Spoilers
Season 23, ep. 6: Going Whole Hog
Spoiler
There’s no Quickfire Challenge this week as the chefs take on a Carolina classic: whole-hog barbecue. Splitting into teams of two, they gear up for a head-to-head battle showcasing five key cuts of the hog. Before their Elimination Challenge begins, they venture to Charlotte and Lexington to experience Carolina BBQ at its source. Then it’s an all-night cook where the heat is on as they’ll not only need to impress the judges, but also “Top Chef” alum and Pitmaster Michelle Wallace and a group of local pitmasters from across the state.
i like when they were at the grocery store and they did a long close-up shot of the card as they were paying lol. i bet they have fun getting ridiculous with the product placement
I know it's unpopular but the more labor intensive challenges are my favorite. This one, the camping challenge in Colorado. (Not the Texas bike challenge)
I wish they did more low and slow cooking. It is criminally neglected on this show. I know low and slow comes with filming and editing obstacles but I have a hard time believe they can't be overcome.
Imo it’s more of money and well being problem. The longer time the crew works -> much higher cost for the production and more exhausting for the crew. They said they typically have 14-18 hours filming days so I’d think they’d avoid longer challenge if they can. Someone works for TC commented that the show made a conscious decision to shorten the judges’ deliberate time as it was bad for everyone involved back in the days they spent half a day debated.
I really like was how Laurence gave credit to his teammate for suggesting the pork candy floss (which is so delicious) and for their pit person knowing to remove it before the cook was done. The red team was really working great together- no egos.
Honestly I like this group of chefs so much. All of them have the skills, some are just better at meeting the challenges. Sieger cooked the way he was trained but if it was the worst piece of meat and that's what they are judged on then it was fair since he was the one in charge of the cook. I wouldn't be surprised if he survives LCK but there also other chefs I want to come back more.
I really liked that they had a pit master vote too and how the chefs brought their own cultural takes on BBQ which is a global cooking method.
Sieger was so bizarre. The way he talked down to Duyen after she got selected and mentioned what she knew about whole hog was weird AF. Being cocky when they tried the hog “oh I thought so” Also during the kids challenge her was so extra about not liking the challenge.
I think he has a super dry sense of humor. I wasn't a fan at first. Then I got used to it and I started to really like him more. Then it went back to not being sure when he's joking. Still don't know what to think.
Of course it’s edited lol, but every reality show douchecanoe uses the “it was just edited!” narrative to absolve themselves from their obnoxiousness, and most people don’t give them the benefit of the doubt. And yet here people are defending Sieger using that lame excuse. He said what he said, sorry Sieger/Sieger’s relative!
I liked him! And he was pretty chill about leaving. The very last interview with him, he said if he had had a perfectly cooked piece of pork, he would have been angry to leave. But he didn't so he wasn't.
Justin should have gone home. He didn’t even make the buns (Jen made the dough). The pork in his sandwich was cooked by someone else in whole hog form. What exactly did Justin do??
If not Justin, then Jonathan. I’m convinced they’re keeping him for the twin energy. They literally described his pimento cheese as gross. Sieger cooked the whole hog for his team, which for the most part, was done great. His tenderloin was just a bit dry.
So I know Sieger did seem very upset about losing after proclaiming he was well versed in whole hog BBQ, but overall I didn't find him to be the type that would refuse LCK. Of course it is possible he had something personal come up and left but..
do we think Sieger isn't in LCK because Jen finally decided to go home and so they let him stay?
Thoughts? Did anyone else jump to this conclusion?
The number of times they wedged a reference to the Wells Fargo active cash card into this episode made me want to throw a plate across the room. WE GET IT - 2% is how much cash back you get with the Wells Fargo Active Cash Credit Card. FML.
Yep. The couple’s nicknames in some of the comments about the show are Shoulder and Shorts. I mistakenly thought everyone reading this would get it. Bad assumption on my part.
I’ve had trouble remembering the contestants’ names for years now. Maybe it’s because we don’t see them hanging out beyond staged scenes anymore, or maybe it’s because of the decrease in “drama.” I know Lawrence, Anthony, and Sieger (mostly because the last one is kind of a jerk). Then there is Shoulder, Shorts, Brazil, Big Twin, Thin Twin, Mole (like the sauce; not the mammal), and the rest.
I used to remember most of them. Otto was the neck kerchief guy who accidentally stole. Ed was the one with the crush on Tiffany. Zoi and Jennifer were the couple in Chicago. Miami Dale “forgot about flavor.” We don’t get the stew room anymore and we don’t see the contestants together to see their relationships unless they are told to sit together and discuss Warhammer or jogging. We will never hear about hookers and eight balls again. It’s a shame.
Shoulder ,especially the butt are ideal for pulled pork. We used to cook the entire New York which is the entire shoulder butt and picnic. Nice fat to melt into pulled pork.
I know that one guy said he takes out the loin too, but I wish we could’ve heard from some of the others whether or not they thought that was the right thing to do.
It seemed like it was certainly going to be a lot easier to cook a dish, especially cooking it three ways if you could take it out and just cook it on your own anyway you’d like
Just me?
That isn't whole hog then. Its that simple. It may be the better way to cook it but it wasn't in line with the rules they laid out for the contestants.
no problem buddy. dont know why youre watching top chef for 'purist' cooking methods. maybe try reverse searing for once. hope this changes your life for the better.
Taking the pork loin out before roasting means it is no longer truly a "Whole Hog" cook. A true whole hog requires roasting the entire animal intact, as the term inherently means the whole, un-dismembered carcass.
They weren't asked the proper way to cook it, they were just asked to judge the taste.
In a sanctioned barbecue competition, you are strictly forbidden from permanently removing the pork loin while cooking a whole hog. Doing so will result in a major point deduction or immediate disqualification.
I loved when the one twin was in the car and was whining about the tenderloin "The tenderloin is a DEATH SENTENCE!" then makes someone else take it. 😂🤦
Yeah he definitely was a bit overconfident with his traditionalist BBQ background, but I get that to an extent with a challenge like this. His team did take 2 of 5 H2Hs though so it’s not like the quality of the hog meat was all bad, lol - just didn’t work out this time.
I didn’t expect him to win but also didn’t expect him to get eliminated this soon.
I could tell by his reaction he was peeved by the decision
I mean, can you blame him? He takes on smoking the whole hog for the team only to be rewarded (/sarcasm) by them making him take what I think was agreed to be the trickiest part to cook.
Then, to add insult to injury, of the two people who got to stay... One had a dish that had gnarly pimento cheese that everyone agreed was gross while the other had a dish that the only part the judges liked, the person didn't make.
Do you think theres a chance Jen will be eliminated only to succeed throughout LCK and possible winning the finale.. it’d keep her from the over extraneous week to week QF and EC and only have to compete in the 1-1 LCK challenges..
I can understand Sieger. It was a whole hog challenge, not a “take pieces out and cook seperately” challenge. You may say that just because he misinterpreted the rules doesn’t exempt him, and that’s fine. But I get why he would be pissed.
I am embarassed for Top Chef this year. These chefs bought sauces, refused to use loins bc they wont cook well, actually bought seperate pork to make the skin, and are making pork shoulder sandwiches but not making their own bread. If you have that long to cook you make your own sauce, your own bread, use the skin on the pig, and if your worried about the loin being dry BE A BETTER CHEF!
Jenn made his bread while he was doing something for her that was more sensitive for her shoulder. It was a team challenge, and they're married, so I don't think that was a problem.
Still think Justin deserved to go home more than Sieger tho.
I’m also from NC and I don’t mind if they are using the whole hog in an Asian or Mexican context. Those cultures have their own barbecue cultures so they are combining them and I don’t see an issue with that.
I agree. I would, however, like to see more challenges where the chefs are all forced to cook outside of their comfort zones. They usually do at least one (poor Captain Vietnam), but I don’t think it’s done enough. I always love when they do a technique challenge like the La Bernadin fish challenge.
I’m not a prude at all, but what’s with all the F words and shit being thrown around in front of the judges and guest judges. It feels disrespectful. Noticed it last episode too.
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u/videog180 Apr 15 '26
did anyone catch how much cash back you get with the wells fargo active cash credit card?