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Terra.Anatolia
  • 21 hours ago
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00:00I literally struggle to get ready on time in the morning so the fact that I've made anything is
00:07impressive to me. I'm right on the very edge of thriving and surviving. Who knows it could go
00:13either way. Tonight they're back to continue their quest as they face two demanding challenges.
00:21Wow it's a workout isn't it? I'm stressed now. Battling it out for a place in the quarterfinal.
00:28I'm not here to make up the numbers. I've done that for 24 years in a band. Do you know what I mean?
00:33I want to be an Antley Costa who can cook. I am really trying to push myself but a lot can go wrong.
00:42We're always heading into the unknown. It's like the walk of doom when you go in there.
00:50We've seen these five celebrities blossoming quite a short time. Passionate cooks that want to succeed
00:56but it's only the beginning. The competition continues but now it's time to turn up the heat.
01:14Welcome back celebrities. We have certainly put you through your paces so far but the learning curve
01:28is about to get so much steeper. For you to learn you need an expert to learn with
01:37and that's why today we've invited in a special guest. Wow. Somebody who's built a famous group of
01:45restaurants celebrating and cooking the food of their childhood. Can I please introduce you to
01:53Karan Gokhani.
01:54Growing up in the vibrant city of Mumbai, Karan developed his love of food as a child.
02:06From the age of four or five I started rolling my first chapatis in the kitchen.
02:12Family meals reflected his rich heritage of Gujarati cuisine as well as diverse flavours from South Asia.
02:19A delicious array of different food from across the country that played such an important role in my childhood.
02:26Despite his passion for cooking he moved to the UK in 2005 to study law at Cambridge University.
02:34After pursuing a brief career in the law in London I then finally said this is the age I need to
02:40you know give it all up and pursue my dreams.
02:42In 2015 he opened the first of three Hoppers restaurants in London's Soho quickly setting
02:50the culinary world alight with authentic South Indian and Sri Lankan dishes.
02:55You could easily represent Karan and Tamil cuisine from South India
03:00and Sri Lankan cuisine in the same space and it just gave more depth to the menu.
03:05Food is so much more than what's on the plate because it connects you to a time,
03:08it connects you to a safe place and it teaches you so much about the culture as well.
03:16I've got five recipes for you to cook that I grew up cooking that I absolutely love that represent
03:23the four regions of India North, South, East and West and Sri Lanka.
03:28So I'm very excited to see how you get on with these recipes.
03:33You're about to cook restaurant quality food and that's what it's going to be.
03:40Ninety minutes, let's get cooking.
03:42Let's do it.
03:43Oh, we're straight in are we?
03:49I love Indian food, there's nothing like a good curry to warm you up in the North.
03:55I'm probably the most nervous man in the room because these are all recipes I put so much love
04:05and heart into writing.
04:06I'm excited to try a new thing. What could possibly go wrong?
04:12There is a huge element of intuitive cooking when it comes to Indian food.
04:16I want to see them taste, especially when you've got these complex dishes.
04:19It's going to be a challenge. I think I've got the most tonight to do. I've been stitched.
04:28I want to see them engaging with the ingredients
04:31and cook something delicious for us to eat afterwards because I'm starving.
04:39What's coat? Is that coat?
04:42I've never really dealt with a full fish before.
04:45Oh.
04:46Katie is a star of Coronation Street.
04:49She's clearly a good home cook.
04:52That crumble she made, absolutely delicious.
04:55Timing is a little bit of an issue, but just a bit of confidence, Katie.
04:59That's all she needs.
05:01I'm proud of myself so far and the fact that my food's been edible
05:05and I've had a giggle, that's what it's all about, isn't it?
05:08Katie's been tasked with cooking one of Karan's favourite South Indian dishes.
05:15Banana leaf fish with okra and yoghurt. Cooking anything in a banana leaf gives it both theatre,
05:21but a lot of flavour. It is just the most glorious dish because you bring it to the table,
05:26open it up and it's a celebration in itself.
05:28Katie's taking a whole bream.
05:30So I'm calling the fish Bert, Bert the bream.
05:34She has to cut it all the way through to the bone.
05:37Go for it. Come on, you can do this.
05:39Because then it's marinated with a mixture of spices which is turned to a paste.
05:44Then a masala paste is made.
05:46Oh, it's making my eyes water.
05:48With onions, curry leaves and tomatoes, a little bit of coconut milk.
05:52That's then put across the top and all that lovely spicing being enough to coat it,
05:57but not to actually overpower the flavour of that fish.
05:59I don't know what I'm doing, but I'm just happy I've got instructions.
06:07Make sure you cook the masala sauce that you're going to put on top of the fish.
06:11Nice and thick. It shouldn't be too watery.
06:13OK. I'm just excited to try it more than anything. It's exciting.
06:18What's your biggest worry right now?
06:20The timing again.
06:21But I've always wanted to learn how to cook a whole fish,
06:24because I think it looks really cool and it's going to be tasty, I hope.
06:27Right, what's next?
06:32Cut the top. That must be the top.
06:35Ginger, our drag queen, gives herself a huge amount of work to do
06:38and delivers really delicious food. There's talent there.
06:41Whatever the circumstances, Ginger will deliver.
06:45Her first challenge is to tackle a whole green coconut
06:49for a prawn curry cooked and served inside the shell.
06:53Wow, it's a workout, isn't it?
06:57Each challenge is a new fresh hell in the kitchen.
07:00I don't cook a lot of South Asian cuisine.
07:03I do eat a lot of South Asian cuisine.
07:05So who knows what today's going to bring?
07:08It's a dish from East India, specifically West Bengal.
07:12It's a light flavouring, but it has a beautiful aroma and smell.
07:16Inside that coconut, there's lots of clear coconut water.
07:21Okay, in we go.
07:22Oh, right in the face.
07:27She's got to hollow the whole thing out.
07:29Scoop out the flesh.
07:32That jelly-like white flesh with the coconut water
07:36is added to fresh prawns, garlic, ginger, cumin, poppy seeds.
07:43Ooh, this is scary.
07:52The coconut is then sealed with a dough around the outside like a pie top,
07:57and then it's baked in the oven.
07:59Bringing a whole green coconut to the table and opening it
08:04and scooping out a delicate prawn curry from inside.
08:08That lovely visual, sensory delight.
08:12Okay.
08:14Junji, you look like you're having a ball.
08:15I am. I'm having a great time.
08:16I've never eaten a curry out of a coconut. That's really exciting.
08:19You're going to have to be careful about whether the prawns are cooked at the end or not.
08:22I think it's just going to be surprises all afternoon, really, isn't it?
08:25How are you feeling about the competition?
08:26I'm feeling good, you know.
08:27I'm trying not to think too much of it as a competition
08:29and Mars just like a really fun cooking holiday
08:32so that the pressure isn't on me.
08:33All the years I've done Mars Chef, I've never heard anybody
08:37describe it as a cooking holiday.
08:39You've never been on holiday with me.
08:41Get on with that. See you later.
08:44Something's happening in there.
08:4620 minutes gone, everybody.
08:47An hour and 10 minutes left.
08:49Don't slow down. Keep it going.
08:53Anthony, pop star, an actor.
08:55His ideas are good,
08:56but I want a bit more oomph.
08:58I want a bit more showman than Anthony truly is.
09:01And he's so lovable, but his nerves, I take him under.
09:06He's taking on a red chicken curry inspired by Karen's travels to Sri Lanka.
09:11This curry really blew my mind.
09:14It had a whole array of different flavors that we weren't used to.
09:17Things like lemongrass had pandan.
09:20And it's just such a warming, gorgeous curry.
09:22I love following a recipe because it's there step by step.
09:28It's like a script. Bang, bang, bang.
09:31If this goes wrong, it ain't my fault, mate. I've followed it.
09:34That Sri Lankan red chicken curry needs to be really spicy and hot.
09:43He's first marinated the chicken with a mixture of spices and garlic and ginger.
09:48The chicken goes in with onions, sweet coconut milk.
09:52He's got to make sure it's vibrant.
09:55He can't just rely upon the recipe. He's got to taste his food as well.
09:58Oh, mate, that's bonnet de douche, that.
10:04Do you like curry? Love, love a curry.
10:06I can cook it, but I can't cook it, do you know what I mean?
10:08Well, if anybody is going to teach you, it's this man.
10:12The way I always teach curries is layering curries.
10:16You're not just putting everything into a pan and boiling them.
10:18Imagine a great song. If everyone's not playing their bit perfectly,
10:22you'll have a terrible song. I get it, I get it.
10:24Told you it was a learning curve. It is.
10:28Umar, reality TV star, has amazing ideas about food.
10:37Putting the haggis onto the rosti, absolutely ingenious.
10:41And then cooking Nigerian food. She'd put her own spin on it.
10:45I really admire what she's doing.
10:48Umar's got paneer, takadal and pilau rice.
10:53Probably three of the most iconic and well-known
10:56Indian takeaways in all of Great Britain.
11:00But she has to make her own paneer.
11:04Paneer is Punjabi cheese from the north of India.
11:07There's nothing like good homemade paneer.
11:10My mum made it for us growing up.
11:12Never made paneer cheese before, so I think that would be a test.
11:16You split the milk and while it's hot, you get it into a cheesecloth.
11:22And then you want to tie it really nice and tight and then press it.
11:25I'm scared that it's going to burst.
11:29Did you add a little bit of salt?
11:31Yeah.
11:31I'd add some salt and just give it a quick mix.
11:33Yeah.
11:33And then squeeze it through.
11:34Okay.
11:35And that's going to be cooked in a spinach gravy made with freshly sautéed spinach.
11:41A little bit of tomato and onion.
11:44If you were in Punjab, this is what you'd be eating for dinner.
11:46Oh, that's amazing.
11:47And you're doing it in 90 minutes.
11:49I am a bit worried that I'm going to not get this all done on time, but I'm trying my best.
11:53She's unflappable.
11:54Oh, I love that.
11:56Good luck with your mum.
11:56Thank you guys.
11:59Not being able to prepare makes me a little bit nervous, but I am confident that I can pull it off.
12:03I'm trying to strain all the liquid out of it as much as I can, so I need to put some weight on top of it.
12:15Gaz, actor and Paralympian, he's vegan and he wants to celebrate that food.
12:21He's proved himself to have an absolutely fantastic palate.
12:24He won the palate test, but now what I want from him is a coherent place of food without any mistakes.
12:31Gaz is making Karen's version of popular Indian street food, Bombay Frankie.
12:38This is a dish very close to my heart. We'd go off after school to one or two of these vendors who,
12:46you know, we always love and eat a chicken Frankie, a mutton Frankie and on occasion a potato Frankie.
12:52This is a potato sandwich. Crushed potatoes with loads and loads of spices.
12:58I think the potatoes, there's like a few large chunks that haven't cooked through.
13:04Pan fried so it's nice and crispy on the outside.
13:08With that, he's got a classic Indian green chutney and that means lots of mint, coriander, green chilies.
13:16But the big thing seems to be making this roti that's sitting underneath.
13:21A lovely thin bread, slightly flaky, a little bit of oil on the outsides because he needs to roll the whole thing up.
13:28Like the best Indian wrap you've ever had in your whole life.
13:36I messed up.
13:38I'm going to have to start again.
13:39As soon as I saw Karen, I was like, oh, okay. In some ways I was excited because it's flavors that I know.
13:46In other ways, I was like, I felt the weight of the entire subcontinent on my back.
13:52Where's your family from? Pakistan.
13:54So you understand spicing?
13:58Yes.
14:00Yeah, for the moment.
14:01It wasn't a convincing answer.
14:02That's why my mum doesn't let me in the kitchen.
14:03Or didn't let me when I was growing up.
14:05So all the food that you grew up with, your mum and your grandmother used to cook for you?
14:08Yeah, pretty much.
14:09Have you ever had a bombay, Frankie?
14:10No, not at all. First time.
14:12The roti's not going to be easy, but I'm sure you'll do well.
14:15I can't wait for mine.
14:15No pressure.
14:20You're over halfway.
14:25Katie's bream is marinating in turmeric, chili and lime.
14:29But there's a question mark over the consistency of her masala sauce.
14:34Is that cooked down?
14:35Yeah.
14:36You cooked it?
14:36Yeah.
14:37I will just cook it for a little while longer.
14:39All right. Thank you.
14:40I can see she's panicking a little bit right now.
14:43I went and checked the paste that she made.
14:45It was a little thinner than I wanted it.
14:47So I've got her to cook it again.
14:48This just needs to reduce down.
14:51Needs to go to, like, a paste.
14:54But she needs to act quickly now.
14:55It's a big fish.
14:57It needs to bake through.
14:58So she'll need at least 18 minutes from the looks of that fish.
15:01She also needs to get going on her vegetable garnish.
15:06Make sure you're cutting that to the right size,
15:08because otherwise they cook unevenly.
15:09OK.
15:13Okra is one of my favourite vegetables.
15:15But it's got to be cooked properly.
15:17Biting into crunchy okra in this particular dish, I don't want it.
15:20Ginger's prawn and coconut curry is in the oven.
15:26She's now rolling out dough for a Bengali flatbread to accompany it.
15:30Luchis are these lovely, delicate fried breads.
15:34They puff up like magic.
15:36If you're making them for the first time, need a little bit of technique.
15:39You need to roll it out perfectly.
15:41That's kind of supposed to be a circle.
15:44And then deep fry it, making sure it puffs up fully.
15:48It's nice and crispy.
15:50News flash, something is happening.
15:52Is it about...
15:53Is it going to do it?
15:54Ginger, what's happening?
15:55What's happening is these things are supposed to turn into balls
15:58after 10 seconds when I put them in the fryer.
16:00It's not turning into balls.
16:03The thickness of that dough is all important.
16:06Too thick, they won't puff up at all.
16:08Oh, oh, oh!
16:10Right, I've rolled it out too thick.
16:11That's what it is, because this guy is going straight away.
16:15I've got to get it as thin as I can.
16:18You want to get the edges even.
16:20Oh, OK.
16:21If you want that puff, this is the only way to get it.
16:22Fine.
16:24Let's try another one.
16:27All the time in the world about five minutes ago,
16:30and now suddenly it's feeling quite desperate.
16:32Also challenged with the dough is Anthony.
16:42His red curry is accompanied by a Sri Lankan staple, string hoppers.
16:47You take this rice flour, mix it with a little bit of oil, water, salt until it comes together.
16:54You then put through a lovely string hopper press, a bit like rolling out fresh pasta.
17:01Making string hoppers in front of the person that's formed a whole business
17:05around making string hoppers.
17:06Do you feel the pressure?
17:08Very much so.
17:09Effectively, you're making spaghetti.
17:10It's delicious, and it's a great way to enjoy that curry.
17:14I hope so.
17:17Last thing you want is these things to get all crumbly and just break apart.
17:21Wow.
17:24It's a bit like Play-Doh, you know, like my kids have these toys.
17:28Then you get these lovely little rice flour discs, steam them for a few minutes,
17:33not too stodgy, light, that you can just mop up your sambals and chicken curry with,
17:38as you do in Sri Lanka.
17:39It's just like these lovely squidgy things coming out of this machine here, so I'm loving it.
17:45He's doing it. They're steaming. A revelation.
17:49Across the kitchen, Uma's full focus has been on just one of her three main components.
17:55Look at that paneer.
17:56Does it look good?
17:57It's amazing.
17:58Yay!
17:59Look at that.
18:00That's perfect.
18:01And is only just getting the lentils on for the next element, the taka dal.
18:05Just trying to get the lentils soft enough.
18:08So a tadka dal is simply a stewed lentil, and then the tadka is really the spicing you add to
18:14the boiled lentils. Some whole spices, garam masala, so you feel the warmth coming through.
18:19She's got to resist the urge to rush. She's got to make sure that she cooks those lentils
18:24all the way through in spiced water before she adds it to the taka.
18:30Is this something you might do at home?
18:32No, not really. I don't actually eat lentils at home,
18:35but I have been to a restaurant where they had lentil sort of dal, is it called?
18:41Yeah. Yeah.
18:42So I'm quite excited to taste these actually.
18:44You're boiling them. Don't need to stir them so much.
18:46They will take their time.
18:51Gaz has got his potato filling prepped for his Bombay Frankie,
18:55but now he needs to tackle cooking the all-important rav.
18:58Oh no, I'm burning. I'm burning the roti. It's all going off. Keep going. That was a trial.
19:07Gaz is the only bench so far where there's actually been what felt like a buyer.
19:11This is a hard task. We have piled on the pressure. I do worry for Gaz right now.
19:16Yeah, it didn't work out. Roll that out a little thing.
19:23It's the thickness and the right heat. So that's what I'm struggling with.
19:27Try attempt number four. It's the roti that it all comes down to.
19:31If it's not a soft, supple roti, I'm not having it.
19:36The worst part of all of this is that when my mum and my grandma see this,
19:40they're going to be so ashamed of me.
19:43Ten minutes.
19:47Don't hate me.
19:53They do hate me.
19:55Chicken curry's doing nice. String hoppers are on.
19:58And now about to start the sambal. Get the pepper, get the chilli,
20:02get some salt in there and then give that a bit.
20:05I don't think the prawns are cooked.
20:07No? Put it back in the oven then.
20:10Uma's also starting to feel pressured.
20:13She's done the lentils, but she skipped a step.
20:15She's forgotten to make the tarka that she's supposed to combine and flavour the cooked lentils with.
20:22But I want a simple tarka of ginger, garlic, red chilli.
20:27I'm stressed now.
20:28Celebrities, you've only got five minutes left. You really need to push.
20:32Nearly there.
20:33I like it.
20:38Tastes slightly better than it looks.
20:42There's some wonderful smells coming from ginger and it's not hairspray.
20:47Ow.
20:47It's hot now.
20:48We've got 60 seconds, everybody. Just 60 seconds left.
20:52All good in the hood.
21:06We've got coconut in the curry.
21:23It's served like that.
21:24A fish banana parcel.
21:27That's it, guys. Time's up, please.
21:29Time is up.
21:37Uma.
21:38Hello.
21:40Reality star Uma has cooked a trio of classic Punjabi dishes.
21:45Paneer cheese in a spinach gravy with pilau rice and a tarka dal.
21:50That paneer is just stand out. It's cheesy. It's rich.
22:04The colour of that sauce is great. Simple spinach. It all shines through.
22:09But the tarka dal. You forgot to do that base masala. So we missed out the onions.
22:14We missed out the tomato and we had to do something really quick.
22:17For me, that dish is not complete.
22:18OK. I order paneer whenever it's available.
22:22And I've never tasted it like that. It's soft and it's creamy.
22:27You've knocked that out of the park.
22:29Yay!
22:31Rice, free-flowing. But the lentils, sadly, are letting everything else down.
22:35They're not cooked enough. They should be a lot softer.
22:38There needs to be that rich tomato through the background.
22:41It would have been wonderful.
22:42When you can cook something like paneer that well,
22:45everything else should be the same level.
22:48I didn't even really know what paneer was. I thought it was a bread. So I'm really happy.
22:54Actor Katie has made Karan's favourite South Indian fish dish.
22:58Turmeric and lime marinated sea bream topped with a masala spiced paste and baked in a banana leaf.
23:04It definitely looks the part. The sauce has clung on. It's not watery.
23:08Served with okra, stir-fried with coconut, chilli, mustard seeds and yoghurt.
23:14The fish shouldn't stick to the bone like that. These thinner bits are cooked perfectly.
23:25Yeah.
23:26It's just the bits in the middle could be cooked a little more.
23:28Yeah.
23:29And the seasoning. I think a little more seasoning when you marinated it.
23:32A little more in the masala as well.
23:35The fish, a little bit longer in the oven. It's all about timing here.
23:38But you've got a lovely smokiness that comes from that banana leaf.
23:41Love the sweet coconut going through that okra. The richness of the curry leaves.
23:45All the mustard seeds. That's wonderful.
23:48Just to bring them alive, a sprinkle of salt. It will bring the flavour right up.
23:52The fish is certainly a little undercooked. However, that was the first time you'd ever worked with a whole fish.
24:01Mm-hm.
24:01And to cook it inside the leaves, I'm impressed. I think you've made a very good effort.
24:10Yes, the fish was slightly under, but I'm working with food I've never cooked with before.
24:15And it's edible. So, yeah, I'm quite proud of myself.
24:19Pop star Anthony has served Karen's Sri Lankan-inspired red chicken curry
24:26with string hopper noodles and a coconut and chilli sambal.
24:33Oh, it's got a nice little chilli kick.
24:38The curry itself, it's bold, it's gutsy.
24:42Layering of ginger and garlic and all those dried spices to lots and lots of heat.
24:48I think it looks great, it shows care, you've tasted on the way and it's really paid off.
24:52Thank you. Wow, thank you so much.
24:54You nailed the string hoppers.
24:56What?
24:57They're not the easiest thing to get right.
24:59They're light, they're separate.
25:01Steamed them perfectly.
25:02And I think you did a really good job.
25:04Wow, thank you.
25:06Wow.
25:06I love that you've made sambal so vibrant.
25:09It's got a real kick.
25:10You haven't held back.
25:12Your cooking in this round has gone to a new level.
25:16Wow.
25:17Yeah.
25:18Wow, thank you.
25:20I'm just speechless.
25:22I've done string hoppers in front of Mr Hopperman.
25:25That's so good.
25:27He's offered me a job.
25:28I've said I can't come at the moment, mate, because I'm on tour.
25:30Er, no, I'm joking.
25:31Paralympian Gaz has cooked Karen's version of the popular Indian street food Bombay Frankie.
25:40Potatoes pan-fried in garlic, ginger, chilli and cumin on a coriander, chilli,
25:45mint and lime chutney wrapped in a roti.
25:57The potatoes for me could have definitely been spicier.
26:00Could have had a little more seasoning.
26:02The bread, it's a little dry.
26:04I wanted this a little more golden.
26:06A little more fried for that extra sort of richness when you wrap it up.
26:11This is one of the funkiest potato sandwiches I've ever had in my life.
26:15Your chutney rich with mint and coriander, a really good punch of chilli.
26:20I think that's lovely.
26:20I love the vibrancy of the colour.
26:22I think that I did get the best deal with the bread.
26:25Mm-hm.
26:26Yes, it could be perhaps a little thinner and less dry.
26:31But as you can see, once I'd rolled it up, I've eaten half of it.
26:37Definitely didn't do Karen proud.
26:38As the only Asian contestant in this heat,
26:41I think he had high hopes for me and I definitely feel like I let him down.
26:47Drag artist Ginger has cooked a Bengali prawn and coconut curry,
26:52served inside the shell of a green coconut with deep-fried luchi breads.
26:56Oh, look at that.
27:06That sauce, it's coconut-y, but the back note of mustard, just subtle, just enough,
27:12that just clings round these soft, buttery prawns.
27:16That is restaurant-quality food.
27:19Absolutely wild.
27:22That lovely bit of bread there, puffed up beautifully,
27:25with that sweet sauce and the prawns, it's fantastic.
27:30That prawn could not be more perfect.
27:32It complements the butteriness of that fresh coconut
27:37with a fresh spice from a green chilli.
27:39It tastes amazing.
27:41You've really nailed both dishes.
27:42Great.
27:43I basically decapitated my way through the challenge.
27:50With the coconut and the prawns.
27:52I'm learning so much.
27:55I'm so proud of you and you should be very, very proud of yourselves.
27:58I think you did so well.
28:02Thank you very much indeed.
28:03We'll see you soon.
28:04Off you go.
28:11Karen, thank you very much indeed
28:13for showing our five some fantastic food and nurturing along the way.
28:17It was absolutely brilliant.
28:18They learned a lot, definitely.
28:20I learned a lot.
28:22For me, the highlight really was that they embraced the challenge.
28:26I've loved being here.
28:27See you later.
28:29We're alive.
28:30Yes.
28:31That's something.
28:32It's hard work.
28:33It's cooking malarkey, isn't it?
28:34Yeah.
28:36Wow.
28:36Thrown in the deep end.
28:37But that, I really enjoyed it.
28:41Right now, all to play for.
28:42Next time, one of them's going home.
28:45Every single one of them wants to stay.
28:47This is going to be tough.
29:06You've just cooked someone else's food.
29:09But now, we want to taste yours.
29:14Your brief is to cook us your two dinner party favourites.
29:17A main course and a dessert.
29:19And it's time for you to show off.
29:22Because we are looking for quarter-finalists.
29:25And we only have four quarter-final places.
29:28At the end of this, one of you will be going home.
29:32One hour.
29:34Let's cook.
29:40Dinner parties sound like a lot of fun.
29:42But you really do have to deliver something delicious
29:46that the person wouldn't have on any normal night.
29:49A lot of pressure, man.
29:50And the heat, excuse the pun, is being turned up.
29:54What do they feed their friends?
29:56What do they feed to their loved ones?
29:58What do they feed people to impress?
30:00I mean, right now, these five could just blow our minds.
30:05I don't want to be too confident.
30:08But cool, calm and collected.
30:09It's go big, I'll go home.
30:11Or go big, absolutely ruin it and go home.
30:17Ginger, do you ever have the other drag queens round
30:19for a dinner party?
30:20Oh, drag queens don't really eat that much.
30:22It's more about talking than eating.
30:24More of a liquid meeting when you get together.
30:27So, tell us the inspiration for your dishes.
30:30I used to make rugby every Sunday,
30:32and I would come home from rugby, freezing cold, covered in mud,
30:35get in the bath, and then come down and have Sunday dinner.
30:37And that would often be fish pie.
30:38So I'm making a fish pie.
30:40It's really creamy, really unctuous, delicious.
30:44Ginger's absolutely going for it.
30:46I'm absolutely melting.
30:49Never mind the butter, I'm melting.
30:53She's poaching her fish with fennel,
30:56and then she's making a cream sauce out of that poaching liquid.
30:59Mash the potatoes right now.
31:01We want a golden, crispy top on that potato.
31:05The smokiness of the fish running through the whole dish.
31:08Served with peas and samphire, lovely bit of green.
31:12And then poached pears with rum snaps and ginger cream.
31:16This is what I would cook for my family if I had the chance to cook them
31:18Sunday afternoon dinner if we were all there.
31:21Well, can you actually see what you're doing?
31:23I mean, you're brating with, like, basically two tarantulas fighting.
31:27You can't half do drag, can you?
31:29From a woman who loves makeup, you're an inspiration here.
31:33Thank you so much. Good luck.
31:35The pear has to be cooked all the way through.
31:39It can't be in any way hard.
31:41And she's poaching it in orange juice,
31:44which is a lovely idea with lots of cinnamon.
31:47The ginger cream needs to be full of ginger,
31:50because that snap biscuit made from rum is going to be really sweet.
31:54I am loving the ambition.
31:58There's a lot to do, and it all has to happen at the same time.
32:01So hopefully we don't end up with fishy pears.
32:05OK.
32:15And he's got chicken thighs cooked in a Greek style with lots of sauce,
32:18rice firmer chilli, tomatoes and lemon.
32:22He's going to serve that with yoghurt and feta cheese with chilli.
32:25Wonderful.
32:27But he's using chicken thighs with a bone in.
32:30He's going to make sure they get a nice bit of colour on them first,
32:33seasoned really, really well,
32:34before they go into the pot with rice firmer chilli.
32:37I'm just happy to be here and learning from these guys is amazing.
32:43Especially John, because he's got a soft spot for me.
32:45What's the blue dinner party like?
32:52The lads are good cooks, actually.
32:55When I told them I was coming on this, they literally laughed in my face.
32:57I was like a soft spot.
32:59I can see why.
33:02My main is inspired by a traditional Greek dish called tava.
33:07I loved eating it as a kid because I love my chicken, love my rice.
33:11I love my tomatoes.
33:13I love the whole thing being cooked together and you soak all the juices up.
33:17Comfort food.
33:20For dessert, a lemon cheesecake.
33:21I love a lemon cheesecake.
33:23I know you do.
33:24I want a biscuity base, which is not too hard.
33:29We want a creamy filling across the top, which is zingy with lemon.
33:33But at the same time, I want a bit of oomph.
33:35I want a bit of style.
33:36I want a little bit of something that makes me stand up and go, wow.
33:39I am playing it safe with the lemon cheesecake, I ain't gonna lie.
33:44But I'm gonna throw myself into it.
33:46Just feed them.
33:50You are halfway, 30 minutes gone, 30 minutes left.
33:57I do like a lot of flavours in my food and I like my dishes to be quite complex.
34:03I do feel quite determined to prove to myself and prove to the judges that I am a good cook.
34:09Uma's got a piece of pan fried sea bass sitting on a spiced Thai flavoured sauce.
34:17Lemongrass, lime leaf, turmeric, coconut milk, all going there and there's even some chilli.
34:24My mum used to make a dish when we were younger and she called it coconut chicken.
34:28But I prefer fish.
34:29Even though she's not Thai, she's Australian, she likes to be experimental with her cooking.
34:34Uma is promising us rice.
34:35And then we've got salad, which has been made from samphire and spray onions.
34:40If there's too much samphire, it's gonna become really salty.
34:44What's for dessert?
34:44Uh, it's a chocolate mousse.
34:46I'm gonna put hazelnuts on top, cherries and then a chantilly cream.
34:50A little bit of black forest going on.
34:51Exactly, I love black forest.
34:55She's making a water ganache, which is really clever.
34:59I was trying to find out like a way that you can make a chocolate mousse quickly.
35:03And I found out basically that if you melt it in water and then blend it over an ice bath, it forms a mousse texture.
35:12Hopefully that mousse is lovely and smooth.
35:14And then the sweetness of the cream, it could be wonderful.
35:16Gaz is cooking food inspired by his Pakistani upbringing.
35:30Nahari, which is the national dish of Pakistan, usually a beef stew cooked really, really slow
35:35with lots of onions and spices, enriched usually with bone marrow.
35:40I'm trying to make a plant-based version. I've never seen a plant-based version before.
35:43So I'm rolling the dice and see how it works out.
35:48He's using a plant-based steak and then a sauce that's going to be enriched with lots and lots of
35:53spices and nutritional yeast. It's almost a smokiness, but should fill our mouths with flavour.
35:59I love nihari. My mum is like famous for making her nihari.
36:03The legend is that it was a working class food for labourers while they were building the Taj Mahal.
36:08They would feed the labourers in the morning, nihari, and they would basically be able to work all day.
36:15With that, we're being promised bread, naan. He's made the dough. I just hope he's got enough
36:20time to make sure that that bread is cooked all the way through.
36:24After the disaster of making the roti in the last challenge, I really want to know if I can get it right.
36:29For dessert, we're getting halver, carrot halver. Carrots cooked with plant-based milk, brown sugar,
36:42lots and lots of cardamom. That carrot mixture all cooks down together to become almost like a jam.
36:50It's 100% completely plant-based, which I think is brilliant.
36:56You are so passionate about plant-based.
36:58I kind of just like to just explore cooking. Just see where it takes you.
37:02All the best. Thank you, Grace.
37:07Katie from Corrie. Hello, Grace.
37:10What are you making? I am making place fillets with potatoes and fennel in a white wine sauce.
37:17This kind of reminds me of home. I used to cook a lot of fish and potatoes with my granddad.
37:22Which character from Corrie would have loved this food?
37:26Ken Barlow, 100%. Um, he loves a bit of white wine.
37:31He likes a little bit of white wine? Yeah.
37:34As I do.
37:37Katie right now seems really, really confident.
37:40Place fillets, she's going to cook underneath the grill. Well, that's great.
37:43They only take three or four minutes.
37:47Butter is soft fennel and it needs to be soft. We don't want crunchy, hard fennel.
37:52She's labouring over a white wine sauce. White wine, cream, some lemon juice, lots of seasoning.
37:58Lovely.
38:00I love lemon. I love thyme. I love garlic. I love the creaminess of this dish. I'll just...
38:07It's very indulgent.
38:10I need to know the pudding. The pudding is a citrus posse with a shortbread crunch.
38:17I love lemon desserts. Yeah.
38:20Like, when I was younger, we used to love pancake day.
38:23So I used to race home and have lemon and sugar pancakes until I was sick.
38:29I don't want that near the heat.
38:32A citrus posse. It should be silky, like a cross between a mousse and a cheesecake.
38:39Then with that, we've also got shortbread and grapefruit gel.
38:42I need to bash my shortbread, which I love.
38:45Katie seems to be transformed into somebody who's suddenly come out of a professional kitchen.
38:49You have to improvise when you've already used your rolling pin.
38:55I have added a bit of pizzazz because it's MasterChef, especially the dessert.
39:00It's very tangy, but sweet, with a bit of crunch. And we like that.
39:05I've put on about a stone in the shortbread. So this is the final 10 minutes.
39:16Oh, yeah. There we go.
39:19It's the rice.
39:22It seems right now that Uma's got a problem with her rice.
39:25It's horrible.
39:25It doesn't look like it's cooked. I wonder if she's going to serve it or not.
39:28If it's not cooked, I hope she doesn't.
39:32Good. It worked out.
39:36Please don't tear. Please don't tear. Please don't tear.
39:42Go on. Go on.
39:43Yes, yes, yes.
39:43Oh, yeah.
39:46Ow, that's hot.
39:50You've got just 60 seconds. 60 seconds, everybody.
39:56What the hell is going on today?
39:58Lovely pear with the lovely cream.
40:13Oh, it just looks so pretty.
40:16I think it does anyway.
40:21That's the dessert out of the way.
40:23Don't drop the pies. Don't drop the pies.
40:28OK.
40:32That's it. Time's up, everybody.
40:35I'm pretty happy with it.
40:37Yeah.
40:38Yeah, really happy with it, actually.
40:39I'm just so happy we've done it now.
40:41I am, mate.
40:42Oh, God.
40:43Can the drug artist Ginger Johnson please approach the judges?
40:47It's not Ginger.
40:48It's not Ginger.
40:51Hello.
40:51Hello.
40:52Ginger's dinner party main is a smoked haddock salmon and prawn fish pie in a creamy tarragon and
40:59fennel sauce with buttery samphire and peas dressed in garlic and lemon.
41:04Mm-hmm.
41:06You like a big portion, don't you?
41:07Yeah.
41:08Yeah, I do.
41:11I would eat that in five minutes.
41:12I love the mashed potato, free of any lumps, crispy across the top. Crunch still in the prawns,
41:27smokiness coming from the smoked haddock is wonderful. And the fennel dancing around that
41:31fish pie. It's ice. Great. Great. Fresh tarragon going through that gorgeous sauce. I love the buttery,
41:40soft samphire and so garlicky, but that shot of lemon just really brings it out. It's absolutely
41:47fantastic. Good. For dessert, Ginger has served poached pears in orange and cinnamon with ginger
41:55cream in a rum snap basket.
42:05This is a rum snap. It doesn't snap. However, that pear is so delicious and I wasn't expecting that
42:12whack of ginger. The way that you've added flavour into the cream is so lovely. Inventive, complex and
42:20ambitious. Thank you. I've got some crunchy, crispy bits on the outside of my snap. In here,
42:27I've got almost the flavours of Christmas. Orange and cinnamon with that pear, which is wonderful,
42:33sticky and sweet, poached well. I think it's great. Thank you so much.
42:40I can feel all of the energy and adrenaline draining from my body now.
42:45But I am having the time of my life.
42:50Uma has pan-fried sea bass and topped it with a raw samphire spring onion Thai basil and lime salad,
42:57served in a spicy Thai coconut curry sauce.
43:00Everything go to plan? No. So, I'm missing the rice.
43:04So, this is for people who are trying to avoid carbs today.
43:15That's really hot. That's so hot.
43:20The fish, that skin, so inviting, so crunchy and crisp, but then the fish itself still tender.
43:27The heat in that sauce is really quite something, but it's still delicious.
43:32This little salad of yours, I like it, because the Thai basil's anisee, the spraying is quite
43:40sharp and oniony, samphire being salty, which I think is great. There's only one thing missing.
43:45Rice. Rice.
43:47Because I've now got a bowl of soup, but I really admire your flavours.
43:52Thank you. To dessert.
43:53Uma's dessert is a black forest mousse.
43:57Layers of chocolate mousse, sweet cherry syrup and whipped Chantilly cream, topped with whole cherries and hazelnuts.
44:04This is death by Black Forest dessert, because the chocolate is so, so rich.
44:17And then you've got the huge, full cherries bursting with the juice and then loads of cream.
44:25I could quite easily sit and finish the whole bowl. I would probably need to lie down afterwards.
44:32You've made what's called a water ganache. Cleverly, you've whipped it up.
44:35It's not light like a mousse. It's quite dense, and I don't mind that, almost like a truffle flavour,
44:40like you get inside a chocolate truffle. Yeah.
44:43The cherries across the top are inspired because you get that lovely, rich flavour of cherries,
44:48almost like cherry liqueur, again inside a chocolate. I like it.
44:53Thanks, Uma. Thank you.
44:56I feel a bit disappointed because the rice didn't go to plan.
45:00If I had just had, like, an extra 15 minutes, then things would have gone a lot better.
45:04So, yeah, it was really stressful.
45:07Hello, hello, hello.
45:08Anthony's Greek-inspired main course is chicken thighs, rice and vermicelli,
45:14cooked in tomatoes, chicken stock and lemon, with a side of whipped feta and red chilli.
45:23Cooked. It's cooked. Oh, phew.
45:27Why'd you do that, John?
45:33The vermicelli and rice, beautifully seasoned.
45:37Your chicken is tender, but I would have either got rid of this skin
45:42or made sure that it was crispy because it's really flabby and wobbly
45:46and actually a little bit hairy.
45:49Exactly. Sorry.
45:51But apart from that skin, I could clear this plate.
45:53This is comfort food.
45:55Yeah, that's the vibe that I wanted to give, yeah.
46:00Give it to me, John.
46:01Anthony, this doesn't make me blue.
46:03I love you, mate.
46:06It makes me really happy.
46:07Oh, yes, come on!
46:09Natural flavour of chicken thigh, sweet tomato,
46:12but what it absolutely needed was that feta cheese to really bring up the seasoning.
46:19Slightly salty and rich, a little bit of chilli heat.
46:22It's really addictive.
46:24Oh, mate, thank you, thank you.
46:26Anthony's dessert is a set lemon cheesecake topped with fresh berries.
46:31It's lemon, but it could have benefited from maybe a little bit of zest.
46:42However, it's a lovely Moorish cheesecake.
46:45I know you're trying to butter up the judges, Anthony,
46:48but there's so much butter with those biscuits in the base,
46:51it's almost like it's the texture of thick peanut butter.
46:55It needs more of the topping with that sharp lemon,
46:59but I like the addition of the fruit across the top.
47:01You're trying it with presentation.
47:02Good on you.
47:06Got some nice comments.
47:08Good constructive criticisms here and there,
47:09but listen, it's what I'm here for.
47:12Well, hello. Hello.
47:15Katie has served a fillet of place with braised fennel and crispy potatoes
47:20in a white wine and cream sauce with caviar and salmon roe.
47:25This is the nicest plating I've seen from you so far.
47:28Oh, thank you.
47:29I'm amazed. Where'd you come from?
47:32I knew you were a quiet assassin.
47:33These ones down here, they had no idea, did they?
47:37It was all an axe.
47:38No, I'm joking.
47:45Fish is cooked beautifully, lovely and soft and falls apart.
47:50Wonderful, rich, creamy sauce.
47:52Got a little sort of zing of the white wine in the back of the throat.
47:55Salty bits of caviar and that salmon roe running through the whole thing.
47:59And I've got to say, I love it.
48:01It's great. Thank you.
48:01The fennel is under.
48:04But then that's when my list of complaints begins to run slightly dry.
48:09Fish is bang on.
48:11Potatoes, lovely and crispy, lovely flavoursome, salty.
48:15This is a really good plate of food.
48:17This is the best that you have cooked so far.
48:21I'm going to say thank you.
48:23Shall we go for dessert?
48:24Oh, yes, please.
48:27Katie has made a lemon and lime posset
48:29topped with a grapefruit gel and a shortbread crumble.
48:35It's a good citrus face. It's OK.
48:38It's all right.
48:39You all right there, John?
48:40Oh, yeah.
48:42It's a bit sharp, isn't it?
48:43Eh?
48:44I don't know if you see it all now.
48:50Your posset, it's a lot creamier and runnier than I might have expected, but very good flavours.
48:55Yes, citrusy, doesn't hold back.
48:57It's so sharp.
48:59This is not for the timid posset eater.
49:05I love the fact you've made your own shortbread.
49:08The grapefruit gel is delicious because rather than being sharp like lemon, it's slightly bitter.
49:12So you get sweet, biscuity shortbread, the bitterness of that grapefruit,
49:16and then that sharpness of the lemon underneath.
49:18I think you're showing a huge amount of skill.
49:21Thank you very much.
49:24Yes!
49:26That was so good!
49:29I smashed it, so I'm so happy.
49:32I just wanted to put my heart and soul into the cooking like I do at home, and that's what I did.
49:37Last up is Gaz, with a plant-based nihari stew.
49:44Pan-fried soy protein steak served in a sauce spiced with cinnamon, fennel,
49:49cardamom, ginger and chilli, served with naan breads.
49:53I've never eaten a plant-based steak before.
49:54The plant-based meat's interesting because it's actually quite a strong flavour.
50:09It's almost the sort of flavour of salt beef, slightly taking over the beauty of the sauce,
50:15because I really like that sauce of the breads.
50:17I like the pepperiness in the background.
50:19I like the ginger.
50:20I just find that plant-based meat very, very strong with the sauce.
50:26Your challenge was always going to be with this, that traditionally this is a slow-cooked stew
50:34that takes pieces of beef and stewing it all slowly in the sauce,
50:38and you haven't been able to do that.
50:40So the sauce is never going to have a ton of depth.
50:44However, aren't these great breads?
50:47Gaz has made a sweet Indian dessert called halva, carrot cooked in brown sugar and cardamom,
50:57and topped with pistachios, served with a vegan pistachio cream.
51:01I love the carrot and the scattering of nuts across the top.
51:13I don't even like cardamom, but somehow I've just eaten quite a lot of this.
51:19Very nice dessert.
51:20I love cardamom. I reckon you could do with some more.
51:24That carrot really sticky with all that sugar with the nuts and the cream becomes really quite rich.
51:30Your food always has some great flavours, but you can give this one a little bit more spice.
51:35Sounds good.
51:39It was a risky menu, but I wanted to show that it was possible to make a plant-based nihari,
51:45which is quite unusual. There's no point in coming to a cooking show and not pushing yourself,
51:51or pushing the boundaries.
51:53Thank you so much for all of your hard work there.
51:56You've all cooked your absolute hearts out.
52:00We're going to ask you to step outside and we'll call you back in as soon as we possibly can.
52:04But for me, a fantastic start to this year's competition.
52:07You've set the bar really high. Thank you.
52:11Thank you, celebrities. Thank you.
52:15I am spent. I don't know about you guys, but I'm so proud of all of us.
52:27Yeah. Yeah. Bring it in.
52:28Yeah. Yay!
52:31Class of 2025. Class of 2025, get in!
52:36Come on.
52:37Five great celebrities, but we only have four places in the quarter-final.
52:42I usually get to pirouette off at this point and leave this to you.
52:45They've had their ups and downs all the way through, but do you have a favourite today?
52:50Ginger doesn't just bring joy and glamour. She brings ambition.
52:55Fish pie, great mashed potato top with a poached pear, the ginger cream.
53:00Ginger's got herself a quarter-final place.
53:02She's not going anywhere.
53:03Katie in this round, place with that lovely white wine sauce, and then we had that posset.
53:09It's sort of reminiscent of that first round, isn't it? Of the joy of that apple crumble and custard.
53:14And it was just what we needed to see. A different level of Katie.
53:18Are we happy that Katie's got a quarter-final place?
53:22Uma understands flavour. That fish curry so hot, it nearly knocked my boots off, but I enjoyed it.
53:29She didn't get the rice right, but there is ambition. Taking chocolate and hot water to make a mousse,
53:35I mean, good on her. Yeah. Anthony's dished chicken, vermicelli, rice, well-flavoured.
53:41I loved that fetal on the side. I thought that really helped the dish come alive.
53:45Cheesecake, flavour of lemon, yes, too much of the base, but there was a bit of ambition.
53:50He made a cheesecake, and I admire the fact he did do that.
53:54And his food is a little bit haphazard at times, but I love his passion, his enthusiasm.
53:58I enjoyed Gaz's Nahari, but I just don't feel like there was enough depth of that sauce.
54:05That steak overpowered the sauce. Yeah.
54:07The dessert. Carrot, however, grating carrots, some sugar, cardamom in a pot.
54:12That's lovely, but I felt the whole thing just needed more spice.
54:16This competition allows you to push yourself in a way that you'd never do.
54:28So I'd love to stay to continue to explore just what I'm capable of.
54:34I want to learn. I want John and Grace to push me and push me and push me.
54:37And if I'm still here, the next challenge, I'll be happy.
54:41I hope I've done enough so far to keep my place, but I'm, like, a bit worried.
54:48I really, really do want to stay in the competition.
54:51We have to make a decision. Yeah.
54:53Whoever goes through to a quarter-final, they're going to have to continue to step up.
54:57Thank you so much for the passion.
55:14You've really, really tried your best.
55:17Above all that, you've given us some delicious food.
55:23There are only four quarter-final places.
55:27There are only four quarter-final places.
55:29The celebrity leaving us is...
55:39Gaz.
55:40Gaz, thank you very much for a fantastic competition.
55:43It's been brilliant having you.
55:45Thank you so much indeed for leaving us.
55:47Thanks so much to you, Gaz.
55:48Thank you, Gaz.
55:49Guys, good luck.
55:52I'm a little bit disappointed, obviously.
55:53I would have liked to stay in the competition,
55:55but it's really made me realize just what it is that I love about cooking and food
56:00and how it can bring people together, so I've really enjoyed that.
56:03You are Celebrity MasterChef quarter-finalists.
56:16Wow.
56:17I've never won anything on my own in my life.
56:20I've never even won pass the parcel.
56:22Do you know what I mean?
56:22So to even get through to the next round in Celebrity MasterChef, I'm just gobsmacked.
56:29I'm going to be celebrating tonight like you wouldn't believe.
56:33When I first started in this competition, I thought it was just going to be a disaster.
56:38So the fact that I've got through is unbelievable.
56:41I'm just over the moon and beyond proud of myself.
56:45Every day is another amazing surprise and it's so different to what I do with the rest of my life.
56:51The fact that I'm a quarter-finalist is crazy.
56:54I'm excited to come back and see what's in store for us next.
56:57I want to go as far as I can.
57:04Next time.
57:05Please help the grass.
57:07It's the quarter-final.
57:09What could go wrong?
57:10What's this space?
57:12And Ginger, Anthony, Uma and Katie are back.
57:19Cheers.
57:22Cheers.
57:22To battle for their place.
57:24The stress.
57:25In the semi-finals.
57:28It tastes amazing.
57:55It tastes amazing.
58:00To be continued.
58:00For the next episode.
58:01To be continued.
58:02To be continued.
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