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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.
00:23Oh, 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 quarter-final.
00:47There's something quite Dracula about this dish.
00:49Ooh, I know.
00:51But only the best can earn their passport
00:54to the ultimate cookery showdown.
00:58The hundred guests are here.
01:01Keep going fast.
01:03Cheers.
01:04If this has been cooked by an amateur, we all need to watch out.
01:17It's the start of a new competition.
01:20We've got cooks raring to go.
01:23And we have got the hottest seats in town.
01:26I've been cooking for over two decades.
01:29And if there's one thing that I can spot, it's talent.
01:33I think this competition is going to be tough.
01:36I live and I dream for the MasterChef apron.
01:42I just love food.
01:44It's kind of a love letter to my friends and my family and my wife and my dog.
01:50I'm so excited to cook for Anna and Grace, but I'm kind of terrified.
02:06Welcome to the MasterChef kitchen.
02:08Our first contestants ready to cook something delicious.
02:13Grace and I really want to get to know who you are as cooks.
02:17Get to know how your culinary mind ticks.
02:20Your first challenge is simple.
02:22Cook us your signature dish.
02:24A plate of food that says loud and clear,
02:28this is why I'm here.
02:31At the end of the challenge, we will choose the two best dishes
02:35and those cooks will get a MasterChef apron.
02:38The rest of you will have to cook again for the final two aprons.
02:43One hour, 20 minutes. Let's go.
02:49Better get on with it.
02:51Not wrecking, but very excited to be here.
02:55The competition has started.
02:57Wow.
02:58The signature dish in a restaurant is the best dish in the house.
03:02I want to see these cooks do their best dishes from their houses.
03:07This is a real test of, is my food actually good or are my family just polite?
03:13Technology program manager Janae grew up in a tight-knit Caribbean family
03:18where a deep love of food was passed down through the bloodline.
03:22My grandma came here in the Windrush generation
03:24and she was a cook in NHS hospitals.
03:29I'm very much cooking from the heart today.
03:34You look comfortable in the MasterChef kitchen.
03:38I'm glad you think so.
03:40Janae, what is your signature dish?
03:42A Thai green curry fried chicken.
03:45I mean, I love Thai green curry anyway, but you're making with fried chicken.
03:50I mean, everything is better deep-fried.
03:53Thai green curry was one of the first dishes that I learnt to make.
03:57We have a family friend from Thailand.
03:59His name is Soup.
04:01We'd all crowd around and watch him cook.
04:03So, I've got to make Thai green curry.
04:07I'm excited about this dish.
04:09This is inventive.
04:12She's making her own Thai green curry paste.
04:15There is lime leaves in there, there's lemongrass in there,
04:18and then marinating her chicken before it goes in the fryer.
04:22Genius idea.
04:24I want that chicken crispy.
04:29Construction company director Brendan was influenced to cook
04:33after taking on a Saturday job at his local butcher's when he was young.
04:39Being in the MasterChef kitchen and cooking for the first time is daunting.
04:43There's no two ways about it.
04:45But I'm hoping I can turn nerves into enthusiasm and excitement
04:49and love up a good dish, hopefully.
04:54This is the sort of dish that I would cook for special occasions.
04:57I should be cooking it today at home because it is my anniversary day of my wife.
05:00Pan-fried chicken with Madeira sauce, a mashed potato,
05:04some roasted onions and some carrots and a bit of chicken skin.
05:08How many years have you been married?
05:10Over eight years.
05:11Congratulations.
05:12Thank you very much.
05:12Do you think it would be a good anniversary present
05:14if you came home with a MasterChef apron?
05:17Yeah, hopefully I can achieve that for her.
05:19Good luck.
05:19Thank you ever so much.
05:20Thank you ladies.
05:24There's some real core skills here.
05:27I walked past the bench at one point and the full chicken had a skin.
05:31I turned round and it had all gone.
05:33I set myself quite a task really, but hopefully there's enough time to get the dish out.
05:39Brandon has to be a bit careful about putting Madeira in a sauce.
05:42Vegetables bring sweetness.
05:43Madeira also brings sweetness.
05:46So if he gets that balance wrong, it could be too sickly sweet.
05:51Okay guys, twenty minutes gone.
05:54You got one hour remaining.
05:59Born to a Bangladeshi father and Pakistani mother, charity consultant, Sahbination, is passionate about the traditional South Asian flavours of
06:08her heritage.
06:11my signature dish is an achar sea bass with turmeric rice and spiced spinach and the yogurt
06:18curry sauce it's my take on this Bangladeshi fish curry which also is combined with the
06:25Pakistani influence of the achar sauce what makes it achar sea bass there's two spices
06:36there's fenugreek and nigella seeds which my mom used in her cooking pickle gives us this pickled
06:42flavor to the sauce so that's why it's achar I grew up eating this and it brings back familiar
06:48memories of my childhood sounds really interesting but all of her elements have spice in it on the
07:02fish I'm gonna be putting red chili powder paprika cumin and also a little bit of fenugreek she needs
07:10to really control how she adds those spices in or otherwise it's just going to be too much what
07:17worries me with Sabina's dish is that she's taking something that she's cooked for decades deconstructing
07:23it to make it fancy for the MasterChef kitchen IT teacher Matt from Bradford it almost looks like I
07:33know what I'm doing only fell in love with food when he went traveling in his 20s he now spends
07:41his time
07:41cooking for his wife and Ollie his nine-year-old border collie I love baking for my dog every year
07:49for his
07:49birthday I'll bake him a little cake and there is never any complaints from Oliver Collie so let's
07:55hope Grace and Anna is the same I love desserts every day I will have 90% dark chocolate and
08:05I love
08:05sesame so we've got a dark chocolate de lis with a miso caramel sauce tahini cream black sesame
08:13praline crumb this is pretty fancy pants yes you're into the the finer cuisine hmm I'm into
08:22everything I'm a new cook I didn't grow up cooking I didn't eat an egg until I was 25 this
08:32is a dessert
08:33for people that don't always choose the sweetest thing on the one year but then if he takes it too
08:39far into a mommy you've basically got a savory course it's a very very ambitious dish there's a
08:48lot of technique and timing here and there's also a lot of temperature control if the chocolate the least
08:54isn't set then I've had a bit of a shocker okay we're halfway this could be my kitchen from now
09:04on
09:0739 year old financial assistant and mum of two Sam has dreamt of entering the competition for over 15
09:14years I'm definitely a master chef super fan I think I've watched pretty much every series and
09:22I always think I can do this I want to have a go at this like just get me in
09:26that kitchen I'm gonna
09:28get this off my list before I turn 40 I'm making for you a fillet steak with triple cooked chips
09:40a
09:41parmesan lemon crumb and a peppercorn sauce since I was a kid I've always loved that like when we're on
09:46holiday I'd have my pepper steak and chips and that would be me for two weeks every night and then
09:51my
09:51mum sort of started recreating at home and that's like the family dish of like oh it's it is a
09:56treat
09:56night then we'll have the steak and pepper sauce we're big foodie family if we're cooking there's
10:00like 10 of us in the background and the dogs and the kids and that this is more stressful are
10:05you
10:05the best at making this family dish of course needs to be a beautifully cooked steak brown burnished on
10:15the outside a little bit bloody in the middle and I want a lovely buttery peppercorn sauce that means
10:22a business I want me still to be whole pepper corns in that sauce we all love steak and chips
10:31if you're
10:31gonna cook steak and chips in the master chef kitchen it has to be the best steak and chips you
10:36could ever
10:36produce I don't want to freak you out but you've got 20 minutes left Nepali-born rose dip credits his
10:50mum
10:50for teaching him how to cook the familiar flavors of his childhood 16 years after moving to the UK he
10:57now lives in North Shields with his partner and their sausage dog I feel like there isn't a lot of
11:06visibility around Nepali's food so I'm really excited to show my heritage to the judges but also slightly
11:12nervous about what they might think I love coming to somebody's bench and finding things I don't even
11:19recognize so the signature dish I'm making is a love from my hometown Dharan in Nepal and I'm making spicy
11:27aludum that my mom used to cook all the time which is potato with human nigella seeds and pork belly
11:33with
11:34cumin and coriander then I'm making dal where I will be adding the Himalayan chives which is the Jimbo
11:40that you're holding so Nepalese flavors yes what brought your family here so my dad was a Gurkha so
11:47he served the Queen and I moved here when I was 17 that pork laden with all of his own
11:56spices it needs
11:58to be soft and yielding it can't be overdone I always thought dal was lentil based this is black
12:06eyed beans I think it's all right I just need to elevate it a little bit I cannot wait to
12:13taste this
12:14dish we've got three and a half minutes left oh yes get in there
12:3090 seconds to go we really should have things on plates
12:38jittles cook lovely yeah so really happy with that
12:47moment of truth
12:50he didn't wrap
13:03okay so that's it time's up did we enjoy that yeah yes I think so we did it
13:11Brendan come on up
13:16construction company director Brendan's signature dish is pan fried chicken breast with buttery mash
13:24roasted onion and carrots crispy chicken skin mushroom and black garlic puree topped with crispy black
13:31pudding and a Madeira wine sauce your presentation I think is really fantastic
13:44your mash is it is beautiful full of butter your chicken is really beautifully cooked it's not dry
13:53but your sauce is too sweet that needed slightly less Madeira in there but I am impressed that you got
14:00all your
14:00elements done I think that's the best chicken skin I've ever tasted is it's so crisp so full of flavor
14:08it's your anniversary today can you tell your wife thank you from me thank you I think I set myself
14:16quite a
14:16tough challenge and the amount of work that I had to deliver but grace then said it was a fantastic
14:22chicken skin and that's good enough for me
14:27technology program manager Janae has cooked a play on the classic Thai green curry chicken thighs marinated in
14:34chili lime leaves and lemongrass deep fried on a coconut green curry sauce served with jasmine rice
14:49the Thai green curry flavors inside that fried chicken yeah it's just perfect skin is crispy getting your lime leaves
15:02your
15:02lemongrass your shrimp paste that is excellent I would eat this morning noon and night love the Thai green sauce
15:10it's silky
15:12spicy it's sweet in all the right places it's spicy and others impressive
15:20I could eat the whole lot I could eat all of that to have professionals critiquing your food is a
15:28foodie's dream
15:29I don't think I'll ever get over that
15:34highlighting Bangladeshi and Pakistani flavors charity consultant Sabina has cooked sea bass marinated in
15:41paprika cumin and fenugreek topped with crispy curry leaves and onions with masala spiced spinach on
15:49turmeric rice and an achar yogurt sauce flavored with tomato fenugreek and nigella seeds
16:03the yogurt sauce is outstanding it's tomatoey and sweet and playful but bang it means business and the
16:12spinach I love that kick of chili coming through I was a bit worried about spice being in everything
16:19and would they fight each other for attention no they don't but your fish it really honors fenugreek
16:27the skin isn't as crispy as I hoped but I liked the addition of the crispy onions and the curry
16:34leaves
16:34because it brought in the texture so well done
16:40I felt so emotional I've used more spices than I can count which is pretty much indicative of
16:47Bangladesh and Pakistan so I'm fully proud of what I achieved
16:57financial assistant Sam is serving her family favorite fillet steak on garlic and thyme mushrooms
17:04and buttery green beans with a parmesan and lemon crumb triple-cooked chips and a peppercorn sauce
17:21your beef has been nicely seared on the outside we've got a medium rare center your triple-cooked chips like
17:28a chunky
17:29chip it's got like a crunchy edge to it but a touch of seasoning and the whole dish would be
17:34elevated I
17:35like the sauce but you've taken the peppercorns out of it so it hasn't got that punch you're holding back
17:42with that
17:45I mean there's always room for improvement isn't there oh breathe again if I have to kick again then so
17:52be it
17:54digital portfolio manager rose dips nepali dish is spicy potato tomato and nigella seed alu dum on carrot pilau rice
18:04with cumin coriander and timor peppered pork belly and a black eye bean and jimbu chive dal
18:15the alu dum the nigella seed the tomato and the garlic mellows really well together when you eat them
18:22and it is a really unique dal I can absolutely taste the jimbu and that this is excellent well done
18:31thank you
18:31thank you so much I love the use of tomorrow and the pork belly it just gives it this sweet
18:39fizzing
18:42liveliness you've browned it beautifully but there is still there's a stickiness about it I love that
18:47you're bringing Nepalese food into this kitchen you need to pinch me for sure it's my mom's recipe so I'm
18:56really really chuffed I've done a good job and I think she'll be proud of me finally it's IT teacher
19:03Matt with his signature dessert a dark chocolate delice topped with tahini cream and a brown butter
19:10twill served with a black sesame and praline crumb fresh blackberries on blackberry gel and a miso caramel
19:24sauce I love the delice it's for real chocolate lovers it's got that rich kick and the sesame crumb
19:33is just the right amount of sesame and crunch and sweet and a little bit salty as well your vanilla
19:42and your tahini cream it's really yummy but you've obviously split it when you whipped it your miso
19:48caramel just a little heavy-handed with the miso slightly disappointed that I just split that cream
19:57right at the end but you know desserts are risk we just had six fantastic dishes I feel like I
20:07know you
20:07all better there was two dishes in particular that we thought really stood out well done Janae you have
20:16secured yourself a master chef apron we have one other apron to give away first if come and collect your
20:30apron
20:42well done enjoy putting those on I just want to hold this and not let go I'm so overwhelmed I'm
20:56so
20:56happy I could scream I could cry over the moon I really hope it's a start of a long journey
21:04in
21:05my chef but I'm also equally trying to soak up this moment and just take it all in right now
21:09yeah
21:15don't be disheartened there are still two aprons here on offer this is a classic recipe challenge
21:24we want you to cook one of my favorite brunch dishes an Irish potato cake with perfectly poached eggs smoked
21:32salmon wilted spinach and hollandaise you have all of the ingredients on your benches you also have a
21:40basic recipe but it's without timings and measurements so it's important that you use your cooks intuition to
21:47nail this recipe 45 minutes to get yourself an apron off you go the recipes shows the ingredients on there
21:59and a
22:00bit of methodology but there's a few blanks I think I can probably figure it out as I go along
22:06we are
22:08asking for core skills here poached egg hollandaise sauce things that they should know how to do if they
22:16want to go far in this competition the question is can they perform underneath that pressure I've made
22:26hollandaise before but if I ruin the hollandaise sauce my dad will kill me because on the way up here
22:30he was like this is how you make hollandaise don't forget your dad foresaw what was going to happen in
22:36here he did told you about the hollandaise I'm not quite sure how to cook a Irish potato cake though
22:42so
22:42don't tell Anna Sam doesn't seem plastered she seems to be in control I think I'm okay
22:51a really good potato cake is potato flour egg and then fry them in a little bit of oil or
23:01butter I hope
23:02it looks something like that what we're looking for is a light fluffy but golden brown potato cake is this
23:15something that you've made before no poached eggs do you make them to your family on a Sunday no oh
23:22dear
23:22hmm is there anything on this dish that you are feeling happy about not the smoked salmon it's already
23:28been smoked if Matt digs deep I think he's probably got the instinct and the knowledge because it looks
23:37like I've had a nice potato cake a good hollandaise for me is heavenly it's rich from the butter and
23:45it
23:45sharp from the lemon vinegar but you have to create balance hopefully it's gonna taste fine critical
23:54moment when you're making hollandaise is cooking your eggs you need to whisk it the whole time and
23:59then to take it off the heat and slowly add their butter if they leave that on the heat it's
24:03gonna be
24:03scrambled eggs I want that hollandaise to coat the back of the spoon don't want it to be so thin
24:22of
24:23that's just like soup around the potato cake hollandaise is too runny at the moment so I'm just
24:29trying to pull it back together and hopefully have it run in time okay guys that's 20 minutes gone now
24:36you've 25 minutes left do you think the hollandaise is the biggest challenge in this recipe
24:44um it's probably the biggest unknown for me yeah Brendan's just added flour to his hollandaise
24:52just to thicken it up yeah if you add flour to something you have to cook it I am not
24:59looking
24:59forward to tasting that I think I'm struggling with the hollandaise if I'm honest
25:07poached eggs lovely runny egg with a uniform shape they need to have a big deep pot of water as
25:15the
25:15eggs drop in they get swirled around and it takes exactly three minutes to cook
25:24I can see in front of me one very prettily poached egg what's your technique I'm trying to make sure
25:31that I do the little swirls in the water so that I can make it form into the perfect circle
25:36I think
25:37it seemed to be working and I love eggs so you can't go wrong with that are all the eggs
25:41going
25:41to be as nice as this one yes they are definitely Sabina she's like I love this you know prepare
25:50yourself for a delicious brunch dish guys there's brunch nearly ready brunch is nearly ready thank you
25:59Brendan they're starting to talk back it's brilliant I feel like I've done everything
26:06okay guys final minute you need to be adding the last touches to your dishes now
26:27I'd eat it absolutely
26:32okay that's it guys time's up step away from your benches
26:38hollandaise hollandaise got there in the end
26:45we asked you to make a light fluffy potato cake with perfectly poached eggs serve it with smoked salmon
26:53and a glossy hollandaise word Sam you're up first
27:05you hadn't made potato cakes before but the potato mix you've used is absolutely spot-on beautifully
27:12cooked two lovely poached eggs but your hollandaise sauce could have been cooked out just a little bit
27:18more so that it creates a much more glossier thick sauce it kind of runs off as opposed to sitting
27:24on
27:25top of the egg but seasoning is very good I was worried about my hollandaise sauce splitting at the
27:33last minute so I decided to take it off heat but I don't think it was a disaster Brendan you're
27:40up next
27:45the poached egg did seem to be losing a lot of its white but the yolk runny potato cake soft
27:53seasoned
27:54your hollandaise sauce too much vinegar in there and there is a strange gloopy texture when you added
28:00a bit of flour into it just a small smidge I knew it was wrong sometimes when we're cooking and
28:06something's not working we should stop and start again it was a tough challenge if I'm honest I
28:13think I'll probably just let myself down a little bit with the sauce Sabina your eggs are absolutely
28:24perfect they hold their shape they're running the potato cakes you've got them absolutely bang on your
28:32hollandaise has a lovely acidity to it and seasonings this is a really good dish thank you
28:42really I hadn't made many of the things before but I decided to embrace it and I'm proud of what
28:46I
28:47produced Matt it's your turn
28:56the potato cake is slightly dry in parts your hollandaise you got the technique right but a bit
29:03heavy-handed with your seasoning and with your acidity the egg is beautifully cooked however the
29:10hollandaise sauce is vicious it's a good thing right not in this case when I saw all those ingredients
29:20on the table my heart absolutely sank because I thought this is not going to go well
29:30that was a fantastic round but we can't keep them all
29:36Sabina is one to watch there is instinct oozing out of her as a cook perfectly poached eggs
29:44beautiful little potato cakes I think Sabina deserves an apron Brendan showed real fight but he was
29:52struggling the hollandaise really let him down there's no denying that Sam's hollandaise could
29:59have been a little bit more cooked but I was really really impressed by her potato cake and her
30:03seasoning throughout technically Matt's hollandaise was as close to the texture of what hollandaise
30:11should be but the flavor was unpleasant and this potato cake was quite dry what are we gonna do Anna
30:21although cooking is a hobby it's become much more than that and this whole Master Shepherd experience
30:27it's amazing I'd love to have an apron I think anyone that enters this competition that's the
30:32the whole point of it fingers crossed I don't want to go home yet I'm just dying to cook again
30:37get back in
30:38that kitchen and just show them what I can do
30:49two aprons left on offer we've made a decision the first contestant getting an apron is Sabina
31:04well done Sabina the second cook getting an apron is Sam
31:22Matt Brendan thank you so much sadly you're leaving the competition
31:32it's been a fantastic town I'd love the journey to have continued it'll always be the hollandaise
31:36sauce for me I think that was probably my nemesis I've had such a nice time I've put out some
31:43dishes which I would have eaten maybe even my dog would have eaten so you know I've got to be
31:49happy with that
31:51oh my god congratulations you two oh my god I can't believe it come collect your aprons
31:58oh my god well done thank you thank you what are we doing now our aprons on I feel absolutely
32:13exhilarated
32:14and over the bone definitely excited for the future oh it suits you can I sleep in it
32:24I can't believe it let's see if I can sleep
32:41nice aprons
32:44but in the master chef kitchen we never rest you're now cooking for a quarter final place
32:54we have invited some very special guests to join us they are the finalists from last year
33:01Sophie Segrou Claire Seren and the winner Harry Maguire
33:09you've an hour and 15 minutes to cook two of the best courses you've ever cooked in your life
33:16at the end of this one of you will be going home give it everything you've got start cooking
33:28I actually have to do this now I need to make all of these things in like an hour
33:34let's see how this goes
33:41just trying to stay focused
33:48rose dip you started strong in this kitchen what's cooking today a chicken and cabbage joel momo which
33:54is a Nepalese dumpling with soybean and tomato sauce I love a momo earliest memory of my mom making it
34:04in the
34:04house bringing everybody together and you try to kind of pitch in homemade dumplings are the best
34:13the key to a good momo is that you have to have thin dough I'm just rolling my dough thin
34:20enough to hold
34:20my filling when I steam it if it's thick it's more likely to unravel that beautiful ginger chicken cabbage
34:29filling should really just be an explosion of flavor there's a very specific way of wrapping the momo
34:36you've got the half moon and then you would only just do that I hope I've mastered it over the
34:43years but if I don't get my momo right I am very nervous about what my mom will think but
34:48also the whole entire Nepalese community that I'm representing
34:53I thought that was a recipe at your bench that this is your family in pictures yes yes it doesn't
34:58feel
34:58like it's just me on this journey it feels like my whole family what's your main pan fried cod
35:06marinated in loads of cumin with yam potato mash and then I'm making a garlic and timura pepper sauce
35:14I just want to take them to Nepal really through my food today so fingers crossed I like the idea
35:21of
35:21marinating the fish in spices as long as he gets the balance right I still want to taste the cod
35:27but I
35:28want the car to be complemented by vacuum cream white wine sauce but then he's out in that lovely Timur
35:38that
35:38sherbet-y Nepali spicy so proud to use that's exciting just trying to work as fast as possible I do
35:51have a
35:51little bit of confidence after my my very first cook it's affirmed that the crazy ideas that live in my
36:00brain
36:00someone else might enjoy them too I'm gonna make a Sri Lankan tiger prawn curry with Jamaican rotis if
36:13you saw me and my family eating a bowl of prawns together it's feral the curry is inspired by the
36:20curries that I ate when I went to Sri Lanka and rotis are something that we eat a lot in
36:26in the Caribbean so
36:27I'm really trying to bring my culture with the culture of Sri Lanka I love a Sri Lankan curry the
36:38coconut and the cumin and the turmeric but a good curry sauce takes time to spread its wings and she
36:46has not going I've made it a million times and try not to chop my fingers off in the process
36:53and the
36:56Jamaican rotis she's gonna put spring onions and lots of butter through that butter is the fastest
37:03way to my heart I just need them to taste good that's all I used to work in a cupcake
37:10shop it was my
37:11very first job and my favorite thing that they made was the blueberry cheesecake I'll never forget
37:17it so I'm gonna make a layered lemon cake with cheesecake icing and blueberry compote Janae is the
37:29mistress of reinvention she's taking memories of a blueberry muffin that she enjoyed in a shop she
37:36worked in and elevating it a really delicious sponge should be light and fluffy you look bright eyed and
37:54bushy-tailed I'm pretending I'm having a neat party in my head so I've been singing along trying to calm
37:59myself down what's cooking Sabina so I'm making a piazzu which is a lentil and onion fritter combined
38:07with green chilies coriander and turmeric it's like a fritter that you eat in Bangladesh in Ramadan
38:13can you fritter a lentil today you will have it and you will see you'll never go back to regular
38:19onion
38:19bhajis again when somebody says they're gonna make fritters my heart flutters a little bit because I
38:28want a perfectly crispy fritter on the outside and something soft on the inside a good balance of
38:35spices in there my main course is my grandmother's table reimagined it's a Sunday chicken curry that she
38:46used to me but I've kind of deconstructed it it's usually the makhi sauce is just butter and tomatoes and
38:52fenugreek but I'm introducing some additional spices including cumin and coriander sounds like
38:58your passion for cooking may have come from your grandmother definitely I was in boarding school in
39:05India for two years and I ate a lot of amazing food which inspired the makhani sauce and so I
39:12just want to
39:12show the judges what else I'm capable of and to not stop ever my menu today is quite classic so
39:25there
39:26isn't really anywhere to hide also I don't want to over complicate things and be rushed for time I want
39:31to make sure that I really nail it and don't make any mistakes we've got a pan fried fillet of
39:38sea bass
39:38with a pomme puree samphire roasted asparagus and a beurre blanc sauce in 2021 my dad had mouth
39:46cancer and he had to have most of his teeth removed so when it was like father's day like during
39:50his
39:50recovery I'll try and make a dish that wasn't too sort of crunchy and he could eat the same meal
39:54as
39:55what we ate beurre blanc is buttery heavenly silky sauce but difficult to get right and if you're
40:05giving me potatoes they better be nicely seasoned and with loads of butter no lumps
40:13last year we went to the Amalfi Coast for a weekend and obviously there's lemons everywhere
40:17everything's lemon lemon lemon so bizarre is a lemon posset with a pistachio praline and raspberry
40:23cooling lemon posset is just sunshine in a bowl but if it doesn't set splits or is too tart it
40:33can be unpleasant
40:40right guys that's 20 minutes until the first course is served rose dip that'll be you
40:56so lovely to be back it's definitely a lot easier doing the eating than the cooking
40:59since master chef I actually started my own catering company food is now the dominant
41:04force in my life and that wouldn't have been possible without master chef I remember doing
41:10this challenge I was so nervous but it's really important for them to stick to their style stick
41:16to their guns and really just show their personalities in their menus I came with a
41:24huge appetite ready to hopefully experience four incredible cooks beautiful dishes
41:32total stress next door I need to put an apron on and go out there and help them no Sophie
41:36no
41:39the time has really escaped me
41:43chicken and cabbage jol momo Nepalese dumplings I'm always happy with the word dumpling it's just a
41:50balancing act of making sure that they're wrapped correctly and we get lots of substance and
41:53flavor in there I'm just steaming my momos for about 15 minutes which is what I've got the tomato and
42:00soybean sauce sounds absolutely wonderful I'm hoping there's enough acidity in there to give it a nice
42:05balance I'm not gonna have time to pass this I'm just gonna have to go it's very grainy you've got
42:12a
42:12couple of minutes left how are you looking I'm almost there I think are the momos ready
42:17that's it yes I think that looks really good
42:26anything else no I'm happy time to go go go go all right smiling good luck
42:39today I've made for you a chicken and cabbage Nepali momo with a soybean and coriander and tomato sauce
42:47I hope you enjoy it thank you thank you it's elegant and I'm excited
43:00technically that dumpling is really good beautiful napping around the edges they're not an easy thing
43:05to get right and the chicken filling is actually nicely seasoned I only tried the tomato and soybean
43:11sauce I didn't really get too much of the tomato flavor which is a bit of a shame I would
43:15have loved a
43:16little bit heat from it as well feel the dumpling wrapper is a bit too thick but the chicken filling
43:23is delicious the sauce I was expecting tomato and soybean it's really subtle got lots to do 15 minutes
43:32until your next course thank you pan fried cod and cumin I did card in this round you want a
43:42bit of
43:42colour but you don't want on the inside undercooked the yam and potato mash I'm hoping there's a good
43:47balance of both of them and you get the yam coming through and not just potato three minutes rose dip
43:52the
43:54garlic and tima pepper sauce I think is going to be a really difficult balancing act so you don't
43:59overpower the code let's get this sauce into the jugs that's your final one going on now thank you
44:15I've made a pan fried card marinated in cumin yam and potato mash and garlic and timber sauce
44:31the cumin rub is fabulous on a perfectly cooked piece of cod very tasty I really love the yam and
44:38potato mash the yam gives it a little bit of a different texture that sauce is amazing that garlic
44:44and timber pepper has got a lot of depth to it the cumin a hundred percent is complementing the card
44:50beautifully cooked I would eat the whole lot I feel exhausted after that round it was incredibly
44:58hard so it's taking a moment to breathe really so much to do okay well keep going you've got 15
45:05minutes keep an eye on those prawns they're getting a bit of a char on them I just need to
45:11be careful
45:12that they don't overcook an hour and 15 minutes is not a lot of time to reduce complex Sri Lankan
45:19flavors
45:21I want tiger prawns that are joyous and swimming in a bath of this amazing curry sauce this is an
45:29insane amount of work to do I've definitely bitten a lot and rotis where are they cooking these at
45:37lightning speed right now I love a buttery flaky roti pillowy and soft so that is right up my street
45:46time to take your food and service it smells delicious Janae has cooked a tiger prawn Sri Lankan curry
45:59flavored with coconut green chili cumin and coriander topped with crispy curry leaves and served it with
46:06buttery Jamaican roti bread filled with spring onions that sauce is absolute knockout isn't it it's
46:14got loads of body creaminess as well that spicing for me is perfect prawns are cooked really well
46:20butterfly beautifully bit of char on them the roti that's really nice flaky pulls apart there's a nice
46:27char on the outside I love that curry that lovely Sri Lankan coconutty heat she has shown us that she
46:36understands flavor so you have 15 minutes I do I do a sponge is really bold rather than a biscuit
46:48base you
46:49would normally get with a cheesecake which offers the textural difference obviously we want a nice moist
46:54sponge but is it going to be too sweet I'm really hoping the lemon flavor gives it that little bit
46:59of
46:59bitterness that we need time to go Janae's dessert is a lemon and blueberry muffin reimagined lemon sponge
47:13cake topped with lemon mascarpone cheese and a blueberry compote garnished with lemon thyme and blackberry
47:24I think everything on the plate is really well made to be honest it's a lovely flaky light sponge the
47:31cheesecake cream is fab and so zesty with the flavors of the lemon the blueberry compote is really lovely
47:38it's a nice balance of sweetness and the lemon cuts through that this is a good cake I would definitely
47:45enjoy this with a cup of tea I'm really impressed by this I'm quite confident in and how the flavors
47:53turned out but it was the craziest experience in the kitchen I've ever had 15 minutes until you're
48:00serving your first course great okay I'm doing good on that you make my heart sing oh that's the reaction
48:08I want Bangladeshi chili coriander and ginger spice lentils and onion fritters I'm really happy with how
48:17they turned out they're nice and golden lentils can be quite dense don't want to lose that lovely unctuous
48:22crispness that comes with an onion fritter I'm a big fan of tamarind I really like the sourness and with
48:30the date chutney hopefully they marry up it's a big balancing act texturally and flavor wise is there
48:37anything else to go on the plate no that's it let's go thank you I presented to you Bangladeshi fritter
48:50with lentils and onions with a side of tamarind and date chutney thank you lovely thank you
49:02those lentil and onion fritters are so crispy a little bit of heat but not too much because then
49:08you've got the heat from the chutney fantastic the balance between the onion and the lentils is bang
49:14on I think that's superb I can't fault it extraordinary crunchy lentily oniony bullets of joy there's a great
49:26balance of spice and flavor in there 15 more minutes 15 more minutes we're supposed to tell
49:34you that Sabina let me put the timer on chicken and buttery makhani sauce with aloo pallia spiced mash
49:42and Gujarati carrot salad that is a lot of spice everything looks like it's in order what else have you
49:51got to do I just literally have to take the sauce and put it in a jug buttery makhani sauce
49:57I want it
49:58to have a lot of depth of flavor and that takes time are you happy I feel really happy okay
50:11inspired by her grandmother's chicken curry Sabina has served pan seared chicken with aloo pallia turmeric
50:18chili and cumin spiced mash Gujarati lemon and mustard seed carrot salad and a buttery tomato makhani
50:27sauce spiced with fenugreek chili cumin and coriander that makhani sauce isn't what I was expecting some
50:39nice spicing through it but it's actually a lot sharper but it works really well with chicken the potatoes
50:45are really really textured curry leaves go in through it which is really nice such distinct
50:50flavors of spices in each thing they don't clash with one another she's done brilliantly
50:57the chicken is beautifully cooked it is an explosion of flavor I cooked so many of the things that
51:05are about my family I feel super happy but also simultaneously very emotional
51:19Sam's main course is really classical you want that sea bass nice and crispy nice and soft in the middle
51:25as
51:25well is it all going to plan timing is a bit stressful palm puree hopefully we won't have any lumps
51:34and that beurre blanc sauce will be nice and buttery a little bit of acidity are you happy with your
51:39sauce I am happy with the sauce come on you're almost there you're almost there keep it up keep it
51:45up
51:49you're out of time grab your dishes and serve
51:58I've cooked for you pan fried fillet of sea bass chive palm puree roasted asparagus crispy leeks and a
52:07beurre blanc sauce enjoy fish is cooked nicely it's flaking away but those leeks were a little bit
52:19greasy for me the beurre blanc is really buttery nice amount of acidity but the mash is lumpy we
52:27probably don't need the leeks and the asparagus but I'll forgive all of that because I'm in fish and
52:32beurre blanc heaven the fish skin a little bit wobbly but the beurre blanc is the star of the show
52:41here
52:41but potato there's a few lumps in it lemon posset is a thing of glory when it's done well perfectly
52:56set
52:56cream pop your spoon straight through it like silk I don't like anything too sweet so my only concern
53:04is the raspberry kool-aid and praline do because praline can be quite sweet you would call it as a
53:11crumb well praline because I didn't and I didn't want to blast it because I like having it some big
53:16crunchy bits and some smaller bits are you happy I'm happy yeah yes I've made for you a lemon posset
53:29with a pistachio praline and a raspberry koolie I would say it's bordering on too sweet for me
53:42personally but I'm definitely getting the lemon from that posset pistachio praline works really
53:47really nicely the posset it is a little wet given a little more time in the fridge that thing had
53:52been banging this sauce for me it's got a good raspberry flavor but I think it's too tart this
53:58praline crunchy crumb she needed to refine it right down so that you could eat it without bits sticking in
54:06your teeth it all came together in the end I was really up against the clock so I'm pleased I
54:13couldn't
54:13have done anymore tough round pressure that they'd never experienced before but it is through pressure
54:23you discover diamonds Sabina really shone bright today her cooking her timing was excellent the dining
54:34room loved Sabina's food she definitely goes through to the quarter-final Janae she definitely shows us she
54:44understands flavor she is creative a really authentic Sri Lankan curry fragrant with coconut and there was
54:54something about that dessert that made me keep going back for more I think Janae has done enough to earn
55:00herself a place in the quarter-final rose dips Momo although the chicken was definitely succulent the
55:07sauce it was sitting on tomato and soybean was so subtle but the main course the cod was perfectly cooked
55:16and I thought the balance of the cumin on the cod was really lovely Sam's burblank was excellent but if
55:23you're gonna do palm puree should be silky it should be smooth it was lumpy the lemon posset it was
55:29tasty but it
55:29was a little bit loose and the pistachio proline needed a little bit more finesse this whole experience
55:37has been amazing I've got the fire in my belly now I just hope I've done enough I am crossing
55:44everything
55:50right now guys thank you so much you managed to impress our guests and us but only three of you
56:01can go
56:02through to the quarter-final the contestant leaving us is Sam thank you for all your hard work thank you
56:19well done guys you've got so much passion and love for food you did a great job
56:27I am still on a high even though I didn't get through got my apron I've had an amazing time
56:33and now I can
56:35sleep for a week congratulations you three you're through to the quarter-final I don't think I've ever
56:44been so proud of myself I'm just gonna try and ramp it up and deliver even better exciting and flavorsome
56:50food
56:53today's cooking was one of the probably hardest things I've done in my life and I've done many
56:59hard things so yeah definitely one in the memory book for sure I cannot believe it the Masterchef
57:07kitchen it is unlike anything I've ever done in my life so bring on the quarter-final but also help
57:19next time okay six more home cooks oh my lord compete for the right to wear a Masterchef apron
57:28shake your hands fabulous before battling for a place I love this in the quarter-final the flavors
57:38are delicious this is really hitting the spot
57:51you
57:55you
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