$242 vs $13 Fried Rice: Pro Chef & Home Cook Swap Ingredients | Epicurious
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- Published on Dec 7, 2021
- Pro chef Esther Choi, owner of Mŏkbar in New York and home cook Gabrielle are swapping ingredients and hitting the kitchen to make each other’s crab fried rice recipes. We set Gabrielle up with all of the supplies she’d need to make Chef Esther’s decadent $242 creation while sending a modest $13 worth of ingredients back the other way. While Esther was using her expertise to elevate Gabrielle’s recipe, food scientist Rose dialed in to assist our home cook with a few questions he had along the way. Which one looks best to you?
Follow Chef Esther on Instagram at @choibites & @mokbar_nyc
Keep up with Gabrielle at @gabchappel
Rose is on Instagram at @rosemarytrout_foodscience
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$242 vs $13 Fried Rice: Pro Chef & Home Cook Swap Ingredients | Epicurious 
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I would watch a series of Esther just teaching us how to utilize most of the ingredients we have at home
this is something i watch at 2am in thr morning for no reason
thanks
Me too !
Auntie Esther*
A professional chef is not someone who makes all fancy dishes. Its the one who uses her ingredients efficiently
Why not both?
by definition of the word profession, a professional chef is someone who gets paid for it
"I can indeed confirm they have spots on them, so... we're gonna rip their heads off"
I laughed so hard! Gabby's having so much fun and it's contagious
There's no Gabby. It's Gabi.
wow
I read this comment right as she was saying that. So weird.
@Kinga of course! Have a good day! 😊
@Kiki McNeil oh okay :D Thank you you took time to explain ❤️
Watching Chef Esther cook was like attending a high end culinary school...this was a learning experience like no other....if she can do that with such humble ingredients in such a short amount of time...i can not even begin to imagine her creative prowess... am a FAN!
I started taking notes, i don’t think I’ll ever use them but info like that couldn’t go to waste. I’m obsessed it’s her now 😭
Holy moly just tried this recipe today following the $13 ingredients (lol!).. except I added bok choy, pineapple, and carrots as well. And the store didn’t have head-on shrimp, so after boiling the shrimp shells for the stock, I took those same shells and fried them in oil and used them instead of shrimp heads for the shrimp paste… this was the most incredible fried rice I’ve had at home and it truly felt restaurant quality… maximizing flavor and using every part of every ingredient made such a huge difference…. Thank you!!! Mind blown, life changed!
@Arjun Mehta oh wow you sold me the pineapple plate sounds like a glamorous idea. what did you sauté the pineapple with personally because I actually have a full pineapple at home and am thinking to take on the challenge and cook dinner for my roommate and I tomorrow.hopefully she’ll be wowed by the hollowed out 🍍 plate, I think it’s a pretty addition and Will come back here and write how it goes mate! Cheers
@Morgan H personally I didn’t find it overpowering at all but a few things I did were: 1) I allowed the pineapple to sauté a bit soon after the other aromatics. This mutes the flavor a bit so that it’s not so cold and sweet, which I agree would detract from the other flavors. 2) I sliced the pineapple in small pieces, about the same width you’d expect as a diced carrot and about 2x as long. 3) I didn’t put too much. So, only every 2nd or 3rd bite has the pineapple, so it allows you to enjoy the other flavors and then an occasional surprise of pineapple flavor.
If you’re at all curious I’d say just try it. The reason I was motivated to do this is because I really enjoy ordering pineapple fried rice when it’s on the menu at restaurants. Sometimes they’ll even serve it similar to how this video served the rice in a crab shell, except they’ll serve it inside of a half-pineapple instead!
Not hating on the idea but does the pineapple overpower the rest of the veggies and make the dish overly sweet? I like a nice balanced rice w a even mix of sweet and savoury
@Loki Laufeyson that’s what sweet corns for?
Esther is explaining everything step by step so professionally like we’re actually gonna understand anything she’s saying 😭
@Dragonfly on a trip 2kb free no virus punjabi movie no virus 240p no virus free punjabi movie
@R cooking basic things is common sense 😂
She actually broke it down so well I’m going to try her version at home 😊
🤣😂😂 I do
When the home chef said that she was having fun doing this, it made my day. You don’t have to be a pro chef to enjoy cooking. Cooking can be really fun! I’m glad that they’re enjoying themselves while doing this :)
Oh my God, seeing Esther and Gabrielle together at the end made me cry. Just the reactions to each other's dishes... it was beautiful. I don't know why this is making me so emotional. Two amazingly talented women
It wasn’t that deep
@Hannah Cooper do i seem bothered? 😂😂😂 Im not i just think its funny to cry about something as small as that
@Jaxx69 so what’s the problem? why are you so bothered and bitter
@Hannah Cooper you are defending someone that cried because of 2 chefs cooking 😂😂😂
@Jaxx69 shutup
This is such a Feel Good video. Gabi looks like she's having such a wonderful time cooking and her smile is energy is contagious. Esther's cooking is so informational and efficient while her charisma really shine through. And the part where they just have a great time tasting and complementing each other's dish at the end is a fitting end to this video. Such a wonderful experience this was.
I love that Esther was impressed by how cheap the ingredients were and on the other end we’ve got Gabby freaking out, not wanting to waste the expensive food
Love how the Esther is so serious and Gabby is jus living in the moment 😂
@smolkittenuwu no u
I love Gabby's personality bro 😄
@Sifat Siam Look, even at the end the professional chef even applauded her on her skill even though she's still a home cook. She's just having fun while doing something that she hasnt done before, and succeeds in doing so. Plus this entire video is a experiment on both sides. So no "Customer" would be dissatisfied, as the dishes made in the video isn't even made for the purpose of selling to the customer, it is made to test the skills of both cooks and to inform us viewers on ways to improve a dish, and indeed skills were shown, and Informed we are. Except you, apparently.
And please, Never use "Simp" or "sus" when trying to prove a point. It makes your entire argument sound childish. wouldn't it bother you to just say "Desperate" or "Suspicious"?
Please bring Chef Ester again! The way she uses 'products waste' are amazing and creative. While zero waste is trendy again, most tips I find is making stock or save it for later. I need more tips in using 'product waste'!
Ester needs her own series I would watch her do this all the time 😭👏
I love how this video is made. It shows us that you can have basic ingredients and accessories, but if you have some skills and knowledge, you can still make awesome food.
On the other hand it shows also that even if you're not a professional cook, but you get quality, interesting ingredients, some more professional tools and a few pro tips, you can create something really impressive.
I just love Esther! Instead of adding too much to the home cooks version, she utilized her skills to bring out every bit of flavor she could, and just presented it better.
I love that Esther uses EVERYTHING. It's so creative how she repurposes things most people would discard.
@deckleberry how can u ask that when you don't even have basic reading comprehension😂
Maximize, Maximize, Maximize 💖💖💖
@Nykaitcha she used the heads for the paste, not the skin, right?
That's why i love cooking you can unleash your creativity, and when people find what you did good...woah the dopamine hit it's tremendous.
@Nykaitcha it's a staple in asian household
I loved the detail about seasoning a wok! I live in China, and I order food at open kitchens (school cafeteria style) all the time, so I've watched the cooks make the dishes. Everything gets cooked in a wok over an open flame with a faucet nearby trickling water. The workers will "season" their wok in between each dish that they prepare. I just thought they were washing the wok out, but now I understand their process better!
you could almost lock Esther in a room and throw away the key, with but a few simple ingredients, come back in a week, and expect that she turned said room and ingredients into a full on restaurant.
I really love that Chef Ester used absolutely everything (aside of the shrimp veins obviously) and that she also didn’t add anything like a lot of the other chefs do. She just used what she was given and showed us at home how we can make something delicious with less expensive ingredients
I like how positive this whole episode was - also I am going to make the cheap ingredient fried rice myself now… it sounded so yummy!
I love when the pro chefs use the home cook's ingredients, cause it shows me what i can do on a budget to get the most out of what is available to me.
@TheMinchinist true
But we won’t do it like a pro because that’s too much work and take too long. We all know that, let’s face it 😏
@Koichi Phạm for me it's not the stuff that's on the fridge that gets me. It's the spices and herbs and liquids in the cupboards that I want to learn to better utilize to give it that restaurant quality
You know, what's not available to me? Time and dedication. So it's frozen pizza for me all day
@forteandblues some of these videos arent that so the original commenter likes it when they make these types of videos
I wanna see Esther cooking her own ingredients. That would be a bomb
I'm gonna recreate Esther's way of cooking with the ingredients that Gabby provided for her!!
@Esther Mburu really tasty!
How was it??
Go ahead! It's really delicious! I tried it today.
I love how she teaches us so much about ingredients and don't waste utilize
Chef Esther is so humble, I love her attitude! And Gaby is adorable! 😍
I went 😳 when Esther started crushing the fried shrimp heads! I didn’t know you make shrimp paste out of those shrimp heads! Learnt something today! Thanks Esther!!
terasi it's actually the fermented version of shrimp paste. so it's more pungent and has deep of flavour than regular shrimp paste
@Fluffy I agreed! That’s why I have tried to avoid using terasi for so long. I couldn’t stand the smell! 🤢😂 I think if we use Esther’s method, the smell would be a lot less pungent. I haven’t tried her method yet since I still think about the tiny heads being crushed.
@Marco Meeuwse oh God... this gives me a flashback I want to forget. The smell of the cooking was very very bad.
However the taste was actually quite nice. Just the hours long cooking smells horrible. (At least the Trassi that our cook made)
That's when I started crushing on Esther
@Marco Meeuwse no problem! As an Indonesian, I honestly don’t like the smell of terasi. I used it once or twice for my cooking. I have more interest in making things from scratch like showed here by Esther. I like her approach better.
This video was soooo well made,entertaining, and informative. Great job and great dish and video!!
“shallots are like onions on steroids” the best thing i’ve heard in my entire life.
she’s not wrong lol
Esther is amazing at utilization, Gabby is energetic and super positive! They are both a joy to watch!
I learned so much from Chef Esther's techniques in cooking, definitely gonna try that out.
you can tell Esther is a restaurant owner, she really maximises what she gets out of her ingredients
This is the right attitude to reduce food waste.
12:15
Honestly, that's more about being a good, passionate, and creative chef than saving money as a business owner. Utilization of everything adds to the flavors as well as lets those creative juice just flow into other dishes! I'm not a restaurateur, bit a good cook, and I use everything for both the fun and creativity, and sure, cost effectiveness, but FAR more the creativity! 😁
Yup
I am so impressed by how Chef Esther used all parts of her ingredients. 🙌
What Esther created with simple ingredients looked stunning.
Esther: Only put half because we don't want it to be salty
Also Esther: We're gonna go ahead and put the whole thing in and add some salt
Omg. I learned SO much from both of them. Time to combine a bit of both recipes xD
Esther is absolutely amazing. I could watch her cook so many more episodes. I want to eat at her restaurant.
I think Esther is really pro in her profession, and I learnt from her how to maximize common ingredients on hand, and reduce food waste. While Gabby has nice and cute smile but I can’t help thinking of her wasting those premium ingredients 😂😂😂
Gabby is so me when cooking just going with the flow until I mess up😀
It's Gabi, not Gabby.
We need more GABI oh my goodness she is so adorable 😍
Gabi is hilarious, she seems fun to hang out with
Chef Esther is amazing at what she does, the way she maximises ingredients in amazing
@Zac S yeah right someone seems a little different to someone else is so indecent. Thank you I don't need to be that decent where you state people as "That kind of girl"intending something offensive lol
@Zac S she just said she disagrees how is that BAD!!
@taslimakhter 7151 nobody ever taught you about decency it seems
@Cindy she did that because that specific rice is cooked differently to normal rice. She even says this.
There are many videos in this series where Frank literally writes the instructions out for other chefs, somehow that's not a problem but Esther is??
@M C "Have Them"?
I would skip the expensive parts, so maybe do a series of Esther cooking with common ingredients.
I love how chef Esther is so organized in the kitchen and used everything
Esther is so talented 😍 also very sweet 😊
they’re so amazing. i love them especially esther
Can we have two pro chefs together making same dish in their own unique way? I think that would be cool
@Kopi Lambada - bro gtfoutta here
Chopped?
@Kopi Lambada - wtf
@Kopi Lambada - sus
That show already exists… it’s called Masterchef
Omg, I love Gaby's vibe. She's soooo sweet ❤️
I LOVE GABBY'S ENERGY SHE IS SO POSITIVE
Gabi killed the recipe! She did such an incredible job and with unfamiliar ingredients no less!
Esther is the real deal pro gourmet chef and Gabby is the kind of sweetheart that you would want to invite to your home. Total cutie pies.
I love how the pro chef is so confident and clearly knows what she's doing, and still backs away from the hot oil. Makes me feel like less of a coward for doing it myself.
@Eldibs oh ok I got confused
@Someone I commented as a reply to someone else's comment on my comment.
@Eldibs did you just comment on your own comment I’m confused
I just power through the pain, those are tiny drops on my skin, not an entire pot
@big_smoke cic I agree, but seeing the pro chef be cautious makes me feel even better about it.
I loved this but I can't stop imagining now what it would be like if fish were chopping human heads off and explaining how to make them crunchy
Epicurious
Muito bom seu canal!
Adorei as dicas!
😊
I like how this not end up as a competitive kind of contest but end up as more wholesome content where both are helping each other in their own way
Appreciate the lessons on maximising flavours. Thank you, Esther
Esther’s 0 waste philosophy is amazing in practice!
she didnt have much to not waste anyway
@falsenames so so true. A lot of traditional ‘peasant’ dishes make use of all the ingredients and have great flavours, much heartier and more satisfying in many ways than what rich people at the time would have been eating. Paella is a good example.
The zero waste philosophy was integral to pretty much every culture until last century when commercial food processes ended up with a surplus of food to everyone middle class and above in income. Sad to say it, but losing that eliminated a lot of food that would just go to waste that was actually better than what was considered above what wasn't just something you could pick up pre-packaged. Adopting a limited waste philosophy has helped out my cooking a lot. Even when I buy a pre-cooked chicken from my local supermarket, the bones and other leftover bits go to a broth to be used later. Same with the ends of green onions, leeks, lettuce, carrots, etc. And the broth can be used for months afterward with proper freezer storage, not that it lasts any more than 3 weeks for me.
@Ben Song I believe his name was Yuji and Rose was frothing over his nil wastage.
It really is, it is something I started doing a few years ago, and ever since people ask me to cook for special occassions, such as the Holidays.
Do not waste, and maximize flavors, and it elevates every single thing you cook.
Of course the better the ingredients, the better the dish comes out, but you can make really really amazing dishes with cheap ingredients using that ideology. And in turn, you can really mess up really good ingredients, if you do not attempt to maximize their flavor and or things go to waste..
But if you use that ideology with amazing ingredients, it simply... well everything turns out breathtaking.
These two are everything I want to be: talented, kind, fun, intelligent! Sincerely enjoyed learning about cooking from Esther and how to enjoy the moment from Gabby 💕
I love how Esther is so serious and then Gabby is laughing so much lol 😂
It's Gabi, not Gabby.
It's really cool to see all parts of ingredients have there uses that I would otherwise throw away! Thanks for the video
This is a really cool concept and Ester is a genius and I want to learn more from her
Esther is the perfect chef for these swap episodes because you know she’s really gonna maximize the usual basic ingredients and elevate them, which could be a very educational experience for us viewers. I can’t appreciate as much the other chefs who bring in a couple more ingredients just so they could do their own interpretation. I find it cheating in a way. Imo, what Esther does in this swap series stays true to the challenge and that for me shows how skilled, talented, and knowledgeable she really is as a chef.
Edit: forgot some words
@Queen Albatross Hello to your daughter! I hope she’s doing great ☺️
@QuietWyatt89 ah, that’s great then! They seem to be checking the comment section. Home or studio, I still think it’s quite unfair since the necessary and original ingredients are provided for anyway
@heliosboy I mean, maybe not a perfect dish all the time but something that’s still above average and definitely still edible and appetizing 😅
Gabi is the pro chef you know
Agreed! I really didn't like when some other pro chefs swapped pretty much half of all ingredients. This is not a challenge then
Esther is such a treasure
I love gabi and how shes so happy and smiling all the time and using all those difficult stuff she did awesome both o them did i loved this video
😍😍🤩🤩😚😋
Yes! I remember a few years ago, i was making prawn, n boiled the head and shell. The entire house was filled with awesome smell. Then i used the soup to make rice, best decision i ever made in cooking, it was sooo full of flavor
Esther is my favorite! Would love to see more of her!
I made chef esther’s version today and it was unbelievably good. Completely elevated my fried rice and it’s amazing
I just made the paste but mine turned out more liquidy than thick. Not sure if I needed to fry the heads more or do more crushing in the pratap and mortal. I’ll try again next time I buy shrimp
@Ivy maybe i agree to you
Sauce is supposed to be salty. Salt acts like a preservative help your sauce won’t turn bad
@Green Tea if you have wet rice after you've boiled it ,you didn't boil it long enough
@Salman Rizky12 better to substitute the sugar with baking soda
I love how Esther uses everything! She is the best cheff I have ever seen cook. She makes her own seasonings and all. Im dumb founded by how great she is.
One of my favorite episode in this series 🔥❤
Love the shrimp oil and shrimp paste process. I've save shrimp head and skin in the freezer for later use. usually just boil it and use the stock in what I am cooking. Can't wait to use the oil in fried rice. Thank you for the idea Chef Ester! Love your show!
I love Esther and Gabi, literally girls supporting girls it’s so cute ☺️
Chef Esther Choi showing us how to MAXIMIZE flavors is the best part of this video. Who would've known that I can do those things with shrimp heads?
We use the prawn heads to make amazing soup/broth. Thus prawn noodles exist! My mum uses it in alternative replacement of chicken broth when making porridge. It's sooo good!
In Asian kitchens, nothing goes to waste. Will most probably cook everything.
tehe
Anyone with even a slight clue about cooking?
@Kimora it is now one thousand!
love u guys!! and esther listening to u explain cooking makes me want to cook more lolol
These 2 ladies are beautiful. their personalities made me smile soooo many times.
God, this looks delicious 😋😍
I LOVE THESE!!!✨❤️🍛
Esther definitely need her own TheXvid channel!! She amazing at what she does and explains everything well! She’d be great on TheXvid
@Carolyn Smith uncle roger??
@Himi thanks
@Himi ty, I follow her now ✨
She ran this TheXvid show where she tried different kitchen gadgets
She does.
Esther and Tik Tok called it “Golden Fried Rice” but it’s actually how we Vietnamese have always made our fried rice (mixing the rice with the egg yolk then frying them)
Recently I meet chef Esther n she amazing person as well as amazing chef m really glad to work with her❤️❤️❤️❤️
It’s not Japanese fried rice but i really wanna try this haha
Looks sooo tasty
Both of these ladies (and rose) are so lovely I just mean the vibes they put off are so cool and genuine and caring they seem like really cool people and I would die to try these dishes and I don’t even eat seafood
Can we all appreciate the fact that Esther and Gabrielle never disappoint us with their skills 👏🏾 👏🏾 👏🏾
They are both terrible at cooking fried rice
Oh! I'm curious, too! Are you a genuine Priest? Catholic Priest? I have a super funny joke for you:
In class one day, Mother Superior asked her students what they want 2b when they grow up.
Johnny said, "An astronaut!"
MOTHER Superior: "Excellent Johnny. That's a FINE profession. And Stuart, what would YOU like to be when you grow up?"
Stuart: "A doctor"
Mother Superior: "Oh that's a wonderful choice, as well, Stuart. And now Jane...how 'bout you? What would YOU like to be when you're a grown-up?
JANE: "I want to be a PROSTITUTE!"
MOTHER SUPERIOR nearly had a coronary: "😳😳 WHAT!??!! What did you say, miss Jane??!!"
Jane. "A PROSTITUTE! When I'm a grown-up, I'm going to be a PROSTITUTE."
Mother Superior throws her hands up I'm the air, let's out a HUGE sigh!! "OHHH.
Oh thank you, Lord Jesus! THANK YOU MERCIFUL GOD!.
The entire classroom: 😯😲😲😲😲.
Mother Superior: "Oh what a relief!..I thought you said, "PROTESTANT!!.
👏👏👏👏❣❣❣👏👏😍👍!!
ru an actual priest
Great duo! I love these girls! ❤️🥺
This was so fun. Great job ladies. So many ideas
I never comment on videos but this shrimp paste was insane! I adding it now everywhere
Chef Esther making a chef kiss dish with $13... I can only imagine what she could have done with her $242 ingredients 🤤🤤🤤
thanks to Esther, feel like im on a paid professional cooking class 🎉 bunch of insights
Hahaha the Gaby she’s extremely funny I find myself laughing anytime she talks, the pro chef has made me rethink my cheap kitchen budget a lot. I love this content
@مطبخ بندورةटमाटर की रसोई 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸
Who cares? Let people like other people. Not like they’re going to meet them anyways??
@elina and she’s probably not as good as a person as they think
@Nomad and?
She was barely on the screen
I'm deathly allergic to shellfish but these dishes look so delicious that I'm about to risk my life for them
That Gabi has charisma. I learned so much from Esther. Great video, thank you.
the way Esther builds flavor is amazing
when Esther said her stock had been going for 30 mins i was like- girl it takes me 10 mins to make nice and simple fried rice
I’m genuinely allergic to over 90% of the ingredients in this video, but I still watch with rapt attention because Esther is such a joy. 😊😊
@lafabricadebodas the specific thing in alliums that I'm allergic to is even used as a concentrated natural flavouring additive, so "spices" OR "natural favours" could still mean I'm allergic to a product. Sometimes a family member will have something that mentions flavouring and will bring it over for me to sniff and then wait and see if my throat gets itchy in the next 15 minutes so I know whether or not I can eat that product lol.
(The thing I'm allergic to in the onion family is the compound that gives them all that distinct smell, and I'm sure you know how cut or cooked onion/garlic smell fills a room and lingers for a long time...if it is even slightly detectable by nose then it means I'm still allergic to breathing that air. I can't really go to restaurants and have to hold my breath while walking through mall food courts if I don't want to risk my asthma being triggered. There are entire cultures and countries I can never visit because of how much they love cooking with garlic lol. If someone cooks with garlic, in their own house, and their kitchen vent leads outside, then I can literally have an allergic reaction from someone multiple houses down making food in their oven if I go outside.)
@ilkham amanu weak has nothing to do with a food sensitivity.........besides why are you judging people you feel are not strong! Its rude! Its just fried rice theres a lot else to eat. Why are you judgemental? Wait dont tell.........Dont care.
@Neonhueman • 24 years need some chocolate? Someone ate your cake? Bad day today? Wait dont tell.........
@Alex people are juddgy about another persons allergies but they are not the ones that get sick. Eggs and sea food are a common one. And bottled or packaged stuff many times has food coloring or aditives, preservatives. The onion allergy is interesting.
Listening to Msg already gave me allergies 🤭 ......a kind of msg is? Still not natural?
Esther is hands down the best chef they being on these videos. She does creative and incredible things every single time
i once made a fried rice with oil and salt for a nephew and i tasted it wondering why would he not like onions and vegetable and it was quite better than expectation... probably worth Rs.30 which is about $0.5..
Good job, ladies! Excellent tips & ideas! 💡 😊
I was always wondering what to do with the shrimp shell (I know about the head but not the shell), thanks Esther.
The pro chef is so creative I would of never thought of making garlic chips the regular chef I like her for accepting the challenge she even took her time learning how to take apart the crab!
I really wanna see the 200 dollar version of Esther's egg fried rice, if the cheap one was amazing than the expensive one must be godly
Home cooks should try to recreate the chef’s recipes using the ingredients they provided
The egg yokes mixed with rice, once they are cooked, they tend to expand in size, thus separating the rice grains.
Dang, Esther killed that recipe. Simple ingredients yet infused complex flavors to them without adding other stuff not given to her. Simply brilliant technique and food knowledge.
@Jesse Turner wait where was the sesame oil?
@tacos mexicanstyle well yeah, it was just that they read the list in the beginning but didn't mention it until the end.
@Jesse Turner I think sesame oil at the end is the way to go, more of a seasoning than cooking oil
first thing my wife said in the beginning, "you know what's missing? sesame oil." but there it was at the end.
she was extremely professional here - a lot of skill, resourcefulness, and knowledge at display here
I get that this is information so it focuses on the expert but c'mon I really like gabi's personality I wanted to hear from her more "shallots are like onions on steriods" 😂❤