We're Sorted Food, and we've been sent to the southern states of the U.S. because we've heard they have some of the best food and hospitality in the world. We're on a road trip to find out why. We've explored Charleston, covered Savannah, and now we are faced with 1000 miles of Kentucky highways and just 72 hours leading up to an ultimate Kentucky cook-off, creating a dish celebrating the very best we experienced in the States.

As soon as we landed in Louisville, we were rearing to take up some of your suggestions, starting with the restaurant that typifies Kentucky's impressive farmland and livestock. We're Game restaurant, located in the Clifton area of Louisville. We specialise in exotic meats that are, as much as we can, sourced from local farms and local suppliers. We slice, we grind, we season in house. We truly love what we're doing.

The first challenge, and the boys are gonna be competing to win an extra 10 minutes on their battle time. We have meatballs of exotic meat. You get a point for each one you get correct. Most points, wins. The meat smells more gamey than it tastes. Oh, it does actually, yeah. It's delicious. Question is, what is the meat? The host then reveals that the meat is made from a combination of turkey and beef.

The boys are presented with three different types of meatballs: one made from ground turkey, one made from ground beef, and one made from a combination of both. They have to guess which type of meat each ball is made from. After some deliberation, they finally make their guesses. The host then reveals that two out of the three balls are correct, with only one being incorrect.

The next challenge was put into practice at the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory. So many of the bats used in professional baseball are made right here in this factory. We've been told that there's a little less than 2 million bats produced every year. The host then asks us to hit some balls with bat, but warns us that it might not be easy.

The boys are given a chance to practice their batting skills at the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory. They're presented with a variety of bats and balls, and have to hit as many balls as they can in 10 minutes. The host is keeping tally and we can see on the scoreboard how many balls each person has hit.

As it turns out, one of the boys managed to hit every single ball that was thrown at him, except for one. He broke his bat on the fifth attempt. We couldn't believe what we were seeing! The other boy had done quite well too, hitting two balls and cracking eight others. It was amazing!

After finishing their practice session, we visited Rebecca Ruth Candies, a famous Kentucky delicacy and its creator. The business was started in 1919 by two ladies, my grandmother and her friend. They did not even have the right to vote at that time. In 1936, there was a function up at the governor's mansion, and one of the dignitaries at the event, Eleanor Hume Offit, made a statement that the two best-tasting foods in Kentucky were Kentucky Bourbon and Miss Boo's Candy.

The next stop on our journey is to learn more about this famous candy. We are told there is only one place we have to visit - The Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en- Hey, we're Sorted Food.- And we've beensent to the southern statesof the U.S. because we'veheard they have someof the best food andhospitality in the world.- Why?We're on a road trip to find out.- We've explored Charleston,We've covered Savannah, and nowwe are faced with 1000 milesof Kentucky Highway and just 72 hoursleading up to an ultimateKentucky cook-off,creating a dish celebrating the very bestwe experienced in the States.And I thought it would be entertainingif the guys competed for bonuscooking time across the trip.- Obviously Jamie stood no chance.- (scoffs) That's what he thinks.(banjo music)- As soon as we'velanded in Louisvillewe were rearing to take upsome of your suggestions,starting with the restauranttypifying Kentucky'simpressive farmland and livestock.(banjo playing)- We're Game restaurant.We're located in theClifton area of Louisville.We specialise in exotic meats that are,as much as we can,sourced from local farmsand local suppliers.We slice, we grind, we season in house.We truly love what we're doing.- The first challenge, and theboys are gonna' be competingto win an extra 10 minuteson their battle time.We have meatballs of exotic meat.You get a point for eachone you get correct.Most points, wins.- It smells more gamey than it tastes.- Oh, it does actually, yeah.It's delicious.- Question is, what is the meat?You can write down thename or you can draw it.(laughing)Reveal your answers in 3, 2, 1.Bison, you've bo-- Bison.- Ah oh, lad.You've both gone with bison.- How have we done that?- Your first meatballis homage to the bisonthat used to run the plains of America.- Oh my goodness, that is so lucky.- A point each.(upbeat music)- A lot more moist, a lot more tender.It's a bit more offal-y- Reindeer here.- Oh.- Ooh, more broad.Your second mystery meatball is,elk.- Oh. I mean, that's quite-- Largest of the deer family.Not a reindeer- What?No way!- So I guess Mike gets the point.(Mike laughs)- How is that?- But only by being broad- Shut up!Exactly.- Ball number three.- That's the strongestof all the flavours.Oh, but it does tale offinto something really nice.What is that?- Mr. Meatball number three?Antelope and gazelle.- GazelleYou're on the wrong side of the world.It's kangaroo.- Ahhh- Just like more tender,still with the same house seasoning.And they say it's gota sweet, gamey flavour.- Last ball.(suspenseful music)- That probably hassubtlest of all the flavoursfrom the board.- Reveal your final animal in 3, 2, 1.I mean, you've both gone obscure.- Meep Meep.- This final one was slightly more porky,but still with that richness and nuttinessthat you would get from, wild boar.- Boar?- Boar.- That's what I wasthinking with the previous one.- Mike you take the tenuouswin, you take the 10 minutes.- I see how this is gonna go.- The tenuous 10.- Ah.- And while you'refinishing off the meat ballsI'm gonna have this week's special,which is the yak burger.Again, farmed in EastKentucky, Tibetan yak.It's quite beefy,but I think what makesit so lovely is the kindof Nepalese spices,which is absolute yummy.The independent food scenein Louisville is really strong.Due in part to the abundanceof surrounding farmland.But was the local produce that much betterthan we'd had elsewhere?Well, we headed to Barn eighta farm and restaurant to find out.- Well, this is quite nice, isn't it?- Nice drive. Halfhour outta the city.- Wow, gorgeous.(upbeat drum music)- What is this?- Whoa.- Quite literally the old stable.- This is such a goodlooking table of food.- The carrot havegot a massaman curry oiland candied walnuts on them.The bread and butter is sensational.The grilled vegetables,the the cured cucumber,the burrata with a few fruit,just a few fruits just thrown on a plate.But it's so good.- I think the most exciting thingabout reading the menu,is that you know itcame from that fieldover there and it's beenpicked probably hours ago.- This is so good.(sneaky music)- What's that?- That is a peach.- Oh!- Have you tried the peach?- Yeah.And with the blackberry and burrata.- And when you said,yeah, your eyes rolledin the back of your head.- It was not fun to watch.(laughing)- When you can do simple this wellyou don't need to do anything else.- People would eatso many more vegetablesif they tasted like that.- Synonymous with Kentuckywe were told there wasone place we had to visit.The Louisville Slugger, orbaseball bat, to us BritsMuseum and Factory.Family run since 1884.The museum was a chancefor us to immerse ourselvesin the rich sporting cultureand also work up an appetite.- So, we are standing inside ofLouisville Slugger Museum and Factoryand this is where you cansee an American icon madefrom start to finish.(upbeat music)(laughing)(laughing)Inside of our factory, wemake a little bit less than2 million bats every year.- No fresher bat than that.- Any wood bat you see, whether it bein a sporting goods storeor on the field during major league playwas made right here in Louisville,Kentucky, in our factory.Because this is not just for baseball fansthis is just for anyone lookingfor a memorable experience.- I was already10 minutes up on Jamie,but before it was time forus to leave the museum,there was one last chance for himto claw back some precious time.10 balls each, 10 minutes to be won.- Next challenge we've just had a tourof the Louisville SluggerMuseum and Factory.Where so many of the bats are made,but now the boys are gonnaput them into practice.I'm keeping tally.Let's do it.(upbeat instrumental music)- This clashes with my outfit.- I'm concerned far moreabout hitting a ball.(upbeat instrumental music continues)(bat hits ball)- Oh.(upbeat instrumental music continues)- Stop hitting it.- You hit everyone so far.- Oh.- Oh No!- You broke it.- So far he's hit everyone.And on his fifth, he broke the bat.(beep)(upbeat instrumental music)- Nah.- Excellent!Wow!He's missed two, buthe's cracked every other one.Which is amazing.- That wasn't supposed to happen.(happy instrumental music)- No!- Yeah! One.(laughing)- Yes!(happy instrumental music continues)- I'm not gonna lie boys, thosewere coming thick and fast.- They were quick.- I was struggling tokeep up with the scores.And the normal who getsthe extra 10 points is,Mike.(background applause)You have got some catchingup to do, my friend.- I cannot afford to not.- I've got 20 minutes.I'm already on 25 minutes.35 minutes.(Ben laughs)- No!- Our next stop was to Frankfurt,the Kentucky State Capitolto learn about a famous Kentuckydelicacy and its creator.- Rebecca Ruth Candieswas started in 1919.The two ladies,my grandmother and herfriend started the business.They did not even have theright to vote at that time.In 1936, there was a functionup at the governor's mansionand one of the dignitaries at the event,Eleanor Hume Offitmade the statement that the two best tastein Kentucky were Kentucky Bourbonand Miss Boo's Candy, Rebecca Ruth Candy.And so she took that commentand thought about it and said,\"Well I'm going to makethe single best tastein the world and I'm gonnacombine candy with bourbon.\"- Rebecca Ruthbourbon balls are made with100 proof Kentucky bourbon.Covered in dark chocolate andtopped with a single pecan.That's good.Dark chocolate and cherry.Oh, I want them all.- So I'm the third generation.And this is my daughter, Sarah,and she's the fourth generation.And she's now the generalmanager of Rebecca Ruth Candies.- Oh!- Oh yeah!- We also foundsome really interestingbourbon based ingredients,which we thoughtwe'd pick up for our battle.- It's just a really, really cool pieceof Kentucky history that weare here to be a part of.(upbeat instrumental music)- Well then obviouslywe were going there next- With the risk of beingfloored by sugar and bourbon.It was time to move ona lot more to learn.A load more ground to cover.And Wallace Station was waiting.where we met owner Ouita Michel,a six times James BeardFoundation Award nominee.- Soup Beans and cornbread is oneof the most iconic Kentucky dishes.It's made with country Ham hock.And to me, that's Kentucky in a bowl.- Oh no! I like that.- You like it?- Yeah!That's-- That's wholesome.That just feels hearty.That feels like that issetting you up for the day.- And then thecatfish is all from Kentucky,so it's all from Barren Lake Kentucky.- Yep.- Um, so that's kindof our Kentucky versionof fish and chips, I guess you might say.- Yeah, pretty much.(Ouita laughs)- Delicious.- It's great.- Yeah- and then I thinkthe country ham and pimento cheese.So, it's...country ham is a salt cured ham.It's the country styleversion of prosciutto.So, it's like a grilled cheese sandwich,but with country ham on the middle.So this sandwich was on,has been on the Food Networkand this restaurant's been onthe Food Network a few times,for best thing I ever ate.Diners, drive-Ins and Dives.- Now Jamie Spafford isabout to eat the sandwich.(Ouita laughs)I need to see you. I need towatch your reaction to it.- No pressure.(laughing)- On me I mean, not onthe sandwich, on me.The ham is superb.And then the grated cheesewith the cheese sauce.- Well so pimento cheeseis grated white cheddarwith mayonnaise and alittle bit of cream cheeseand then a little hot sauce, a little.And so it makes a spread.It's like a cheese spread.- Mmm hmm. Yeah.- And then when you press it all together.- It oozes.- It oozes. Yeah.I want to create restaurantsthat express place.That's really what I'm trying to do.If-if someone's comingto one of my restaurantsI want 'em to know they're in Kentucky.- That is exceptional.- Country fried ham isa-a thing.- Yeah.- Like amazing!- Interesting.(Ouita laughs)- Food for thought boys, food for thought.- Get out of my ideas.- No.- Get out of my idea.- No, you get out my ideas.- No. You get out my ideas.- There's too much roof on Mustang Sally.(laughing)Our next leg of the journey pointed usinto the heart of BluegrassCountry, Lexington.(banjo music)Our next stop was OBC kitchenrenowned for great foodand over 800 bourbons.- Cheers.And we even got the chanceto chat with an expert.- When you're tasting bourbon,what are you looking for?- I'm looking for age more than anything.- A lot of the flavourcomes from the wood,and in fact it has to be agedin American white oakand American white oakthe chemical compounds in themgives you a lot of vanilla,which is why it's a lawthat says you have toage within those wood.- While Ben and Jamie were sipping bourbonand kicking back.Ed and I have come to downtownLexington to get some shotsand a feel of the city.(snap, snap)(snap, snap)Cheers.We work really hard.- Roasted Brussels sprouts,chilli ginger and bourbon honey.- Bourbon honey gives it a sweetness,a nod to the local area.But then ginger and chilli from, you know,other global influences.- Really, really hard.We were working really hard, Agave & Rye.Epic tacos suggestedby you guys on Twitter.We've been recommended thesugar daddy of the plain Jane.So their taco style or tacosas they called it here.Um, it's a crispy corn anda soft flour wedged togetherwith cheese, like a quesadilla.(banjo music)That's unbelievable.(banjo music continues)- We've been told so many timesthat Kentucky is a cuisine of corn.Catfish is coated in it.Cornbread, obviouslywhiskey is made from corn.So, we got the elotoes Mexican style.It is the char of the cornwith the spice and then the cheeseand like the mayo they spill over it.That doesn't just getall around your face,but all around yourtongue and it is so good.- Candy, bacon,and a peanut butter dip.- It is salty, it is sweet,it is meaty, it is fatty.- You really shouldn't eatlike this all the time,but when you do, youshould really go for it.- And we have(banjo music continues)- By embracing thelocal culture in cuisine,we were really startingto build an understandingof what Kentucky has to offer,but with over 800 miles still to cover,it was time to gather ourthoughts and look aheadto the next leg of our epic journey.(background speaker)- Now we always think that foodis one of the best waysto get to the heartof the city's culture andthe people in the community.Live music fits into that category.(background speaker continues)We've stumbled upon Southland Jamboree.Is a free Bluegrassconcert, full of locals.Which is just really nice.- 49 and a ham of meat.(applause)♪ It's been a really long day ♪- This is great!♪ It's time for ♪- It reminds me of being at the allotment.- The commutative people, who love stuffand I'm the youngest here.(laughing)♪ There's so much to do ♪♪ but we saw it through. ♪♪ It's been one heck of a day. ♪- Why can't you improve the efficiencyof wind farms by playingthem bluegrass music,because they're big, heavy metal fans.(laughing)(guitar music)- We barely scratched the surfaceon our Epic Kentucky Road tripand there was a lot still to learnbefore we attempt ourultimate Kentucky cook-off.(guitar music continues)How much would this bottle be worth now?- Probably about $10,000 right now.(laughs)\n"