‘Fast Foodies’ Recap: ‘Baron Davis’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 208 of ‘Fast Foodies’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
​
One would think that after a year and a half of learning about what makes certain foods our favorites via the truTV series, Fast Foodies, that we would have covered all the bases. Because it only makes sense that a finite number of reasons exist regarding how people fall in love with a particular dish, right? Well as it turns out… the answer to that question is a big fat, no. Because there are seemingly an infinite number of reasons as to why people are compelled to love a certain food and for proof, look no further than this week’s episode of the show. For Baron Davis stopped by the kitchen to teach us that sometimes, something cheap and fast and tasty, will steal our hearts no problem.
​
Because back in the day, when Baron wanted a filling meal that was priced right and tasted great, he turned to a pair of dishes from Taco Bell. Specifically, the Nachos Bell Grande and their Cinnamon Twists. Because back then, they both only cost a couple of bucks and gave him what he needed and that meant, it was up to our intrepid chefs to figure out how to perfectly recreate that kind of dish and recapture the magic of those nights when this dish brought joy to Baron’s heart and as always… the copycat round led to some fascinating creations for Baron to taste, the kind that offered up unique ingredient combinations to try and resurrect a memory.

Kristen for instance, used a combination of store-bought chips and homemade chips to really make the dish feel akin to Taco Bell’s chip recipe and she used a unique fluff with some cinnamon flavoring to recreate the twists and well, she did a solid job since Baron mentioned the consistency was there. As for Justin, well he really wanted to focus on the meat’s texture to evoke a memory and he also used a deeply deep-fried Churro to replicate the twist, and he threw in a Fire Sauce replica to really complete the copycat and Baron absolutely loved the sauce and the meat. As for Jeremy, he focused hard on the seasoning since Taco Bell really does pop with flavor, and he absolutely accomplished that mission since Baron really did feel as though the taste was just right.

But in the end, it was Kristen’s cinnamon recreation and chip combination that closest matched Taco Bell’s combo and with her win in hand… it was off to another incredible remix round. Wherein the copycat champ Kristin, took the time to make a supremely fancy southwestern dish, a Wagyu Steak with Taco Spiced Maitake Mushrooms. Which was designed to elevate the essence of the nachos. As for Justin… he went with a more traditional southwestern fare by making Pozole with Chicken Confit and Ancho Broth, a dish designed to really take the flavors of the nachos to a whole new level and Jeremy, well he fused a little coastal flavoring into his southwestern dish by making Poached Lobster with a Corn Polenta. Which when broken down, would create a true nacho feel with all kinds of unique flavors. 

Which of course, were all creative and beautiful and gorgeous looking dishes, making Baron’s decision as to who to choose as the Chompion, quite difficult. But Jeremy won the day with that wonderful fusion dish and that allowed for him to dole out quite the wild punishment for the losers. In that, they had to do luge shots from an ice sculpture that resembled a big ol’ booty and that brought about a hilarious end to another amazing episode of this series. One that compels us to continue this incredibly tasty journey… so we can continue to experience the unique and infinite rationale that inspires our never-ending love affair with food. Until next time.

---