Ep 2. Sunny Side Apps

As the second episode of Chopped's eleventh season, Sunny Side Apps sees four cooks enter the show's kitchen with the anticipation of winning the $10,000 prize and the coveted title of Chopped Champion. Each chef introduces themselves and shares their culinary vision with judges Scott Conant, Geoffrey Zakarian, and Amanda Freitag before taking their place behind their workstation.

Every chef has their unique strategy when it comes to the basket ingredients they are given. In the Appetizer round, the contestants have to use unique combinations of ingredients that include chorizo, sunny-side-up eggs, garlic scapes, and grapefruit soda. They have only twenty minutes of cook time and must showcase their ability to think quickly and creatively, especially with an ingredient like garlic scapes that nobody has used before.

The preparation time flies by and before they know it, twenty minutes have passed, and the appetizers are plated. One chef impresses the judges with a balanced plate that highlights the chorizo and eggs perfectly, while another falls short of their vision due to overcooked eggs.

Onto the Entree round, and the basket ingredients are daunting as ever. The chefs must use pattypan squash, bone-in ribeye, smoked gouda, and guava paste to create their main dish. The time limit in the Entree round is thirty minutes, and the chefs now have to prepare a dish that satisfies the judges' hunger and taste buds while providing a sense of elegance and balance on the plate.

As the clock ticks, the chefs race around the kitchen to make everything come together while keeping an eye on their competitor's progress. One chef's steak is overcooked, leading to disappointment in the final dish, while another takes a chance with the guava paste that pays off with a harmonious combination of flavors.

The excitement of the show goes up a notch as the chefs enter their final challenge, the Dessert round. The basket this time consists of salted caramel sauce, jalapeno poppers, mini bottles of champagne, and maraschino cherries. Using their creativity and finesse, they have twenty minutes to prepare a stunning dessert that integrates these wacky ingredients and infuses them with their unique take.

One chef's sugar work is impressive and the presentation is stunning, while another's incorporation of the salted caramel sauce is perfect. The judges taste one delicious dessert after another before deciding whose creation is in keeping with the theme of the show and meets the criteria of taste, texture, and presentation.

Going through the ups and downs of the show, the judges confer on the final scores before delivering their verdicts. Watching the chefs get creative with ingredients that seem incompatible is an exciting, nail-biting, edge-of-the-seat experience, making the show a hit with audiences of all ages. The winner walks away with a sense of accomplishment, the $10,000 prize money, and the recognition of being a Chopped Champion!