The final four cheftestants landed in Juneau, Alaska, where they worked their magic for chef Sean Brock.
Alaskan crab was the ingredient to build on for Quickfire. Lizzie Binder offered a frittata, Brooke Williamson a crab toast and Joshua Valentine a poached crab. But it was Maui chef Sheldon Simeon who won $5,000 for his king crab served in a dungeness crab "miso."
Next: In tribute to Alaska, the chefs offered their best renditions of salmon and sourdough, two of the state’s food favorites.
Simeon created a green tea and chive sourdough that accompanied a smoked salmon and pea soup. He selected sockeye and chum varieties, the latter of which turned out to be what locals feed dogs. Oops. But judges admitted his fish tasted good.
Valentine delivered a garlic-roasted sourdough soup with sockeye, while Binder decided on sourdough rolls that she turned into salmon sliders, served with a citrus and beet glaze and pickles.
The winner: Williamson, for a sockeye in seafood broth with mustard seed caviar and dill sourdough. Judges called it flawless.
They also said Binder’s sliders were too simplistic at this stage of the competition, and she was asked to go.
Last Chance Kitchen: Binder faced the formidable Kristen Kish in a challenge to cook fish over a campfire. She whipped up a poached salmon stew with fennel, leek and Hungarian paprika. Kish came back with a cod in coconut broth, clam juice, lime, chili-marinated tomato and corn. Judge Tom Colicchio was bowled over by both dishes but said that in the end, Kish’s dish was more balanced.
Save a Chef: CJ Jacobson vs. Stefan Richter — the victor has yet to be revealed.
Today at 8 p.m. on Bravo (repeats at 9:30 and 10:30): The Quickfire Challenge turns out to be adventurous. Then, chef Roy Choi joins judge Emeril Lagasse to cook an emotional meal, which sets the tone for the Elimination Challenge.