Hell’s Kitchen Recap: Stereotypes, Y’all

116 Comments

1. 1
   timgunnssister
   Posted July 25, 2012 at 1:59 pm

   I, too, have absolutely no idea why Robyn is still here. Or why she spells her name that way. Still, with each episode, less and less of this show makes sense. I have seen Gordon screaming about something being RAWR then dinging the bell and calling for service for an identical looking entree. I guess there must be at least one RAWR per show in his contract.

2. 2
   tiffa_leah
   Posted July 25, 2012 at 2:19 pm

   I wonder if potentially the only thing that POSSIBLY saved Robin is the fact that she owned up to her mistake by asking Gordon not to kick out anyone else from the kitchen. Other than that, they are equally annoying so I probably would have flipped a coin myself.

3. 3
   Leto
   Posted July 25, 2012 at 2:34 pm

   Brian, Brian, Brian… That guy is just hilarious. I too would have LOVED him to reply “fish” again. The first time made me laugh, but a second time would have been priceless.

   As for Barbie, I think in this episode and the next, we have tiny clues as why her teammates hate her. The behavior in the restaurant, or with christina on next episode, and, frankly, the way she behaved (behaved? not sure ’bout that one, if it’s incorrect i’m sorry) with the mussel stuff… I can’t believe it’s just because she’s not white. Maybe if it came just from Robyn, Kimmie and Tiffany, I could, but I can’t believe ALL red team people are just racists.

   And I’m shocked that Robyn dodged it again. That didn’t make sense. Burnt fish is bad, but it cannot kill you. Raw chicken is just criminal.

4. 4
   SuburBint
   Posted July 25, 2012 at 2:41 pm

   They’re keeping Robyn around for the drama. Girlfriend could have gotten Mother Teresa to throw down. In my recollection, bringing Gordon two RAWR chicken portions in a row guarantees a trip home. But this episode, not only did that pattern not hold, but we didn’t get to hear Gordon scream, “You could have KILLED someone!!!” which is one of my favorite Ramsay Tantrum Phrases™.

   The only reason why they keep having the teams nominate people for elimination is so that people can get their knickers in a twist over being “betrayed” and “stabbed in the back” by their teammates.

5. 5
   michkabibbles
   Posted July 25, 2012 at 3:14 pm

   @leto-i’ve felt all along that we’ve missed something with the barbie hate. i know i’ve called racism a few times (mostly when tiffany was talking about here ‘attitude’), but EVERY body hated her from the beginning. and it hasn’t waned for the most part. i just don’t get it.

   and man, i think robyn should have gone over kimmie, but i am not sad that kimmie is no longer on my screen. wallowing in tears cause your bff tiffany (whom YOU actually nominated) got sent home over barbie, vowing for revenge. it’s all just. too. much. if i had to see one more tear… something something something bad!

6. 6
   Andyourlittledogtoo
   Posted July 25, 2012 at 3:52 pm

   My take on the Barbie hate is that Barbie is a passive aggressive bitch and that Kimmie and Tiffany are closet racists and that the combo just looped. Barbie is just passive aggressive enough to tick folks off and Kimmie and Tiffany are racist and dismissive enough to let it show in their speech and behavior toward her and she in turn becomes much more stealthy vindictive and they are not subtle enough to hide their attitudes toward ‘her kind’ and it just goes on from there. The others would not like Barbie as well for the passive aggressive shit she pulls and also because she does make faces at them and do the stare down (like at the luncheon) so…. This is a group of women who have outsize personalities in a lot of ways, Barbie’s is more stealthy and quiet but just as shitstirring. I imagine Barbie loves that she can make the (to me) obviously racist Kimmie and Tiffany lose their shit over her while she remains apparently calm and rational. I’m not a Barbie ‘fan’ but I’ve kind of enjoyed watching her do that myself.

   I love Brian. I think he realized a few services ago that he wasn’t going to win and is now just trying to stay in the game as long as possible and have fun with it and not get yelled at too much. ‘Fish!’ Guy’s a clown, he knows it and has probably been the bane of his teachers since kindergarten. I do like him though I would want to kill him if I was in a team competition with him.

7. 7
   Moli
   Posted July 25, 2012 at 5:23 pm

   On page 5…you caught the ‘death glare’ shot, I LOVED that last night!

8. 8
   Chicken Lips
   Posted July 25, 2012 at 6:31 pm

   I’m sorry – but I probably would have answered “fish” too. Ha! It didn’t look THAT burned and was probably still tasty. Plus, considering that probably wasn’t the worst thing ever prepared in that kitchen, fish was probably the safest choice haha.

9. 9
   sagittariuskim
   Posted July 25, 2012 at 7:02 pm

   50 pts. for the Hunger Games reference.

   I’m tired of Robyn and I was tired of Kimmie, but I think Robyn has over stayed her welcome longer than Kimmie.

   What made Brian think sweetened grits was a good idea, it’s not oatmeal. I understand being from the North, there’s a chance he never cooked them before. But he must have eaten them at least once.

10. 10
    Andyourlittledogtoo
    Posted July 25, 2012 at 7:52 pm

    I have lived a very very long life on the West Coast and have never a) seen grits on a menu anywhere I’ve been, b) eaten grits, and c) seen real live grits in the flesh (so to speak). So I can believe he was completely at sea there. I do think I could buy a box in my local store, but since I am not looking for them I don’t recall seeing them. Why can’t you sweeten them? You can sweeten almost all other cooked grains like oats, rice, whatever…

    This is my new obvious yet totally non sequitur when I don’t know the answer to a question: Fish!!

11. 11
    crankyguy
    Posted July 25, 2012 at 8:03 pm

    @Andyourlittledogtoo — grits is just the redneck name for polenta, maybe with a little finer grind. When eaten as a breakfast grain they are often sweetened, but not too often in a savory dish.

12. 12
    Andyourlittledogtoo
    Posted July 25, 2012 at 8:15 pm

    I mean no disrespect but the name ‘grits’ is a very unfortunate one to me. ‘Grit’ is a piece of sand or dirt that gets stuck in something not a food item. Polenta huh? I didn’t know that. Thank you for explaining that to me, I honestly had no idea and was even guessing that it was a grain because I couldn’t think what else it could be and the idea that it might be animal in anyway made me worry. My sister lived in the south for ten years and is an amazing cook. I’m going to ask her if she knows how to make them and see if I can try them. Learn something new every day.

13. 13
    michkabibbles
    Posted July 25, 2012 at 8:15 pm

    @andyourlittledogtoo-that’s as good a reasoning as i’ve ever heard, and explains a lot. i’m guessing they haven’t shown us as much from barbie as they could have, but what they have does seem passive aggressive (like stomping around the kitchen at 5 am that time). but i forgive all for her lovely expressions.

    i’m from st. louis-and i’ve never had grits- i actually thought it could be treated similar to cream of wheat, which we used to have for breakfast with milk and cinnamon sugat. but i guess it’s only a savory thing? is there anything that might compare to it?

14. 14
    michkabibbles
    Posted July 25, 2012 at 8:17 pm

    ah, asked and answered! my slow pokey fingers.

15. 15
    sagittariuskim
    Posted July 25, 2012 at 9:21 pm

    Yeah grits are similar to polenta. The thing is it was a Southern challenge in the South grits aren’t really sweetened. At least I never had them sweeten, or seen sweet grits served anywhere.

16. 16
    sagittariuskim
    Posted July 25, 2012 at 9:21 pm

    *sweetened

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    sagittariuskim
    Posted July 25, 2012 at 9:28 pm

    @Andyourlittledogtoo It actually is gritty when it’s uncooked. Eating uncooked grits is like eating sand.

18. 18
    RPS
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 6:57 am

    I can’t believe that Clemenza is still in the competition! He’s mediocre at best and his attituted of “just relax” just kills me. Especially when this IS a competition!

19. 19
    PopePhilly
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 7:24 am

    For some reason, “But first, hugs for everyone!” made me laugh really hard. I’m sitting here in my office trying to keep the laughter quiet and I just keep thinking of that!

    Thank you, BlueCanary, for making my day.

20. 20
    crankyguy
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 10:23 am

    i actually thought it could be treated similar to cream of wheat, which we used to have for breakfast with milk and cinnamon sugar

    It can, and is, treated exactly like that as a hot breakfast cereal. It’s served in a bowl with anything that would be put on oatmeal or farina. It can be thick or somewhat soupy. The dried corn which is ground to make the grits is usually the type that is referred to in the South as “hominy” or “posole” in the Southwest, which is different from the corn that Italians would use for polenta. No matter, polenta and grits, for most people, would be pretty much interchangeable.

21. 21
    timgunnssister
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 10:55 am

    Well, I can tell the difference between grits and polenta. I like grits, polenta not so much. And instant grits are a crime against humanity.

    Well, they should be, anyway.

22. 22
    timgunnssister
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 10:57 am

    And I would always put cheese on my grits but would never do that with oatmeal. I can’t imagine them sweetened; never seen them served that way and hope I never do.

23. 23
    crankyguy
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 11:07 am

    Well, let me rephrase: Anything that can go on a bowl of oatmeal can go on a bowl of grits, but there are a lot of things that go with grits (chili for example) that wouldn’t work with oatmeal. Oh, and I don’t think grits and raisin cookies would be very good either. I don’t understand the sweetener aversion — a bowl of thin grits is not all that different from a bowl of farina.

24. 24
    timgunnssister
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 11:49 am

    Sweet grits just seem wrong to me somehow. But that’s probably because this is the first I’ve heard of anyone sweetening them. Did they even taste Brian’s sweet grits or did they just throw the whole plate away because the chop was RAWR?

25. 25
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 12:14 pm

    Damn it, I posted about the grits vs. polenta thing earlier, and it looks like my comment got eaten. Anyway, to sum up:

    I’ve lived most of my life in the South, but spent several years on the West Coast as well, where there isn’t a grit to be found. I seriously never saw grits in the grocery store or in restaurants, but polenta was everywhere, and I saw it on menus flavored with everything from chicken stock and tomatoes to sour cherries and bourbon vanilla. But during the 20+ years in the South, I’ve never, not once, seen or heard of sweet grits. Grits are always savory here, to my knowledge, even when served for breakfast. Cream of Wheat is its own thing, and I’ve usually had it sweetened, but Cream of Wheat is also not usually served at meals other than breakfast. Grits is an all-day side dish. Maybe there are places in the Midwest or something where people eat it sweet–I’m not refuting that, or saying anyone’s wrong, I’ve just never personally seen it.

26. 26
    crankyguy
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 12:31 pm

    ANY grain I can think of is eaten sweetened at least some of the time by some people. When I went to public school in the South, we had white rice served for lunch at least a couple of times per week. When rice was served and only when rice was served, those large glass sugar containers with the conical pour tops were set out for us to pour on top of the freakin’ rice — for lunch, mind you. I never did that myself as it seemed disgusting to me, but most of the kids did. In fact, I was looked upon as the oddball because I just put butter, black pepper, and salt on mine.

    If you are saying that grits aren’t typically cooked in sugar water, then I agree, but that doesn’t mean that some sort of sweetener is never added after it’s plated.

27. 27
    Mummy Butterfly
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 12:38 pm

    Hrm, sweet grits – that sounds borderline gross to me (born in Louisiana – raised in the south – proud ATL girl now). I mean, my grits have bacon in them, or cheese for the younguns… Never something sweet. Sweet breakfast would be oatmeal (cinnamon raisin or something like that). I suppose you COULD sweeten them, but I don’t think anyone in my family would be having any.

    As for Barbie, I’m still feeling like there is a lot of “made up” drama around her. Dana didn’t vote for Kimmie to stop a tie – I have to believe that like it or not, Barbie is a better cook. And they seem to get along with her in general if the others aren’t instigating crap.

28. 28
    crankyguy
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 12:50 pm

    Damnit to hell, I’m gettin’ my ass down to Wal-Mart this evening, picking up a canister of Quaker Grits, and I’m eatin’ ‘em tomorrow morning with treacle, sultanas, and cream. AND I’m gonna LIKE IT!!!!

29. 29
    timgunnssister
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 12:56 pm

    You might want to get some Pepto while you’re at it.

30. 30
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 1:39 pm

    @timgunnssister: HA! Right?

    @crankyguy: That would be a great topping combo for oatmeal, but I just can’t picture it on grits. Maybe I’m biased, though, so let us know how it turns out.

    @MummyButterfly: I do the same: salt (always salt DURING the cooking, not after, as I’m sure you know), bacon, and cheddar for breakfast grits. Cheddar and garlic is also good, and sometimes I like to mix things up and do goat cheese grits with creole spices and lemon-garlic shrimp. God. I need to stop, now I’m hungry.

31. 31
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 1:43 pm

    Also, that sugar-topped rice is not something I’ve ever heard of or tried, but I like rice pudding, so I can see that maybe being a thing. People come up with some weird ass combos in the South, too. I knew a girl whose grandpa never ate Jello without a dollop of mayonaise on top. Maybe I’m missing out on something great by refusing to try that, and if so, that’s fine.

32. 32
    sagittariuskim
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 2:54 pm

    @crankyguy Please let us know how that goes.

    I’m with everyone else on the grits thing. I lived in the Alabama all my life, and have always had grits as a savory dish. So thought of sweet grits kind of makes me nauseous.

33. 33
    vallegirl
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 4:05 pm

    Is it just because of the tradition of grits being savory? Being a Yankee-ass myself who managed to avoid grits when I went to UF and now live in SoCal, I never really thought much about how grits are made or what you put in them. But they’re corn so as a flavor-profile, since corn is mildly flavored and sweet it should work well as either.

    But I am firmly in the camp that bagels are not to be trifled with. The only acceptable “flavors” are plain, onion, egg, salt, or…if you have out of town guests…cinnamon raisin. Get those damn blueberry, cheddar/jalapeno or whatever “artisanal” add-ins away from a bagel. The only enhancements they need is cream cheese, lox and capers.

    So I can understand how tradition might make things that seem perfectly normal to people outside of the tradition blasphemous.

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    michkabibbles
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 4:34 pm

    we used to eat rice for breakfast all the time, and because of that i can’t stand savory rice now. just seems gross to me.

35. 35
    sarcasatire
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 5:00 pm

    Southern gal here, or rather, city girl with southern parents and grits are savory 99% of the time. It is usually cooked with meat or cheese and absorbs those flavors: bacon, sausage, chicken livers, fried fish or salmon croquettes, eggs, corned beef hash. Us yankee kids would douse our grits in ketchup, mix in the eggs, and crumble bacon on top. My parents preferred gravy. But sugar? Unacceptable, lol.

    @vallegirl, what about poppy bagels? Their my favorite. And ‘everything’ bagels when I can’t make up my mind. No fancy toppings, nothing more than butter and jelly (grape) or cream cheese.

36. 36
    chaosbutterfly
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 5:19 pm

    My mom used to make me grits with brown sugar, cinammon, and raisin. Tasted gewd. When I see people eating savory grits, my stomach hurts.

    And about Kimmie, I can see why Gordon would send her home over Robyn.
    Firstly, Kimmie is a damn baby. She cries about everything, and she always cries in front of Gordon, which is a NO. She needs Jabby Lee to follow her around, screaming at her to save that shit for her pillow. No crying in fine dining, folks.

    Secondly, Kimmie has no confidence. Gordon applied pressure to her this service, and she fell to pieces. Whenever there is an opportunity to sit out in challenges, Kimmie is always volunteering herself, and then she feels dumb when she realizes that she would have done fine in the challenge. You can’t be a chef, especially in a fine-dining kitchen with exacting standards if you can’t trust yourself. And I’m not sure how she expected GRam to have faith in her abilities when she clearly didn’t have any faith in them herself.

    Thirdly, Kimmie has no finesse. Her food tastes good apparently and I would gobble the shit out of some of the stuff that she’s made, but it’s never plated with any kind of thought and it’s just not the kind of food that comes from GRam’s restaurants. It’s more like something that you would see on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.

    Now Robyn isn’t much better….she’s loud, obnoxious, can’t take responsibility for her shit, can’t cook, can’t work on a team, can’t speak normally, can’t listen, can’t control her jaw….did I mention she can’t cook? But I think Kimmie’s offenses are worse in Gordon’s eyes, and he was just waiting to get his hands on her to eliminate her.
    Plus Robyn brings mad drama, and the producers can’t let that go.

37. 37
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 6:59 pm

    I just said this on the other HK thread, but it applies here, too: I agree that Kimmie had overstayed her welcome, and the elimination would’ve made more sense if it had been against anyone except Robyn. The conundrum is that Robyn has been here way, WAY too long. She should’ve been shown the door back when Patrick left, and any attempt to keep her on just looks more and more ridiculous, because the remaining chefs are just so far ahead of her. I can’t see her lasting much longer, no matter who else screws up.

    She is good for drama, though. She’s top notch for that.

38. 38
    vallegirl
    Posted July 26, 2012 at 11:44 pm

    @sarcas – Poppyseed is good, too. Everything is pushing the limits, though, because simplicity is a bagel’s friend. Too much conflict with the delicious lox. I personally like onion if I’m just putting on cream cheese and plain with the lox and capers. I can’t remember which chef called California bagels rolls with holes, but that’s kind of true for most places (and Noah’s is where I saw that blueberry abomination) but I did find two shops run by NYC transplants.

39. 39
    zorro
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 12:14 am

    @andy@mishka@leto
    i will call you and the other who side with you that barbie is the reason she is being targeted for constant
    i willcall all you racists
    because yoiu are white yourself you act liek anything would warrant this abuse over teh entire show as off now

    all of the team is racist the whole lot of them the complete red team besides barbie are for me assholes

    i used to like christinea but she lost any respect i had for her lately by jumping on hate the black girl bandwagon

    AND TO ALL YOU WHITE PEOPLE WHO SAY BARBIE MUST HAVE DONE SOMETHING TO WARRANT THIS

    YOU ARE RACIST

    AND THIS IS WHAT RACISM LOOKS LIKE

    PEOPLE DONT LIEK YOU FROM THE START APPEARANTLY FOR NO REASON
    BUT ISNT IT Funny how it is alway the black contestants who everyone hates right away
    last season that black girl was bullied aswell

    this is racxims dana christina tiffany and kimmie and robyn are typical racists

    the black person is free for abuse for everyone withoutanyx repercussion
    that isteh consensus
    and that is ehat is itlike in the real world for blacks aswelll

    the majority whereever you go are white and they might not be as oopen abut their hate like tiffany but they will do whatever they can get away with it

    and the fact that you people dont call it what it is: racism shows me you are some of those people who abuse minoritys in real life too or at least let it happen

    i detest yall

    and after 100 episodes of barbie just taking the abuse froma a vile viscioous majority
    (being outnumbered as she was)
    don’t you think she mightfeel slight resentiments towards those white nazis?

    fuck you racists

    acting as if nothing happened
    but i had to call yall out now

    btw i love those recaps

40. 40
    zorro
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 12:17 am

    i forgot i am so happy that gordon ramsay himself isnt racist
    so the badmouthing has no effect and aslong as a minority contestant is a good cook and evolves they wont be eliminated

    this is a really good look fro you chef ramsay

    i know a lot of other shows where the fishreeks from teh head
    this isnt one

    i applaude you ramsay
    for being a fair host!

41. 41
    sarcasatire
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 12:30 am

    @Vallegirl, But Everythings are my everything!

    In NYC, born and raised, bagels are what I ate for most of my days.
    Chillin out, maxin, relaxing ,or cool,
    on the playground, snacking, right after school
    When a couple of shops, they were up to no good
    Started tryna ‘xperiment in my neighborhood.
    I ate one cinnamon raisin and my mom got scared
    she said, everything bagels are the best when prepared!

    Iiiiiii pulled up to the market about 7 or 8
    and I yelled to the chef, “yo Holmes give me capers!”
    I looked at my bagel, it was well prepared
    And I ate on the stoop, my brownstone’s top stairs.

42. 42
    vallegirl
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 9:55 am

    Brava, sarcas…and I miss stoops.

43. 43
    niknakflipflop
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 11:59 am

    Ok, here’s my take on grits. Born, raised and still reside in the NW. My boyfriend of 8 years on the other hand is from South Carolina. I had not ever eaten grits until the poor bastard came along. I don’t really ever eat them tho, as they ae a waste of tummy space to me. Now, he says sweet and savory are both acceptable forms of grits. Sweet and/or savory for breakfast and savory for the rest of the meals. You can really get creative with grits and do whatever you want, they’re a bland platform. Nore, I see some of you have brought up rice. Growing up we were meat and potato people and rarely had rice, I don’t care for rice so that worked out good. But when I was a kid my grandma made white rice with milk and cinnamon and sugar, I’d probably eat that today if it was in front of me. Cinnamon and sugar is also the way my boyfriend ate sweet grits for breakfast growing up. Anywho, I don’t know much about it other than what he has shared with me but there’s my two cents about em.

44. 44
    crankyguy
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 12:12 pm

    While it was wonderful to see Zorro’s take on racism , what I REALLY wanna know is if he thinks sweet grits are acceptable or not. I hope the answer is that sweet grits are perfectly fine and that anybody who thinks otherwise is a racist.

45. 45
    michkabibbles
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 12:26 pm

    wow, i totally missed zorros rant.
    first of all, how do you know i’m white?
    second of all, i’ve been calling the red team racists from the beginning for how they treat barbie. so you’re a little late to the racism bandwagon. which i think makes you racist against the original racists.

    @crankyguy-if i’ve only eaten rice and never grits, am i racist by default?

46. 46
    crankyguy
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 12:37 pm

    “if i’ve only eaten rice and never grits, am i racist by default?”

    I think most everyone is racist by default in Zorro’s world. Or, at the very least, racist until proven otherwise.

47. 47
    Leto
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 12:40 pm

    Here too?
    @mishka he knows we’re white because we don’t see racism everywhere in every white people and we want and try to believe that such anger can’t be provoked by skin color. IMO it’s the opposite of racism, but whatever.

    I don’t even know what grits are. Well, I’ve learnt by reading the comments, and I know polenta so I’ve a point of reference, but it doesn’t even exist in my country. We french are horrible facists, this is just shameful.

48. 48
    michkabibbles
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 12:44 pm

    @leto, i didn’t realize you could be facist against a corn product, but this is america, where corn is in everything, so what do i know?

49. 49
    sarcasatire
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 12:54 pm

    That’s why some comments should remain in moderation. Indefinitely. Zorro’s posts weren’t there last night when I made my post #41 and now they’ve completely overshadowed my brilliance. Now, I don’t mind a troll. But a troll who gets in the way of a really good joke cannot be tolerated. *cracks whip*

50. 50
    Leto
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 1:00 pm

    @mishka We have very few corn based products in France, we mainly eat wheat based products. We have cornstarch, but only one brand makes it. We have polenta, but it is considered to be an italian product. It is nearly impossible to find yellow corn flour and grits are mainly unknown.

    @crankyguy My brother loves pasta with loads of granulated sugar on it, so your grits porridge isn’t scary to me. At all :p.

51. 51
    michkabibbles
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 1:08 pm

    pasta with sugar is where i draw the line! craziness.

52. 52
    sagittariuskim
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 2:55 pm

    I think this is the most comments an HK recap has gotten.

53. 53
    sarcasatire
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 3:17 pm

    I came for the grits. I stayed for the bagels.

54. 54
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 3:48 pm

    My god, this thread has become awesome. Who knew grits would generate so much feedback? Bagels, polenta, racism, fascism, the French, alternative toppings for starch-based side dishes…there’s something for everyone!

55. 55
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 3:59 pm

    last season that black girl was bullied aswell

    If you’re talking about Elise, she caught heat because she was a straight up aggressive bitch, who started drama at every turn. She acted like an asshole, plain and simple, more often than not. When I recap asshole-packed shows, I like to point out asshole behavior. The asshole can be any shade of the rainbow, and I will point it out, regardless. Barbie, from what I can tell, is not an asshole, yet more then one white person on this season is. Does that make me racist against white people, pointing it out? No. It makes me an accurate identifier of asshole behavior.

    I probably shouldn’t have responded to this, but I really couldn’t let the Elise thing slide.

56. 56
    Leto
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 4:37 pm

    @michka yeah , pasta with sugar are just plain disgusting. I actually tasted it, ’cause my brother can’t shut up about it xD. Never again. The taste, the texture, everything, it’s just wrong.

    @BlueCanary Oh my, you’re ballsy to suggest that racism against white people exists, careful, you’ll be lumped in the same group as us nazis or whatever.

    Last year Carrie took an incredible amount of abuse for no obvious reason, and she was a blonde white girl. I mean, it’s far from the first time that kind of things happens in HK, each season has its dirty duck, and it’s not automaticly one of the Black contestants…

    Maybe Barbie and Carrie eat sweet pastas? And made everybody taste it? Ah! THAT would be a good reason for abuse

57. 57
    SuburBint
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 4:39 pm

    @ BlueCanary — Well said! And since you’re blue, we know that you have a more objective perspective than anybody posting here….

58. 58
    SuburBint
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 4:42 pm

    @ Leto — I had a pasta cookbook once that had a recipe for dessert pasta; you started by mixing a chocolate pasta dough, and it all went downhill from there.

59. 59
    Leto
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 4:48 pm

    @SuburBint Well, maybe with chocolate in the actual dough, it wouldn’t be so gross as pouring granulated sugar into regular pastas. I dunno. Sugar and chocolate in pastas… Ew. Just EW. And I love chocolate with about anything.

60. 60
    Moli
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 5:23 pm

    @chaosbutterfly, I don’t eat grits(anymore) but the thought of sweet grits made my stomach hurt. Where I’m from(Philly…thanks for the sorta Philly shoutout sarcasatire), Cream of Wheat is the sweet grain cereal. Grits are always savory I’ve never seen them prepared sweet(but since I hate them I’ll be the one who loves sweet grits). If Kimmie had been up against anyone besides Robyn I would have been ok with it, but Robyn should have left episodes ago. I can’t stand her crack mouth when she talks and she can’t cook…which is all that matters. I love a cinnamon bagel with raisin, only topping I need is butter:). Hit me with a plain bagel I want crispy pork bacon and provolone cheese*wipes drool from keyboard*. I know people who put cups*shudders* of sugar in their mac and cheese and potato salad, I can’t report on how it tastes because…well you know.

61. 61
    Moli
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 5:31 pm

    Actually I did have a couple of racism(expectism…teehee) notions during the season, but it was because I thought the non-brown contestants were expecting it the stereotype and didn’t get it. I took all of their poking and prodding as them trying to get her to, borrowing a phrase from BGC ‘pop off’. I don’t think any of them dislike brown people, they were just expecting the reality tv brown women stereotype. For pete’s sake did you see Kimmie and actually Christina getting into(well Kimmie just about lost it) the very, very brown choir?

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    crankyguy
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 5:46 pm

    I made the sweet grits if anybody is interested. I threw raisins in the water to cook with the grits, and topped it with some local Mennonite sorghum and Silk unsweetened soy milk. It was not gross at all, but why would it be since, as Leto mentioned, it’s just porridge. Was it great? No, but what hot cereal is?

63. 63
    Moli
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 5:53 pm

    Oatmeal is the greatest hot cereal eva, eva, eva created!!!!!!! I can eat it plain, with fruit, with brown sugar(as a kid even white sugar), Karo syrup with anything(not savory) in it. If we could live off of any 3 foods we wanted to eat forever and remain healthy….mac and cheese, oatmeal, and tomatoes(in order). I honestly may try to make sweet grits anyone have a good recipe?

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    crankyguy
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 6:14 pm

    I’ve got a whole canister of grits to get rid of now, and I’m on my own since mrs crankyguy won’t touch them. Tomorrow morning, it’s gonna be grits and chopped walnuts topped with Silk and grade B maple syrup. I have never made grits in my life before today, but I knew that some people (very few people, apparently) ate them as sweet porridge, and now I am among their number.

65. 65
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 6:23 pm

    @crankyguy: Good for you for taking that one for the team! Since you now have to work your way through the canister anyway, you should try them savory, boiled in salted water with cheese melted in once they’re done. I’d be interested to hear which you prefer. Now I’m curious and will probably try the sweet version at some point.

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    crankyguy
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 6:33 pm

    My mom made cheese grits when I was a kid, sometimes with whipped egg whites mixed in and baked in ramekins for cheese grit soufflé. I never had sweet grits at my parents’ house, but I had heard tales of the sweetened grit.

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    aliens.rock
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 8:31 pm

    I love the grits slash racism debate.
    I love how the white people have to apologize for the smallest critique of the blacks, and still they are treated as racists, vhile the blacks cry the wolf every time somoene has the nerve to say something that’s not to their liking.
    I love bagels with everything on top.
    I love pasta with yoghurt and fresh strawberries sprinkled with sugar.
    Am I a racist yet?LOL

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    sarcasatire
    Posted July 27, 2012 at 8:49 pm

    “I love how the white people have to apologize for the smallest critique of the blacks, and still they are treated as racists, vhile the blacks cry the wolf every time somoene has the nerve to say something that’s not to their liking.”

    “Am I a racist yet?”

    Close.

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    Leto
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 1:50 am

    @aliens.rock Pasta yoghurt strawberries and sugar… I just want to cry. My brother would just hug you. Like grits, we don’t eat Bagels in France. It looks like buns so I think I’d rather eat them with sweet things. Unless it’s a savory bun or doesn’t have a thing in common with a bun, but what do I know? :p

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    Mummy Butterfly
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 5:26 am

    Hubby Butterfly made the comment that while he thinks Tiffany was VERY racist – that Kimmie almost seemed more….well, like ANYONE not from Memphis was crap and she was going to hate them. Especially them Northern and Western B***hes who thought they could cook better than her. (Which leads back to the Kimmie needed more confidence thing, and pulling herself out of competitions, and well, we have hashed that out.)

    Also: Racism: hatred or intolerance of another race or other races

    Racism is NOT White People hating Black People. Please, you have no idea what my ancestors did for the last 350 years (or anyone elses on this site) – don’t pretend like you can judge people based on if they think Barbie is harassing Christina or not. That drives me freaking crazy.

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    vallegirl
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 8:12 am

    @Leto – Bagels are denser than buns and have a crust that’s pretty chewy from being dipped in a water bath, first. But the dough is similar to a traditional bread dough only really elastic so the baked product isn’t very airy.

    And that’s why I brought up tradition v. flavor profile with regard to grits/bagels. I don’t understand the traditions of grits so to me it seems perfectly fine, and even “delicious” to add brown sugar and cinnamon to something that looks like Farina. But I grew up in the “bagel” tradition, so I’m not that objective about it.

    Flavorwise there’s nothing wrong with adding blueberries or chocolate chips or orange/cranberry, but traditionally, if that’s what you want you get a muffin. Bagels are “meant” to be eaten either with butter or cream cheese or some kind of smoked fish…just because they are. Of course, fancy savory ingredients are also frowned upon because that’s what flat breads are for.

    The world of bagels has rules.

72. 72
    Leto
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 8:40 am

    I see what you mean. In the blue menu vs red menu episode Clemenza made “steack au poivre” and it just made me want to cry. He used NY Strips instead of filet and put fucking cream in there. Same thing for Tiffany’s infamous gratin dauphinois, you DON’T put cream in there but milk. When contestants on american cooking shows say they’re making “french cuisine” it just drives me crazy. ^^

    I know I’m completely off topic compared to bagel and grits traditions, but that’s my 2 cents on “stop defiling my regional food” ^^

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    aliens.rock
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 9:56 am

    Oh gee, I was just trying to be sarcastic… I believe that we all should be judged on our own character merits. A good person is a good person, and I don’t give a sh….what color they are. However, I do not like Political Correctness, because it only covers up the problem of racism in this country. I wish people worried less about real or fake perceptions of them, and just tried to be decent. Gay, white, black, etc… We all are the same inside, we are born, and after a while we die. It is what’s inbetween that matters, so why are we making it so difficult on us? People causing trouble on the fake TV drama, why do even care?!

74. 74
    crankyguy
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 10:31 am

    It’s my sweet grits report for the day, because for some reason, I would like to do my bit to see this thread reach 100 comments. One serving of grits is 1/4 cup grits to 1 cup of water, but I added an extra 1/8 cup water so they would turn out a little thinner and more of the consistency that I would eat Cream of Wheat. My additions, as promised, were raisins, chopped walnuts, and grade B (which I prefer over grade A because it’s more flavorful and less sweet) maple syrup and topped with my favorite soy milk. I’d bet that if Chef Ramsay gave a sample of this stuff to his blindfolded “chefs,” they would guess they were eating Cream of Wheat as the texture was very similar and the prominent flavors were those of the additions.

75. 75
    sagittariuskim
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 12:23 pm

    @crankguy Next you should try to create Brian’s sweet grits dish.

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    crankyguy
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 12:42 pm

    @sagittariuskim, I’m not sure my exploration of sweet grits should go THAT far, even if any of y’all can point me to his recipe. Were the grits he used the instant kind? I would assume so since they came in a box.

77. 77
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 1:53 pm

    @crankyguy, They were instant, I saw it on the side of the box. They’d really have to be for the show’s purposes, because non-instant grits have to be pre-soaked for like an hour, and the water has to be skimmed , and then it takes another 20 or so minutes to cook. Not enough time to do all that in a 30 minute challenge. I’ve made them the long way before, but IMO it really doesn’t make enough of a difference to justify the extra time. I remember Brian flavored his with buttermilk and brown sugar, but I don’t know the specific recipe.

78. 78
    crankyguy
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 2:11 pm

    @BlueCanary, I don’t even know where to buy the grits that require soaking and then take 20 minutes to cook . I avoided the instant kind, which supposedly can just be stirred into hot tap water and they’re ready. I bought Quaker Grits in a cylindrical cardboard box that take 5 minutes to cook after stirring into boiling water. What I have must be the grits counterpart to Minute Rice.

    I have bought whole dried posole before, the stuff that grits are made from, and that takes forever to soak and cook, so I should have realized that I have some sort of processed grits if they only take 5 minutes. I hope I have enough grits-talk left in me to get to #100.

79. 79
    Mummy Butterfly
    Posted July 28, 2012 at 5:15 pm

    Ya’ll can hate on instant grits all you want – but when you’ve got kids, instant grits mean they can make their own breakfast! (It’s even easier, if you have a handy dandy boiling water spout on your sink!)

    My boys love to make their own cheese grits in the winter, instant with a couple of spoonfuls of real cheese added and stirred in to melt with the boiling water (and butter). Hey, one less thing I have to do!

    (I, on the other hand, prefer bacon…)

80. 80
    Hol
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 8:49 am

    Hmmmm… Grits. The only place I’ve ever seen them is as a side dish for breakfast at cracker barrel so I’ve always treated as needing to be sweetened because they always tasted like nothing to me. I always added butter and honey to mine. Now if I had been somewhere where they actually made them savory with say like With bacon and cheese, I might have had a better clue that they are supposed to be savory. But then, I only live in the pseudo- south.

81. 81
    zorro
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 10:35 am

    @bluecanary
    i mixed it up i meant teh season where autumn lewis was in
    i haven’t watched the one with elise

    i stated my opinion i am not asking anyones aproval or agreement here
    and i refuse to reply to any strawman and ad hominem attacks

    liek bob marley said “the ones who felt it know”

82. 82
    crankyguy
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 11:14 am

    ” i refuse to reply to any strawman and ad hominem attacks”

    Are those the same kind of attacks as calling people you don’t know anything about racists?

    The grits talk is petering out, so maybe racism can take us to the 100-comment mark.

83. 83
    sagittariuskim
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 12:00 pm

    @crankyguy Or with can talk about Step Up Revolution which I just got back from seeing. But maybe I should save it for the SYTYCD recap.

84. 84
    sagittariuskim
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 12:17 pm

    *we not with

85. 85
    sarcasatire
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 12:37 pm

    My bootylicious cousin once had a guy comment on her FB page, “Damn, girl! You thicker than cold grits!”

    Yes, that was a compliment.

86. 86
    Mummy Butterfly
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 1:09 pm

    There is a 4H camp down here (Georgia), where the biggest thing everyone remembers is that you get served grits for breakfast in one of those pre-formed trays. NO ONE touches the grits – and by the end of breakfast, they are cold and “hard” and you can take a knife and cut them into tiny bricks. Then everyone at your table builds Grit Igloos.

    It was awesome…

    BTW – Zorro (and all) – I stand by MY earlier comment (#70). Judging people YOU DON’T KNOW on ONE OBSERVATION is arrogant and only makes you look crazy. You have no idea my heritage or what my ancestors have done for the last 350 (or more), or anyone else on this board – besides your own. Making blanket statements about how we must be in real life is pathetic.

87. 87
    crankyguy
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 1:40 pm

    You thicker than cold grits!

    That reminds me of another way to have sweet grits which I saw in an old church cookbook. Pour grits into a square baking dish and refrigerate until cold and firm. Cut the grits into slices, brown on both sides on a griddle or in a skillet. Top with powdered sugar and pancake syrup or honey.

    No. I am not going to try that. I have my limits.

88. 88
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 1:45 pm

    The racism accusations have moved over to Popephilly’s recap, otherwise we’d probably have passed 100 comments already.

    @crankyguy, re: that recipe
    No. Just no.

89. 89
    sagittariuskim
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 1:56 pm

    @crankyguy So it’s a recipe for grit pancakes?

    I kind of like when grits get cold. I find it fascinating.

90. 90
    crankyguy
    Posted July 29, 2012 at 2:05 pm

    @sagittariuskim, I think it’s a recipe for people too lazy to make Pennsylvania scrapple, which I wouldn’t eat either.

91. 91
    sarcasatire
    Posted July 30, 2012 at 10:49 am

    @crankyguy, a cold grit griddle is not my sort of thing. But I do admire the creativity of whoever decided leftover breakfast could be turned into dessert.

    C’mon guys, less than 10 to go..you can’t give up now!!

92. 92
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 30, 2012 at 12:04 pm

    I know, I know, I’m slacking on fanning those flames of dramatic confrontation. I woke up sick as a damn dog this morning, and have been basically useless all day (a real stretch from all those other days, I know).

    Mr. Canary is on Atkins; otherwise, I’d've made some grits this weekend and flavored it with all sorts of sweet toppings. All this grits-as-cream of wheat talk has made me curious.

93. 93
    crankyguy
    Posted July 30, 2012 at 12:45 pm

    @BlueCanary, we are on divergent grits paths now, as I have abandoned sweet grits altogether and just eat them the way I like rice with butter, some sort of seasoned salt, usually of the Cajun/Cayenne pepper variety, garlic powder, black pepper and hot sauce. Either that, or with sausage and milk gravy.

    All this grits talk reminds me of a stupid sitcom from the 70s called Alice which was based on a very good Martin Scorsese movie set in a diner. In the movie, one of the waitresses liked to say “Kiss my ass” a lot, while her character on the TV show had the catchphrase “Kiss my grits.” Could be a candidate for the 100th-post battle cry.

94. 94
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 30, 2012 at 1:02 pm

    FLO!! How would I not know Flo? Even my vague memories of that show are crowded with her and her pinkish beehive. I didn’t know that was based in a movie–I was pretty young when it aired, which is probably why I watched it in the first place.

    Savory grits are the way to go. I’m sure of this without even trying them sweet.

95. 95
    sarcasatire
    Posted July 30, 2012 at 1:09 pm

    Crankyguy, that would be an awesome battle cry!

96. 96
    vallegirl
    Posted July 30, 2012 at 1:34 pm

    BC – It’s based on “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” and I concur with crankyguy. It’s a very good,if uncharacteristic for the time, Scorsese movie. And if you ever wonder why some people still think Kris Kristofferson is dreamy, despite all evidence to the contrary at this point, that’s a good place to start. Then look up the YouTube video of him and Rita Coolidge singing “Help Me Make It Through the Night.”

    (And I’m doing my part to get someone to that very important milestone. Shall we try to leave it to crankyguy to reach it?)

97. 97
    crankyguy
    Posted July 30, 2012 at 1:39 pm

    @vallegirl, it’s totally up for grabs, as long as somebody makes it.

98. 98
    BlueCanary
    Posted July 30, 2012 at 1:49 pm

    I have to say, this is pretty impressive for a thread that started taking off as a debate between the proper way to flavor grits and bagels. You guys are great.

99. 99
    sarcasatire
    Posted July 30, 2012 at 2:02 pm

    Kiss Mah Grits!

100. 100
     BelowSeaLevel
     Posted July 30, 2012 at 2:02 pm

     So close, so close. Come on, only one more after me!

101. 101
     sarcasatire
     Posted July 30, 2012 at 2:05 pm

     Haha, BSL..it appears we got our wires crossed!

102. 102
     BelowSeaLevel
     Posted July 30, 2012 at 2:05 pm

     damn! i thought i was 99.

103. 103
     BelowSeaLevel
     Posted July 30, 2012 at 2:08 pm

     @sarcasatire

     okay, now it inches towards 200. i’ll stay out of it once it approaches 180.

104. 104
     BlueCanary
     Posted July 30, 2012 at 2:26 pm

     You Gasmii have done me proud.

105. 105
     sagittariuskim
     Posted July 30, 2012 at 2:39 pm

     Darn classes always makes me miss out on stuff.

106. 106
     zorro
     Posted August 1, 2012 at 8:39 am

     yeah, ’cause racism isn’t he püroblem only people talking about it is….
     you people are screwed

107. 107
     crankyguy
     Posted August 1, 2012 at 9:30 am

     @zorro — Guess what? I was able to find some genuine Quaker Old Fashioned Grits online. Isn’t that great? All they sell in my local stores are the instant (just add hot water) and the “quick” (cook for 5 minutes). Of course, there’s the problem of that old white guy’s picture on the box, but that’s NOT MY FAULT!!!!!

108. 108
     crankyguy
     Posted August 1, 2012 at 9:34 am

     @zorro — I forgot to mention that while your help in getting this thread past 100 comments is much appreciated, your usefulness here has been outlived. Please take your crazy to the other threads on this site to help there instead. Thanks.

109. 109
     vallegirl
     Posted August 1, 2012 at 10:02 am

     How does one typo an umlaut?

110. 110
     Pikey578
     Posted August 1, 2012 at 10:27 am

     OMG I love TVGasm! I don’t go on for a few days and everything blows up (in a good way, of course)! I have been reading both Hell’s Kitchen recaps and Zorro’s ranting – very interesting, if no uninformed. But I guess I can’t be a racist since my two favourites are Barbie and Justin… Clemenza is a sweaty mess, Robyn is a psycho, Christina and Dana are uninteresting so my choices are limited. Can’t wait for the new shows – watching reruns of both HK and MasterChef was boring this week. But I love me some Olympics so can’t really complain.

111. 111
     Pikey578
     Posted August 1, 2012 at 10:30 am

     @vallegirl: How does one typo an umlaut?

     Very carefully and with no preconceived notions?

112. 112
     zorro
     Posted August 2, 2012 at 6:42 am

     might makes right, huh?

113. 113
     PopePhilly
     Posted August 2, 2012 at 6:57 am

     @BlueCanary: I feel like we’re over the the “Toddlers and Tiaras” thread. *High five.*

114. 114
     MummyButterfly
     Posted August 2, 2012 at 7:11 am

     @Zorro – no, might doesn’t make right. Neither does rambling on and on about something that you’ve made up and decided in your head.

115. 115
     BlueCanary
     Posted August 2, 2012 at 8:34 am

     @PopePhilly: We have arrived, my friend. Imagine if someone had actually said something racist!

116. 116
     Josh Darius
     Posted August 7, 2012 at 4:10 am

     Masterchef has at least a little bit of rules to follow, though dont ask me to find them, on this show Gordon could eliminate Andi and the bald headed dude if he wants…..such bs.