👨🍳 MasterChef (US) - Season 22 Episode 2
The ultimate cooking competition is BACK! In Episode [2], [brief hook: see episode-specific hooks below]. Watch as passionate home cooks from across America face iconic MasterChef challenges, deliver stunning dishes, and fight for the chance to become the next MasterChef champion.
🔹 Episode Highlights:
• [E01 Hook: "Audition rounds bring incredible talent—and heartbreaking eliminations"]
• [E02 Hook: "The first Pressure Test separates the pros from the hopefuls"]
• [E03 Hook: "Mystery Box creativity shines as chefs transform surprise ingredients"]
• Signature challenges: Mystery Box, Pressure Test, Team Challenges & Invention Tests
• Judges' expertise: Gordon Ramsay, Aarón Sánchez, Joe Bastianich deliver sharp critiques
• Emotional moments: triumphs, tears, and the resilience of home cooks chasing dreams
🔹 Series Info:
• Format: Cooking Competition / Reality TV / Talent Show
• Original Network: FOX (US) / Hulu / International Syndication
• Series Launch: 2010 (US Revival) | Season: 22 | Episodes: 1-3 (Season Premiere Arc)
• Judges: Gordon Ramsay, Aarón Sánchez, Joe Bastianich + Guest Judges
• Setting: MasterChef Kitchen – Los Angeles, USA
• Language: English (Original Audio)
• Runtime: ~42-60 minutes (full) | Clip/Highlight version: ~10-15 min
🎧 Prefer audio? Listen to MasterChef recaps & food competition podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts.
👉 Enjoying the series? Hit LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and comment: "Which contestant impressed YOU most? 👇🍽️" Turn on notifications 🔔 so you never miss the next challenge!
#MasterChef #MasterChefUS #MasterChefS22 #CookingCompetition #FOX #GordonRamsay #S22E[X] #HomeCook #BingeWatch #FoodTV #ChefLife #RealityCooking
⚠️ Copyright Disclaimer: This video is shared for promotional, review, and informational purposes only. All rights to "MasterChef" belong to FOX Corporation, Endemol Shine North America, and One Potato Two Potato. This upload complies with Fair Use guidelines (Section 107, U.S. Copyright Act). No copyright infringement intended.
The ultimate cooking competition is BACK! In Episode [2], [brief hook: see episode-specific hooks below]. Watch as passionate home cooks from across America face iconic MasterChef challenges, deliver stunning dishes, and fight for the chance to become the next MasterChef champion.
🔹 Episode Highlights:
• [E01 Hook: "Audition rounds bring incredible talent—and heartbreaking eliminations"]
• [E02 Hook: "The first Pressure Test separates the pros from the hopefuls"]
• [E03 Hook: "Mystery Box creativity shines as chefs transform surprise ingredients"]
• Signature challenges: Mystery Box, Pressure Test, Team Challenges & Invention Tests
• Judges' expertise: Gordon Ramsay, Aarón Sánchez, Joe Bastianich deliver sharp critiques
• Emotional moments: triumphs, tears, and the resilience of home cooks chasing dreams
🔹 Series Info:
• Format: Cooking Competition / Reality TV / Talent Show
• Original Network: FOX (US) / Hulu / International Syndication
• Series Launch: 2010 (US Revival) | Season: 22 | Episodes: 1-3 (Season Premiere Arc)
• Judges: Gordon Ramsay, Aarón Sánchez, Joe Bastianich + Guest Judges
• Setting: MasterChef Kitchen – Los Angeles, USA
• Language: English (Original Audio)
• Runtime: ~42-60 minutes (full) | Clip/Highlight version: ~10-15 min
🎧 Prefer audio? Listen to MasterChef recaps & food competition podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts.
👉 Enjoying the series? Hit LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and comment: "Which contestant impressed YOU most? 👇🍽️" Turn on notifications 🔔 so you never miss the next challenge!
#MasterChef #MasterChefUS #MasterChefS22 #CookingCompetition #FOX #GordonRamsay #S22E[X] #HomeCook #BingeWatch #FoodTV #ChefLife #RealityCooking
⚠️ Copyright Disclaimer: This video is shared for promotional, review, and informational purposes only. All rights to "MasterChef" belong to FOX Corporation, Endemol Shine North America, and One Potato Two Potato. This upload complies with Fair Use guidelines (Section 107, U.S. Copyright Act). No copyright infringement intended.
Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:04It's the battle for the ultimate culinary prize.
00:10Brand new competition, brand new judges.
00:14Grace, let's find some talent.
00:1748 of the country's best home cooks...
00:20Come on.
00:21...have their hearts set.
00:24Oh, my dear.
00:25It's fine, it's fine.
00:27Oh, no!
00:28Dropped it.
00:28On the coveted MasterChef Trophy...
00:32It is an explosion of flavour.
00:35This is absolutely yummy.
00:37Fantastic.
00:38Each week, 12 extraordinary amateur talents...
00:43I think I'm struggling.
00:44...battle for a place in the quarterfinal.
00:47There's something quite Dracula about this dish.
00:50Ooh, a lot.
00:51But only the best can earn their passport
00:54to the ultimate cookery showdown.
00:58The 100 guests are here.
01:01Keep going fast.
01:03Cheers.
01:04If this has been cooked by an amateur, we all need to watch out.
01:16It's the first week of the competition, and the next six passionate home cooks are arriving at the MasterChef kitchen.
01:24I feel like I'm sitting inside my TV right now, so it's surreal, but super exciting.
01:31Since I retired, my goals have been to challenge myself and do new things.
01:36And this is definitely something new and challenging.
01:40I, under pressure, either am really great and really, really calm, or I could fall down like salmon.
01:51Guys, welcome to the MasterChef kitchen.
01:55This is your chance to show us what you love about cooking.
02:03Your first challenge is to cook us your signature dish.
02:09This is a dish that you would serve to your family and friends to delight them.
02:15It's going to show us your passions, your technique, and above all, what you think is tasty.
02:24At the end of this round, two of you will be presented with one of our much coveted MasterChef aprons.
02:34The rest of you will have to cook again for the remaining two aprons.
02:40You have an hour and a half to show us what you're made of.
02:46Let's go.
02:55Now, you've got to do this.
02:58You've got to do it.
03:01Tattoo artist Maddy has run her own studio in Southampton for seven years.
03:06With a love for home comfort classics, she dreams of one day having her own food truck.
03:11My signature dish is based on the first dish I ever made that people requested I make again.
03:16It goes back to when I was, like, 13.
03:18So it's something I cook with a lot of love.
03:20This feels like who I am as a cook.
03:23Maddy, welcome to the MasterChef kitchen.
03:26Thank you so much.
03:27What's your signature dish?
03:28King prawn and scallop Alfredo with homemade tegnatelli.
03:32What's Alfredo?
03:33Like a cream-based sauce with parmesan and butter, which, like, just kind of sums me up as a person.
03:40Cream, butter and cheese, that's who I am.
03:43You're so zen to be around right now.
03:45What are you doing to stay so calm?
03:47I'm a single bum.
03:48I've got a three-year-old.
03:49So cooking is not normally this peaceful for me.
03:54Pan-fried prawns and scallops.
03:57Two jewels from the sea.
03:59I don't want her to cook them for too long and then they become rubbery.
04:04Maddy's tagliatelle needs to be in beautiful, very thin, uniform strips.
04:11And with Maddy's Alfredo sauce, if it has too much cream, the whole dish will feel heavy and claggy.
04:18And we've all had a heavy, claggy pasta dish.
04:26Now settled in Hertfordshire, Italian-born Luca was inspired to take up cooking after travelling the world as a flight
04:33attendant and working on cruise ships.
04:36Mostly I thought myself, with my girlfriend, we'd like to do experiments and try new flavours and try new food.
04:44And not everything goes well.
04:46Many times I would eat things which are not very edible.
04:51So I didn't want to do a classic risotto.
04:54So I'm taking you, hopefully, to Morocco with it.
04:58I'm going to have a risotto that has got rasheil anoud, which is a blend of spices in Morocco.
05:05And I'm going to serve there with the mint and lemon pesto and the next side of beetroot sauce, beetroot
05:11cubes.
05:12You seem to have a real curious spirit.
05:15In Italy, you kind of grow up with the belief that we have the best food in the world.
05:19Don't get me wrong, I love it.
05:20But I think there's also a world of tastes and flavours that we don't know yet.
05:25And I like to play with those.
05:28Ras al-hamout in the risotto could be a stroke of genius because one of its base flavours is cinnamon.
05:35And cinnamon goes really well with beetroot.
05:39He's got the mint and lemon pesto.
05:43But he's already got some very big flavours in here.
05:47There is a lot going on on this dish.
05:50I hope they like it.
05:52Actually, I hope they love it.
05:54So that's half an hour gone.
05:56You have one hour left.
06:00I mean, it still doesn't feel real.
06:02I feel like this is probably one just really expensive prank.
06:05Once a competitive cheerleader, mum of two Maria grew up in a family of food lovers in West London and
06:12still shares recipes with her older sisters.
06:15Welcome to the kitchen, Maria.
06:16What are you cooking for us?
06:18It's a mix between my two sisters' favourite desserts.
06:21So one of my sisters loves my pineapple cake, the other one loves doughnuts.
06:25So I'm mashing them together to make a baked doughnut with a grilled pineapple marinated in like lime and chilli
06:33with a ginger custard.
06:37When you hear a doughnut, your expectation is kind of that it's going to be deep fried.
06:42But this is a baked doughnut and essentially it's more similar to a cake.
06:47So you need to be careful because it has to be soft.
06:51You don't want a crunchy, you know, bite doughnut.
06:56Maria is marinating her pineapple in tamarind, lime zest and scotch bonnet.
07:02If she uses the scotch bonnet correctly, it should give a lovely little kick.
07:11Wolverhampton-born Michael learned to cook watching videos online.
07:15In 2014, he catered for his own wedding.
07:18And now, as a stay-at-home dad, he cooks daily for his wife and family.
07:24So I've got three kids. They're all under five, so they're a bit of a handful.
07:30Yeah, I think trading children for judges, we'll see which is the better scenario.
07:39So today I'm doing a Parmigiano risotto with short rib braised in a pressure cooker with dandelion and burdock, which
07:48is one of my childhood favourites.
07:49Mine too. See, dandelion and burdock to me is caravan holidays.
07:53Yeah, absolutely, yeah.
07:57What's very difficult about a pressure cooker is that you don't really know what's going on in your pot until
08:01you open it.
08:02So there's a gamble on will the meat be actually tender enough to serve.
08:08I love that Michael is taking this sweet drink, dandelion and burdock, and braising ribs in it.
08:15But on a Parmesan risotto, will that work?
08:20Guys, loving the smells in the kitchen, but you've only got 40 minutes left.
08:28Originally from Massachusetts, humanist wedding celebrant Amy spent 20 years as a US diplomat living and working in the Middle
08:36East and Africa.
08:38When you live somewhere, you need to understand the culture and a huge part of that is diving into the
08:45food.
08:46So my dish is a pistachio Persian love cake with Persian rose water and saffron ice cream.
08:55My first assignment was in Turkey and I worked with Iranians and Persian food is spectacular.
09:03And so I sort of thought that would be a nice place to start.
09:06What makes a Persian love cake?
09:09Almost like a glorified cookie, I guess.
09:12But it's lovely and moist and flavoursome, I think.
09:16I just felt myself drool.
09:21Amy's got some really bold flavours in her pistachio cake.
09:25I love green cardamom, but if you use too much of it, it's really quite dominant.
09:30She's got mahleb powder going in there.
09:33Mahleb is like a ground seed and it's got a lovely aromatic smell, but it's got quite a bitter flavour.
09:40So a little bit goes a long way.
09:43She's putting saffron and rose water in her ice cream.
09:48Rose water divides the crowd.
09:51It needs a deft hand when you're adding it to a meal.
09:56OK.
09:58Over his 20-year career, music producer Jim has worked with artists including Donny Osmond and spice girl Jerry Halliwell
10:06Horner.
10:06Cooking is my wind down basically.
10:09I can do a long, long day in a studio and I come back and I just think nothing of
10:13spending like a couple of hours in the kitchen.
10:16Jim, what's your signature dish?
10:18I'm going to do some pan-seared Iberico pork with a nice little manchego croquette and some romesco sauce.
10:25This is my wife's favourite dish.
10:27Any time that we don't know what's for dinner, she goes, oh, can we have romesco sauce?
10:32And she is the one that pushed me to apply, so it's a bit of a tribute to her today.
10:36What's her name?
10:37Esther.
10:37This is all Esther's fault.
10:40Absolutely, yeah, yeah, yeah.
10:45Iberico is a type of pork that has been fed a specific diet of acorns.
10:51So it's extremely tender, the marbling in it is excellent and you should serve it pink.
10:58Romesco sauce, smoky paprika, and tomatoes, onion, red pepper, and a lot of chopped almonds.
11:05When you blitz them together, you make a delicious, vibrant, piquant sauce.
11:11Romesco is on the thick side of sauces.
11:14I don't want it loose and thin and runny.
11:17OK, we're in the closing stages now, that's ten minutes left.
11:27Come on, pork.
11:32I still feel chilled, but I do recognise the fact that I'm a little bit behind time.
11:40Love cake is out, just letting it cool a bit.
11:44It's lovely, the love cake.
11:47OK, guys, you've only three minutes left.
11:50Oh, my lord.
11:54Come on.
11:58So that's 60 seconds.
12:06Shake your hands.
12:11All right, that's it.
12:13Step away from your benches, it's time to serve your food.
12:20Maddy, come on up.
12:23First up is tattoo artist Maddy, whose signature dish is scallop and prawn tagliatelle,
12:30in an Alfredo cream butter and Parmesan sauce, with a breadcrumb and herb topping.
12:41Your pasta is lovely and thin, and it's perfectly cooked.
12:47Your prawns and your scallops are just cooked.
12:50You've managed to keep your sauce light and not claggy.
12:54Really, really delicious.
12:57The thing I love most about this is your commitment to garlic in the Alfredo sauce.
13:04The garlic is soft, yielding, it's not bitter.
13:08I really like this.
13:10Wow, thanks, guys.
13:13I'm in shock.
13:14I did not expect that kind of compliments from people I admire so much.
13:19That was so good.
13:20That's wild.
13:22For his signature dish, stay-at-home dad Michael is serving beef short rib,
13:28fast braised in dandelion and burdock, with Parmesan risotto and fried sweet potato strings.
13:36Michael, what I'm gathering about dinner at your house is that no-one leaves hungry.
13:41We like big portions in our house.
13:48I think you've timed the short rib really well.
13:52It's gelatinous and soft when you eat it.
13:55But dandelion and burdock, a sweet, herbal, nostalgic taste,
14:01I think if that's what the dish is promising, it needs to deliver it.
14:05The risotto is just cooked and it's still wet, which is excellent.
14:11The sweet potato, I was like, shh, what's the point of that?
14:14And then I ate it and I went, oh, it's quite delicious with the beef.
14:18So I think you have given us a plate of skill, just needs a little refinement.
14:27I'm not good at scaling down, but there's more in the pan.
14:32The presentation is not one of my strong points.
14:35Music producer Jim's dish is pan-roasted Iberico pork with romesco sauce,
14:42a manchego cheese croquette, charred fennel, pork jus and a chive oil.
14:52Jim, your Iberico pork, it is amazing.
14:57It's so tender.
14:59You're croquette, crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside.
15:02An absolute perfect example of somebody who has passion and skills.
15:09Well done, Jim. Wow, thank you very much.
15:11You said your wife asks for this, romesco.
15:15I can tell why. Smoky paprika, toasted almonds, fabulous.
15:22Thank you very much. Well done.
15:25I'm super proud. I cannot wait to tell my wife because that's one of her favourite things that I cook.
15:30So, you know, she's obviously got a good palate.
15:33Flight operations controller Luca is serving Moroccan spiced risotto with mint and lemon pesto on beetroot sauce with a courgette
15:44and almond crumble and diced beetroot.
15:51I think that your risotto has got good structure. The cinnamon and the heat of the ras el hanout is
16:00lovely, but I think that the lemon and mint pesto was always going to be a bully on this plate.
16:08It's making me lose all the other great flavours.
16:12The spices perhaps could have been cooked out a little bit more. The beetroot on top, there isn't a huge
16:17flavour coming off that.
16:19All in all, I think you've given us visually a stunning dish, but it just needs a few little tweaks.
16:27A lot of mixed feelings, but there's no over yet. So let's see what happens. Let's enjoy the journey.
16:38Advertising executive Maria has made a baked doughnut topped with caramelised pineapple spiced with scotch bonnet, tamarind and lime on
16:48ginger custard with a pistachio crumb.
16:56So this baked doughnut just feels a bit heavy. It's a little bit dry, but your pineapple has got loads
17:03of flavour in it. There's a kick from the scotch bonnet.
17:05The custard's really, really delicious. There's nice, elegant notes of ginger off it.
17:10The main event here is perhaps letting it down. This would definitely have benefited from having a big, fat, deep
17:22-fried doughnut.
17:26Most people like fried doughnuts, so it was a bit of a gamble going for baked, which didn't seem to
17:31pay off.
17:33Finally, retired US diplomat Amy has made a pistachio and cardamom Persian love cake.
17:40With pomegranate gel, candied pistachios, a rosewater and saffron ice cream and pomegranate caramel sauce.
17:54I think the cake is so rich in cardamom. I love the denseness of it. I love the moistness of
18:02it.
18:03For me, I think there's too much mahlep in that cake. There is a tang off it that is too
18:09bitter.
18:10OK.
18:12Your ice cream is absolutely silky smooth, but there is too much rosewater in it, and it tastes quite soapy.
18:21It didn't go great, but I'm still here. You know, there's another shot.
18:29Thank you so much. One thing's for sure, we know you all a little bit better now.
18:37We've chosen our two favourite dishes. The first apron goes to... Jim.
18:50Well done, Jim.
18:52The second apron goes to... Maddy.
19:02Super pasta skills. Come up and collect your aprons.
19:10Well done. Absolutely great round.
19:13Thank you so much. Thank you.
19:19I feel elated. I can't believe it. I'm going to wear it to bed tonight.
19:26I'm so happy. I'm so happy with my apron.
19:29But also, the FOMO part of me is so curious about what they're going to do, so...
19:33Can't wait for the gossip.
19:36Now, guys, don't be disappointed.
19:39There's two more aprons still up for grabs.
19:44This is the classic recipe test.
19:48In front of you, you have all of the ingredients to make us.
19:53Chicken breast, green beans, creamy mash, and a red wine sauce.
19:59Sounds delicious.
20:01You do have a recipe.
20:04It doesn't have the measurements or the timings.
20:09So you'll have to rely on your instincts.
20:14You have 45 minutes.
20:17Remember, two of you will be going home today.
20:22Start cooking.
20:27Even though it's a free recipe, I'm happy we have one.
20:32It's kind of a fancy Friday night dinner.
20:35They should be able to handle it.
20:37Pleasantly pleased to see some chicken.
20:40I don't mind how they cook their chicken breast.
20:43I just want it to be juicy.
20:46I generally don't cook meat.
20:49This is a challenge.
20:52Sauce making.
20:53We really want that red wine sauce to have depth of flavour and a beautiful shine.
21:00Everybody makes mash, but not everybody makes good mash.
21:04What we're looking for is a cook who elevates this.
21:09Every element becoming something magical.
21:12Amy, we gave you half a chicken.
21:15How did that feel?
21:16It's a little scary.
21:17I eat meat, but my partner is vegetarian, so that's what I cook.
21:23You've been a diplomat.
21:24Surely that means you can handle pressure.
21:27You know, what's the worst that can happen?
21:29Amy, you're unflappable.
21:33Amy did a great job deboning her chicken.
21:36She has got the chicken in early enough so that it will be cooked.
21:40Amy caramelised off her chicken bones for her sauce.
21:44She's got lardons, mushrooms, shallots, garlic.
21:48So, I'm really hoping that we're going to get a lot of flavour.
21:53I think it's good if I can.
21:58Seems easy peasy.
22:00Getting it right, I think, is going to be the real challenge.
22:03I'm going to pan that right on the skin, and then I'm going to finish it cooking in the chicken
22:07stock to give a bit of juiciness.
22:09Are you a mashed potato fan?
22:11Yeah, I like mashed potatoes.
22:13Mashed potato is where so many of these cooks come across.
22:18A little bit of milk, a little bit of cream.
22:21We want silky smooth, buttery, creamy mashed potato.
22:24I think my mash is a bit too liquid, so I have to use some thickening agent like flour.
22:32Luca has added far too much milk to his mash.
22:36And as a result, it has turned into a potato soup.
22:40In a desperate effort to fix it, he's added flour.
22:45I think it's just gone from bad to worse there.
22:48Most fuss for their thoughts.
22:50OK, you've got 25 minutes left.
22:55Oh, my Lord.
22:57I did notice that Maria was the first to get her chicken on cooking, and she's already had it resting.
23:04So the timing is crucial.
23:06I don't want any dry chicken, and I certainly don't want any raw chicken.
23:10Is that help?
23:12So your chicken's cooked?
23:14So I've seared it on both sides.
23:16I wanted some of the juices to go into the sauce.
23:20So I'm going to finish it off.
23:21It's all going to meet back together again.
23:24So Maria has decided to cook the vegetables for the sauce and the actual liquid of the sauce separately.
23:30Now, I understand that might be good for speeding it up, but she's likely to miss out on the layered
23:35flavours you get when you actually cook them together.
23:3915 minutes to go!
23:43Chicken's done and can just sit and rest.
23:46Mash is just a few minutes away, and the sauce is just saucing.
23:51And how do I make this look pretty is the question.
23:54So the first dish, we can both admit, lacked a little bit of refinement. Are we going to improve on
24:01that?
24:01Hopefully we're going to go for something a bit more polished.
24:04La-di-da is what we're looking for.
24:06Yes, la-di-da.
24:09Not too sure how to make this look fancy.
24:12I would expect Michael to be able to produce tasty plated food, but can he produce a beautiful plated food?
24:19I think that counts as fancier.
24:22Yeah.
24:23So we've got six minutes left.
24:25This is when food should really be moving towards your plate.
24:29This is make or break time.
24:36Beans have just gone on chicken. I'm just finishing off in the sauce.
24:40I'm hoping it's okay.
24:45You have about 60 seconds. We're going to have to do this very quickly.
24:50And then that can catch the sauce.
24:56That's it. Time's up. Stand back from your benches.
25:00Everybody happy?
25:01No.
25:04I don't think the chicken's cooked enough.
25:09Bring up your dishes.
25:19What we asked you to cook was chicken breast with creamy mashed potato, green beans and a red wine sauce.
25:28Maria, you're up first.
25:33Maria, this chicken, we've got a bit of a problem here in that it is undercooked.
25:39Kind of.
25:40Sorry.
25:47It's hard to taste the mash because the chicken is sitting on top, so I've only had a little bit
25:51of the mash.
25:52It just needed a bit more butter and a bit more seasoning.
25:55Your sauce is nice, but it's missing some layers of flavour.
25:59I think that you suffered from a bit of panic.
26:03You completely underjudged the chicken.
26:09Oh, my gosh.
26:10I don't think it could have gone any worse, to be honest.
26:15Right. Michael, you're up next.
26:20We asked you for more refinement in this course.
26:23Did that refinement come in the bringing of the fork through the potato?
26:35Michael, I think your chicken is nicely cooked, still moist.
26:40There's a good colour on it.
26:42I think your sauce is great.
26:43Your potato is smooth and creamy.
26:46You have the potential to do really great food, but you need to refine your presentation.
26:55What I put on the plate, I'd be more than happy to serve to family and friends.
26:59But it needs to go up an extra level.
27:04Amy, the moment of truth.
27:12Your chicken is perfectly cooked, so it's not dry.
27:16Your mash is buttery and lovely.
27:19You absolutely have come back fighting.
27:22The comeback queen, I would say.
27:25I like the way that you've taken the pan juices and the wine and the vegetables and made a sauce
27:33that feels like it's somebody standing in a restaurant that's done it for five or six years.
27:40I have no faults with this.
27:43I think I've redeemed myself in this round.
27:46I am thrilled with those comments.
27:49Luca.
27:53I've never seen anybody pour potatoes onto a plate like custard before.
28:04So Luca, what we have now is not mash.
28:09All I can taste is like raw flour.
28:11Your sauce is quite salty, but your chicken is juicy-loosey.
28:18This is a great piece of chicken.
28:20Thanks.
28:21Beautifully brown, moist in the middle.
28:24There are big issues with other parts of this plate there.
28:31Big mistakes.
28:33Flour and mashed potato.
28:36Probably going to be banned from the UK for this.
28:39But I heard about the chicken.
28:44Anna, that was difficult to watch at times.
28:47Some things happened there that I watched through my fingers.
28:51I don't think they're ever going to eat chicken again.
28:53Could you imagine my chicken over your mash?
28:55It would have fully ended them.
28:57There was a classic understated elegance about Amy's cooking that really impressed me.
29:03Amy cooked the chicken nicely.
29:06She made a delicious sauce.
29:08Amy gets an apron.
29:11Michael mightn't have the finesse of presentation yet, but I think he definitely has a good command for flavour.
29:18His chicken was perfectly moist.
29:21He clearly cares about his food.
29:24Who would ever add flour to a runny mash?
29:28I would have said nobody, but now I can say Luca.
29:32His one saving grace was that his chicken was beautifully cooked.
29:37Maria's chicken was uncooked to a level that we really couldn't get round it.
29:43Master Chef is like a magnifying glass, and you can't hide raw chicken.
29:50I mean, it would be great to stay in the competition, but I think I'd feel pretty bad to go
29:55through on raw chicken.
29:58I think I've done a good job with what I presented, and I think I've got a decent chance. I'm
30:04in the running.
30:05I just want one more chance to show what I can do.
30:08One more chance to show my passion for cooking.
30:19Thank you so much for all of your hard work that you put into today.
30:25But you can see there's only two aprons left.
30:30Our first apron goes to...
30:34Amy.
30:37Come back Queen.
30:40And our second apron goes to...
30:47Michael.
30:49Well done Michael.
30:54Luca.
30:55Luca.
30:56Thank you for your effort.
30:57But you are leaving us.
30:58OK.
31:03I mean, it's been a day.
31:05It's been a rollercoaster.
31:07Then the second round, yeah, it just all went a bit piton.
31:13A little bit disappointed, but I made some unforgivable mistakes.
31:18Yeah, that's part of life.
31:21And then tomorrow is a brand new day.
31:25Amy.
31:27Michael.
31:29Congratulations.
31:30Come take your aprons.
31:32Thank you so much.
31:34You live to fight another day.
31:37Well done.
31:37Here we go.
31:44It's turned around, didn't it?
31:46I think I'm getting a t-shirt made with the Comeback Queen on it,
31:49because I love that.
31:52I don't think it's sunken yet.
31:54I'm just really glad I wasn't completely petrified and useless.
31:59It's fantastic.
32:16If you thought the other challenges were hard, well, buckle up.
32:20It's about to get a lot harder.
32:24There are four of you here now,
32:27but only three of you can go through to the quarter-final.
32:31Today we've invited three incredibly discerning guests to help us judge.
32:39Former finalist, Alexina Anatoly,
32:43and two previous winners, Eddie Scott and Jane Devonshire.
32:50Two courses, four plates of each, one hour, 15 minutes.
32:58Let's go.
33:03Pans, pans, pans.
33:08Yeah, I'm really excited to be cooking this.
33:10The starter especially, it's a bit of a weird one,
33:12so I'm hoping it all comes together.
33:15So my starter is pan-seared scallops with some cinnamon
33:20and some black pudding foam.
33:24It's inspired by two authors that I love.
33:26H.P. Lovecraft, who writes really great Gothic horror stories.
33:29There's a passage that's stuck with me where Lovecraft's describing
33:33unknown horrors of the deep, inky and unguent and thick.
33:38So that's where the black pudding foam came from.
33:41The other one is Dune by Frank Herbert,
33:44where the spice in that is said to taste like cinnamon.
33:48Cinnamon on hot cross buns, cinnamon on porridge.
33:51I love it.
33:53Cinnamon on scallops.
33:57I'm a little concerned about the black pudding foam.
34:01There is cinnamon, squid ink,
34:04Worcester sauce, black pudding, cranberry, cream.
34:09Have we got a genius or have we got a nutty professor?
34:13So the main dish is a bit of a twist on a classic.
34:17It's a Diane sauce, but it's with venison loin instead of steak,
34:20and some rosemary potatoes and some sprouts done with cranberry.
34:25But I'm going to try and make it look good.
34:28Diane sauce is a punchy, robust flavoured sauce with garlic, shallots,
34:35a bit of brandy in there, mustard, Worcestershire sauce.
34:40And it complements beef steak so well.
34:43Will it complement venison? I don't know.
34:52Jim, how are you feeling?
34:54I'm cooking the food that I grew up tasting,
34:57so hopefully it'll be all right.
34:59You grew up in Yorkshire?
35:00I'm half Yorkshire, very proud.
35:03Half Sri Lankan, very proud as well.
35:04All my summers were spent in Sri Lanka playing cricket with cousins
35:07and eating mangoes fresh from the tree.
35:09So my starter is a panseared scallop with a little mango relish
35:13and a little tamarind sauce.
35:15And then my main is my grandma's fish curry with some fragrant rice,
35:20a little coconut sambal.
35:22My grandma's passed the love down to me,
35:24and I'm hopefully going to pass that to you today.
35:29Jim's starter.
35:31He's serving these scallops with the mango relish and a tamarind sauce.
35:35A tamarind sauce, however, has dates in it, so that could be sweet too.
35:41If he doesn't balance that sweet and sour,
35:43we're just getting scallops with sweet.
35:49Sri Lankan curries are complex,
35:52and Jim's bringing 18 different spices to this.
35:58I think mug fish was a very clever fish to choose.
36:02It goes so well in a curry because it's more meaty.
36:06You can cook it for longer, resulting in the flavour being absorbed by the fish.
36:13Oh, I don't want to check the time.
36:16Time management, as a general rule, is something I struggle with in life, I think.
36:20Obviously, an hour and 15 minutes to get out two courses is actually insanity.
36:28Maddy's first course.
36:30Duck breast, confit du bonbon,
36:34blackberry jus, star anise carrots.
36:37I love the sound of this.
36:39So, what's the inspiration behind the dish?
36:43It's kind of the first, like, big girl dish that I cooked
36:46for someone where I felt like I was being a bit fancy.
36:50Duck breast is not a meat that benefits from airing on rare.
36:55Too much, and it's tough.
36:58Under, and it feels like it should be quacking.
37:01A bonbon has to have a bread-grunt crutch.
37:06And a lovely succulent inside.
37:09For dessert, I'm doing a lavender and lemon posse with, like, a little buttery shortbread biscuit.
37:16I didn't like lemon desserts at all.
37:18And then, when I was pregnant with my son, I started intensely craving lemon desserts.
37:24So, I still get that same, like, satisfaction of eating a lemony dessert like I'm satisfying a craving.
37:32There's a balancing act with a good posset.
37:34You want it sweet and tart at the same time.
37:38The addition of lavender is quite good, but you need to have a very precise and delicate touch with that.
37:47My menu today, I feel like it's got a really nice combination of exotic and homey.
37:53And so, I'm hoping that a judge is fine that that all works well together.
37:58First, I'm doing poached salmon with passion fruit sauce on a parsnip puree.
38:05Where did you first try passion fruit and fish together?
38:08My husband and I went to Peru, and I saw it on the menu in a number of places, and
38:13I thought it was amazing.
38:15Passion fruits, parsnip, salmon.
38:17I can't wait to taste this.
38:20I don't know if I believe you, though, Grace.
38:24I'm a little bit worried about poaching her salmon in passion fruit and serving it with a passion fruit sauce.
38:31If the passion fruit is supposed to replace lemon, there's only so much lemon you could have on a dish.
38:37So, she needs to be very cautious with that passion fruit.
38:42My second course is a chocolate fondant with a peanut butter center and strawberry cream.
38:49It was inspired by my childhood, really, because I was a fan of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, as most
38:56American kids are.
38:58It takes a brave soul to do a chocolate fondant in the MasterChef kitchen.
39:03An extra minute or two in the oven, and it's just chocolate sponge.
39:13It's really difficult for the contestants this round, because they want to impress.
39:17They get caught up in this fine dining game, where they think they have to have gels, purees, foams, and
39:22they lose sight of the fact that they just have to cook a plate of food, which is truly delicious.
39:26I think the main thing is time management. It's the first time you're cooking multiple dishes, and they've all got
39:33to be identical, and you're really showing off your cooking skills.
39:37This was actually one of my favorite rounds.
39:39It's really important that you just focus on delivering a great flavor, clean, elegant presentation, and then you'll be golden.
39:47Cheers, guys. Cheers.
39:49Cheers.
39:52So these are our cinnamon scallops? Yeah.
39:54And seasoning?
39:56I'm counting on the cinnamon to do most of the heavy lifting.
40:00So I'm a little bit nervous of cinnamon and scallops.
40:03That's a combination I've not tried before.
40:05I always think scallops have a sweetness to them, so I'm wondering if there's going to be enough balance.
40:11Is this our black pudding foam?
40:13That is, yes.
40:14Is it supposed to be that dense?
40:16Not quite. It's meant to be a bit foamier.
40:19So the black pudding foam, how much black pudding flavor are we going to get from that?
40:24Michael, have you made an octopus?
40:26So there's a very famous monster in Lovecraft law called Cthulhu, and lives very deep at the bottom of the
40:30ocean, and he's very scary.
40:32Let's hope it doesn't scare them too much next door, right? Hopefully.
40:36Right, come on, Michael. Time to serve.
40:41Cthulhu looks a little bit like me if I've come in after a night out and just rubbed my eyes.
40:47Hi, Michael.
40:48Hi, hello.
40:49I think this one's for you.
40:50Thank you, Michael.
40:53So today I've cooked for you some pansier scallops with cinnamon, a black pudding foam, and some pickled radishes.
41:03Hope you enjoy.
41:05Thank you. Thank you.
41:06Thank you, Michael.
41:07This is an interesting presentation, isn't it? It's almost like an octopus or something.
41:15The cooking of the scallop is fine.
41:18That shows ability.
41:19My biggest problem with this dish is that foam.
41:22The black pudding hasn't broken down, so you've still got the goodness of the black pudding going through it.
41:28These very strong kind of pudding flavours, squid ink, black pudding, cinnamon, they're not all balancing and they're overpowering that
41:35scallop.
41:35It's such a classic combination of the scallop with black pudding. He should have just kept it a bit more
41:41simple.
41:43Does cinnamon go with scallops? No.
41:47The black pudding foam, it's just sludgy and it's dominating any finesse from a scallop.
41:55You've got 15 minutes left on your main course. What's left to do?
41:59Pan sauce, venison check.
42:02I like a steak Diane. I've never had a venison Diane.
42:06You need to get that crust on a venison because it's got no fat in it and without the crust
42:11it isn't a very nice meat to eat.
42:13You need that to add the flavour.
42:15That looks nice.
42:17This is my rosemary potato, which usually I would do really big chunks, but I wanted to try and layer
42:22it in.
42:24Now it's our sprouts.
42:26Venison traditionally is done with a kind of game sauce.
42:29The mustard Diane sauce with the brandy and venison might not be a great match.
42:35Happy?
42:36I think so, yes.
42:39Hiya. Hello again.
42:43So today I've prepared for your main some venison steak Diane with rosemary potatoes and some cranberry sprouts. Enjoy.
42:52Thank you very much.
42:58The venison has been cooked really, really nicely, but I've run out of potatoes after a few bites of my
43:04venison.
43:04I was crying out for a big bowl of spuds.
43:06I actually really enjoyed the flavours in this dish.
43:09The sauce could be a little more glossy, but it tastes nice.
43:13I'd happily finish the whole lot.
43:15The brussel sprouts were delicious. I ate them all.
43:17I think this was a really great improvement on the first dish, so I'm really happy for Michael.
43:24I think of venison spawn. I really like the sprouts. I think that's delicious.
43:30And one thing's for sure, he's really trying to show us some refinement with that presentation.
43:37I'm feeling conflicted. I think some things went well.
43:40Other things, I think if I would have given myself a bit more time, I could have done better.
43:47Right, Jim. 15 minutes until your first course needs to be served. How are you looking?
43:51I've got to cook the scallops. I've got to finish the mango salsa. The tamarind sauce is done, so...
43:56You've got to kick into fifth gear now, Jim. Yeah, I will.
43:59This dish will live and die on how Jim cooks the scallop.
44:02It's got to be slightly under inside and quite a good crust and char around the outside.
44:08Mango, herb and chilli relish. Really spicy and tangy with the tamarind, which should be sharp but well balanced.
44:17Are you happy with your scallops?
44:19Could have got a bit more caramelisation, I think. I think we'll be okay.
44:23It's the moment of truth, Jim. Yeah.
44:24Let's do it, let's do it.
44:27Hi, Jim. Hello.
44:30For his first course, Jim is serving pan-seared scallops with mango relish and a tamarind and date sauce.
44:41The scallop is translucent in the middle. It's quite lovely, but I think it needs a more aggressive sear on
44:46it.
44:46The tamarind chutney and the mango relish have quite a lot of chilli and fresh flavours, but it's just that
44:53they completely overtake the scallop.
44:55There's some promising flavours here, but I think it needs a bit more balance.
45:00The mango relish is delicious and a nicely roasted scallop. The tamarind sauce for me is too sweet.
45:08Okay, Jim. Time to get that curry going.
45:12The Sri Lankan fish curry. That is the food of dreams. I'm really looking forward to this.
45:18Monk fish really stands up well to spice, but you don't want to overcook it because it can quickly become
45:24a bit dry.
45:25You brought 18 spices. Have you got them all in?
45:28Yeah, pretty much. I think the sauces balance quite nicely.
45:33Okay.
45:34Ready to go? I think we're ready to go, yeah.
45:36Off you go.
45:39Hi, Jim. Hello again. Hi.
45:41Oh, wow, the smell is good.
45:43For your main course today, I've cooked you my Archie, which is the Sri Lankan word for grandma.
45:48My Archie's fish curry with fragrant rice and a little coconut sambal.
45:52Thank you. Thank you so much.
45:57I hope the guest judges feel the love that I felt from my grandma through these dishes.
46:02I'm hoping she'll be proud. I'm hoping she sends me some luck.
46:07Hats off to Jim. I love this.
46:09I think the depth of flavour he's got in that curry in a short space of time is impressive.
46:14The monkfish is well cooked. The rice is fragrant, buttery.
46:19And the sambal gives you that little bit of kind of coconutty chilli hit.
46:24The flavours are delicious. This is really hitting the spot.
46:27I think this monkfish is cooked beautifully and it's soaking up that sauce.
46:32It's really Moorish.
46:34This is a good example of a Sri Lankan curry.
46:38Maddie, we've got a flood happening here.
46:41It's not my first of the day.
46:42We've got 15 minutes left on your main course.
46:47Ooh.
46:48There is a lot on this plate. Maddie has set herself a tall task and I'm nervous for her.
46:54The whole joy of a duck breast is pink perfect meat and crispy duck skin.
46:59So why did you decide to sear your duck on a tray instead of a frying pan?
47:04I did not decide to, but it did happen.
47:07Oh, I think I left the heat on.
47:10Comfy duck look bonbon. I don't want it fatty. It needs to be lovely and crisp.
47:14Pomp puree, how much batter can we get in there, please?
47:19Pleased with that?
47:20Honestly, it's rarer than I wanted it, but I'm happy to be putting something on a plate right now.
47:28So we're over time, but we're going to get some sauce into jugs.
47:31I'm so sorry.
47:32And now I pray.
47:36Hi, Maddie.
47:38Maddie's first course is pan-seared duck breast with pomme puree, a comfy duck leg bonbon, star anise glazed carrots
47:48and a blackberry and port jus.
47:53I find my duck is lovely and pink and the meat is juicy, but the bonbon, it's a shame that
47:59it's not crispy.
48:01The glazed carrots are gorgeous. They've got a delicate hint of the star anise, but the sauce needs way more
48:07depth of flavour and the mash needs to be a little bit smoother.
48:09I think it's all very rushed. It's just about detail and continually tasting.
48:15I think the duck is cooked perfectly, but mashed potato needs more butter, it needs to be smoother.
48:21This feels like a dish where time got away from her.
48:26OK, biscuits, please happen.
48:29Lemon and lavender posset.
48:30The problem with using lavender is it can veer into Nanny's nickel drawer very quickly in that overpowering, soapy way.
48:37If she balances it, the two flavours work beautifully.
48:40The buttery shortbread biscuit, you want it to snap, you want it to melt in your mouth.
48:45How long do you think the biscuits need?
48:48Oh, longer than I have.
48:50OK, so that's time up.
48:53The question is, do you serve a raw shortbread or not?
48:57I feel it would be better without.
48:59Right.
49:02And then there's leg back and there's leg back.
49:04And Maddy's horizontal.
49:09So I've served you a lavender and lemon posset without shortbread biscuit. Enjoy.
49:16Thank you so much.
49:18Yeah.
49:22It's set beautifully.
49:23It's got a lovely silky texture that's very well executed.
49:28I'm not getting any lavender in that, which I'm not sure I'm upset about.
49:32I can taste the lemon, but we are missing the shortbread biscuit.
49:36This is a silky smooth, lemony sweet posset.
49:42But the lavender is, it's barely there.
49:45Can't get away from the fact that it needs shortbread.
49:50I don't know if anything went to plan, but I'm pleased that I actually got eight plates of food out.
50:00So, Amy, poached salmon in passion fruit sauce with a parsnip puree.
50:05Completely new flavour combination for me.
50:08Passion fruit is very sharp and can be overpowering.
50:12There's nothing on the plates. You've got one minute to go.
50:15Not a problem.
50:17It's an interesting choice to also go for one of the sweetest vegetables, parsnip puree.
50:21I feel nervous, but I'm hoping Amy's going to surprise us.
50:25Now, what's next?
50:26Just the sauce.
50:28You're out of time.
50:29Good, I'm finished.
50:32I just can't imagine how passion fruit...
50:36You don't have to imagine. It's going to be in your mouth soon.
50:40I've cooked for you a poached salmon with passion fruit sauce on a parsnip puree with some parsnip crisps.
50:49A little unusual, but I hope you enjoy it.
50:52Thank you, Amy. Thank you very much.
50:57It's not that the passion fruit sauce isn't nice, and the salmon's quite nice, but when you eat them together,
51:03it was like a flavour profile I'd never experienced before.
51:07And I don't think I would like to repeat it.
51:10That parsnip puree is really thick and claggy. I'm not enjoying eating it.
51:16And that doesn't blend with the salmon, which doesn't blend with the passion fruit, and unfortunately, this is just lacking
51:23any kind of balance.
51:24The salmon is really nicely cooked, but the passion fruit sauce is too strong.
51:30I applaud Amy for thinking outside the box, but these things don't go together.
51:38So I'm just going to make some strawberry cream, and I'm just waiting for my fondants to cook.
51:42For dessert, Amy is making a chocolate fondant with a peanut butter center and strawberry cream.
51:48I think there's like a play on peanut butter and jelly going on.
51:52Hopefully, this chocolate fondant's going to be oozing in the middle and delicious.
51:57We have one minute left to get these babies out of the tin.
52:00Oh, it's hard with you guys watching so closely.
52:03Oh, it's all right.
52:05Three out of four, no disasters yet. Let's go.
52:11I'll just be quiet.
52:13There we go.
52:15Sprinkle of the strawberry powder.
52:18Happy?
52:19Not unhappy.
52:20What more can we ask for?
52:23Alrighty, then.
52:26For her dessert, Amy is serving a chocolate fondant with peanut butter filling, strawberry cream and fresh strawberries.
52:36She's nailed as an oozy center there.
52:39It's peanut butter.
52:42So it's quite playful and reminiscent of sort of almost childhood like treats.
52:48But the peanut butter is very cloying and claggy.
52:51And then that's in a quite dry chocolate sponge.
52:55Technically, it's got a molten middle and it looks nice.
52:58But I think the star of the show should taste of chocolate and peanut and I don't think the flavor's
53:04there enough.
53:04For me, the fundamental problem with this is that the chocolate and the strawberry combination and peanut butter, it clashes.
53:13The lovely, hot, oozy peanut butter center is excellent.
53:18But for me, that strawberry cream doesn't go with it.
53:22They just clash with each other.
53:25With this challenge, I took some risks.
53:28I'm satisfied with what I did.
53:30I had a goal.
53:31I achieved it.
53:32So, I'm happy.
53:38That was a very challenging ground.
53:41I did eat some good things there.
53:43There were some highs.
53:45But there were some lows.
53:46Yeah.
53:48The dining room had a cook of the day.
53:50And that was Jim.
53:52And I think we agree.
53:53I thought the mango and yogurt relish was delicious with the scallops.
53:58And Jim's monkfish curry was probably the best thing I ate today.
54:01It had lots of layers of flavor and lots of complexity.
54:04So, Jim bags himself a quarter-final place.
54:09I will never forget Michael's plating of those scallops.
54:14He served as a sea monster.
54:16For me, the cinnamon was too strong on the scallops.
54:19That black pudding foam was not nice.
54:23But you can't deny his venison was really rather good.
54:27It showed us a lot of skill.
54:29There was a lot of chaos at Maddie's bench today.
54:34She was in such a rush to get things done.
54:37She served her posset without a biscuit.
54:39Or really any garnish whatsoever.
54:41But I thought the duck was excellently cooked.
54:46Amy's flavor combinations can be a little bit out there.
54:51The passion fruit sauce did not match with the salmon.
54:55I liked the peanut butter and chocolate fondant.
54:58But for me, that strawberry cream was a clash of flavors.
55:05Now that I've been through all these three challenges, it gets more important.
55:11So, yeah, I'd love to keep going.
55:16Obviously, it would be fantastic if I got through to the next round.
55:19I've got a lot of stuff up here that I'd like to put on a plate.
55:23I love cooking and I love food more than anything.
55:25So, I would love a place in the quarter-final.
55:36Contestants, thank you for all of your efforts.
55:39But we always knew that there were only three quarter-final places on offer.
55:46And we have made our decision.
55:51So, the person who will be going home today is...
55:59Amy.
56:02You can be so proud of yourself that you cooked from your heart.
56:12It doesn't feel great to be going home, but I've had a great time.
56:17And I think that I will continue to push the envelope where flavors are concerned.
56:22And sometimes they won't work.
56:25And sometimes they will.
56:29Jim.
56:31Maddie.
56:32Michael.
56:33You're in the quarter-final.
56:36Congratulations.
56:38Well done, everyone.
56:41I cannot believe that I'm going to be a quarter-finalist.
56:45I'm so shocked.
56:46Wow.
56:47Now, I really want to prove that I am not completely chaotic.
56:53Lots of little things that I need to work on.
56:56And I'm glad to have an opportunity to try again.
57:00I'm loving the experience.
57:01I'm loving learning.
57:02I'm loving hearing the judges' thoughts.
57:04Come back stronger than ever, hopefully, in the quarter-final.
57:09Next time, it's the quarter-final.
57:13And Jim.
57:14Michael and Maddie.
57:16Slay me where I stand.
57:19Join Sabina.
57:20My legs are shaking.
57:22Janae and Rose Dib.
57:25You've showed tons of skill here.
57:27As they return to face two tough challenges and battle it out.
57:32For a place in knockout week.
57:34This is exactly what I was hoping for.
57:39David Brim.
57:39How is the name of our world?
57:52I don't have any idea.
57:52You've about the past to be in-cribe.
57:54I love you, too.
57:54I love you.
57:54I love you, too.
57:59I love you.
58:02I love you.
58:03I love you, too.
58:05You love you.
58:06How is the name of your world?
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