Episode 20 MasterChef: The Professionals

Only an elite group of chefs holds two Michelin stars.

Michel Roux Jr is one of them.

Two bass, now.

CHEERING

Now he and MasterChef judge Gregg Wallace

are on the hunt for Britain's next culinary superstar,

the professional with the talent to cut it

in the world's top kitchens.

Perfect.

It's the last of the semifinals.

All this week, the six semifinalists have been split into pairs...

..going head-to-head to fight for a place in the competition.

Ash and Oli have cooked to an exceptional level

to secure their place in the finals.

That could be served in most fine- dining establishments for sure.

That is incredible!

It's the pinnacle. It's the final now.

I'm in the final three. I've got a chance of winning this now.

Now there is only one place left.

Last to go head-to-head are Steve and Claire.

They've been up against each other from day one.

Throughout the competition he's become quite a good friend,

so to know that one of us is leaving is a real shame.

'He's a great chef.'

I've got to do well to get to that final.

'It's a shame we can't both go through.'

If she beats me today I think she'll go and win it,

but I wouldn't have entered if I didn't want to win.

I'm so close to being where everyone wants to be.

It would be just an amazing achievement, really.

Today the two of them are heading to Central London,

home to Pied a Terre,

one of the capital's top Michelin-starred restaurants.

One green, one rabbit, three minutes.

Head chef Marcus Eaves earned his first Michelin star at 27...

..quite a feat, as the restaurant had only been open 14 months.

At this level, you've got to give it everything.

You've got to keep coming in every day. Every service has to be better than the last.

Work strongly on the technique.

Attention to detail is very important to us.

Every single little detail matters. We're striving for perfection.

Marcus is a full-on, intense, non-stop chef.

OK, go. Quickly, please. Table one. Go, go, go.

This will definitely be a baptism of fire for Claire and Steve.

My standards are huge here. There's accolades to live up to,

and there's a big reputation.

Bringing two new chefs in is a massive risk for me.

'I've never worked in a Michelin-starred kitchen before.'

Great opportunity that I've always wanted to do,

and I'm now going to fulfil my ambition.

'I'm fairly confident, but I'm also quite nervous.'

I'm just hoping the nerves don't get the better of me.

Welcome to Pied a Terre. My expectations of you guys today

are absolutely huge. What I expect is absolutely top-drawer.

If it's not right, it won't go into the restaurant.

Hopefully you'll pull it off, and the best of luck. Come with me.

During service, Steve will be cooking steamed saddle of rabbit

stuffed with chicken mousse, served with rack of rabbit,

rabbit kidney and liver, peas, broad beans,

truffle, and a shallot emulsion.

There's the chicken mousse. Pipe that along the centre.

Get your Parma ham.

This is the chicken puree, the chicken mousse,

and what this does is, it acts as a glue.

You're going to place the rabbit saddle on top of there,

and then we're going to roll it over.

This will be steamed, so we'll make sure it's really tight.

I'm sure you know, rabbit's a difficult one to cook.

Undercooked, we can't serve it too pink,

but if we cook it too much, it's going to be dry.

Feel that now. It's gone near the heat. It's quite soft.

When it is cooked, it'll be nice and firm.

If you want to just touch that, see how firm it is now.

It's changed quite a lot, hasn't it?

You need to make sure all your offal, the livers, the kidneys

and the racks, are nicely cooked. Not too raw but not overcooked.

It's very important we don't get too much colour

otherwise the rabbit will dry out.

This is the emulsion. As you can see, it's nice and fresh.

The peas are nice and green, and it's a nice sauce consistency.

If you get it too hot, it'll separate,

-and it'll get sent back. OK?

-Yes, chef.

-Yeah?

-Lovely.

Nice long strokes, OK? Now we've opened that up,

you can see it's nice and moist. It's not dry at all.

Little cutlets, slices of the liver.

OK?

All we're looking at doing is showcasing that rabbit there.

It's cooked beautifully. We need to show that to the customers, OK?

Offal in the centre.

And a touch of truffle at the last second.

OK, Steve. So this is what I expect.

If it's not up to standard, I'll be sending it back.

It's very important that you get this right.

Timing's essential. It takes 15 minutes to cook,

-so we can't afford any delays, OK?

-Yes, chef.

'Lot of work to do. Lot going on the dish. Very, very intricate.'

I'm worried about not cooking it right.

I want him to be happy with the way I'm cooking everything.

If I muck it up, I'll ruin the whole service.

I don't want to make any mistakes in his kitchen.

Claire's dish is pan-fried turbot served with a courgette flower

stuffed with salmon-and-basil mousse,

sauteed baby aubergines, courgette and a basil puree,

and an olive-oil emulsion.

When you're cooking turbot, it all depends on the size of the fish.

Four minutes, we'll put the turbot in the pan,

but if it's a bit thinner, we might do it in three.

It depends. You've got to use your own judgement there as well.

Turbot's the king of all fish, the most expensive fish you can buy,

£17, £18 a kilo at some times of the year,

so we've got to make sure we look after it and get it right.

-See that?

-Yes.

-Nice and golden.

If you feel that, it's firm, but still slightly translucent,

-a little bit sort of shiny.

-Yeah.

-OK?

With the courgette flowers,

you want to make sure you're very gentle.

-If you feel that, it's just starting to firm up.

-Yeah.

Again, they're very expensive, about £1 to £1.50 each,

so you're dealing with all the top products here,

so just be very, very careful.

And at about one minute, bang, you'll put your baby artichokes on.

So we got some courgette-and-basil puree here,

and that will go on the plate just at the last second.

When you bring a fish up, it's important to make sure we drain it.

Yep.

Just a little bit of the sauce.

Touch of olive oil at the last second,

and there you go.

This is what I expect. If it's not up to standard,

-I'll be sending it back.

-Yep.

-Excellent.

A lot of pressure. I mean, this fish probably cost, like, £90.

You know, there's no room for error. So, yeah, it's quite daunting.

With food at this level, the quest for perfection

begins at the preparation stage.

Each of Claire's turbot pieces must weigh exactly 90 grams.

-90 grams, yeah?

-Yep.

I just love the precision about this style.

It's, like, cutting-edge stuff. It's new. It's interesting.

Fine dining is where I aspire to be, so it's great experience.

For his prep, Steve is taking the outer casing off each single pea

in his dish.

This kitchen is different to kitchens I've worked before.

It's higher standard. The chefs around in it are quality.

I have high standards, but these guys have even higher standards,

and I want to try and reach that.

It is tough, but I want to get there, you know?

OK, guys, we got 35 for lunch.

Everybody needs to be in and out within the hour,

so we need to be quick, fast-paced, no mistakes.

So let's get started.

I'll be watching everything they do,

down to seasoning, the way they carve the meat,

cook the fish, every tiny little detail.

I'll have my eye on what's going on, and any mistakes,

if we let that go to the diner, that's just not acceptable.

I'm really buzzing. Can't wait. Looking forward to it. It'll be good.

I know I can do it. It's just, you know, combating the nerves.

OK. Listen up, please. Check up on one mackerel, one belly,

-followed by one rabbit, one turbot.

-ALL: Yes, chef.

First check on... I've got one rabbit on order.

-Don't forget to taste, Steve.

-Yes, chef.

-Steve, how long does yours take to cook?

-Eight minutes.

If I start cooking everything now, it'll all overcook,

and it'll be sat there. You want everything as fresh as possible.

Four minutes, we're going, guys.

-One rabbit, one turbot.

-Yes, chef.

-Yeah.

-Start dressing now, guys.

-Yes.

-Yeah.

Come on, Steve. Let's go.

Steve, that rabbit's not hot enough. Get it back in the oven, please.

-OK, chef.

-Right, quickly. It's going cold here, yeah?

Come on, Claire, let's go. Pick up the pace.

Steve, let's not get sloppy, mate, yeah?

Ten seconds, otherwise we need to start again, guys, yeah?

-OK, Claire. Very nice there, yeah?

-Yes, chef.

-Wipe your plate. We can go. Well done.

-Yes, chef.

-Thank you.

Overall, spot on. We've got a few issues there with Steve,

and so far nothing with Claire, so overall, very nice table. Yeah.

At the moment we've got one, two, three turbot on order.

We've got three rabbit on order. Three of each.

If all the tables get called away at the same time, the pressure's going to be on.

First table went pretty well. I got three on order at the moment,

so hopefully I can just keep that going and not fall below that.

Yeah, very good start.

-OK.

-Hello, chef.

-New check.

-Three rabbit and one turbot, yes?

-Yep.

-Yeah.

-Come on! Let's go!

-Yes, chef.

30 seconds. So, Steve, how many rabbit do you have on order?

-Um, six, chef.

-That's it. Lovely.

We're pretty much back-to-back now on tables.

Right, guys, you're falling behind here. Let's go.

Come on. Quickly.

That's lovely. Very, very nice.

She seems to be under control. Everything's organised. Very happy with that.

Claire, very nice again, yeah?

The turbot's fantastic. Delicious, perfectly cooked.

Beautiful piece of fish.

I think I'm managing fine.

My checks might start coming on thick and heavy,

so I just need to keep on top of it.

Look at this, Steve. That's no good there.

-Can we be careful on that, please?

-Sorry.

-Thank you.

That's it. Lovely.

-Right. We need a big clean-down now.

-Yes, chef.

Tidy up your board there. Keep yourself organised.

You've got one, two, three, four, five tables

are going to be called away.

Chef, how many rabbits have I got in total, please?

In total you've got one, two, three, four,

including the one we're going on.

-Straight after that, three rabbit followed by one turbot.

-Yes, chef.

I've got to balance the cooking of the rabbit.

I've got to make sure I get all the timings right, really.

-Six minutes. Three rabbit, three turbot.

-Yes, chef.

The next order to leave the pass is for a large table,

but all the plates must be ready at the same time.

-Right, Steve. Come on, mate. We're going.

-Yeah.

OK, Steve, they're no good. Get rid of those, please.

They're not good enough. Get some more liver on, quickly, please.

-Right. Is your liver back on there?

-Yeah.

What you going to do? Borrow one from the next table?

-Yes, chef.

-Good idea. Well done.

Let's not get flustered, yeah? Carry on.

-Right, Claire, are you ready?

-Yeah.

-OK, Steve, we need to go here, yeah?

-Yes, chef.

-I really don't want to have to send it back.

-Yes, chef.

Cut those rabbit down and make sure they're all the same size.

Come on. Quickly.

Steve, I've got ten seconds now, and then that's it.

We need to start again.

-PHONE RINGING

-Hello?

HE SPEAKS IN ACCENTED ENGLISH

Right, Steve, that's the restaurant calling down,

asking for the main course. That doesn't happen here. Hurry, please.

Steve, Steve, Steve, that's undercooked, mate.

That's undercooked.

Take this away to start again. It's all going cold here.

Let's get rid of it, please. Let's get rid of this.

-That can't happen again.

-No, chef.

Sorry, Steve. That's too long, mate. Come on. Let's get rid of it.

We have one chance on every table. That's it.

One chance. That's all we have. Claire, get rid of that, please.

What's happening here? You getting a bit flustered? Calm down, OK?

What I suggest... Listen. Don't get confused here.

What we'll do here... Stop. These are cooked,

-so you can borrow from that table, yeah?

-Yeah.

All right? OK, Steve. This time you're going to nail it, yeah?

-Yes, chef.

-Seven minutes, we're going.

No mistakes. Everything spot-on, please, yeah?

Right. Yeah, it's very important I get these ones right.

I can't muck up again, man.

-Make sure it's nice and tidy. This is our last chance.

-Yes, chef.

I don't want to have to step in there, mate.

-Yes?

-Yes, chef.

Claire, start thinking about your plate, please. Very nice turbot.

Yes, chef.

-And three minutes on the next one?

-That's it. You've got it. Lovely.

Steve, plate up, mate.

Lovely.

Three rabbit.

Steve, very nice, that. Lovely.

Good feedback from the chef, but I've got to keep up.

I've got to carry on. The next one's got to be even better.

That's it. Very good.

Lovely. Let's go. Nice rabbit. Nice fondant.

Well, Steve, lovely. Very nice rabbit.

-Where's the Thai basil, Claire?

-Here, chef.

-Come on, then.

We're falling behind here. Steve's ready.

I wasn't happy with my performance, but I'm stepping it up now.

Well done. That was absolutely spot-on, mate.

-Lovely rabbit. Well done.

-Thanks, chef.

I ordered the rabbit as the main, and it was absolutely fantastic.

Steve's last dish, absolutely spot-on. Lovely.

Best dish yet. Outstanding.

Claire, well done. Steve, well done. Fantastic. Great service, guys.

Thank you.

Overall the service was good. A few glitches here or there

in the beginning, but as a whole service, not too bad at all.

Steve got a little bit flustered, seemed to lose focus

and it fell apart a bit for him.

By the end he'd come through it.

He managed to fight his way through, and he got there in the end.

That service was frantic, fast, exciting,

impressive...everything, really.

Pretty intense, really. Pretty intense.

Claire, overall, I was really, really impressed.

Absolutely fantastic. Everything was just brilliant.

She held her nerve. You could see she was shaking a little bit,

but absolutely spot-on.

I've really enjoyed working here today. It was great fun.

I mean, this is where I aspire to be,

so it's absolutely amazing to work here,

to have the privilege to work here. It's great.

Service has been relentless,

but the chefs must compete against each other once again.

Working from a recipe,

they will both have to recreate Marcus's signature dish -

poached lobster with crushed peas, confit white peach,

mint and tarragon emulsion.

The signature dish is very light, very fresh.

It basically sums up everything we're all about.

It's all about the lobster.

It needs to be cooked absolutely spot-on.

Just a touch undercooked, or even overcooked,

that'll just ruin the whole dish.

The lobster stock needs to be intense, packed full of flavour,

reduced down, and distinct flavour of lobster.

The peaches now... Because the dish is quite sweet,

we just add a little bit of salt.

There's nothing worse than dull-looking vegetables,

especially when we're dealing with peas,

asparagus, so it's really important that they're bright, bright green.

We're dealing with such delicate flavours,

if they don't get that seasoning right,

the dish will taste of nothing.

This dish is a massive challenge.

It's a huge ask.

I don't like not being very good at something.

'I want to try and impress. Very important.'

This is his signature dish, and I want to do it proud for him.

Steve, the presentation is very good.

It looks lovely and clean,

and very tidy, very sort of organised.

The garnish looks lovely and fresh,

and you can see the colours there are nice and vibrant.

Overall the dish has been executed really, really well.

Just lacking in just a touch of seasoning.

Tiny bit of seasoning. The lobster's cooked really well.

The peaches, cooked down to a T, nice and soft.

They're not overcooked. Just for me,

it's just lacking that little bit of punch.

I'm not sure whether your lobster stock wasn't reduced down enough,

but other than that, very good.

-OK, Steve. Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

Yeah, really happy. I was a bit worried about cooking it for him,

but good feedback and positive feedback.

It was never going to be to his high, high standard,

but you take it on board, and next time you season it perfectly,

so it's good feedback.

I need to recreate the dish as, you know, Marcus has created it,

so there's a lot of pressure. Really daunting.

Hopefully, you know, I don't mess up.

Fantastic. I think the presentation's absolutely brilliant.

Yeah. Very elegant. Lovely. You can see a nice bit of flair.

You're taking a lot of care over the way it looks. It looks fantastic.

Very good.

I mean, I must say, the lobster's cooked perfectly.

The vegetables are lovely and green. The garnish is very fresh.

The peaches, when I first saw the dish,

I thought they were a bit undercooked,

but they're nice and soft. They were perfect.

The sauce is not too thick. It hasn't split.

You've got the consistency absolutely spot-on.

If I came for lunch or dinner and got that, I'd be very happy.

Fantastic. I'm struggling, I really am,

to criticise the dish,

and that's a rare thing for me, so well done.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much, Claire.

-Thank you.

-Excellent.

I was so, so worried,

and it all came together, so, yeah, I'm so proud of myself.

I'm so pleased with the whole day.

From start to finish it's been great.

It ended on a really, really good high.

I'm so pleased with today. All I need to do in the next round

is prove I can do justice to my own food.

Then, you know, maybe I could be into the final!

Maybe I did come off second best today in the kitchen.

Maybe she did come off a little bit better.

But that's half time. We're not finished yet.

I will give... Next round, I will give it my all.

These two chefs have shone from the moment they walked in,

but we're going to lose one of them today.

Definitely a big deal if I went through to the final.

I definitely want it. I will be gutted if I go home today.

Hopefully I can pull it off.

Ages ago I started, and now I'm one step away from the final.

I'm determined, and just get in there and do it.

Looking forward to it, but it's going to be tough.

Welcome back. Hope you're inspired by your time

in a Michelin-starred kitchen.

Now you know the level that we expect.

You two are talented.

Prove it today. Go all the way. Grab that chance.

You are so close to the final, you can taste it.

It's there for the taking.

An hour and 45 minutes.

This is your food, for one place in the final three.

Off you go.

I'm looking forward to this, to see our two youngsters

battle it out against each other head-to-head,

one against one, and only one place in the final.

We are going to get exceptional cooking today, that is for sure.

I'm definitely worried, being up against Steve.

Consistently throughout he's done well.

He's my strongest competition.

It's going to be tough today. Claire's amazing.

We're both really good, but I just want to do well today,

and do my best. That's all I can do, really, and see what happens.

Steve and Claire are two of the best young chefs I've seen

in a long, long time. It's going to take something, I think,

for one of these to outdo the other -

something very, very special.

-Claire, what's your menu?

-Today I am cooking pan-roasted Dover sole

on the bone, with pork, peanut, caraway, butternut and truffle,

and for dessert I'm doing a chocolate "mollo"

with summer fruits and clotted cream.

Do you mean "moelleux"?

Possibly, yes. Sorry for the pronunciation.

Moelleux literally translates as "soft" or "gooey".

-Yes.

-So I'm guessing that this cake is going to be soft and gooey.

-Yes, exactly.

-I love the sound of your menu.

My only issue is trying to mix peanut with truffle,

Dover sole, and 101 other things that I see on your bench.

I just think they all work together, and they're a little bit different.

I mean, I haven't seen them in any of the restaurants.

HE LAUGHS There might be a reason for that.

There might be a reason for that, yes,

but, you know, I really enjoy the dish,

so as long as I can get all those flavours on,

-hopefully you will too.

-Mmm.

With this menu I'm trying to show that I have got something different,

and a little creative head, and hopefully it all works together.

Claire is cooking a sole garnished with truffle,

caraway seed,

pumpkin, peanut butter,

pumpkin seed...

There's a few elements that could go wrong with the dish.

I've got to prep the Dover sole,

so I need to make sure I take the middle bone out,

then when I actually cook it, it'll sort of buckle.

I love the fact she's cooking sole on the bone.

For me, it's the best way to cook any fish.

But it requires the skill of a craftsman.

Unlike cooking fish as a fillet,

you have to be able to judge it correctly.

Claire has got so much work to do with that main course.

I'm just worried she's going to have enough time to get this dessert right.

Claire's dessert is a chocolate moelleux,

which is not too different to a chocolate fondant.

It isn't runny. It is just gooey and soft.

The secret to that is not to overcook it.

Then we've got a sorbet,

with raspberries and yoghurt...

..and some summer fruits.

Ohhh!

With her dessert, she's serving chocolate soil.

For her age, to be coming up with dishes like that is fantastic.

It's well known there is a fine line between genius and madness.

Look at me and you!

I'm definitely going all out, but I've learned from the previous rounds

to not relax and do everything the last 20 minutes.

You're halfway, guys, OK?

It's the semifinals.

Knowing the quality of Claire and what she can produce,

I need to be on my game.

I'll kick myself if I play it safe today and go home.

-Steve, what's on the menu?

-Main course,

we got pan-fried turbot,

scallop and confit chicken thighs,

with truffle gnocchi and cep puree.

Ohhh! Do you know Michel's favourite fish?

-Yeah.

-You do?

-Yeah.

Oh, yeah. One of my favourite fish, definitely. Delicious. Good.

-And for dessert?

-We have chocolate mousse

with cherries and pistachio.

Cherries and pistachio how?

Got poached cherries, cherry sorbet, and then we have pistachio cream,

and then a little praline soil.

Very classic combinations of flavours here.

I want to show to you both that every round I go through,

I want to show something different. I'm versatile. I can cook other things.

Steve, I am really looking forward to this.

It sounds absolutely delicious. I just hope you can do it all justice.

This is the only time I've felt, like, really pressured,

because I know what's at stake. Today I'm enjoying it.

Hopefully the next step, but you can't help, at the back of your mind, I could be in the final.

Just do what you can do. We've loved your food so far. Loved it.

Cool.

These dishes are demanding,

but I'm confident again, if I reach my peak and 100 percent,

I've got every chance of going through.

He is just putting together, in that main course,

some of the best ingredients ever delivered by nature.

Steve is cooking turbot with confit chicken thighs,

a little red-wine jus,

cep puree, and a truffle gnocchi.

It's just a beautiful combination of ingredients

that I know work so well.

If you can get the right balance and cook that turbot bang-on,

heaven!

Turbot is an expensive, beautiful fish.

It demands respect.

It must not be overcooked.

And the chicken thighs are there for a reason.

They can be meaty and oily,

and add some extra texture and flavour to the dish.

Gnocchi are wonderful!

They should be light and airy, but still have a little bite to them.

That's what I'm expecting from these truffle gnocchi.

It is a risky dish, but it shows skill,

and in this competition, that's what they want to see.

Not content on making me delirious with his main course,

he's then got a chocolate mousse...

..a cherry sorbet...

He's also serving the cherries a la pistachio cream.

It's like Greggie plate heaven.

But a chocolate mousse, it should be set and not too gooey.

It should be light and airy.

It should still pack a real punchy taste of bitter chocolate,

and not be sickly sweet.

But too much pistachio paste

can overpower the delicate flavour of chocolate.

Steve's dessert may sound simple.

I don't think so.

Knowing Steve, it's going to be "wow".

There's a lot can go wrong, but it's about staying calm

and cooking it to my best, really.

If I rush it, my chocolate mousse might not set.

Sorbet might not churn.

A lot can go wrong, but if get it right, they're a win, in my eyes.

We've got just 25 minutes left.

Steve has got so much on. The washing up is piling up.

Claire is a methodical worker. She's well organised.

I love the way you've put all your ingredients there...

-Yeah.

-..ready to plate up.

The last time I cooked, my head was a mess in the last 20 minutes.

Today, hopefully organisation will help me keep a straight head.

Good. Well, keep that straight head.

Wow!

I've just been over to see Claire, and I've discovered another two more ingredients

that are going to go with the sole - caviar and coconut cream!

Just 15 minutes, guys.

Steve, did you make another sorbet?

-No. I made one sorbet.

-You made one sorbet?

-One batch, yeah.

-Cos it doesn't seem to be setting.

-It's... It's the recipe.

-It's a tried-and-tested recipe?

-Yeah, it is. Yeah.

-OK. Cool.

You're making me... It's making me panic.

Is all the recipe that you've made in there now?

-Yeah.

-It is?

-Yeah.

If it doesn't set, I might as well go home now.

No, no. That is not the issue, is it?

It is, because I had the same mistake last time.

No, no, no. Just get cracking. Do your job.

Don't worry about the sorbet.

It doesn't seem to be setting. We may or may not get one.

Five minutes, please!

OK?

They can taste the final. It's just round the corner.

Two dishes away!

This is excruciatingly delicious.

Last two minutes, all right?

Last 60 seconds, guys.

Steve has made pan-fried turbot with roast scallops

and confit of chicken thighs,

served with truffle gnocchi, cep puree and a red-wine reduction.

First glance, you think, "Oh, it's chaos."

But it's organised chaos.

You've placed things on a plate. You've not thrown it on there.

It looks appetising. It does look good.

For me, the best bit on there is that truffle gnocchi.

I've never, ever seen that before, and it's such a brilliant idea.

I think that is an absolute treat.

A wonderful array of ingredients, beautifully cooked.

Your little cep puree is almost nutty,

and beautifully smooth in texture. Works wonderfully with the turbot

that's been perfectly cooked. Your scallops are perfectly cooked too,

lovely and sweet. Tastes great, that.

Red-wine sauce, very good. Sharp, but not overpowering.

Your little gnocchi, bags of truffle flavour.

Delicious. Delicious!

It's glorious!

You've given us something which you can be proud of.

Steve's pudding is chocolate mousse with crackle crystals,

pistachio cream,

poached cherries, cherry sorbet,

pistachio tuile,

and a pistachio-and-cherry milkshake.

Mmm! Mmm!

Pistachio and cherry work incredibly well together,

and that little shot glass of cherry juice

and that milkshake of pistachio

is really delicious, really yummy.

It adds another dimension to this dessert,

which looks beautiful, absolutely beautiful.

You've made a really good pistachio tuile to go with it,

to add crunch, and your chocolate mousse is just right.

It's light, it's rich. It's got the surprise on there -

popping candy, and it's still popping in my mouth, which is wonderful.

And the sorbet, it's set on time. Only just,

but it's got not too much sugar. It's got a fair bit of acidity,

which means it's a really balanced dessert.

It's not sickly. It's not over-sweet. It's the kind of dessert that I love.

This is very good. Very, very good.

Well done.

HE CHUCKLES

Mmm!

Mmm!

Whay!

Got a firework show going off in my mouth.

I can hear it, even. HE LAUGHS

Brilliant. The whole thing is theatre.

The whole thing is a visual delight,

and it works because it tastes so good.

I think you have 100 percent completely nailed it.

-You all right?

-Yeah.

Don't know what to say. Those are, like, amazing comments.

I'm feeling over the moon. I nailed it,

did it to my best ability.

I'm amazed, delighted.

Claire's main course is roasted Dover sole on the bone

with pork puffs, butternut squash and butternut puree,

peanut sauce, Jabugo ham, caviar and truffle.

Wow! What an amazing collection of ingredients.

It looks beautiful. It's been dressed with such finesse

and lightness. It looks like a beautiful flowery rock garden.

I'll start with the sole.

See, I'm intrigued...

Sole, caviar, peanut.

The sole and the peanut sauce and the caraway seed is delicious,

really, really yummy. The sole, beautifully cooked.

The caviar is not necessary.

I'd go as far as saying even the truffle is not necessary.

Two of the most expensive ingredients on the plate are not necessary.

It has got a very, very good balance, though.

Taking away those two very expensive ingredients,

I think we had a nigh-on perfect dish.

This shows an immense amount of originality.

It's certainly the kind of originality we would want from a chef

at this level, and at this stage of the game,

that's for sure.

HE LAUGHS

Mmm!

There is so much going on here!

Heady truffle, salty, sticky ham,

more peanut... There is nothing in there that isn't cooked

with the best, best touch.

I'd happily eat it all.

You are a talent. You are an intriguing talent.

Claire's pudding is a chocolate moelleux,

which is a gooey cake, served with fresh summer berries,

yoghurt and berry sorbet,

confit orange zest, dehydrated yoghurt,

spearmint, clotted cream, raspberry dust and chocolate soil.

Claire, it looks absolutely beautiful.

I love it. Love it to bits. It's what great desserts are made of -

precision, beauty. Hopefully it tastes good.

HE WHISTLES

Ooh! HE CHUCKLES

Mmm!

The chocolate moelleux -

gooey, it's soft, which is exactly how it should be.

Delicious. And all your berries... You seasoned them

with a little drizzle of olive and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Beautiful. Attention to detail -

that's the kind of stuff that great chefs are made of.

And the honey at the bottom of the plate

with the crushed-up chocolate biscuits

and powdered raspberry has got a perfect balance.

It hits all the notes.

For me, this is... this is a perfect summery dessert.

GREGG GASPS

"Perfect", he said!

I love that chocolate, cos it is not too sweet at all,

but it is still thick and it's sticky,

and it tastes of cocoa, and then with the sharpness of the berries,

a splodge of clotted cream as well... That is very, very good.

-I've never had a moelleux.

-You have now.

Now I've tasted that, I don't know why people bother with fondants.

-You've changed my life!

-Wow! Really? SHE LAUGHS

Where you find this from at 22 years old, I've no idea.

That was pretty amazing, to say it was perfect,

to get that off a two-star chef, you know?

It's absolutely great.

Yeah.

I'm happy.

Well done! That food was fantastic.

You guys know how to cook.

But we've only got one place left in the final.

Off you go.

I've got a big grin on my face. I'm so happy, so happy for them!

I am absolutely bowled over by the quality of food we have had today.

That was better than most food I eat out.

That there is the future,

the next generation.

Steve's main course of turbot, scallop and chicken thighs

at a first glance looked possibly untidy,

but actually, when you analysed it and looked at it,

it was incredibly neat.

Everything there was placed on the plate

with dexterity and the eye of an artist.

It was just delightful. Everything was seasoned perfectly,

the turbot cooked to a succulence of perfection.

And that wasn't the best bit. The best bit was truffle gnocchi!

Guess what I'm going to be making every weekend!

-That was delicious!

-It was cooking at its finest.

And I thought it couldn't get any better! Well, it did,

-because that dessert...

-Oh, that dessert!

It was a runway of colour and juicy ingredients,

and a nice big chocolate mousse at the end

with chocolate popping candy!

Michel, that is incredible!

My whole life goes round in this competition.

It would be amazing to carry on doing it.

I want to go as far as I can, but...yeah, it's been really hard,

and it'll get even harder if I get through.

Steve can get a little bit flustered in the kitchen.

I think he's a little unsure of himself.

But once he's focussed and he's got confidence,

he can cook as well as anybody else I've seen.

Now, once I'd tasted Steve's food, I though, "That's it. Game over."

But it wasn't. Claire's dishes were every bit as magnificent as Steve's.

Claire cooked us a beautiful sole, served on the bone,

cooked to perfection, but then chose 101 different ingredients

and garnishes to go with it. I was a little bit worried

about what we were going to get, but it looked absolutely beautiful.

Once I'd tasted it, I thought possibly a couple of steps too far,

trying to please too much by putting too many ingredients on the plate,

but you can't get away from the fact that it was ingenious,

and it was not only a pleasure to the eye but to the palate.

You move on to that dessert - it was like a forest of fruits!

-Just divine! And what do you call that chocolate thing?

-Moelleux.

-Moelleux? Beautiful!

-It hit all the right notes of a chocolate pudding.

It was soft, gooey... It was just beautiful.

I loved it. Loved it! And she's such a clever chef!

All the berries had been seasoned, rolled in a little bit of olive oil

and a squeeze of lemon juice. That is the attention to detail

that we're looking for.

Claire has got such creativity for a young chef, it's unbelievable!

Really happy with the feedback. Yeah, I'm feeling good, and just...

Yeah, I think we're both level on level,

and it's going to be a really hard decision.

Wonder how many Steves and Claires there are out there!

Not very many.

We got three places in the final,

and we've already got two very, very good chefs, but...

We've got two here knocking on the door.

Do we decide for the chef that's clever with classic combinations,

or do we go with the chef who's innovative

and wants to push the boundaries?

Claire did better at Pied a Terre. I preferred Steve's main.

Um... I'm not helping, am I?

I'm always confident in my own ability,

and I think I deserve it, but if I'm honest,

I think maybe Claire deserves it as well.

Oh, yeah, it's really nerve-racking.

I don't really want to go back in there.

You just tell me here.

If I do go home,

I'll back Steve to win.

We are going to send home a future Michelin-starred chef.

-You realise that, don't you?

-Oh!

I am very, very rarely stuck for words,

but I've got goosebumps on the back of my neck here

just reliving what you cooked for us today.

The decision we've made...

..is that both of you will go through to the final.

Well done!

We've broken the rules for you.

HE LAUGHS

CLAIRE: 'It is pretty crazy.'

THEY LAUGH

Over the moon. It's the best feeling ever, really.

Yeah. It's amazing.

The final three is now a final four. Well done.

I never thought, ever, that I'd be in the final.

Um, again, yeah, tears of joy.

Um...

Just really, really gobsmacked. Amazing.

Oli,

Ash,

Claire and Steve...

are the four finalists.

We never meant to have four of you.

We can only have three.

One of them goes home today. The slightest mistake, and that's it.

They are about to face the fiercest-ever MasterChef finals.

Today they will have to cook to three-Michelin-starred standard.

The guests are coming. They're in charge.

Quickly, quickly!

It's mind-blowingly good!

They've proved it to us. Now's their chance to prove it

to the great and good of the catering world.

You've only got one dish to shine.

I wouldn't want to cook for these lot.

One of those guests is Monica. She's looking fierce!

Keep it together, all right? You can do this.

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