{"id":60,"date":"2008-04-24T13:27:20","date_gmt":"2008-04-24T19:27:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ironcheffans.info\/wordpress\/?p=60"},"modified":"2008-05-24T16:46:51","modified_gmt":"2008-05-24T22:46:51","slug":"kitchen-stadium-episode-review-potato-battle-chen-vs-kobayashi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/ironcheffans.com\/?p=60","title":{"rendered":"Kitchen Stadium Episode Review- Potato Battle (Chen vs. Kobayashi)"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Kitchen Stadium Message Boards are proud to the present the first in a series of “Iron Chef” episode reviews, written to highlight episodes available on Iron Chef Collection. Our first review is of the famous Potato Battle with Iron Chef Chen Kenichi and challenger Katsuyo Kobayashi.<\/span><\/p>\n

Chen vs. Katsuyo Kobayashi<\/span><\/p>\n

Original Japan Airdate: 8\/26\/94<\/span><\/p>\n

Iron Chef, The Official Book episode# 43<\/span><\/p>\n

Iron Chef Collection episode# 232<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Imprinted upon your brain, forever, will be two facts by the end of this episode: Only one woman challenger has entered Kitchen Stadium before; and she defeated Chen Kenichi.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, Katuyo Kobayashi, known by millions in Japan for her TV show, \u201cToday\u2019s Cooking,\u201d faces the Iron Chefs. In addition to appearing on TV since 1968, she\u2019s authored over seventy cookbooks, creating over a thousand recipes each year. \u201cI never run out of new ideas when it comes to cooking,\u201d she explains. \u201cI\u2019m swamped with new ideas all the time.\u201d The Chairman exhorts today\u2019s challenger: \u201cNow, Kobayashi, with all the housewives in Japan behind you, entertain us with your ultimate home cooking!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Kobayashi starts by breaking a basic Kitchen Stadium convention: She won\u2019t pick an Iron Chef. \u201cSo you say,\u201d asks Kaga, nonplussed, \u201cI can make the choice?\u201d With a gleeful (perhaps even diabolical) smile, he selects Chen.<\/span><\/p>\n

The ingredient: potatoes. As an Italian chef once told Kaga, \u201cGo for the tail of the potato.\u201d \u201cYou may be surprised, but there is a head and a tail to this round vegetable.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Commenting on today\u2019s battle are actress Mayuko Takata, Dr. Yukio Hattori, and Kenji Fukui. Among those in the observers\u2019 box are the challenger\u2019s daughter, Mariko, and son, Kentaro (a future challenger).<\/span><\/p>\n

Kobayashi\u2019s style is deliberate and reflective and, as Otah remarks, \u201cso<\/em> relaxed\u201d as she calmly cuts her first potato. But her pace picks up as she talks continuously (as TV personalities must), runs around the Stadium looking for the right plate, and gives orders to young assistants who can barely keep up.<\/span><\/p>\n

Chen not only has to forge from the flames dynamic potato dishes; he also has to shrug off constant reminders and jabs from Otah and Fukui about his previous loss to a lady challenger (about which he supposedly \u201cstill has nightmares\u201d).<\/span><\/p>\n

Kobayashi is the only challenger I know of who crosses over to the Iron Chef\u2019s side, during the competition, to check how he\u2019s doing. Chen is polite, as one would expect, but says, \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t be here.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI had great fun doing this!\u201d Kobayashi tells Otah after the battle. Asked to rate his work this time around, Chen replies, \u201cI never score my own dishes.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The challenger offers a magnificent set of seven dishes:<\/span><\/p>\n