Episode 15 MasterChef: The Professionals

These eight chefs all want to become professional MasterChef champion.

They've been split into two groups.

Today, the second four have to prove they're good enough to make it through.

I've been massively inspired by the last challenge.

I feel like I've gained a competitive streak that I never really thought I had before.

The competition is hanging in the balance. It's only me that can affect that balance.

I've got another chance to show myself today.

I wouldn't have entered if I didn't think I could do something in this competition.

It's really all or nothing, so go out fighting if you're going to.

First, they will face Monica's infamous skills test.

I'll just do a bit of a test. There we go.

Get in, son. Back of the net!

Then they finally get to face Michel Roux Junior and his classics challenge.

This recipe will tell me all about you, the chef.

At the end of today, one of them will be sent home.

The skills test, Monica. This is a tough round. What have they got to do today?

They've got to make us a creme pat and use it for a base of a souffle.

They can use anything on the table here to make a garnish, sauce, whatever, to go with it.

-How long have they got for this?

-15 minutes.

It's not a lot of time. They've got to move it from the word go.

-This is really challenging. Show me how it's done.

-Sure. Let's do it.

I'll get the creme pat on. Here I have some milk.

You have some flour, sugar,

vanilla pod...

..and an egg. We want the yolk.

I'm being very careful. Do not scramble this, OK?

That's ferocious, isn't it, Monica?

-Is that absolutely necessary to bash it that vigorously?

-If you've got 15 minutes, yes, Gregg.

-I want to cool it down quickly.

-What happens if it's not cold enough?

It's going to melt your meringue.

The next thing I'm going to do is whisk up the egg whites, ready to get the souffle in.

-You're making a meringue.

-That's right.

-Too much sugar and that won't rise, will it?

-Exactly.

So take your creme pat,

add your egg whites, OK?

Not all in one go, otherwise you'll knock all that air out. Just like that, nice and light.

And butter my moulds.

Then you get your mix into your buttered moulds.

On a tray and in the oven they go.

-They've got six to eight minutes now to make accompaniments for their souffle.

-That's right.

-You're making a chocolate sauce.

-Just for you. Chocolate sauce.

That smells lovely.

-They could make a fruit coulis.

-They could roast the figs off if they want. Lots to do here.

But what we want to see is a decent souffle.

-Look at that. Wahey!

-I'm going to put some chocolate sauce in for you.

Let the sauce soak into your souffle.

And I'm going to sprinkle some pistachios on top.

There we go, Gregg - creme pat-based souffle with chocolate sauce and pistachios.

I love you.

That is as light as a... In fact, I think it's lighter than a feather.

And that lovely chocolate sauce and pistachios... That's gorgeous, Monica.

I believe that if we get great, skilled chefs here today, they can get this done in the time limit.

Fingers crossed. Let's get the chefs in. Souffle time.

First up is 21-year-old Jack,

a chef de partie for a London bank.

In the first round, his experimental butternut squash ravioli showed originality.

Today, I think I've got to prove that from the last challenge I can do a lot better.

I can take on their criticism and show them what I can really do.

Right, Jack, this is a skills test.

What we want you to do is make a creme pat, then use that creme pat to make a souffle.

-While the souffle is cooking, you've got time to make us a sauce.

-Yeah.

On this test, Jack, you will need to go like your backside's on fire.

OK? Get that creme pat on, get it cooled, egg whites up, yeah, and so on.

Ready? 15 minutes.

Jack...

Take a deep breath. Focus on what you're doing.

You're halfway. You've got seven and a half minutes.

Five minutes left, Jack.

Right, time's up. You've got to stop, chef.

-How was that for you?

-Very stressful.

I'm not happy with what I've produced, no.

Not quite on the souffle.

It's a little thick and it's too eggy.

It's like a vanilla-flavoured, fluffy egg white.

Jack, because this creme pat mix was not quite cooked,

it's very dense, it's almost like a soup texture,

so what we have is a vanilla-flavoured, egg white omelette.

You need to trust your instincts. If you've made a mistake, stop what you're doing and start again.

Yeah, Jack, you know, it's a real bad case of nerves.

It's just let you down here today, yeah?

Jack, thank you. Off you go.

I'm quite annoyed with myself, really, because I've done souffles many, many times

and I've let the nerves get the better of me there.

I've now messed up my chances.

Next up is 27-year-old Adam.

His sausage and butternut squash tortellini showed skill,

but was let down by a lack of sauce.

The skills test has been the biggest dread for me.

If Monica liked my food, I think I'd just smile for the next month.

I'd be very, very proud of myself and really happy at what I'd achieved.

Adam, I can see you're slightly nervous.

What we'd like you to do is make a souffle.

-While that is in the oven, we'd like you to make a sauce to go with it.

-OK.

-15 minutes, Adam. You know what you've got to do.

-Yeah.

-Off you go.

Good lad. Get it in the fridge. Get a move on.

I'll just do a bit of a test. There we go.

Seven and a half minutes left.

Six minutes left.

Ah...

I think that's it, mate. Time's up.

I really don't like your chocolate smudge under the mould. It doesn't look appealing at all.

The chocolate in the middle is lovely, but the souffle needs to be a bit lighter and much sweeter.

You were working really well in the beginning.

Once your creme pat was done, you chilled out too much, way too much.

-You deserve that bowl of egg whites on your head right now.

-OK.

We're almost there. The souffle isn't light enough and it's still liquid in part.

I don't like the chocolate in there.

Almost, Adam. Almost.

Off you go, please.

I don't know.

-I

-know.

That was terrifying. I'm glad I didn't completely mess it up, but there are still things to work on.

27-year-old sous-chef Patrick is from Northern Ireland.

In a disastrous first test, he served raw sausages to Monica and Gregg.

To restore some faith in myself, I need to remain calm, focused.

Hopefully, that'll eradicate any more mistakes.

-What we want you to do is make a souffle. Can you make a souffle?

-It's been a while, but I'll try.

15 minutes. Off you go, chef.

You've had five minutes, Patrick.

You've still got five minutes to go, so plenty of time.

-All done?

-Yes.

It's still a little bit liquid in there

and you didn't add any sugar to the egg whites. It needs to be a little sweeter.

However, lovely taste of vanilla, sugar round the outside, light and fluffy, really good fruit coulis.

Get in, son. Back of the net!

Patrick, your creme patisserie, you made it really well.

You even took the effort to pass out any lumps you had in it.

It's cooked nicely. It is quite light.

A touch more sugar wouldn't go amiss.

Listen, some great skills here. Well done.

Thanks.

I definitely feel like I redeemed myself. I never thought it would have been with a souffle. I'm so happy.

99% happy.

Finally, it's 35-year-old Chad who only started cooking five years ago.

His first dish of well-made bangers and mash was deemed to be playing it too safe.

There will be a lot of nerves today.

It's down to myself to keep those nerves under control

and to produce the best that I can.

Right, Chad.

15 minutes.

Good souffle. Off you go.

Chad, five minutes gone, so you've got ten minutes, yeah?

We're halfway. Seven and a half minutes left.

You've got to get it into the oven.

All done?

SIGHS

The creme pat, you did a great job on getting that done.

The egg whites which you whisked up didn't have any sugar going into it.

When it came to making the souffle, you didn't have to use all that creme pat.

The weight of it has dragged out any air that was in your egg whites.

It's very heavy. It's not cooked properly.

I love what you did with the figs, I like the way you made the creme pat,

I like the way you sliced the strawberry, but I don't like the greens on the top.

I wouldn't eat that if it came up to me. I'd have to send it back. Unfortunately, it's far too wet.

I really liked the coulis with a couple of berries on it.

When you stuck everything on there, I think it was overkill.

Chad, thank you very much.

The souffle wasn't as good as it could and should have been.

It's not the best result all round.

Not the most successful souffle-making class I've ever seen.

I enjoyed it though and all of them pretty much did a creme pat very well.

This lot have really got to step it up.

They've seriously got to impress Michel before I make my mind up.

This classic recipe is rognons d'agneau aux trois moutardes,

puree d'epinards et un gateau de pommes de terre savoyard.

That is lamb kidney in three-mustard sauce

with a spinach puree and a Savoyard potato cake.

It's a real classic from the Savoie region of France.

It's one dish I doubt very much if our chefs have come across,

but if they use their knowledge and their instinct, they should be able to get their head around this.

The first job, the potato cake.

I always use a good red variety of potato.

It has lots of flavour and will hold up whilst it's cooking.

To this potato, I add some onion.

This goes into the potato mix, then some seasoning.

We then need to extract the excess moisture

from the potato and the onion,

so we put it in a cloth and press it dry.

This is very important, otherwise the potato cake will be just soggy.

Now to this, we add a few sultanas...

..and some prunes

to add a little bit of sweetness to the dish.

Now I take a little tartlet tin and I line it with very thinly sliced smoked Ventreche -

air-dried smoked belly of pork.

We fill this with the potato mix.

Just folding over every slice

until we have a lovely parcel.

That's it, ready to go into the oven for about 20 minutes.

Next, we need to prepare the spinach puree.

Just sweat it down in a little bit of butter,

add some boiled cream and puree it up to a lovely, smooth puree.

Hmm, beautiful.

Now we need to prepare the lamb kidney.

You have to remove the core. This is part of the kidney that really is very chewy and not nice to eat.

I expect chefs to know that.

The kidneys get cooked in two stages.

The first stage, seared over high heat...

..then left to rest and drain and then cooked again in the sauce.

We add our shallots to that pan, then we add some brandy.

Then some white wine.

Once the wine and the brandy has reduced by about half,

we add the cream,

Dijon mustard,

wholegrain mustard

and some herb mustard.

This is a tarragon mustard which gives a bit of an aniseed background flavour to it which is wonderful.

We put in the drained kidneys just to finish off cooking.

Good. All that's left to do now is plate up.

Hmm!

There we have it - rognons d'agneau a la moutarde, puree d'epinards, gateau de pommes de terre savoyard.

Lamb kidneys in three-mustard sauce

with a spinach puree and a Savoyard potato cake.

Only three things on the plate - the kidney, the potato cake and the spinach.

I want a plate that looks clean and elegant.

Welcome back to the MasterChef kitchen.

For my classic, I want you to cook rognons a la moutarde et gateau de pommes de terre savoyard -

kidneys in mustard sauce with a Savoyard potato cake.

In front of you, you have a recipe,

a recipe which is more like a list of ingredients.

There are no weights and measures and not much of a method.

This recipe will tell me all about you, the chef.

One hour to cook this classic.

Off you go.

For me, cooking for Michel is an amazing achievement.

I am very familiar with his work and, obviously, the whole family of the Rouxs.

I love their philosophy on food and I hope I can show him what I can really do. That would be great.

-Jack, how are you?

-Good. Looking forward to this.

-Looking forward to it?

-Excited, yes.

-You like offal?

-Yes. We don't cook with it regularly at work, but I've cooked it before. I enjoy eating it.

-What's been your route into the catering business?

-At 13, I went on work experience with my dad.

He's a chef. I thought, "When I finish school, I'm going to go to catering college," which I did.

Then straight from there I've gone into where I work now.

-So you get involved. Are you responsible?

-Yes, I'm a chef de partie at the moment.

-Uh-huh.

The next menu, I've got three dishes on. I love going into work every day. It's what I get up for.

-Indeed.

-If you enjoy your job, it's not work any more.

Jack has just prepared the kidneys absolutely perfectly -

removed the core and left them as halves, exactly how I like them.

I think Jack has grasped this recipe and knows exactly what I'm looking for.

I know Michel will be looking for accuracy in following his recipe

and also the ability to use your own judgment.

I just need to make sure that I can do it and not let the nerves get on top of me.

Adam, have you been trained in the classics?

Only recently. I've only started working in a fine-dining restaurant recently.

It's French classic in its essence.

-What would you say is your strong point in the kitchen?

-I'm quite a creative chef.

I've got quite a runaway mind, but I never go too far.

I like to mess around with flavours, but I think I've got a handle on it. I think that's my kind of forte.

-Have you got your head around the potato cake?

-I think so.

I was going to treat it kind of like a rosti, then wrap it in the bacon and bake it.

-That's what I took from the recipe, so I think I'm on top of it.

-Excellent. Crack on.

-Thank you.

I just hope that Adam, with his inventive spirit,

is not going to go too far with this recipe.

It's not an invention test. This is the classics.

Halfway. Wow, where did that go, eh?

I think the classical techniques are really the fundamental techniques of cooking.

If you don't know that as a chef, you won't get very far and you won't be successful.

-Morning, Patrick.

-Hello.

-How are you?

-Good. How are you?

-Very good.

I'm looking forward to this wonderful dish. Have you come across gateau de pommes de terre savoyard?

-I haven't, no.

-You think you know what I'm looking for?

-I think so. I try to be confident. You need to be confident.

-Where are you from? I detect a little accent.

-Northern Ireland.

-What are you doing at the moment?

I work in a fine-dining restaurant back home. I've always had a great passion for food.

That all stemmed from my upbringing. My mother always cooked good things.

She really showed us different types of food, different types of ingredients.

The passion just came from there. It's always been there.

My expectations of Patrick are very, very high.

He looks driven, he's rolled his sleeves up and he looks the part.

I really want to stay in the competition

to put the last two rounds behind me.

I've got to believe that I can deliver what Michel wants and that's what I'm setting out to do today.

Right, Chad, you understand this recipe?

No, it's not a recipe I've come across before.

-Kidneys though, yes?

-I haven't cooked them, no.

-Oh!

-It's going to be a test of my knowledge and what I've learned and read about cooking kidneys

to make sure they come up perfect.

Tell me a bit about your background.

I've been working in fine-dining restaurants for five years. I started at the age of 30, so extremely late.

-30?

-Yes.

That's pretty brave of you at the age of 30, a complete change of career.

It was pretty bold and it was a massive change for my wife and for my daughters,

but it's the only job where I've looked forward to going to work.

Working 12, 13 hours for less money than I've ever earned, it still puts a smile on my face.

I'm not sure what to expect from Chad. However much passion you have for cooking,

if you've never cooked kidneys before, it's a risk.

Ten to go. Think about presentation, how you want this dish to look.

Two minutes. Keep it going. Come on, focus, guys.

OK, finished. No more.

For my classic recipe, I asked you to cook rognons d'agneau a la moutarde

et gateau de pommes de terre savoyard.

Lamb kidneys in mustard sauce

with a Savoyard potato cake.

The kidneys should be served pink.

The sauce should have a good kick of mustard, but not be thick or claggy. It should be light.

The spinach puree - vibrant green,

silky smooth.

The potato cake - crispy on the outside

and soft and sweet on the inside.

And presentation - a certain panache and elegance.

Patrick, let's have a look at your plate.

First off, your potato cake looks a bit burnt. It's actually very dark.

It's not right, eh?

You cut up the kidneys into little pieces and I prefer the lamb kidneys just cut in half,

so they've got that lovely natural shape.

The kidneys are ever so slightly overcooked. That's probably because they are very small.

The sauce is a bit too thick and it's lacking in depth of flavour.

It could have done with a bit more white wine. It's just lacking in finesse and elegance.

The potato cake is overcooked, but it has the right amount of sweetness in there, which is perfect.

The spinach puree is lovely. Beautiful, vibrant green, the right texture. Bang-on!

I loved watching you work

because you were switched on, you were focused, 100% on.

But the result is not quite there.

Yeah, interesting, Patrick. Thank you.

Michel was impressed by the way I worked, but I'm quite disappointed with the feedback on my dish.

It could have been a lot worse, but two, three little things could cost me a lot.

Chad, now for you.

I think you've made an attempt of a modern presentation with a swoosh or a swipe of the spinach puree.

It doesn't quite work because the spinach puree looks grainy, not smooth enough.

It is vibrant green which is pleasing to the eye.

What isn't so pleasing to the eye is the fact that we can't see the potato cake

because you've piled the kidney on top and piled more bacon on top.

That...is raw.

Yeah?

-You wouldn't want to eat that, would you?

-No, chef.

-No.

Oh, dearie me!

The potato cake - beautiful.

Perfect colour as well.

Why hide it? You should be proud of it. It's lovely.

The potato's cooked. Could have done with a tiny bit more fruit in it and a tiny bit more seasoning.

Your sauce, I like the fact that you've put a bit more tarragon mustard than the other mustards.

I love that aniseedy flavour coming through.

No, it's not right. Not right at all.

Argh!

Experience or lack of?

Thank you, chef.

I can't believe I undercooked those kidneys.

I'm gutted.

That's the core element on the plate. It should have been cooked correctly, so I'm not happy.

Adam, your turn.

First off, that swirl of spinach puree going round, I think it's quite attractive.

I do like that. What I don't like is the fact that you've piled the kidneys on top of the potato cake.

A scattering of dried fruit on top there as well. It's not necessary.

The spinach puree you've used almost as a decoration. There is not enough there.

I have to scrape it off the bottom of the plate.

The potato cake is well seasoned. It's got the right balance of fruit, onion and potato.

The kidneys are lovely and pink, very well cooked.

The sauce, I would have liked more tarragon mustard in there, but that's my taste.

Nonetheless, it has got a good kick of mustard.

Well, Adam, I think that's a good effort and you've shown off good skills here.

-Good. Thank you, Adam.

-Thank you, chef.

I felt amazing about Michel saying he liked my food.

I didn't really expect it, to be honest.

It's made me feel really happy and confident. It's a boost for the next part of the competition.

I just hope I don't mess it up. I don't think I will.

Jack, your turn.

Very classic way of presenting this dish.

It's very simple.

Smart, elegant. I like it.

Look at that. That's...

Just... Agh!

Dearie me, those kidneys are rare!

Rare. Whoa!

Hmm... Not many people would want to eat them, I tell you.

The sauce, a little bit too thick and heavy creamy,

although it has got a good kick of mustard

and beautiful, very finely chopped shallots cooked all the way through.

The spinach puree is lovely.

You've given me enough there, well seasoned and smooth. Really good.

The potato cake as well, highlight. It's got a real kick to it from the fruit. The seasoning is very good.

Lovely crispy exterior. Delicious.

There are good things and bad things on this plate. You know that.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

OK, Jack, thank you.

I was overall very happy with it. I got some great feedback.

Just the rare kidneys let me down a bit. I'm kicking myself about it, really.

I'm hoping he can...not overlook it, but pick on the good points as well as there was a bad point.

None of you achieved 100% in this test, but I've certainly learnt a lot about you.

Now your chance to cook YOUR interpretation of a classic.

Your personality on a plate. One of you will be leaving us today, so get it right.

One hour from now. Perfection on a plate. Off you go.

I think this dish does show me as a chef because it shows an understanding of flavours that work

and just celebrating great ingredients.

If I do that, it will be an absolutely delicious dish.

-Jack...

-Yes, chef?

-I love the ingredients on your bench.

To me, it sings of Provence. Tell me, am I right?

Yes, it's a bourride of fish,

a stock made from the fish bones which is then thickened

and that will go on top of the fish that I've pan-fried and blanched in the fish stock in different ways.

Jack, I love a bourride.

It was on the menu when I first came out of college to my workplace and it really tested my skills.

It made me realise what goes into a service,

doing a dish with so many different fish having to be cooked spot-on.

-Some very good chefs in this kitchen today.

-Yes.

I've got less experience than others in this competition,

but I want to be able to pit myself against them. I'd like to show what I can do too.

Yes, I like that, Jack.

-I can't wait to taste this bourride.

-Thank you.

Jack is making a bourride, a fish broth thickened with aioli, a garlic mayonnaise.

Jack is preparing his bourride with scallops, langoustines,

mussels, red mullet and sea bass.

All of those ingredients have got different cooking times,

so he'll have to be very careful with his timings on this one.

20 minutes gone, chefs. That's it, yeah, 20 minutes. That's flown past.

I've spent a while developing this dish. I've changed it over the past few months.

I've put it on in work and I've had really good feedback, so I just hope I can make it like I made it then.

-Adam, what classic dish are you cooking for me?

-I'm doing a roast chicken dinner with a twist.

-I imagined it wouldn't just be a roast chicken dinner.

-There'll be a foam, a nice ballotine.

Nice turned potatoes. It's all in the presentation.

I just hope my flavours are actually bold and quite exciting which is the intention.

-Why roast chicken?

-It's always been a favourite of mine.

If I get a Sunday off, it's nice to have a chicken dinner.

It's something I find comforting and tasty when it's done right.

I wanted to refine it slightly and maybe put my own stamp on it.

-Any bread sauce?

-Yeah. I'll do a paned ball of bread sauce.

-A ball of bread sauce?

-Yeah, it's thick enough to pane with the panko breadcrumbs,

-then it'll be coated and deep-fried.

-Deep-fried bread sauce?

-Yeah.

-Who would have thought of it?

Adam isn't just preparing a roast chicken dinner.

He's got lots of surprises including some deep-fried bread sauce balls.

I'm really looking forward to seeing that because I've never come across them before.

Halfway, chefs. That's 30 minutes to go.

When Michel Roux Junior eats the dish, hopefully, he'll have a big smile on his face.

I'll make this dish stand out through presentation, classic combinations, flavour and good techniques.

Patrick, what's your dish?

Chicken and morels with a bit of pastry, a bit of duxelles and asparagus on top.

It is a good combination. I'll grant you that.

-Why this dish?

-It's the first thing that popped into my head. It's just a classic combination of flavours.

And it's just my take on it.

-What have you got to prove?

-I've got to prove that I can cook.

No mistakes, no silly mistakes. And put up a really good plate of food.

-You look incredibly chilled.

-I don't feel like that inside.

A little bit nervous, but I'll just get the last few things done here and I'll feel a lot better.

-Confident in this dish?

-Yes, if I execute it properly.

Patrick is cooking chicken supreme, morel sauce, asparagus.

It's going to have to be the perfect morel sauce to really impress me

because there's nothing there to really excite me.

It's vital that I stay today.

It will either confirm my decision to become a chef five years ago as to be correct or the wrong choice.

I've got so much to prove. I really need to focus on me and my food.

Chad, you're cooking one of my favourite desserts, I think.

Right. Floating islands? Iles flottantes?

-Iles flottantes, floating islands, yes.

-No pressure then(!)

-Do you like them?

-I absolutely love them. It's a firm family favourite. It's extremely close to my heart.

-When did you first come across this?

-Just when I started going to college.

I'd never come across a poached meringue, so I wanted to try it out and see what it was all about.

-And I just keep making it.

-What have you got to prove in this round?

I've got a lot to prove in this round, chef, so I need to make sure that this is absolutely bob-on.

This is me justifying the fact that I am meant to cook and this is what I'm meant to do, so it means a lot.

Chad is cooking snow eggs or floating islands,

so a meringue poached in milk and then nougatine -

almonds cooked in a caramel, then shaped into different shapes, so it's really brittle.

It may be the most simple of desserts,

but very often the simplest tasks are the most difficult.

15 minutes left. 15 minutes to go, chefs.

You can see the chefs really focusing 100% on the dishes.

They've got to get it right. This is it. It's their last chance.

Five minutes. Five minutes, guys.

That's it. Fini. Time's up.

Jack has made a bourride of seafood with sea bass, red mullet,

scallops, langoustines and mussels,

served with mixed vegetables and a rouille.

First off, visually, absolutely gorgeous.

Pretty, elegant, vibrant colours.

Hmm, yum!

All the fish components you were worried about getting all cooked properly and on time - magic.

Done. Beautiful skills. Perfectly seasoned. The red mullet is lovely. You've got a crispy skin.

The scallop has also got a lovely colour and it's sweet and intense.

The langoustine as well, lovely textures. Brilliant.

The vegetables add vibrancy to this dish. Normally, a bourride wouldn't have those vegetables,

but you've taken the idea of a bourride and made it into a really classy dish.

I really enjoyed that. Well done. Thank you, Jack.

For me, serving such a classic French dish like that to someone of that standard,

for him to give me the feedback that he has is absolutely overwhelming.

I'm so pleased with what I produced. It's amazing.

Patrick has made a roast chicken supreme

with asparagus, morels and puff pastry,

topped with duxelles - finely chopped sauteed mushrooms,

truffle and asparagus twirls,

served with a morel sauce.

The presentation, it's almost like a scatter.

It's a kind of style that, personally, I'm not very fond of.

It is almost one-dimensional, the way I see it,

and very few ingredients on the plate.

Beautifully cooked chicken supreme. Lovely and moist, succulent.

Well-seasoned, golden skin.

Very, very good, but it remains a chicken supreme.

You've flattened the pastry between two sheets. It's lovely and crisp and cooked all the way through.

The duxelles, I think, could have been chopped up a little bit finer, but it is very, very flavoursome.

Very good. The asparagus, perfectly cooked.

A little bite to them, al dente. Green and vibrant.

Truffle on top, sliced, for a bit of decadence. Very nice.

I do like the sauce, but it is a little bit cloying.

There's a lot of mushroom in there. There's some dried ceps as well which are very strong.

Good taste, though. Definitely good seasoning on the whole of your food.

I've learnt a lot from this plate of food.

-For the most part, I like what I've seen.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

-Thanks.

I've had bad moments, but I've had good moments.

I'm just really glad that I was able to put up a plate of food

that brought a smile to Michel Roux Junior's face.

When you get good compliments, it's highly rewarding.

Adam has filled his chicken ballotine with a chicken, shallot and chive mousse

and served it with sage and onion stuffing, fondant potatoes,

deep-fried bread sauce balls, sage foam

and a lemon balm and mustard sauce.

I do like your presentation style - one line and ingredients following that line around it.

Good skill in roasting the ballotine, I must say.

Really crispy skin and the mousse inside gives it even more of that lovely moisture.

There's good texture in this dish.

I really like the grain mustard in the sauce. It gives a little kick, acidity and balance to the dish.

The deep-fried bread sauce balls, for me, don't work. They're a bit too heavy.

The whole idea of bread sauce is it should be a creamy and velvety kind of texture. These are a bit doughy.

The potato fondants are a bit overcooked and a bit dark on the edges there which is not right.

The sage stuffing that you've put on the bottom of the plate is very strong in sage flavour.

It's overpowering which is a shame.

Agh! Gosh! It's not quite balanced.

It surprised me a little bit. I felt it was a bit better than Michel thought it was.

There were a couple of elements that weren't quite right, so that's starting to worry me now a bit.

Chad's classic is iles flottantes - meringue poached in milk,

floating on creme anglaise,

decorated with sugarwork and nougatine.

Visually, the creme anglaise I can see has got little bubbles.

It's been whisked up. It's got lightness to it.

I did see lots of almonds on your bench and you mentioned nougatine.

I'm a little bit disappointed that there's not more of it.

It does look a little bit sparse.

Beautifully cooked egg whites.

They're floating very happily on top of that very, very rich creme anglaise.

Lots of vanilla flavour, double cream as well. It works.

I understand why you've made the caramel separately and put it on top. It gives height to this dish.

I am, nonetheless, a little bit disappointed

because the pleasure of eating is slightly diminished.

I like to dive into my little islands and go "crack" from the caramel.

I finally feel as if I've actually started to show what I can actually do.

It's really what I needed at this moment in time.

Well, that was a vast improvement on my round.

I really enjoyed your food.

Good, professional cooking. I've got four very good chefs in front of me here.

It does sadden me that one of you will be leaving us.

Monica is going to join me. Hopefully, she can shed a bit of light on this. Off you go.

This is interesting, Monica, I must say. For me, I've got four very good chefs here.

I'm prepared to forgive Jack's rare kidneys

just because he dished up such a beautiful, beautiful bourride.

He can cook and I love his presentation.

In the skills test, Jack got very flustered and he gave us more an egg white omelette.

With the invention test, it was a very individual take on ravioli.

I loved the fact he was different from everyone else.

-He made the better plate of the four.

-I like what I see in Jack. I can see a good, good chef there.

So we're left with Adam,

Chad and Patrick.

I don't have a soft spot for any of these three,

but Patrick, I have to say, his souffle was one of the best on the day.

In my classic test, his kidneys were well and truly overcooked.

In his classic test, he cooked a supreme of chicken with asparagus and morels.

For me, it was a let-down because I don't like that particular type of presentation.

However, there were some very good cooking skills on show.

I don't want to be the first person to go home. I will be upset. It'll take a long time to get over.

Adam, for my classic test, cooked the kidneys really well,

but hardly any spinach puree.

For his classic recipe, he decided to cook a take on a roast chicken dinner.

He knows how to dress a nice plate of food,

but for me, it was just too many overpowering flavours.

Also, strangely enough, there was deep-fried bread sauce. It was just like a piece of dough.

-Eugh!

-How did Adam do for you?

Adam made a souffle which did rise, but why you would swipe the sauce

and then sit your souffle on top is beyond me.

Make a sauce, put it on the side and you pour it in. I'm just not convinced by Adam. Not at all.

I want to stay more than ever now. I want to show I can really do it.

I've made a few mistakes so far and I just need to stop doing it.

I've got to make sure I fix these little problems.

It's tough for Chad because he came into this business quite late and has got a bit of catching-up to do.

Chad barely cooked his kidneys. They were still moving on the plate.

They were raw.

He had a lot to prove in the second round.

He made an almost perfect oeufs a la neige.

-How did he do for you?

-The souffle, he didn't add enough sugar to it, yet he added all the creme pat mix.

His souffle did not rise. It was just so heavy.

Chad clearly shows a lack of experience here for me.

I was pretty certain I was out the door.

I think now there is a glimmer, a glimmer of hope,

so we'll just have to see.

Out of those three, who would you like to see cook again?

This is a tough one, huh?

We have made a decision.

And that chef is...

..Chad.

I'm disappointed, obviously.

It was just a case of too little, too late. I'm gutted.

Well done. Fantastic.

-Thank you very much.

-Keep at it.

-Yeah, will do.

-Good luck.

I cannot believe that I've just made it through to the quarter-final.

I'm so happy.

I definitely didn't think I was safe there. I thought for sure I was out. I was closest to the door as well.

For me to be through to the next round is a massive achievement.

It's a great relief that I can continue and cook the food I like to cook.

Tomorrow night, Jack, Adam and Patrick will join the other heat winners in the quarter-finals.

Perfect.

It's not doing it for me. It really isn't.

Only the best will go on to cook for the critics.

-It's a plate of disappointment and micro-herbs.

-It's the dish of the day, isn't it?

It's one of the best executed puddings I've had on this show.

Just two will make it through to the semi-finals.

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