Employment Update: 1 Networking Event, 1 Interview, 3 E-mails, 1 Scheduled Phone Call
For this week’s elimination challenge, the chef’s were asked to recreate Cat Cora’s Truffled Halibut with Sweet Corn Zabaglione and Fava Bean Salad. Sharone (last challenge’s winner) selected this dish and competed against Cat Cora for a chance to go straight to the top four. While he did not put out a better dish than Cat, he made a valiant effort and received praise from the judges for his attempt.
The rest of the chefs competed against each other to recreate the best version of Cat Cora’s original Halibut dish. Jake turned out the judges’ favorite.
But Slim, Mike and Faruq completed the worst recreations of the dish and Faruq was sent home after two straight elimination challenges in the bottom three.
In order to recreate this dish, I used this recipe that I was able to find online. I followed the recipe exactly in order to get the most accurate recreation of Cat Cora’s original dish. While I was able to put out something quite tasty, getting this dish on the plate was a clusterf*ck.
First off, my grocery store didn’t have fava beans so I had to sub them out and use dried lima beans instead. They basically turned to mush when I cooked them. I literally had to dig through the finished beans to find the ones that held their shape just a little. Then, the Zabaglione did not thicken up the way it should so my Dad (who, after several beers, said he wanted to help) decided to add some flour to it and turn up the heat. This worked for a while but then the sauce broke. It still tasted delicious but it looked a mess. Everything else worked out fine though and I was somehow able to turn out a mildly respectable dish (see below).
Overall, the dish tasted great. Presentation was sloppy but the flavors were right on and I cooked the Halibut perfectly. I don’t think I would have gone home on this dish but I certainly would not have had the best either.
The (Un)employed Foodie 