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The latest episode of Top Chef: Houston Season 19 was a Texas special. Guest chef Brooke Williamson challenged contestants to cook BBQ brisket, but she wanted them to start off with the state's signature Texas Toast.
Making Texas Toast was part of the Quickfire Challenge. The contestants were given 30 minutes to bring their own versions of the dish to the judges’ table. While many knew what they were doing, Jackson Kalb confessed that he had never eaten Texas Toast.
What was more interesting than the challenge was its reward. The winner would receive immunity and a $10,000 cash prize.
Fans react to the Texas Toast Top Chef challenge
Texas Toast is a barbecued version of garlic bread that goes well with brisket. The crispy, fluffy, and buttery dish originated in Texas.
A pig stand in Beaumont, Texas, claimed to be the first to invent the dish in 1941 after the restaurant received a thicker slice of bread from a local bakery. As the slice was too big for a toaster, the manager decided to throw the bread in the garbage. But one of the cooks proposed the idea of buttering the thick ends of the bread and grilling it. This is how Texas Toast is believed to have been invented.
A similar story was told by another pig stand in Denton, Texas. Chef Wiley W. claimed to have come up with the Texas Toast recipe and also brought a twist to the dish by pairing it with chicken fried steak.
The Texas comfort food was part of Top Chef’s Quickfire Challenge. Viewers were left shocked upon learning that some contestants didn't know what Texas Toast was:
Who won Top Chef’s Quickfire Challenge?
Nick Wallace won the Quickfire Challenge in Top Chef Season 19 Episode 5. The Mississippi chef made Texas Toast BLT with pancetta and cheese, leaving Tom Colicchio and guest chef Brooke Williamson extremely impressed.
As a reward, Wallace received immunity for the next challenge and a cash prize of $10,000. He then joined his fellow contestants for the elimination round, which included the challenge of making BBQ brisket. The round was won by Evelyn Garcia, and Ashleigh Shanti was eliminated from the show.
The official synopsis of Episode 5, titled Don't Mess With BBQ, read:
“The chefs meet Brooke Williamson at Houston's J-Bar-M, where she tasks them with putting their own spin on a brisket dish for some of the best BBQ pitmasters in Houston and their guest judge, pitmaster Greg Gatlin.”
In addition to guest chefs Williamson and Greg Gatlin, the panel of judges included the regulars — Padma Lakshmi, Colicchio, and Gail Simmons.
Top Chef Season 19 airs new episodes every Thursday on Bravo at 8.00 pm ET.
