The race was on as Masterchef’s top 9 become the top 8.
An American BBQ challenge led Matthew, Jessie, Billie, Amy, Ashleigh and Georgia battling it out to stay in the MasterChef Australia kitchen. An emotional Ashleigh used her immunity pin to avoid the elimination test.
The five remaining contestants were asked to create a dish using one of five different fish, each matched with a different world cuisine – in 75 minutes. Who better to set the challenge than British seafood legend Rick “The Codfather” Stein? Jessie was rattled by her choice of British cuisine and Murray River Cod, while Amy was pleased with her combination of Malaysian and squid. Billie was working with Red Emperor and Spanish, and Matthew was excited to make curry with John Dory and Indian.
Facing her eighth elimination, Georgia got Snow Crab and French, a challenge given her poor track record with French cuisine. Billie chose to cook pan-seared Red Emperor with a Spanish chorizo and orange broth. Amy opted for coconut lemongrass curry, with squid noodles. An emotional Jessie poached her fish in a creamy sauce and plated her vegetables like an English garden. Georgia made a bisque with fennel and tarragon. A novice at cooking John Dory, Matthew struggled at first but managed perfectly on his second try.
In the tasting, Rick loved Billie’s pan-seared Red Emperor with chorizo, sherry, orange and saffron broth. Matthew’s John Dory coconut curry with caramelised eggplant, rice and flatbread was a winner and the flavour in Georgia’s crab bisque with fennel, tarragon and tomato was spot on. Jessie served poached Murray River Cod with peas, bacon and brussel sprouts with thyme and rosemary sauce, but Rick and Matt’s fish pieces were undercooked. Amy was happy with her lemongrass coconut malaysian curry with squid noodles and was praised for her Malaysian flavours and “clever” noodles. But her sauce was thick and claggy and the grilled squid and tentacles undercooked.
With Billie, Matthew and Georgia safe, the decision came down to Jessie and Amy. Both served undercooked seafood, but Amy’s thick and grainy sauce meant that her time had come to an end. Since leaving the kitchen, Amy has been working with Ben Milbourne on his television show Ben’s Menu. She is also searching for the perfect property to start her food venture.
Masterchef airs 7:30 Sunday – Thursday on Ten.
