Kim Woodward Yes Chef

Four of the best chefs in Britain

are on the hunt for their perfect partner.

Three amateur home-cooks are here to prove they've got

what it takes to be paired with the best in the business,

for the cooking experience of a lifetime.

I'm going in!

Each day, an award-winning chef will choose their perfect partner from

three talented home-cooks.

-30 seconds to go!

-I am starting to feel the pressure now.

Then, in the Friday final,

all four pairs will go head-to-head to cook for culinary royalty,

Pierre Koffmann.

My best piece of advice is to keep it simple and tasty.

The professional chefs' reputations are on the line,

but will the amateur home-cooks live up to expectations?

This is Yes Chef.

Hello, and welcome to Yes Chef. Let's meet today's home-cooks.

First, it's Julia Goodes,

a safeguarding officer from Buckinghamshire.

I like to cook big sharing platters.

I'm usually pretty cool and calm in the kitchen.

If things go a bit off track, I can usually pull it back -

famous last words.

Claire Wilson is a reservations supervisor

from Newquay in Cornwall.

Having four children and always having visitors in the house,

I'm always cooking for loads of people.

My weaknesses in the kitchen are using too many things,

so I have a lot of washing-up to do at the end.

And finally, Nick Jepson,

a chiropractic assistant from Plymouth.

People describe my style of cooking as probably a little bit posh.

I like to make things look nice.

Our cooks are ready to go, so all we need now is our chef.

Kim Woodward, a protege of Gordon Ramsay,

was the first-ever female head chef at London's prestigious Savoy Hotel.

Being the first-ever female head chef of the Savoy Grill has been

an absolute amazing honour for me.

Having made history,

she continues to cook the classics at one of London's

new restaurants, Skylon.

'Looking for a home-cook is about finding someone

'that has the passion...'

Amazing.

That can actually understand the flavour of a finished product.

With military precision in the kitchen,

Kim knows exactly what it takes to be a great chef.

Knowing that I'm cooking for Pierre Koffmann puts me under pressure

even more. Finding the right home-cook is crucial for me.

-Service!

-Yes, Chef!

I want to win. It's a competition, of course I do.

Welcome, everybody, to Yes Chef.

Now, Kim, you're going to be picking one of our home-cooks

to be your partner in this week's Friday final.

-What are you going to be looking for?

-I'll be looking for the

standard of cooking that you'll be doing, the ingredients and, for me,

-it's all about the taste.

-Perfect.

Right, well, let's get on with it.

Round one, you've got 45 minutes to create your best dish for Kim.

Right, cooks, your time starts now.

Our home cooks are against the clock.

This is their first chance to impress Kim

with their own signature dish.

Nick's cooking an Asian-inspired recipe of marinated tuna steak,

accompanied with Asian coleslaw and Hasselback potatoes.

I've done this dish a few times, in different versions,

just honing the skill.

Julia's putting her own twist on a traditional paella, with chicken,

chorizo, squid, prawns and scallops.

I've been practising a little bit with this.

In fact, my husband is sick to the back teeth of squid

and never wants to see another prawn.

And finally, it's Claire, with her dish of the day -

Moroccan lamb koftas and chilli and poppy seed flatbreads.

This is a firm family favourite in our house.

All the kids love it.

It's my go-to recipe.

It's one of the only meals that my children will all eat.

I've nicked my thumb. Someone had to do it first.

And Nick isn't the only one who's had a minor setback.

The knives are sharper than at home.

Hopefully, that won't stop me too much.

I'm all plastered up, so I'll get going...again.

-Hi, Julia.

-Hi!

So, is this something that you cook all the time at home?

Yeah, I do it quite regularly.

-How spicy do you like them?

-I probably like it a little bit

-spicier than we've had when we've been away.

-OK.

So, I put chilli flakes in mine, as well.

Maybe that's not traditional, but it's what you like, really,

-isn't it?

-Absolutely.

-Do you like spice, Kim?

I do like a good spice. If it's well-balanced

and you taste all the actual ingredients of the fantastic seafood

you have, then I think it'll be a fantastic paella.

-I'll do my best.

-We'll let you carry on.

-Thanks very much.

-Hi, Nick.

-Hi.

-Nerves are settled?

-Eh, yes, yeah.

-Oh, good.

I've cut myself already, so that's done and dusted.

-Oh, God, that's two down!

-Another one.

-I think we actually did it both at the same time.

-Oh, did you?

Is this something that you cook regularly at home?

Erm, usually I do, but I don't usually make my own mayonnaise.

-I just...

-Oh, don't you?

-Have you been practising lots?

I've practised a few times, yeah.

It seems to be, erm, OK.

-Oh, very impressive.

-Just slowly, slowly.

-We'll let you carry on.

-Thank you.

-Get out of your hair. Good luck.

-Good luck.

-Thank you.

-Hi, Claire.

-Hi.

-Hi.

-Those are nice ingredients.

-I love lamb. One of my favourite ingredients.

-Yeah, it's mine, too.

-Oh, very good!

-Let's hope I get it right.

-Well, I hope you do it justice.

-Thank you.

-Good luck.

Thanks very much.

So, three very different styles of cooking,

good enough for their friends and family,

but will they live up to esteemed chef Kim's expectations?

So, let's start with Julia.

I'm a big fan of paella, so excited to see the chorizo in there

and the squid looks fantastic.

I'm worried about how much spice she's going to use. She said she likes it spicy.

With paella, obviously the seafood goes in right at the last minute,

doesn't it, so it doesn't want to be overcooked too much?

That's very important, especially the squid, the mussels -

they become rubbery in the taste -

and I'm keen to see the rice not overcooked, as well.

It's OK. Rice is still a bit crunchy, but we've still got time.

Just need to keep checking the seasoning.

So, let's move on to Nick.

Now, he's got tuna steak in some lovely Asian spices,

with Hasselback potatoes.

Yes. I think, a strange combination.

Concerned about how they're going to go together with the dish.

-Hmm. They look nice.

-They look amazing. Maybe on the side.

I think it's all going to plan so far, yeah.

-On track.

-Last but not least, Claire, who is doing...

I can just smell lamb in here. It smells so good!

So she's doing lamb koftas, with a Moroccan-style salad.

Interesting. I hope there's a good balance of flavours

in the Moroccan. I think it will be pulled together very well,

-as long as the seasoning's done right.

-OK.

Just want to serve up a good plate of food,

to someone who knows something about it.

So, if she's happy with the food, then I'll have done a good job.

Get those in the oven.

So what are you looking for in a partner?

Someone that can be quick on their feet and be multitasking.

For me, it's important about the flavour and taste of the actual dish,

so I'm looking to see who can pull the right flavours together

and who's actually tasting their food enough.

Steamed up!

And if cooking for Kim isn't already piling on the pressure,

this certainly will.

Ten minutes to go, cooks. Just ten minutes to go.

-How are you getting on?

-I'm really wary.

I know you can overcook squid, so it's that balance between making

-sure I don't poison anybody by giving them it raw...

-Please, don't!

-I know! Please, don't!

-I'll try really hard.

-You are on schedule?

-I think so.

-Are you?

-Famous last words.

Yeah, I think so. I'm beginning to regret using prawns.

Deveining prawns is not my favourite job.

Kim is not only looking for a great tasting dish,

but good technical ability and a tidy work station.

-How are we getting on here?

-Erm, just about sorted.

Trying to keep organised, keep my station tidy.

-What's this here?

-It's harissa. So there's some of that in my lamb

-and then I use it for the dressing with the chickpeas.

-Nice. Good.

We'll let you get on with your last five minutes.

Thank you.

How are you getting on?

-Oh, doing OK.

-It's coming together, I think, now.

My mayonnaise, I've made.

I've now added coriander, lime zest, lime juice,

which is going to go into the Asian coleslaw.

-Oh, good.

-OK.

-Thank you.

Cooks, you've got just three minutes left.

Three minutes to go.

I am starting to feel the pressure now, yeah.

Yeah, it was all right before, but now it's, like,

"Argh, there's only a few minutes left!"

I think my seafood is going to be cooked in time.

It's probably down to the wire.

Erm, but we'll just see. Fingers crossed.

Julia is not the only one who'll be making use of every last minute.

Nick is also preparing for a sprint finish.

This is the critical stage, yeah.

The tuna needs to go in now.

30 seconds, guys.

30 seconds to go.

Get that food on the plate.

Five, four, three, two, one.

That's it! Stop cooking, step away from your plates.

You've done all you can. It's time to taste!

First to be judged is Julia, with her dish of the day.

Paella with scallops, prawn, chorizo, chicken and squid.

Hi, Julia. Come in.

-There we go.

-How did you find the challenge?

Well, that was the quickest 45 minutes of my entire life.

I couldn't believe it when the timer went!

-All right, shall we taste?

-We shall.

-Are you happy with the dish?

-Yeah. I think I could've...

There could've been a little bit less stock in there.

I like the chorizo in it. It tastes good.

This is a very good paella.

-Thank you.

-Wow.

I've tasted a lot of paellas in my time

-and this has fantastic flavour.

-Thank you.

-Wow, that's fantastic.

I shall die a happy woman.

-Aw!

-That's so nice. Thank you.

-Well done.

Really well done. If you'd like to go back to the waiting room,

we'll see you really shortly.

-Lovely.

-Thanks, Julia.

-Very nice, thank you.

I'm feeling really good, yeah.

-How was that?

-Really nerve-racking.

-That looks amazing.

I was pleasantly surprised that they liked it and they were really kind

and they said the seasoning was good, which was always a worry.

-Absolutely delicious.

-Really lovely. That is full of flavour.

-Not surprised she liked it.

For me, it's about the ingredients that she's used,

how well she's prepared them, cooked them and the taste is phenomenal.

-It was delicious and she seemed over the moon.

-I suppose I ought to try it!

Really want to go home and say to my son, "Look, a professional chef -

"a proper professional chef, not a member of my family -

"likes my food."

Next is Nick, with his dish of tuna steak in a honey, soy,

chilli and lime marinade,

served with Hasselback potatoes and Asian coleslaw,

with toasted sesame seeds.

Hi, Nick. Come in.

-Hi.

-Lovely.

How was the challenge for you?

Towards the end it did get a little bit stressful, but we got there.

The last five minutes went like that.

-They did, didn't they? Ready?

-Good.

-The salad's delicious.

-Thank you.

Nick, are you happy with the cooking of the tuna?

Erm, I think it possibly could've done with a few seconds more in the pan.

It was a little pinker than I expected it to be,

-but at least, not overdone.

-No, I disagree.

-You think so?

-Oh, OK.

-I mean, I think for tuna, I think you've cooked it very well.

-Thank you.

-The slaw - mayonnaise, nice. I think it lacks a little seasoning.

-OK.

-Potatoes, perfectly cooked.

Nice and crispy on the outside, as well, so really fantastic.

-Thank you.

-Well, well done. If you'd like to go back to the

-waiting room, we'll see you very shortly.

-Lovely, thank you.

-Thanks, Nick.

Despite me thinking the tuna might not be cooked

as much as I'd like, the chef Kim actually said that she felt it was

cooked perfectly, so really pleased with that.

I better try a bit of your potato.

Oh, it's lovely. It's really crunchy.

Do you think it really needed the potatoes?

-I don't think it needed it, at all.

-No.

For me, it felt like the potatoes were there for completing a dish,

-where I think the slaw would have been nice enough, just with the tuna steak.

-Yeah.

And finally, it's Claire, with her dish of the day,

Moroccan lamb koftas with crushed chickpeas and a carrot,

orange and poppy seed salad,

served on a chilli and poppy seed flatbread.

Come in, Claire.

How was that for you?

I was worried I'd done some things too early,

-but fairly happy with it.

-We're going to get stuck in.

-Good.

-And the home-made flatbread, as well?

-Yes.

I think it was a good choice.

I think I'm just worried about obviously the flavour that is coming

through from the lamb, and I think what I was expecting was maybe a bit

more of a mint flavour, or a bit more spice maybe coming through

actually in the lamb, as well.

The carrot slaw is very nice with the poppy seeds, nice little touch.

The home-made flatbread - very impressed.

For me it's just lacking a little bit more of a...

an oomph, I think I was waiting for,

but I think, overall, a very good dish.

-Thank you.

-Well, well done.

If you'd like to go back to the waiting room, we'll see you shortly.

-Thanks very much.

-Thank you so much.

Erm, pretty happy with my dish.

I maybe should have just gone with my own taste.

I pared back the chilli and spice, because not everyone likes it

and I'm a bit of a vindaloo girl.

Those carrots are beautifully sweet.

-They're really lovely.

-So you said it was lacking in oomph?

Yeah, I was expecting that Moroccan spice to really come through,

especially with lamb.

Again, lacking in seasoning a little bit and a little bit dry, as well.

Is anyone standing out at the moment?

-There is one, yeah. There is one.

-Yeah?

OK, well, you don't have to make your mind up yet, because you've got your skills test,

-so let's go and see how they get on.

-Amazing.

Kim can choose only one of these three home-cooks as her partner

for Friday's final. And after this next round,

someone will be leaving the competition.

So, before Kim decides who's going to be the first to leave the competition, she's set you

a challenge, to see who's got the skills she's looking for.

So, Kim, it's over to you.

So, I'm going to be creating eggs Benedict.

It's the best meal of the day.

First of all, I'll make the reduction.

We're using white wine vinegar, white wine...

..fresh tarragon leaves, a little bit of garlic, as well.

Shallot and bay leaf. So really high-temperature.

Then, next, what we're going to do is separate the eggs

for the hollandaise and we're going to use four eggs.

So you said this is a good hangover cure breakfast.

This was created for the original hangover.

As soon as you stop whisking, you will start to overcook the eggs.

So you're going for a nice big, thick texture like this.

The eggs are ready to take a little bit of the reduction.

And, then, here is the clarified butter, which will go into this.

What could go wrong here?

So if you pour it too slow or you don't continually stir it,

-it will literally split.

-And if it does split, is there

-anything you can do to bring it back?

-Start again.

We're going to poach the eggs.

We're going to give them about 2-3 minutes

-and then I'm going to check them.

-So tasting for you, Kim,

-is really important, isn't it?

-Tasting is so key

for every ingredient. When you put it in your mouth, you need to go,

"Wow, that's delicious!" And that's what I'm looking for.

No pressure, then(!)

LAUGHTER

And there is your eggs Benedict.

Well done!

Right guys, let's have a taste.

-Looks perfect.

-It's amazing. God, that sauce is beautiful.

-Is it lovely?

-Mmm.

-Feeling confident?

-No!

-Come on, you can do it, you can do it.

-How long are you going to give them for this challenge?

-I'll give you 20 minutes.

Right, cooks, if you'd like to make your way to your stations,

-we'll begin.

-Good luck.

-Good luck.

Our cooks are attempting to make perfectly-poached eggs

and a smooth and silky hollandaise sauce, all in just 20 minutes.

-Oh!

-Early days, but not cut myself yet, again!

Kim's instructions must be followed to the letter.

The concentration.

And first things first, they must get cracking with the eggs.

Feeling a bit nervous, there's a lot of things to do

and if I get the eggs wrong, then...starting again!

Having cut his thumb in round one, Nick's at a disadvantage.

I'm finding it hard to crack the eggs with my plaster!

Kim's looking for a smooth consistency,

so the cooks must work carefully and quickly.

If they stop whisking, the heat will scramble the eggs.

This is when I'm missing my electric mixer.

-How's it going?

-OK.

I am regretting making mayonnaise earlier, though!

The arm is now aching...a lot.

And Nick's not the only one feeling the strain.

-Hi, Julia.

-Hi.

-How're we getting on?

-Arms aching already!

-Just keep going, just keep going.

-Do you know what you're doing?

-I think so.

-Yeah.

-Do you feel the pressure?

-Yes.

I know, this is why I could never do this professionally!

It's a good feeling, no?

-Yeah, it's exciting!

-It is.

-Yeah(!)

-OK, good luck.

-Thank you.

-Hi, Nick.

-Hi.

Are you getting on OK?

I think so!

Do you think you'll get it done in time?

-I'm not sure!

-Well, keep whisking then.

-Thank you.

-A lot of hard work going on here.

-I've got major arm ache!

-Really don't want it to split.

-No.

-And want to get it right before I put anything in.

I'm making sure I put everything in the right order.

-Don't forget!

-Don't forget.

-I'll try not to.

-Good luck.

-Thank you.

-They're all whisking away in there, aren't they?

-They are, the concentration's going!

I know, I know. So, let's start with Julia.

For me, if I'm looking at the pace, she needs to pick it up, whisking a bit more.

-And the reduction's on, which is the key thing.

-Yeah.

-And then, the eggs.

You said it's really important they have to work quickly to keep up with

you, because when you're partnering on Friday,

you need them to work at the same pace as you.

-I need someone to fly.

-Yeah, OK.

-What about Nick?

I don't know if he's watching the time.

I'm looking at the reduction, he's nearly finished.

I noticed he didn't put all of the white wine in

-and the white wine vinegar.

-But I hope there's some left to go in the hollandaise.

-Yeah.

And Claire. She's whisking away.

Whisking very good, actually. I'm quite impressed with her skills.

Yeah, her eggs were changing colour the most.

I saw that, they increased in volume. I really like that. So, promising.

Holding together so far,

I just want to get my eggs in the pan and the muffins on.

So, what could actually go wrong?

If the eggs are not cooked enough, when you add the butter,

you're going to have a liquid hollandaise.

For me, I want that beautiful, stiff,

peaky hollandaise to sit perfectly on the eggs.

-Yeah.

-Oh, no. I think it's split.

-I'll have to start again.

-Julia's, unfortunately, split her eggs.

-That's not good.

-It's not good.

-It's not good.

-And is that because she's not working at a fast pace?

-Yeah.

-It doesn't look shiny, like Kim's lovely one.

It looks a bit gloopy.

This is obviously going to set her back in time, because I think she's going to start again.

-I think the pressure's getting to her.

-Aww!

So, while Julia starts again, over on Nick's station,

his sauce has also split.

It's split, so, yeah, I need to start again.

Our cooks have less than just ten minutes on the clock.

It's all gone horribly wrong.

And with so much to do, there's only one thing for it.

Get whisking, come on!

-You can do it, Julia and Nick!

-I don't think there's enough time!

Blooming heck! What's happened here? There's egg everywhere!

My whisk. My whisk went...pyoo.

So you're the only one that hasn't split your sauce.

No, I think it's OK.

-Very good.

-Fingers crossed!

-Good luck.

-Thank you.

Cooks, just five minutes left, five minutes to go.

Whisk like the wind! Does anybody else need water?

They look nice and pale, now.

Have a lid on, that'll get it going quicker.

-Bless you! See, it's all hands on deck here, all helping each other!

-I know, thank you.

-How much more are you going to add?

-I don't know...

-Keep going.

-It can probably take a lot more than that.

Get those eggs on, get them on, get them in.

-Because you know you've got three minutes.

-Yeah.

-We're all helping!

-I know!

As Julia adds her eggs to the pan, it's all going wrong.

Oh! One of my eggs has gone!

Time is ticking away and Nick still hasn't started toasting his muffins.

-(Start your muffin.)

-This hasn't thickened!

(Season it, get your muffin.)

-OK.

-Have you got the butter in there, yeah?

No! No, the butter, yeah, yeah. Sorry, I was...I was thinking, God!

Yeah, I did!

Just one minute left, guys.

-One minute to go.

-Come on Nick, let's go!

Claire is first to finish.

But Nick and Julia are using every last second

to just get something on the plate.

30 seconds to go.

-Oh, no!

-Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five,

four, three, two, one.

That's it. Stop cooking!

Step away from your plates, you've done all you can. Oh, Nick!

Oh, that was so tense! It's now time to taste.

-Are you ready to taste, Kim?

-Yeah.

-OK.

We had the eggs, which were cooked very nice.

They don't look that appealing.

And the bread's a little bit raw, and seasoning, it needed salt.

Yeah!

The relief when we cut into the eggs.

Eggs, beautifully cooked.

With the hollandaise, I think it's beautiful.

The hollandaise is a little bit loose, and vinegar, I can taste it,

but it needed a little bit more,

just to give it the impact of what eggs Benedict is.

-Yeah.

-Overall, guys, honestly, well done and thank you very much.

Brilliant! Take your eggs!

Thank you.

Overall, they did OK.

-You know, a very good effort.

-Yeah.

My sauce split. Not in my game plan,

not really what I wanted, but that's what happens.

Watching Kim, she made it look very easy. It wasn't.

I'd love to go through to the next round,

but in my heart of hearts, I feel like the other two were better.

Have you got any idea of who you're going to say goodbye to first?

-I'm afraid I do.

-You do?

-I do.

I'll be cooking for Pierre Koffmann himself -

such a legend - and I want to make sure whoever I take through to the

final, then they can keep up and deliver the best plate of food.

OK, well, let's go break the news.

Only two people can be taken through to the next round.

For one of our home cooks, it's time to leave the competition.

Obviously Kim can only take one of you through to the Friday final

as her partner, and she has made up

her mind who is going to leave first.

So I have made a decision, we'll be saying goodbye to...

..Nick.

Sorry, Nick.

It wasn't an unexpected decision,

I think the other two did much better than me

and they both deserve their places.

Good luck, you two.

That just leaves safeguarding officer Julia...

I've just got to remember that

seasoning is the key, so season, season, season.

..and reservations supervisor Claire, to cook it out

for a place in the Friday final.

To cook alongside someone like Kim - a dream come true.

It's now time for our third and final round.

Now, our cooks have been given all the ingredients

to one of Kim's dishes.

They'll have one hour to identify all the ingredients

and to create a dish of their own. I hope you've been kind.

Ooh!

OK, so for you at home, here's what Kim's chosen.

Kim's ingredients include snails, ricotta, Parmesan, a shallot, flour,

eggs, chickweed, and Pernod.

Easy enough for a classically-trained chef,

but what will our home cooks think?

So, Kim, any tips for our cooks?

Be very creative and produce a great plate of food.

No pressure(!) Right, cooks, you've got one hour.

Reveal your ingredients, because your time starts now.

-Have you tried those?

-No, I've just looked at them!

You're not going to give it a try?

Unusual. A texture I'm not familiar with!

-(Do they know what it is?)

-(I don't, no.)

-Do you know what that is?

-No!

Oh, dear God!

-Have you tried that?

-I smelt it.

-I tried it.

Oh, my God!

Oh...

-Julia.

-Yes?!

Have you managed to identify everything?

-Well, obviously, that's a lemon.

-Yes!

-Good start!

I thought they might be those goose barnacles things I've seen,

but they look a different shape.

So, what are you going to do?

Oh, well... Sort of a creamy, garlicy sauce, maybe.

-OK.

-That's about as far as I've got, really.

It's a hard one. I do feel for you.

You're so mean!

So, while Julia needs a little more time to come up with a plan,

Claire's got stuck straight in, and has started to make pasta.

-How are we?

-A little bit nervous.

-Yeah?

-I don't know what these are.

Yeah, rough guess, what do you think?

Well, I thought they might be snails.

So I was going to make pasta and I kind of then thought,

maybe gnocchi, but I haven't got what I need for that,

so I'm going to have to improvise.

I'm sure it will come to you as you start cooking.

-OK, yeah, I'm sure.

-Well, I hope it does!

-Fingers crossed.

-Absolutely.

-Good luck.

-Thank you.

I'm not feeling at all confident about the challenge.

I don't really know what I'm cooking with or what the end product is going to be.

I feel so sorry for them!

-It's tough.

-It's exciting!

It's exciting! You can't stop smiling.

So, let's start with Julia.

She's stuck.

I think just identifying the products.

That's one of the key things, isn't it, to making a great dish -

-knowing what you're actually cooking with.

-It's quite daunting, because this isn't...

This is way outside my comfort zone, this.

I don't even know what that is.

That looks like, sort of, clippings from the garden!

Claire, who has made a start.

Looking at the ingredients and then just going for it. I like that.

I'm feeling quite calm, even though I haven't got a clue what I'm doing!

15 minutes into the round and Julia has finally come up with a plan.

I'm going to do a tartlet base and then try and make a, sort of,

bechamel sauce, and then put those things, those things in it.

But Claire is having second thoughts about making pasta.

I don't know what to do with this. I might try to do a tart.

So that's two tarts on the menu.

-How's your pastry?

-Fallen to bits, but, you know.

-Oh, no!

It might look better when there's a filling in there.

You've got 25 minutes, so still plenty of time.

There's too much egg in it,

because I started it off thinking it was going to be pasta.

-How're you getting on?

-It's all gone horribly wrong!

So we've got two snail tarts. How do you feel about that?

Snail tart? No. It'll be interesting to see the flavours

they'll pull together for a snail tart.

-It sounds so funny, doesn't it? A snail tart!

-Snail tart!

"What's on your menu tonight?" "Snail tart."

I've decided to make another tartlet case,

because my pastry wasn't very good, first of all.

It would have been nice to see a different take on the snails

and the rest of the ingredients I gave,

but now we have two tarts.

There is just ten minutes left.

-How are you getting on?

-I've got two pans and things are cooking!

-Is this one going to be better?

-I think it... I'm hopeful.

That's great. Get it in the oven, yeah?

Yes, that's what I'm going to do, yeah.

What have you filled your tart with?

Garlic and shallot, with a bit of Parmesan on.

And then, what I think are snails, I'm going to pan-fry them lightly,

-because I don't think they need a lot of cooking.

-That sounds nice.

We'll see!

I've decided to use this lovely green stuff.

I'm going to do, just very quickly, pan-fry it

and then, perhaps, dress it with a little bit of lemon.

-How're you getting on?

-It's probably the most random thing

-I've ever cooked!

-I know, so's mine!

Cooks, you only have one minute left. One minute to go.

I just want something to get this off...

-Oh, here we go.

-Thank you. Lovely.

-That's all right.

30 seconds left.

Claire is first to finish,

while Julia puts the finishing touches to her tart.

I'll have to put a bit of Parmesan...

That's it, stop cooking, step away from your plates.

So, let's taste.

First to be judged, it's Claire.

She's made snails, two ways with Pernod, garlic and cream,

accompanied with a shallot, garlic and cheese tart.

Now, how was that challenge for you?

I'm not used to cooking with things that I don't know what they are, but we've got some food on a plate.

-Absolutely!

-We're not sure what it is, but there's food on a plate.

-So, would you like to taste now?

-I would love to try it!

Did you put the Pernod inside there, as well?

No, but I did some of the shallots off with...

-Deglazed.

-Yeah.

-You can taste a bit, can't you?

-Yeah, you can.

You said the word, snails.

-I think you really did understand they were.

-Yep.

Your tart, cooked very nicely.

Really nice tasting onion cheese tart, so for me,

very happy with the dish.

-It's nice to see you smile.

-Yeah!

-No, that's good. Really well done.

-Thank you.

-If you'd like to go back to the waiting room

for the last time. We'll see you really shortly.

It went pretty well, all things considered.

I didn't know what I was cooking with or what to do with it.

Good comments about my pastry, so I'm thrilled with that,

considering it started off as pasta!

I thought considering not knowing half the products,

I thought she delivered a really great plate of food.

So, very happy with the dish.

Wow! I think she was so, so surprised.

-I know.

-But to see her smile at the end was lovely.

-It was fantastic.

Next into the tasting room, it's Julia.

She's made a snail and shallot tart, topped with a bechamel cheese sauce.

Are you glad that's over?

Yeah.

That was the most random piece of cooking I've ever done!

Did you realise what this was?

I thought they were peashoots.

It is a chickweed.

Oh, OK.

Yeah, quite earthy forage leaf.

I'm not going to lie, it's not the best I've tasted.

Yes, the pastry is a bit undercooked.

-Yeah.

-The snails, they need a bit less cooking.

Not knowing the products, it was a difficult challenge.

-So hard.

-I thought you delivered a plate of food and good job.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

If you'd like to go back to the waiting room for the last time.

-Were they peashoots?

-No, they're chickweed.

-Chickweed?

When I pulled the covers back and saw all those ingredients,

I couldn't even name some of them.

I just really, rabbit in a headlight job at that point!

I really feel for Julia.

Such a shame. She made her tart twice and, you know,

it didn't really deliver a beautiful-tasting snail tart.

I can't see me going through.

I did OK in the other two, but this was my downfall.

So, do you have an idea of who you're going to take through to the final?

I think it's very tough.

They do fantastic in the first challenge,

they get better in the second.

The third challenge...

It's going to be close.

OK. Before you let us know who you've picked,

let's go and see what you do with those ingredients.

Yes.

Put us out of our misery, what are you making?

So, I'm going to make a tortellini of the ricotta cheese,

nutmeg and chickweed

and then I'm going to do garlic roasted butter snails

and an emulsion of the garlic and Pernod.

-Of course!

-Of course.

-Of course.

-THEY LAUGH

-Why didn't we think of that?

-It was on the tip of my tongue!

OK, well, take it away.

OK, so first I'm going to start making the pasta.

We've got some 00 flour,

eggs and what I've also got here is a chlorophyll

of the three-cornered garlic,

so I've blended it up and I've just squeezed out just the juice.

A really intense flavour which I'm going to make this into

a green-coloured pasta.

-Ah.

-So obvious.

You were going to make pasta, Claire.

-How do you feel now?

-Kicking myself, but at the same time,

it wouldn't have been as good.

Is this something you serve at your restaurant?

No, this is me having some fun as a chef.

-Oh, is it?

-Absolutely.

-Wow. OK.

-I'm going to start blending this.

First, we're going to make it green.

OK, so, the next thing, I'm going to infuse a little bit of milk, cream,

a little splash of Pernod.

You've worked with some wonderful chefs.

Yeah, I've worked with The Gordon Ramsay Group for about ten years.

What's he like to work for?

You know what? He's absolutely an amazing chef.

Is he? Well, he is an amazing chef. Not "Is he?"

So, you actually made history, being at the Savoy Grill, haven't you?

I became the first female head chef ever.

Your family must be very proud.

Very proud.

So what I'm doing here is the mixture of ricotta,

a little bit of nutmeg in there,

lemon juice to freshen it up and then this is the chickweed.

So, thinking forward to Friday and cooking for Pierre Koffmann,

does that fill you with dread?

-No!

-Or excitement?

-Excitement.

-That's good.

-I can't wait.

Oh, exciting.

What I'm going to do is I'm going to start rolling the pasta.

Make a few shapes.

So using just egg yolk to stick the pasta together.

It just looks like perfection.

Have you ever made tortellinis?

No, I've made ravioli.

Are these little hats? I don't know what the translation is.

-What do you call them?

-Tortellinis?

-Yeah.

I knew you were going to say that!

What I'm going to do is use some snails.

I noticed you both used a lot of snails.

-We normally use about five or six.

-THEY LAUGH

So, this is the three-cornered garlic. Again, nicely roasted,

and then I'm just going to...

It smells divine.

..finish up with the chickweed as the salad.

-Then what we're looking for is just that...

-The top.

-..frothy top.

-The smell of that!

That looks incredible.

-Amazing.

-Stunning.

The all-important taste test.

-What do you think?

-Oh, it's beautiful.

That's amazing.

It is now time to reveal who your partner will be in the Friday final,

but before you tell us who it's going to be,

let's have a quick recap of what our cooks made earlier.

In the first round, Julia wowed Kim with her flavours...

..she scraped through the second round with her eggs Benedict...

..and she pushed herself out of her comfort zone with

unfamiliar ingredients, producing a snail tart in the final round.

It would mean an awful lot if Kim did pick me.

I can't see me going through to the Friday final.

Claire under-seasoned her lamb koftas in the first round...

..produced perfectly poached eggs in a buttery hollandaise that lived up

to Kim's expectations...

..but was her dish of snails two ways enough

to win her a place in Friday's final?

It would mean a lot to be picked but honestly,

I've just had the most amazing day.

Firstly, I'd like to say well done to both of you.

You've been brilliant sports.

It's not been easy but I hope you've both enjoyed your day.

Now, Kim has made her decision,

who she's going to take through to the Friday final.

So, Kim, it's over to you.

As you know, both of you have been fantastic.

I've enjoyed watching you create your dishes.

Friday is the final.

I want to win, so I've made a decision.

I'm going to take Claire.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

-APPLAUSE

Amazed and amazing.

It's just the icing on the cake.

I can't wait for Friday.

I'm feeling fine.

I tried my best but I lost to a really worthy winner.

Any last tips for Claire, then, on Friday?

Me and you will work well together, I know,

so we'll stay focused and taste everything.

-Yeah, definitely.

-Perfect.

-Can't wait.

I think going with Claire was the best choice.

She had the thought process.

She worked tidy, organised and I really like to see that in a chef.

So really looking forward to working with Kim on Friday,

to work alongside a chef of her calibre.

I just really want to do her proud.

'Tomorrow on Yes Chef...

'..three more home cooks go all out to impress top chef Ryan Simpson.'

Don't throw it away, don't throw it away.

'It's the chance for them to work alongside the best in the business,

'but only one can become their partner in the Friday final.'