Noelle Myers recaps the12th episode of Top Chef New Orleans!

We are getting down to the wire on Top Chef New Orleans.  We are down to the final five chefs.  This week’s special guest judge for the Quickfire Challenge was Chef Roy Choi, founder of the Food Truck Movement.  For this Quickfire, the chefs were to create a unique and personalized PO Boy, the quintessential “food truck” food of New Orleans.  The winner would receive immunity.

Nina made a fried mahi po boy with mojo aioli and pickled onions.  Brian served an Asian inspired lobster po boy, gochujang aioli, yuzu and pickled Napa cabbage.  Nick created a fried shrimp po boy with mayo, siracha and pancetta.  Carlos made al pastor po boy, with guajillo chilis, pineapple, onions, and garlic.  Shirley served up seared catfish po boy with mirin, ginger, garlic and soy glaze.

Roy Choi was not impressed.  The chefs missed the mark, and almost everybody sucked.  His judgment was super harsh, but Padma agreed and said most of the fillings got lost in the bread.

Shirley’s po boy met with Roy Choi’s approval and she won immunity.  Shirley should definitely be in the top 4.

For the Elimination Challenge, Padma and the chefs were joined by Jon Favreau.  The actor/director was working on a film project called “Chef.”  The film was about a chef who lost his way, but then found his culinary voice.

The chefs were challenged to create a dish that represented a turning point in their career.  Before they got started on the challenge, the chefs joined Jon Favreau, Gail Simmons, and Emeril to research some local New Orleans food trucks.

The next day they cooked at Café Reconcile, a local café that taught kids culinary skills to keep them off the street.  The kids who were currently enrolled in the program were servers for the evening.  The kitchen ended up being VERY warm and Nina had to completely change her dish.  Nick also had some oven issues, and ended up burning his quinoa.  He seemed to think he was sabotaged, as he was sure he turned the oven down.  Nick also had some issues with Carlos and the pots on the stove.  Drama.

Shirley made seared crispy skin snapper with crustacean broth, silken tofu, Napa cabbage, and melted leeks.  It was the first dish served and everyone cleared their plates.  There were comments about how they wanted to lick the bowl.

Nina served house made fettuccini with charred calamari, pine nut gremolata and crab meat.  She had originally wanted to serve a filled pasta, but the kitchen was too warm.  The judges thought her fettuccini was cooked perfectly.

Brian served chicken anticucho with twice cooked potatos and feta walnut pesto.  The judges were not impressed by his choice of chicken breast as his protein, and Emeril’s potato was raw.

Carlos made one of the “signature” dishes from his restaurant, braised pork belly with sweet potato puree and chipotle tamarind glaze.  The judges loved it.  They could taste every ingredient, and it was well balanced.

Nick made yellow fin tuna, with several preparations of carrot and fennel pollen dust.  The judges noticed that the dish was missing its crunchy element, the quinoa that burned.  They find the dish to be disjointed and a little mushy.

This week there was no TV preview of the Judges Table.  Padma came in and called ALL Chefs to the Table.  The judges felt that Nina’s pasta was perfectly cooked and well balanced.  Brian’s dish was heavy but bold.  Shirley’s dish was breathtaking – perfect and everyone loved it.  Carlos’s dish made sense and Emeril thought it was dynamite, especially the sweet potatoes.  Nick’s dish was disconnected and the fish didn’t fit.

Shirley was named the winner, and Nina and Carlos were also safe.  That left Nick and Brian on the bottom.  Nick was blown away when Brian was told to pack his knives.  Brian went to battle it out against Louis in Last Chance Kitchen.

Next week the stakes will be higher than ever, as a winning dish will be featured in ALL of Emeril’s Restaurants, and the top three will compete in Maui!