Episode 8 MasterChef

MasterChef is back. Hundreds auditioned. Now the best 50 amateur cooks are through.

Let's cook.

Get your pudding spoon out and man up.

You either stand out or you're knocked out.

Each week, ten new contestants battling for a place in Friday's quarter-final.

I don't want to eat it.

-I already feel nervous for them.

-This is just...bang!

Only the strongest will make it to the final challenges.

-We've got to move now.

-You've got six minutes left.

Oh!

Cooking does not get tougher than this.

We have four very exciting cooks and, today, it is our quarter-final.

If you want to cook your way through a quarter-final, you've got to do something a bit special.

MasterChef is no friend of boring food.

I'm absolutely in shock to have got through

to the quarter-finals.

It's fantastic. It's one of my biggest achievements ever.

I really want to stay in the competition now because I'm having such a good time.

I'll really give it my best shot.

I need to be pushing myself. I'm here to win.

It's a ginormous opportunity. I'm going to try and grab it

with both hands and try not to let go.

Welcome to a MasterChef quarter-final. Big achievement to get this far.

We have got judging you not just John and I, but three great MasterChef champions.

It's a big day. Make sure your food matches.

Your two courses, one savoury and one sweet.

You have one hour and 15 minutes. Let's cook.

Today's critics are three MasterChef champions -

Shelina Permalloo,

Dhruv Baker

and the experimental Tim Anderson.

So far in the competition, sales executive Paul's food has had a classical slant.

I love the scallop against the creamy celeriac

with the little sharpness of apple.

Today, he wants to push his experimental streak by using spherification in his dessert.

What are you cooking for us?

Pan-roast duck breast. I'm serving that with a fondant potato and a cherry jus.

The dessert is a spherical creme brulee

with a chocolate brownie and a red berry coulis.

-One of our guests today, Tim Anderson...

-Yes.

-..understands molecular gastronomy pretty well.

-How do you feel about putting your brulee up in front of him?

-To do something for Tim will be amazing.

I've got to make sure that it's 100% bang on.

Paul's being really ambitious. Spherified creme brulee?

Loads of contestants try and do something very clever and scientific and end up with a puddle on a plate.

I'm going for a wow factor with the pudding.

I need to do something spectacular that's going to wow the judges.

Masseuse Sophie inspired the judges with her own take on British classics.

It's lovely.

-It's really lovely.

-Thank you.

MasterChef has to be the hardest thing I've ever done.

It's almost like an emotional roller-coaster the whole time,

but you want to come back and you want to get back on it again.

It's a Catch-22 at the moment.

-Sophie, you look a little stressed.

-I am very stressed. I've got so much to do.

-What does this competition mean to you?

-Absolutely everything. It's what I want to do.

I've never wanted anything more in my entire life.

-What are your two dishes?

-Poached fillet of beef in red wine

and leek and pancetta suet puddings,

-then for my dessert, apple and pear crumble.

-Hmm!

Apart from the stress, the timing and having a load to do,

the menu reads beautifully.

Despite some presentation issues, Jill has impressed the judges with her cooking skills.

It tastes a lot better than it looks, Jill.

As the competition's moved on, I'm definitely getting more nervous,

so I'm just going to have to take a deep breath and try and get in the zone and focus.

Jill, what are your two courses?

Duck breasts with a spiced butternut squash puree

and a little pastilla with duck and harissa in it.

Oh, yum! OK, and then dessert?

Fig and almond tarte tatin with orange liqueur and orange ice cream.

I'm enjoying myself and I really want to stay in the competition.

I thought I needed to impress you and show a bit of technique.

-Jill, can this all be done in an hour and 15?

-I don't know. I'm up against it.

Jill is cooking her duck with North African flavouring.

She's got a fig and almond tarte tatin.

It could taste delightful, but how is it going to look?

Information assistant Farhana wowed the judges with her innovative dishes.

I think your flavours are vibrant. It's a really interesting dish.

Thank you. You've made my day.

This menu is really personal to me.

It's something I grew up eating and it's full of heart,

soul and love, so I hope it tastes great.

-Farhana, what are you going to wow us with today?

-Lentil and rice kitchari with beef steak

and for dessert, I have gajar halwa.

"Gajar" means carrots with filo pastry and coconut and lime sorbet.

-We've got carrots in filo?

-Yeah.

-That's a dessert?

-You have carrot cakes.

-Sure.

-Exactly, so you know...

-Tell me the name of this porridge again?

-Kitchari.

-Half rice, half lentils, turns to a porridge?

-Yes.

-How do you feel about cooking for people that have been here before?

-I feel absolutely nervous.

Shelina was such an inspiration. She is the reason I applied to this show.

But cooking for her, I'm so nervous, you can't understand!

I'm really excited by what Farhana's promising us. It sounds wonderful.

30 minutes gone. 45 minutes left, you've got.

I think at this stage of the competition the standard has to be pretty high,

so I'm expecting pretty good food.

The main thing that I don't want to see is just too much, too much of everything.

It's important they have a strong eye for what they want to achieve.

I'm hoping to have a dish or two that raises my eyebrows

and makes me think, "Wow, that's something I wasn't expecting!"

-Paul, you have 20 minutes before your first course goes.

-Yeah, duck's in.

-Sauce?

-On now.

Paul's main, pan-roasted duck breast, fondant potato, fennel compote, cherry jus.

You've got classic combinations - cherry and duck. I'm not sure how fennel compote fits in with it.

You've got just eight minutes.

-When are you going to start plating?

-In two minutes, Gregg.

-OK.

-Happy with your duck?

-It could be too pink.

-It looks all right.

I mean, it's not quacking.

-Just the cherry sauce to go?

-Yeah.

-Good lad.

-It looks great.

-Very impressed, Paul.

-It's good to go.

-We're away.

Good afternoon, judges.

Today, I've served you pan-roast duck breast with fondant potato, fennel compote and a cherry jus.

Thank you. Enjoy.

-It smells good.

-It smells good. It looks pretty good.

The duck tastes great. It's really well cooked, except for the skin,

which should be nice and crisp.

I like fondant potatoes really buttery and crisp on the top. This one's a little bit flabby.

-I like the flavour from the fennel compote, but I wish he'd cooked it for longer.

-It's pretty tasty.

The cherries are sour and sweet at the same time. The fennel is sharp.

It's a really good dish. Yes, the duck could be done a bit more, but I am really impressed.

That is an accomplished and a very, very tasty dish. My one complaint is the duck skin should be crispy.

Paul, you've got 15 minutes.

I need to do the spherification and I need to sort out the brownie.

His dessert contains a spherical creme brulee, a chocolate brownie, salted caramel and red berry coulis.

That spherical creme brulee makes me think he might have a few tricks up his sleeve.

Lovely. Absolutely lovely.

-Anything else?

-Done.

-Come on!

-Hi, judges.

-Hello.

-Hi there.

-Round two.

Today, your dessert is a spherical creme brulee

with a chocolate brownie, caramel sauce and red berry coulis.

-Enjoy.

-Thank you.

-Thank you. Thank you.

I'm really glad that his spherification worked

because that can be a real troublesome thing to do in the kitchen.

-Is it going to break? No, it's held.

-No, it's a good old sphere.

Hmm! That's really nice.

That's like a little ball of custard that explodes in your mouth.

I really don't like that at all. It's got that bitterness from the alginate used to set that sphere in.

That just overpowered everything.

The brownie is really tasty and it's delicious.

I just don't think this really works as a dish altogether, really.

It's all wrong. There's not enough sauces. The brownie's too big.

There's not enough of that creme brulee. It's all out of proportion.

I'm feeling brilliant.

To be able to get both of those plates of food out within the time, thoroughly enjoyable.

I loved it, loved it, loved it.

-About 15 minutes to go. What have you got left to do?

-Serve.

Sophie's main, fillet of beef poached in red wine,

creamed leek suet pudding, asparagus and carrots.

I'm not sure about the idea of poached beef. "Poached" is a fancy word for "boiled".

-How's that looking?

-Yeah, perfect.

-Hmm!

-How's the puddings?

-We will see how they turn out. This is the bit that I'm petrified about.

There you go. Perfect.

Come on, I like that. I really do.

A proper plate of food, that!

-Are you happy?

-Yes.

-Come on, you can do it.

-I shake so badly.

Breathe!

Thank you.

So I've served you a poached fillet of beef

with individual creamed leek and pancetta suet puddings

-with a red wine reduction, asparagus and carrots.

-Thanks.

-Thank you.

-Thank you. I hope you like it.

It smells amazing. I'm looking forward to this.

Hmm!

The meat's cooked beautifully. It's been rested.

That suet pudding pie is really, really delicious.

-It's really moreish and savoury and rich and satisfying.

-Hmm.

-Good stuff.

Hmm!

That is fantastic. The beef is soft and that red wine sauce is superb.

That is old-fashioned British food at its best!

-Dessert now, Sophie.

-OK, I'm on it.

15 minutes till pud time.

Sophie's dessert - apple and pear crumble with vanilla cream and toffee apple.

If she gets it right, there's nothing wrong with a brilliantly done crumble.

-We are almost at time.

-OK.

-You've got about a minute left.

Hey!

Got it done. Right, let's go.

So for dessert I've served you an apple and pear crumble

with vanilla cream and toffee apple slice. Hope you enjoy it.

I think this looks beautiful. It smells gorgeous.

It smells so cosy, like I want to put on a big jumper and sit in a corner and eat this.

The crumble tastes like what Mom used to make and the apples are perfectly cooked.

-Still sharp, which is great.

-The sweetness from the toffee and that lovely vanilla cream.

As good a crumble dish as I've had.

I love it! I like it a lot.

Mm!

Mm!

I've a wonderful sharp Granny Smith apple, covered in toffee, flavoured with vanilla cream. Delightful.

It's really, really good.

There are elements of it which I wish had gone better,

but, overall, it was just so exciting! Can I do it again?

-About 15 minutes to go.

-15 minutes, yep.

Jill's main - duck breast with spiced butternut squash, wilted kale, duck pastilla

and a pomegranate and quince sauce. That's quite intriguing.

I'm slightly worried about the vegetables, that they're not watery.

Jill, what's left to do?

I've just got to get this through here and then plate up, really.

-It's gone too runny. Gone wrong.

-Too watery?

-Yeah.

That was not how I wanted it at all.

-Ready to plate?

-Yep.

-Nice duck.

-Beautifully cooked.

-Right, Jill, ready to go?

-Yeah.

-We've got to go, got to go. Come on.

Hi, guys.

Well, I've done roast duck, with spiced butternut squash puree

with some kale and a little filo roll

and a quince and pomegranate molasses sauce. Hope you enjoy it. Thank you.

This looks delicious. The meat is cooked perfectly. I have high hopes.

I'm really glad to see she's crisped up that skin.

-The sauce is really good. The duck's delicious.

-My puree is a little bitty.

-She could have passed it a little bit more.

-The whole thing needs a good whack of seasoning.

The flavours need to be boosted.

We've got very, very wet butternut squash puree washing away every other lovely flavour.

It lacks depth and sophistication.

-You've 11 minutes to get your dessert done.

-OK, thank you.

'For dessert, Jill's doing a fig and almond tarte tatin.'

With Grand Marnier and orange ice cream. That sounds really good.

Good.

-That's creamy and smooth, Jill.

-Ready to go, Jill?

-Ready to go.

-Thank you.

-There you go.

A fig and almond tarte tatin with orange and orange liqueur ice cream.

Thank you.

-I think this looks really, really gorgeous.

-It's quite a healthy size, but it looks really inviting.

Looking forward to trying it.

Mm! Wow!

That is incredible ice cream.

Very brave with the liqueur in that. I'm glad I'm not driving.

The figs are so juicy. It's so clever.

Oh, that's good! Very good.

The taste of those figs and the orange liqueur.

The ice cream is creamy, sharp, warm from the alcohol,

but the pastry is not cooked.

I don't think it went very well today. I messed up my butternut squash puree.

I'm kicking myself. I'm really annoyed.

-How long before you're ready?

-Em, I don't know. About 10 minutes.

-So if I said you've got 15 minutes, are you all right?

-I should be.

Farhana's main is curried beef steak medallions on lentil and rice kitchari with garlic spinach.

To be honest, I don't know what rice kitchari is. Otherwise, sounds good!

-Three minutes left, Farhana.

-Three minutes?

Whoa!

Don't make it too big and sloppy.

-Just that sauce to go. That's it?

-Yeah.

-Good.

-That's it.

-Yeah! Come on, come on.

-Good job.

-A couple of minutes over. You'd better apologise.

-I will.

I'm so sorry. I'm a little bit over.

For your main course, you've got lentil and rice kitchari, beef steak with curry sauce,

garlic and onion spinach and dal pakora. It's an Asian man's steak and mash, I would say!

-Thank you.

-Enjoy, guys.

This smells fantastic.

It's going to be delicious, hopefully.

That beef is cooked really well. It can really hold up to the flavour of that sauce, which is incredible.

This little lentil pakora thing is delicious. I'm not 100% sure about the rice, the kitchari.

It's really rich in terms of the amount of ghee.

I'm finding that overpowering it.

If she'd lessened the amount of rice or even got rid of it altogether, it would be pretty much spot on.

That is highly flavoured and beautifully spiced, but...

-it's a bit of a splosh on a plate.

-I don't care about the splosh on the plate. It tastes amazing.

OK, Farhana, you've got about 10 minutes to get your dessert up.

Farhana's dessert is coconut and lime sorbet with filo gajar halwa.

-I hope she doesn't hold back with the flavours.

-Looking forward to it.

-Just the halwa to go on?

-Yes.

Take your time. Don't ruin it now.

-Lovely. That looks great.

-That looks lovely.

Pretty, pretty. Let's go.

For dessert, I made lime and coconut sorbet,

gajar halwa, which is carrot halwa with filo pastry and clotted cream.

-OK. Enjoy.

-Thanks.

It looks good. Pretty, delicate. Really light and pretty.

I'm not a halwa expert, but this is really good.

-It's like a really light, creamy, carrot cake-type flavour.

-That lovely, zingy sorbet.

-I think it's a really good dessert.

-Honestly, I'd quite like to taste more of her food.

This carrot halwa in this filo pastry basket is just wonderful!

I like that lime sorbet, especially with the grated lime. It makes it really bitter.

We've never eaten anything like this on MasterChef before.

Whether I did myself justice or not, I don't know. I gave everything.

Everything I had.

It's been a really exciting day. The promise is in this room is incredible.

I like what Sophie does. I like her ideas.

I thought her main course was brilliant. A great British classic taken to a more modern style.

Lovely. Really liked it.

Dessert - we both liked her take on a toffee apple. Very good.

Sophie didn't do bad at all, actually.

To leave today would be devastating.

I've never wanted something so much.

Paul gave us a duck dish and that, I thought, was delicious.

As for dessert, as impressive as the skill may be, it wasn't coherent.

Dessert is all about getting your spoon in for a big mouthful. You didn't get it.

If I were to leave, I'd be gutted. Disappointed. But I'm hoping that I can go all the way.

Jill, she cooks duck really well, she has some nice ideas,

-but it didn't pick you up and give you a kiss.

-I get what you say.

But that ice cream fig combination gives me a bit of hope.

'The competition means more to me the longer I'm in it.'

It's very addictive. I'll be very upset if I go home.

Farhana. We've got steak and mash, but in actual fact it's using

all the complex cooking techniques and ingredients of Asian food.

The dessert, the filo pastry basket with the carrot halwa, was delicious.

If I don't get through, more than anything I think I let myself down.

We've got two places. That means two stay, two go.

I could argue a case for and against each of these. This is the worst position for a long, long while.

Thank you very much. It was a real pleasure today. Really interesting. Inspiring.

The first contestant leaving us...

-is Paul. Thank you very much indeed.

-Thank you, Paul. Take care.

The second contestant leaving us...

is Jill. Jill, thank you very much indeed.

Thank you.

I'm feeling a little bit disappointed that I haven't produced the plates of food I should have.

It's been a good experience.

The pressure got to me today. I've learnt a lot in a short time,

so it's been a fantastic and very enjoyable experience.

I can't believe it. I actually feel like I'm in a dream.

It's just the most incredible feeling.

I'm getting addicted to the adrenaline! Seriously.

Oh, yeah. Bring it on.

Farhana and Sophie will be back for the semi-finals.

Next week, another group of amateurs will battle to earn a place in the quarter-final.

It's all floppy. It should be lovely and stiff.

It's fabulous. Took me by surprise.

It's weird. It's like I'm eating steel wool.

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