At midterm time, Chefs Anne and Robert want to see how the recruits perform without supervision. Via video message, the chefs assign their teams a scrambled recipe for the Skill Drill. Each team works together to unscramble the recipe and cook the dish while the chefs secretly watch their attempt on closed circuit TV. For the Main Dish Challenge, the chefs shock their recruits with the news that they must cater an hors d'oeuvre party for NFL star Kris Jenkins, his wife, and 30 of their guests! It's game time, and the two least successful cooks are cut.

The final four compete in a "Culinary Decathlon" Skill Drill to test their knowledge thus far. Then, the chefs teach their recruits a complicated dessert technique featuring a flambé© presentation. For the Main Dish Challenge, some special guests arrive for the recruits as their loved ones reveal a favorite dish for them to prepare. The recruits must then make that dish using a recipe written by their chef and serve the flambé© dessert tableside. After the tasting, each chef decides who will advance to the final challenge.