Episode 14 MasterChef: The Professionals

Professional MasterChef knockout week continues.

Last night, more chefs were sent home, leaving the strongest ten.

Now they will be split into two groups.

Tonight, the first group will face two difficult challenges.

They will have to cook as a team...

Let's go, let's go, talk to us, talk to us.

Can they work together, and can they create that magic as a team?

..before returning to cook one standout dish.

It is the real high-end of the competition now,

and the further you go on, the more you want it.

Yeah, to go home now, I'd be gutted.

'The competition now is really, really strong.'

I just can't make any mistakes going forward now.

I want it so badly.

I can't think of much more that I want right now.

'They are now fighting for a place in the semifinals.'

This is where the competition really, really heats up.

Chefs, welcome to the Law Society, Chancery Lane.

We've seen you cook all the way through

the competition as individuals.

Today, you're going to have to cook together as a team.

We would like you to create a three-course menu together,

to serve for the president of the Law Society and four of his guests.

On top of this, it's his birthday. No pressure, yeah, guys?

THEY LAUGH

One thing we are going to be looking for is,

we want you to deliver us something very, very special.

You want the president to remember this day. OK?

-Off you go, and good luck.

-Thank you.

-Cheers.

-Excited, I am, yes, looking forward to working together.

-Everyone is striving for the same goal,

and everyone is trying to please Marcus and Monica. Nobody really wants to go home,

so it is going to be a challenge that we all kind of work together.

Go back to hating each other next week.

THEY LAUGH

The chefs only have 30 minutes to plan the three-course menu

they will have to cook together.

It needs to be based on the guinea fowl, brown crabs, fruit

and vegetables that they've been given.

This is a really exciting challenge.

This is the first time our chefs are going to be working

together as a team.

Our chefs have been given wonderful ingredients to use for today.

They've got to really elevate them to make a memorable meal.

-Why don't we do...

-Crab...

-Yeah, tortellinis.

-And then a broth.

-Spice, like a light spice bisque.

-Bisque, yes.

Did you want to take the tortellini?

Yell, I'll go for that, aye.

It is a great challenge to kind of see all the ingredients

that are in front of us and kind of

get our juices flowing, to kind of create some amazing food.

We are obviously going to go guinea fowl. Yeah, guinea fowl.

We cook them, press the leg even.

Yeah. We could confit the legs.

We can do roasted breast con...

Even poach the breasts off and then roast them off.

It is good to bounce ideas off of each other,

and I think we are coming up with some good ideas.

Yeah, there is a nice range of ingredients,

so looking forward to getting started, really.

So we are going to do pistachio cake and curd.

-Candied pistachio nuts, yeah?

-MARCUS:

-I think they're working together very well.

I like the way they're working. You know, they're bouncing ideas off.

Everyone is getting an input, which is important.

As part of being a team, everyone should have a say.

-Sorbet, we are going to go strawberry, raspberry?

-I'd go...

-Pistachio, raspberries, yeah?

-We just kind of...

Just keep it two flavours, pistachio and raspberry.

Guys...

your half an hour is up. So, who's doing what?

Have you decided on a menu?

The menu is crab tortellinis with crab bisque,

pickled vegetables, pickled radish.

The main course is, like, poach the breast, like a pressed leg, and then we're

going to make like a shallot and pancetta croquette, just to go with it.

And then we are going to use the rest of the bones to make

a nice, light sauce to go with the guinea fowl.

-Dessert.

-Dessert is pistachio and olive oil cake with raspberry sorbet.

A little bit of raspberry jellies.

Maybe some meringues, depending on what else we need on there.

-Who is doing what?

-So it is me and Darren doing the starters.

Me and Dean are looking after the guinea fowl.

-I'm on my own in the pastry.

-OK, here's one for you.

-If it all goes wrong, who's going to take the blame?

-All of us.

-Him.

-THEY LAUGH

-Everyone.

-I'm on my own, so I've got myself to blame.

You have got two hours before that first course is up. Get moving.

Thank you.

I'll take them down.

I'll start prepping the guineas.

The group is made up of one head chef...

a development chef and three sous chefs.

The challenge will be to find a way to work quickly and cohesively.

They're all getting on well so far,

but let's see how it is two hours from now.

THEY LAUGH

Darren has made a start on prepping the crabs for the tortellini

and broth starter. While Mark begins

the extensive prep for the garnish.

We've got to set a bar with the first dish.

But hopefully the other guys, and I'm certain that they will,

will reach that standard.

Sounds a very simple dish.

I hope that during the course of this time they've got,

they're going to elaborate a little bit more.

There just doesn't quite seem to be enough going on, for my liking.

Once the crab is cleaned, it needs to go into the steamer...

for no more than ten minutes.

Five tortellinis on the plate, six tortellinis with some pickled veg.

Is that really going to blow their minds?

You've got to think of something a little extra,

something that is going to really lift this dish.

The flavours are obviously where we're focused on first and foremost.

The bisque is going to pack a real punch, hopefully,

and the tortellinis will be nice and soft.

Maybe a crouton would be good, just as a bit of texturing against there.

-So the dish is going to evolve?

-Hopefully.

-You're still talking to each other, yeah?

-Yes, we absolutely are.

-We're working really closely together.

-Good man.

-With the crab steamed...

-Are you messing with my crabs?

..now comes the difficult task...

..of getting the meat out.

-Do you want to start scooping brown meat?

-Yes, absolutely.

And then we will crush those bones down.

And get that bisque straight on.

The key here is how they're going to pick down the crab meat, what

they're going to put inside the meat as well, for seasoning, for flavour.

-You haven't put any seasoning in here yet, have you?

-No.

It's lovely. Mmm.

-Put a little bit more brown.

-Yeah.

I want the crab bisque to be light, flavoursome,

but rich at the same time.

This is a dish that when you've eaten it,

you want to eat it all over again. That's the sign of a great starter.

On the other side of the kitchen, Dean and Andi

are also racing through the prep for their guinea fowl main.

Just quickly prep the guinea fowl down. Just to get it on.

Andi is starting to do all the garnish bits,

just to get the puree on the go.

We've got to get some croquettes on the go.

To ensure the crowns remain moist, the chefs poach them in stock first.

They have also decided to braise the wings and thighs with thyme,

to use in a terrine.

Then I'll get the potatoes on the go.

-Get the artichokes.

-Yeah, I'll get those next on the go.

-It's a kind of cool challenge, isn't it?

-A very cool challenge.

It is quite nice... Just cooking for different people is always nice.

-Where are we at with the main course?

-We've got the sauce on.

That's just coming down, we are about to add our stock.

We've got the puree on, and we've got the thigh meat braising.

We've got the potatoes in, baking for the croquette.

We're going to run a little bit of pancetta through that.

The trimmings of the pancetta, are they going in the sauce? Very good.

Within an hour, we are going to get together,

make sure everyone is where they are at and where they're comfortable.

If the starters need a hand, we'll all jump on. If Nick needs help, we'll be on there.

-But we just keep on talking to each other.

-That's a great plan, great plan.

These two chefs are very solid.

They can communicate very well,

and I like the way they are working together.

-MARCUS:

-'When you normally roast a guinea fowl,

'I've always found it tends to be slightly dry.'

So the poaching first is a great idea.

The most important thing is,

you want those breasts to be beautiful and moist and flavoursome.

Dean, are you happy with the guinea fowl?

Yes, it is nice, I've just poached it off lightly.

I'm now obviously just taking it off the crown,

just so when I pan-fry it, I can give it a nice, crispy breast.

And I'm going to retain the moistness of the breast.

-Absolutely. Do you like guinea fowl, personally?

-I love guinea fowl.

It is such a nice, unique meat.

You don't get it everywhere, and I think...

I was actually excited when I saw it.

It is something I really do enjoy cooking with.

While the other chefs have paired up,

Nick is making dessert on his own.

Yes, I'm left on my tod. I'm quite happy, to be honest, pastry...

I am happy in pastry, yes.

I'm just going to try to get it all boxed and see if I can help the other guys.

His prep is well under way.

Nick has come up with a cake recipe, using the pistachios,

polenta and olive oil.

For it to work, he will need it to have a rich, moist texture.

-If that doesn't work, what are you going to do?

-Make another one.

-You've never used that oven before.

-I've never used the oven, no.

I've literally got it in as soon as I can,

-so if I need to make another one, I can.

-OK.

This cake needs to taste of pistachio with a hint of olive oil.

You don't want it to be too dense and too heavy.

He's going to be serving that with a fresh raspberry sorbet...

and pistachio curd. I love the sound of this dish.

The dessert is the last thing the president of the Law Society

and his guests are going to remember from tonight.

It's got to be spot on.

The cake is looking good.

That's coming up nicely. I've not used this oven before.

It is a bit strange, but it's fine.

-40 minutes have gone, boys.

-Yes, Chef.

-Oui!

-MARCUS:

-Chefs, just remember, you've still got Nick, who's working on pastry.

-Yes, Chef.

-You still need to communicate with him as well.

It is a menu you are all responsible for. OK, Nick?

-What are you doing in the pot wash? Get back in your pastry.

-Oui, Chef.

The Law Society was established almost 200 years ago to raise

the reputation of the profession...

setting standards and ensuring good practice.

Their building, on London's historic Chancery Lane, has been

their headquarters since 1832.

And today they represent over 160,000 solicitors in England and Wales.

Members have included the Liberal Prime Minister David Lloyd George...

Labour MP Harriet Harman... and solicitor

and Blur drummer David Rowntree.

We have a very good restaurant in this building,

and we do quite a lot of entertaining for bars abroad

and for our own members and for other events too.

So I think what people are expecting is a very high quality of cuisine,

some new tastes and to have a good time, good company.

-Chefs, you've got one hour for your starter to go out, OK?

-Yes, Chef.

Do you all want to get together? We'll come to you. Nick?

Yeah, two secs.

-Nick, how are you looking?

-Sound.

-Have you got everything...

-Cake's all sorted, sorbet's on...

-In literally one hour

-we've got to be plated. Are you going to be ready?

-Yes. We are going to be ready.

Two minutes to get this curd on, and then I'll come over,

-help on mains or starters.

-Awesome. Are you nearly set?

-Yeah.

-Is everyone happy, yeah?

-Yeah.

-Oui.

With less than an hour to go, Mark and Darren have

still got to finish the crab broth and make the tortellinis.

But before all that,

Mark has come up with a solution to help elevate the dish.

-It's not his pasta, is it?

-I honestly don't know.

-They're making something crispy to go on. It is more like a flatbread, isn't it?

-Yeah.

I hope so.

Yeah, I was hoping that too.

-What is that?

-It is just for a little crouton.

-OK, good.

-What have you made, just some flour?

-It is flour, water, salt.

Going to put a little garlic aioli on top,

just going to break it up, rustic.

Nice.

Yeah, it is all going really well. Everything is on, we are just trying to get all the finishing

touches ready, and then it'll be all right.

We just need to get these tortellinis made.

Mark, why is Darren not making the tortellinis,

when he has made the best tortellinis in the competition so far?

Darren will be making the tortellinis when it comes, I'm just getting

the pasta rolled ready, and then Darren is going to jump on and help.

-Darren, don't let him make the tortellinis on his own.

-No way!

MARK LAUGHS

I still think the pasta's maybe just a touch thick, for me.

-Put it back through again?

-Yeah, maybe.

So we've got to make 36.

Well, depending on how it is going, eh?

Chefs, are we going to be on time for starters?

We absolutely are. Yes, Chef.

-Is that the same from you, Mark?

-Yes, Chef.

-Brilliant.

DARREN LAUGHS

Over on the main, Andi needs to make sure he skims all

the impurities from the guinea fowl sauce otherwise it'll be bitter.

Everything seems to be going to plan

but we haven't got long now so pressure's going to mount.

Meanwhile, Dean has made a start on their croquettes.

The potato is mixed with pancetta and parsley

then piped onto a tray

-and left to set.

-Onion puree's done, sauce's done.

Just going to start doing the croquettes,

just getting ready, paned up, so yeah, everything's pretty on time.

-On dessert, Nick has made the pistachio curd.

-I'm enjoying it.

It's hard work.

Just don't want to distance myself from the guys too much.

But now, all attention is on his pistachio cake.

The cake will need some time in the blast chiller.

I just want it to firm up so ten minutes, literally.

Just don't want it to fall off the shelf.

Yeah, just going to firm up so it's all right.

The final job, while he waits, is to make candied pistachio nuts.

First, he combines them with sugar syrup and then,

for added crunch, he deep fries them.

Right, boys. What do you need? Are there any jobs?

-Do you want to pick into that for me?

-Yeah, yeah.

Everything's done so now I'm picking guinea fowl!

HE LAUGHS

Got to get it done.

These ain't glamorous jobs but we've all got to pull together.

I really like the way the chefs are coming together

and working to create the menu.

I'm really excited to see how it's all going to come out on a plate.

With the clock ticking, the guests have arrived.

-Cheers! Happy birthday.

-Happy birthday.

When you called me, I was scared that I'd have to cook,

but I thought, that wouldn't be good for anybody!

I was scared you were going to have to cook as well!

THEY LAUGH

Just wanted to let you know that the president has arrived

and he wants to sit down at 6.15.

Yes, Chef. Yes, Chef.

Mark and Darren have just under half an hour to service.

Great, perfect. Do you want me to just go and blanch these right now?

Yeah.

So for starters, we have tortellini of crab, spiced broth,

mango and radish. It sounds very interesting.

Well, I love tortellini and I really, really like crab meat

and it's just a really great combination.

It's very interesting.

It's got the sweetness of the mango

but then the hotness of the radish as well

and it'll be interesting to see how those tastes actually combine.

You have five minutes... Yes, Chef. ..before we send.

-Are we going to be ready? Yes, Chef.

-Yeah, we've just got to plate up.

-Your waiters are waiting.

-Yeah.

-The president is waiting.

-Darren, I advise you, do not drop that tray!

-I will try my very best.

-That is hanging on your leg there.

-Yes, Chef.

-That's more like it.

-Thank you, Chef.

-Are you boys happy?

-Very happy, Chef.

-Looks lush, boys.

-Two ready.

Service, please!

-Who's taking the rest of the plates?

-Us.

-Go on, then.

-You following them?

-Where are they?

-Do you know where you're going?

-No!

SHE LAUGHS

Service!

Can't believe they went without us.

Go on!

The starter is crab tortellini with a chilli, lime and lemon grass broth

and a garnish of pickled radish, fresh mango and coriander cress.

It's served with a crispbread topped with garlic aioli.

I think we worked amazingly.

It's a stunning little dish that'll just hopefully blow them away.

It looks very interesting. It looks very tasty as well.

It certainly smells tasty, too. I'm looking forward to trying it.

Mm! Amazing. Absolutely incredible. What an explosion on the tongue!

And the coriander really comes through. Love it. Just love it!

It's very Southeast Asian, the flavourings, which was a surprise,

and I wasn't expecting tortellini. It works really, really well.

Interesting mix of flavours but the crisp wafer adds something

which I wasn't expecting, it wasn't on the menu, and added bonus.

Fantastic dish and, you know, brilliantly, brilliantly executed.

The tortellini is wonderful, not too thick.

The filling, you can taste everything.

I love the little hints of the sweet, fresh mango,

just a little bit dotted throughout the dish.

I think that's a very, very, very good dish, great team effort,

and I'm so pleased that they took it to another level,

I'm so pleased that they served the sauce on the side,

and then he made this little cracker.

Very good dish. Very good.

The starters have gone. They went well.

You've got now just under 20 minutes for the main course, OK? Yes, Chef.

No problem. Everything's on time. Everything's on the go.

We're working everything

so it should be pretty much perfect timing.

Let's go.

HE CLAPS

The last thing Andi and Dean need to do before plating is pane

and fry the croquettes

and portion out the terrine for the five diners and the judges.

-We've only got five. We need six, don't we?

-What's wrong?

-We've only got five.

-Um... Cut one in half.

Dean, is everything ready?

-Yeah.

-Six portions of everything?

-Yeah, there will be.

We've had a little error.

I didn't put all the pressed leg on so I've only got five

but one's quite large so I'm going to cut it in half.

It was a little rookie mistake but, er...

..I can't do much about it right now.

With the pressure on, the five chefs need to pull together.

-Let's go, guys.

-You're on your own, Nick.

I've got no ingredients.

Has anyone got a pulse back there? You've got about five minutes now.

Let's go, boys. We've got to start plating, guys.

Once the guinea fowl's cut up, we'll come through and then we'll direct everyone from there.

Let's go. Let's go. Talk to us. Talk to us.

-Yeah, guinea fowl's perfect.

-There you go.

Right, sauce into the jugs, please.

So it would seem that the guinea fowl's been done both poached,

roasted and pressed leg as well.

I actually quite like guinea fowl so I'm quite looking forward to that.

Guys, keep it going. It's looking great. Really is.

-Is that it?

-Yeah, that's everything.

-Service, please!

Can we please serve it facing that way?

-You all right?

-Yeah, man.

It's just the end of it, isn't it?

-It's, like, you've done it and it's, like...

-It's more like...

Our facial expression right now is more like a relief that it's gone.

When they say that it was good, then we'll smile.

The main course has guinea fowl served two ways - a poached

and roasted breast and a pressed leg terrine.

There's white onion puree, seared crispy onions, char-grilled

baby leeks, artichokes and a panko-coated pancetta croquette.

-It's served with a guinea fowl sauce.

-I think it looks beautiful.

The colours, the contrasting shape, the way it's presented is

just really, really attractive and I just can't wait to eat it.

Very, very good indeed. The guinea fowl almost melts in your mouth.

I'm so very, very impressed

and I'm looking forward to eating the rest of it.

The onion skin, I don't know what they've done to the onion skin

but the flavour was just overwhelming.

The pancetta croquette is superb.

It absolutely goes so well with the dish.

The chefs have done a fantastic job.

There's so many textures on this plate.

I think it was very well thought out.

The confit leg meat, which was then pressed,

they had to halve it cos it wasn't quite enough

but I don't think they needed any more than that on the plate.

I think they've done an amazing job with this dish.

The sauce is stunning, it is beautiful, it's light,

they've creamed it

and that's the perfect type of sauce to go with the guinea fowl.

This dish is a triumph. They should be incredibly proud.

They've captured guinea fowl at its best.

Guys, we have just had a five-minute warning from the dining room,

ready to go on desserts. Nick, no pressure.

This has got to be spot on.

It's going to be the last thing that they remember from tonight's dinner.

-Oui, Chef.

-Let's go.

Can someone macerate the raspberries just lightly? Sugar and lemon juice.

It's all down to the dessert now.

The food's looked absolutely banging so far

so there's a lot pressure, but, yeah, it's going well.

Cake trimmer here, if you want it.

-How we doing? All right?

-That's excellent, Nick.

While Nick is plating up, Mark is macerating the raspberries with a

lemon, sugar and raspberry liqueur

and Darren is warming the pistachio cake.

-It won't need much longer, Daz.

-I'm just giving it another 30 seconds.

The warm pistachio cake just sounds delicious.

And then contrasted with the cold raspberry sorbet,

it should be fantastic.

Have you got the sorbet nicely quenelled in the freezer already?

No, we're going to quenelle as we go.

I think Mark's taking that bullet for me

and I'm just going to make sure everything else.

-No pressure, Mark.

-No!

Watch your back, please, Andi.

OK, service, please!

Service, please.

Thank you.

-Nick, well done.

-Thank you.

-Cheers, guys.

The warm pistachio polenta cake is served with raspberry sorbet...

..raspberry jelly and a pistachio curd topped with candied pistachios.

The fresh raspberries are dressed in raspberry liqueur.

It's presented wonderfully.

The only thing that upsets me is that we're not eating it right now!

THEY LAUGH

Well, I'm savouring every mouthful.

There's so much going on on the plate. It's fantastic.

The cake looks really heavy but actually, it's very,

very light and very moist, just as I expected it to be.

The sorbet is absolutely outstanding and, I think,

one of the surprise hits of the dish is the roasted pistachio nuts.

The explosion of flavour in your mouth was just beautiful.

There was so much skill on the plate.

I worried that the cake might be too much,

I was starting to get a bit full, but actually,

when you started eating, it just melted in your mouth.

It was a beautiful, beautiful sort of texture and

set off against the sorbet, which just had that tartness, I loved it.

It's very, very enjoyable and, yes,

I'd have that for another birthday, I can assure you!

I love the texture I'm getting from the polenta flour.

I get a little slight crunchiness to it. For me, this is a cracking cake.

The flavour of pistachio is all over this plate. The curd is delicious.

It's a great achievement from Nick.

He's done a really good job and I think, overall,

it's been an amazing team effort.

Great job.

THEY CLAP

I don't think I've ever had a better birthday meal

so thank you very much indeed.

-It really has been a day that I don't think I'll ever forget.

-No.

The other thing is is that I finish, actually,

in office in about six days' time and this is almost the last

thing I do, and so, it's going to be a great memory.

THEY CLAP

-Well done.

-Boys. Cheers.

-That looked absolutely amazing.

-You made it look easy.

-What a day.

-Good, that.

-That was really good.

-Good day.

-I'm going to push him off the train on the way back!

-Wow, what a day!

I love the way they communicated with each other

and they all wanted to work together as a team. They did a great job.

I am really proud of what our five chefs have achieved here today.

Yeah, I'm proud of myself. I'm relieved it went well.

I'm relieved no calamity's happened, so yeah, I'm proud, yeah.

I'm happy and I think we've all done brilliantly.

We can all be proud of ourselves.

Working as a team with the other four chefs was fantastic.

I mean, they're all really, really talented chefs.

It was just a real pleasure to be part of.

When they go back to the MasterChef kitchen, it's them on their own.

This is when they become the best of enemies again,

fighting for a place in the next round.

We're back, competing against each other. It is going to be tough.

I've made good friends.

Now we've just got to take our own ideas

and hopefully blow the judges away again.

The challenge to work as a team was brilliant.

Managed to work together with some chefs you've never worked

with before, created excellent dishes.

That makes you realise that they're pretty good as well.

I'm happy to get this far so to go one step further,

I'm not even sure I'll be able to comprehend it.

I've stepped it up.

I'm hopefully getting better as a chef. I'm ready for it all.

Chefs, welcome back to our MasterChef kitchen.

Marcus and I were both really impressed with how well you

all worked as a team.

But now, you're back to working on your own.

Today, you have 90 minutes to create one outstanding plate of food

that's going to get you into semifinals week.

Off you go.

27-year-old Mark is a joint head chef with his fiancee.

So far, he's wowed the judges with his meticulous presentation

and creative flavours.

His stunning venison in the last knockout round was no exception.

I'm going to have to cook better than the rest of the guys out there.

That's what I've had to do in the whole competition so far,

so, ready for battle!

So what's the dish?

So I'm cooking a lamb rack with some lovely glazed sweetbreads,

a little tomato tortellini, some goat's curd, lovely courgette and

basil puree, some fresh seasonable greens and an olive crumble.

-Do you ever get flustered, Mark?

-Er...

Yeah, when my fiancee's at the back of my ear, yeah!

-We should bring her in!

-Yeah.

I love the sound of your dish.

I'm a massive fan of lamb.

Just looking at your bench there on the back

and those fabulous ingredients, I'm really excited.

-I can't wait to taste it.

-Thank you.

I love courgettes, I love rack of lamb, I love sweetbread.

This is a dish that just sounds delicious on the off.

I've never had a tomato tortellini before. I love the idea.

Now that I'm thinking about it, it sort of all seems right.

Everything about this dish I love. It just sounds delicious.

This is the dish I would choose off the menu. It just sings out to me.

It sounds amazing.

Nick's six years of Michelin experience is

evident in the execution of his flawless food.

Nick, by the looks of your bench, I've got a funny feeling

-you're going to be cooking us a dessert today.

-Yeah, definitely.

Monica and I worked it out -

-this is your fourth dessert in the competition.

-Yeah, it is, yeah.

-We're not complaining.

-No? OK.

-Does that make you the pastry chef?

I guess so. I enjoy pastry. This is one of my dishes.

-Tell us what it is, then.

-So I'm making a white chocolate cheesecake.

I'm going to wrap it in a strawberry jelly

and make elderflower curd, a flapjack, macerated

strawberries, strawberry sorbet, a little strawberry mint salsa.

This is going great. I love cheesecake.

Got my lamb, got my cheesecake.

Is there anything that worries you about this today?

It's very technical, to get a jelly to set

and wrap around to roll it in the cheesecake. That's my biggest worry.

It's very hot so if I don't get that right,

then it just looks anaemic if it's not wrapped up in the jelly.

So I'm really, really focusing on that, to perfect that.

-Well, let's see you do it.

-Yeah, thank you, chefs.

-Good luck.

Thank you.

The skill in this dish

is adding the white chocolate to the cheesecake,

making sure that the white chocolate comes through.

He's putting it into a cylinder

and then he's wrapping strawberry jelly around the outside.

He certainly doesn't want it melting in his hands.

And an elderflower beignet?

Interesting, I've not had an elderflower beignet before.

Nick's also making a sorbet

and a flapjack.

There are a lot of elements in this dessert,

but we've seen Nick make amazing desserts.

This is all about skill and precision. It's got to be right.

It's pastry, so anything could go wrong.

I mean, the heat of the kitchen could really,

it could mess the cheesecake up.

If the flapjack's too hard and I hear them smashing away at it,

then that's ruined, so that has to be cooked perfectly.

It might be a flapjack,

and my mum makes the best flapjack in the world, but...

if I do a bad one, then I'll know about it.

Chefs, you've had 45 minutes. You're halfway through.

Junior sous chef Dean's food

has continued to grow in skill and ambition,

culminating in a standout venison beetroot dish

that kept him in the competition.

Hey, Dean.

-Morning, chefs, how are you?

-We're OK. How are you?

Yeah, not too bad.

Are you enjoying being back in the MasterChef kitchen?

Yeah, it's good, it feels good to be cooking my food again.

Cooking your food against four very good chefs

and you've had a taste of what they're like to work with now.

It does scare me a little, especially working with each other,

you can see what everybody is capable of

and there is, like excessive amounts of talent in this kitchen.

The guinea fowl dish that you and Andi cooked was fabulous.

Is this dish better?

I think this dish IS better.

I'm doing for you, er, pork tenderloin

with blow-torched scallops, parsnip and apple.

And this is your style of cooking?

This is me, my style of cooking, this is me on a plate.

I hope it's good enough to get me through.

Dean is wrapping his tenderloin in Parma ham

and caul fat crepinette.

It's a great idea, it imparts a beautiful extra flavour.

Also with the tenderloin,

he's going to be putting the scallops in a sous vide bag

and putting those into the water bath as well.

I'm really looking forward to find out what type of texture

the scallop comes out at,

because normally when a scallop is pan-fried,

it tends to tighten up a little bit.

I love the fact that Dean is pushing himself in this.

I'm intrigued by it and therefore I would like to try it.

If this dish all goes to plan, I think this could be a showstopper,

this could be that dish I've been waiting for,

just to put that smile on Marcus' face and make him go, wow.

That's all I want to achieve, just a smile on their faces. I want people to enjoy my food.

Senior sous chef Andi has had a few hiccups through the competition.

But the success of his last dish, beef l'Anglaise,

has put him back in the running.

Some of the places some of these people have worked in

I could only ever dream of,

so today I'm going to have to absolutely nail it and

probably cook the best dish I've ever cooked in my life,

but...who's to say I can't? So, I'm not going to give up.

-Andi. Did you think you'd get this far?

-No!

No, my ambition was to cook for the critics, to cook them two dishes.

That was the world to me, so to get this far is,

yes, beyond my wildest dreams, really.

Andi's making us venison,

venison that he's going to be rolling in panko crumbs

that's also seasoned with Parmesan.

And I like the idea that he's using Parmesan as a seasoning.

He's making his sauce sweet, with this soy and honey.

That with the Parmesan-crusted venison

has just got little alarm bells going off for me.

Soy, without a doubt, will stand out and so will the honey.

I just also hope that he doesn't camouflage the venison too much.

Chefs, you've got 20 minutes left. 20 minutes.

Development chef Darren has shown that when he cooks well,

his classically-influenced food can be faultless.

'I've been on both sides of the feedback'

and it's like... polar opposites, you know? It's like...

Christmas morning when he likes it and it's like the worst day in your life when he doesn't,

so hopefully today it's Christmas morning again!

Why a dessert today, Darren?

You know, I've got a bit of experience in pastry, I enjoy pastry.

This is a strong dish of mine that I really wanted to share with you guys, so...

-fingers crossed you like it.

-What dish are you cooking for us, Darren?

I'm making a chocolate mousse with raspberry sorbet

and raspberry curd.

Sounds really simple, but the chocolate mousse has got some,

like a chocolate meringue sponge inside,

a layer of raspberry jelly,

another layer of the sponge and a baked chocolate custard

and then it's finished off with a mousse, so

it looks like a mousse,

but when you cut inside it's got the various textures and layers inside.

This is going to have to really be accurate in the layering,

-the precision...

-The textures have got to be separate.

You've got to pick out each element,

so, yeah, I've got to be precise.

The description sounds very simple,

but when Darren breaks it down, there is a lot of work

and a lot of layers going on inside of this mousse,

which then makes it a bit of a risk,

because he won't know, until the end result

when he cuts through, whether all the layers

are going to be well-defined and stand out for themselves.

Fingers crossed.

All my elements are looking and tasting good,

so if I put them together well, then...fingers crossed!

Guys, you've only got five minutes left now,

start thinking about plating up.

That is it. Time is up. Time's up.

-What are you worrying about? Huh?

-You happy, yeah?

What were you worrying about? That looks lovely.

You always say that.

-That is...

-Absolutely stunning.

Vision, a vision of spring.

Well done, boys.

First up is Mark.

He's made a rack of lamb with tomato tortellini

and butter-glaze sweetbreads.

They're garnished with goat's curd and a courgette and basil puree,

turnips, peas, broad beans,

baby gem lettuce and an olive crumb.

It's served with a lamb sauce.

Mark.

I really enjoy in your cooking how you take ingredients

and put your twist on it

and whether it be in the tortellinis

with this amazing punch of tomato flavour,

or the olive crumb with this hint of sweetness coming through.

The lamb, for me, is spot on, perfect,

how I would love it, that pink. I love the fat on it as well.

I could give you a hug right now, but he'd get upset.

Mark, earlier when we spoke about the dish,

I loved all the ingredients that you put together.

And always, when you've chosen the dish,

you want it to live up to its title

and, for me, this is just absolutely outstanding plate of food. Really.

-Thank you.

-It is delicious on so many different levels.

I actually don't know where to begin.

The courgette puree is beautiful and smooth.

The sweetbreads are crisp and soft in the centre, have a great texture.

The lamb sauce is delicious.

The tomato tortellini that I've never had before

was well worth the wait. It was fabulous.

The goat's curd, you know,

I could just keep going on and on and on about this dish.

It's fabulous. Its textures are fantastic, it tastes great,

-it looks stunning. Stunning looking plate of food.

-Thank you very much.

-I can't keep praising you.

-Thank you.

-That's more than enough for one day.

-You can't say enough.

-That's enough.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

-Good job.

-Thank you, Chef. Thank you.

Very well done.

Well done, mate. Fantastic.

-Cheers for that(!)

-THEY LAUGH

Couldn't he have gone last?

No negative feedback is always difficult, because if I get through

to the next round, it sets me up for a bigger fall if anything

doesn't pull off properly, so, yeah, it's a difficult one.

Andi's dish is a panko and Parmesan crusted loin of venison

with fondant potatoes,

deep-fried shallots, butternut squash puree, roasted hazelnuts

and toasted pumpkin seeds.

It's finished with a honey, soy and venison sauce.

Andi, your plate of food looks really lovely.

The venison, for me, is how I would like it.

It's perfectly cooked for me and it's been wonderfully cooked

in the butter to make it golden and caramelised on the outside.

The garnish, for me, is delicious. The butternut squash

and the sweetness in that, the fondants are cooked just right.

The sauce is very rich, there's a little bit of juniper,

it's not overpowering and I don't get any soy sauce at all.

It's just to season.

It was just to try and bring it to life without using too much salt.

I think it's a delicious plate of food,

-definitely a plate of food that I would eat.

-Thank you.

Andi, you've got your sauce back on track,

you've got your plating up to another level I've never seen before,

you're cooking like I've never seen you cook so far.

Your family will be proud.

You are moving forward and that's always nice to see.

-Thank you.

-Great job.

-Thank you.

-You can breathe now.

I was all right till you mentioned my family.

I'm really chuffed.

It's very draining, it's very tough in there,

but the other four people you want to do well as well,

so, like, you're rooting for them as well, but I just hope that

my best is better than one of their bests

and I can go through to the next stage.

Next, it's Nick's dessert.

A white chocolate cheesecake wrapped in strawberry jelly,

topped with elderflower beignet

and served with honey flapjacks, elderflower curd,

a strawberry and mint salsa and a strawberry sorbet.

I don't know where to begin with this. This is a piece of art.

-It looks fantastic, Nick.

-Thank you.

Wow.

I love cheesecake.

It's one of my favourite desserts and to, sort of, deconstruct it

and pull it apart and to, sort of, fancify it all up is not

an easy thing to do and you've done it very well.

There's a lovely balance here of textures,

of cheesy cheesecake, with the white chocolate.

The flavours of the strawberries are just dancing off the plate.

The sorbet that's refreshing in your palate.

Monica's still eating the dessert while I'm talking, which is fine.

It's great dessert. It is amazing. It's incredible. It's fantastic!

Thank you very much.

Nick, the dessert, for me, is outstanding.

To have that touch, that finesse to make a dessert look very light

and, dare I say, feminine, that is an art.

The elderflower just lifts the whole tasting of this dessert for me

-and... Ooh! You can make me dessert any day.

-Thank you very much.

That's incredible. I'm a bit speechless, to be honest.

Yeah, they didn't stop praising it.

It's phenomenal. It's amazing.

To have the chefs of that calibre praise you like that, it's...

It's gone better than I could've possibly dreamed.

Dean has made pork loin wrapped in pancetta,

with sous vide blow-torched scallops, honey-glazed parsnips,

a parsnip and vanilla puree,

pickled shimeji mushrooms and crumbled black pudding.

There is a roasted apple puree and apple caviar.

It is served with an apple and brandy pork sauce.

This is an absolute triumph.

Really is! I'm surprised at these flavours.

The vanilla inside the parsnip puree -

I'm sorry but that just shouldn't, SHOULDN'T work.

YOU have made it work.

And I think that's because of the other things that are on the plate.

Like, the apple puree is just delicious,

the little pearls that you've got on the plate,

and then, the crazy idea of putting scallops in a sous vide bag

and then torching it, which is just completely insane.

And then there's the pork on that amazing apple puree.

-This is just brilliant. It's delicious.

-Thank you.

The way you've cooked the pork wrapped in pancetta,

I love pork cooked this way because,

otherwise, it's quite a bland piece of meat.

The little shimejis that you've pickled, there's not too many,

so it brings a bit of sharpness to the dish.

The parsnip and vanilla, I'm not a fan of it.

Actually, I quite hate it,

but it works on this, because there's only a little bit on it.

-You actually got me eating vanilla and parsnip puree. Hm.

-Well done.

-Don't do it again.

-SHE LAUGHS

-Great job, Dean.

-Cheers.

-Smashed it. Well done, mate. Feel better?

-Yeah.

All I wanted to do is put a smile on both of their faces

and I've done that and it's obviously made me a lot happier.

I'm quite emotional right now. I feel quite up and happy

and just want to jump.

Finally, Darren's dessert is a mousse covering layers of chocolate custard,

raspberry jelly and baked chocolate meringue.

It's served with raspberry curd,

raspberry jelly, a freeze-dried raspberry and cocoa nib crumb

and a raspberry sorbet.

The moment of truth.

Oh, yes.

The presentation - you're looking at just a chocolate mousse

and that's the surprise factor that's on the inside,

because the layers really make this dessert.

The jelly is just, just right in the middle there.

It's not too hard and then the light sponge underneath.

I think it's a delicious, delicious chocolate mousse.

What I love in the sorbet is you've made your own puree.

The fresh raspberries, for me, make such a difference.

You really can taste that in your sorbet.

I thought it was exceptional.

I love it when a chef does something that just seems so simple,

but there's so much hidden underneath it. Well done, you.

Thank you.

Darren, this has beautiful, soft layers that work together

in harmony with each other.

The raspberry sorbet is just so delicious and refreshing

and then the beautiful little crumb

that you've made from the cocoa beans, the freeze-dried raspberries,

that give it the zing that just

lifts your palate through the richness of dark chocolate.

It's not too heavy, it's lovely and light. It's another good dish.

-Good job.

-Thank you, Marcus. Thank you.

I feel ecstatic. I can't believe how well that went.

Getting feedback like that at the end of the day makes everything worthwhile.

To have Marcus and Monica say that they like your food,

I mean, it's what we're here for really, isn't it?

So, yeah, couldn't be more pleased if I tried.

Wow. Chefs, it was absolutely sensational. Sensational.

In the time that I've done this,

I can't recall when I've had five amazing dishes in one round.

That's an amazing thing to achieve. We're both really proud of you guys.

You know, knockout week is about knocking someone out.

We, at this point, have no idea how we're going to start.

Go and have a well-deserved break. We'll see you in here in a while.

What a showstopper round!

We asked for their best dishes to date and all five of them did that.

Everything you want from a chef, they all delivered it today.

It was absolutely fantastic.

Andi's our fighter in the kitchen

and he certainly came out fighting today.

I thought that was a delicious plate of food from Andi.

He deserved a pat on the back for today.

If I go home today,

then I can go home smiling, knowing that my last dish,

it was a good one and if I do go home, then it's because the others

did better than my best, so that's all, I think, anyone can hope for.

Nick and his cheesecake. Oh!

That was one delicious cheesecake.

Nick cooking desserts at this standard is quite exceptional.

Dean.

This chef has grown in leaps and bounds.

I thought his pork dish today - wow, did it work.

-The flavours were sublime.

-Darren.

What a delicious yet beautifully-executed dessert here.

Every single challenge you can see he's growing,

his smile's getting bigger and bigger, like his confidence.

I'd be absolutely devastated to go out after a round like that.

I definitely want to get into the semis and I want to go on and show

that it wasn't just, you know, a lucky dish,

that I deserve to be here and that I deserve to be in the semifinals.

Mark delivered another outstanding dish for us today.

Very clever chef, very clever dish.

Five fabulous chefs cooked very well at the Law Society.

The same five chefs came into this kitchen and blew us away.

I really don't know which chef should go home.

Wow.

It's very rare we get to taste five fabulous

plates of food from five very different chefs.

But this is a competition.

And we can only take the best chefs through.

Nick...

Dean...

Mark...

Andi...

and Darren.

We have decided...

..that you are all semifinalists.

THEY GIGGLE

Get home and a few cuddles with the little boy and, yeah,

he's missing his daddy, so...

yeah, just get home and tell him the good news.

You're going to struggle to wipe the smile off my face

for about a week now, I think. Yeah, I'm really, really happy.

Hopefully the girlfriend's got some champagne on ice.

HE LAUGHS

She probably hasn't, but...we can hope.

Next time - it's the five remaining chefs' chance

to showcase their skills.

Where's my wing man? Bobby.

We need to start thinking about making a move soon, mate.

Let's go up.

Come on, boys. Keep up.

-Yeah, stunning.

-Absolutely.

-Stunning dish.

Only the best will make it through to the semifinals.

It's a lovely plate of food. Great job.