Alongside Samira and Michelle, Metter was in awe when the judges welcomed Maggie, who was the creator of the very first MasterChef Australia pressure test in season one.
Presenting her apple and rosemary tarte tartin with custard and ice cream, Maggie said the key was not to overwork the pastry, and to evenly cook the apples.
The contestants had two hours and 30 minutes on the clock to recreate her dish, and both Samira and Michelle started out well. Metter overworked his dough early, much to the concern of the gantry, and when Maggie and George visited his bench they too were worried.
When it came time to prepare their apples – peeling, coring and halving them before they were added to verjuice – Metter cut his hand badly and was forced to redo all the apples, putting him even further behind.
Samira whipped up her caramel, getting it to a deep amber hue to ensure the flavour was just right before all three worked on their ice cream for the churner.
Michelle’s wheels fell off slightly when her caramel overcooked and the gantry wondered if it was burnt. She pushed on and all three contestants got their dishes into the oven.
When the judges and Maggie tasted they were thrilled with Samira’s dish. Maggie said it was glowing and uniform, with a really good colour. The caramel was perfect and George said it was delicious and brilliant. Samira nailed the challenge.
MIchelle’s dish was clearly darker, her caramel had been taken further and Maggie said it now meant the dish was bitter and unbalanced. The group agreed her custard had a great texture and the pastry was well cooked.
Last was Metter, proud he was able to serve up a tarte tartin after a challenging day in the kitchen. Concerned the apple was not cooked properly, his fears were founded when there was raw apple found in the middle of the dish, and the pastry was dense.
The ice cream was wonderfully smooth, but the core of the dish – the apples and pastry – were not right and that was enough to send Metter home.
Since leaving the MasterChef Australia kitchen, Metter has travelled to Malaysia to spend time cooking with his mother. He looks forward to sharing more of his traditional Hakka cuisine.
