santoscooks

100% no. In fact, the judges don't even find out the ingredients until right before. Typically the judges get about 30 minutes to look at the basket and figure out if it is too complicated for the allotted time. Recently there was eel and artichoke in an early basket (20 min). You can't properly clean and prep eel and artichoke and still have time to make something in 20 min, so we swapped one of the ingredients out.

But the contestants get their baskets and we start filming, there isn't much time to think!

Wow. Um. If I was spice I would be ground ghost pepper because I'm obsessed with all things hot sauce related, and I have the palate to absorb that kind of shit. I put some kind of hot spice on everything...I basically view food in my personal life as a hot sauce delivery system.

I love this! Actually, Alex is my official work wife on set! We spend 12-14 long hours with each other everyday.....cracking each other up, bickering, making up and then starting all over again. I love her!

Chilaquiles, a traditional Mexican Hangover cure, which is made with crispy fried corn tortillas, tossed in a sauce like salsa verde (or any kind of salsa).

Then you can add anything, all kinds of hot sauces, cheese, egg sunny side up, chicken, or really anything you can imagine. I even eat it when I'm not hungover.

It certainly can be challenging at times. Usually speaking the food is quite good, even if presentation suffers due to the clock running out. But yes occasionally there is something that just isnt successful and you always need to have a compassion when you are essentially breaking someone's heart in a way. Still I feel being direct, and truthful about what happened is the best route and remind the chef that they need to not let one dish , prepared in a really crazy environment, define who they are as a chef!