Iron Chef – Season 7, Episode 22 – Abalone – Full Episode

Kitchen Stadium fills with the scent of the sea when Challenger Tamotsu Takao, a French restaurant specialist, takes on Iron Chef Sakai.

“Iron Chef” is an innovative cooking competition from Japan combining the excitement of a one-on-one sports competition with gourmet cooking.

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[Music] nearly a decade ago a man’s fantasy became reality in a form never seen before kitchen Stadium a giant cooking Arena the motivation for spending his fortune to create kitchen stadium was to encounter new original Cuisines which could be called true artistic creations [Music] to realize his dream he started choosing the top chefs of various styles of cooking and he named his men the Iron Chefs the Invincible men of culinary skills Iron Chef Japanese kome Nakamura Iron Chef French hiroyuki Sakai Iron Chef Chinese Chen Kenny Chi and Iron Chef Battalion masahiko Kobe [Music] kitchen stadium is the arena where Iron Chefs await the challenges of Master Chefs from around the world both the Iron Chef and Challenger have one hour to tackle the theme ingredient of the day using all their senses skills creativity there to prepare artistic dishes never tasted before and if ever a challenger wins over the Iron Chef he or she will gain the people’s Ovation and fame forever every battle reputations are on the line in kitchen Stadium where Master Chefs pit their artistic Creations against each other what inspiration will today’s Challenger bring and how will the Iron Chef fight back the heat will be on if memory serves me right amongst the oldest of French restaurants in Tokyo there is one place that is always highly recommended Tokyo [Music] since opening its doors in 1925 to this day the restaurant attracts Discerning gourmets one of the biggest names in the history of French cooking in Japan the man who established their cooking Styles and traditional recipes was the first Grand chef of mikasakaikan The Late Show chiku Sato not so long ago the term french food was not even used it was all Western food it was Chef Sato who played a leading role in establishing the genre of French food in Japan all the gourmets would flock to his place just to try out his food he was my idol when I was young I went to eat there just to get a glimpse of them when I ate his food I was always completely speechless he was a great influence a Dynamo recently I came across a chef who is considered the last disciple of sato’s who heads a restaurant in the shonan area she will step in that’s today’s Challenger we welcome the last known disciple of the legendary Grand Chef head chef of Mikasa kaikan in koreanuba Beach [Music] he started apprenticing at mikasakaikan in ginzai at age 19 working underground Chef Sato whom takao considers more than a mentor takao recalls his days of apprenticeship it was so intimidating to work near him his intensity would make me so nervous that I’d freeze and I wouldn’t be able to pull off even the simplest task that I could do with no problem if he wasn’t around me and I was like a quivering little mouse after receiving sato’s intense training pacao was appointed head chef of mikasakaikan’s main dining room and five years later he was promoted to head their Branch Restaurant in kuganuma Beach dishes clearly Express his confidence in handling Seafood from the nearby Coast full of modern touches added to traditional recipes [Music] entertain us with the intricate skills passed on to you by a legendary chef I’d like to give it my best in today’s battle foreign foreign [Applause] foreign all right making his entrance the head chef from the top French restaurant in the shonan resort area takao assistance carrying a portrait of Sato his legendary Master The Man Behind Mikasa kaikan hello yes that’s right yes now ascending in the kitchen Stadium the nation’s culinary leaders your Iron Chefs Iron Chef Chinese Chen Kenny Chi Iron Chef French hiroyuki Sakai and Iron Chef Japanese kome Nakamura here they stand the Invincible men of culinary skills pick you up son please one of the first chefs to fuse Japanese cooking techniques with French recipes and for his artistic use of color he’s known as the delacroix of French cuisine but today going against the chef trained by the man who established French cuisine in Japan [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] all right a classic all French cuisine Seafood battle coming our way with Iron Chef Sakai outstanding record in Seafood themes against Challenger takao from shonan so he knows his Seafood as well we are Set Let’s Get It On oh that crazy bangagong we are on and quickly Challenger takao hustling out of the gate and the Iron Chef too hop skip and a jump up to the stand and the men wasting no time to grab a hold of the Abalone live Abalone still in Shell up there Abalone sometimes referred to as the king of seafood in several different sizes up there doc tell us what we’ve got today well as you can see three different types up there the black ones are called disc Abalone and then there’s giant of course which are the large ones around sebold zabaloni and the giant ones are worth about 400 bucks Man Alive 5 000 bucks what the chairman said he spent for today’s theme ingredient do the math 400 bucks for the four giant abalones and 35 bucks for each of a hundred other pieces 50 100 bucks opening up the checkbook maybe overdrawn on this one and Sakai now scampering back down both chefs back to their stations yeah look at the Challenger now he’s got his bunch of salt there all right blanketing them with salt there yeah if you bear them insult them scrub them with a brush it gets rid of the slimy texture okay and Doc you have always noted that salt is a great Degreaser and it’s going to do the job here as well and now at this time let’s meet our guests for today’s battle making his first appearance here we welcome lower House member yoshido Mori honored to have you here sir welcome to the show pleasure to be here and also joining us is actress Keiko Saito thanks for coming in thanks for having me and our commentator Dr yukiohotori duck always a pleasure all right now let’s see looks like the challengers using some cone Boo or edible kelp and Doc maybe to cure something well you know he’s just being very methodical about his whole process so far yeah yeah well I mean Abalone feeds on kelp in the sea correct all right yeah so combining the kelp which is also used for making broth as well it’s a great way to prepare Abalone so I’m really interested to see how this battle is going to develop and I’m really really looking forward to it all right floor reporter gold I asked challenge what do you think of today’s theme ingredients and he said these are great but I’m not using the larger ones because I don’t think they’ll taste as good he picked up 20 of the smaller ones and didn’t even look at the big ones none of the 400 bucks a pop babies why not small ones taste better duck um well I mean they all have to be a reasonable size you can’t go too small but I think the giant ones taste pretty good actually all right and Challenger continuing with this degreasing operation and now over the Iron Chef abalone’s in The Mixing Bowl can’t tell exactly what type he’s got a black one right there and knife in hand yeah what’s he doing there that’s a big Abalone there that is a big one there very large yeah all right look at the size of that it’s pretty amazing because they’re about 20 years old right yep uh yes go ahead yeah you were just talking about the Abalone either the Iron Chef picked out for himself he has nine sea bolts four disc and two giant and as far as the challengers comment about the flavor of the giant Abalone he’s not being as good sakai-san said that’s not true if you cook them right they’ll taste great just wait you’ll see what I mean back to you all right thanks and last battle for Sakai was in that castle in France he lost that one right now check this out what he’s doing here is getting rid of the innards and also the the beak beak uh well it’s basically what we call it it’s it’s pretty much what you I guess the mouth and yes restaurant so no problem they are a little difficult so I think I’ll stick to an orthodox approach but he is sounding confident all right so Abalone need to get it just right you got to be on top of your game really that different um it is actually yeah okay now here Challenger side Trey full of Abalone top five is that great at Daikon radish I think so yeah okay grated daikon and taking that away over to the steamer right so it’s Japanese style okay and going in there yeah well he’s taking advantage of the enzymes in the Daikon radish to make the Abalone even more tender once again the enzymes themselves right right it’s a common technique to make Abalone tender okay that’s a big part of dealing with Abalone right oh yeah red chili pepper okay so going for something hot there French chef but kind of a Japanese look right here right all right no I think he’s going to be taking the Daikon radish out later I believe and remove them right just being used to tenderize exactly okay now Sakai Abalone in the pressure cooker tossed in there as well oh what a combination contents will be under pressure and clams in there as well uh Glam yeah yeah an onion cut in half going in there and could be for something like a perhaps a bouilla base I I guess okay yeah Challenger side assistant mixing this one up here kind of dough and where’d it go with that dough I’m thinking probably for wrapping up the Abalone for example I like grilling it or something maybe in a pie yes the dough in the Challenger’s bowl is made from strong flour salt and egg whites all right making a dough and options on the table for that a pie sheet maybe okay and back with Sakai and he’s over a mixing bowl with some salt or sugar I think it’s salt okay you’ve got some eggs in there that’s a lot of salt yeah yeah I know the only thing I can think of is like salt crust Grill you may be right all right so Abalone need to be cooked in a salt casing could be on the way from the Iron Chef right well the Challenger looks like he’s using a pie inside you know the Abalone and place the Abalone meat in there then right and then another layer of salt and just cook the whole thing that work I think that’s quite possible yeah okay is that buckwheat flour um I think so Challenger side here really combine Abalone to it well giving it a good rinsing at any rate yes yeah not flour grains of Buckwheat all right thanks big fella the greens without the the black hostage you’re gonna work in buckwheat with Abalone so I think probably a sort of risotto or porridge type dish with this okay let’s see what he comes up with and now the Iron Chef uh salt below Abalone in here wacame seaweed right and I think it’ll add more salt and just cover the whole thing then yeah I think you guys agree yeah and then steam it right I think you’ll actually Grill it to be honest okay great piece of work here by the Iron Chef yes yeah talking about the abalone the Challenger says I usually only use Abalone in mid-summer but for the pride of the restaurant I’ll make a special Abalone dish that is popular at my place all right in here Challenger to cow using some moist kelp and laying it down over the shells not exactly the same but in a similar vein to what Sakai is doing on the other side right right look at that right there now back with the Iron Chef all right yeah okay yeah more salt going over it huh Terry son you got that right salt crust Grill by Sakai okay well I managed to get one right so far okay patting it tight together with some herbs there ready for grilling yeah I think you’re right that is herbs in there okay and they will take this one into the oven for cooking there and you know it’s sandwiched directly in salt would just make it too salty obviously right so you notice he’s kind of got a cushion or a padded layer there using the the wakame seaweed and he’ll also be able to take advantage of the aroma of the seaweed as well all right look at the Challenger uh long onion long onions no don’t believe so what are they oh that could be it oh okay and she’s talking mushrooms okay popping one of those down oh certainly looks Japanese another one from the French cuisine Chef sounds good and looks good Japanese my mouth is watering yes cytosan was right it is a type of Honey ward in the challengers using the stamp all right and there he is adding the Abalone so honey wart kelp and a shiitake mushroom it’s got a lot more happening Japanese styled in French coming from Challenger to cow how many dishes he’s planning to have in his reply was four or five he says I’d like to make more but I’ll probably be safer being on the conservative side conservative just like you guys in the ldp all right now I understand there are a number of French cuisine chefs in the shonan resort area and one of them is uh Chef yamanobe right right and he’s from the restaurant okay and he is here today yes there he is up in the Royal box yeah they’re actually friendsies too I imagine okay you got another Bingo yep wrapping them up all right so far too yeah two for two that’ll raise the batting average finally Iron Chef going with the salt crust Challenger with the pie dough to encase the Abalone encapsulate the flavors now if you check out the Iron Chef he’s using the innards here okay the coral it’s called right right this is such a great thing I’m going to use that and here in this pot cooking up pieces of Abalone a little bit of oil in there perhaps some olive oil I think you’re right yeah okay and given that a light braised treatment yeah and the coral going in so Sakai using the innards not quite sure what will be done with this yet no guesses no um I mean I just eat them as they are right now they’re great okay now back with the Challenger loaf of bread the assistant’s slicing away slicing off the crust Abalone sandwich anyone I don’t think so that’d be a sandwich take a long time to Chow Down I don’t know anyone who would dare try something like that yeah potatoes oh yeah here we go you’re right okay grated ham potatoes Challenger side also so has some grated Abalone over here I think yes that’s right he also has grated Abalone over there huh okay combining those two right here okay and I believe wasn’t too long ago we had that combo somewhere along the way uh it was Iron Chef Japanese Nakamura recently good right yeah it was wonderful it was amazing now oh is this the Iron Chef yes so added some red wine I think right so I think it’s going to be a sauce for the salt pack Grill okay sauce specialist Sakai getting that one done early either way yes I mentioned to the Challenger that iron chefsakai is doing something similar in a salt crust and his comment was but his will be a regular salt crust mine is a special original what I call a salt pie ratcheting it up it’s a chill doe dirt oh yeah yeah okay yes we saw that one chopped Abalone and caviar there right combined with the caviar Nice Nice Guys yes what the challengers putting into these dishes is a combination of chopped Abalone as you said caviar and sour cream okay sour cream also in it has to be an appetizer right right and I need to correct myself make an apology this one here sauce for the grill it’s actually going into the cups for serving okay he messed you up on that one this one with a piece of bread would be great [Applause] yes I told the Iron Chef that the challenge was using many similar approaches and techniques and his reply was well yeah but he’s a copycat well uh no patents on the dishes around here plus you never know just who had the initial inspiration Challenger now out of the steam or the abalone shell with grated Daikon radish which was used to tenderize exactly and uh approaching the halfway point so he has them uh given them quite a significant amount of cooking time definitely yeah and check this out okay the Sakai his salt packed Abalone into the oven and now 30 minutes gone 30 to go into the second half the men today cooking 5 000 bucks worth of Babylonian morisan you don’t need to report this one okay yes right after the 30 minute call I asked the Challenger if he was going to make it and he said to me well actually I may not seriously it’s difficult doing things in the kitchen I’m not used to and this is stressful he seems to be a bit behind schedule all right and seems be spinning his wheels right there a challenger takao and this is where even the best of chefs can sometimes struggle dealing with the pressure of the clock and now here looks like sakai’s added bamboo shoots to this one yes yes speaking of those bamboo shoots on the ownership side he’s all already lightly fried those okay fried first before going in that’s right okay apparently just a light pan fry and yeah an Iron Chef taking it off and whoa watch out there I’m almost lost it good trip we covered averting what could have been a real disaster exactly oh look at the Challenger okay Abalone and I believe some liver in this pot Challenger to cow and Iron Chef Sakai both men opting to utilize Abalone liver in the cooking of their dishes today right right that’s a very wise movement important element I guess okay it’s there use it take advantage of it that bread I think you’ll use like bread sticks for dipping like he might turn it into the one with the liver make it crispy right fry them I think they’ll probably toast them okay has them all lined up there oh he’s going to open it all right his pressure cooker sakai’s off the stove time now to check out the contents what was inside that uh well obviously Abalone yeah okay lit off and oh some daikon in there as well daikon too and which of the items will he be using from this well the Abalone just the Abalone well it should be just the Abalone I think we’ll not use any of the veggies to be honest I don’t think he will he probably won’t use the clams either no wow you won’t use the glams No No he won’t I think it was probably added only for fragrance I tell you it seems like such a waste to toss out the clams it certainly does talk about Deluxe yeah focus on yes I asked dinosaur Sakai house pressure cooker this turned out and he said pressure cooker oh this one it’s perfect this is a winner and I’m going to win with it all right popped up over there oh it looks really tender wow look at that and it’s absorbed all the flavors of the other items Jazz makes my mouth water I want it now morisan if you need a hanky just ask Abalone pressure cooked and super stewed things are starting to take shape they are and to Cal getting this one plated asparagus Lobster and Abalone right yep and the veggie quotient increase there with the little baby corn adding an element of colored two or young corn okay young corn that’s what we call it here anyway all right now here is Sakai salt crust grilled Abalone three of them right there is that enough well I think what they’re going to do is split and then shared like it’s gonna be one for every two people okay so he’ll slice all right that’s how he’ll do it yeah I was a little worried about that oh no no no no no no you are the guy who’s going to be taken care of today don’t worry about that and now he’s got the wakame seaweed in there too it’s Aroma encapsulated in the offering and here takao’s pie dough wrapped ones they are going into the oven as well have enough time to finish these gotta wonder about that actually he only needs about 10 minutes or so for these and I think just make sure right they just went in exactly they just went in that’s what I was watching yeah so I think he wants the tasters to enjoy them nice and warm timing critical calculating exactly when he wants them finished what’s he doing there okay you got me he’s got a bunch of seaweed in his hand and looks like he’s trying to locate something a utensil okay got the tongs there no idea what he’s doing massive pieces of kelp good quality stuff I’m sure the boiling water and wonder what that’s all about I don’t think it’s going to be for eating to be honest [Music] yeah like a blanket on the plate or something like that okay now back with Sakai blender action here and what is in there asparagus asparagus okay see if we can get some word on it yes you have it let me give you all the ingredients in the iron Chef’s blender consummate sugar and asparagus tips all right thanks tips only the tips being selective about it just using the tips uh well doing in the blender probably means that yeah yeah too much spreading out the kelp gave it a quick boil yeah that’ll be the underlay for his salt crust grills okay but Challenger’s not the one with the salt crust grills oh I’m sorry the salt the the salty Pine or whatever right he’s got the pie dough encased ones and now Sakai scrambling here some bamboo leaves some green there in season the green leaves were decoration Japanese maple are they okay and now he’s got his salt crust grilled pieces oh I see all right both guys similar items and similar presentations for them very much the same yeah it’s very similar okay his looks like a done deal here you know maybe he won’t add a sauce to this one after all maybe it’s just going to be a plain old salt flavor Straight Ahead approach no need to embellish flavor-wise yes with a little more than 15 minutes left I asked uh Iron Chef Sakai how many dishes he’s driving for and he said four only four today I’m not venturing into the unknown I need to win all right Sakai reigning in the horns discretion the better part of valor and look at that one right there colorful sauce by the delacroft for the super astute Abalone that’s the bamboo shoots in Abalone there might be fine looking oh yeah you know texture-wise the bamboo shoots will be nice and crispy right and the apple right on top of that one Kai fine job okay and Challenger to cow his dish using the Abalone liver okay yeah the mixture in the Challenger’s bowl is strained Abalone liver and salad oil looks like a dressing darn right it’s a dressing Abalone liver sauce platform for a couple of pieces of Abalone and a cherry tomato there all right got some red and yellow ones okay and now let’s see Sakai here oh I see the asparagus soup from the blending so yeah definitely this is a soup now but there’s no Abalone well you know early summer is pretty much the best season for asparagus to kind of Stand by itself right now okay and I think what he’ll do is just add the Abalone a little bit later all right has a very appealing color thank you so I think you’ll add the Abalone later and very appealing color now look at the Iron Chef here all right oh you got it right again tear it up here he’s actually going to use it Coral sauce with the salt crust grilled Abalone and here Abalone being placed to talk to this one yes that’s right what the Iron Chef is topping this dish off with is boiled Abalone coated with potato starch all right thanks and 10 minutes left in this battle you know that’s a very clever move right there I think he’s done with that one okay uh riced porridge I think it actually seems to be more like a soup than a porous I’m just going to say the same thing okay and let’s see it looks like they’re taking this out yep the Abalone pies with plenty of time to spare oh don’t drop them exactly don’t want to lose that one yeah yes the soup that you were just talking about on the Challenger side it contains buckwheat grains clam juice salt and other various seasonings back to you all right a soup with the buckwheat and he’s probably going to mix it with Abalone okay later right exactly now back on the Iron Chef side here and possibly some small fry small fish to tell you the truth I think he’s frying Abalone ah okay fried Abalone deep fried Abalone I’ve never even heard it it’s almost like an insult I’ve never heard of that either somehow the concept doesn’t seem appropriate for such an expensive item I didn’t know anyone would even dare to try this the tasters are going to have some Abalone fries today let’s think of the way that he’s done this so I mean so far we’ve got I’ve only cooked all sorts of steamed like a grilled now it’s been fried that’s amazing and now Challenger to cows got his pies resting atop a blanket of kelp lightly brown surface check those out back with the Iron Chef and these have just come from the oven I presume I think so yeah all right they’ll be pear up with the fried Abalone and now it’s starting to make a little more sense it does and you know this dish actually reminds me of an escargot recipe and artistic taboo the design presentation even with the cups slightly off center I can see what you mean yes okay and a couple of fried pieces positioned right there perfect abalone yeah check that out okay that’s the one is that great a jam and Abalone mix right right right yeah that’s the grated mixing forgot about that one yeah so he didn’t cook that right okay good so it wasn’t far off from meeting it with steamed rice just not on the races instead it’s on the buckwheat soup so that’s what it is Challenger taking that grated yam and grated Abalone and adding it to Buckwheat soup Oh look The Iron Chef is trying eggs Sakai deep frying them there look at this in the oil small eggs might be quail eggs good job I think you’re right quail eggs quick deep fried job there huh I didn’t know you can do that oh you’re learning something today very much yes I need to cook more yeah well if you can go home right after there and get in there get in the kitchen now let’s see the fried eggs he’s got him resting on parsley and now the Challenger breadsticks putting those down I think I managed to call this one okay the Abalone caviar mix right I think I didn’t I mention that I think I said I don’t know I can’t remember that camera it should add a nice mild touch to it okay Sakai quail egg on top of the Abalone liver one to go with Abalone fries looking good fried quail egg just the right size too egg yolk like a dressing okay on this one Dublin piggy is tripling down on the theme now three minutes left in a high-end high value battle five thousand dollars worth of Abalone fortunately modisan don’t have to pay any consumption taxes on this one yes this sauce that you see on the Challenger side is the blend of useless Citrus juice pickle shallots dried cured Plum sweet cookie sake mustard sugar and salad oil can you get any more questions yeah well to add some sourness I guess that’s the obvious answer I mean shallots they will also add some texture though too right all right and you know seeing takao’s decoration presentation work I have to say I am quite impressed with what he is doing me too it’s very very professional and right here scanning the dishes on his side and he has made some powerful presentation statements but he’s also showing a bit of a sensitive side here as well okay Sakai now deep frying some pieces of bread right here and we’re doing the same thing maybe breadsticks going out on a list okay and his are a little bigger than the challengers though yeah maybe to go with that one there which one is that uh the ones with the eggs oh yeah yeah that could be could very well be sure yes I asked the Iron Chef about this bread and you told me that after hearing that the Challenger was using bread he thought hey I’m going to use something [Laughter] you can see the chef in action but no way of getting into their head to find out when the inspiration hit we’ll just leave it at that as we approach the final minute of this one all right did I call it yes and take credit now a minute to go the final 60 seconds the men today using the king of shellfish Abalone Iron Chef Sakai the delacroix French cuisine check out the presentation here and a piece of white Abalone to be added to that one Challenger to Cal no slouch himself in the presentation Department he does his thing down in the shonan resort area at Mikasa kaikon the resort branch of the head restaurant in Ginza and he’s done a great job today and some of the other French cuisine chefs and Sean on have come up to Tokyo to see takao’s Resort style French cooking against the Cosmopolitan Urban French cuisine of Iron Chef Sakai takao trained by the legendary Grand Chef chochukusato iron a Pioneer who resides at the top of the nation’s French cuisine scene something’s got to give we’ll find out what it is final seconds tick down and that’s it the Abalone battle is over so how was that hour it was really short short yeah of course I tried to do my very best though and uh I’m pretty satisfied with what I have satisfied yeah satisfied that your dishes are almost perfect well near perfect great you two seem to have similar advice today really any thoughts on that well considering the ingredient Abalone most French chefs would tend to take similar approaches oh okay you can understand how you want to heat them and prepare them I see now Chef takao seems pretty upbeat about winning this whole thing winning or losing that’s up to the judges of course oh yeah yeah Challenger takao is offering five dishes first caviar and Abalone tartar served with bread sticks for dipping into the raw chopped Abalone caviar takao’s done a wonderful job of creating a playful texture second steamed Abalone Coral sauce doubling down on the theme ingredient the slight bitterness of the liver sauce does the trick of accentuating the natural flavor of steamed and tender abalone third Lobster and Abalone salad dish that brings with it the soothing breezes of the shonan coast the combo of seafood and vegetables may appear disorganized but the citrus-based sauce gracefully harmonizes all the elements fourth Abalone yam and buckwheat soup the mix of grated yam potatoes and Abalone is a superb match with the cooked buckwheat grains in the soup [Music] last is abalone salt crust Grill and Pie sheets the Abalone was packed in salt and encased in a pie dough before going off to the oven the kelp below adds even more body to the abalone Iron Chef Sakai is offering four dishes first Abalone and Abalone liver stewed in red wine tripling down on the theme the mildly finished liver stew with Abalone pieces in it is marvelous and the fried Abalone a daring try should be a real eye-opener for the tasters second asparagus soup Abalone flavor what an effort the essence and Aroma of fresh asparagus blended with the flavor and Aroma of seafood a wonderful early summer presentation third stewed Abalone Province all style using the giant 400 a pop Abalone could be the ultimate dish of the day and it offers a contrast in textures between Abalone and bamboo shoots and last Abalone salt crust grill with liver and butter sauce a similar approach is that of the challengers but sakai’s dish is also served with vegetables which helps add some balance to the final offering and his liver and butter sauce should have a bit more impact than the conventional liver sauce offered by takao foreign [Music] chef of Mikasa kaikon the restaurant that played the leading role in establishing French cuisine in Japan this man is the head chef of the restaurant’s shonon Branch today’s Challenger tamotsu takao he’s going to play it straight up and go after Iron Chef French hiroyuki Sakai chairman kaga unveils the theme ingredients sparing no expense today five thousand dollars worth of abalone Challenger to cow hits a rough patch but managers a five-dish finish Iron Chef Sakai conservative but consistent completes a set of four and now the Moment of Truth tasting in judgment on the panel today for the Abalone battle are novelist tamio kagayama actress Keiko Saito lower House member yoshidomori and culinary critic asako Kishi first the dishes of Challenger takao great yes very good it’s tender the tenderness is just right right it’s not too tender but yet still firm enough to enjoy right was uh putting the greatest daikon on top an important yes many different ingredients are combined with the Citrus flavor tying them nicely together I think it appeals to the younger generation in particular especially the looks of it cooking lobster and Abalone together is not easy but because of your skills the Abalone is nice and tender while the lobster maintains The Firm texture and taste I’m very impressed visually pleasing too rice and like I said before you can taste the Sea Breeze in this I agree with his comment about the Sea Breeze you don’t see the physical shape of those elements but you sense the voice of the Abalone so to speak through the aroma of the cooking and now to Cal carefully opening up his salt crust in pies the salt is very effective and I love salty dishes great [Laughter] but for me it’s a bit too salty it has absorbed the saltiness of other elements around it it’s too salty for my taste buds all his Abalone dishes were very different especially in texture and I was impressed with the flow of the courses emphasizing the concept of the ocean I think he did a great job in that sense as well and now up the dishes of Iron Chef Sakai you break the egg you break the egg so nice incredible Aroma it’s a very mature flavor a dish for adult taste the Abalone harmonizes well with all the ingredients and the liver is so mild while maintaining its richness and the egg yolk adds even more yes right double the flavor so refreshing is the only way to describe this really and adding broad beans and asparagus soup and making it a two-tone flavor is what I love love about this I know this is going to clean up my blood yes it’s very refreshing like uh inner cleansing bamboo shoots on Abalone are so different in texture yet you succeeded in their Harmony tomatoes are very effective Tomatoes right yes yes sweet I can taste the sweetness of tomatoes and bell pepper the tomatoes match very well very good you know he can actually pass for a kind of sauce like a fruit sauce probably because of the liqueur in it I see it tastes like orange sauce almost I was planning to eat only half of this yes now the Iron Chef laying down the sauce on his salt crust grilled abalone just eating the Abalone alone is quite salty and eating two three pieces it really gets salty but when you take a bite of the vegetables you notice that the whole dish is well balanced so every element was well calculated in this dish I think um it was powerful but sophisticated the Challenger’s dishes expressed his challenging Spirit trying to beat the Iron Chef the flavors represented the younger generation meanwhile in this dish from the champ it accepted the challenge with a mature flavor the king of seafood who will be crowned the winner the verdict when we return original [Music] foreign worth of Abalone Gone in 60 minutes Challenger takao his dish is bringing a breeze from the coast and upholding Mikasa kaikon’s reputation Iron Chef Sakai as usual blazing his own path who takes it whose Cuisine Reigns Supreme [Music] foreign [Music] but quickly coming over hand extended Challenger takao offering his congratulations to the Victor and takow’s Friends upstairs acknowledge the win all right check the scores kagiyama 20-18 Iron Chef Saito 20-18 Iron Chef money 20 to 17 Iron Chef Kishi 1917 Iron Chef a sweep and one point shot of a perfect 80. no disputing the outcome here still he was on edge you never know but it’s another Seafood Victory chalked up by Iron Chef French hiroyuki Sakai [Applause] thank you [Music] foreign [Music] foreign