Ash had tired, tart, and Italian, so he made "pantry" pasta puttanesca. He doesn't talk much about the ingredients, so I'm not sure how puttanesca is tart. There's another mound of pasta next to it, but he doesn't say what that is, and they don't ask. So you know he's not winning.

Michael V. had adventurous, tangy, and Asian, so he made a yuzu curd with whipped Greek yogurt and seaweed cracker. I guess it's adventurous because he made a dessert, but I'm not sure how Greek yogurt fits into the Asian theme. Tyler likes the flavor combination.

Eli has stressed, umami, and Latin so he made a mushroom ceviche with avocado marble. I still don't get stressed and no one is explaining it to me. Tyler kind of pulls a face when he tastes it, and Eli shrugs like, "Maybe it wasn't stressed enough."

Kevin had stressed, spicy, and Asian, so he made char-grilled pork with Vietnamese herb salad. He explains to Padma that he has never really cooked Asian food before, but presumably he's eaten Asian food, so at least he understands the flavor profile, right?

Bryan had adventurous, crispy, and Asian, so he made seared scallops with bok choy and tempura beads. And that's adventurous because...of the tempura beads? Which I assume would just be little hunks of deep-fried batter? Tyler points out that it's a kind of general Asian, whereas Kevin chose a specific Asian cuisine.

Robin had stressed, umami, and Middle Eastern, and she made a root vegetable hash with cumin and curry oil. I don't know enough about umami to judge if she fulfilled that keyword, and I've already made my feelings about stressed pretty well-known. So did she at least make a Middle Eastern dish? Padma points out that curry isn't really Middle Eastern. And Padma would know, being born in India. Robin kind of babbles for a minute before admitting that Padma is right.

Ashley had blue, cheesy, and Middle Eastern. Weird that she's the only one who got those first two words, no? Tyler laughs that it's a pretty tough combination. She made feta pudding with sumac dusted halibut. All of those words kind of gross me out, both individually, and together.

Jen had adventurous, nutty, and American, so she made Maine diver scallops with pistachios and salmon roe. And she even explains how each component fits each keyword, so that makes me happy, even if the judges don't seem impressed.

Tyler is ready to announce his favorites and least favorites, but first acknowledges that it was a difficult challenge. His least favorites were Robin, because her dish wasn't Middle Eastern, Eli, because he drowned out the umami flavor with citrus, and Jen, because he didn't think her dish was adventurous. I thought other dishes met their keywords less successfully, but maybe if I'd heard their full explanations, I would feel differently.