Episode 19 MasterChef

It's the MasterChef semi-finals

and four outstanding cooks remain.

Winning MasterChef is something that I'm trying not to think about because it just plays on your nerves.

I just know that it's the thing that I want more than anything.

The pressure is a good pressure. You know, it is tough, but at the same time, it pushes you

to be better than what you are.

It's still hard to believe that I'm in the last four,

but now that I'm here, I just don't want to go home.

The final is so close. It just feels like it's within touching distance and yes, you do dare to dream

that maybe I can win it.

And tonight, the battle intensifies

as they enter the world of fine dining.

Today, they've got to understand the balance of doing something which is achievable with real elegance.

First, they have to cook for one of the most demanding Michelin-starred chefs in the country...

I'm absolutely speechless. I think that's appalling.

..and then cook for 12 of the most iconic women in cinematic history.

The Bond girls.

This is the epitome of wonderful food and this is, at the end of the day, what MasterChef is all about.

Welcome back.

We want you to aim for the absolute best you can be.

We want you to try your hand at fine dining.

From this amazing set of ingredients behind us,

two dishes - one sweet, one savoury,

that show us that you understand what fine dining is all about.

Ladies and gentlemen, come and select your ingredients.

The contestants can choose from a selection of meats,

fresh game, seafood,

fruit and veg, and a full larder.

It's all a worry, to be honest. Fine dining is always scary for me.

John and Gregg will be expecting me to come up with something elegant.

There's loads of fantastic ingredients to think about here.

I'll use all the time to make sure I get it right.

It's horrendous. I've got this mental blank with a dessert.

I'm still thinking, to be honest.

I'm quite excited. I've seen some ingredients I quite like.

I've just picked up everything I like and I'll now think it through properly and put together a menu.

Right, that's it. You've chosen your ingredients.

One-and-a-half hours to make us two exquisite dishes.

Off you go.

Today, our four must impress. Not just you and I because we've got a little surprise for them.

They have no idea yet, but they will have to present their food to one of the best chefs in the country.

Fine dining is everything that I do.

I've built my career around fine dining and I run a fine dining restaurant.

You can tell when someone's got it.

There's a look in the eye, there's a passion, there's a way they work.

I'd like to walk away from here today and think, "There's someone who's got something quite special."

Ladies and gentlemen, you have had 20 minutes already.

One hour and ten minutes left.

The competition means everything to me. I don't watch no TV, I don't listen to any more music.

Like, literally, every minute is taken up by food.

You do seem rather relaxed, Natalie. Not like you at all. What's happening?

I saw some ingredients I like. I cook for my grandad quite a lot.

He turns up with all bits and bobs and anything, so you have to stick something together.

-You have to create something there on the spot for your grandad?

-Yeah.

He does come home with some strange things - odd bits of fish and it's just full of bone and all gristle.

I had to send him back out to get some proper fish to make him a fish pie.

-What are you going to cook for us?

-I'm going to roast the duck, then make a celeriac puree,

little fondants, baby carrots and wild mushrooms,

then I'll make a chocolate fondant with vanilla Chantilly cream.

What is the essence of fine dining food?

It's got to taste good, but it's got to be really refined and look really pretty, like a picture.

Your job today is to cook us something really elegant and sophisticated.

-At the moment, you're going for a fondant.

-That's all right. I'll get it right, I promise you.

Natalie decided exactly what she was going to do really quickly

and she's got herself two quite good dishes, I think.

I like the idea of the duck with the celeriac. That sounds absolutely delightful.

You've had 30 minutes. That means just one hour left, one hour.

I think the standards so far in the semi-final have been so high that it does blow me away.

If I'm honest, I think I'm probably fourth out of four at the moment,

so I need to do something special to get up the rankings somehow.

Saira, your bench is absent of any spice.

There's a bit of coriander and a bit of fish sauce, so I'm not completely abandoning my Asian roots.

I'm going to cook a Thai-scented broth with the red mullet, pan-seared, on top,

then I'm going to do a millefeuille type arrangement with creme patissiere and a compote of plums.

-Oh!

-I love the idea of a millefeuille type of arrangement.

Have you worked out how this type of arrangement will possibly look like a millefeuille?

I'm not entirely sure.

It's not the natural place for my food, fine dining, and it scares me a lot.

This sort of challenge frightens me the most

and I have to restrain my urges to put pounds of food on the plate.

-That's interesting. So does fine dining for you mean not enough food?

-Absolutely.

Exactly what it means. If I look at a plate and think I could eat two of those, that's probably about right.

What is interesting about Saira today is she is not going down the Indian route.

She wants to prove she can cook food from all around the world

and I wonder if that's the right idea today. I wonder.

My issue is her dessert. She said a millefeuille type of affair. She's not even sure what it's going to be.

Looking at how she's baked that puff pastry, she is in danger of making a fruity eclair.

I think at the moment I've still been trying to find what my identity is in the kitchen.

I don't want to just re-create the classics.

I want to put my own personality on to the plate. That's perhaps the thing I need to do now.

Dale, you have that look of intent, but at the same time, a nervous disposition.

A look of intent cos I mean business and nervous because I'm attempting two things I've never attempted.

-Two things you've never cooked before?

-Yeah. I've never touched razor clams.

And the langoustines as well, so it'll be interesting to see what I do with them.

Then I'll do a white chocolate tart with cardamom seeds and a blackberry and vanilla coulis with almonds.

-What do these two dishes say about you as a cook?

-I'm trying to do things I wouldn't normally do.

It could be a big mistake, depending on how it turns out.

Do you have any idea of how to prepare a razor clam?

I've got an idea, just a common sense idea.

-OK.

-I might... I might call on you in a minute.

Good luck, Dale.

Cheers.

I think Dale has got a very risky strategy here

because he's cooking razor clams with langoustines that he's never, ever cooked before.

Nice if he can master cooking a razor clam for the first time ever.

Whatever he does, at the moment, I think he's playing with fire.

I feel the semi-finals have gone really well so far.

I can't really complain with the feedback.

But I just dread doing any sort of dessert

because it's going to be the end of me.

-What are you making?

-I'm doing a razor-clammy type of salad thing.

I'll put some dumplings on there.

-And dessert?

-And dessert, I'm going to do a white chocolate souffle,

but I'll use the mango as the souffle thing, so it souffles out of the mango.

-You'll serve a souffle in a mango?

-Yeah. It probably won't work, but I'll give it a go.

-You've got to make the mango sit up...

-I've already done that. I'll serve it in that.

-There's a hole in the bottom.

-It won't come out.

Larkin, this is invention at its most risky, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-We are heading towards the time when we'll lose one of you guys. Is it worth the risk?

The brief was fine dining, so you have to push the boat out a bit.

Larkin's menu at the moment is pretty out there.

The reason it's out there is because he himself doesn't really know what his dish is going to end up like.

I'm not sure he's actually thought this out, but all credit to him

because I can't wait to see souffle in a mango skin. I can't wait to see it.

You've got ten minutes left. Just ten minutes.

Oh, no!

Oh, no.

No, Larkin, no!

Last 90 seconds.

That's it. You have to stop.

You have to stop.

At this stage of the competition, we have called on some expert help in judging.

Someone who truly understands the meaning

of the finest of dining -

Marcus Wareing.

- Good afternoon, everybody. - Good afternoon.

I've come here today to taste your food and your concept of fine dining.

And I hope that you've taken some great ingredients to create a fantastic dish.

I can't wait to taste it.

Saira's red mullet and langoustine tails have been served in a ginger and chilli Thai broth

with broad beans and coriander cress.

The fish was beautifully cooked. The langoustine was delicious.

I like the flavour. A little bit on the warm side, but that's just for me personally.

OK.

It's a shame there's no vegetables or potatoes.

What bits you have got in there, for me, is not enough as a main course.

I really like the look of it and I really like the taste of it.

Actually, it's very delicate for you.

Very delicate. Well done.

As far as presentation is concerned, it's actually a revelation for you.

-And I applaud you for it. Good on you.

-Thank you.

Saira's dessert is a millefeuille pastry,

layered with creme patissiere and plums.

From a presentation point of view, this dessert was very nice.

From an execution point of view, it's a bit sloppy

in the sense that the pastry should be cooked flat between two trays,

it should be nice and crisp and very dry.

The plums taste raw, not cooked.

I was trying to keep the shape, so it would look prettier when it was on the plate.

Pretty is nice, but it's all about the flavour.

Hmm. Yeah.

What it's missing is the juice of a fruit. That plum is too hard.

But I love the crispy, sweet puff pastry.

I love the cream, the vanilla and slightly sweet. That is lovely.

Thank you.

I'm glad that challenge is over. That was always going to be a tough one for me.

And I'm relieved that I came out of it relatively unscathed.

-How are you feeling, Natalie?

-Quite nervous...because Marcus is here.

Natalie's main course is teal with celeriac puree,

celeriac fondant, baby carrots,

wild mushrooms and a blackberry reduction.

The presentation, from a fine dining point of view, is lovely.

Thank you.

The teal was cooked beautifully well. I love the fruit with it. It really works.

The puree was delicious. It's silky smooth, great flavour.

Thank you.

The detail is what will get you through to the next stages.

If you just put a little bit of jus, you've got yourself an amazing plate of food. Well done.

Thank you.

Your issue is your sauce because what you've got is like raspberry cordial.

There needs to be something sticky, thick and reduced that goes with it, that links the whole thing together.

-Otherwise, Natalie, I think it's a pretty good job for an invention test.

-Thank you, John.

For dessert, Natalie has made a chocolate fondant

with vanilla Chantilly cream.

That appears at first sight to be a pretty decent chocolate fondant.

Once you've decided to do that, you needed to come up

with something that was going to make it prettier and smarter,

-possibly a little bit of sugarwork, but it needs something else.

-OK.

For me, a chocolate fondant is about great chocolate and fantastic execution.

- If you get it right, it's perfect. You don't need to add anything. - Thank you.

-Would you serve the chocolate fondant on its own completely?

-On its own.

What I like about this particular dish is that it's a very, very difficult dish to get right.

You've got the flavour right, the texture's right. If anything, it doesn't need the Chantilly.

When it comes out of the oven and it's beautifully cooked, it's perfection. Well done.

Thank you.

-Natalie, not bad. How are you feeling?

-I'm pretty happy with the comments from all three of you.

-What would your grandad think of your cooking now?

-He'd like it. He likes a chocolate fondant.

I do practise on him sometimes. That's one of his favourite things.

-Natalie, I think you should be really proud of it.

-Thank you very much.

To get comments from Marcus, obviously, who holds Michelin stars, it's just mind-blowing.

You couldn't ask for more.

Dale's main course is razor clams and langoustine salad

with pickled carrots, turnips, nashi pear, radishes

and a ginger and chilli Thai dressing.

There's not enough on there for that to be a main course.

It almost needs a bowl of rice.

I totally agree. I think if you take away the shells, I don't think there's anything there.

MARCUS COUGHS

Are you OK? Do you want a glass of water?

I think I need a fire extinguisher.

Today, Dale, you attempted something you've never done before which was to cook a razor clam.

I will say you've cooked the razor clam pretty well.

But the issue you've got in that is the prominent flavours are ginger,

sesame oil, vinegar from your pickle and chilli.

You can't taste the langoustine or the razor clam.

Yeah, that's the issue you've got. You have killed the fish.

For me, you need to be thinking of doing what is right by you

and what you understand of food and, for me, there's quite clearly no understanding. I'll tell you why.

And that is that these two ingredients are the most stunning things you can get,

nectar from the gods, and you've just completely obliterated them

with chilli.

It's as far away from fine dining as North Pole, South Pole.

For dessert, Dale has served a white chocolate and cardamom tart

with toasted almonds and a blackberry and vanilla sauce.

As soon as I started to pour the sauce around the outside, you could see the dish has come to life.

Now it's got some serious colour. It looks fantastic.

Hmm, it does look good.

White chocolate is so sweet, so rich, it should be used sparingly.

It's a little bit too sticky and sweet for me to finish.

I don't think the tart's great.

The pastry is undercooked. It's too thick.

The centre of the tart is very sickly and very heavy.

And if you took the sauce out of the equation, it's not very good.

White chocolate and cream mixed together and set in a tart, you've got a truffle.

I've got little seeds of cardamom in there. I don't really want to find seeds stuck in between my teeth.

I think that what you've done today, Dale, is try to go too far left-field.

You can't keep on reinventing the wheel, Dale.

OK. Don't worry, mate. Don't worry. Don't worry. You're all right.

The problem is, unless you're honest at this stage of the competition, nobody is going to move forward.

Not only that, he's full of passion and he's disappointed. That's all right. It happens.

There you are, shake my hand. You're all right.

-Sorry. I can't believe I'm crying.

-It's OK.

It's all right, it's all right.

Take a breath.

One of the nice things about this, all of this, is that there's a lesson here.

The fact that it has affected you the way it has affected you, it shows passion.

Dale, you can't buy passion. You've either got it or you haven't.

I just feel like I've taken a massive step back

because that was my worst round by a mile.

I'm so sorry about this.

Why are you apologising?

Because it's horrendous.

Anyway...

Larkin's main course is razor clam salad

with spring onions and radishes,

alongside pork and langoustine dumplings,

and a coriander and ginger dressing.

Your razor clam and dumpling dish just looks weird.

There is a lightness to your clam

and a hint of sesame and crunch of spring onion that I like,

but your dumpling is very thick

and tastes really quite strongly of sesame oil.

Larkin, there's not a great deal going on.

I'm speechless.

I'm absolutely speechless.

I think that's appalling.

In every way.

I don't understand this. You know what's really difficult for me?

I'm here with Marcus Wareing standing next to me, questioning my ability to judge you as a competitor

because he's looking at that and thinking, "How has he got here? Are you foolish, John? What the hell!"

I wish Marcus could see some of your past work. I really do.

Larkin's dessert is a white chocolate souffle served in a mango shell,

accompanied by a mango and vanilla ice cream.

Oh, my word!

We have two different flavoured sludges,

one flavoured with white chocolate and another sludge flavoured with mango. It's a disaster.

I'm sorry, Larkin, but I'm not going to taste that. It's just not good enough.

Larkin, you've had a really bad day. We're allowed a bad day at the office.

However, Larkin, if you do this again, I'm going to send you home.

I'm feeling incredibly deflated, devastated and just embarrassed more than anything else.

Yeah, just... I've felt better.

Thank you very much. Off you go.

SAIRA: That was harsh.

Really harsh.

NATALIE: Are you boys all right?

I'm deeply saddened by what's happened today and shocked.

I wanted Marcus to see how good our semi-finalists were.

The ups and downs of MasterChef, but I think from our contestants' point of view,

they have to pick themselves up and understand what they've done wrong.

Natalie, today, did really well, a strong round, a brave round and Marcus thought she did well.

Saira...?

Presentation great, flavours a little bit off, but she's up and she's flying.

I think the ladies did really well and those boys were terrible.

Dale was trying to be different. He was trying to show you and I

that he had a bigger repertoire and he could be daring.

Larkin was just full of self-belief and thought he could wing it

and they both came crashing down to earth with a big bump.

It's not the end of Dale or Larkin's competition. It's what they do now that is vitally important.

I'm just trying to pick myself out of the gutter.

I'll just have to go out there and show Gregg and John why they put me in this position in the first place.

I need to remember all the rounds that have gone well for me and try and get back into that head space.

The contestants are travelling to one of London's most exclusive addresses.

Opened in 1889, the Savoy Hotel is the epitome of style and sophistication.

This imposing London landmark is most famous

for its association with Ian Fleming

who was inspired to use the hotel as a backdrop for many of his James Bond novels.

And tonight, to celebrate this historic collaboration,

preparations are under way for an opulent dinner.

Tonight, you four are preparing dinner for 12 Bond girls.

Gregg will be hosting the dinner and I'll be running the pass.

Tonight, your food has to be glamorous, it has to be sophisticated.

If it's not right, I'm not sending it.

Three hours, guys. Let's move it. Let's go.

I'm a huge Bond fan, so I'm really excited by this.

It's just an amazing, amazing event.

I've been blown away by the surroundings.

It's where a lot of the top chefs started out. It's great to be here.

I'm equally as pressurised and nervous about the situation as I am excited.

Today, it will have to be 12 of the best plates of food I've plated.

These girls have been to Hollywood, probably all four corners of the world.

They've probably eaten in the best restaurants, so we've got to meet their expectations.

They've probably had chefs at home.

Natalie has designed the starter.

Natalie, tell us what you're going to cook.

Today, I'm doing a ballotine of quail,

a confit leg, a crispy quail's egg, wild mushrooms and parsnip puree.

-Why this dish?

-It's different things that I've never tried before. It's pushing me out of my comfort zone.

-How are you feeling about cooking for the Bond girls?

-Excited, but nervous. I don't want to screw it up.

The weight's on my shoulders now. It's a big night.

I just want to give them something nice to eat for their starter.

Natalie starts by preparing the quail legs to confit

and then boils the carcass to make a stock.

Better bring it to the boil first, then scrape the bottom. You've got colour already.

Yeah!

She then gets on with making her mushroom and chicken mousse which will fill her ballotines.

It does your arms in, don't it?

Oh, mate, we're up against it here! There's so much to do.

There's a lot of elements to it. Some of it is precise.

Hopefully, I will pull it off.

Dale has created the fish course.

The last time you cooked for us, things went a bit wrong.

Things aren't always going to go your way. I know I'm good enough to be here and to win.

I'm focusing that positive energy on today. I've put together a mackerel dish, cured mackerel,

a pate, some cucumber, a nice pomegranate vinaigrette.

It's quite eye-catching. It tastes good. It's a pleasant dish and nice to eat.

-Not too many different things on the plate?

-There were, but I stripped it back and got it right

-through tasting and practising.

-You're serving it with bread?

Yeah, I'm making French baguettes and crostinis on a griddle.

So you've got to make bread, prove it, bake it,

-slice it and toast it.

-Exactly.

-You've got to get that done.

The bread is my main concern. I've got to get it in the oven.

I think Dale's given himself a bit of a challenge.

Strong, oily mackerel

and then pomegranate,

really rich, almost rose-water pomegranate.

That's the weird one for me - fruit and fish.

If he pulls it off, I'll be really proud of him.

Saira has designed the main course.

Saira, what are we doing? 12 Bond girls!

I'm cooking them a chicken makhani with a variety of cauliflower -

cauliflower puree, cauliflower aloo gobi and cauliflower pickle.

-Tell me what "makhani" means.

-It's like a butter chicken sauce. It's fairly mild, but very rich.

They'll want the very best, but I'm very excited about having the chance to do it.

-I need to tell you one small thing.

-Yes.

-There is somebody who doesn't like cauliflower.

-You're kidding me!

-I'm not. Her name is Britt Ekland.

-Oh, really?

-Yeah.

-Oh, wow!

-What are you going to do instead?

-I'll have to raid the larder.

-You'll work something out.

-OK.

I'm confident in my dish. It's a great dish, one of my dad's favourites.

I'm more worried about what my dad'll say, actually!

Oh, God, if I muck this up...

Larkin is making a dessert of lemon tart with raspberry coulis and a chocolate tuile.

They're looking all right. I need to do a bit of repair work on them, but they're looking OK.

Let's talk about the last time you cooked.

-It went wrong.

-I think I was trying too hard to impress you.

Because of all the feedback, I think it got to my head a bit and I forgot that I am an amateur cook.

-Did you get a little bit over-confident, Larkin?

-I think I got a little over-confident.

So I've reined it in, I'm just back to basics.

It's going to be hard to impress these girls. I'm doing a very simple lemon tart.

I'm hoping the simplicity of it will be the thing that blows them away, though.

In a way, tonight, I wish he was doing some sort of bombe of ice cream

which was exploding in the air like an Aston Martin,

disappearing into a gun chamber and blowing up the Universe!

Today, instead, we've got a lemon tart.

MUSIC: "James Bond Theme"

I think James would fit into these surroundings very well.

Roger will always have a place in my heart because he was my Bond,

even though he did try and kill me. Actually, he did kill me! Sorry.

I had to squeeze myself into a wetsuit,

wade my way out of the San Francisco Bay

and then seconds later, I'm in the jacuzzi snogging James Bond.

So, it's tough,

but somebody has to do it.

A Bond girl has to be adventurous, would like to try anything.

I eat everything. If anyone has any leftovers, I will eat the leftovers.

I've even eaten tarantula in Cambodia.

I'm really looking forward to some wonderful food tonight.

I had porridge for my breakfast, but I'm not going to have porridge for my supper!

Nat, you've got an hour and ten before you've got to be ready to go.

-Yes, chef.

-Legs are on?

-Yeah, the legs are in the oven.

-Right, quails to do, sauce to do, then what?

-Then we need to make the crispy quail eggs.

-Mushrooms for the garnish?

-Yeah, fry them off in butter and parsley.

With the clock ticking, Natalie is behind boning the quail for her ballotines.

I've got to get these done in five minutes. John's going to kill me.

I'm not going to get it done. It's not going to go out on time. I'm getting really stressed about this.

45 minutes until our first course, please.

-Are you all right?

-No, I'm really worried.

-Why?

Natalie's running really behind. We are 45 minutes off service. She's still doing her quail.

It needs 25 minutes to poach. She's going to have to really push.

If Natalie doesn't get that first course out, there's a knock-on effect for the rest of the night.

You look shaken. Not stirred.

But shaken.

Across the kitchen, all the elements for Dale's mackerel course are coming together.

It's going OK at the moment.

I'm focusing on all the fiddly jobs like the garnishes at the moment.

I'm char-grilling some delicate cucumber.

Dale, talk to me.

The bread needs another ten minutes. The pate's being cooled down and the garnishes are pretty much there.

-Good. You've got a smile on your face.

-Yeah.

-Hey, well done! Saira, how are you getting on?

-Not too bad.

-Don't say, "Not too bad."

-Very well, thanks.

-Good. Let's go. Come on.

Saira has to consider her clientele

because these ladies are going to eat a starter, a fish course, the main course and fit in a dessert.

-12 Bond girls...

-Yeah.

-Are you really going to give them a whole chicken breast each?

They're not very big, though perhaps too big.

-Just cut the middle out. Your pakora have to be small.

-They'll be tiny.

-Your aloo gobi's small?

-Yeah.

-A small amount of puree.

-Look how much puree you've got.

-They don't need that much.

-There's enough there for 37 Bond girls, not 12!

-Think about the dish a little bit. OK?

-OK.

Size is important and bigger is not necessarily better.

Over on dessert, Larkin has decided to drop one of the elements of his dish.

I might scrap the chocolate tuiles. I don't think it needs it.

I don't even know where the blast-chiller is, so I might just scrap it for the time being.

He then checks on his lemon tarts,

but the oven wasn't on and they're raw.

You've got an hour to service. You've got to cook them for half an hour, they've got to cool,

and you've got to cut them and get them on a plate.

Regardless of whether you think something is really easy, you push yourself to the limit.

If you've got time at the end, that's fine, but don't run out of time like this, not on a lemon tart!

Good evening, ladies.

Would you like to take a seat? We've put place names for all of you.

I've done many things on MasterChef, but this is by far my favourite occasion and it hasn't even started.

-Cheers, everybody.

-Cheers.

-Cheers.

-Good to see you.

-Lovely to see you.

-Good to see you.

Natalie has still not poached her stuffed quail ballotines.

-Natalie, we're supposed to be leaving the kitchen in 20, yeah?

-OK.

-Is that the last one?

-I've just got to tie this...

-Come on, let's go. Get them in.

Right now, we're going to be serving a bit late.

It looks like we're running out of time and John's going to kill me if these quails don't go in.

I have quail at least, like, once a week, but they're teeny.

I don't know how you're going to take a confit of the little foot.

How much could you get out of a tiny bird?

It's quail after quail after quail!

LAUGHTER

I'll help you do your parsnip puree. Tell me where you want it to go, then you do the quails. Let's go.

Come on, you, let's go!

Quail on every single one, then your mushrooms go after, then your pea shoots.

-Natalie, we're running four minutes behind.

-I'll speed up.

-Let's go.

OK, last three.

-Your mushrooms now, please, and then your sauce, yeah?

-Yes, John.

Thank you. Let's go. First four. Very good, Natalie.

Next two, please. Thank you very much.

This is the last one.

That was hard work.

Thanks, John.

Next time, don't give yourself so much to do.

You've done a lot of work. You've just done it, OK?

Well done. Welcome to the real world of catering.

-If you don't push yourself... You know what I mean?

-Well done.

I feel relieved that it's all over.

There were moments where I thought I wasn't going to make it,

but yeah, I'm pleased with the way it looked and it went out.

Natalie has served her quail four ways -

a ballotine of the breast filled with chicken mousse,

confit of the leg,

a jus made from the wings and a deep-fried egg.

These are accompanied by a parsnip puree and wild mushrooms coated in truffle oil.

I think it looks beautifully presented

and quite delicate which is nice for a starter, so, yeah, I'm excited.

What's that?

-This is the leg.

-A leg of quail?

-Yeah.

-Aw!

The ballotine of the quail is really, really gorgeous.

The mushrooms are absolutely wonderful.

I've never had these before. Beautiful.

Oh, it's lovely. Whatever that's called, it's lovely.

But my favourite, as you can see,

was the crispy quail.

Now, that had a personality all of its own.

LAUGHTER

Well, it did. I'm telling you.

Good flavours. The meat was cooked very well. And the mushrooms were superb.

I feel a bit more relieved now the first plate's come out and the ladies are still smiling.

-Dale, you're on the pass in 20 minutes.

-Yes, chef.

Dale is frying his cured fish, but the skin has stuck to the pan.

Don't panic now. Something's gone wrong. Let's go. You've just got to adjust the dish.

-I can serve the pinker side.

-That's fine. That's all right.

Turn them over and then drop them into the salamander. I'll show you.

Next time you do mackerel in one of these things, tray, oil, boom! It'll take two seconds to cook.

Hmm, I love mackerel! I think it sounds absolutely delicious.

I had some cucumber on my eyes before I came out. I love cucumber.

Pomegranate vinaigrette... I'm intrigued.

OK, guys, the table's been cleared. That means the next course is ready to go out, please.

Hey, your bread. Well done, you!

Very nice.

Nice, Dale.

Looking good. Let's go, last lot.

-Yeah.

-Service on these three.

Are you happy with that?

-Yes, chef.

-Yeah?

-Service!

Good.

Clean down. Sort yourself out. Well done. Thank you very much.

Oh!

I'm happy, to be fair. I had to prove something today, I felt.

I'm just pleased that every plate went out looking quite similar and it was on time.

I can't say fairer than that.

Dale's fish course is cured mackerel,

served with mackerel pate rolled in cucumber,

pickled cucumber, pickled mushrooms,

pomegranate vinaigrette, coriander cress and crostinis,

made from his hand-made French baguettes.

Five different ways to use a cucumber.

LAUGHTER

It's a work of art on the plate and I adore the smell.

It's the pickly smell.

Absolutely beautiful. Britt and I said at the same time unrehearsed,

"It looks like a stairway to heaven."

I'm really ready to dig in.

Hmm!

Oh, this is so good. Everything.

The cured mackerel was delicious.

It goes very well with the pomegranate, a kind of kick.

The mackerel was quite delicious. That was cooked with delicacy and feeling for the fish,

which I thought was quite charming and very, very enjoyable.

I'm a fan, absolutely 100%, and I'm savouring all of it.

I wouldn't dream of putting a pomegranate with a fish,

but it brought unusual sweetness to a sharp vinaigrette that I thought was stunning. I loved it.

I absolutely loved it.

Saira, your chicken is not cooked yet. You've got 20 minutes to go.

-How long have they been in there for?

-Nine minutes.

-They're not very moist because they've got no skin on them, have they?

-No.

-So what can you do?

-Put a bit of stock under them maybe?

-Yeah.

Chicken and cauliflower, both of which I love. I'm intrigued by the makhani.

My mother spent many years in India, so I was very spoilt as a child with curries.

I'm so used to the best.

-Do you think this is going to be hot or creamy?

-No, it won't be too hot.

Now leave the oven door shut for ten minutes and get everything else ready on the pass for me.

I won't know if I've rescued it until just before service, so that's panicking me a bit.

Tongs...

Thank you.

Take one out, cut it in half. Let's have a look.

Great. It looks nicely cooked. Beautiful.

-Right, let's go. I'll put the dollop on the plate for you.

-Thanks.

-You'll cut the chicken. Let's go.

It's really interesting how your food suddenly comes alive on these beautiful plates.

-Maybe you've got to go with something more ornate. It's pretty.

-Yeah.

-Clear that last course.

-You've got to push it now.

-OK, John. Service, please!

Got it? Right.

It's beautiful.

Saira's roast chicken has been served with a makhani curry sauce,

accompanied by cauliflower prepared four ways,

stir-fried potato and broad bean aloo gobi,

deep-fried pakora fritters,

cauliflower puree and pickle.

Now, look at me.

-See what you can do?

-Yeah, it's pretty.

-By just taking it down.

It's really different. Look at that.

-Imagine that three weeks ago!

-I can't imagine... I've never done anything like that in my life.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

-Thanks for all your help.

I think this looks really nice.

Really... Really rather beautiful.

It looks like a very subtle, interesting curry.

The chicken is perfect. Very tender and delicious.

The curry sauce was not too hot, not too bland,

which is perfect for the English palate.

Whatever it is, it's got a heat to it, a depth. It stays. I'm enjoying it.

I think this is my favourite so far.

I'm not a big girl, but I would have liked it a bit bigger.

I'm being greedy now, but that's me.

The flavours and the cooking of the chicken was fantastic.

That dish went down well, very, very well.

Larkin, 25 minutes, my friend.

I think I might have just rescued it.

I had to cook the tarts quicker, so not as light as I'd want them to be, but at least I'll have service.

I do like a bit of lemon and I do like a tart,

-given that I'm a bit of a tart myself.

-You said it, darling!

Ladies!

John doesn't know that Larkin decided not to make his tuile.

Where's your white chocolate?

I couldn't get access to... The fridges were all busy.

-So, you've done a lemon tart, mate?

-With a raspberry coulis.

-Come on!

I expected nice things from you today.

12 Bond girls. How much of a tart do you think they're going to eat?

-Smaller portions.

-Half that size. Bang, bang, bang. Let's go!

-I've got about six minutes left, Larkin.

-Yes, chef.

-Come on!

Count your plates.

-I need one more plate.

-Get yourself organised. They're up on the plate wash.

It's really frustrating. Larkin's not organised.

He hasn't done white chocolate for his tart.

His oven wasn't on. Now he doesn't have his plates ready. Really?

-What else should go on the plate?

-Raspberry coulis and the flower.

-OK, good. Let's go.

-Service, please!

Oh!

HE LAUGHS

I'm really chuffed that's over with and I got the plates out in time.

It was right up to the wire.

At least I've churned out something that's edible.

I love the arrangement of the edible flowers and the rose.

-I've got flowers too.

-Mm-hm.

Oh, my God, that's so delicious!

Oh!

This is very light and slightly fluffy.

OK, I'm going to have a bit of sauce.

Hmm! That's like raspberry jam.

That is very, very raspberry-ish.

That is absolutely beautiful.

It's gorgeous. Whoever made this gets a medal.

The jus is simply gorgeous, but the pastry needed more finesse.

I agree with the thing about the pastry which is why it's the one thing I've left this evening.

There's a couple of issues with it. The pastry could be crumblier and it could be sharper.

Although it's perfectly acceptable, it's not brilliant.

APPLAUSE

Very, very, very well done.

We just want to say how impressed we were with your talent.

The passion that you young people have, and you're all young...

You are. And to have got to this stage, well done.

Well done!

Thank you very much. APPLAUSE

That was all very good.

Oh, my goodness!

Today was amazing and to see the Bond girls as well, really surreal, but really amazing.

There were tears, there was sweat, there was nearly blood. There was everything today.

It was great to see them all smiles. They seemed to genuinely enjoy the day and enjoy the food.

Today, I'm back positive and feel like I've had a good go of it.

That was amazing. That was a fantastic evening.

I love it. I don't want to go home. I just want to carry on right to the end.

I think our four did brilliantly well.

When you consider the last round, they have really turned it around.

They think they were playing with danger here with the Bond girls? Wait till what comes up next.

Tomorrow night, it's the challenge to decide

who will become the final three in this year's competition.

The critics are arriving.

-We've never done anything like this ever before.

-Because it's crazy.

I don't think anyone's ever been up against most of Britain's toughest critics in one room.

I almost feel sorry for them. But I don't. Just bring me good food!

Guys, I should be seeing this stuff now.

I've got to send these plates, otherwise I am stuffed.

Oh!

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd