Tonight’s Masterchef team challenge was at Circa, The Prince in St Kilda. It was a 7 course degustation menu and each contestant was responsible for one dish. They started with a knife-pull to see who would be cooking which course. They find out the main ingredient they will be cooking with when they enter the kitchen.
Source: Twitter
Here is the order:
1. Billie – Marron
2. Georgia – Celeriac
3. Matthew – Tuna
4. Sara – Quail
5. Jessie- Lamb
6. Jessica- Plums
7. Reynold- Chocolate
Reynold was very happy to get dessert, his strongest dish. The top 4 dishes are safe, the bottom 4 are in a Masterchef elimination tomorrow.
Billie was first, she was boiling the Marron and making a cold dish with a fennel jam and avocado puree. Georgia was going to make a soup with her celeriac. Matthew was going to ceviche his tuna. Sara was making roasted quail and a sweetcorn puree.
Billie was rushing, she had her Marron done, put the fennel on the stove and accidentally burnt it. She had to start again. Sara was only using the breast, she had to butcher every quail, there were 40 of them.
Jessie is course number five and she is cooking lamb. Billie cannot use her fennel as it is burnt so instead she is making a fresh marron salad. Jessica is Billie’s helper for today and they begin to plate up together.
Matt and George taste Billie’s marron tails with avocado puree and fresh marron salad. George says it’s a tasty dish. Matt says it’s all about the marron.
Jessica’s time starts next and she is cooking with plums. Jessie is going to cook lentils with her lamb back strap and carrot puree. Jessica is going to pear the plums with a goats cheese and a biscuit. Georgia has burnt her tuiles and has to make more. Matthew is getting advice from Gary when cutting up his tuna for his ceviche. Georgia is still running behind. Reynold is there to help Georgia plate up. Gary is getting frustrated that she is sending her dish out late and the diners are waiting. Finally Georgia gets her soup plated up and it starts going out to the diners however she suddenly realises with 16 dishes remaining that she is going to run out of soup. She empties her bowls that are filled already back into the pot and she adds some milk to the mix and then sends them out.
Matt and George get to taste the apple and celeriac soup. George says she has done a good job. Matt likes the tuile but thinks the dish is nice but it has not really blown him away. Reynolds time starts now, his core ingredient is chocolate. Sara is pan frying her quail before she finishes them in the oven. Matthew is organised and is ready for service. Billie is helping out Matthew today. Sara has cooked her quail and is taking the breast off the bone. She quickly whips up a blackberry vinaigrette.
The judges get to taste Matthew’s tuna ceviche. They are very impressed with the presentation. Matt says everything works. George says it is a beautiful and elegant dish. Gary is hurrying Sara. Jessica is making some roast plums with a goats cheese mousse. Reynold has burnt his chocolate. He has removed the burnt chocolate and hopes that the remaining chocolate doesn’t taste burnt. Jessie is searing her lamb. Sara’s service time has started. She has Georgia to help her. Her dishes all go out on time.
Matt and George get to taste Sara’s dish. George says it is yum, delicious, the best dish they have tasted today. He really enjoys the blackberry vinaigrette. Jessie is feeling a little panicked, she is still searing her lamb and her lentils haven’t been seasoned. Her lentils also haven’t cooked properly. She decides to pickle some carrots and her service time as begun. Jessie is carving her lamb up and it is undercooked. There is nothing on her dish that she is happy with. Gary says we are in big trouble. Jessie finally gets her stuff together and with Matthew’s help plating up she got her dish out on time.
Matt and George get to taste Jessie’s dish. George notices that the lentils are overcooked and that the lamb hasn’t been rested enough. The carrot wasn’t pickled enough and the judges overall were not impressed. Reynold has put his chocolate dish in the fridge and is hoping it will set on time. Jessica is getting stressed as she continues to prepare her dish. Sara is Jessica’s helper today for plating up. Overall Jessica is happy with how her dish looks.
It’s time for the judges to taste Jessica’s dish. Its a blood plum with goats curd and thyme. George says he loves it as it is biscuity, buttery and great bridge to dessert. He questions whether it shows a lot of technique. Reynold is getting ready to plate up. Jessie helps him plate up. The judges receive his dish and look slightly disappointed as they had high expectations. George says there is a lot of crumb. Matt says it is a bit flat in terms of a dessert.
It’s time to reveal the results. The dish of the day was Sara with her quail dish. The three other safe dishes belong to Billie, Matthew and Jessica.
The three people going into a Masterchef elimination are Georgia, Jessie and Reynold.