Tournament of Champions ™
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Smashed Chicken Thigh with Baba Ganoush
Smashed Chicken Thigh with Viet Baba Ganoush and Tempura Eggplant.
Nini Nguyen built a Vietnamese-inspired plate around globe eggplant treated two ways, anchored by a pan-seared smashed chicken thigh.
Nini: "I'm going to make a pan seared smashed chicken thigh with, like, a Vietnamese baba ganoush, and I'm going to smash some eggplants and tempura fry them." One eggplant was charred directly over an open flame:
Nini: "That eggplant that's been burned on the grill, that's getting those Vietnamese flavors. Sugar, Thai chili, lime juice, fish sauce. So Vietnamese baba ganoush." The charred flesh was blended with tahini and sesame paste using the handheld mixer. A second eggplant was blanched, smashed, and tempura fried.
Nini: "I'm using the handheld mixer to make my tempura batter. I want it to be very visible that I made eggplant two ways." Fish sauce caramel broth was drizzled with care at plating:
Nini: "I want to make sure as I'm putting the fish sauce caramel broth that I'm not putting too much so that the eggplant will still stay crispy." A last-minute addition of whipped creme fraiche completed the plate.
Voiceover (Tiffany Faison): "In front of you, we have smashed roasted chicken thigh. One of the eggplants was open flame charred, creating that smoky flavor. And handheld mixer blended. That's your Viet baba, if you will. We then have the eggplant that was smashed and tempura fried, sitting on top of the chicken broth."
{Judge}: "It seems like they've covered everything on the randomizer. The chicken thigh, obviously on the plate, cooked really well. I'd like to have seen the chicken skin a little crispier."
{Judge}: "The eggplant two ways, I love that they're playing the game. And the eggplant baba is my favorite. Not just incredible gameplay, using the handheld mixer, but it gave so much depth to the dish."
{Judge}: "I think it's really a tasty plate. There's nice acidity. There's herbaceousness. I love that fish sauce. I wish there was more of that broth. It's so tasty."
{Judge}: "I would have loved to have seen a little bit more creativity with the plate. Like, maybe the baba is underneath and the thigh is on top of it. A little bit more height, a little bit more architecture. Just give it a little bit of a polish."
Final Score: 79.
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