The pressure to produce a “super hard” version of steak and chips sent UK-born Western Australian girl Deepali Behar home last night
In her second elimination challenge, Deepali battled against Scott Yeoman, Nick Doyle and Jamie Fleming to keep her place in the competition.
The dish was set by Vue de Monde chef Shannon Bennett: a fillet of beef with bone marrow crust, pommes soufflé and jus gras, with parsley puree. Cooking it to Shannon’s exacting standards was always going to be a challenge for all four contestants.
Shannon commented on the toughness of the dish at the outset, saying that even some head chefs have found it hard to perfect the pommes soufflé element.
Deepali struggled with them and they turned out flat, like chips. Her jus gras was the best, but it was the beef that was Deepali’s undoing. It was too rare and highlighted her lack of expertise and knowledge of cooking beef.
It was her poorly executed crumpets in the breakfast-themed invention test that sent her into the pressure test and ultimately sent her home.
Since leaving the MasterChef kitchen, Deepali has bought a dental clinic with her husband Jordan. She soon hopes to sell homemade chutneys, jams and sweets at local markets around Perth under the name Sugar & Spice, Deepali’s Delights.
Masterchef airs 7:30 Sunday to Wednesday on Ten.
