Reactions to Top Chef Texas Episode 12

This week, the challenges seemed to get more complicated than necessary. For the Quickfire, the cheftestants were divided into three teams of two: Grayson and Chris, Ed and Paul, and Sarah and Lindsay. Each team was responsible for peeling umpteen shrimp, making fresh pasta, and shucking a large quantity of corn, with which they would then create a dish in whatever time they had left from forty minutes. Kinda like the relay races of seasons past, but not. Guest judge Cat Cora and regular judge Emeril decided that out of the three teams, they preferred the shrimp and bacon pasta created by Chris and Grayson, earning them each $5,000.

For the Elimination Challenge, rather than cooking as a team, each dynamic duo had to face each other in cooking their version of a single dish. The dishes would then be served at a block party for 200 people who would be responsible for choosing the winning dish from each pair. After the cheftestants chose the dish they wanted to make, Padma added a twist: they will have to create a lightened version of it for the challenge, to appease sponsor Healthy Choice.

Paul's turkey lettuce wrap version of kalbi beat out Ed's short rib version. Lindsay's Greek-ish lamb and veal meatball beat out Sarah's turkey version by a small margin. And Grayson's made-to-order chicken salad sandwiches beat out Chris' version made with tofu mayo. Once again, Paul wins the challenge - and gets another $15,000 for his growing wallet. It's looking like his partner, Ed, is going to bite the dust, but in a surprise ending, it's Chris who ends up being sent home.

So what did you think? Should Chris have gone home? Please leave a comment!

Posted on AllTopChef.com