"Dreams Are Coming True on Cutthroat Kitchen" — Alton's After-Show
It was only a few weeks ago that guest judge Richard Blais proclaimed himself "the best that ever played this game." And though Cutthroat Kitchen has indeed seen its share of impressive winners (and losers), we're inclined to agree that Richard's enthusiasm for eviliciousness knows no bounds — literally. In honor of the day's pesto test, he was challenged to swing hits over a makeshift "Green Monster" in order to earn the required ingredients for pesto on the After-Show. He managed to score not one but multiple up-and-over home runs to collect everything he'd need to make the dish, like fresh herbs, fruity olive oil and plenty of Parmesan cheese. "This is so much fun. I love this show!" he said, donning a team CTK baseball cap.
As Richard moved to his prep station to start work on his pesto, he predicted more sabotages — and, sure enough, he was correct. The now-infamous Bob-powered shaking table reared its wobbly head once again during the shaking beef round in the episode, and now it was up to Richard to try his hands at it. "This is amazing," Richard said, as he began to chop up parsley amid the tremors. "I live in Southern California. Things shake around here all the time." In true Cali fashion, he kept up with the sabotage, even as the shakes progressed into a constant and fast ruckus. But just as Richard was ready to accept the limitations of his moving table — "If I was in the kitchen, I'd probably go grab the nitrogen," he explained — host Alton Brown came to his rescue with the liquid nitrogen tank, much to Richard's delight. "Dreams are coming true on Cutthroat Kitchen," declared Richard, who watched as Alton poured a glug of the nitrogen into his mortar. Richard explained the ins and outs of the process: "What happens is the nitrogen freezes the herbs and allows us to really grind them up really nice." Both Richard and Alton tasted the judge's chilly concoction, and it measured up to both of their standards quickly.
Click the play button on the video above to watch Richard hit the home runs of his career, and take an up-close look at the shaky prep station.