We're now down to 6 remaining chef'testants on Top Chef: All-Stars and they're all close enough to the finale to start getting the wafting smell of success (or utter failure).

If you hadn't yet heard Paula Deen is the guest judge for the Quickfire tonight and challenges the chefs to create a deep-fried masterpiece in 30 minutes. Can their oil even get hot enough to use within that amount of time? And, big surprise, Blais is using liquid nitrogen to "fry" his dish. This after he claimed on Twitter last Sunday: "re: my use of nitro. It's an ingredient. Not unlike oil. Actually, about as cold as frying oil is hot, with as many uses. It's not a gimmick." (I'd like to think he said that as a direct response to us on the Top Chef Podcast for calling him out last week for overusing that trick.)

For the Elimination Challenge, the chefs are cooking for a cause: They have to cater a seafood dinner for a at a charity event benefiting Gulf Coast fisherman and Chef John Besh will be playing guest judge. The twist: six recently chopped chef'testants are brought back to play sous chefs and, of course, are chosen at random. Oh the stress and hilarity that will ensue!

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This article appears in Feb 24 – Mar 2, 2011.