper.
[Katie] Corn and basil--
-Is a good combo, summertime. -Plays nicely together, mmm-hmm.
I'm also making a corn relish with scallions, lime,
olive oil and some piquillo peppers.
Bobby's seems a lot simpler.
Although it looks like maybe he's dressing things up now.
-But, Rob's got a lot going on on his side. -[Carson] Mmm-hmm.
[Rob] It's time jump on the chile-lime crema.
I'm gonna pulse guajillo and ancho chiles,
fold it into sour cream with lime juice and zest.
And it's gonna add a nice, bright, acidic pop.
And then I give the dough a quick press
and I start filling.
-Seven minutes, everybody. -[audience cheering]
-Both of the tortilla pressers are out. -Pressers.
[Katie] They can get a uniform shape
-on each empanada. -[Carson] Right.
Rob, everything looks like it's going really well, right?
So far, so good.
[Bobby] So now, I fill one side of it,
flip the tortilla over,
and then I seal it with the edge of a fork
and then put it in a fryer.
-You having a little tantrum, Bobby? -Yes.
So, I'm also adding avocado relish
because avocado, corn, goat cheese, all goes together.
It has some cilantro, scallions,
and a little bit of lime juice.
[Katie] Three minutes.
[Rob] As soon as the empanadas come out of the fryer,
I add a little smoked paprika
to bring out a little more of a layer of smokiness to it.
I really would've liked to have seen
Rob get some more color on those.
I start swishing my crema on to the plate,
and then add my Manchego cheese,
just to give it a little bit of more hit when you first bite into it.
Thirty seconds.
So, to plate the dish up, I have some corn sauce,
some of the corn and piquillo pepper relish.
I put the empanada on top,
little avocado relish on the side
and I finish it with some pickled shallots.
[all] Ten, nine, eight, seven...
[Rob] I garnish with my pickled fresnos and a lime wedge.
[all] Three, two, one.
[all applauding]
[Rob] Looking at my plate,
my empanadas didn't get as golden brown as I'd like them to.
I'm just hoping that my flavors shine through.
[both] Thank you, chef.
There you go. Beautiful.
I have a chance of winning the empanada
just because I think all the flavors are good
and I like my dough better than the last dough.
But, maybe, there's too much corn?
-Cheers to beating Bobby Flay. -Yes.
[Carson] Tonight's challenge was corn empanadas
and now it's time to meet our judges.
First up, the chef-owner of Claro,
T.J. Steele.
Cookbook author and founder of Mad Hungry,
Lucinda Scala Quinn.
And co-owner of La Fonda NYC,
James Gonzalez.
[all applauding]
Judges, please start with the first corn empanadas in front of you.
[Lucinda] Love this empanada.
The filling is delicious.
I love that I got that masa flavor on the outside
and then when I bit in, there was this double whammy of corn.
But, I wanted it to be a little more crispy
and I thought the spice was possibly a little bit too much,
but then, when I got going, I was there for it.
Whenever you eat an empanada,
you want it to be filled with something that you're gonna enjoy.
Everything that's going on here,
has like, a good amount of flavor in there
and the sauce is also really good.
But, there's a bit of a kick
that's probably just a little too spicy for me,
but then again, I'm not really a spicy person.
I did like the sauce and that you could add the lime to it
to kinda get that esquites vibe to it,
and I did like the filling, I didn't think it was too wet.
But, one thing I found a little odd was,
for an empanada to put a cheese
that can kinda melt on top or add some more moisture to it
and maybe take away from the crispiness.
That's something that maybe I would not have done.
All right, judges, we're gonna have you switch plates.
Love the masa that you used.
Flavorful, and the presentation is great.
The only thing I really wasn't a fan of was the filling.
The corn relish, it just had more flavor to it,
there was a lot more pow.
Should've probably been the filling in the inside
and then it would've changed my whole perspective on it.
The crispiness of the masa was enjoyable.
That texture was so nice as a contrast to the corn relish.
But then, when I got to the goat cheese and basil,
it took me somewhere else, so I felt a little overwhelmed.
Yeah, you could definitely taste the goat cheese
and it was a predominant flavor in it.
But, the texture of the goat cheese
and the way that it was with the corn kind of felt misplaced for me.
Everything else was very cohesive
and goat cheese is kinda like, meh, so...
That-- That's me.
All right, thank you for your corn-sized comments.
And now, it's time to vote.
I really wish I'd nailed the dough a little bit better.
But, all the judges complimented the filling
and that's gonna be the secret to winning.
By unanimous decision, the winner is...
chef Rob.
-Yes! -[audience cheering]
-Good job. Thank you. -Thank you.
[cheering]
I feel fantastic.
This experience was amazing and I will never forget this day.
[audience chanting] Beat Bobby Flay! Beat Bobby Flay!
He's already been beaten.
[all laughing]
-We're winners too. Ow! -Yes!
-[laughing] -That really hurt.
Today felt so good
'cause finally we could corn-gratulate someone other than Bobby.
I'm Rob Reinsmith and I just beat Bobby Flay.
[audience cheering]