Wicked Appetite S1E4: Masterchef S16E4: Joe Bastianich Did Not Come Here To Lose (but today he did)

The fourth and final qualifying round is here, and the Americas brought the heat — literally. Spice levels, bold protein choices, and one professional wrestler who put Joe Bastianich in a headlock on national television. It was a lot.

This week Heidi and Finley recap the Americas auditions—from Tkaiya's pineapple glazed jerk chicken (glaze left tragically on the counter), to Jake's mole negro dessert that required literal diagrams to execute, to Maria's moqueca de camarão that had the entire studio shrieking with joy. Plus Captain Coby and his legendary Cajun seasoning, Andrea's stunning salmon rooted in indigenous Alaskan tradition, and Brittany Bay—professional wrestler, Barbadian food ambassador, and the woman who made Joe regret every decision he's ever made.

The qualifying rounds are officially over. All four teams are set. And Heidi and Finley have absolutely no idea what's coming next—but there's already a Band-Aid on a plate on Reddit and they have thoughts.

Also: Scars So Lovely is OUT, Soren is everyone's book boyfriend, and Finley is wearing a shirt that just says RAW. She's owning it. As she should.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:08

Welcome to episode four of Wicked Appetite. She's Finley Brown. She's Heidi Stark. And this is what you get when you mix dark romance with cooking. We're back today to recap the fourth and final qualifying round of Master Chef Season 16, Episode 4 of The Americas. But first, Finley, for those of you who are listening rather than watching, Finley's wearing quite a special t-shirt today.

SPEAKER_00 0:33

I know I I ordered this for me. I figure like I can own this, and it says raw across it with in big capital letters because I mean I cooked raw, so come on, I'm gonna own it. I had to have this.

SPEAKER_01 0:47

I like the way you're embracing it. You're turning it into a string.

SPEAKER_00 0:51

Yes, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 0:54

Awesome. Well, it's nice to be back talking about the qualifying rounds. This is a bittersweet moment for Finley and I because this is the fourth episode, the last one that we were present for. So we were there to kind of witness the fun and everything going on, all the amazing skills in the kitchen. We have no idea what happens from next week onwards, but the Americans are okay.

SPEAKER_00 1:17

Yeah. This was a this was an exciting challenge. I think because we just knew this was the last one, it was coming down to this. Um, but this was an exciting, exciting round for sure.

SPEAKER_01 1:29

And being part of that experience, I found like on day one of the qualifying rounds, which was Europe, everyone was still slightly shy, even though there were some huge personalities in the room. By day two, Asia Pacific, we were much more familiar. By day three, we felt like a family. And by the time the Americas rolled around, like we were all in each other's business. Like we were the same records.

SPEAKER_00 1:52

Everyone was cheering. I did notice when we uh watched it, you and I were featured quite a bit in the background together watching and cheering. So that was fun.

SPEAKER_01 2:02

We rebelled, we were supposed to sit in our regions, but we uh we did ask nicely if we could sit together, despite me being from Asia Pacific and Finlay being from Europe, as well as a few others. So we became a melting pot of our own.

SPEAKER_00 2:16

We did, we did. We broke the rules a little.

SPEAKER_01 2:19

Just a little bit. That's why they love us. Okay, cool. Well, I will kick things off first this time. Again, really excited. Today's all about the Americas. So the Americas, a little bit like New Zealand, is a melting pot of cuisines and flavors and spice and not spice, all sorts of interesting things going on. Our first contestant today was Takaya. And I called Takaya on this episode Jamaica Squared because she is from Jamaica, New York, and she's representing Jamaica, the country. Yes. So excited for this one. I love Jamaican food. I'm living in Mexico right now. There is a place down the street, and people are claiming it's the best Jamaican food in the world, which I think could be a stretch. I think I'd probably find better Jamaican food in Jamaica and various other places, but it's pretty good.

SPEAKER_00 3:09

Yeah, I'm a complete fan of jerk seasoning. So I was so excited to watch Takaya um cook this one and smell it because it smelled wonderful.

SPEAKER_01 3:19

Oh my gosh, yes. And when she brought out the pineapple, which which has a story to go with it. So Takaya is currently pursuing a master's degree in marketing, and she is on MasterChef to find her culinary voice. I would argue she already has one because she came out swinging with this amazing dish. Takaya was quite emotional during her conversation with the judges, talking about her late grandmother and how much she inspired her cooking journey, which is really touching to watch. The dish that Takaya made was a pineapple glazed jerk chicken with sweet potato puree. That's what it was meant to be. The dish ended up being jerk chicken with sweet potato puree with the pineapple glaze left back on the counter.

SPEAKER_00 4:03

I know that was that was hard to watch. Um, I didn't even realize it when we were sitting in the audience that it she didn't have it completed. So that surprised me when I was watching the show.

SPEAKER_01 4:13

Especially with the attention to detail around the pineapple. We were really impressed by the use of fresh fruit. So it ended up working out quite interestingly. So Gordon really enjoyed the dish, regardless. I thought the presentation was beautiful, that the the chicken had a strong sear. Um, he felt like it was missing sweetness. So I don't know if he I mean, he has a great palate, so he probably legitimately thought that he also had insider information from seeing the pineapple on the counter and probably like, where is that? Uh Tiffany called the dish both beautiful and fragrant. It was interesting because she kind of missed the glaze, but kind of felt like it might have been good it was left off overall. And Joe said that he could taste every layer of the jerk spice and called it an easy yes. So she did end up, despite leaving the pineapple glaze by mistake, she did get an apron.

SPEAKER_00 5:04

She got her apron and well deserved.

SPEAKER_01 5:07

So one of the things that I think we should share with the audience is that this is one of those contests where you can't come in with your proprietary spice blend. And so we've seen that in all of the other qualifying rounds. I know that, especially in Africa, for example, there was a lot of spice mixing going on, but every single one of them really. And it came out today with Takaya and some other contestants, which we'll get to. But jerk seasoning, I actually like making my own, but I know how many different spices go into it, and so that does take up time and getting that balance right in the moment is tricky as well.

SPEAKER_00 5:41

Exactly, exactly. Well, and that segues right into our next home cook, who was Captain Kobe from Lafayette, Louisiana, representing the Cajun culture, and he is very, very, very proud of his Cajun heritage. And he is a captain in the fire department, and he was such a joy and so much fun to be around. He has just a big personality, lots of life in him, and um he was just exciting to watch. He was doing alligator sauce piquant with smothered cabbage, and that was taking on a challenge because to get that alligator cooked in time was he had to use the pressure cooker. He was under that time constraint too. And he was one who brought his seasonings with him. He has his own brand, Captain Kobe Cajun seasoning. And I actually talked to him about it. And when he first got there, he thought he was going to be able just to whiff this out and use it. And they said, no, you're gonna have to make it from scratch when you get in there, when you get in the kitchen, which was fine. He knew all the ingredients, but that takes up time too. So that was that was interesting. And that is a little plug for him, and we'll have where you can get this uh in in our notes because this Cajun seasoning is really, really, really good. Okay, so let's really good.

SPEAKER_01 7:09

It is really good. And when I left California and had to leave many more of my possessions than I wanted to, that's one of my biggest regrets, honestly. I realized I left it in the kitchen cover. So I the Captacone seasoning, I've seen pictures from cast members. He sent it all over the world. There's people in I think Ireland, maybe Egypt with it. I think people have taken it on vacation all over the world. So it's yeah, it's amazing. And I'm gonna talk to him about getting some more.

SPEAKER_00 7:35

Yeah, no, no, we need to get you some more. I use it all the time. I love it. Okay, so let's see what the judges had to say about his cook. Joe said it looks full flavored. The dish looked like it was like gonna be a full-flavored dish. Um, but unfortunately, Gordon thought the alligator was bland. And I think it was just it was missing the sauce, it was missing the time that his dish needed to sit and marinate more and just gather it. And Tiffany agreed that it just it was kind of lacking in flavor. So unfortunately, Captain Kobe did not get an apron, but his food's still amazing.

SPEAKER_01 8:13

Oh, yeah, and I mean he cooks for his station, he's always at events cooking as well. He's been on other cooking shows where he's done really, really well. I believe he actually won. Yeah. And I know that with it's I've told Kobe multiple times, he's probably sick of hearing it from me. But as I was growing up, we had this Cajun and Creole restaurant in New Zealand in this pretty small town, and it was my favorite one to go to, and I'd get black into this, and I'd get jambala and gubba, all the things, and so it's one of my favorite cuisines, and I know the layering of flavor, the complexity. It's not something that's usually done in a rush.

SPEAKER_00 8:50

No, no, no. And I think he knew that going in, so but that was Captain Kobe.

SPEAKER_01 8:55

Awesome. Okay, on to Camilo from Texas. So uh Camilo was representing in his words, San Antonio Tex-Mex cuisine. So he's from Mexican heritage. He was pressed on who he would be supporting in the football world cup, and he said ultimately USA first and Mexico second. Someone, I think it might have been Joe, said it might depend what room he's in when he uh admits that to certain groups of people. I didn't know that Camilo was from San Antonio, I don't think I knew that, and I was just living in San Antonio very soon prior to actually going out for mastership. So amazing food there, great flavours. So Camilo was there with his family, his daughter was lovely. She'd actually encouraged him to go on the show and uh was obviously so thrilled when he got an apron. She was fantastic, and he made a grilled arci rubbed quail with roasted corn salsa and avocado smash. Very impressively, he actually deboned the quail on screen in the time constraint, which obviously is technical precision, much respect to his skills. And Tiffany loved the quail's caramelization. Gordon said that you know, quail is a bold move, it's known for not being the easiest protein to cook. And Tiffany wanted more spice. I think we're gonna see spice come up a few times, obviously, in the previous contestant, now with Camilo. People were definitely trying to just kind of balance and gauge what are the judges really going to want? What is their personal palette like? What are they gonna want in terms of traditional spice levels? So I think that's something that really not tripped people up. It took up a lot of thought thoughtfulness and time thinking, what is that right balance?

SPEAKER_00 10:46

Yeah, I noticed that too.

SPEAKER_01 10:48

Yeah, and so Camillo did get an apron, and we're excited to see what he does next.

SPEAKER_00 10:55

Yep. Okay, then we had Harold from Austin, Texas representing Venezuela. And a shout out to Austin, Texas, and Harold Harold, because I lived in Austin for 27 years, so that's kind of a place that's near and dear to my heart. And I thought Harold did a great job representing Venezuela. He did a rose con pollo, which sounds simple, but it was so it was such a beautiful dish to look at because he had this bright orange sauce, and then he had his chicken thigh, and it just it looked really beautiful. And Harold was there with his partner, and there was a lot of cheering, and and um so so proud of him. And unfortunately, when the judges cut into his chicken, he suffered a little bit what I suffered from. It was undercooked.

SPEAKER_01 11:48

And unfortunately with chicken, it's tougher to come back home than salmon, even.

SPEAKER_00 11:53

Yeah, they they even said we can't really even taste it. So because it was a little different with the salmon, you can eat raw salmon, raw chicken is just not gonna not gonna get you an apron. Um, but Harold did amazing regardless and super proud of him. And yes, Harold, I will be sending you a raw shirt also, because now you get to own this category of feeding Gordon Ramsay raw food.

SPEAKER_01 12:19

This is quite the club to be in. I'm kind of jealous now. All right. Well, Janelle, we have next, she is from Savannah, Georgia. Savannah, Georgia, sorry, accent. And she's representing Jamaica as well. Janelle describes her cooking style as bold and inspired by the 11 years she spent growing up in Jamaica. Janelle attended casting with her friend and family, her beautiful family. She has a ton of children, and they're all just they were so cute and so excited to see their mum cooking. So that was awesome. Janelle made pan seared sea bass with Jamaican spiced broth and caramelized butternut squash. And I mean, that sounds insanely delicious to me. I know how much, as we were talking about spice levels, Janelle was really wondering, you know, what's the right level to hit there because she could have gone super traditional, super spicy. And I didn't realize, like with things like a scotch bonnet, you can actually cook it and then remove it, and it instills the flavor of the chili pepper rather than chopping it up and putting it in to not get as much spice. So I don't know where she ultimately landed with that, but I know she was a person who was being very intentional about where do I have this spice little sit.

SPEAKER_00 13:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:38

The judges thought, Joe thought in particular that the dish looked like something that you'd find in a modern restaurant. Maybe that was Gordon, it was one of them. But anyway, that's high compliments coming from the judging team. They did find then for the evening, and maybe joining your club too, Finley, that the fish was slightly undercooked, and that the broth unfortunately was more salty than they would have preferred. Um Gordon did deliver the no that ended Janelle's hopes of earning the white apron there.

SPEAKER_00 14:10

Yeah. So okay, going on, we have Brittany from Los Angeles, California representing Barbados. And Brittany is so much fun. She is a professional wrestler, and her wrestling name is Brittany Bay, and she is the beach girl. So um it was fun because when she got out there, Joe actually, when they were walking by, Joe said, like, so can you wrestle me? And she did. She actually could she put him in a headlock and it was awesome. And we all went crazy. And um, not foreshadowing, but Joe might get my wooden spoon because he uh he like went back and tried to take her down. I think he felt we might we might be on the same page not to foreshadow a button. I was like, hmm, I'm not sure about this. Um, but anyways, she was representing Barbados, so she made a salted cod fish cakes with scotch bonnet, garlic aioli, and apple fennel sauce. So Brittany, um once again, we're dealing with the spice and how much spice are we gonna use. And Britney brought the spice to that aioli. Tiffany said it looks um it was looked elevated. She liked that that the plate looked pretty. Joe, he was so they're trying the aioli, and you could tell that Tiffany and Gordon instantly found it like hot, but they like they let Joe try it. And Joe said that's it, that hit hard like a smack in the face. But and then he started to tear up because his eyes got watery from eating it. So Brittany brought all the spikes in that dish, and the judges liked it. I think Tiffany felt like it was finally what she was looking for. Lots of flavor. Gordon said the flavor was there. He said, if anything, maybe the fish cakes got a little dense and he would like them a little bit lighter. But all three of them definitely gave her an apron and a very well deserved apron. And Tiffany liked that she did not hold back the heat.

SPEAKER_01 16:25

100%. And Joe, his inner wrestling nerd came out. He called her dish, a launch off the ropes before just about passing out from the heat. So, like I think he had a lot of fun with that. I think we've got runway there. Also, I have to say, so Brittany's one of those people who just, you know, she when you first meet her, she's obviously stunning, but she could she could have a corporate career, she could do any of these things. I mean, she takes off like her sleeves with whatever she's wearing, and suddenly she's got these big guns, like you wouldn't want to miss her in a dark alley.

SPEAKER_00 16:59

Yeah, she even she even says that. She's like, I by looking at my stature, you wouldn't guess like how strong I am, and uh yeah, she's very strong. So yay for her. Thumbs up.

SPEAKER_01 17:11

Awesome. Well, uh second to last, I think. Yes, no, we've got three more. Okay, perfect. I will not get ahead of ourselves, Jake from Michigan, and so Jake is a pharmacy technician and he applies that to his food. So he says that the kitchen is the lab that he loves the most, and he actually called the judges his lab rats for the evening, and that he keeps them well fed. So he was brave to say that to the judges, and he made a dish inspired by his Mexican heritage. So Jake told a really touching story. I'm an adoptee, and so I was very touched by this story, but he grew up not being super familiar with his Mexican roots. It's not something like he isn't from one of those big families that grows up cooking the from the heritage and and just knowing it innately. He had to really like learn it, and it brought him closer to his culture, which is so special. And so he made a mole negro cake with chocolate, chili, ganache, and black sesame creme anglaise, which sounds insane, so many components, so technical. And he took something that's essentially a savory dish that takes hours to prepare with like one gazillion ingredients and turned it into a dessert. So a masterpiece. I you know, and because he's a scientist and that's how he approaches his food, Jake had diagrams with a precision I've never seen before. He had mapped this thing out from the individual components to the full plating. It was very impressive. At the end of it, because there were so many components, and because, like you, you know, as you prepare the dish and there's heat and cameras, everything like that, things started sliding a little on his plate, it looked like so. Tiffany did say the dessert doesn't look as refined as the judges would like, and that she would have preferred a little bit more salt because you know that salt works really well with it with the mole. Gordon thought it was delicious, he described the texture as sublime, and Joe was really into it as well. So, I mean, for the 45 minutes, it was amazing that Jake knocked out so many things. He had these beautiful windows of time where he would know if he was pacing correctly, which was it just I kept telling people, oh my gosh, he's so precise, and it was really cool to see it play out.

SPEAKER_00 19:29

He was definitely hustling in that kitchen.

SPEAKER_01 19:32

It was running and oh, it was great.

SPEAKER_00 19:34

Yeah, he was he was fun to watch. Okay, now we have Andrea, and she was representing Alaska and specifically indigenous food, and it was so lovely to hear her story, and her indigenous friends were there supporting her right at her side, and she speaks about her grandmother a lot and how her grandmother taught her. And there was one moment where she talked about going to fish camp as a young, as a young child, and Gordon was just like, fish camp, what's fish camp? Like, no, she would they would go and they would catch fish and smoke them, and this is how she learned how you know how to preserve fish, and it was a very touching story. She's very, very proud of her heritage, and it was I loved learning about it and and what she taught us. So she made salmon with crushed blueberries, a puree, and a micro green salad. And this is, I think, uh like the blueberries, very indigenous to Alaska, and obviously, salmon, she said salmon sustains the indigenous culture, so she was very connected to her ingredients, and she put out a beautiful dish. And Joe said it was balanced and elegant, and Gordon said the salmon, you know, they they they kind of full as like they cut into that salmon, and everybody's had a little trouble with salmon, and hers was cooked beautifully, it was uh moist in the center, the skin was crispy. The only problem that the judges seemed to have is they felt it was too sweet with the blueberries. Tiffany said it needed more acid, that the flavors just felt flat and sweet, and she was just looking for more of an acidic note, maybe to add to the blueberries. But her dish was beautiful and stunning. It was stunning, and it it was it was hard, she did not get an apron, and I think we were all rooting for her. She had a a room full of people, so when when she came out, it was very touching because it's just she just wanted this so much, and uh that one hurt a little bit to yeah, like every no hurt, but that one stung.

SPEAKER_01 21:53

Um, she's a fantastic human being. And the coolest thing about Andrea is that she has bounced back, she is doing pop ups, the ming. News look insane, she's doing salmon blueberries, like it's it's really cool. So staying true to who she is, like she should wishing her nothing but the best in her food journey and excited to see what she can do. Exactly. And our last contestant for this episode is Maria from Miami representing Brazil. So Maria is just a lovely human being, she is a ball of energy, and she talked about how she was born in a small village in Brazil below the poverty line, and then she had the opportunity to move to a big city to help support her parents and her family financially. So she met her husband and she was young, she was 19 years old and moved to the United States and um really missed the flavors of home, and that's when she started becoming a really strong Brazilian home cook. And so Maria prepared moqueca de camarada, which is shrimp in coconut milk. It was beautifully colorful, it looked insanely good. Tiffany called the dish stunning. She said that it was an explosion of flavor. Gordon thought that the shrimp was cooked beautifully, and it was just it was so lovely. Maria got an apron, obviously, unanimous yes from the judges during the judging. This is not a spoiler. I heard shrieking. I heard shrieking. I knew we heard her joy come through.

SPEAKER_00 23:35

Yeah, she's got a beautiful family. She's just her husband was there. She has a beautiful daughter. It was so, so fun to have her come out with this apron, and she's got so much joy and so much energy. She's just wonderful. And she's also a um content creator, and she has a good following. So I, you know, we can maybe leave her information because for sure. Follow her.

SPEAKER_01 24:01

You she has she cooks amazingly, and she's just a fun person, so that's half of it. So so this was a really interesting week. Um, I think it was really it was just because America is such a melting pot, the judges got to taste such a variety, the spice levels were a huge component of this one. Um, and so yes, that was the fourth and final qualifying round. So what's happening live this week, meaning on the 13th of May, um, is going to be the first round of the teams. So these four qualifying rounds have decided who will represent each region as a team, and the teams will go head to head. And I believe that this upcoming episode they're going to do a stadium food challenge, which will be really interesting.

SPEAKER_00 24:48

Oh, I cannot wait.

SPEAKER_01 24:50

I am so excited because this is all new for us, new territory. Absolutely. And so, slight segue to the book world. What have you got going on this week, Finley?

SPEAKER_00 25:02

I'm just in the in the midst of recovering some of my books. So I recovered two of my series and brought them up to date, maybe gave it a modern look to it. So I'm very excited about that, and just still plugging away with my edits for my book that's coming out in June. Awesome. And how about you, Heidi? I know we have a very big day on the 13th.

SPEAKER_01 25:27

Yes, Wednesday is a big, big day. So Scar So Lovely is releasing the Advanced Reader Group. My art team has been voraciously reading the book. So it's coming out of the gates with several hundred reviews. Most of them are overwhelmingly positive. People are messaging to tell me that Soren is their new book boyfriend. They are sending me their favorite quotes and scenes. So uh I'm really, really excited to share this book with the world, and we'll have an update for you next time we record. And you can find Scar So Lovely on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited. Yay! This is so exciting. I know I'm excited too. So this week's Rose and Wooden Spoon, who are you giving your rose to, Finley?

SPEAKER_00 26:11

I am giving um this one's hard because I mean I have so many people I want to give roses to, but I really think I'm gonna give my rose to Brittany for taking down Joe in that headlock. It was I loved it. It was too perfect.

SPEAKER_01 26:27

I think that we've got the same rose and wooden spoon this week, Finley, because she's mine too. I love a badass. Like, I've done roller derby. Most of my friends do roller derby. I like a strong woman and a strong female athlete, and Britney kicked Joe's ass.

SPEAKER_00 26:41

She did, she did. And then I'm gonna give him the wooden spoon for thinking he could kick her ass back, which no same slightly different same thing for him trying, but then for throwing that whole, like, I mean, she did a good she did a Hollywood, which she pretended he'd actually hurt her and he freaked out a little bit.

SPEAKER_01 26:58

So that was good.

SPEAKER_00 26:59

I know, I love her. So, yes, I think we are on the same page for that one.

SPEAKER_01 27:04

Awesome. Well, this was a very exciting episode. I cannot wait to see what this week brings. I think Stadium Challenges. I was listening to a podcast and Aaron Sanchez, you know, previous previous host or judge of chef in other seasons, uh, was being interviewed, and he said, you know, we've we've always got to do something kind of to make Gordon feel fancy and special. So they like to do stadium events because of his sporting background. So I'm sure we'll see a little bit of that. I know I've seen him kick his steak in the air before, so who knows what next week will bring.

SPEAKER_00 27:38

Not not a spoiler because I did see it on TV. So it's in one of the segments that they're they're uh debuting is what's gonna happen this week. And I've never seen it before. I saw a band-aid on a plate.

SPEAKER_01 27:52

Oh my god, yes, and I'm so glad you mentioned that. I saw it. Someone took a photo and put it on Reddit, like they like freeze-framed it on their TV. That is like tucked in there, like it's meant to be in the dish. It's so bad.

SPEAKER_00 28:05

I mean, I wonder what kind of shirt that person's gonna wear. Like band-aid. I went out on raw, but thank goodness I didn't go out on band-aid.

SPEAKER_01 28:16

Oh my gosh. And I was gonna ask you, I mean, I guess whoever's got the team who's got the band-aid, like that's either gonna save that individual because everyone else did so well, or it's gonna tack the whole team. I don't know how you can come back from a band-aid. Like you say, I think that's worse than something that's inedible because it's raw. I was gonna ask you which team you think is most likely to win this week based on what we've seen in the qualifying rounds.

SPEAKER_00 28:48

I think Asia Pacific is a very, very strong team. Um, I mean, they're all strong. There's no weak links on any of these teams. They all earn their aprons, but I just think the flavors are so good with, you know, like we talked about with Europe, we don't have like all the spice and flavors and ginger and all that beautiful combinations. So we'll see. That's I'm gonna go for Asia Pacific, maybe winning this time.

SPEAKER_01 29:24

I struggled to think of one. I was like, oh, this is a great question. And then I went through the teams and went, I have no idea. Because even also, we don't know what other cuisines people can cook or actually gravitate towards outside of this competition. We don't know how much they're being asked to lean into their heritage culture for the cuisine. Because there's obviously like there's there's lots of stuff we associate with stadium food, like you know, burgers and you know, hot dogs and things like that, which that's not really the place that anyone was cooking from in their audition round. Not to say that they can't crush that as a challenge, so I'm super interested.

SPEAKER_00 30:03

Yeah, well, we'll just have to wait and see.

SPEAKER_01 30:06

Awesome. Well, we will see everyone very soon with the next episode. Yes. Thanks for watching. Bye.