Iron Chef America (Part 2)

[NulloModo]

I'm not sure when the episode was made, but could Alton Brown's recent 'Scrap Iron Chef' episode of Good Eats, with its rigged ending, possibly be a comment on how he feels about the ICA results?

[VeryApe77]

Nice idea, but that episode of Good Eats predates ICA by a couple of years.

I'm not sure when the episode was made, but could Alton Brown's recent 'Scrap Iron Chef' episode of Good Eats, with its rigged ending, possibly be a comment on how he feels about the ICA results?

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[Kevin72]

I'm not sure when the episode was made, but could Alton Brown's recent 'Scrap Iron Chef' episode of Good Eats, with its rigged ending, possibly be a comment on how he feels about the ICA results?

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No, but it's a definite nod to the ICJ episodes that I was talking about earlier where the judges tear up the Iron Chef and give him the win anyway. Subtle, but I laughed.

[RyuShihan]

in shows thats what editing does, they take a few takes of good things a few takes of bad things and edit it how they want and as a contestant you have no idea. IN ICA case they would only have the ability to cut out stuff not do double takes. This would make rigging it extreamly hard, not impossible just hard.

[ken T]

From the Food Network web site.....

July 10th ... Mario Batali v Todd English (Pizza Dough)

July 17th ... Cat Cora v Kerry Simon (Hamburger)

July 24th ... Bobby Flay v Adam Perry Lang

July 31st ... Morimoto v Aaron Sanchez

[Shalmanese]

Serious? Pizza Dough and hambugers? Well, it certainly seems as if Food Network has found their target market...

unbelievable.

[Daddy-A]

Serious? Pizza Dough and hambugers? Well, it certainly seems as if Food Network has found their target market...

unbelievable.

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No doubt! I can't wait for the Wonderbread battle, although I hear Flay actually breaks into tears when faced with Cool Whip.

And the programming gets dumber and dumber .... I need to go prepare for the apocolypse.

A.

[docsconz]

It is too bad. The show actually had potential. I watched most of this years episodes, but I think I have had enough.

Nevertheless, it might actually be fun to see what Wylie Dufresne does with some of these things. I just won't consider it in terms of competition.

[Mikeb19]

Guess I'll just have to stick to watching old ICJ reruns... This is getting rediculous.

[godito]

Serious? Pizza Dough and hambugers? Well, it certainly seems as if Food Network has found their target market...

unbelievable.

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I guess they were setting the tone when Bobby Flay beat Chef Sakai with... fish tacos.

I don't think I will be watching this one. Shame on food network, corrupting the Iron Chef franchize.

[iheartoffal]

You didn't see this coming? This is what America, sadly, has become increasingly good at: taking things from other cultures (in this case, Japan), stripping them of any redeeming qualities, and repackaging it all as what ends up being a mockery of the original.

I guess you could say the ICJ was a little tounge in cheek at times, especially with Kaga prancing around like Liberace, but it always took the food seriously.

I don't know who should be more ashamed of themselves, the networks for foisting this crap upon us, or the public for accepting it and demanding more.

</rant>

[prasantrin]

While never having seen ICA (unless I can include the original two Bobby Flay vs. Morimoto episodes), I think it's important to remember that ICJ had a huge budget. Obscene budget, really. If I remember correctly, that was one of the reasons it was cancelled. ICA can, in no way, compete with ICJ in terms of the ingredients offered just because the Food Network can, in no way, afford it. Perhaps they are doing the best with what they can afford. It doesn't mean the food isn't being taken seriously, nor does it mean good food isn't being created.

That being said, I loved ICJ and I think any similar show would pale in comparison, regardless of what foods were being featured.

[Bux]

While never having seen ICA (unless I can include the original two Bobby Flay vs. Morimoto episodes), I think it's important to remember that ICJ had a huge budget.  Obscene budget, really.  If I remember correctly, that was one of the reasons it was cancelled.  ICA can, in no way, compete with ICJ in terms of the ingredients offered just because the Food Network can, in no way, afford it.  Perhaps they are doing the best with what they can afford.  It doesn't mean the food isn't being taken seriously, nor does it mean good food isn't being created. 

. . . .

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I take it you didn't see the show in which potatoes were featured. It has nothing to do with budget, it has everything to do with not taking the food, and the talent to prepare it, seriously.

[NulloModo]

Both ground beef and pizza dough have been featured in recent eG cookoffs, to great results. Are you saying that these items are unworthy of an Iron Chef challenge?

For all the times ICJ had cool live or exhorbitantly priced ingredients, there were also times when the ingredients were very simple and or cheap. After all, sometimes it is more fun when a chef has to work with something any of us could get, makes it more educational.

[smgarsh]

good god, ICA is a joke!!!

Pizza Dough and hamburger??? WTF is that about?? What's next Kellogg's corn flakes?

prasantrin, I'm not trying to start anything but they do have money. If they can afford truffles for the mushroom battle, they can afford something better than pizza dough and hambuger.

If they had to choose simple ingredients I think flour (all types) instead of pizza dough would have been better and a whole side of beef instead of hamburger.

[bpearis]

I got to attend a battle featuring Wylie Dufresne and the ingredient seemed lame to me (I shant reveal it here but I'll say it's a boring variety of fish), the judges even commented on how boring it was. But it seems exotic compared to pizza dough and hamburgers. Of course when Wylie breaks out the xantham gum and powdered acids, the familar can become freaky.

[Bux]

The "dumbness" of the show is not related to the featured ingredient. They all seem to have the abilibty to add foie gras to the product and turn it into foam if they want.

[lizard]

DesJardins vs. Batali !

I ran into Traci DesJardins at a WCR event after her return from filming an episode last month. It seems she will go toe-to-toe with Mario Batali in an episode airing in August. While she wouldn't reveal the outcome or the ingredient, that's a battle I can't wait to see!

[stephenc]

I'd rather watch battle Pizza dough, than battle Milk, which was featured in an ICJ episode.

[godito]

I think that ICJ had great chefs that knew how to feature a particular ingredient in their preparations. I never saw the milk episode, but the shows I remember all had ingredients that shined after the chef delivered the plates to the judges. Pizza Dough? For Real? I mean you can stuff it or you can make pizza. What will be the challenge, then. Better toppings? Better garnishes? I mean, maybe the cooks will prove me wrong and be really creative, but they have little room to work with. Thumbs down to the idea.

I mean, c'mon, they're trying to americanize the show with "traditional" american food (pizza and burgers)..., but isn't the americas the home of corn, tomatoes, chiles and potatoes? Who's producing the show? Will people really rather whatch what they're offering?

[jhlurie]

The "dumbness" of the show is not related to the featured ingredient. They all seem to have the abilibty to add foie gras to the product and turn it into foam if they want.

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I agree. The ingredient means nothing. A good chef can make something ambitious from the basest most "common" ingredient.

To me the bigger concern is that the ingredients should be ones where the taste is distinctive enough to force creativity to feature it prominently in the dish. "Chicken", for example, would be a horrible ingredient (unless it was Fresh Kill).

Pizza dough actually intrigues me. I could see an interesting struggle with that. While I agree that it stretches the requirement for a distinctive taste, in trade it gives them a difficult substance to work with, where they've got to really think hard about how to not have it overwhelmed by whatever else they use it with/in/under/outside of.

Also, I note that the listing says "Hamburger" and not "Hamburgers". Ergo, it's the meat they are interested in, not the "patty". That seems a bit more open to creativity.

[Chris Cognac]

Folks might be suprised at what ends up on the plates...I for one am going to wait and see how they go....

I am taking Neal Fraser up in the helicopter on Friday, I am dying to see how his battle with Cat Cora went....

[iheartoffal]

I guess pizza dough might be ok. There's quite a few things you can do with the blank canvas that a pizza crust provides. But hamburger meat? What can you do with that besides make burgers and meatloaf? I just can't see it working in anything else without coming out tasting like some Hamburger Helper concoction, regardless of whether you dress it up with foie gras or perigord truffles. Who knows? Maybe they'll suprise us with what they come up with. I'm guessing this is only the tip of the iceberg as far as pedestrian ingredients are concerned, though. Here are some future battles:

Charlie Trotter Vs. Batali in Battle Hot Dog

Thomas Keller Vs. Morimoto in Battle Easy Mac

Rachel Rae Vs. Bobby Flay in Battle Hidden Valley Ranch

Alain Ducasse Vs. Kora in Battle Slim Jim

Edited June 22, 2005 by iheartoffal (log)

[eje]

But hamburger meat?...I just can't see it working in anything else without coming out tasting like some Hamburger Helper concoction...

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Well, as long as they have Campbell's cream of mushroom soup available, the possibilities are limitless.

I can't wait to see a deconstructed tater tot casserole. Or is tater tot casserole already a deconstructed something else?

I'd lay money on a Moussaka of some sort from Cora.

Erik

[Bux]

I guess pizza dough might be ok.  There's quite a few things you can do with the blank canvas that a pizza crust provides.  But hamburger meat?  What can you do with that besides make burgers and meatloaf?  . . . .

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At the most basic level with little or no transformation you can use it for stuffing almost anything from cabbage to mushrooms to pasta. In the hands of a talented chef the possiblities are endless. Judging from the potato show, get the right panelists and hamburger ice cream might produce a winner even if the chef's taste buds are brought into question.

You won't see chefs such as Keller, Ducasse or Trotter on this show. They have nothing to gain from the exposure and are not likely to put themselves up against a panel not guaranteed to be composed of serious food experts.