The seventh episode of “Hell’s Kitchen” featured an international twist as the dozen remaining players competed head-to-head by cooking up different cuisines from all over the world. Later during dinner service, Gordon Ramsay became so fed up with one of the contestants that he kicked them out of the kitchen — yikes! A lot is at stake this year for the ultimate winner, as they’ll claim a head chef position at Gordon’s steakhouse at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas.
Below, read our minute-by-minute “Hell’s Kitchen: Young Guns” recap of Season 20, Episode 7, titled “If You Can’t Stand the Heat,” to find out what happened Monday, July 12 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT. Then be sure to sound off in the comments section about your favorite aspiring chefs on Fox’s reality TV show and who you think has what it takes to join the “HK” winners list. Here are the current team breakdowns:
RED TEAM: Brynn Gibson, Josie Clemens, Keanu Hogan, Kiya Willhelm, Samuel Garman
BLUE TEAM: Antonio Ruiz, Emily Hersh, Kevin Argueta, Megan Gill, Steven Glenn, Trenton Garvey, Victoria Sonora
Keep refreshing/reloading this “Hell’s Kitchen” live blog for the most recent updates.
8:00 p.m. — “Previously on ‘Hell’s Kitchen’!” In the sixth episode, Payton Cooper was eliminated after ruining Gordon’s daughter’s 21st birthday dinner. “I’m sorry I sent her a flavorless dish tonight,” he apologized. “But I feel like I’m growing stronger and stronger every day and I know I can do better, Chef. I really do.” Gordon disagreed and took Payton’s jacket, sending him home to Kentucky. Following his ouster, only 12 chef-testants remain in the running to win Season 20. How will tonight’s episode play out? Let’s go!
8:10 p.m. — As Gordon dismisses the teams back to the dorms, he pulls Trenton aside and compliments him for “hitting his stride.” Is this foreshadowing success for the Missouri chef or an elimination? We will find out within the hour, but either way it was an emotional moment. The next morning both teams are delivered some athletic uniforms and find out today’s challenge involves a little soccer. Gordon has decided to even up the teams and sends Antonio over to work with the Red Team. Nobody wearing red is too thrilled with their new teammate. For their next challenge, the teams will cook six different cuisines. They have to kick soccer balls with ingredients written on them into the goal marked with the cuisine they would like to cook.
8:15 p.m. — Now that the chefs have all their ingredients they have 40 minutes to cook their international dishes. Megan has Italian and is dismayed to find out she forgot to choose pasta as an ingredient. She decides to make a…sausage cake? Meanwhile, Kevin’s steak is still raw with 45 seconds left to go. The Blue Team is off to a rocky start!
8:30 p.m. — The dishes have been plated and it’s time for Gordon to score them. The winning team will win the Season 20 Young Guns soccer trophy. Tonight’s VIP guest judge is James Beard Award winner Michael Cimarusti. Here are how the head-to-head battles went down: Steve defeats Josie with his Chinese dish. Antonio defeats Kevin with his Mexican dish. Sam defeats Victoria with his French dish. Emily defeats Brynn with her Thai dish. Kiya defeats Megan with her Italian dish. Keanu defeats Trenton with her Greek dish. The Red Team has won this challenge by a score of 4-2! Keanu picks up the trophy and learns her team will kick back and relax at a pool party! The Blue Team will be prepping the dining room ahead of today’s service, which includes steaming and ironing table cloths and polishing dinnerware.
8:35 p.m. — While the Blue Team works hard to prepare for tonight’s dinner service, they all realize Kevin is their week link both in and out of the kitchen. Over at the Red Team’s pool party, they’re enjoying a fun magic show from Piff the Magic Dragon. Piff is a memorable contestant from “America’s Got Talent” who has gone on to have major success in Las Vegas. The rewards and punishments end and Hell’s Kitchen opens up for tonight’s dinner service!
8:45 p.m. — As their first appetizers hit the pass, Gordon calls out raw lobster and sends it back. Over on the Red Team Gordon screams that Antonio’s timing is “s***” but at least he was able to pull off the risotto. Kevin’s struggles continue on the Blue Team with more raw lobster and they have yet to serve a single appetizer. Over on the Red Team, Sam has a “hold my beer” moment when he serves up inconsistently cooked scallops. He recovers with Keanu’s help and the diners are happy.
8:55 p.m. — Keanu’s confidence is spiking over on the Red Team, but the others seem frustrated with her timing and communication. If one more person asks her, “How long on garnish?” Keanu might lose it. Despite her teammates’ feelings, Keanu is sending out rock star dishes. Over on the Blue Team, Kevin finds it difficult to recover from his public humiliation after Gordon yelled at him. Because of Kevin’s struggles at the fish station, the lamb chops sit for too long and end up overcooked. Gordon calls the entire Blue Team into the pantry and tells Kevin to hand over his apron. “You’re done!”
8:59 p.m. — With Kevin eliminated in humiliating fashion, the Blue Team finishes up dinner service shorthanded. With their weak link removed, the Blue Team pushes out entrees and successfully bounces back. Following dinner service, Gordon says both teams are winners tonight for recovering from their mistakes. He doesn’t even have a parting quote for the 21-year old eliminated line cook from Los Angeles.
