In a nail-biting semi-final tonight, Radha and Prabha, Sonia and Marcua, Tommy and Rach, and Nick and Christian battled it out over three courses. But there was a twist that no one saw coming: instead of a traditional entrée, the teams had to prepare amuse-bouche, or one-bite canapés.
“What we are looking for is one single bite of joy,” Nigella explained.
The lowest scoring team, Tommy and Rach, were eliminated after the judging of the entrées. Judges Manu, Colin and Nigella were underwhelmed with the team’s entrée of Stuffed Mushroom, as Colin explained they could have deep fried the mushroom instead of baking it for the crunch the entrée needed.
“I was really disappointed. But ultimately, I just felt an overwhelming sense of pride that we had made this far,” said Tommy.
The judges were happy with Sonia and Marcus’ main of Pork Cotoletta Tonnato with Fennel Salad, even though Nigella felt the texture of tonnato was a bit different from what it usually would be. The team were let down by the consistency of hazelnut mousse in their dessert of Chocolate Hazelnut Dacquoise, which Nigella pointed was due to poor time management.
Nick and Christian plated up a main of Ox Tongue with Tuna Gribiche. “This is such an outside of the box dish. We are taking a gamble,” Christian said.
The gamble paid off as Colin called the dish “restaurant quality”. The judges applauded the team’s dessert of Poached Apple with Whisky Caramel, with Nigella saying: “I’m astonished I have to say, in a very good way.” However, all three judges agreed that the plating for both dishes could have been better.
Radha and Prabha served their main of Chilli Masala Crab with Rice and Cucumber and Onion Salad. Manu found the dish “yum” and Colin said he “would happily eat that dish again”.
The team’s dessert of Rosewater and Cardamom Panna Cotta with Pistachio Crumble was a level up from their previous dessert in the competition, but Colin asked them to think about how they could lift the dish.
After the cook, Judge Nigella Lawson announced identical twins Radha and Prabha as the first team through to the Grand Final. “I think I’ve got goosebumps right now. We’re just so grateful. We are going to be living one of our biggest dreams that we’ve dreamt together,” said Prabha.
Nick and Christian – who were convinced they were going home after their high-risk strategy – were the second team in the semi-final. “We are not gonna let this opportunity go to waste,” Nick said.
