Cooking Crush (Thai BL) – Episode 5 Recap & Review

Dish 5: I’d Like to Make Deep-Fried Shrimp Cakes With You, Chef

Episode 5 of Cooking Crush starts with Paeng and Prem finishing shopping at the market and ready to go home when Paeng notices Ten entering the market. Prem and Paeng secretly follow him to see what he is up to, and he stops at a flower shop. Paeng nags Prem to text Ten and ask what he is doing, and Ten texts back, saying he has plans for the day.

Ten buys a bouquet, and Paeng concludes that he will meet up with someone special. Prem still starts sulking when Ten finds him at the restaurant. However, Ten has brought along the person Prem thinks is his girlfriend, and it turns out she is his late mother. Prem’s restaurant used to be her favourite, and Ten brings along a photo of her and orders all her favourite foods and the bouquet Ten had bought at the market. 

Ten tells Prem the story of his mother after the meal, and we learn that she died when he was 15. He says that her symptoms started as a simple cough and progressed quickly such that by the time they realised the problem, it was too late. Ten states that his father was too busy with work to care for him and his mother. He is a doctor, and he should have realised that his mother was seriously sick if he spent time with them and seen her symptoms. 

Ten decided to become a doctor so he could be better than his father and pay attention to his patients so that none of them had to endure what he went through. However, ten doubts himself and is not sure he will succeed. Prem encourages him by saying that he is a quick learner, detail-oriented, and dedicated since, during their lessons, he remembers everything after he gives the instructions once.

If he uses the same approach in his medical studies, Prem assures him that he will become an excellent doctor. Ten thanks Prem for his encouragement and praises him for his excellent cooking skills. His food fills Ten’s stomach, warms his heart, and makes him truly happy. After hearing those words, Prem quickly sends a voice note to his friends, telling them he has decided to participate in the Super Monster Chef Competition. 

Ten calls Prem later to discuss their next cooking lesson, and Prem asks if he wants to have the lesson at his house they did previously. Ten says he is unsure if Charlotte, his father’s new wife, will be at home since he does not like hanging out around her. Part of the reason why Ten dislikes physical contact is because Charlotte is invasive. Prem insists they cook at Ten’s house, and he will find a way to help him if Charlotte is around. 

The next Saturday arrives sooner than expected, and Ten and Prem are preparing to cook deep-fried shrimp cake. Charlotte comes from the gym, and as Ten had said, she neither understands the meaning of boundaries nor knows how to read a room. Prem’s plan to help Ten make her keep away includes acting lovey-dovey like they are in a relationship while cooking.

The plan works, and Charlotte leaves the kitchen. Prem asks Ten if his closeness and touching in getting Charlotte to go made him uncomfortable, but Ten says he likes it because it feels good. The shrimp cakes are ready and so delicious that Ten thinks he and Prem are sensually dancing tango when he tastes it. 

Later that night, when Ten’s father arrives home from work, he asks Charlotte if she has seen Ten buy new things lately because his credit card was charged 300,000 baht in less than a week. Charlotte tells him about the cooking lessons with Ten and Prem and wonders if Prem is scamming Ten for the classes. She thinks 300,000 is enough for a professional culinary lesson but knows that Prem is not a skilled Chef but is most likely Ten’s friend from school. Ten’s father visits Prem the same night and asks him to stay away from Ten because he is taking advantage of him for money. 

Ten calls Prem to ask him to send the selfie of himself he took at his house with the shrimp cakes. However, after the visit from Ten’s father, Prem decides not to send the picture and tells Ten that he accidentally deleted it. However, Ten still wants a photo of Prem; if he does not send it, he will go and take one himself. Ten leaves home in the middle of the night and runs to Prem’s house to take a picture of him. 

The following morning at school, Ten waits for Prem to let him taste the soup he made him. During the conversation, Ten notices Prem sounds like he wants to stop their cooking lessons, which scares him. He insists on having a lesson on the same day, but Prem tells him he will confirm his availability later.

In class, Prem asks for advice from his friends about Ten’s father, asking him to stay away from Ten. They both agree that he did nothing wrong because Ten was willing to pay and insisted that he had no problem with the price the many times Prem asked about it. Further, Prem does not spend time with Ten for the money. He is not in a pitiful situation like his father suggested, and he can decide to still go out with Ten because they genuinely like each other, and there is nothing wrong with it. 

The culinary class receives a surprise visit from Chef Chang Ma. He becomes the substitute teacher for their professor for the day to observe the students’ cooking skills and select a team with the best cooking skills to join the Super Monster Chef competition. Chang Ma shows interest in Prem and pays more attention to him in class; not only do his classmates notice, but Ten also sees them when he comes to check if Prem has finished his class. Prem rushes to see Ten after the lesson and does what his friends suggested. He will continue to see Ten because he likes him.

Meanwhile, Metha tries to help Fire understand his preference by determining whether he is into women or men. Metha knows that Fire is confused about his feelings, and he needs to try things to find an answer. He takes him to a sex worker’s street and talks about the need to legalise sex work so people in that profession can receive wellness support just like any other occupation. Legalising can reduce crimes and sexual assault while people’s needs are still satisfied. Metha’s opinion is that every occupation should have the same rights. 

Unexpectedly, they run into Samsi and Dynamite and think they are looking to buy some services at the location. A few minutes later, Dynamite and Fire are in the car alone, and Dynamite wants to know what Fire is looking for, but Fire insists it is nothing. However, Dynamite deduces that his confession to Fire must have made him uneasy.

One look at Dynamite and Fire’s heart starts racing, so he quickly looks away, and when Dynamite insists, Fire tells him that he does not like him. However, he secretly smiles, and Dynamite notices. Elsewhere, it is 24 hours later, and Prem walks Ten home. He says goodbye and turns to leave, but Ten goes after him. When Prem turns around, he leans in for a kiss, and Ten kisses him back. 

The Episode Review

In this episode, we get an answer about the mysterious woman in Ten’s life, and it turns out that she is not a past lover but his mother, who passed away when he was 15. The conflict between Ten and his father is because he blames him for his mother’s death.

As a doctor, he was too busy to make time for the family and did not notice his mother’s symptoms early enough. However, when his father visits Prem at night to tell him to stay away from Ten, it suggests that the strained relationship is not just about the death of Ten’s mother. He might be controlling or does not take time to understand what Ten wants; he tells Prem that cooking is just a “hobby”, while to Prem, it means his whole life. 

I like that the script did not separate Prem and Ten after the father asks Prem to stay away and that Prem chose to act on his feelings for Ten. Their confidence in each other’s ability in their career makes them a match made in heaven. The episode introduces a possible love triangle with the appearance of Chang Ma, who seems interested in Prem. However, Prem only admires him as a senior. Will the chef bring tension or conflict between the lovers?