Episode 22 MasterChef: The Professionals

Only an elite group of chefs hold two Michelin stars.

Michel Roux Jr is one of them.

-One lamb, two fish gone. ALL:

-Oui!

Now he, Gregg Wallace and Monica Galetti are on the hunt

for Britain's next culinary superstar...

a professional with the talent to cut it in the world's top kitchens.

Perfect.

It's the final week.

Anton, Oli and Keri

now have the title within their sights.

This is an amazing achievement, the final three.

It's going to be a very hard fight.

It's going to be, you know, heads down and go for it.

The better you do, you know,

the bigger leg up it's going to give you in life.

So, it's all up to me to just make it happen for myself.

I'm extremely proud of myself.

I can't believe I'm here, I really can't.

It's going to be very hard to try and beat those guys,

but I'm going to try.

Our biggest event of the year is the chefs' table.

It is unique.

It is one of the biggest gatherings of Michelin-starred chefs

in the world.

It's also apron-tremblingly terrifying.

I have prepared a three-course menu.

But, are you good enough to cook your own food?

This is your chance to prove it.

Behind you are ingredients that I have chosen.

We want you to devise a menu - a starter, a main and a dessert,

using those prime ingredients.

One hour and 45 minutes for three courses.

Off you go.

The dishes they invent on the spot today must impress

if they want to cook the menu they've already planned

for the Michelin chefs' table.

Hey! Listen up.

We are not judging you individually, we are judging you as a team.

One of you fall, you all fall.

-This is hard, isn't it?

-It's hard.

-Really hard, yeah.

Have you cooked spider crabs?

Beef, celeriac puree, celeriac fondant, mushrooms, leeks, spinach.

-Nice and simple.

-It'll make the beef stand out. That's what you're trying to do, isn't it?

Yeah, I think I'm going to do either a parfait or a mousse.

-A nice biscuit.

-That sounds nice, yeah.

Guys, er, how are we doing?

Yeah, we've got a good idea of what we want.

-Who's doing the starter?

-I'm on starters.

Dessert.

Main.

-So you're doing...?

-The spider crab.

I'm going to do a pheasant brown egg mayonnaise with the brown meat.

Going to pick the inner legs out to make a salad.

-Crab salad?

-Basically, yeah.

I'm going to do a peach parfait with an apricot soup.

Ribeye with some nice mushrooms, spinach, leeks and celeriac.

That is a wing rib.

The beauty about a wing rib is that there are several cuts on there.

Would be nice to do some braising as well as some roasting.

Mm. There's a saw behind you as well.

HE EXHALES SHARPLY

Yeah. Yeah, that's the kind of challenge this is.

I want to see the true chefs within you.

Work as a team, remember.

We want quality.

-Anton, what do you think about this challenge?

-Very hard.

I want to try get this done in about an hour,

then we've got 45 minutes to help Keri finish off what she needs for garnish.

You'd want to cook your own food, wouldn't you?

I think any chef would want to cook their own food.

It's your imagination, your heart, everything you dream about doing.

This is a serious hurdle on the way to a dream, isn't it?

Yes, yes, it is, yeah.

It is immense pressure.

-Keri, do you reckon this is undercooked?

-Yeah.

-It is, isn't it? Clingfilm it up and blanch it?

-Yeah, absolutely.

Anton is preparing the spider crab.

He's going to cook it, remove the brown meat and make a mayonnaise

or a dressing with it using pheasant eggs, which are really rich.

We're going to get a little piece of bread as well.

Freshly made bread from Anton with his starter. Fantastic!

Ooh! Ooh, it's quite bad.

Ooh!

Just hold that down on that. Keep it up.

-Can I just put a glove on and go?

-Yeah.

-That a bad one?

-Yeah.

-You all right, though?

-Yeah, just want to cook a nice dish.

-Get it in quick, cos you need to braise it.

-Yes.

Quick, but careful.

-OLI LAUGHS Yeah?

-Yes, chef.

Oli is reducing down his sauce to a sticky glaze.

He's going to be shredding down some of that braised meat into it.

Oh, that sounds delicious!

Right, you three, you've got one hour left!

Are you on time?

Could you imagine what it is going to be like presenting your food

-if you get the opportunity?

-It means an awful lot.

I love the food I do and I would like to share it with everybody.

And to get great praise and be able to present that to, like,

the most amazing chefs in the world, you know, it is a dream come true.

Keri is making a miroir.

And the miroir is a little jelly on top of a mousse.

To get that perfect mirror top,

she will have to have to set the mousse first and pour on this jelly.

If it's too hot, it'll melt the mousse.

If it's too cold, it'll set immediately

and it won't be level and shiny.

It's your final ten minutes.

Still looks like a lot to pack in to me in ten minutes.

-How are you with the starter?

-Yeah, I'm ready to rock and roll there.

-Just leave that pan on the gas. I need it to go really hot.

-Yeah.

-Do you want me to do these for you?

-No, no, it's cool.

-Are you sure, I'll get you some now?

-No.

-I'll get some now for you.

I'm just going to caramelise off some pistachios in a sugar.

It is your last five minutes.

Don't you forget, guys - every dish has to be perfect. All or nothing.

Time's up, well done.

We have to make a decision.

Whether you'll be cooking my menu or your menu at the chefs' table.

If there is something wrong with any of these plates, we can't risk it.

I want ten out of ten out of every plate.

We're not going to taste these dishes individually

and pass comment, because this is a collective effort.

We're going to taste all the dishes and then make a decision.

Anton has come up with a spider crab salad starter,

with English tomatoes, pickled chillies,

deep-fried capers

and pheasant egg and brown crab meat mayonnaise

accompanied by home-made bread.

For his main course, Oli has cooked rib of beef,

celeriac cannelloni stuffed with braised beef and duxelle,

served with roasted leeks and wild mushrooms,

a celeriac puree and a beef jus.

Keri's dessert is a summer cherry mousse

topped with a cherry miroir,

wafer-thin slices of nectarine and caramelised pistachios,

served with a roasted apricot soup.

It's a team effort. If we all go down, we all go down.

On the basis of what I've seen today

and how you guys have cooked as a team...

I...

..want you to cook your food at the chef's table.

-KERI:

-Well done.

Relief. Thank you.

Well done. That, I thought, was absolutely spectacular.

I mean, that was well deserved.

Come on, the chefs. We are going to wow them.

We are seriously going to blow their socks off.

Don't let it go to your heads though, all right?

Tomorrow's the big day.

Over 30 Michelin-starred chefs waiting for your menu.

Off you go.

High-five. Yay!

We're going to be cooking for some, in my eyes,

big superstars of the cheffing industry.

And to be able to cook our own food is just... Yeah.

It just gets better and better all the time at the moment.

It's so exciting.

It's a bit nuts, actually,

to think about what's coming round that corner.

I'm extremely nervous.

Definitely the biggest thing I've ever done, without a doubt.

I think we have to nail the challenge, you know?

Otherwise Michel's going to hate us,

so, yeah, we've got to nail it and we'll all make sure we nail it.

What has become one of the most prestigious events

in the culinary calendar is taking place here tonight

at Pearl in central London's Chancery Court Hotel.

It is the only time that so many of the worlds great Michelin-starred chefs gather in one place.

Going back a few years, we would never meet up like this normally.

And this is the one night of the year

where you do have 30-odd Michelin starred chefs

all in the same room at the same time.

This is becoming a major event in the chef calendar, I think,

so I think to be here is quite a big thing.

I've met a lot of people which I've never met before -

Jacques Hoffmann, for example - at a Masterchef dinner.

Everyone who's anyone comes to this dinner.

It's a massive, massive event. Huge expectations.

A lot of pressure on these guys doing this.

I wouldn't want to be in their place.

Yeah, extremely daunting today.

You don't get put under the sort of pressure ever in your whole career.

Even if one amazing chef was to walk into your restaurant

you'd be like, "Whoa, what's going on?"

But today there's 30-odd of the best chefs in the world.

Yeah, it's intense.

'Proper nervous.'

I just want to get my own food out there right, you know?

If it's my own food and I get it wrong then I look really bad.

I didn't sleep last night, actually.

I think I was still up at 4.30 practising.

I've just got to produce perfect, perfect, perfect.

I can't afford not to right now.

I can see in your eyes, guys,

there's a lot of nervous energy there.

Six hours, off you go.

The finalists have each been asked

to create a new dish that best represents their style.

Oli will be providing the starter.

So what's your starter, Oli?

I'm doing salmon, I'm doing a parfait, a riette and then cured

with some pickled beetroot, mouli and pumpernickel bread.

-So three different ways of preparing salmon.

-Yup.

What are you curing the salmon in?

I'm using this spiced sea salt and the zest of all the citruses,

lemon, lime, orange, and sugar.

OK. How long do you need to cure that for?

It's normally eight hours but I'm going to vac pack it so it, sort of,

doubles the time of the curing so it should be four I'm going to go for.

-But nonetheless, four hours.

-Yep.

-So you've got your work cut out there.

And you're not going to cut yourself today?

No, I'm not going to cut myself today. I'm going to...

-Hopefully, anyway.

-Steady hand when filleting the fish.

Yeah. It's kind of hard here, but...

-Keep your nerve, Oli.

-Yeah, I'm trying.

There's so many things that could go wrong.

I'll work through the nerves and get it all right.

Every single element of his dish is going to have to be perfect.

The marinated salmon hopefully will be ready in four hours.

It needs to firm up and have that sweet and salty taste.

The riette, it's cooked salmon and then flaked up

and set in a little mould.

The parfait will have to be smooth, really light.

What mustn't happen is that all three of these salmon actually taste the same.

They have to be three very different salmon elements to this dish for it to work.

Anton is in charge of the main course.

-Right, Anton.

-Hello, chef.

-What is it you're cooking?

Cajun spiced lamb chump, butternut squash puree,

roasted tongue sauteed off in the pan with the sauce

and then I'm going to glaze some baby gems up,

dry them off in the pan, finish them in some yoghurt and fresh mint

so it's still getting an English flavour

with the mint that people love with lamb.

I think there are two elements here that will impress the guests tonight

and that's using lettuce as a vegetable and the use of tongues as well, lamb's tongues,

because using offal always impresses professional chefs

and they always love to eat that kind of stuff,

but the one thing that they might be a little bit surprised by is Cajun spices.

It's not too over the top, I don't want to blacken it at all.

Yeah, that's the one thing, that really black, charred exterior

which can be very bitter and very intense.

I think it's about letting the oven do the work

and letting the lamb speak for itself.

You've got six hours. Are you confident with that?

Confident with six hours, it's about getting it out to those guys perfection.

For me, they're not chefs today, they're customers

-and I wouldn't serve any different to anyone else.

-I like your attitude, I like that.

I've got to have that in my head as well.

-Good on you. Good luck.

-Thank you.

I've just got to crack on and get my puree working.

Get my lambs all prepped.

Pass my sauce off, pack my baby gem, get my mint/yoghurt sauce working...

Uh, yeah. Yeah, I've got a lot to do when you start looking at it like that, yeah.

Lamb chumps are one of the most flavourful cuts of lamb

and cooked in the right way -

nice and pink, but left to rest a long time -

they should be very tender.

I love the idea of Cajun spicing.

But he's going to have to be very careful

how he judges this cos one thing they won't be impressed with

is just something that's going to take their palate away and be too fiery.

Right, Keri. You're in charge of the grand finale - dessert.

What is it?

Goat's cheese semifreddo

with roasted apricots

and raspberry jelly,

and toasted quinoa.

Oh, that's interesting.

I've never come across toasted quinoa. It must be quite nutty.

Yes, very nutty.

And a goat's cheese semifreddo -

like a parfait - so it's frozen but not completely frozen?

Yeah, not completely frozen.

I have some moulds which I'll line with acetate.

That will hold the shape for me, then straight into the chiller.

How long does it take to set?

They have to be in the freezer for at least four hours.

HE WHISTLES You've got to push yourself.

This is a hard one. It's important...

this is the first job.

It's a really nice dessert.

-Sounds nice, but you know my uncle's coming for dinner?

-I know!

It's like 110% for this...

especially cos your uncle's coming.

Even more so because he's here.

If he has a big smile on his face

when it comes to dessert, I'll be happy.

I'd be ecstatic!

Keri's in charge of the grand finale -

the dessert.

She is preparing a goat's cheese semifreddo.

The biggest risk of a semifreddo

is that it ends up being a molten mess on the plate

and not frozen at all.

It has to be soft, smooth and silky. And no grains in it at all.

With the goat's cheese semifreddo mix made,

Keri makes a start on over 30 cylindrical moulds to put it in.

I think so far, so good.

Just got to get my moulds lined.

As soon as they're lined, the semifreddo will be straight into the freezer.

Then I can kind of semi-relax after that.

In order to release the semifreddo from the moulds,

each one has to be precision-lined with a piece of acetate.

Keri has that anxious, worried look on her face.

Those little semifreddos needed four hours to set in the freezer.

That's cutting it pretty fine.

I'm feeling the pressure a little bit.

Lining these moulds is taking a lot longer than what I allowed.

But it's a job that has to be done - you can't not do it.

It will be worthwhile... in the end,

just to guarantee every one of them looks the same.

The chefs have been prepping for three hours.

Oli starts work on his beetroot purees.

They need to be slow-roasted with olive oil, salt and thyme,

until soft and infused with flavour.

Next, he moves onto the pickled beetroot and mooli.

-How are we doing, young man?

-Yeah, good. Everything I want to get on early is on.

So your salmon is vac-packed

-And your parfait is freezing?

-Yeah.

Cracking on with the small bits. I need to get my riette on, my creme fraiche is hanging.

I'm sort of on course.

Mm!

Anton has confited the lamb tongues in duck fat,

garlic, rosemary and thyme,

for nearly two hours.

Now, each one needs to be peeled to remove the chewy skin.

We're cooking for chefs here, they love offal.

For me, the most underrated piece of meat on the animal.

20 minutes, then we'll have them done.

Sometimes you need a little paring knife,

but it will come off in your fingers...if they're cooked right.

Keri's custom-made moulds for her semifreddo are finally ready.

So she finishes off the semifreddo mix

by adding whipped cream and lemon juice...

..before carefully pouring it into her moulds.

I'm just worried the mix will leak out the bottom.

Ah, it is going to come out.

I just need to make sure they're lined at the bottom.

That just adds...

extra time onto...

unfactored-in time.

I don't have that time to spare.

Yay! Yay!

That's one massive, massive job.

The biggest element to the dish.

It's just...it was hard.

But it's done now, so I can...

..worry about the rest.

Three hours to go, guys. Three hours to kickoff.

Oli is halfway through slicing the pumpernickel bread

to make his Melba toast.

How are we doing, Oli?

Yeah, good.

I'm not entirely happy with the thickness, the consistency.

You need to get it a lot thinner than that.

I was thinking of going downstairs and getting on the meat slicer...

trying to get them all the same and a lot thinner.

Loads to do, loads more.

I've only got the main things on,

so I have loads of little jobs to get done.

It just seems to be falling apart on the machine.

I think I'll just have to cut it by hand...

it might be a wiser one...

and just do it a little thicker.

Just making the yoghurt glaze for the baby gems.

That's another element done.

Sauce on, squash is on, lamb's marinating, tongues are cooked.

I'm saying it's all going be good but it'll all go downhill

at about seven o'clock.

I feel it in my bones.

It's just too smooth. I don't like it.

Did you get the meat slicer?

Yeah, I did. It didn't work out - it kept getting caught in it.

So I've just done it by hand.

So you have your salmon sous vide

vac-packed - it's going to be all right?

Yeah, I'll wash that last minute, maybe.

That's my aim, anyway, so I need to...

Yeah. Don't get caught short,

cos it'll take a long time to dress those plates,

if you want them to be perfect.

I'm feeling good about tonight, but then again,

there's less than an hour to go

and a lot can go wrong in that time.

STEAM HISSES

Outside, the great gathering of Michelin-starred chefs has begun.

They include...

And the three-star chefs...

And this year,

they are joined by two culinary godfathers...

Michel Roux...

and Anton Mosimann,

who have both held three Michelin stars.

We have so many memories from the past, of course.

So many memories. 35 years, we know each other.

We used to see each other...

maybe once a month, every two months.

It's wonderful to have a gathering like that, isn't it?

I think it's great - fantastic.

Especially when we are going to have a dinner.

-HE LAUGHS

-Exactly. Why not?

Right, guys. I've just seen them walk in.

They are hungry.

They are hungry, and they are expecting.

One hour to go.

Let's get it on. Come on.

Oli's salmon should now be ready,

after curing in a vacupack for four hours.

You can feel it, it's firm to the touch.

Some bits and the big bits are a bit flabby,

but I won't used them, I'll cut into them nice...

bits that are really firm.

And his second salmon element,

the parfait, is still setting in the fridge.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

I'm just taken my parfait out and seasoning it a bit more.

You want to season it from the start, really, and leave it,

so it sets up and you get a nice shape to it.

But... I've got to season it!

Because it's a cold dish, it's all going to hinge, I think,

on seasoning.

I just hope he's got his taste buds in place today.

With new seasoning added,

Oli can only hope they'll be firm enough

to quenelle by the beginning of service.

We're just starting to get a practice dish, really,

going to the pass.

I'm just going to trial up a baby gem.

They can either be too crunchy...

or too soft.

And they can go brown.

I need to get it done right at the last minute.

When it comes to service,

Anton will also have to glaze his lamb's tongues,

and cook the Cajun lamb chumps medium-rare...

just before he plates up.

Ooh, that lamb looks a bit over!

It IS over, chef, yeah.

I don't want that lamb going out like that.

Yeah. Yeah, I know.

If you can get that lamb really pink, I think you're onto a winning dish there.

It's smart, it's elegant,

you have lots of different textures in there -

you're on the right track.

-But, please, make sure that lamb is not overcooked.

-Yes, Chef.

These will be the tuiles for the top of the semifreddo.

You bake it off at 165 to 170,

so they don't get too dark,

and they need to be pliable, so you can bend them a little bit.

How are we doing, young lady?

I'm doing really well, Chef. I'm just waiting for my tuiles.

The oven's not great.

It's a slight concern, but nothing major. I have enough time.

Only need to make 40.

40?! How does 40 go into 30?

Well, just in case I pick one up and it breaks...

I just want to make sure I'm not running around,

or somebody's not missing something off the plate.

-No, it's good. I'm feeling really good.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-Confident?

As long as my tuiles come out, I'll be happy.

-Good. Keep an eye on those tuiles.

-Thank you.

And they're burnt.

Yeah, they're dark.

Yeah.

Hopefully...

nothing too much to worry about.

Very difficult to cook for so many talented chefs.

I prefer to be sitting down at a table.

I hope they will put all their hearts...

I hope as well that they're going to take risks...

cos, for me, it's the night they need to.

This is their moment

to produce the dishes to set them on the road

for the rest of their career.

If they can impress these guys, they can impress anybody.

-Oli, 40 minutes to go.

-Yeah.

-You going to be on time?

Yeah, I'm going to be on time.

You don't believe me!

It wasn't a very convincing, "Yep!"

I AM going to be on time - I'm just concentrating.

-Get going! 40 minutes, on the pass.

-Thank you.

I'll just spend my time and make sure I get everything bang-on now.

And hopefully they'll like it!

"Salmon, pumpernickel, beetroot and mooli pickles."

I'm intrigued to see what this one comes out like.

This combination of ingredients

is very exciting for me.

I hope there will be some cooked salmon.

If it's well done, I think it can be very good.

Oli, I think you'll be pushing it.

I agree. It's going to be on the edge.

Anton...

-any chance you could come put these daikon on.

-No worries.

Could you just put one disk on each one?

Come on! Cutting it fine, cutting it fine.

Come on, come on, come on.

Seven o'clock - you're late!

OK. Sorry, Chef.

Service please, on the first six plates.

I was pleased with the food, yeah.

Whether it's up to their standards or not, I couldn't say.

They're all brilliant chefs.

I'm a chef de partie, so...

I'll get criticisms, but it's just so great to do this.

For the starter, Oli has made a trio of salmon.

A poached salmon riette,

topped with a cured salmon parfait...

and served with cubes of marinated salmon.

They're accompanied by beetroot puree drops...

pumpernickel Melba toast...

pickled beetroot and mooli...

or daikon.

The dish looks really pretty - very clean.

Really classic combination - I'm sure it will taste great.

It's like dessert.

It's a bit too pretty for me, on the look. But we shall see.

It's a very, very good summer, refreshing...

light, flavoursome dish.

The mousse, the salmon round the outside was lovely.

The combination with the beetroot and the pickles was really nice.

The seasoning's nearly there.

The balance is good.

It's not bad.

The pickled flavour with the salmon mousse was quite interesting.

It could have been a little more seasoning,

but overall I think it was really good.

Salmon and beetroot - a classic combination.

It works beautifully together.

I thought the salmon we had

could have done with a little more seasoning...

but apart from that, it was a good plate of food.

For me, the dish ticked lots of boxes.

It was a great combination of flavours.

It sort of did what it says on the tin.

When you eat the dish, the salmon

just become mixed.

You don't really feel the texture difference between them.

But the marinated salmon was good.

I do like the three textures of salmon, however the two in the middle

were kind of very similar, so it was all a bit mushy.

It would have been nice to have a tiny bit of roast salmon on there,

just to give it that cooked element.

But... I think, together, it's tasted very nice.

It was tasty, I ate the lot.

But I was expecting a little bit more.

I'm not feeling the love from the dish.

I'm worried there's not enough going on.

There's not enough textures and contrasts.

We all know,

when you look at simplicity,

more in the classic side of things...

it needs to be perfect, otherwise it doesn't work.

The score was good, but not ten-out-of-ten.

I really enjoyed all the flavours on my plate, particularly the pumpernickel.

I think it shows, in such illustrious company,

that good and faultless isn't good enough.

I'm just nervous, to be honest... to see whether they like it.

HE LAUGHS

-Hey, Oli.

-Hi.

Well done, Chef.

It must be proper nerve-wracking stood there in front

of all these guys.

The dish, I thought, was rock-solid.

Flavours that everyone knows, and executed very, very well.

Maybe just a little safe. But well done, Oli.

Well done.

A very good, colourful presentation.

A very summery dish.

A couple of errors that can be improved -

a little more seasoning, maybe.

And possibly to encourage some of the flavours to come out

in a more definite way.

But a good starter,

and well-appreciated around the table, so thank you very much.

THEY APPLAUD

Thank you very much, everyone. Thank you. Enjoy your evening.

HE LAUGHS

It's just great to get comments, you know?

I didn't get rinsed, which is nice.

It wasn't "amazing" it was just "good". That's fine.

Which I think is all right for me, to be honest.

Those are guys that you look at as your mentors.

You look at them and you learn from them.

That's where I want to go, for sure.

Anton now has just 40 minutes to get his main course out.

He still needs to braise his lettuce...

glaze his lamb tongues...

and finish cooking his lamb chump.

The hardest thing will be getting out everything hot.

Really happy with everything so far.

It's just getting that lamb bang-on.

Technically quite tricky,

cos the lamb chump can be quite...

if it's not cooked and rested correctly,

can be quite chewy.

Chump of lamb could be very tough,

could be like eating our shoes if it's not cooked properly.

Cajun spice can be quite complex.

It will be quite interesting to see how he balances that.

It will be a challenge.

Oh!

I could dive into those chumps - lovely!

I'm a big fan of lamb's tongues,

so I'm really looking forward to eating that.

And the lettuce - that sounds really unusual,

so I'm waiting to see what that looks like.

I've been dreaming about that dish...

since I read it on the menu.

I've got my mouth watering, I'm serious.

That should be cooking at its best.

-Anton?

-Yes, Chef?

-17 minutes.

Yeah!

Keep your head down.

Anton now has to get 30 immaculate mains out.

Perfectly cooked and piping hot.

Because it's hot, I need it out.

You need hands for something like this.

Anton, do you need Keri? She's ready, she can come up.

If Keri can come up for five minutes to get me to push this out, that would be amazing.

Keri?

-Can you spare a minute?

-I can come, right now.

-You sure?

-Yep.

Anton, what do you need?

I need the sauce passing off into the little sauce things...

-and then just jugging up.

-Yep.

-Happy with that, Anton?

-Yeah, it's nice.

Six plates ready to rock and roll, please.

-Anton?

-Yes, Chef?

-Looks like you're bang on time, mate. Well done.

Come on!

Come on! Big push!

Service, please!

Come on, Anton, you're nearly there.

-That's it!

-Service, please!

Well done, Anton!

Phwoar, that was good.

For the main,

Anton has cooked

Cajun-spiced lamb chump,

with braised lamb's tongue...

on a squash puree...

served with yoghurt-glazed baby gem lettuce...

and lamb gravy.

I really hope it delivers on the palate what it does on the nose.

-Smells good.

-Yes, smells really good.

It's lovely.

I really like the taste of the yoghurt on top of the baby gem.

It's really delicious.

The spice is nice.

It's coming through, but you can still taste the lamb.

-It's got really good balance.

-A really, really nice dish.

Obviously, I'm Welsh, so I'm quite biased towards lamb, anyway.

But I thought the spicing was bang-on.

I thought the yoghurt was a nice balance towards the spicing.

Very good.

Yoghurt-glazed baby gem.

Wondering what that would be like. It actually all works together.

He hasn't overpowered it.

If you use these Cajun spices, you can kill the meat.

You can still taste the lamb.

It's a really nicely cooked dish.

The lettuce - a big surprise to me, but it works very, very well.

A fantastic dish!

I like the softness of the lamb...

the creaminess of the puree. It's beautiful.

I'll serve this happily in my restaurant.

Beautifully-seasoned.

The spice is perfect for me.

A really good dish, actually.

Really good dish.

All-in-all, I'm really enjoying it.

I'm a happy little soul.

There's nothing about this dish I didn't like.

A dish that's not trying to be too clever.

Each component of it is perfectly done.

I thought the dish was absolutely delicious.

Using spice, taking a risk, but just got the balance right.

At the end of the whole dish,

you got this pile of sauce you have to mop up.

Thoroughly, thoroughly good dish.

I would be happy to pay for that in a restaurant.

A well-thought-through dish and whoever cooked it has definitely got some skill.

Fantastic.

Empty plates, empty plates. We're all happy.

I think anyone in the professional catering trade

who had to walk out there would be absolutely terrified.

Yeah, I'm terrified.

Anton...

Michel Roux speaking. I'm the old one.

Well, if I may say,

it smelled good... and it tasted like food.

And it was a beautiful dish, as far as I'm concerned.

Food which I'd like to eat any day, every day.

-So, well done.

-Thank you very much.

Main course today, absolutely stunning.

Flavour-wise, was incredible.

The lamb was cooked beautifully.

For this bunch of reprobates on this table

to be mopping up the sauce with their bread...

absolutely amazing, Chef, well done.

You've done yourself very, very proud. Well done, Chef.

Thank you very much, Chef.

This is an absolute honour.

You don't get to go and see your heroes every day.

So, for me, this is unbelievable.

Thank you ever so much.

THEY APPLAUD

You can't ask for better than that, can you?

You can't ask for better than that.

These people you dream to be when you're a kid,

when you first start catering.

Michel Roux! He's a godfather of cooking.

Anton Mosimann -

the man has more little bowties than anyone in the world.

He's an idol of mine.

He even has the same name as me, he's that cool(!)

I never thought I'd get those sort of comments,

and maybe that proves what people say to me -

I need to believe in who I am and what kind of chef I am.

How are we doing, Keri?

OK. I'm a little bit behind.

Just because of service, that's all.

But this is the last element.

Just de-mould these and it's on the trolley, upstairs we go.

Blimey, you've only just started!

-Yep.

-Ooh!

-Happy with them?

-Relatively happy.

-"Relatively" - what does that mean?

I'd be happier if they came out a bit easier -

my hands are a bit... fresh right now.

It's 25 minutes to go, and she's just now unfurling those semifreddos.

She'll have to push herself now.

She really is going to have to push herself.

Apricot is the beginning of the season.

It should be nice.

Raw cheese,

if it's not too strong, will be perfect.

And semifreddo - I'm all for freddo!

15 minutes to go.

-I'm on time, yeah!

-You sure - 15 minutes?

-Absolutely.

-Fantastic!

Out of all the three dishes,

it's probably the most adventurous.

Goat's cheese with apricots - I see how it CAN work.

Whether they pull it off is a different matter.

-Keri, it looks great.

-Thank you.

Very, very nice. I love the colours.

Six can go now, please.

Come on, Keri, step it up.

-You ready for six more?

-Six more.

-Yep. Come on, let's go.

Come on, come on, come on.

Nearly there.

Michel Roux...

I think that man is absolutely amazing.

I just hope...

hope, hope, hope...

that he is enjoying the dessert.

The goat's cheese semifreddo

is topped with a butter tuile...

and apricot kernels... served on apricot puree

and toasted quinoa,

with cubes of raspberry jelly...

fresh raspberries

and caramelised apricots.

Out of the three dishes, for me,

presentation-wise, this wins, hands-down.

It looks phenomenal,

but it's a combination I wouldn't have put together.

I'm looking forward to tasting it.

It's a plate that says, "Wow!"

It looks amazing.

It looks like something you want to eat.

I'm extremely surprised how well it works.

I was a bit sceptical,

when I read it,

but tasting it now, I think it's fantastic.

The goat's cheese is there but it's not overpowering.

It's such a delicate touch...

of flavours here.

It's a very clever dessert, that.

The crucial thing for me in that

was the balance between the goat's cheese and the sweetness

was absolutely perfect.

The balance, the crunchiness, the acidity...

the apricot, the goat's cheese - there's a lot of work there.

And everything was well done.

The colours are flamboyant.

The combination of flavour, it's absolutely perfect.

The toasted quinoa is surprisingly good.

I wish I would have created that. Seriously. It was mind-blowing.

It was the best thing on this dish.

Really well-crafted, well-balanced.

It showed that someone's really thought about it.

It was a very bold dessert.

All the flavours were strong. She's a brave girl.

I give her full marks.

Can't say anything bad about it. I absolutely love it.

When you're pushing boundaries, you need to get it right...

and they've got it right. It's a fantastic dish.

It was just a dish what I would happily pay good money for,

and sit in any top restaurant and eat.

I just thought it was wonderful.

Whoever produced that dish... will go a long way.

I think it's a fantastic end to a meal.

Keri...

when I read the menu first, I thought, "Mm - not quite sure."

But, tasting the dessert, the combinations,

it was not overpowering, it was well-balanced, so...

-well done.

-Thank you.

SHE SIGHS

Keri, I call what you just gave us "a rainbow of pleasure."

It is a perfect dessert.

You're doing wonder.

And it will go on and on and you will get better,

believe me.

-Well done, Keri.

-Thank you very much.

-You can be proud. Thank you.

I'm just...

overwhelmed with...

the amount of chefs that I've looked up to...

from when I was 15 or 16.

I'm just...

mesmerised and overwhelmed.

I'm so happy

that you all enjoyed it. I feel extremely proud.

THEY APPLAUD

-SHE SIGHS

-Thank you.

Oh...my...word.

How crazy was that?

They loved it. They absolutely loved it.

The greats in the world

have just said that your food is amazing.

That doesn't happen every day.

So...I'm going to relish

every single piece of that.

And I'll keep those comments in my head for the rest of my life.

Got a face ache.

SHE SIGHS

THEY APPLAUD

Guys, what can I say? I'm sure this was a daunting night for you.

Even me, cooking for my table alone, would have been terrifying.

I have to say, dinner was fantastic.

You can all be very proud of yourselves. Well done.

What you did tonight is amazing.

Some dishes were exceptional,

some dishes were...memorable.

You've got a great future ahead of you, so...good luck!

THEY APPLAUD

-Nice work!

-Go on, Kezza!

Yay!

Give us a grin.

Well done, guys, well done!

I'm so proud of them.

To have produced that food for that audience tonight...

that's unbelievable.

Today has made my life worth living. It's an absolutely amazing feeling.

It's a great day, but there's more to come.

And it's still a competition. We have a long way to go yet

before we prove ourselves.

It hasn't sunk in. It really hasn't.

All I know is I'd love to be the winner of MasterChef.

I'm going to do my utmost.

I've got to pull something brilliant out the bag.

And I intend to.

Nothing has ever happened to me like this.

My other highlight's like going on holiday or something!

After tonight,

it's like, "Wow!"

That's just the start of the finals. I can't imagine what's to come.

Tomorrow night, in the penultimate show...

the finalists are given rare access

to one of the world's most enigmatic kitchens...

Awesome!

..in the restaurant that revolutionised the way we think about food...

Absolutely blown away!

..Heston Blumenthal's Fat Duck.

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