Episode 8 MasterChef: The Professionals

48 chefs from across the UK are putting their reputations on the

line in a bid to become Professional MasterChef champion.

Tonight, six more hopefuls compete to impress judge Gregg Wallace,

renowned chef Monica Galetti and two-Michelin-starred Marcus Wareing.

You only get one shot. You can't go back in and say,

"Can I do it again?" So you've just got to get on with it.

I wanted to be in MasterChef for a long, long time.

I decided, just go for it, otherwise it will never come again.

I'm so excited. I can't wait for them to try my food.

This is a massive opportunity.

I can't wait to see what they're going to produce.

They're going to have to come in here and show us something special.

This is the 20-minute skills test.

Monica, your test.

Beautiful pigeon on your bench.

-What are you going to get them to do?

-I would like our chefs to

prepare and cook the pigeon.

And serve it using anything that's on this table that's going to do

this beautiful pigeon justice.

They've got some wine and they've got port as well, if they wanted to

make a sauce. What I like there is they've got some dried fruit if they

wanted to go North African with it.

You've got some soft fruit as well, wild mushrooms, black pudding,

beautiful array of fresh herbs.

I mean, everything you would want to make yourself a delicious pigeon

-plate here.

-I agree.

20 minutes, you're going to give them.

-Over to you.

-Right.

They need to be quick, so they don't have to butcher the whole bird.

They just need to remove what they need.

For me, it's the crown.

This is a really interesting challenge because you've got the

head on, you've got the claws on there.

You've got all the innards still inside.

So the skill is really how to work around that little bird.

If our chefs have not prepped a pigeon before,

they should just treat it like any other bird.

The chicken - it's got two wings, it's got two legs, it's got the innards.

-The principle is the same.

-I want to keep the offal,

which is the heart and the livers.

There's a really good flavour in these pigeons.

And they'd be a great accompaniment to the dish.

Now this I would hope they would leave for a sauce.

So I have the crown, just want to

remove everything that we don't want.

What would happen if they roasted it

and they didn't remove all the offal?

Would it impair the flavour of the breasts?

It becomes quite bitter.

So that's my pigeon prepared.

It takes a couple of minutes, if that.

Yeah, about three minutes.

They have to prep it properly before they start cooking.

Now, I want the pigeon nicely seasoned.

And we want the pan hot enough that it's going to colour the bird but

it's not going to burn it.

One thing our chefs need to be careful of is, if they're going to colour it

on top of the stove, if there's a little bit of open flesh that's

being shown, you have to be very careful, very delicate,

because it will just dry straightaway.

For me, it's going to be about three minutes on each side and then a

couple more minutes on the actual back of the bird and then out to rest.

While the pigeon is cooking, I'm going to prepare the rest of my garnish.

I'm going to be really interested to see where our chefs go with this.

Because there are some very interesting ingredients down there.

And you want the ingredients to work in harmony with the pigeon breast.

I'm going to use the dandelion that we have here.

Some chicory and some mushrooms as well.

Love that. All brown and glossy.

Yeah.

I really hope they don't overcook it.

There's nothing more disappointing than a bit of dried-up pigeon.

If that's not cooked properly, this dish won't work.

This is all the flavours from the pigeon that's in that pan.

Now, this one here, I want to use this to cook my offal in.

What I've reduced down here is some veal stock with the cooking juices from the pigeon.

Everything about that pigeon being cooked in the oven is now in those

two pans coming together,

the butter, the flavour, all the herbs, the garlic.

Now we've got the offal.

And then in go the mushrooms as well.

You've created a whole garnish from that cooking pan.

That's the way we were trained, we were taught that stove work.

Using everything that's within the pan.

It looks great.

It smells amazing.

So I've rested my pigeon for about four minutes.

The juices are going to flow, it becomes more tender.

It's pink throughout.

I didn't use any timers.

It's all about touch, smell, taste and feel.

Are you having fun there, Chef?

I am! You're supposed to eat when you cook,

you've got to taste and make sure it's right, especially with you two!

Oh, come on!

Really interesting presentation style. Very imaginative.

I don't think our chefs will be dressing plates quite like that.

And that's it.

Oh, Monica.

That's beautiful. That's beautiful.

I love it. I love it.

I just can't believe how tender the breasts of the pigeon are.

It's great. Absolutely great.

You can have so much enjoyment with this challenge, if you can just get

that pigeon beautifully cooked and rested.

Wow. Imagine what they can come up with.

Let's get the first chef in.

First up is Birmingham-based senior chef de partie Louisa.

At this restaurant, we usually get quite a lot of unusual ingredients.

We currently have a forager who

sends ants and different types of herbs

and flowers from Cornwall.

I would say I'm really ambitious about what I do.

Life's too short to be mediocre.

I'm 22 years old.

I really want to put my skills to the test and I really want to

impress the judges.

Louisa, welcome to MasterChef.

-Thank you.

-This is a skills test.

All right? I think you'll enjoy this.

I would like you in 20 minutes to prepare and cook this pigeon and the

offal and make a dish of your choice using anything that's on this table

in front of you. You're familiar with a bit of butchery?

-Yeah.

-That's great to hear.

You have 20 minutes, you've got to work very quickly, all right?

-Yes.

-Off you go.

-What section do you work on?

-At the moment, I'm working on the sauce

section, so I'm working with all the meats and sauces.

So this is actually one of my favourite things to do, cook meat!

-That's handy, isn't it!

-Yeah!

So you're well and truly under way now, Louisa.

-Yep.

-What's your plan?

I'm going to make a red wine sauce.

I'm going to use some of the blackberries over there.

-Pickled beetroot.

-OK.

And what's the legs and wings in the oven for?

I'm just roasting them off, I'm just going to chuck them into my sauce,

just to enhance the flavour of the pigeon.

You've had five minutes.

-What are you making now, Louisa?

-I'm just making a pickle liquor to put

-my beetroots in.

-Do you enjoy creating dishes?

I do, I really enjoy creating my own dishes.

It's what cheffing's all about.

Trying out new things and having fun and experimenting.

You seem pretty comfortable.

I really enjoy what I doing, so I'm just really happy to be here today.

Once that's got a nice bit of colour on it, I'm going to get it in the

oven and rest it. I'm going to use the same pan to fry my offal right

-at the end.

-You've got just over five minutes left.

-Thank you.

-You're going to get it all done?

Yep.

What did you just put in your sauce?

I put a little bit of allspice in there.

Final minute.

-Are you done?

-Yep.

Louisa has served the pigeon breast with fried pigeon heart,

wilted spinach, pickled beetroots, blackberries,

grated chocolate, and a red wine

sauce flavoured with prunes and allspice.

Looking at what you've given us,

it shows that you have worked with these ingredients.

The things on this plate make sense.

I find the pigeon breast overcooked and too tense.

It should be really cooked on the crown.

Don't cut it up into little square pieces.

But you've shown great organisation skills,

you looked very much in control.

This is a good sign.

This is your first dish, and it's not a bad attempt,

to be honest with you. And you're only 22.

Your pigeon breast is soft, you've got sweet flavours on there,

it's nicely seasoned.

I think once you start to calm down a little bit,

you're going to be absolutely fine.

Thank you.

I'd like you to go away from here and come back with a little bit more

calm and just focus on that dish that you're going to cook for us.

Give us the best dish that you've cooked in a long time.

-That's what we want to see.

-Thank you very much.

I can't believe I overcooked my meat, man.

That's horrible.

The time went so quickly, I was just rushing everything.

It just goes so quick.

26-year-old Jack is currently working as a junior sous-chef in

-East London.

-Good socks.

Thank you.

It's very meat-focused, what we do here.

We do a lot of open-fire cooking, over wood and over charcoal,

so everything tastes amazing.

I love being a chef because it is engaging and it's interesting,

and I lose focus quite easily.

I can't even tell you how excited I am.

Like, you know, I've watched every episode.

So, like, for me, this is kind of a dream to finally do it.

So, yeah, I'm really excited.

You only have 20 minutes, you're going to have to move quite quick.

-Yeah.

-OK.

-Jack?

-Yes.

-What's your plan?

-The pigeon, I'm going to roast on the crown.

The offal's going to go through the sauce as well.

Accompanied by...?

I think I'm going to go probably for mushrooms.

I'm not too sure yet, I'm still going to make it up as I go along.

How did you become a chef in the first place?

Growing up, my mum never used a cook that well, so I'd do meals for me,

my brother and her, while she was at work.

Like, after I got back from school.

I don't know why I'm so nervous.

And your lucky socks aren't helping?

I don't know if they're lucky yet, we're going to find out.

You're halfway.

Jack, what's your dream?

I want a restaurant/micro-bakery,

where I can spend all day baking bread, listening to music.

Who's going to run the restaurant if you're listening to music,

baking bread all day?

-I don't know.

-You aspire to be a cookery hippie.

That is pretty much the vibe that I'm going for at the moment.

Like, a bit of reggae, a bit of cooking,

and just live the hippie lifestyle in London.

-MONICA:

-Let us know how that turns out!

GREGG LAUGHS

I think it's every chef's dream, to be honest.

Or maybe it's not, maybe some people just love the pressure and the buzz

-of it.

-It's all about the pain, Jack.

You've got to go through pain.

It's all pain.

-Trust me!

-You've got that to look forward to!

Can't wait!

LAUGHTER

Yeah!

You've got 60 seconds, you've got to get that pigeon done,

-you've got to get it on a plate.

-Yeah.

Well done.

Jack's pigeon is served with fried mushrooms and spinach,

and a sauce made from port, Madeira, offal and chocolate.

-How was that?

-It was a lot more nerve-racking than I thought it was

-going to be.

-Do you wish we had some

-reggae music playing in the background?

-I wish that.

OK. You didn't trim the neck end of the bird.

You see, there's a pocket of blood, which is an issue.

Great to see you used the bones to make your sauce, and I really liked,

when you were finishing the sauce,

you chopped the offal up and dropped that in.

It's not a great-looking dish.

The breasts are slightly under.

However, I love your sauce.

It is rich and it's deep and it's

slightly sweet, and I really like it.

-I really like it.

-Thank you.

It may look a bit like a dog's dinner, but, wow, does it taste good.

The dish, without a doubt, has got problems running through it.

So what I'm going to say to you is a little bit of advice, Jack.

Do you know the guy that you want to become in the bakery?

Just forget about him for a few weeks, and start getting focused.

And you know what? You could go a long way.

I think these guys are a little bit impressed, Jack.

-Off you go.

-Thank you.

I think the judges think I'm far too laid-back,

which they're probably right.

So, yeah, I think I need to kind of step it up and show that I'm taking

it seriously.

29-year-old Peter works as a private chef and also runs a

vegetarian pop-up.

I've been a chef for 13 years now.

My first-ever job was in a

one-Michelin-starred French restaurant.

I've since gone on to work in more modern restaurants,

to two-Michelin-star level.

For the last three years, I've been a private chef.

I entered MasterChef to challenge myself.

I'm confident in my ability.

I think I can stand out from the rest of the crowd.

Peter, this is a skills test.

-I think you'll like this.

-OK.

20 minutes, off you go.

So when you go to people's houses,

do you decide what they're having for dinner or do they decide?

It's a bit of both. I send menu suggestions based on what they've

requested, and we kind of come to a decision together.

Some people have staff who serve the meal for them as well.

Staff?

-It's like your household.

-Yeah, sounds like my house. Well, one wing, anyway.

So what's the plan for this dish?

Pigeon's roasting in the oven, carrots are roasting.

I'm just going to cook the cavolo nero in a bit of butter emulsion,

and I'm going to sear off the offal in the other pan.

And then when the pigeon comes out,

I'm going to make a little quick sauce in that pan.

You seem a little bit more nervous now than you did when you started.

It's gone backwards a little bit. No, it'll all come together, though.

Peter, you have five minutes left, all right?

Well done.

Peter has served pigeon roasted on the crown and caramelised in honey,

with cavolo nero, roasted carrots, fried liver and heart,

and an apricot and red wine sauce.

Peter, I'm pleased you cooked the pigeon on the crown,

but in saying that, the cookery of it was quite rough.

And then, really oddly, you kept that cooking pan for your sauce,

yet went on to wipe out all the remaining flavour and the juices

from the pigeon. But the dish looks OK.

Thank you.

What I got was where the sack is under the neck of the pigeon.

It's not nice, OK?

The pigeon is cooked well, I'm glad you cooked it on the crown,

but the carrots, I'm not impressed with.

So you're a chef that needs to sharpen the edges, Peter.

Thank you for your criticism, and I'll take it on board.

It all comes down to the preparation of the pigeon.

When that's done correctly, the cookery follows.

Peter, let's see what you can do in the next round.

Thank you for your feedback, and I'll take it all on board.

-Thank you.

-Don't forget, take it all on board.

Thank you, Peter.

It wasn't a complete disaster,

but definitely didn't quite go according to plan.

Yeah, I've got a point to prove, I think.

31-year-old Sayan was born in India,

and works as a head chef in a Scottish castle hotel.

I was brought up in an environment in India where everybody cooks,

and it's like a religion.

Life being a chef is quite hard.

Obviously there are good times, there are bad times.

But if you're only passionate about food,

that's the best thing you can do.

As soon as you wear the uniform, I just feel like Superman.

Finally, I'm quite settled in my life,

and now I've got time to do something more than just be a chef in a hotel.

Absolutely ready for it.

Sayan, how are you feeling?

-A bit nervous, yeah.

-We understand that perfectly.

Right, you have got 20 minutes, off you go.

So what's the plan?

I'm going to do some boiled carrots, I'll do some mushrooms as well,

and some cavolo nero,

and sauce on the pan, which I'm going to do the pigeon.

What type of sauce are you going to make?

Just a simple reduction of the jus.

So are you using just one of the

-pigeon breasts?

-Yeah, one of the pigeon breasts.

You're halfway, Chef,

but you can probably tell that because you have a very big watch.

Did you train in Scotland?

-I trained in India.

-Where in India?

Calcutta. I grew up cooking with my mum and grandmum.

-Is Mum a good cook?

-Yeah, she's best.

I cannot even match her.

Sayan, I've noticed you've just chosen some black pudding.

-What are you going to do with it?

-I'm going to pan-fry the black pudding as well.

-All right.

-So the dish is still developing.

-Yes, as I go, something like that.

You have two and a half minutes, all right?

-Yeah.

-Come on.

30 seconds.

The quickest cabbage ever.

-Finished?

-Finished.

Well done.

Sayan has cooked one of the pigeon breasts off the bone with the liver,

black pudding, cavolo nero, roasted carrots,

mushrooms, and a port sauce.

Sayan, you took one of the pigeon breasts off.

It would have been good to at least take both of them off.

So you've got a whole carcass of a bird there,

and you could have used parts of it, winglets, legs, to make your sauce.

I like your presentation. It's quite a pretty plate.

But there's no real sauce to speak of.

The good addition was the black pudding,

because that gave a sweetness and an earthiness and a richness that that

sauce should've been giving.

Give me more black pudding!

I'm really surprised at how tender the pigeon breast is for the way in

which you cooked it. The carrots got a nice flavour once you'd

caramelised them in the pan.

But what we're lacking here is a good-flavoured sauce.

You need to bring in more flavour into your dish, Sayan.

We'll see you in the next round, thank you.

I didn't expect it to be, you know, that intense.

But, yeah, should be better.

25-year-old David was born in Brazil,

but now is a head pastry chef of a cocktail and dessert bar in

Central London.

I decided to be a chef because my father is a baker,

and his father was a baker.

I still remember the smell of bread when I was a child.

Now I'm a pastry chef. When I'm planning to do a dessert,

I just want to play with people's minds,

then to enjoy every single moment.

I'm a very ambitious chef.

A dream come true for me would be the first chef to get

one Michelin star just doing desserts.

David, have you prepared pigeon before and cooked it?

-Once.

-Once?

-Yeah.

-OK, your lucky day.

Today's your second.

David, 20 minutes.

Off you go, Chef.

Your pigeon's in, and you've only had five minutes.

Yeah.

Right, David, what's the plan?

Roasting the pigeon on the crown.

-Yeah.

-And then I'll make a sauce with stock, some cream, some butter,

-and then I'm serving some mushrooms and carrots and beetroots.

-OK.

Though you're a pastry chef,

you've spent some time in the hot kitchen, though?

Yes, just a little time.

When I was working back in Brazil, I used to be a sous-chef.

When did you last work in the savoury section, then?

Two years ago.

If you've not spent a great deal of time in the kitchen...

-Yeah.

-..you've really put yourself under a huge challenge here,

-haven't you?

-Yes, definitely.

There's no point doing something if there is no challenges in it.

-Oof, you can say that.

-Yeah.

-I'm going to let you carry on cooking, then.

-Yeah.

Get yourself another tray to put that on.

Ah-ah-ah-ah.

Seven minutes left to poison us.

-How's that looking?

-It's looking all right.

Just finish off on the pan.

You've got just 60 seconds, all right?

-All done?

-Yes.

David has served the pigeon breast and heart with carrots, mushrooms,

pickled beetroot, and a cream sauce.

David, it's obvious to me, and I'm not a chef,

that you don't have a great deal of experience when it comes to prepping

the pigeon. Some of your work practices were bothering me.

The use of the same board for raw meat and raw vegetables.

This is a basic health and safety issue.

You've put a plate of food up.

It's pretty.

But that's about it. Carrots are on the hard side,

they're not peeled, they're not trimmed.

The beetroot is too hard, there's no flavour to it.

The pigeon is not great practice at all.

It's not a good start, I just hope

you can pull it back in the next round.

David, I'm hoping for your sake and ours that you've got a cracking

dessert in the next round. Off you go, Chef.

Devastated.

Very upset with myself.

Last up is 29-year-old Brett,

who develops desserts for a major UK supermarket.

My background as a chef has been fine dining, three Rosette, one Michelin -

hotels and restaurants across the West Midlands.

I've got a young family, so just moved into development for a better

work-life balance, really.

That's pretty much how I managed to end up making cheesecakes.

The skills test probably worries me the most, because it's hit and miss.

You could either get something which you know and breeze through,

or you could have something you've never heard of.

And then where do you go from there, really?

HE CHUCKLES

Brett, welcome to MasterChef.

-You feeling OK?

-I'm very well, thank you, how are you?

-How's your nerves?

-Erm, OK, I think.

Over to you, Chef. Let's go.

Brett, what's the plan for your pigeon?

So, for the pigeon, I'm going to roast the crown.

I'm going to use the legs and the wings to make the sauce,

and then I'm going to do some beetroots, some blackberries,

some dandelion leaves with it, possibly.

Mmm. Love a dandelion.

How long do you normally take to roast the pigeon on the crown?

Around 8-10 minutes.

Brett, you look pretty comfortable, Chef.

Yeah. I'm a little bit nervous, but...

You're now developing a dish, so you should be really at home here.

Yeah, I suppose so, when you look at it like that.

Your career seems pretty sorted, why MasterChef?

A challenge. Obviously, working in development,

the food we are doing isn't as restauranty as I'm used to,

so it's nice just to get back in the kitchen.

And you thought you'd choose THIS kitchen?

I've worked in kitchens. I thought, "Why not?"

Look at that! That's what we like.

You've put your bird in, and you've only got eight minutes to go.

-Yes.

-And you said it would take eight minutes to cook it.

Yes. Maybe should have got that in a little bit sooner.

Give me a rundown of what you've got left to do.

I'm waiting for everything to cook.

Good answer.

Come on, Brett.

Wish you'd have got it in sooner, now, don't you?

Uh, yes.

That's it, Brett. You're on borrowed time here, Chef.

-All done?

-All done.

Nick of time.

Thank you.

Brett has cooked the pigeon on the crown and served it with the liver,

poached beetroot, a dandelion and endive salad,

and a pigeon and blackberry sauce.

I think it looks OK.

Definitely seen much worse.

I like that you cooked the bird on the crown.

But you left it to the last eight minutes to sort of get it in oven.

But good to see you sort of put it back in the pan to try and sort of help

-it along.

-I love the cooking of the pigeon.

The way you coloured it, and the seasoning,

and that love that you showed for it, butter inside, spot on.

-Thank you.

-Love the little salad on the dish.

Love the fruit. Really like the sauce.

Everything could have done with just a touch longer.

Basically, Brett, you need to speed up, mate.

Good job, very, very good.

Great start in the kitchen, Brett.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

We'll keep a close eye on you in the next round.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

Good lad. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Yeah!

I should have managed my time better.

But I'm really pleased, actually.

I think it went OK.

Looking back at these six, I think we had a pretty decent standard.

A couple of chefs who I've been pleased about today,

and there's really one chef that has got a serious point to prove in the

-next round.

-Can I give you my tip as a dark horse to keep a close eye on?

-Go on.

-Louisa.

I think she's got real passion and drive.

Overall, interesting group of chefs.

I can't wait to see what they do next, though.

I'm curious and I think they can

bring something more to the next round.

Good to see you back in the kitchen.

The skills test is always a tough challenge.

But now it's the signature dish.

It's all about you. You're going to have to give it your best shot.

Some of you have got to focus,

you've got to dig deep and show us that you mean business.

It's over to you now, Chefs.

This is your recipe, this is your food,

it's a real chance for you to really show your class.

At the end of this, three of you will be staying in the competition,

but three of you will be going home.

One hour, 15 minutes.

Off you go.

I think my time management is my major concern at the moment.

Just because I am by nature quite a laid-back person.

So I've just got to go out kind of all guns blazing.

So I'm doing guinea fowl saltimbocca.

Saltimbocca, I believe in Italian translates to "jump in the mouth".

It's an old dish that's traditionally done with veal.

-You're using guinea fowl.

-Yeah.

-OK.

-With a pan of classic French-braised peas, lettuce and onions.

And just some chips on the side,

cos I wanted it to be a bit personal,

and for me, I love Sunday dinners,

and I loved growing up with chicken and chips.

So this is kind of reminiscent of that.

Is it elegant, is it smart, or is it Sunday lunch?

It's not a Sunday lunch round your nan's house.

But it should definitely give you those vibes of a lazy Sunday lunch.

I'm just wondering how sexy chicken and chips has got to be to get you

-through.

-So am I, but we're going to find out.

Sock it to them.

Jack's dish, he says, is a take on a nice sort of Sunday roast with the

addition of chips.

I like the sound of it.

This, however, has still got to look refined,

no matter how laid-back Jack makes it.

So I'm doing three different cuts of lamb.

Lamb cannon, which is going to be sous-vide.

I'm doing the braised neck, which needs to be melt in the mouth.

And I'm going to do the sweetbreads,

which are going to be lightly poached and then breadcrumbed and deep-fried.

I think all three elements of the lamb are critical.

I just need to make sure I absolutely nail it.

The intriguing part about this dish is the romesco sauce.

Nice pepper sauce, a bit of warmth is what I want through this.

And then there's some charred leeks to go with it.

I like the sounds of his dish,

I like his attitude and that he wants to prove to us that he's a

chef to be reckoned with.

What is it about this that's going to make us fall in love with it?

I'm doing three different cuts of lamb, cooked three different ways,

so they all need to be cooked very well.

I think all the flavours definitely work and hopefully I can deliver a

very well-balanced dish, which all three of you enjoy.

Have any of your private clients eaten this dish before?

I have not served this dish as it is, but I have done sort of variations.

This is a special MasterChef dish, is it?

It is, yes. Just for you.

Sayan is cooking us a sea trout dish.

And he's serving it with two different purees.

A potato puree...

..and a pea puree.

I can see how this dish is going to look, very colourful.

Sounds very simple.

I hope it's not too simple.

You said in the skills test, Sayan, that you loved meat,

you loved the flavours of home,

and yet you're doing everything that is the opposite of what you love.

I think that MasterChef is all about challenging yourself.

-Yeah, but not right now!

-No, I know.

Are we going to get to see any spices in your cookery,

a little bit of Mother's food?

The only spice I've got is nutmeg,

which I'm going to use for the spinach.

Is that it? Nutmeg?

-I was expecting some of Mum's flavours of Calcutta.

-Yeah.

You've been in Scotland too long, Sayan.

I think so, yeah.

My style of cooking is very simple.

Very colourful.

Tried this dish many times, and it really works.

Yeah, I think the judges will love it.

40 minutes have gone.

That means you've got 35 minutes left, please.

Brett, as a development chef in pastry,

I'm a little bit surprised to see you chopping up cauliflower.

Well, I wanted to show you that I'm not just all about pastry,

that I also know how to cook savoury food as well.

So, I'm doing roasted rump of beef and then with that I'm doing a

unconventional cauliflower cheese,

so I'm going to roast cauliflower and then I'm just going to pipe

a truffle cheese into the little crevices. And then it's got a

bone marrow and breadcrumb sort of crumb to go with it.

Oh, mate, tell you what,

you can sprinkle your cheese into my little crevices any time you like,

son, especially if you've got a bit of truffle as well!

You've got a lot to do in an hour and 15.

-Yeah.

-Is it doable, Brett?

I've done it before so there's no reason why I can't do it again.

I love the sound of Brett's dish here today but my attention has been

caught by the cauliflower cheese.

It's got truffle, bone marrow, cheese and cauliflower.

If this works out,

possibly one of the best cauliflower and cheese I've had in a while.

It's essentially like a Sunday roast, isn't it?

It's just roast beef and cauliflower cheese.

It's all going to be down to the cooking of the beef,

that's the real hero, and then the cauliflower cheese to really do its thing.

And then everything else hopefully should be plain sailing.

You've got 20 minutes left, OK?

Just 20 minutes.

-Tell us about your dish.

-So,

I'm going to be cooking Welsh Wagyu cooked two ways.

I'm doing a Denver cut and I'm going to be doing a rib-eye also.

So I'm going to sous-vide the rib-eye and I'm going to put my Denver

in the pressure cooker and then I'm going to glaze it with a miso glaze.

I'm doing salt-baked kohlrabi, red-wine poached carrots.

I'm going to make an aniseed sauce.

I'm going to also make a carrot puree.

I'm going to do some shiitake mushrooms,

asparagus, and some radish just to kind of refresh the plate.

-Whoa!

-Is that it?

- I believe so. - Hang on a minute.

I'm a little bit lost at the moment, I'm not going to lie to you.

It sounds like you've got a lot going on, that's why.

I really want to prove to you guys that I can cook a good sauce and a

good bit of meat cos in my last round I didn't do so well, so I really hope that I

can show you that today.

Louisa seems very determined and I love that about her attitude.

She has a lot of work and also some very strong flavours on her plate of

food. If this works, it will be amazing.

It would mean the world to me if the judges gave me good feedback.

It would build my confidence as a chef.

It's a lot to get done, but I have practised it.

I really want to push myself and take risks and that's why I'm here.

I need to make sure that my dessert's perfect.

If I don't get it bang-on,

I won't have a chance to stay in the competition.

I don't want to go home today.

David, that was a bit of a rough skills test, wasn't it?

-Yes, Chef.

-How you feeling?

A bit nervous that I have a point to prove, definitely.

Well, I can see that you're doing a dessert,

which does please me, because that's what you do every day.

What is your dessert?

My dessert is a take on strawberries and cream.

Basically, I'm tempering some white chocolate and then we end up with a

white chocolate ring.

And inside this ring, I'm going to have two layers of cake.

There's going to be a crunchy cake and a soft cake made with olive oil.

And then I have vanilla Chantilly in the middle, and then I

have different kind of strawberries to go with it.

It's do or die. It needs to be outstanding.

I love it! I love it!

Tempering white chocolate in any kitchen is difficult,

let alone this one.

Under this pressure, in this heat,

I'm intrigued to see if he can pull himself back and deliver

something special.

I'm really going for it, this place is not safe at all.

I'm going to temper chocolate.

It is the hardest part of this dish.

If I don't get it right, I might finish with nothing on the plate.

Guys, you've got only three minutes and I can see a lot of empty plates.

One minute left.

One or two of you are in a bit of trouble here.

Stop! Time's up.

First up is Brett.

His signature dish is roasted rump of beef with pomme puree,

blackened Roscoff onions,

cavolo nero, and a cauliflower cheese with truffle and bone marrow,

topped with breadcrumbs. And a beef and Madeira sauce.

Overall, I like the dish a lot.

I think the beef is beautifully cooked.

I love the pomme puree.

The cauliflower, I think is absolutely delicious.

I think you've conjured up some

really, really good flavours and textures.

I love your sauce.

Sweet, sticky, shiny.

That cauliflower, mate, you had me over at the first mouthful of that.

Truffle, bone marrow, meaty, heady, I think it's lovely.

Yeah, it's a good dish there, Brett.

You should be pleased with yourself.

Thank you.

I think I've had a good day so far.

I was happy with what I did, so...

And to get those sorts of comments, it was great.

Peter's signature dish is lamb three ways.

Lamb loin, braised neck and crispy sweetbreads,

with romesco sauce, grilled leek,

potato foam

and a lamb sauce.

I think the loin is cooked nicely, it's lovely and pink.

The neck is just falling apart and the sweetbread has got a nice crunch

to it. It's still got a bit of texture inside.

However, I find that the meat is

just screaming for a bit more seasoning.

But it's a huge step up from your last round, Peter.

A massive, massive step up and I'm pleased for you.

Thank you.

Peter, without a doubt, it's an improvement on your skills test.

But the romesco sauce lacks depth of flavour.

And, for me, I don't feel it should really be with this dish at all.

The large leek is quite difficult to cut.

I prefer the small leeks.

So the dish isn't coming together as a whole dish for me.

I really like all three ways you have done that lamb, I really do.

I don't want the romesco and the lamb sauce and the puree.

I think we've got three sauces there and

it's a little bit muddled for me.

Mixed feedback.

I would really like to get great feedback from all three of them.

So I'm definitely not confident at this stage.

Jack's signature dish is roasted

guinea fowl with prosciutto and sage.

With braised peas, lettuce, onion and tarragon.

A sauce flavoured with offal and Marsala.

And a side of chips.

I've watched you cook twice and it's the second time you've almost run

out of time. It's resulted in a dish

that's over-seasoned, too much fat,

greasy chips and a real strong taste of tarragon.

These are big lumps of fat I'm taking off that bird.

No-one wants this on their plate.

Are you pleased with what you've cooked?

The execution is not what I wanted.

I'm shocked.

I am absolutely shocked at that dish.

It's roast dinner, at best.

There's no refinement in this dish whatsoever.

You're gutted, you're upset, you know...

And that's not how we want it.

We want you coming in here to show off what you're all about.

We're deflated because I don't think you achieved that, Jack.

Majorly.

Proper disappointed. Just a bit irritated with myself, really.

There's no chance I'm staying in the competition after that.

Not in a million years.

Sayan has served pan-seared wild trout with sauteed spinach,

dill mashed potato, beetroot and orange puree, pea puree,

beetroot powder and dill oil.

That's a colourful old plate, that is.

You promised us a bit of colour.

That is just bouncing off of that plate.

The fish is slightly over for me, but I like the seasoning on it.

The skin is nice and crispy.

The pea puree and the beetroot puree is a little bit lost on the dish.

I do love the oil, though.

The fish is going a little dry, for me.

Your spinach is nicely cooked, and

your pomme puree is beautifully smooth.

It just feels a little safe, to me.

I'd like to see you push yourself a little bit more.

It works cos it should do.

But it just lacks excitement.

It's got a bit of colour to it.

But, some spinach, some pomme puree and a bit of fish...

I am looking for a little bit more bells and whistles, Sayan,

when it's a signature dish round.

It was definitely better than the first round.

But I think they wanted me to do a

little more than what is on the plate.

Kind of happy.

David's dessert is his take on strawberries and cream.

A white chocolate and red cocoa butter ring, filled with olive oil cake,

olive oil biscuit, strawberries and Chantilly cream.

With a strawberry gel and a variety of wild strawberries.

That is beautiful.

I think it's a lovely presentation, it's summer all over it.

That is an absolute surprise.

One mouthful after the other after the other.

There is salt amongst the strawberries.

Some of the strawberries are sharp.

The cream is light and fluffy and not too sweet.

The sweetness comes from the chocolate.

Now, I've got this immense problem.

I've got a guy in front of me who cooks desserts like an angel,

and can't prepare a pigeon properly.

David, it's refreshing, it's light.

I am pleased it's not overly sweet.

There's nothing special in it, you know, it's strawberries and cream.

But you have definitely shown some skill.

This is where your strength is at.

I'm still concerned, though, about your cooking in a savoury kitchen.

If I received this in a restaurant,

I think I would be very disappointed with it.

It's enjoyable but in my mind it's a cake shop dessert.

It's not a restaurant dessert.

I love it. I absolutely love it.

We'll have an argument about it, us three, later.

Righto.

I was expecting to get a full score on this dish.

I don't know if I'm going to live to fight another day.

I've done what I could.

Last up is Louisa.

Her dish is rib eye of Wagyu beef and miso-glazed Denver cut of beef,

carrot puree, caramelised baby onions, salt-baked kohlrabi,

shiitake mushrooms, red-wine poached carrots,

asparagus, raw mooli, nasturtium,

and an aniseed sauce.

Louisa, I think that's one of the prettiest-looking beef dishes I have

seen in a while.

Very, very good presentation, Louisa.

Beautifully put together, and attention to detail is very sharp and clean.

For me, I'm really enjoying the Wagyu beef.

It's fatty, it's got all of the natural marbling through it.

It's delicious. The Denver cut that you have,

there's so much of that miso, it's a really strong flavour.

I like the freshness that the

natural discs of mooli bring to the palate,

because there's so many strong flavours going on here.

But you've shown that, you know,

there's some things about you that pique my curiosity, Louisa.

Really.

I really admire the work, and I really admire the skill.

But, honestly, I'm not sure I could finish it all.

It's so big, it's so rich, it's so

meaty, I'm not sure I could finish it.

Louisa, this is a dish of immense flavour.

Quite extraordinary what you have brought to the plate.

I am a big fan of big-flavoured sauces, and I really enjoyed that.

That's a first-class sauce, with big, big flavour as well.

You've got a puree of carrot that's like silk.

You've got crunchy vegetables running through the dish.

You put yourself under a huge amount of pressure to get this work done,

and I admire that.

I really do, and I admire the dish that you have put together.

You should be very proud of yourself, Louisa.

-You have done a great job.

-Thank you very much.

-Are you pleased?

-I am happy, yep.

I pushed myself, that's what I wanted to do.

Next time, if I ever make this dish again,

I'm definitely going to make it less rich.

Don't listen to him, I liked it.

No, no, no, listen to me. You're absolutely right.

It's so overwhelming to get them kind of comments.

All of the hard work was worth it, and it all paid off.

-GREGG:

-I feel this has been a day of ups and downs, of twists and turns.

We got some lovely food today.

We got some great ideas and some very interesting flavours.

There are some chefs who had some ground to make up,

and some surprises as well.

There was one guy who had a real good-quality skills test, and had a very,

very good signature dish, as well.

And that was Brett.

The rump of beef with that fantastic cauliflower!

I thought that was delightful.

That was just an indulgent dish, it was enjoyable to eat.

I see absolutely no reason why Brett shouldn't go straight through.

-Yeah, yeah.

-I'd like to put one chef through.

-Who?

-Louisa.

-Interesting.

-She was interesting.

There was a lot I enjoyed about her cooking today.

She has got a great attitude in the kitchen, as well.

What do you think?

Her professionalism was outstanding for her age,

and for someone so young to deliver a dish with so much detail

and structure, it's a very, very clever thing to do.

On today's food, she must go through.

Actually, she's my chef of the day.

There is one contestant here, who, it's fair to say,

had a disaster in his skills test. That was David from Brazil.

He had a real point to prove in this round.

Guys, I absolutely loved his dessert, that strawberries and cream,

I thought was absolutely delicious.

I wanted so much to like this dessert.

I thought it looked better than it tasted.

There was one chef in here today who really disappointed me.

Disappointed all of us.

-And that was Jack.

-Mm.

Jack had a decent skills test.

He had attitude,

we were waiting for him to come in here and really show off.

That dish he gave us, with the guinea fowl, it wasn't good.

It wasn't good at all.

Jack, without a doubt, was the surprise of the day.

Not a good plate of food.

He looks really disappointed in himself.

We are disappointed for him.

And unfortunately, I think it's cost him.

It has cost him. Yeah, he's going home.

We have got one more place to give and two chefs left to discuss,

Peter and Sayan.

It's interesting, because

all three of us picked out bits of

Peter's signature dish that we liked,

and all three of us picked out bits that we were unsure of.

I liked the cooking of the lamb leg, it was falling apart.

I thought the loin was nice and pink,

but everything just lacked a bit of seasoning.

Sayan's dish was without fault, it just wasn't particularly exciting.

It was a very safe dish.

It wasn't a bad dish, but it was definitely safe.

Does that mean he's not a good cook?

I don't know. He didn't make any mistakes.

It was nice! I don't want just nice, I want a bit more than nice.

It will be a shame to go at this point,

and I know I can do better than this,

and I can prove it if I get a chance.

I would hate to go home now.

I just hope I've done enough.

So, I'll have to wait and see, really.

On behalf of all of us, what I'd like to do is thank you

for all your hard work and commitment.

Well done.

We can only take three of you through to the next round.

The first chef leaving the competition is...

-..David.

-Thank you, David.

I feel very disappointed that I couldn't go further in the competition,

but at least I've tried.

I know that I'm way better than this, it's just the pressure that got me.

Our second chef leaving the competition is...

..Jack.

Miles tougher than what I expected it to be.

It's probably going to give me a good kick-start to push on a little bit,

and maybe not be so chilled out,

and maybe take things a bit more seriously.

So, our final chef leaving the competition is...

..Sayan.

Thank you, Sayan.

Would be better if I could get another chance.

In the real life, you don't get double chances.

You know, life goes on, I'm going to come back stronger.

Well done, you three. You are through to a quarterfinal.

I am so, so happy.

I can't stop smiling, I'm so happy.

I am very relieved, I'm absolutely exhausted.

I know the hard work begins now.

I'm feeling great, I'm happy with what I did, but...

..I can always push myself further and I can always do better.

Tomorrow night, it's the quarterfinal.

And this week's best chefs return to prove they have what it takes.

There's a little bit of confusion with this dish.

Those who deliver will earn the right to cook for the critics.

I think not everyone wants to be

challenged and smacked around the face.

I come here for slaps around the face. That's why I'm here!