Top Chef Wisconsin Cheese Episode Recap

Dateline: Sylvee Theater Madison at the screening of Episode 3 of Top Chef Season 21 Wisconsin

Ever since Bravo’s long running reality cooking show Top Chef announced that Season 21 would take place in Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin, curd fans have been speculating on how their beloved cheese would play a part. Episode 3, which aired on April 3, revealed some melty answers.

The Challenges

First, the chefs warmed up with a Quickfire Challenge utilizing several varieties of iconic Door County sweet and tart cherries. Chef Rasika added her second consecutive win with her berbere-spiced cipollini onions with cherries.

For the Elimination Challenge, Top Chef’s producers partnered with Wisconsin Cheese to create an outdoor Festival of Cheese at a bucolic venue, Cupola Barn in Oconomowoc, about 40 minutes outside of Milwaukee. The 13 remaining chefs were tasked with creating a perfectly cheesy bite to serve to 100 lucky festival goers in the extreme summer heat.

The Cheesemakers

Kristen Kish and Carla Hall with cheesemakers Pam Hodgson and Andy Hatch

Two of Wisconsin’s top cheesemakers, Andy Hatch of Uplands Cheese and Pam Hodgson of Sartori Cheese, revealed the enticing and interesting selection of cheeses in the Top Chef kitchen. The bounty included Hatch’s internationally known Pleasant Ridge Reserve, and Hodgson’s Merlot BellaVitano, some Badger State classics like Widmer Brick, and orange cheddar curds, plus some less renowned (but surely equally delicious) including Door Artisan Cheese Company’s Sancho Cruz Mexican-Style Manchego, Hook’s 15 year aged cheddar, and a rare 1000 day aged Marieke Gouda. Read more about BellaVitano.

How it Went Down

The chefs got to work, sampling and savoring their cheese selections, then grating and breading and frying (and frying and frying) and creating the perfect sauces and garnishes to enhance them. Although the croquette idea spread virally through the kitchen, Dan Jacobs, the hometown favorite, resisted the trend and knocked out some potato gnocchi with an airy Sancho Cruz foam and a bit of tapenade for balance. Kevin decided to double bread (is six step breading a thing?) his chosen Schroeder Kase Triple Cream Brie against the heat to a leaden result, but Rasika’s risky Dunbarton Blue paniyaram (a South Indian steamed fermented rice cake) with hazelnuts was a unique crowd pleaser.

Texas pitmaster Michelle Wallace took the win with a Pleasant Ridge fritter over collard greens, inspired by saag paneer, while Kenny Nguyen got sent to Last Chance Kitchen when his attempt at a Carr Valley Glacier Gorgonzola crab rangoon salad simply sogged out.

The Watch Party

Top Chef viewing party tasting photo credit Paul Gero

Wisconsin Cheese hosted an epic watch party of the episode the night after the episode aired, which included a Q&A hosted by Chef Luke Zahm and an oversized buffet board loaded with the exact same cheeses highlighted on the show for the guests to sample. Many cheesemakers and dairy farmers from around the state were in attendance and drew whoops and cheers when their cheeses were mentioned on screen.

Top Chef-testants Dan Jacobs and Michelle Wallace were also on hand for the festivities. Zahm asked how they thought their fellow competitors prepared for this Wisconsin cheese challenge. “The knowledge was impressive, a lot of the chefs were really prepared for cheese. I mean, they knew it was coming, It’s Wisconsin,” said Jacobs. The chefs also weighed in on how much time they typically had to strategize their dish. “None.” deadpanned Wallace. “Literally just in the car ride to the grocery store. You are thinking on the fly.” “Sometimes you get to the grocery store and you have to pivot,” continues Jacobs. “You really have to be like water and just flow.”

In addition to the competitive insight from the chefs, Zahm got some impressions from Master Cheesemaker Hodgson on Chef Kaleena’s fan fave mac and BellaVitano cheese. “She really understands our brand and what we're trying to do at Sartori,” said Hodgson. “When you think about our hand finishes, they're primarily for table cheese…but she understood what made [the Merlot BellaVitano] tick and how to bring it out. By using a wine reduction [with mushrooms] to complement the merlot that we soak the cheese in, I thought she knocked it out of the park.”

Ultimately, despite the heat and the preponderance of croquettes, the Wisconsin cheese industry won this challenge by gaining visibility for their remarkable products. “I've always been a huge proponent of the power of the cheese board,” said Hodgson. “It's always about the cheese and it's about the farms. It's nice to be out there [at the festival], but without high quality milk as a cheese maker, we can't do anything. It's all about the farm and all about the milk.”