MasterChef: The Professionals 2018 – Finals Week Two

Masterchef presenter Gregg Wallace, Chef Monica Galetti and two-Michelin-starred Marcus Wareing have come together yet again to find the Uk’s finest culinary dining skills.

First the 4 chefs must face a cook off against each other in the Masterchef kitchen, for 1 chef this is the end of their journey, as only 3 chefs can take the next step. The judges begin by setting the four finalists a simple brief in the MasterChef kitchen -creating a single exceptional and evocative dish which draws inspiration from a place that is special to them.

Lets see how the chefs got on in episode 20..

Oli is representing Lancashire and Yorkshire in his dish.

Signature Dish: Butter poached rack of lemon sol, spiced shrimps and salt baked rhubarb, topped with pickled beetroot, salt baked beetroot with salmon rose soaked in sea buckthorn, wilted sorrel, sea arrow grass soaked in a sorrel veloute.

Marcus was very happy with chef’s skill of presentation and flavours, saying it was a ‘lovely combination‘.

Monica loved the flavours of the sauce and cookery of the fish, but found the pickled beetroot a bit too much and said the ‘balance is slightly off‘.

Gregg simply said ‘your a bit of a trail gazer, don’t ever stop, but along with the smiles you are going to get the raised eyebrows‘.

Matthew is inspired by Bournemouth beach, where he caught his first fish a ‘little turbot’.

Signature Dish: Braised turbot with cockles, clams and muscles, shallot puree, herb oil, summer vegetables, a fish sauce, accompanied by sounds of the seaside.

Monica loved the turbot and overall ‘eats beautifully’.

Gregg found it ‘interesting‘ saying without the ‘theatre of the music and seashore, its a very simple dish’.

Marcus couldn’t taste the ‘sauce in the dish‘ and ‘found it lost‘, and for him it was a ‘weak dish‘.

Laurence dish is inspired bu the Cornish seaside.

Signature Dish: Roast turbot, dashi jelly wrapped around a crab salad, charred pickled cucumber, fresh sea herbs, tempura oyster on oyster emulsion and a lobster salad with fennel and orange finished with a lobster consommé and a seaweed aroma.

Gregg said the turbot’s flavours and cookery was ‘beautiful‘ and thought the whole thing is ‘magical’.

Monica was very happy with the lobster consommé, saying it was ‘light and refreshing’ chef enjoyed the dish and said everything was very well balanced.

Marcus saw the dish as a ‘celebration of seafood‘ and said the 3 dishes are ‘plates of wonder, deliciousness and freshness‘.

Dean is inspired by the Scottish coast.

Signature Dish: Crab topped with caviar and a brown crab meat tulle, brown crab emulsion and a burn butter crumb and a sea vegetable salad with a sea buckthorn vinagrette.

Monica found it a ‘delight‘ with surprises coming through the dish, but wasn’t keen on the sea salad as it was just ‘too salty‘.

Gregg really liked the dish and said ‘I’m really happy with that‘.

Marcus was happy with harmony of flavours running throughout the plate and said the ‘dish very very clever, and nailed the brief scoring a 10/10‘.

The judges all agreed that the 2 chefs going through to the final’s would be; Dean, Oli & Laurence.

Unfortunately saying bye and good luck for the future to Matthew.

The remaining three finalists then travel to Valence, in France.

‘Anne Sophie Pic is one of the World’s leading chefs, she comes from a stellar lineage of chefs and is the fourth generation, the third generation to have won three Michelin Stars. Her family have been in every Michelin Guide since it began. Initially Pic didn’t want to follow in the family footsteps and instead pursued a career in business in New York and Japan. Aged 23, Pic was drawn to return to France and train with her father to become a chef, Anne Sophie Pic has since had a culinary career spanning 26 years.

During this time she has won three Michelin Stars, been awarded the Legion of Honour, won further Michelin stars in two more countries and been named the World’s Best Female Chef. Her cuisine and career not only reflects the generations of gastronomic genius that went before her but has been taken on to new heights, pushing boundaries and creating a cuisine unique to her’.

The three finalists will now have the ground breaking opportunity to learn from Anne Sophie Pic and her elite team. First they are given an inspiring masterclass about the secrets of her cuisine and her food philosophy. The chefs are then asked to draw on this lesson to create their own dish for Pic to taste. They must show that they can translate her philosophy and her unique approach to flavour, aroma and balance and deliver one dish worthy of this three-star chef.

After this challenge, the three finalists must seamlessly join Pic’s brigade of chefs during a packed lunchtime service. The pressure intensifies as they’re tasked with creating two exceptional dishes each, in a six-course menu for the exacting restaurant diners. As well as impressing Anne Sophie Pic and her team, their dishes will face the judgement of Marcus, Monica and Gregg who have joined the guests.

Let see how the chef’s got on..

Laurence has gone straight for the langoustines to go with his herbs from the garden.

Signature Dish: Glazed langoustines with baby cucumbers and carrots, garnish with lovage, sage and marigolds, a grape fruit vinaigrette, a Mexican tarragon and anise hissop foam.

Anne was happy with the flavours and aroma presented and said it was ‘very good‘. She thought chef was ‘very confident’ and wished him luck for the next challenge.

Laurence will be in charge of the signature sweet bread dish and the first course of an unusual combination of crab with geranium and tarragon ice-cream.

Gregg loved the ‘beautiful crab flavour’ and the melted powerful tarragon ice-cream. Wallace loved the ‘heavenly smell‘ from the sweetbread.

Monica described the starter as creamy and ‘not sweet in any way’. Galetti loved that one of Masterchef’s contestants had ‘learnt something as special as this’.

Marcus loved the ‘freshness and pepperiness of the crab‘ and said it was ‘brilliant’. Wareing thought it had ‘stunning flavours and a beautiful aroma’ even after finishing the dish.

Dean has gone for the red mullet which he will lightly cure with seaweed.

Signature Dish: Red mullet cured in seaweed on a kohl Rabi courgette and seaweed ragu emulsified with butter and saki, mushrooms pickled in jasmine tea and Madagascan pepper with radish, courgette and tangerine marigold flowers.

Anne could ‘smell the acidity’ from the beginning, saying the flavour were ‘nice and intense‘, but suggested to ‘calm the dish down‘ as it was very ‘concentrated‘.

Dean has been tasked with white mille feuille and one of Anne Sophie’s fathers classic lobster dishes which she has re-imagined with a japanese dashi sauce flavoured with berries.

Monica loved the ‘light and delicious‘ starter. Galetti loved the ‘beautiful light textures‘ inside the dessert.

Marcus said the consommé was very ‘delicate and incredible‘.

Gregg thought the dessert was ‘fabulous modern cookery’.

Oli is poaching oyster in milk which infused with aromatic and punchy flavours.

Signature Dish: Oysters poached in milk infused with cocking and citrus flavoured berries, pickled vegetables, green tomatoes, salsa verde and a beer and seaweed foam.

Anne thought it was very ‘interesting‘ and ‘great in flavours‘, but mentioned that the ‘oyster had disappeared in comparison to the herbs‘ due to chef poaching them. Anne also praised Oli on that he was ‘daring‘ and its something she liked.

Oli will be in charge of the explosive tomato starter as well as a main of lamb and artichokes.

Monica thought the starter was clever, fresh and ‘very delicious’. Galetti was speechless by saying, ‘just wow’.

Gregg loved that the starter overall ‘floods the palette with tomato flavour’. 

Marcus thought it was ‘brilliant‘, and hopes this dish will ‘re-fine his thinking when it comes to food’. Wareing started by saying ‘thats one the best lamb dishes I’ve ever had’.