Padma Lakshmi said chef Jackson Kalb's loss of taste "didn't affect the jury much

Also, Padma Lakshmi, speaking to the news at the premiere of Jose Andres' documentary We Feed the People, revealed which Top Chef episode she is "very proud of."

It's been a landmark season for Top Chef, with one competitor losing his taste and smell weeks before the race and another through six rounds of Last Chance Kitchen - but one episode was particularly well-liked by Padma Lakshmi.

Longtime Emmy winner Bravo, who praised this season for having "one of the most diverse casts we've ever had," told the news that the Texas Trailblazers episode was his personal favorite to attend.

"We only realized it then. So I'm very proud of this episode," Lakshmi said at the premiere of Jose Andres' Disney+ documentary We Feed People, part of National Geographic Documentary Films. "I thought it was an exciting episode, and I think we had a lot of good people."

For the preliminary round of the episode, contestants are tasked with creating a dish inspired by the most influential woman in Texas and then serving it to a panel of leading female judges. Some highlights include plaques honoring former Planned Parenthood President Cecil Richards and Cheryl Soups, the first WNBA player to sign. Chef Evelyn Garcia, the challenge winner, creates boldly flavored dishes inspired by singer Selena. In light of Selena's "Como La Flor," Garcia's dish consists mainly of Asian pears, orange peel, avocado and radishes arranged like flowers.

Lakshmi also revealed to news what she knows about Jackson Kalb's struggle with long-term symptoms of COVID-19 in Houston. Kalb, who contracted COVID-19 just weeks before filming began, spoke to news about competing without taste in April. He decided not to tell his fellow athletes about his new handicap but perhaps let the judges get away with it.

"I think he mentioned it to the judge," Lakshmi said. "But if you're an experienced cook, you know how something tastes. So he doesn't care.

Kalb, who reached Episode 8 before being eliminated, told news that failure was one of the "most stressful things" he had ever experienced. "It was amazing and weird, and I still don't know how it felt, but I think my instincts were better than I thought," she said.