3 Qs for: Hugh Acheson

Georgia-based Hugh Acheson of Empire State South, Five & Ten, and the National is the 2012 James Beard Award winner for Best Chef Southeast, and the judge on Top Chef with one eyebrow.  But the important thing to remember here is: Hugh is a transplanted Canadian, so he is too polite to make sweeping statements about Americans that could seriously be considered rude. Keep that in mind as you take down his technique for perfect just-hard-enough boiled eggs. I spoke with him at the Cooking Light "Light Up the Night" 25th anniversary party, where he was seasoning a tray of the aforementioned perfect eggs, on their way to a delightful little salad.photo from Cooking Light

I've noticed that whoever puts an egg on something in Top Chef, will win that challenge.

HA: Usually. You know, I’ve had about a hundred people ask me tonight how to cook an egg. I think America does not know how to cook a fucking egg. 

This is a 9-minute egg. [Indicates his tray of uniformly beautiful eggs.] Boil the water, eggs go in, 9 minutes, eggs get chilled down.

[At this point a young woman interrupts and says to Hugh: "I love you. Can I have a picture? I love you." Hugh says, "Awesome," and obliges. I think I may have photo-bombed them; sorry drunk girl.]

How do you lighten up the heavier elements of Southern cooking, say fried chicken? 

HA: There are some things you can lighten up in the Southern vernacular. But the Southern dinner is not fried chicken and biscuits. It’s a small amount of fried chicken with greens, succotash, hoppin' john. A big spread. So I don’t want to change the good Southern food. But I want to change food across America, which is stupid in a lot of ways and really unhealthy for us. I want to make sure kids know food doesn’t come out of a bag, that it’s grown by people. Food Corps [the evening's beneficiary] is doing a great job in that. It's not Southern food, but it’s food of convenience that is bad for us.

How do you stay in shape?

HA: I smoke and drink bourbon -- it’s very slimming! No, I eat a lot of salads, healthy. I don’t workout as much as I used to. You have to be smart with food. Understand when overconsumption happens. Americans have been trained to overconsume. We need to stop that, it’s pointless. Bad for our food supply, bad for obesity rates, bad for diabetes rates. We need to think about how much we eat.

3 Qs for: Masterchef winner Christine Ha

A Houston native as comfortable with fried chicken as stir fries, Christine Ha won over the Masterchef judges with flavors and techniques—that she happens also to be blind and didn't lose a finger in the process is equally impressive. I met Ha at Eataly, where Joe Bastianich was hosting a viewing party for the finale.

What's your stay-slim secret?photo from Fox.com

CH: [Laughs] I don't think about it. I'm from the South, so I like fried foods. But in small portions. I also love dark chocolate, but in moderation.

How were you eating during the weeks of Masterchef shooting?

CH: They catered food in for us. [Diplomatic pause.] We cooked way better. We all wished we could eat our own food.

Everything on the show is plated really beautifully for the judges -- what's the quick-and-unfancy dish you most love to make for yourself?

CH: Stir-fried noodles. I'd make that for just myself.

3 Qs for: Melissa Perello

The chef-owner of Frances in San Francisco is an inspired cook in her restaurant—or around the campfire with her dog, Dingo.

photo from SFWeekly

What are your favorite pursuits outside the kitchen?

MP: I try to ride my bike. I snowboard. And I really like camping and hiking in Mount Tamalpais state park or Point Reyes or Big Sur. More often than not, it's just myself and my dog. I bring a book, a cookbook, my diary and just veg out.

Any thought of a campfire cuisine cookbook in your future?

MP: I've been toying with that idea. That's the funnest part for me, getting creative and cooking outdoors. The last thing I did was a roast chicken in a big metal pot [over the campfire]. It was roasted with kale, potatoes, lemon, marjoram and garlic. Dingo enjoyed it as well—he's a little bit spoiled.

Do you actually cook from cookbooks sometimes?

MP: For me, a recipe should be a source of inspiration. My mother is an amazing cook, but she'll grab a recipe from a book or magazine that she is excited to try and she's hellbent on cooking it specifically to the recipe—exact ingredients, exact amounts. I'm always harping on her to do a little of this, a little of that, change it up. The more acclimated you feel doing that, then you're able to go to the market, grab a handful of ingredients that look beautiful and really sing to you, and bring them home and inject them into whatever you want to cook.

3 Qs for: Tom Colicchio

A New Jersey native, a boxing fan, and an erstwhile vegetarian-for-a-year, Tom Colicchio is the chef-owner of the Craft restaurants and Colicchio & Sons (of which he has three: a teen, a toddler and an infant) and the head judge on Top Chef.

Q: Do you ever modify a dish for yourself to make it lighter or what people think of as "diet food"?

TC: I don't understand "diet." You can eat anything. Maybe I'm not going to roast a chicken with butter, but I'll use olive oil. I think it's about eating less. Have a smaller portion, cut out extra fat: I've stopped eating butter on bread and putting milk and sugar in my coffee. I'm eating fewer white things, but I haven't cut them out.

Q: Why did you take up boxing?

TC: I've been a boxing fan my entire life. My parents were both fight fans. I have to work out, or I have a tendency to put on weight. I was a competitive swimmer from 10 to 17. In my 20s I ran 4 to 10 miles a day. I used to play a lot of basketball until I broke my elbow on the playground in Battery Park. Boxing is a great workout, but you're [also] learning something. It's like a little chess match.

Q: What's always in your home kitchen?

TC: My wife does the shopping. We shop online and also get a delivery of organic vegetables every week, so whatever shows up, I cook with. If I'm catching fish, there's fish. There's always cheese, olives. It's not that exciting. There's no time at home for fancy food. Last night I got home from work and had cheese, crackers and Fresca. I love Fresca.