Meet the Chef That Double KO’d Bobby Flay and the Titans

Born in Japan and raised in Seattle, Washington, chef, restaurateur and TV personality Shota Nakajima’s journey into the world of fine dining began at just 16. By 18, he moved to Osaka to attend culinary school and to hone his Japanese cooking skills, working in Michelin-starred restaurants under the guidance of chef Yasuhiko Sakamoto.

After returning to the Pacific Northwest to share the knowledge and skills he gained in Japan, Shota opened several restaurants, including Adana, Taku and Kobo. Along the way, he earned three consecutive James Beard Award nominations from 2018 to 2020.

But his distinct blend of hospitality and precision is not confined to just his kitchens. He’s become a familiar face in competitive cooking kitchens as well, first appearing on Iron Chef Gauntlet in 2017, then taking on and beating Bobby Flay on Beat Bobby Flay in 2018. He became a fan favorite on Season 18 of Top Chef in 2021, reached the quarterfinals on Food Network’s Tournament of Champions in 2023 and took down the Titans on Season 2 of Bobby’s Triple Threat.

Before he could take on Bobby in his first appearance on Beat Bobby Flay, Shota had to get past radio host and cookbook author chef Jamie Gwen, a former protégé of Emeril Lagasse.

With Bobby choosing leeks as the main ingredient for the first challenge and just 20 minutes on the clock, Shota had his work cut out for him.

For Round 1, he prepared shrimp marinated in a leek, soy vinegar and sesame oil sauce, finished with salmon roe.

“Those coined leeks are soaking up all of that vinegary pickling liquid. It is absolutely delightful.” — Chef Damaris Phillips, Round 1 Judge

“I love that you showcase both the green and the white part of the leek, but the salinity of the reduction of the soy is just blowing everything else out of the water.” — Chef Amanda Freitag, Round 1 Judge

Chef Shota explains the strategy for his fried leeks: "The white part of the leek, I’m going to mince it up and put it into my pickling liquid, then start slicing some into whole rounds, coating it with a little bit of cornstarch and then dropping it in the fire."

When you take on Bobby, especially on his own show, you better bring not just culinary skill but intensity and precision.

The advantage of advancing to Round 2 is that Shota got to call the shots. For this challenge, he chose tempura, a dish that showcases his skill and one Bobby isn’t quite as familiar with.

With $25,000 and bragging rights on the line, chef Shota prepared a tempura platter with shrimp, uni (sea urchin), lotus root and carrots.

"I thought this was a really solid plate. I thought the shrimp tempura was cooked perfectly. I love this matcha green tea salt, the lotus root stuffed with the purple shiso. I really loved that too, how it was kind of sandwiched in between there but felt fresh even though it was a fried piece." — Sara Gore, TV Host and Round 2 Judge

While tempura may not be Bobby’s go-to style of cooking, you better believe he was going to bring his A game.

Bobby did just that when squaring off against Shota, creating a masterful tempura with rock shrimp, maitake mushrooms and haricots verts, finished with a special Japanese sauce.

"I like the chili. I love the yuzu. I like the acid, but I think the sauce could have a stiffer body so it could stick to the vegetables and the shrimp a little better. But I like the cook on the shrimp, and the mushroom is quite delicious." — Charles Parker, Executive Chef of Talula’s Garden and Round 2 Judge

Bobby doesn’t get taken down often, but when he does, it’s with grace and humility. Bobby was the first to congratulate Shota with a handshake and a hug.

Shota on his Bobby-beating dish: "I think I showcased tempura in a way that a lot of people just haven't seen before."

“I chose your dish because it was technically perfect.” — Drew Nieporent, Owner of Nobu and Round 2 Judge

After beating Bobby in 2018, Shota earned a shot at the Titans, with Bobby knowing he’d push them to their limits. But the Titans were ready to push right back.

Shota had his hands full going up against Bobby’s dream team of industry vets: renowned chefs and Food Network mainstays Brooke Williamson, Tiffany Derry and Michael Voltaggio.

Heading into Round 1, two choices were made right off the top: Bobby chose salmon and red miso as the main ingredients, and Shota chose Michael to square off against.

For his first dish in Round 1, Shota used the belly of the salmon for the sashimi and, in a move that Bobby and guest judge chef Gavin Kaysen said they had "never seen before," used the hizu, the cartilage in the salmon head, to add texture on top.

"I love that the chef kept the bloodline in. You see the bloodline, you get an idea of how fresh it is. So technically, I love the red miso, it looks like it’s sort of squeeze-bottled on though. I would have loved to have seen it paintbrushed on. That way, every single piece of the salmon that I’m tasting, I get some of that red miso." — Chef Gavin Kaysen, Judge

Did you know?: Red miso is fermented soybean paste, dark in color and rich in flavor.

For his second dish in Round 1, Shota described the salmon nanban as a "flavor bomb, umami in your face," classic Japanese dish that involves frying the salmon loin before marinating it in miso vinegar dashi and brown butter-miso sauce.

"The sauce is really great. It’s like candy. I really want more and more. I mean, the sauce and vanilla ice cream would be good. So, you know, I’ll take it with the salmon, [even] better. The fish is cooked perfectly, but maybe even fried a little bit more so that way I get more texture. Technically, that would then be a perfect dish." — Chef Gavin Kaysen, Judge

Did you know?: Dashi is an umami-rich Japanese soup stock made of miso and rice vinegar.

With Shota down two points and 40 minutes on the clock heading into Round 2, Bobby picked two classic ingredients for Shota and Tiffany to showcase: hanger steak and cheddar cheese.

For his first dish in Round 2, Shota put together a steak chawanmushi with cheese dashi. Chawanmushi is a soup dish that’s solidified with egg, so you can eat it with a spoon.

Shota explains his strategy for his chawanmushi: "To start, I'm going to make my chawanmushi base, which means I need to make some dashi. So I'm going to add some kombu to the dashi, let it steep and then add my bonito flakes. I’ll add my white cheddar and let that cheese flavor steep in."

"Just a really gutsy dish to do. I love chawanmushi. One of my fears with chawanmushi is when the egg curdles the wrong way. Technically, the chawanmushi is basically perfect. It’s not curdled, it’s delicious." — Chef Gavin Kaysen, Judge

For his second dish of Round 2, Shota made a Japanese-style fried and breaded katsu sandwich, a dish he grew up eating as a lunchtime staple his mother made. It features hanger steak with cheese in the middle, double-fried and tossed in katsu sauce, all served on a brioche bun.

Katsu sauce is made with tomato paste, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce and malt vinegar, with shredded cheese mixed in for an added zing of flavor.

"Texturally, it’s as hanger steak should be. It’s cooked well. You get a lot of the cheese. I don’t know if the bread is the right choice, it makes it a little bit tough to eat. But in terms of using the cheese here, it was really unexpected and really creative." — Chef Gavin Kaysen

For the final challenge, chef Shota got to pick the main ingredients, choosing black cod and burdock root, two of his all-time favorites and ingredients commonly used in Japanese cuisine.

It’s student vs. mentor in Round 3, as Shota takes on someone he “looks at like a mentor”: chef Brooke. The two met when Shota appeared on Top Chef while Brooke was judging, and they’ve remained close ever since. But on Bobby’s Triple Threat, once the bell rings, all friendships go out the window.

For his final dish, Shota is all business, delivering a beautiful and technically sound black cod burdock dashi soup with soy-glazed burdock and cod-stuffed burdock.

Shota on his final dish: "I’m going all in with this dish. It’s classic Japanese with a Pacific Northwest twist. This dish showcases a lot of technique."

“Love the presentation. The broth is incredible. The fish is cooked really, really well. It’s also seasoned really well. It’s a dish I just can’t stop eating.” — Chef Gavin Kaysen