01x01 - Asian Eats

[bunniefuu]

Do luxury ingredients
always make the best dishes,

or can humble items be transformed
into a recipe for success?

This is Cook at all Costs.

I need something. I need something.

With $25,000 in their bank,

three home cooks will have
to bid on all their ingredients…

I'm ready.

…in a high-stakes auction-packed cook-off.

-Five thousand dollars!
Sold!

The home cooks can spend big
for the best ingredients,

save their money for the basics,
or gamble on a surprise.

Chicken hearts.

In the end, the winner

will go home
with all the cash left in their bank.

Oh, man!

The back pantry is home

to the hottest names
in today's culinary world.

Surprise!

These celebrity chefs
will prepare the mystery boxes,

ingredient temptations,
and judge the dishes.

You gotta make Mama happy.

All right, Chef. Send out those boxes.

It's the ultimate cooking competition
where skill meets strategy.

Let me get my buzzer fingers ready.

This is Cook at all Costs.

All right, home chefs! Are y'all ready?

-Whoo!
-Do it, let's do it.

Nick, Vivian, Ryan,
welcome to Cook at all Costs.

Let's go.

In this round, you'll be creating a dish

in any style that you choose
using one of three ingredient boxes.

Those boxes, along with everything else
you'll be cooking with,

will be coming into the kitchen
along the line,

and it leads to the back pantry
and our guest chef and judge.

She burst onto the scene
at only 28 years old.

The proud owner of Mokbar
and Ms. Yoo c*ck bar in New York City,

Chef Esther Choi.

Whoo!

Esther Choi
is definitely an inspiration.

She's a fellow Korean American,
and she's doing great things.

I'm so excited
to be cooking for her today.

Right now,
Chef Choi is preparing ingredients

for three very different boxes.

Chef Choi, please send out those boxes.

You'll start
by using your bank of 25k

to blindly bid on
these three ingredient boxes.

The cook with the highest bid
gets the Spend Box,

which has high-quality ingredients
to help you create a high-quality dish.

The lowest bid gets the Save Box,

which is made up of basic grocery items.

So, you're gonna have
to get creative with it.

And the cook caught
in the middle gets the Surprise Box,

which contains unique ingredients that'll
really put your skills to the test.

But in the end, only one of you will win

and walk away with whatever cash
you have left in your bank.

Okay. You'll have to enter
a minimum bid of $2,500,

and you can lock in your bids now.

My bidding strategy is to bid low

because I feel more comfortable
with the Save Box.

I'm not like a lobster/caviar guy.
I have two little kids.

I have daycare costs. Come on. I mean,
we're not doing that kind of thing.

I really want the Spend Box

because I wanna make a splash
in the first round.

So money is no object.

Okay, Ryan, let's take a look at your bid.

$3,500. Someone's trying to spend.

All right, Nick. $2,510.

$10 over the minimum.
I see where you're going.

And Vivian. $2,501.

Oh! Okay.

That means Ryan, you bought the Spend Box,

and your bank
has been adjusted accordingly.

Vivian, you bought the Save Box.

-And Nick, I hope you like surprises.
-We'll find out.

Home cooks, you have
45 minutes to make your dish,

but be ready,
'cause you never know what ingredients

Chef Choi might be sending down the line

that you will have
the opportunity to bid on.

Nick, Vivian, Ryan,
are you ready to cook at all costs?

-Ready.
-Ready.

Oh, yeah.

Well, good, 'cause your time starts now!

Oh, rib eye, Taleggio. Okay.

I am pretty excited
that I got the Spend Box.

Cabernet Sauvignon. Okay.

Because I have a dry-aged rib eye steak,
which is a luxury cut of beef,

Taleggio cheese, one of
my favorite Italian cheeses,

and kale,
which I literally cook every day.

I spent $3,500 on this Spend Box.

And honestly, that's probably what I'd
spend in New York for that steak anyways.

Cabbage, smoked Gouda, maybe cilantro,
chili powder, and ground beef.

When I open the Save Box,

I see ground beef,
smoked Gouda cheese, some cabbage.

I think that I can take
these humble ingredients

and transform it into a delicious dish.

Um, burgers.

At first, my mind goes
straight to a hamburger,

but then I quickly realize,
"Oh, I don't have a bun."

Um…

What am I going to cook?

Oh, Vermouth! Good.
It's not a c*ck-making show.

In my Surprise Box, there is
a crazy assortment of ingredients.

Vermouth, rapini, blue cheese, and…

Oh, God.

…a whole beef heart.

I'm just staring at this massive thing.

Okay.

Ooh!

Okay, the proteins are revealed.

We've got some dry-aged rib eye
in the Spend Box,

ground beef in the Save Box,

and the protein for Surprise, beef heart.

-What am I doing with this, Jordan?
-You got a big heart.

Big heart, whoo! Okay.

I'm a dad. I am constantly being judged
for my cooking.

Every meal, there is some complaint
about what Dad has done incorrectly,

so I can definitely cook on the fly,

on the ground, in the water,
wherever you want me to cook.

Oh, what to do with this?

Oh, God.

Actually, you know what?
Where'd that vermouth go?

I'm just gonna try this.

I realize that I can marinate
my beef heart with vermouth

and then grill it, basically.

And I can make rapini
and blue cheese fritters.

Okay, I like it.

My steak's seasoned.

I know what I'm gonna do with the steak.
I don't wanna throw it on the grill,

because I want
a nice brown crust on my rib eye.

I want some sort of Taleggio steak sauce
and then a sautéed kale.

I was a semi-professional rugby player
for years.

Competition is something
I've been doing my entire life.

I'm hoping to show Chef Choi that I know
how to cook a luxury cut of beef.

Saying I'm a Michelin-star cook
is probably being a little too immodest,

but I would describe myself
as having Michelin-star talent.

I cook these all the time.

-Hey, hey.
-Yo!

What are you working on?
Some upgrades? What do you have here?

Filet mignon,
which I am tying bacon to it.

So you get bacon, you get the fillet.

-Yeah.
-It's a nice upgrade.

Which box do you think
the filet mignon would help the most?

So I feel like the Surprise Box
with the beef heart.

You know, as a home cook, you might
not be used to cooking beef heart,

and if you don't cook it right,
it could be very… bad.

-Yeah. Just terrible, chewy, mealy…
-Yeah, yeah.

-Gamey.
-…gamey.

So the filet, obviously,

beautiful piece of meat,
and really forgiving.

-Hard to mess up.
-Yeah, true.

What do you think is in the Spend Box
that makes it worth the big bucks?

So the Spend Box
has so many nice ingredients.

Obviously the dry-aged rib eye.
You have the Taleggio,

which goes really nice
with the dry-aged rib eye.

It has like sure winners
in that box, right?

-I agree.
-Mm-hmm.

I know you got a few
other upgrades up your sleeve.

When these upgrades are ready,
send them out.

Okay, let's do it.

I'm very competitive.
I've run seven marathons.

I was in a marching band in college,

where you had to compete
for a spot on the field every single week,

and I came here to win.

So I'm gonna give 150%
to this competition.

I am going to make meatballs
stuffed with the Gouda cheese.

A burger's out of the question,
so my next thought is a meatball.

I'm making smoked Gouda-stuffed
fried meatballs with a tangy slaw.

But the biggest challenge with my Save Box
is that I'm missing a starch.

Looks like it's time
for your first live auction.

My favorite part.

My strategy for this auction
is to bid on ingredients that I need,

but I'm also gonna bid on ingredients
that the other contestants need

just to drive up the price a little bit.

Your first item up
for bid is… yellow potatoes.

Meat and potatoes, perfect pair.
I need to get those.

The opening bid is $500.

-And the auction starts now.

We got $500 going to Vivian.

-Do I hear $600?

-Do I have $700?

-Do I have $800?

-Do I have $1,000?

$1,000 going once, going twice…

-Sold! Sold to Vivian.

$1,000 for potatoes?

All right, the next upgrade is…

heavy cream for $800.

This could really add
some richness to your dish.

Oh my God. I actually could use cream,
like, right now.

I could make a sauce out of it,
which would be unbelievable.

I really need
a liquid dairy component

to pull my kale together.

I'm gonna pay
whatever I need to pay for it.

-$800 for heavy cream.
-I'll take it!

Oh, there it is! $800 for heavy cream!

-Do I have $1,000?

Oh, $1,000! Ryan wants the cream.

-I love it!
-He's just trying to mess with me.

$1,000 for heavy cream
going once, going twice…

Sold for $1,000 to Ryan

for 16 ounces of heavy cream.

Congratulations. Wow.

My goal is to leave the show
with as much money as possible.

So, fine, take it, dude.

-Enjoy that cream, sir. Enjoy that cream.

You know what? I wanna have some fun.

So up next I'm not gonna tell you
what it is. It's a blind bid.

-Let's just start the bidding at $700.

-There you go!

Vivian wants to know what it is.
Do I have $900?

-Yeah, 900.
-$900 from Nick?

-Do I have $1,100?

Oh, there it is! $1,100 from Vivian.
Let's go!

$1,100 going once, going twice…

Sold to Vivian! $1,100. What did you buy?

-Onion jam.
-Love it.

-$1,100 for onion jam.

At this point during my cook, I feel
there's something sweet missing,

so I can make this work.

All right. Our final upgrade
is bacon-wrapped filet mignon.

Wow.

If only I had the heart to buy that.

$1,500 for filet mignon.

That is a wonderful cut of meat.
But you know what?

I'm just gonna stick with this beef heart.

Confidence. I guess no one wants
Chef Esther's bacon-wrapped filet mignon.

-Nick?
-Yeah?

You may have a heart there,

but you got some big other things
for not getting the filet mignons.

-Well, I'm just going with it.
-Trust your skills.

Yeah.

I feel like if I nail the heart,

and the fritter is okay,
then it can work and save my money.

Home cooks,
you have 20 minutes left.

Ryan, what're you doing
with that heavy cream?

Creamed kale, my friend.

Hence why I took-- 1,000 bucks on cream.

This cream is the final component
that's really gonna tie my dish together.

I'm gonna do some creamed kale,
finish it with Taleggio.

I'm going to serve my steak
over a bed of creamed kale.

I think this is an absolutely
perfect addition to the plate.

Ooh, I like it.

My mom and my grandma
are my two cooking influences,

and my mom taught me
not to waste anything,

and make something
out of whatever you have in your fridge.

So I'm gonna use this onion jam
to put in my coleslaw.

This is gonna be worth every penny.

-Vivian.
-Hello.

So I noticed that you were intentional
with getting the Save Box.

I wanted simple ingredients,
and I trust my abilities to elevate them.

-Okay, I love that.
-Yep.

What're you gonna do
with the onion jam and the potatoes?

Because that's things
you decided to spend on.

I am going to be making

a Gouda-stuffed fried meatball--

-Ooh!
-…with coleslaw.

And then I've put the onion jam
as part of the dressing.

Oh, nice.

I'm using the potato
to make a potato purée.

Okay. And what do you think
your biggest challenge is right now?

My biggest challenge is time.

-Good luck.
-Thank you.

You have five minutes left, cooks!

I think this dish
is pretty much 100% risk.

I didn't win anything in the auction.
I got a whole beef heart in my box,

but I mean, it's delicious.

That tastes like a great steak.

You overcook rib eye, you're done.
It's getting a little high actually.

If I don't cook this steak perfectly,
I'm going to lose.

All right, moment of truth.

Because I have the best ingredients,
so I absolutely have to nail the rib eye.

Remember, home cooks, you need
to place your dishes on the line

then hit your buzzer before time runs out.

I'm really racing against the clock,
but I'm a marathon runner,

and my training prepared me
for this moment.

I need to stay focused, calm,
and put out a good dish.

We got ten seconds.

-Eight, seven…

-…six, five, four…

-…three, two…

One. Whoo!

Good job, home cooks! Good job. Wow.

And now we're sending
these plates back to Chef Choi.

Impressing Chef Choi matters to me
because she's a professional,

and she's very good at her craft.

I feel I did the ingredients
in the Spend Box justice,

but we'll see and let the judge decide.

-Esther! What's up, Chef?
-Hi, Jordan.

-How are you?
-I'm hungry.

-You're hungry?
-Yeah.

All right, Chef, so first up,

we have a dry-aged rib eye steak

with creamed kale,

sautéed peppers,

topped with an arugula salad.

Nice rib eye.

I'd say the cook on the steak
should be a little bit better.

I have some pieces
that are very overcooked.

The rib eye is the star.
It should be cooked perfectly.

The creamed kale, I like.

There was Taleggio,

and it has that creaminess
that works really well with the steak.

So I thought the heavy cream
was a really great buy.

It really brought this dish to life.
But this is a Spend Box.

There are so many great ingredients
to work with,

and it just kind of seems
like a mediocre dish.

-All right. Chef Choi, for the next one.
-Okay.

All right.

So, here you have
smoked Gouda-stuffed meatballs

with a potato purée and a cabbage slaw.

I love the idea of stuffing
the meatballs with the cheese,

and of course, potatoes and a nice slaw.

I like the idea behind the dish.

Unfortunately, it was lacking in flavor.

For me, I'm always looking
for balance in a dish.

The acid was lacking,
a little bit more salt, and also texture.

So this cook purchased
the potatoes and the onion jam.

-And the onion jam?
-Yeah.

Do you detect onion jam anywhere?

Perhaps the cook needed
to use a little bit more of it.

It's a Save Box, right?

So I really wanna see
the ingredients transform.

Ground beef doesn't have to be boring.

All right, Chef.
So I'll take that one away.

And now for this one,

we have vermouth-marinated
and grilled beef heart,

with blue cheese fritters
and a rapini stir-fry.

I'm very happy with this.

-Really?
-Yes, the cook on the beef heart, great.

And it really soaked in
a lot of that flavor from the marinade.

The greens, delicious,
and the fritters, mmm, nice touch.

And also good use of the cheese.

-But I would've liked a nice sauce on it.
-Yep.

This cook tried to buy the heavy cream.

You think that would that have helped
take this over the edge?

Oh! The beef heart
with a nice creamy sauce

would have been super nice in this.

So this cook didn't go
for the filet mignon,

but, you know,
this really worked out well.

There's some hits and some misses,

but I'm overall impressed
by the home cooks.

-Do we have a winner?
-We do.

Home cooks, it's result time.

The home cook
with the best out-of-the-box dish is…

-Nick.

-Whoo-hoo!

Well done.

It feels good to get a W,

and I still got
a lot of cash on the board,

and if I win, hey,
that's more money to take home.

Now it's time for your final challenge,
inspired by our guest chef, Esther Choi.

Because Chef Choi owns some of the finest
Korean-American restaurants in New York,

she's prepping ingredients
to help you make your tastiest Asian eats.

Chef Choi, send out those boxes.

Home cooks, in this round,
the boxes have set prices.

The Spend Box is gonna run you $8,000.

The Save Box will cost you $4,000,

while the price
of the Surprise Box is $6,000.

Nick, since you won the first round,
you've won a special advantage,

which gives you the power
to assign each box…

-…price tags included.

-Wow.

Okay, Nick, which box
would you like to buy?

Um…

I'm gonna choose the Save Box.

I tend to be a cheap cook.

I like to start
with very basic ingredients

and then try to elevate them.
Just keep it really simple.

I think that makes for good food.

Nick, you bought the Save Box.
That will cost you $4,000.

Who would you like
to assign the Spend Box to?

Oh…

My strategy
is basically a coin flip.

I got the box I wanted. I could care less
what they are doing in their world.

I'm gonna give, uh, Vivian the Spend.

Vivian, that'll cost you $8,000.

Ryan, that means you get
the Surprise Box at a cost of $6,000.

I don't really care which box I get
because improvising in the kitchen

is something
that I'm very comfortable with.

The home cook
with the best Asian-inspired dish

will walk away
with all the cash left in their bank.

I'm very comfortable
with Korean flavors,

and it's the final round that matters,
and we're cooking Asian food.

There's 45 minutes on the clock.

It's now time to cook at all costs!

Bitter melon.

I open my Surprise Box,

and there's nothing in this box
I'm really unfamiliar with.

Chinese-style sausage, coconut shrimp.

The frozen coconut shrimp
are throwing me a little bit.

I'm not sure
what I'm going to do with them,

but I'm still fairly confident

that I'll be able to make
a great dish out of what's in the box.

Ooh, bok choy.

The Spend Box is stacked
with awesome ingredients.

A pork loin.

Pork loin, tiger shrimp…

Ginger, garlic.

But they're not something
that I'm used to cooking with.

It's curated towards
Chinese or Thai cuisine.

I am a little stumped.

I was really hoping to see some gochujang,
some Korean flavors in there.

I have no idea what I'm making,

but I'm just going to start
by searing off the pork loin.

Canned ham. Okay, gotcha.

When I open the Save Box, the first thing
that sticks out is canned ham.

So I don't know.

I'll figure it out.

I'm definitely up
for thinking outside the box.

Edamame, great.

I love just experimenting
with what's in front of me.

I'm always trying to come up
with fun stuff for my kids to eat.

A whole ring of cooked shrimp.

But I have a shrimp ring.

How do you open this silly thing?

I don't know what I'm doing right now.
Ah, I just… I don't know.

Okay, so it's shrimp three ways.

The party favorite in the Save Box
with a whole shrimp ring,

tiger shrimp in the Spend Box,

and frozen coconut shrimp
in the Surprise Box.

I like it.

There's a dish that's coming to my head
called pakbet,

which is a Filipino braised vegetable dish
with shrimp.

I have no other option
because the ingredients

are just pushing me in that way,

so I'm gonna see if I can make it work.

I'm missing the South Korean flavors
I'm used to cooking with,

so I just hope that something else
that I can use comes down the line.

Home cooks,
it's time for another auction.

Here we have three Asian-inspired kits,

a dim sum kit,

a sushi kit, and a soup kit.

Vivian and Nick should be very scared
going into this auction.

I have $14,500, and frankly,
I'm ready to pay whatever I need to

to make sure I win this challenge.

Okay, let's start with the dim sum kit.

In this one, you have cilantro,
dumpling wrappers, and sweet Thai chili.

It's got sweet, it's got heat,

and all the essentials
to make perfect dumplings.

Once a year, it's tradition
for my mom and I to make mandu,

which is similar to a dumpling.

So immediately,
I'm drawn to the dim sum kit.

We're gonna start the bidding $1,000.

-Vivian, $1,000. Do I have $1,200?

-I'll do 12.
-$1,200 going to Nick.

-$1,400 going to Vivian.

Going once, going twice…

Sold to Vivian for $1,400.
There you go. Good job.

Not today, Nick. I have a vision,
and I need this dim sum kit.

Next up is the sushi kit.

Nori, sushi rice,
rice wine vinegar, soy, and wasabi.

I am in on the sushi kit.

I could do a shrimp sushi.
I could do a ham sushi.

I see soy sauce,
and I know it's got to be mine.

It's very hard to cook
any kind of Asian food

without some form
of umami, salt-based sauce.

The opening bid for this kit is $1,000.

-Oh, there you go. $1,000 to Nick.
-I'll do that.

-Oh! $1,100 going to Ryan.

Do I hear 12? $1,200 for the sushi kit.

-Do I have 1,300?

-Do I have $1,500?
-Ryan, why-- why are you doing this to us?

-$1,500 for sushi.

-I'll do $2,000.
-$2,000 for Nick.

-22.
-$2,200 for Ryan.

It's game on in this kitchen right now.

I'm in a bidding w*r. Great.

$2,500 going to Nick. Do I have 3,000?

-$3,000 for a sushi kit!

It's just too much money. It's just--

I just can't. I just can't do it.

-Sold! $3,000 to Ryan.
-Go, go!

All right, final kit. Soup kit.

Thai basil, mung beans,
vermicelli, and broth.

Do I hear $1,000?

-You want this one too, Ryan?

$1,000 going to Nick.

$1,000 going once. $1,000 going twice…

Sold to Nick. Soup kit, $1,000.

It's getting spicy.

Delicious. Okay.

I feel great about getting
my soup kit for $1,000.

Oh, you know what I could do?
Yeah, I can do this as like a noodle soup.

I finally start to piece together
what I'm doing.

I know I'm going to make a soup
with this mushroom broth.

It's really savory,
it has a nice depth to it,

and then I can combine
my shrimp and my ham

into like a dumpling meatball
that I can poach in the soup.

All of a sudden,
the whole dish is just like-- I get it.

Home cooks, after those auctions,
you have 35 minutes left.

For $1,400 in this dim sum kit,
I got dumpling wrappers.

So I'm making pork fat-fried dumplings
with kimchi, pork, and bok choy.

Kimchi.

I take a lot of pride in my dumplings,

because I make them
with my grandma every year,

and I really want to do her proud.

-Yo, it's getting good.
-Ah!

Everything out there from the kits
to what came in the boxes…

-Did I do a good job?
-You did. You did such a good job.

I saw the Save Box
has canned ham in there.

You know, that's my jam.

It gives so much umami
to, like, every dish.

-Yeah.
-Like, that salty bite.

I love it in every way.

So what do you think makes
a good Asian dish for a home cook?

-Really, it's about balance, right?
-Yeah.

You want that salty, you want the sweet,
you want the acidic.

-That's what I'm always looking for.
-Okay. So I see some chili?

This is my special chili soil.
So soil, meaning "sauce and oil."

What is it?

Shallots, garlic, soy sauce,
sesame oil, fresh ginger.

You want to taste?
Try to get some of the chunks.

You can use it as a finishing oil,
dip dumplings in it.

Fire, right?

It's so delicious how that grated ginger
peeks through on the aromatics,

but really it's-- it's just
that unique combination of ingredients.

So I'm-- Are you sending
that out as an upgrade?

-Of course. Yeah, yeah.
-That's a great upgrade.

Right, Chef, thank you.

-Vivian, what'd they give you?
-Pork. Could be worse.

I don't know what Ryan's working with
over there. Hope it's hard.

At this point,
I'm sautéing the vegetables.

I have my shrimp ready to go in the fryer.
I'm seeing my dish come together,

but I need something
just to sort of punch up the flavor.

The line is flashing and moving.

That means
we got another surprise for you.

We have homemade chili soil,

which is chili oil and sauce
prepared by Chef Choi.

It can act as a flavor enhancer,

as your main flavor driver,
as a sauce, as a dip.

This is the perfect thing
to tie my shrimp together.

Some spice in my soup
would be really awesome.

Do I have $1,000?

-Flavor driver, there it is.

-Nick $1,000. One thou–

Oh, there you go.

-I have 12. I have 13, 14.

Do I have 1,500? 15.
1,500 to Ryan for the chi– Oh, 1,700.

Do I have 2,000? 2,000 to Ryan.
$2,000 for the chili soil going once.

$2,000 going twice…

-Sold to Ryan!

$2,000 for the chili soil
prepared by Chef Esther.

That's worth it.

Now that I have this beautiful chili soil,
I'll add it to my shrimp glaze,

and I'm also gonna add
a little bit to my stir-fry.

Oh, that's fire.

-How much time do we have left?
-Five minutes!

There's not that much time left,
and I still haven't fried my dumplings,

and I wanna make sure that my dumplings
are as flavorful as possible,

so I fry them in pork fat.

My goal with this dish is to show

that you can use really simple ingredients

and make something super delicious.

I think I elevated the hell
out of that shrimp ring and canned ham.

Are you kidding me?

One minute, home cooks. One minute.

Oh, my God.

-Come on.

I'm struggling to make sure
I get everything on the plate,

and it looks somewhat neat.

Remember, you have to put your plate
on the line and then buzz your buzzers.

My plate
might look a little bit bare,

but I know that there's a lot of flavor
in these dumplings.

Ten, nine, eight, seven, six,

-five…

-…four…

-…three two, one.

Dang!

I spent $11,000 on my dish,

but I went into this round
thinking money was no object

because I wanted to win.

What up, Chef? Really excited for this.

Here are the three Asian-inspired dishes
that our home cooks made.

-It looks really good, Jordan.
-Doesn't it? All right, Chef.

First up, we have coconut shrimp

with stir-fried vegetables, steamed rice,
and your chili soil.

I'm really digging this.
There's sweetness, there's some heat.

Textures work really well.
The vegetables are cooked properly.

The coconut shrimp, super crispy.

And the chili soil? I'm biased.

-But that makes it so much better.

Like, the whole dish.
So I think money well spent.

So this cook spent $3,000
on the sushi kit.

I think it was really smart, you know?
If you're going to make a stir-fry,

you get the soy sauce,

but I think one thing
I didn't want to see is a big stir-fry

with every ingredient used. It's a lot.

I'm big on "less is more,"
and this could have used a little less.

Okay, Chef. Now for the next home cook.

Okay.

These are pork fat-fried dumplings
stuffed with pork, bok choy, and kimchi.

I'm very particular with my dumplings.

This home cook used pork fat
to crisp up the dumpling.

I could really feel that and taste that.

So it was cooked nicely.

But then I bit into the dumpling,

and I was kind of waiting
for that moment of umami.

-Like the "Mmm, dumpling!"
Yeah.

-That moment didn't happen here.
-Really?

Yes. Also, no sauce.

-It's a dumpling. You gotta--
-Yeah. Gotta have a sauce, right?

So this was a Spend Box.
High-end, luxurious ingredients.

For a dumpling, it's perfect,
but just overall fell really short.

-All right, Chef, last one.
-Okay.

So this right there

is a pork and shrimp dumpling

with vermicelli in a mushroom broth.

I really like the dish.

Okay.

Nice and fresh, light.
The broth clean, not salty.

This is, you know,
the very humble Save Box.

You know, humble ingredients, to me,

you can really be creative with them,
and I feel like they did that here.

You taste some of that umami
from the canned ham,

and then texture from the shrimp.
That's what I was looking for.

-Mm-hmm.
-Now, texture of the noodles.

Needed to be cooked a little bit more.

-A little bit too al dente.
-Yeah.

But overall, I thought
it was a really creative dish.

All right, Chef,
do we know which home cook

we're sending home
with all the money in their bank?

Yes.

This is it.

It's time to find out
who won the competition

and all the cash left in their bank.

But first, let me introduce you

to our guest chef and judge,
Chef Esther Choi.

Whoo!

Okay, let's get to the results.

Who made the pork fat-fried dumplings?

Your dumplings were well-constructed,

and I really like
that you fried them in pork fat,

but I think more could have been done

with the expensive ingredients
in the Spend Box.

And who made the vermicelli soup
with the pork and shrimp dumplings?

Nick, you really showed
a lot of creativity

transforming the ingredients
in your Save Box into something delicious,

but your vermicelli was a tad undercooked.

So that means Ryan,
you made the coconut shrimp stir-fry.

Correct.

Your rice and vegetables
were really well cooked,

and the flavors were really well-balanced,

but there was
a little too much on the plate.

Home cooks, it's time to find out

who's going home
with all the money left in their bank.

Ryan, you have $9,500 left,

Vivian you have $10,999 left,

and Nick you have the largest amount
with $17,490 remaining in your bank.

The home cook with the best dish is…

-Nick.

-Whoo!
-Congrats.

Congratulations. You've won $17,490.

-I'll take it.

Nick, I really love
that you took humble ingredients

and made them shine.

Thank you so much.

That's-- That means a lot.

It was so awesome
to hear a professional like that

talk about something
I made out of a shrimp ring.

It was wonderful.

Nick! You proved
you can cook at all costs.

I put my best foot forward. Win or lose,
I know Grandma's proud, no matter what.

I'm bummed, but I had a great time today,
and Nick did a great job.

Biggest takeaway? Cook at home.
Make some good food.

Doesn't have to be expensive.
Get in the kitchen!