Jacksonville chef Kenny Gilbert appeared again on Food Network. Here's what he cooked.

Jacksonville celebrity chef and chef to celebrities Kenny Gilbert returned to Food Network Sunday night to take on chefs from Illinois and California as well as Iron Chef Alex Guarnaschelli in her reality cooking show “Alex vs. America.”

Gilbert, whose celebrity chef status was cemented nearly 13 years ago with his appearances on “Top Chef,” showed off his culinary skills in an episode centered on chicken – something Gilbert knows a little something about.

In 2020, Gilbert and his wife, Anna, debuted Silkie’s Chicken & Champagne Bar in Springfield, the latest of several restaurants Gilbert has steered or opened in Northeast Florida since the the “Top Chef” appearance in 2010.

Known for its fried chicken, from-scratch biscuits and champagne cocktails, Silkie’s has become a destination for dinner and brunch, and Gilbert’s signature Flavor Bomb sandwich is a favorite of mega celebrity Oprah (Winfrey).

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The sandwich, featuring a smokey fried chicken thigh, truffle gouda drop biscuit, orange blossom honey and Fernandina Beach Hot Sauce served with assorted pickled vegetables, was a hit at Oprah’s New Year’s brunch in 2022.

In a video posted to Instagram, Oprah is overhead gushing over the Flavor Bomb: "We've had dreams about it and now it's a reality. With its own hot sauce."

So Gilbert felt at ease on the latest episode of “Alex vs. America,” where the chef contestants competed in two rounds, cooking for judges Jet Tila and Gabriele Bertaccini in a blind taste test and against Guarnaschelli and each other.

In the first round (“Survival Round”) in which the chefs has to create a dish using Blue Foot Chicken and a fermented egg, Gilbert earned praise for his Gojuchang Fried Blue Foot Chicken, Coconut Lemongrass Congee and Fermented Egg Aioli.

Gilbert placed first among the guest chefs, but second to Guarnaschelli, advancing to the second round (“Money Round), where contestants can win $10,000 if they out-cook Guarnaschelli.

In the round where chefs worked with parameters of using chicken legs and noodle soup, Gilbert created Grilled Marinated Chicken Leg with Piquillo Pepper Sauce and Schmaltz Gnudi.

The dish earned accolades for its creativity, but Gilbert lost out when the judges said they wished the chef had focused more on the chicken than the gnudi. Guarnaschelli took the top spot in this round, too, sending Gilbert and a second remaining guest chef home empty-handed.

Still, Guarnaschelli had high praise for Giblert: “You are amazing.”

The episode re-airs at 1 p.m. Tuesday, April 25 and 3 p.m. Saturday, April 29 on Food Network.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville top chef Kenny Gilbert on Food Network's Alex vs America