Ep 2. Prepping for Success

As the contestants gear up for another round of challenges, Chef Anne Burrell and Chef Tyler Florence task them with a crucial skill: prepping. In order to succeed in the kitchen, the cooks must learn how to properly slice, dice, and chop a variety of vegetables. However, the chefs quickly realize that some of the contestants are struggling with even the most basic techniques.

To help the cooks improve, Chef Anne and Chef Tyler demonstrate proper knife skills and offer individualized advice. But despite their efforts, some contestants continue to struggle. One cook in particular becomes flustered when tasked with chopping an onion, resulting in a pile of uneven chunks and a few tears.

As the prepping challenge comes to a close, the chefs evaluate each cook's progress and choose two team captains for the next challenge. The captains are tasked with leading their teams in creating a dish using only the ingredients provided. However, the catch is that the ingredients are not labeled, so the cooks must rely on their own knowledge and intuition to determine what they are working with.

The teams quickly get to work, but several cooks struggle with identifying ingredients and communicating with their teammates. Tensions rise as the clock ticks down, and the chefs must intervene to prevent any major mishaps.

At the end of the challenge, Chef Anne and Chef Tyler taste each dish and evaluate the teams based on creativity, presentation, and overall taste. The losing team faces a pressure test, where they must recreate a dish prepared by the chefs. However, the pressure proves to be too much for one contestant, who has a complete meltdown and struggles to keep up.

In the end, one cook is sent home while the rest remain in the competition and continue to push themselves to become better cooks.