Iron Chef Collection

430 – Fatty Tuna – Sakai vs. Uki

Chairman Kaga has always dreamed of having an Iron Chef Koshien. He hopes this battle will be the first step toward realizing that dream. The challenger defeated several chefs from his region in an “Iron Chef Pot Dish Challenge.”

431 – Iwa Oyster – Nakamura vs. Toriumi

The challenger is a French chef who used to be a sculptor.

The only files available to download at this time are the subbed VOB files. (I will get the divx versions up as soon as I can.)

These are the final two subtitled battles I have to share. I hope we have a chance to see some of the other subtitled episodes on whatever site they eventually land.

The challenger took over the kitchen of a Spanish cuisine restaurant started by a man known as the missionary for Spanish cuisine in Japan. According to the Chairman, he stands at the top of Japan’s Spanish culinary world. He is the first Spanish cuisine challenger to enter Kitchen Stadium.

What makes this episode a rare and special treat for current Iron Chef fans is that it comes from the time before Iron Chef was aired on Food Network. It was recorded from one of the local stations broadcasting the show. It is in Japanese WITH English subtitles. I know you will enjoy being able to experience this rare episode not shown in North America in over 10 years.

There are two options for viewing this episode. The pop-up player will use the usual divx encoded file. This smaller, lower quality file can also be downloaded directly using the “Download File” option. Also in the download menu this time is an option to download a higher quality VOB file (approx. 0.9GB). (You can play the VOB file in VLC Player.)

New in the video database this week: 427s – Hamaguri Clam Battle – Nakamura vs. Tozawa

While you are waiting for the episode to finish downloading, take a moment to visit my friend Kim’s new Scentsy site. There is also a link on the left side of the page. I have some of their products in the Iron Chef Collection office (OK, it’s just my living room ) but I really like them.

After a long absence, I have returned with a new episode for you. More should follow before next weekend.

The challenger is the grandson of a very famous chef who specialized in Shanghai cuisine. He was trained by his father and became a head chef at the age of 32. He is said to be the number one young chef in Yokohama Chinatown.

What makes this episode a rare and special treat for current Iron Chef fans is that it comes from the time before Iron Chef was aired on Food Network. It was recorded from one of the local stations broadcasting the show. (In fact, it still has some local commercials intact.) It is in Japanese WITH English subtitles. I know you will enjoy being able to experience this rare episode not shown in North America in over 10 years.

There are two options for viewing this episode. The pop-up player will use the usual divx encoded file. This smaller, lower quality file can also be downloaded directly using the “Download File” option. Also in the download menu this time is an option to download a higher quality VOB file (approx. 1.6GB). (You can play the vob file in VLC Player.)

New in the video database this week: 425s – Managatsuo Battle – Nakamura vs. Son

I thought I’d add this link sent to me by frequent commenter and contributor Hevilift. Iron Chef Chen and Iron Chef Sakai are in Australia for an Iron Chef dinner. Enjoy the article.

This is another one of those episodes where you will instantly recognize the challenger, despite the fact that you probably have not seen the episode yet. Why? Food Network (or Fuji) chose to include many chefs from 1996/1997 episodes they chose not to air in the added Food Network opening to the show. This is one of them.

Philippe Batton saw his mentor and two of his friends go down in defeat at the hands of Iron Chef Sakai. He began his culinary training at the age of 15. He became a head chef at the young age of 32. (He still lives in Japan. Here is a website for his restaurants.) Will the young French chef have what it takes to defeat an Iron Chef?

(Edit 3/22) – Only four days after posting this episode, I saw this story on one of the sites I read everyday. What are the odds?

(Edit 3/25) – Be sure to check out the comments to this post. You’ll see that we had a VERY SPECIAL visitor to the site.

What makes this episode a rare and special treat for current Iron Chef fans is that it comes from the time before Iron Chef was aired on Food Network. It was recorded from one of the local stations broadcasting the show. (In fact, it still has some local commercials intact.) It is in Japanese WITH English subtitles. I know you will enjoy being able to experience this rare episode not shown in North America in over 10 years. (And it has BACON!!)

There are two options for viewing this episode. The pop-up player will use the usual divx encoded file. This smaller, lower quality file can also be downloaded directly using the “Download File” option. Also in the download menu this time is an option to download a higher quality VOB file (approx. 1.0GB). (You can play the vob file in VLC Player.)

New in the video database this week: 426s – Bacon – Sakai vs. Baton (subbed)

Please make sure to thank our anonymous benefactor for continuing to provide us with these great episodes.

Hi, everybody.

I know it has been over a month since the last update, and I’m sorry about that. The good news is that you will be rewarded for your patience. I recently received 5 more pre-FN subtitled episodes that I will add over the next couple of weeks. Ryori no Tetsujin kono ato.

All from 1996 – Pomphret, Bacon, Clam, Fatty Tuna, Oyster

It is time for another pair of episodes that are exclusive to the Iron Chef Collection. Neither one of these episodes ever aired on Food Network.

• First is the Salmon Roe (Ikura) battle between Hiroyuki Sakai and the first challenger from Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan. The challenger is considered one of the three best chefs in Hokkaido. He opened his award-winning restaurant at the age of 27. For 20 years, he has set the standard for quality cuisine in Hokkaido. (Keep an eye out for the current Prime Minister of Japan, Yukio Hatoyama, at the judges table.) This episode is in Japanese WITH English subtitles.
• From the cool waters off the island of Hokkaido, we go to the warm islands southwest of Honshu: the Ryuku Islands for our second challenger this evening. The challenger leads a kitchen at a hotel on Okinawa. He is the first challenger from Okinawa to do battle in Kitchen Stadium. I don’t remember seeing Asako Kishi sitting at the announcing table before, but perhaps she should have done it more often. They seem to be having a great time during this episode. While I acquired this episode from the same source as our recent subtitled episodes, it appears to have been recorded in Japan. This episode is in Japanese with NO English subtitles. (There is some static in the audio of this file.)

New in the database this week: Salmon Roe – 424sub and Winter Melon – 440OA. Enjoy