Top Chef ™
Baker:
Season:
Week:
Challenge Type:
Octopus and Mozzarella (Polpo e Mozz)
Bailey: "I want to keep it a little quirky, as they say. The whole vibe is giro stravagante. And so I want it to be super whimsical, creative. I want to feature different artisans and chefs that have influenced who I am."
Bailey (cooking): "I need to get a really nice char on that octopus to balance with the creaminess of the mozzarella. It's the best mozzarella that there is."
Presenting to Judges
"My menu is paying homage to all the people that have influenced me, but then putting my own spin on the food. I wanted to pay nod to my first line cooking job being from a Japanese background. We've got grilled octopus, mozzarella, tomato dashi, and then giardeniera."
Judges
"I love Bailey's use of the octopus and the mozzarella because it's dumb ... and brilliant."
"The mozzarella helped tamper and tame the char, balance out the sweetness."
"A really strong dish."
