Episode 12 MasterChef: The Professionals

These six talented chefs have made it through to today's quarter-final.

To get through to the quarter-final is a big deal.

It's now or never, really.

If I didn't go through to the next round, I'd be really gutted.

I never said I'm going to win it and I won't say it yet,

but it would be nice.

Today isn't the day to go home.

First, they must prove to Michel Roux Junior and Monica Galetti

they've got what it takes with a dish of their own invention.

Visually, it looks stunning and it's cooked very well. This is what we want to see.

It's a good dish.

Only the best will get to cook for some of the country's harshest food critics.

Eugh! There's only one word for it and that is disgusting.

Just two of them will become semi-finalists.

Welcome back to the MasterChef kitchens.

You have the chance to impress both of us today and grab that place in the next round.

Show off your skills. Show us what you can do.

Two of you will be leaving us.

This is an invention test. You have some amazing ingredients in front of you.

You will have ten minutes to plan your menu and then an hour to prepare it.

Right, chefs, ten minutes starts now.

The chefs have been given a range of ingredients,

including neck of lamb, rabbit,

chorizo, haricot beans,

potatoes, filo pastry,

rhubarb, apricots,

herbs, almonds and amaretto.

This isn't what I was expecting, but I'll do what I can.

A bit more nervous this time than last. I don't know why.

I've got a couple of ideas. I'll just see how it pans out.

I'll try something slightly different.

I'm not 100% yet. I'm still mulling it through.

I might go with a dessert. I think I'm going to get it right this time.

Good ingredients. I would like a couple more.

I hope everything goes to plan. Fingers crossed.

That's it. One hour from now. Off you go.

The nerves are high in this room.

You can feel it. You can cut it with a knife.

But in saying that, the concentration is very strong.

David, who works in Reading, has got high-end restaurant experience

and it shows in the plates of food he delivers.

You can see he is a professional chef and is determined to do well.

I think I've shown quite a bit, a few skills, a few techniques.

There's still quite a bit for me to show.

Right, what are you cooking for us?

A rabbit cassoulet. I'm going to stuff the saddle

with a bit of kale, black olives, potatoes in the shape of a mushroom.

-Just to show off a bit of skill?

-Sort of, yeah.

-Fancy your chances?

-I'm not going to say yes or no on that one.

You've done well so far and I'm expecting good things from you.

-Thank you, chef.

-No pressure.

-None at all(!)

David is steaming the stuffed rabbit.

I'm a little bit worried about that because steamed rabbit can be a bit flaccid.

He's shaped his potatoes into mushrooms, showing off his repertoire, which is what we want.

Army chef James, he impressed me with his chicken dinner.

He really impressed me in the first invention test.

He's got bags of experience. That should hold him in good stead for today.

I'm taking this competition very seriously.

I really want to carry on.

It gets in your blood and takes over your life. It's all you think about.

It's on your mind every second of the day.

-All right, James?

-Morning, chef.

-How are we doing this morning?

-Nervous, but good.

-Nervous because of this chef here?

-A little bit, yeah, if I was honest.

-James, I'm the nice one.

-Right, OK.

What are you cooking for us?

A little herb-crusted lamb with mint and rosemary with crushed potatoes.

-A bit of a Mediterranean theme, maybe a foam.

-You have got far more experience than anybody here.

Yeah, I've been in the trade a long time. My roots are more classical.

I'm not up to speed with some of the more modern techniques.

-I cook from the heart and stick with my classical way of cooking, the old pans.

-Nothing wrong with that.

He's using the Jersey Royals and will crush them.

I hope he peels the potatoes because I don't like crushed potatoes with their skins.

Aline is a fine cook. Her food is always robust. It's pleasing to the diner, but there are little errors.

She needs refinement and she needs to find that now.

Aline needs to deliver on everything today.

I want to be impressed by her. This is her last chance.

It was really hard to get in the quarter-final.

I think I haven't shown enough as a chef.

I still have a lot to prove.

Good to see you've got a big smile on your face.

-You're still cooking with a smile on your face.

-Yes.

-Great. So what are you cooking?

-I've stuffed the rabbit with kidneys and curly kale.

I don't know what's the name of the dish yet.

-You're not using the lamb?

-I'll try to use the lamb as well. I'm going to cook everything.

-You're going to decide?

-Yeah.

-Wow!

-Oh, OK, OK...

-So let's see.

Aline is going to try and cook everything on the table -

lamb, rabbit, both.

This is risky cooking, I think.

In the last few minutes, you should decide how that plate's going to look, not what you're going to cook.

That's halfway.

Halfway already.

David's cooking is full of passion. I love to see that in a chef.

His dishes are beautiful to look at.

But that rabbit dish that he gave me had errors.

A little bit small for my liking.

He can cook. He has skills. He has the passion. He's got to deliver it today.

I'm in competition with myself. If I've performed to the best of my ability, then I'm happy.

So far in the competition I'm not as happy as I could be,

so it's time to change that.

Right, David, what are you making for us?

I'm doing neck of lamb with a white bean cassoulet,

tomato sauce with confit tomato petals and blanched kale.

-I seem to remember you serving up a portion which was miniscule.

-Yeah.

-Not today?

-Not today.

-Good. A proper portion?

-A proper portion.

I entered this competition because I want to go to the top,

I want to prove to my family and show my kids that you can do anything.

David, get cracking.

David's cooking his neck of lamb in the water bath which is good.

Let's hope he sears it off and caramelises it when he takes that out.

He's using the cassoulet beans and some kale.

I just hope there's a sauce to go with this or it might be a bit dry.

Marcel, his version of fish and chips was absolutely delicious.

He made a cheesecake in his first attempt.

It sounds simple enough. He messed that up,

so he's got a lot of work to do today for me.

In the invention test, I had the perfect dish in my head.

I just wasn't able to put it on the plate. That was the problem.

-What are you making for us today?

-I'm making dessert with apricots, poached rhubarb.

-I'll make an apricot and amaretto puree.

-Are you confident in this dessert?

-I hope so.

-So do I.

-I've got a lot to prove to you.

-We didn't have much luck in the first dessert.

I've got to do this one right.

My aim in this competition was to serve perfect food. Once I do that, I think then I've proven myself.

He's doing a dessert which is wonderful.

He's making an apricot sauce flavoured with the amaretti.

Apricot and almond works beautifully.

I've just seen Marcel use the blast-chiller to set his dessert.

I'm glad because he forgot to use that last time.

20 minutes left, guys.

James from Northern Ireland, he likes to show off all the technique.

James made us a selection of canapes in the first invention test.

I'd actually like to see a decent plate of food here today.

The last day in here was very good. I was very happy, very pleased.

In this round, I just want to play to my strengths as best I can and just produce the goods.

James, what are you cooking for us?

I'll do rabbit two ways, poaching the loin with some rosemary,

served on top of some chorizo and bean stew.

I'll make a samosa using the filo pastry for some textures.

I'll use the bones to make a beurre blanc base.

This dish works on paper. Hopefully, it'll work on a board.

James, you've kind of impressed me, but what about Monica?

I think I've still to win Monica over. A bad start, so I want to finish strong.

-If anything, prove to me that I'm right.

-Thanks, chef.

James is cooking rabbit two ways.

He's using chorizo, he's making his own sauce as well with the rabbit trimming and rabbit bones.

I hope he doesn't dry out that saddle of rabbit. It's a fragile piece of meat.

If you overcook it, it's going to be very unpleasant.

Three minutes to go. Come on.

One minute to go. Final touches.

Get it on the plate now. Come on.

Finished. Time's up.

David's dish is rabbit stuffed with black olive and kale

on a tomato chorizo cassoulet

with confit potatoes.

The potatoes are nice because you've cut them into the shape of a mushroom. The beans are very tasty.

I love the depth of flavour. The rabbit is tender, well seasoned.

But too many beans for the amount of rabbit and I would have liked a sauce.

This plate tastes very good. The rabbit visually looks stunning and it's cooked very well.

-I think it's a very flavoursome dish.

-Thank you.

Overall, yeah, I'm quite pleased.

A bit less cassoulet, a touch more sauce, but apart from that, I think it was all right.

Marcel's dessert is poached apricot and rhubarb on an apricot puree

with semifreddo, or semi-frozen custard,

Chantilly cream on almond and caramel biscuit crumble,

topped with filo pastry.

First off, I love the colours, but that's apricot, beautiful sunshine colour.

The portion is too big. I'd be happy to have this if I wasn't eating anything else in the restaurant.

Your semifreddo is really nice, not grainy at all, very smooth.

The apricots are lovely, really well cooked. The crumble is too fine for me.

The Chantilly or whipped cream doesn't bring anything to the plate,

but a great taste combination.

Lots that I like about your plate.

The semifreddo, I really like that and the amaretto really does come through as well.

The apricots are really divine.

The whipped cream, I don't like it. It shouldn't be on there.

But something about Marcel's dessert today puts a smile on my face.

I feel good. It wasn't perfect. Not perfect as it could be, but overall, I'm happy.

James has made herb-crusted lamb with crushed potato and kale,

topped with a bean foam,

glazed peppers and olives and a chorizo gravy.

It's neat, it's tidy, James,

but a bit of foam for the sake of it?

-That's the modern side you could do without.

-Yeah.

-Stick to what you do best.

LAUGHTER

I don't like the crushed potatoes because the skins are still on there.

Those little refinement details are missing on this plate. Likewise, the peppers, the skin is still on.

The sauce, lovely consistency, so that shows good skill. I do like that. Very good.

For me, the star is the lamb. It's been well cooked. It's served pink.

The crust on top is really good. I really enjoyed that.

James, I have to agree. I love that lamb.

Your sauce is also a great consistency.

What's off-putting for me is the stack of the mashed potato

and for goodness sake, if you don't do foams, don't ever start.

Yeah.

I was happy with what I put on the plate. It needs refining.

In the time, you don't sometimes think about those refinements. We'll see what happens now.

David has made neck of lamb

with confit tomatoes

in a bean cassoulet, red pepper sauce, chorizo and black olives.

Visually, vibrant colours, beautiful colours.

It's striking, it's a statement.

A great statement, David. Very well done. This is what we want to see.

David, good sauce. Rich red peppers, vibrant, the colour. Everything goes well.

A touch under-seasoned, the cassoulet, the beans, but the olives are quite salty.

The lamb, which you water-bathed, is very tender.

The tomatoes and the kale are cooked well. It's a good plate of food.

Nit-picking, you could have cut the chorizo a lot better and the olives a lot better,

but taste-wise, good, very, very good.

-I'm pleased for you, David. Very pleased for you.

-Thank you.

A lot better than last time. Very, very happy.

Aline's dish is kidney and kale-stuffed saddle of rabbit

with roast neck of lamb on haricot beans with sauteed potatoes

and a rhubarb chutney topped with apricots.

It's served with a red wine sauce.

First off, it looks like you've grabbed all the ingredients,

cooked everything and put it all on the plate.

-Yes.

-It's not the prettiest plate of food, Aline.

It looks confused.

Aline, I'm sorry to say, it looks like a plate cooked by an amateur.

-You cooked the lamb and the rabbit. Was it necessary to serve them both?

-No.

-No.

Your rabbit's cooked nicely. It's seasoned well.

It goes nicely with your chutney on the side.

It does not marry well with your red wine sauce. It's rich and heavy.

The lamb is cooked well. It's pink, it's quite tender.

It goes well with the beans and your red wine sauce, yet you've put everything on the plate.

That's where it's all gone wrong for you.

There are things on this plate which scream out, "Yes, brilliant work,

"great skills, understanding,"

-but unfortunately, they're all on one plate.

-That's true.

I'm really upset with myself.

I did everything right and I put everything on the plate. It was stupid. I'm really upset.

James has made poached rabbit loin on chorizo and bean stew

with a rabbit-filled samosa, rabbit kidney and a beurre blanc.

I really like your presentation. It's immaculate. The portion is a little bit small, though.

Tasty beans, James. The samosas, I love the crunch from the pastry.

The rabbit is well cooked. The sauce has got a great consistency to it.

James, it is a very small plate of food, but it's a very tasty plate of food.

The loin is well trimmed, it's well cooked.

The beurre blanc sauce has got bags of flavour from the bones and trimmings of the rabbit.

It's a good dish, James.

After that challenge, I feel all right.

Probably the silliest mistake I've made yet was putting not enough food on the plate.

But you can't go back in time, so I'll just have to live with it.

Thank you, chefs.

Two of you will be leaving. Thank you. Off you go.

Good cooking today, Monica. Very good cooking.

Great to see some different dishes,

but there were errors.

One or two definitely in trouble.

Let's talk about Aline. I wasn't best pleased with her plate of food.

It was all on one plate and it looked a mess.

Aline's plate today was confused which is a shame because she can cook.

I think we have to let Aline go.

I'm so upset.

It's obvious who did very well -

young David. His plate looked stunning and he backed it up with good cooking.

I agree, Mon. Absolutely bang-on.

I think I've done enough to stay in. I hope I have. I'm confident.

David, he's got bags of technique.

He understands cooking. He cooked his saddle of rabbit in a steamer to keep it really moist.

I'm hoping the judges are still on my side

and I can go another round, hopefully.

James from Northern Ireland, I was really pleased because I thought that plate he dished up was lovely.

It ticked all the boxes, other than it being too small.

James, we both agree on. He deserves to go through.

I'd like to get through to the next round and start cooking my own food.

I think as the competition progressed, those silly mistakes, you'd stop making them.

So it's down to Marcel and army James.

Army James, showing off classical skills, his lamb was the highlight.

-That was yum.

-The lamb, I agree, was the best thing on his plate.

The potatoes, not good.

With the skins like that, not in high-end cooking.

I was not a fan of the cream foam. It was unnecessary on the top,

especially since he made a sauce, a good attempt too.

Again I've shown them I can cook. I'm not 100% sure whether I'm going to get through or not.

I don't know. I'm confused.

-What about Marcel?

-That was a good dessert.

That puree was wonderful, the apricots caramelised and the rhubarb just right.

However, it wasn't perfect. We didn't need that cream and it was such a huge portion.

If I go home today, I won't be happy,

but I think I've done my best.

On the one hand, we've got James who has got bags and bags of experience,

and on the other hand, we've got Marcel who has very little experience, almost self-trained.

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

Not easy to make a decision,

but it is a competition and two of you will be leaving us.

The first chef that is leaving us today is...

Aline.

I'm really sad. I haven't shown my best cooking.

I'm really sad to go.

The second chef leaving us today is...

..James Sinclair-Jones.

Oh, well...

Everybody's cooking really well and those small points they picked me up on went against me today.

Gutted.

You four are through to the next round.

Don't relax for one minute.

Next is the critics.

I hope you're ready. You have a tough test in front of you.

Impress the critics, impress us.

Two courses in one hour and 15 minutes.

Two of you will be going to the semi-final.

Two of you, sadly, will be leaving us.

Right, that's it. Off you go.

It's a big day today, Monica.

Our chefs have really got to excel. They've got to cook like they've never cooked before.

Cooking for a difficult customer is one thing, but for a difficult critic, ay-ay-ay.

I think one hour, 15 minutes to do two courses for four people, it's a big ask.

I'm confident I can produce the food, but it's going to be a lot of hard work.

James, what are you making for the critics today?

Roast halibut with a curried clam chowder, a black olive crumb.

For dessert, a vanilla parfait with a pistachio and hazelnut crumble, fresh strawberries and rhubarb puree.

I've been working on these dishes for a long time, so I know they work.

-Have you cooked for critics before?

-My track record cooking for critics isn't the best.

-Oh!

I've been on the receiving end of some bad reviews, so I don't want that to happen today.

James is cooking a nice, big chunk of halibut and serving with it a clam chowder flavoured with curry.

A good chowder for me should be rich and unctuous, but not heavy.

James is serving with his vanilla parfait some rhubarb compotes.

It's got to be sweet enough, not too sharp. With a crumble on top. Sounds heavenly.

I don't want to go home now. I want to produce a perfect plate of food for the judges.

I want them to look at it and say, "Yes, that's it...

"That's what we want in a MasterChef champion." That's what I want to be.

How are you feeling, David?

Nervous. I didn't become a chef for an easy life.

-What's the saying? If you can't stand the heat...

-Don't come on MasterChef.

-Indeed!

-Have you made a lot of sacrifices?

-It's something you want to do, the passion. You can't do anything else.

I trained to be a plumber, tiler, plasterer. I worked in a bar for a while. I was in the navy as well.

-So what are you cooking?

-I'm doing braised turbot

with crushed potatoes, artichokes,

langoustines and a shellfish sauce.

And then for dessert,

almost like a millefeuille with a chocolate tuile, foam and a strawberry daiquiri sorbet.

-I'm really looking forward to this, David.

-Good.

David is making us a braised turbot with langoustines.

He's taken the heads off to make a sauce, almost like a bisque.

If David pulls it off, it means he has got the skills.

Most definitely.

I love the idea of his dessert - a chocolate millefeuille with a strawberry and rum sorbet.

That's it, chefs. Halfway.

To cook for critics is as tough as it gets.

Hopefully, I can prove that I can cook.

Marcel, what are you making today?

I'm making neck of lamb with a couscous salad, aubergine and black olive puree.

The dessert is... Strudel is very, very popular back home.

I decided to go with almond and cherry, a popular filling.

-You're putting a marker down for Slovakian cuisine.

-Yes.

You have got about a hundred things to do in an hour.

I think I can do it. If I crack on and don't make silly mistakes, I can do it.

-You are a self-trained chef.

-Yes.

-Can you get through to the next round?

-I want to go as far as I can.

-Good.

Marcel has set himself so much work.

He's got lamb to vac-pack, cook and colour, a sauce he's just got on.

Pickled cucumber, mint oil, purees.

Let's hope these are tried and tested recipes,

otherwise, he's really in trouble.

Marcel's dessert sounds delicious.

A cherry and almond strudel.

Marcel has rolled out the pastry really thin.

He's only just put it in the oven.

There's no point being in a competition and not pushing yourself.

I mean, I know I can do the dish if you give me a couple of days!

What are your two dishes that are going to blow us away?

The first dish is rabbit, so I'm using the whole rabbit -

loin wrapped in pancetta, we've got the rack, some pea puree, carrot puree,

a mustard sort of jus, vinaigrette.

And the second dish is a chocolate tart, sable biscuit.

And if it's set, you'll get a lime curd ice cream as well with that.

It's a lot of work, but I like the sound of your menu. Very much so.

It would have been nice if I could have tested a few little things...

-You've not tested any of this?

-I've made the lime curd ice cream once.

This chocolate recipe, I haven't made.

You've got some nerve doing all of this and some of these recipes you haven't tried before. Are you mad?

If you want to get somewhere, you need to take risks. That's what I'm here to do.

-Good luck. Get a move on.

-Thank you.

David is using the rabbit. All of it, hopefully.

I hope he gets enough time to do that because it sounds divine.

I love the idea of this chocolate tart.

A chocolate tart without a base, but he's making a sable biscuit to give it the crunch.

That's enough for me, but no, he's making a lime curd ice cream.

That is just heaven. I can't wait to taste it.

20 minutes to go, chefs. Come on, keep it going. Keep it going.

You see quite a lot of ordinary food. You see quite a lot of good food.

What you don't see so often is exceptionally good food

and that's what I'd like to see here.

What I'm looking for is that certain je ne sais quoi.

You don't know what it is,

but when you eat someone's food, you know they've got it.

I want to see them begin

to discard the shackles of tedious French gastronomy

and to make a stand for what you can cook in Britain today.

-James, five minutes left.

-It's all going to come together pretty much last minute.

James's main course is pan-roast halibut with a black olive crumb,

curried clam chowder, spring vegetables.

-As with all fish, you've got to cook it well.

-It's all about the execution.

It smells really good, James.

So we've got a crispy potato and black olive crust.

I like how this is looking, James.

-Is that it?

-That's us, chef, yeah.

-Go, go, go. Well done.

James has pan-roasted halibut and topped it with a potato and black olive crumb,

accompanied by spring vegetables in a curried clam chowder.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

The fish looks very nice. Everything looks elegant.

Yeah, I know. It looks great.

This is a nice dish in many ways.

The fish is cooked beautifully, the broccoli and asparagus as well.

The sauce is potentially very nice, but he's chucked the most amazing amount of salt into it.

There's not enough of that clam chowder veloute. It's not holding the whole dish together.

If the clam chowder had been a rich, saffron-flavoured sauce,

we might have got somewhere, but the dish doesn't work. What a pity cos it looked really nice!

The fish is ever so slightly overcooked.

It's gone a bit dry. I do like that crust with the olive though.

I like those potatoes cut so small. It shows attention to detail.

There's not enough of that chowder. So near, but there are errors.

I think he could have taken the time and made these vegetables really finely presented,

a touch more finesse, so everything is perfect like those potatoes.

Well done, James.

-You've got 15 minutes now for pudding.

-Sure.

-Brilliant.

James's dessert is vanilla parfait, pistachio and hazelnut crumble, rhubarb, strawberries.

Nothing wildly new here. If he can cook well, it'll be good.

To succeed, it has to convince us that we didn't just want a rhubarb crumble.

The jury is out.

Well on time, I tell you.

Well on time. Well done.

Chefs struggle to get this done in an hour. You've done very well.

-Go. Well done, James.

-Thank you.

Thank you.

James's dessert is vanilla parfait,

sandwiched in almond tuiles on a bed of rhubarb puree

with a pistachio and hazelnut crumble, popping candy and strawberries.

This dessert looks like a traffic accident in Toytown.

It should be roped off. We shouldn't be allowed near it.

That's a bit unfair. There's fun here. Unfortunately, the smear looks really unpleasant.

There are some really nice tastes on this plate. The parfait is nice. It's creamy, the vanilla is good.

It's just this idea of smears and popping candy. It's just fashion, isn't it?

It's the worst kind of fashionable. We've got two nice things here.

We've got strawberries and cream, always a winner, and rhubarb crumble,

but by the time they've been through the mill, they're no good. It's got too complicated.

It's not an eyesore, but it's like an abstract painting. You're not quite sure which way to look at it.

That parfait is very light.

The sharpness of the rhubarb goes well with strawberries. It tastes better than it looks.

I'm not bowled over by the presentation.

James has shown a lot of skill and technique. He's not wowed us though.

It wasn't the best food I could have cooked, but it certainly wasn't the worst.

I definitely felt the pressure today. Definitely.

David, you have only seven minutes left. Let's get a move on.

David G's got quite a posh-sounding menu.

He's name-dropping words like turbot, langoustine, shellfish sauce. Let's hope he can do it well.

I love the idea of a shellfish sauce just holding all the other elements together.

But it has to be well made.

It has to be absolutely the best of its sort.

-David, three and a half minutes left.

-I might be two or three minutes late if that's the case.

Come on, David.

-That's your hour, David.

-Yeah.

You've really got to step it up now because there's late and there's very late.

Good. Steady hands.

Thanks.

David has made braised turbot on a bed of crushed potatoes

with pan-fried langoustines and violet artichokes,

served with a langoustine sauce.

It's rather spare and sparse on the plate.

It's not a plate that's crying out to be eaten.

This wouldn't keep me going till pudding.

The turbot comes apart. It's held its moisture nicely in the middle.

The langoustines have not been overdone. They're nicely juicy.

The sauce is really well made.

Plenty of things are well done. The artichokes are a lovely, little, pungent, acidic note.

Hmm! He makes an amazing shellfish sauce. That is absolutely delicious.

That's delicious. It really is delicious. Beautifully seasoned, beautifully cooked.

The turbot is succulent. The sauce has such sweetness in it.

He was very late, but it was worth waiting for.

-You've got just over ten minutes for your dessert, yeah?

-Yeah.

For his dessert, David G opts for the laconic style -

chocolate and strawberries.

Yes, I like chocolate. Yes, I like strawberries.

I hope they're not too badly messed about.

Come on, David. You're almost there.

The sorbet's a bit hard, a bit lumpy there.

Not working...? Surely, that'll hold.

-No?

-No, I can't do it.

-Did you put any stabiliser in that sorbet?

-I forgot to put it in.

-No wonder you're struggling.

You're just about on time. Off you go.

David's dessert is chocolate millefeuille, chocolate tuile layers filled with strawberry mousse,

chocolate mousse and chocolate jelly

with champagne-marinaded strawberries and a strawberry daiquiri sorbet.

I think presentation may not be David's strong suit.

These great, big macerated strawberries plumped on the top, it's overbalancing the look of it.

Eugh! Ohh..

The strawberry daiquiri is really sharp and really unforgiving in every way.

The bits of chocolate goo and chocolate jelly are very much chocolate goo and chocolate jelly.

I don't like this very much. I think there are too many things that don't work.

That sorbet is... There's only one word for it and that is disgusting.

He's just tried to do too much and he hasn't quite done it well enough.

That's a sorry-looking dessert. The sorbet is not right and the whole thing is crumbling.

He didn't put any stabiliser in his sorbet and I don't think he put any sugar in it either.

Agh!

Oh, that's sharp!

You couldn't get any more different-tasting plates than this dessert and main course from David.

I really don't like the chocolate jelly. The dessert's gone really wrong for David.

As much as I loved his turbot dish, this, for me, is a disaster.

I could have done better. I've done better in the past.

But that's what I've made today. That's what I'm getting judged on.

I'm so close to going over and having a stern word with Marcel.

It frustrates me to watch a chef work like this. He hasn't cleaned up.

Right, Marcel, three minutes to go.

-I'm behind.

-How behind?

-I'd say seven minutes, chef.

Marcel's doing spring lamb neck fillet roasted with herbs, served with a couscous salad.

I've had lamb neck and it can be absolutely wonderful.

What's gone wrong? The puree won't go through the bottle?

-Yeah.

-Not fine enough?

-Not fine enough.

You're seriously late now, Marcel. Come on.

I'm terribly sorry for being late.

Marcel's main is herb-roasted lamb neck fillet, served with couscous, chickpea and pickled cucumber salad,

olive tapenade and yogurt.

Setting aside the lamb, which looks just fine,

everything else on the plate looks as if you've gone to a health food restaurant,

got one of those plastic boxes, filled it with all sorts of odd bits and pieces, and then fallen over.

I really don't understand what was taking him so long.

It's like a deconstruction of an indifferent kebab.

The salady thing doesn't work. The tapenadey thing doesn't work.

The lamb's OK, but a bit on the chewy side.

There is no excitement here, there is no skill here, there is no flavour here.

It's dull and pointless and it wasn't worth waiting for.

There's parts I like. Couscous and lamb is a given. There's hints of that mint coming through.

But too much going on. It's a confused plate. I'm confused.

I really do like that neck end of lamb. He's cooked it well.

The olive and smoked aubergine puree I quite like.

It's nothing special. It really isn't anything special.

Marcel, you'll have to move it with that pudding.

For his dessert, he recommends a cherry and almond strudel.

Strudels are classically very, very difficult and he's got time limits to contend with.

I think he'll do it his way. It could be lovely. We'll have to wait and see.

-Marcel...

-Yes, chef?

-How long?

-I'm starting to plate everything up.

-Starting to plate up. Great.

Time was up a long time ago.

-Here you are.

-Thank you.

-Here you are.

Marcel's dessert is his version of a cherry and almond strudel,

cherry compote with almond crumble,

cherry tuile and puff pastry shards,

topped with an edible flower.

It's sort of like the aftermath of a massacre at Ladies' Day at Ascot.

Mine looks like a sort of fascinator that's become severed from the head.

All over Europe, pastry chefs are spinning in their graves at the idea that this should be called a strudel.

It tastes better than it looks.

The pastry is well made. The tuiles are well made. It's good. I like it.

I don't see how this is an improvement on a cherry strudel.

I don't think breaking it down into its component parts is a good idea.

In spite of its strange presentation, it's really delicious. I've gobbled it all up.

I've never seen a strudel served like this. I don't think he's done the Slovakian strudel justice.

That cherry sauce was just thrown on there at the last minute. It's a mess.

The cherries are delicious.

I love those cherries, but part of the puff pastry is burnt, part of it is raw.

This whole dish is far, far, far too sweet. It's not working. There are too many errors.

That was tough. I've done these dishes before and I've done them much better than that.

-Time to plate up.

-Oui.

-Are you there?

Five minutes max.

For his main course, he's giving us loin, pan-fried rack, braised leg, liver and kidney of rabbit

with lettuce parcel, pea and carrot puree and rabbit jus.

He's basically giving us an entire rabbit. Well done to him for going for it!

Come on. Let's go, let's go, let's go.

-OK, good. Well done.

-Thank you, chef.

David has made saddle of rabbit wrapped in pancetta,

pan-fried rack, braised leg, liver and kidney of rabbit,

green beans, pea puree and a mustard vinaigrette.

-Enjoy your meal, guys.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

This looks very pretty and fresh and really innovative.

I'm quite excited by the rabbit rack.

I'm not seeing the lettuce parcel. He may have run out of time.

Not surprising if he's done all this rabbit butchery himself.

The rabbit rack has got good, crispy bits on it. The little kidneys are very nice.

There is evidence of some really good cooking here.

That loin is so perfectly cooked and tender. It's fantastic.

And the pea puree, there's a wonderful, bursting, fresh flavour there.

And it is a beautiful match to that rabbit.

It's absolutely perfect. It's what we said we were looking for.

You don't know what it'll be, but when you find it, you'll know and this is it.

That little loin of rabbit wrapped in pancetta is roasted to perfection.

It is sweet and succulent. The kidney is delicious. The liver is pink, as it should be.

I like the mustard dressing.

What's on the plate is very well cooked, very well seasoned.

David, you'll really have to move it for your dessert.

The dessert is chocolate tart with caramel espuma,

salted peanut butter, honey-roasted peanuts,

sable biscuit and lime curd ice cream.

If he had a brigade of about 16 with him,

I'd have absolute confidence that he could bring together every bit of this pudding at the right time.

Given the fact that it's just him, I fear he's overstretched himself.

OK, off you go. Well done.

Hmm.

David's dessert is chocolate tart with caramel espuma or foam,

sitting on salted peanut butter

with honey-roasted peanuts, sable biscuits

and a lime curd ice cream.

Enjoy it, guys. Thank you.

This looks competent, confident, natural.

It looks really, really nice.

There it is. That's what we were after.

Fantastic.

Oh, golly, this is really good!

This moussey chocolate is incredibly intense, but also light.

It's just celestial, isn't it?

And put in a couple of these salted peanuts and some of this caramel foam...

It's one of the nicest mouthfuls you could imagine. It's delicious.

It's a very nice dessert. It manages to be intense in flavour without being too sweet.

-I could eat a great deal of this.

-It's a historic pudding.

He's delivered on every single level.

I really like that bitter chocolate. It's indulgent, it is greedy, as a dessert should be.

It's good. Good eating.

I really like the lime curd ice cream. It's a good dessert.

I'd like to finish the rest of it if you don't mind.

I feel happy with the dishes that went out in the end.

Not everything was there, but I couldn't have done any more, so I'm happy.

Well, that was a bit of a mixed bag, wasn't it?

We had highs.

And very lows, I think.

Let's talk about Marcel.

Marcel's main course of lamb with couscous, for me, just didn't do it

and for most of the critics, it really didn't do it either.

It was a scattering on the plate and a mismatch of a lot of ingredients. He was very late. It lacked finesse.

The dessert, I'm sorry...

That dessert, I was expecting a lovely strudel.

The taste of the cherries was really nice. The whipped cream was good.

But there was an overriding taste of sugar. Far too much sugar going on.

And visually, it just didn't work.

Marcel is a self-taught chef. I think it showed today.

He just attempted too much.

Let's talk about David.

Now, David has definitely got skills. Definitely.

I really enjoyed eating that rabbit dish.

That pea puree was just so sweet and delicious. It worked perfectly with the sweetness of the rabbit.

David can cook. That was a really good dish and it looked stunning.

Flavour combination-wise, I loved David's dessert. I was most definitely in patisserie heaven.

I think we agree that David should go through to the next round

and I think sadly for Marcel, his competition has come to an end.

That leaves us with James and David G. I'd like to discuss David G.

I was mightily impressed by his cooking skills.

That turbot was cooked absolutely to perfection.

For me, the star of the show was that lustre of a sauce.

Any chef that can make a langoustine sauce that good, I tell you, deserves his place here.

But that was a very bad dessert. I would have been embarrassed to serve that to anyone.

The chocolate jelly was like rubber. The texture was horrible. The sorbet without sugar syrup and stabiliser.

I really feel for him because that turbot dish was up there

and that dessert was... Oh, no, no. What happened, David?

It's the semi-finals next round and it's really serious.

I've got big things planned. I want the judges to see that.

Now, what about James?

The critics loved James's presentation of the fish dish, but they said it was far too salty.

His halibut was overcooked.

The sauce didn't have enough oomph you'd expect from a good chowder.

Visually, I wasn't bowled over by James's pudding, that big swipe of pink rhubarb puree.

What I did like was that sandwich vanilla frozen parfait.

Look at this dessert. It showed off a lot of skill, for sure.

Those almond tuiles used as the biscuits to sandwich the parfait, they were wonderful.

I honestly couldn't put my hand on my heart and say they were all perfect plates of food.

They were OK plates of food, but I don't know if "OK" is enough to get to the semi-finals.

This is not easy by a long stretch.

Both of these chefs could be a risk.

We have made a decision.

Two of you will be leaving us.

The first chef that is leaving us today is...

..Marcel.

Obviously, I feel disappointed to be leaving today,

but I enjoyed my experience and I'm going to learn from it

and use it as a motivation to progress further as a chef.

The second chef leaving us today is...

..James.

Disappointed.

I won't forget any of this experience.

It wasn't my day today. It's still very disappointing to be going home.

I honestly didn't think I'd get this far, but it means so much to get to this level.

Yes, I'm still in a bit of a state of disbelief at the moment.

I'm happy. I'm really excited that I'm through to the next round.

I think, overall, it was a good day.

- Cheers. - Cheers.

Next week, it's the chance for eight new chefs to prove they have what it takes.

I want to see as many skills as possible.

First, Monica will demonstrate what can be achieved in an hour...

That is a work of art.

..before it's their turn to impress.

This is your opportunity to stand out and I don't see that here.

It looks like you chewed the sausage and spat it on the plate.

It's just an Aladdin's cave of pudding delights.

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