Rivals and Redemption

Air Date: 05/17/2006

Contestants: Natsuki Youko (夏樹陽子), Matsubara Nobue (松原のぶえ), Daita Hikaru (だいたひかる), Ooshima Miyuki (大島美幸), Aoki Sayaka (青木さやか), Horikoshi Nori (堀越のり)

Guest Judges: Nakajou Kiyoshi (中条きよし), Katou Cha (加藤茶), Katsumata Kunikazu (勝俣州和)

Theme Ingredient/Recipes:
Cabbage / Cabbage Rolls and Potafu (cabbage stew)

Recap: This was a great episode because you had two different things happening during the show. The first was a grudge match between Aoki and Natsuki, who have butted heads earlier. The second was whether or not Matsubara could finally redeem herself after some very poor performances earlier. Throw Nori-chan into the mix (Ying-Ling must have had another engagement) and you are in for a fun evening.

Cooking time started off with a discussion of Aoki's current position on the Ranking Board. Having crept into Top Epu territory, she now is after the trophy. Further down the Ranking Board, Youko also has her eyes on the trophy. They also focused on Nobue's breakdown in an earlier episode, while being judged on her dishes. She really wanted to prove that she could do it.

First up for judging was Daita Hikaru, and although it appeared that she struggled a bit with the cabbage rolls, they were actually okay. She really did well with the stew, everyone was impressed. There was some advice given, but overall both dishes were good. Next up was Aoki, and they intro'ed her segment with a little recap on the bickering between her and Natsuki back in April. Things got off to an interesting start, because Nakajou thought the taste wasn't quite right. It was only OK, which got an interesting look for Aoki. But then the other two judges disputed his claim, because they were really impressed with her cooking. Even her use of pasta to hold the rolls together while she was simmering them. When it came time for her stew, she even included a side of brown mustard to add some spice to the dish. Everyone enjoyed it as well, even Emi-chan (who Aoki has butted heads with before as well).

It was only fair to judge the other half of the grudge next, so it was Natsuki's turn. Rather than making several cabbage rolls, she made one giant one. Even though it was large, everyone liked it. When asked to make a comparison, it seemed that Natsuki might have the edge, which resulted in some snide remarks flying in both directions. Natsuki shouldn't have been too quick to think she had the edge, as the use of milk in her stew pretty much ruined her chances of beating Aoki. It was so bad it actually caused Katou to spew the soup all over the table. Natsuki needed a cool cloth to calm down, pretty well ruling out revenge for today.

Judging then turned to Matsubara, who was trying hard to return her nameplate to the studio grounds (it currently is out on the sidewalk). She did a good job with the cabbage, but what really counted was Katsumata's opinion. He was very impressed, not only with the rolls but her stew as well. So much so, that he jumped up and hugged her, not once but twice. In fact, it was so good, Aoki might not be the best cook of the evening.

It was good that they all had some good cooking, because Nori-chan was next up. Starting off with a mutant cabbage roll, which was wrapped in tripe and raw, it caused a run to the bucket. It was followed by a stew that was just as bad. She put both powdered cheese and butter in it. Ooshima had the same problem as Nori-chan, with her cabbage roll being raw inside. More bucket time. She took a page from Natsuki's cookbook and put both milk and heavy cream into her stew. However, it actually turned out better than Natsuki's.

When it came to judgement time, it turned out to be a good thing that Nori-chan was on the show. Because while running her nameplate out to the street, Katsumata was able to pick up Matsubara's and place it on the Ranking Board in the Top Epu section. Then came time to determine the ranking of Aoki and Natsuki. As expected Natsuki dropped off Ranking Board while Aoki moved further up towards the Special Epu ranking (earning herself the night's trophy in the process).

One note before I close out this episode. Next week is a very special Apron Boys special... featuring Hard Gay!

Ranking ( out of 113 ):
Aoki Sayaka: 16
Matsubara Nobue: 25
Ooshima Miyuki: 69
Natsuki Youko: 84
Daita Hikaru: 92
Horikoshi Nori: 110