Arts & Entertainment
Local Grad Wins "Chopped" Championship
Millions watched as Ocean Township native and Brookdale culinary graduate Emily Chapman won $10,000 on the Food Network show.
Emily Chapman is carving out a name for herself in the culinary world. Since graduating from Brookdale Community College’s culinary program in 2011, the Ocean Township native has moved to Brooklyn and signed on as sous chef at David Santos’ Louro in Manhattan.
Following a year in which Louro was voted the best restaurant in New York City by the website Chowhound, Chapman began 2015 by slicing and dicing the competition on the Food Network program Chopped.
Millions watched on Jan. 13 as Chapman edged out three professional chefs to take the Chopped championship and a $10,000 prize.
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The show, which forces chefs to use uncommon “mystery ingredients” and prepare meals in as little as 15 minutes, was exactly as hectic as it looks on TV, Chapman said.
“When they say, ‘the clock starts now,’ the clock really starts now,” Chapman said. “The first view of the ingredient basket is really the first view of the basket. I think the funniest part for me was how quickly the reality – no pun intended – hits you in the first round.”
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In the episode, titled “Money Savers,” Chapman and her competitors were given mystery ingredients that cost less than $10. The worst, she said, was a ham steak.
“I hate ham steak, with a passion,” Chapman said. “I just wanted it to disappear.”
Speed bumps aside, Chapman was able to prepare a full-course dinner that impressed all three of the acclaimed chefs judging the competition.
“Winning was a great feeling,” she said. “You definitely learn a lot about yourself on a show like that.”
Chapman isn’t the first Brookdale culinary graduate to catch the attention of the Food Network.
In 2013, James Beard Award finalist Andrew Araneo (Drew’s Bayshore Bistro, Keyport) beat celebrity chef Bobby Flay in a Cajun shrimp “throwdown” in Keyport. Last fall, Howell native Matt Levine (Coastal Chaos, Brick), took second place on the Food Network competition show “Rewrapped.”
The “Money Savers” episode of Chopped will re-air on the Food Network on Saturday, Jan. 24 at 6 p.m. Check local listings for additional show times.
