Iron Chef

Those of you who've tuned into the Food Network at all in recent days might have heard that the last season of The Next Iron Chef: Super Chefs has just wrapped, and a new champion has emerged victorious out of the star-studded (and highly competitive) lineup.

That would be Geoffrey Zakarian, guest judge of Food Network's Chopped and chef and owner of The National and The Lambs Club in New York City and Tudor House in Miami.

I had a chance to catch up with the chef over the phone, where he revealed his thoughts on why he won, how he hopes to set himself apart from the others on Iron Chef America, and what he always makes for the holidays.

YumSugar: You had a very serious expression on your face when the final outcome was revealed. What was your first thought when they announced you as the winner?
Geoffrey Zakarian: Well, they actually didn't call my name, which was sort of confusing, because whenever anyone got kicked off, they would actually say, "You will not be the next Iron Chef." But I was stunned, shocked, and relieved; there was a real sense of accomplishment.

Zakarian on his toughest Next Iron Chef moments, and his upcoming Kitchen Stadium challenges, after the jump.

Ever wondered what it's like to be one of 10 to compete for the title of Iron Chef? To find out, our partners at Slashfood picked the brain of current contender Marc Forgione. At his eponymous restaurant, Forgione talked to Slashfood candidly about his biggest competitors ("Marco Canora was there for business"), what he learned ("It made me a much, much better chef") and how The Next Iron Chef is different from most reality TV. Check out their video to get the inside details!


Marc Forgione on The Next Iron Chef [Video]
Photo Courtesy Food Network

Is it Friday yet? That's what we've been asking ourselves every single morning. Sadly, the answer is no, but we've got a midafternoon amusement that'll remedy the worst of the weekday slumps.

Today we caught wind of a video on Eater that's so brilliant we had to watch it multiple times — and so funny we wanted to make sure you saw it.

Ever wondered what it would be like to put all of Iron Chef America's secret ingredient proclamations in a video together? Yeah, we hadn't either — but the result, as it turns out, is ingenious. See the video after the jump.

Masaharu Morimoto's cooking demo in Aspen was exactly that: a demonstration. To be more specific, it was a mind-blowing demonstration of how stupefyingly skilled he is in the kitchen.

The Iron Chef began by making a fried fish cake noodle soup, first puréeing white fish with egg whites, potato starch, and soy, then piping the tacky, moist mousse into simmering fish broth to form udon-like noodles, which were finished with a flash-fry in vegetable oil.

But the real show began when Morimoto pulled out his mad Japanese knife techniques to create the most stunning sashimi platter that I've ever seen. Read more about it after the jump.

Last night was a big one for Food Network. The most anticipated episode of Iron Chef America, with a secret ingredient of "national importance" and Michelle Obama, aired at 8, and the premiere of its much hyped Worst Cooks in America — featuring Anne Burrell — debuted at 10.

Did you catch either of the shows? I did! I thoroughly enjoyed Iron Chef America. After reading so much about Chef Comerford, it was nice to see her personality come to life on camera. And who couldn't love the combination of Mario Batali and Emeril Lagasse?

Worst Cooks in America, on the other hand, is kind of like the Jersey Shore of reality cooking competitions. While it may be entertaining, it's neither educational nor exciting, and on a Sunday night at 10, I'd rather catch up on my beauty sleep than watch this excruciating series. Still, it's so bad, it just might be a hit. What did you think?

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Yesterday morning I was lucky enough to be among a handful of journalists who were invited to Williams-Sonoma to enjoy a breakfast made by Michael Symon. The restaurateur and Iron Chef was in town to promote his recently released cookbook, Michael Symon's Live to Cook. The book took Symon, and co-writer Michael Ruhlman, three and a half years to write.

While cooking up bacon, scrambled eggs with goat cheese, and his dad's recipe for potato pancakes, the friendly, outgoing, and opinionated chef got to talking. To hear what he has to say about chefs who don't cook on their downtime and find out what compromises he had to make with his publishing company, please keep reading.

Last month Bobby Flay, Emeril Lagasse, and Mario Batali headed to the White House. The chefs filmed a two-hour special of Iron Chef America that will open the upcoming season of Iron Chef on Jan. 3.

First Lady Michelle Obama got in on the fun, challenging the chefs to create a meal for America using only ingredients grown in the White House garden.

According to his Twitter, Flay joins forces with the White House chef Cristeta Comerford to battle Lagasse and Batali. The judges are a trio of females, chef Nigella Lawson, actress Jane Seymour, and swimmer Natalie Coughlin. Longtime host Alton Brown provides his usual enthusiastic commentary.

Over the past year the White House garden has spent plenty of time in the spotlight and I'm excited to get a better look at it on Iron Chef. How about you? Will you tune in?