All language subtitles for masterchef.australia.s15e45.1080p.hdtv.h264-cbfm

NARRATOR: Previously on
MasterChef Australia...

..it was a massive top 5 road trip.

DECLAN: Wow!

..where the ultimate destination

was immunity.

You're gonna find out why it's
known as Victoria's food bowl.

The best local produce...

DECLAN: I want my hands on it.

..and epic locations...

THEO: This is incredible.

..inspired, astonishing dishes.

JOCK: Mental.
It is absolutely perfect.

So delicious.

ANDY: It was unbelievable.

Then...

BRENT: This whole road trip,
it's all been leading up to this.

..the final immunity cook
came down to Brent,

Declan and Theo.

I'm not gonna let these wallies win.

(LAUGHS)

JOCK: Wow, wow, wow.

What a meal.

Declan, you are the first contestant
into Finals Week

of MasterChef 2023!

(CONTESTANTS CHEER)

Tonight...

..who will survive
a two-round elimination?

THEO: I've got
a lot more in the tank.

I feel like I can go all the way.

..and make it to Finals Week?

(PEACEFUL MUSIC)

CATH: Hey, we're back!
DECLAN: On home turf!

Yeah!
What a week, eh?

I know.

Wonder what we're gonna do today.

Black-apron day.

We've got Theo, Cath, Rhi and myself
in the All-In Elimination.

And whoever survives today
goes into Finals Week.

(JUDGES CLAP)

I'm hungry for it.

So that's even more important
to bring your A-game,

cook a cracking dish and be safe.

Welcome back!
THEO: Good to be back.

As you can see,
there aren't many of you left.

After a fabulous week away
cruising around regional Victoria,

it all comes down to this.

Here we are.

Right on the doorstep of
an incredible milestone

in this competition.

If you survive today...

..you'll cross the threshold

and be one of the few contestants...

..who make it into Finals Week.

(MOMENTOUS MUSIC)

Brent, did you think you were gonna
make it into Finals Week?

Yeah, I had it as a goal,

but, yeah, I just took it
cook by cook,

and all of a sudden
I'm only one cook away from it.

Getting into Finals Week, mate.
Alfie's gonna be super-proud, buddy.

He will.
Cath.

Do you realise you're closer to that
moment right now than ever before?

Oh, it's amazing.

So, um, I've had a run this morning.

Tell you what - here comes Cath.

Ohh! Love it!

"Here comes Cath"!

Look out!
That's it. Yep.

Yep.

It's great to see all of you

in a place where you have confidence.

You're carrying confidence
into this cook.

You're gonna need it as well.

This is the pointy end
of the competition.

Our expectations are pretty high.

He's proud!

Proud. Proud dad.
Can you hear it?

(RHIANNON LAUGHS)

Today's Elimination Challenge is
a tournament of epic proportions,

the ultimate championship.

In a moment,
you'll all be battling it out

in two separate head-to-head duels.

Win your duel,

you'll be in Finals Week.

Lose it

and you'll be cooking in round 2
for the final spot.

So the first thing we need
to work out

is who you're up against
in this round.

Take a token out of this bag.

Choose your fate.

Thanks, Mel.
(LAUGHS)

Silver.
Silver token for Brent.

Gold token for Cath.

Gold token for Theo, which means...

RHIANNON: Queensland!

Queensland! And we're Victorian!
There you go!

OK, hold up your tokens, please.

Alright. We have Brent
and Rhiannon on silver.

Stand in front of the silver cloche,
please.

Hey, buddy.

That means Cath and Theo,

you have the gold cloche.

Theo, going up against Cath.

You heard Cath before.
She's here to play.

She means business.
How do you feel about that?

Yeah, I'm...shaking in my boots
right now.

Rhiannon taking on the big man.

Are you shaking in your boots?
Nuh.

BRENT: Nuh!

I'm not giving it away lightly.

I'm gonna fight for this

and I'm gonna get into Finals Week
straight up.

Sorry, mate. Sorry, not sorry.

Rightio. You're clearly curious

about what's under these cloches.

As you should be!

Because whatever's under here

you'll need to feature in your dishes
in your duel.

Righto, Brent and Rhiannon,

the ingredient that you need
to feature is...

..one of my favourites - anchovies.

Oh, yes! Love anchovies.

Happy days for you two, huh?
Yeah!

Yep.
MELISSA: What a gift.

Yep, that's a gift.

Righto, Cath and Theo.

The ingredient that
you need to feature is...

..Dijon mustard.

Ohh!

Theo, any thoughts on Dijon?

I love Dijon mustard, so...

Making that the prominent flavour,
though, might be a bit interesting.

But, yeah, I'm excited
to give it a go.

CATH: Yeah!

You'll have 75 minutes to bring us
a dish that features

your ingredient.

The pantry and the garden
are both open.

All you need to do to guarantee
your spot in Finals Week

is bring us a better dish

than the person standing
next to you.

Good luck.

Your time starts now.

(JUDGES CLAP)

THEO: The regional Victoria trip
was incredible.

BRENT: Alright.

But I am happy to be back
in the MasterChef kitchen.

I feel comfortable here.
I feel like it's home now.

So I'm ready to rock.

One cook away from Finals Week,
you know.

I've got a lot more in the tank.
I feel like I can go all the way.

So I'm excited to cook today.

Straightaway when I see
the Dijon mustard,

I think two-mustard sauce.

I've made this sauce before.

DECLAN: Let's go, Theo!

It goes really well with any protein,
really, but I'm thinking of fish.

Ooh! It's so nicely presented.

Look at that.

The inspiration is from
my time spent in France.

I've had iterations of this dish
in a lot of restaurants.

Ooh! Yum.

Smells good, Theo?

Yeah, it's good!
Really good, actually.

I love these flavours.

It's kind of like a balance of
wholegrain mustard

and a Dijon mustard,

but it's also like a, you know,
kind of a veloute sauce.

And I just love that sort of texture
and that flavour

going with any sort of protein.

I haven't cooked much fish in this
kitchen at all, to be honest.

But I love fish,
white-flesh fish.

I've got a kingfish.
It's, like, subtle in flavour.

Because I want that mustard sauce
to be the star.

Nice, Theo. Take your time.
Yep.

Right in the start, in one of
the Jamie Oliver challenges,

we had Dijon mustard, so...

And I actually did a dessert dish
back then.

So I thought, "Look, why not then
go savoury this time?"

(WHISPERS) OK.

And I'm gonna get into Finals Week
with a fish dish.

Just gonna do this beautiful fish,

beautiful trout

with, you know,
potato and fennel salad underneath,

basted with, you know, a Dijon glaze

with a nice, lovely dressing.

So, very simple. It's gonna
be beautiful on the plate.

Theo's gonna be a really tough
opponent today.

He's very good
in stressful situations.

We are both doing fish, can you
believe it, in this challenge.

But if I have, you know,
a clear idea,

and make sure I get that
Dijon mustard balance right,

I can knock Theo off for sure.

So I'm pin-boning the fish

and it is taking a long time,

but I'm being super careful of it.

They're very fine, the bones,

and I definitely don't want
the judges getting one today.

OK.

RHIANNON: I bloody love anchovies!

Like, honestly, I love anchovies.

Literally, at home, I make beautiful
pizza bases on stones

and I will literally only have
anchovies as the topping.

There's no beautiful, like,
wood-fired oven for me,

so I'm not gonna be able
to make pizza,

but the first thing I think
is chicken.

I love chicken with crispy skin

and things stuffed under it,
you know?

So I'm thinking, "What about
if I just stuff some anchovies

"under the skin?"

(PROCESSOR WHIRRS)

With a beautiful curry broth,

with an apple crispy anchovy salad.

But I've got just
the good, old humble chook.

I look across.

Brent's got bloody lobster.

Today I'm doing
a lobster-pipi pasta.

Beautiful, like, really punchy
lobster bisque with anchovies.

There's gonna be a bit of anchovy
crumb - pangrattato - on top.

Super crunchy, salty.

And I'm up against Rhi.

So the big flavour hitters.

Yeah, hopefully the lobster prevails
and beats the chicken.

I love anchovies.

You can just eat 'em straight
out of the can. They're delicious.

They're, you know,
packed full of flavour.

They're salty, they're briny,
they're great in pasta.

But, yeah, I do not know why

I've chosen to do pasta

at this time in the competition.

Um...is this 00?

I haven't done it all year.

I'm just, you know, thinking,

"Where have I eaten anchovies
before?"

And it's been in a pasta,

so hopefully I should
go alright today.

Theo!
Hello!

Hey, Theo.
How are we?

Not bad.

Nice little taster.

Yeah, so that's my dish.
Yeah, nice. Well done.

You featured mustard,
but you did nothing with it.

(ALL LAUGH)

What are you doing?
What's the dish?

A pan-fried kingfish fillet
with a two-mustard sauce.

Very simple.
Yep.

But, yeah, it's all in the...
all in this sauce.

Um, yeah, really classic
French flavours.

Why are you using two mustards?

That's 100% the sauce that I know.

Yep.
Like, it's Dijon and seeded mustard.

All we'll say is this jar of gold

is your feature ingredient.

It needs to be crowning glory
kinda stuff.

If I don't feature
Dijon mustard today,

then I have missed the brief.

Maybe the Dijon is gonna get lost
in this two-mustard sauce

with that wholegrain mustard.

I was feeling confident
about this dish,

but...yeah, I'm stumped now.

All we'll say is this jar of gold

is your feature ingredient.

It needs to be crowning glory.
OK.

If I don't feature
Dijon mustard today,

then I have missed the brief.

Maybe the Dijon is gonna get lost

in this sauce with
that wholegrain mustard.

I was feeling confident
about this dish,

but...yeah, I'm stumped now.

Maybe it's a single-mustard sauce.

Maybe.
(LAUGHS)

You need to make this
the best it can be.

Good luck, mate.
Thank you, guys.

I'm getting rid of
that wholegrain mustard.

But in my head, I'm thinking,

"Is that Dijon mustard sauce
gonna be enough?"

It's a super-strong flavour.

I need to think about how
I can feature it

without it being one-dimensional.

And I'm up against Cath.

She can pull anything
out of the bag.

I've gotta think of a way
to elevate this sauce.

Think about it hard.

45 minutes to go, guys.

Come on. Pick it up.
ANDY: Let's go!

(WHISPERS) OK, sweetie. Let's go.

Hi, Cath!
G'day, Cath.

Hi there!

How are you?
Good, thank you.

Mustard. Trout.
Yes, mustard.

What's the dish?

I'm doing trout today with
a potato and fennel underneath it.

Then it's gonna have
a dressing with a Dijon

and I'm going to baste this
also with Dijon mustard.

Lots of delicious flavours and
they all work really harmoniously.

I think we can all agree on that.

This does need to be featured.
Yes.

How are you justifying that today?

Um...

So it's going to be everywhere.

Um, I don't think

you're going to get the outcome
that you're looking for

with basting it in oil and Dijon.

I think the flavour of the Dijon's
just gonna get sucked out of it.

What Andy's trying to say is,
"Think it through."

Yeah. No, appreciate that.
Good luck!

Good luck, Cath.
Thank you. Cheers. Thanks.

So the judges have got concerns.

I've gotta really make sure that
the Dijon mustard flavour is there.

I have to hit that brief today.

So if I can get the balance right
in my dressing,

make sure that
that Dijon mustard

is front and centre,

it may be my dish
that wins this round.

Let's just make sure
that we're happy with this.

RHIANNON: I'm up against lobster.

Little chook's up against lobster.

And I'm thinking,
"This is gonna have to be

"the best bloody chook
I've ever cooked in my life."

There is anchovies
under the chicken skin.

There's anchovies in the broth.

There's deep-fried anchovies.

So yes, I know it's featured,
but it also has to work.

My style is about getting
punchy flavours

and getting that balance.

So I'm thinking I'll do
a beautiful fresh salsa

and it is gonna go with the chicken,

because I need that fresh element
anyway.

I was gonna do an apple salad.

Now it's gonna be a beautiful herby
sort of anchovy salsa.

All my elements have
anchovies in them

but the one that I'm worried about
the most is this curry broth.

It is so strong in
all the other flavours

that I'm worried that the anchovy's
not shining through.

And it gets to the point in the cook

where you've tasted it that many
times you can't even tell!

Is there anchovy? I don't know!

'Cause that...yeah,
it's kind of like

my mind's playing tricks
right now.

So I'm gonna have to
balance this broth

because I don't wanna
go into round 2.

Slowly gonna cook the lobster tails
over the hibachi.

Really gentle heat.

And they're just lathered in
that salty anchovy butter.

I've just finished making
my pasta dough,

but I don't have time
to let the dough dry.

I've just gotta get it on to cook.

So I'm now rushing.

But I need to get this dish finished

otherwise I'm not even gonna
have a dish up.

Bring us something worthy
to be in Finals Week.

You've got 15 minutes to go!

JOCK: Come on, step it up!

DECLAN: Nice, bro.

Perfectly cooked fish.

I'm just cooking my fish now.

Having a look. Looking good.

I scrapped the wholegrain mustard

because that's the brief today.

So I'm gonna go with just...
old mate Dijon.

But I'm still trying to think
how I can elevate the dish.

And then it hits me.

I'm going to do some dill oil.

Dill goes really well with fish -
we all know that.

But a really nice, bright dill oil

is gonna add that element
of freshness and flavour,

and it also adds, like,
a really nice look, you know?

That beautiful green dill oil

dotted around the outside
of this fish is gonna look fantastic.

Yeah, I mean, Cath had
some fighting words just before,

so she's in it to win it,
as she should be.

And so am I, so I'm gonna
put up the best dish.

I can smell that from up here.

Smells good, eh?
It's all coming up.

Come on, mate. Let's go.
Bring it home.

CATH: I've basted the trout.
The glaze is primarily Dijon mustard.

And now they're very small,
delicate fillets,

so they don't need to be cooked
very long in the oven.

And Dijon mustard's at the forefront
of my salad dressing,

which is nicely balanced.

So hopefully I've
hit the brief today.

Five minutes to go!

(JUDGES CLAP)

(FRAUGHT VIOLIN MUSIC)

BRENT: I'm just frantic
at the moment.

I'm literally feeling like a fish
flapping around outside of water.

I'm now finishing my sauce.

My pasta is done.

I'm frying anchovies to go on top.

This cook has been a mad rush,

but hopefully the judges like it
and that I hit the brief.

Two minutes to go! Come on!

(JUDGES CLAP)

(FRAUGHT VIOLIN MUSIC)

RHIANNON: This chook
is cooked perfectly.

The skin's nice and crispy

and it's got a beautiful char to it.

And that curry broth tastes balanced

and this anchovy salsa is a winner.

It is beautiful.

There's a lot going on in this dish.

I used about eight tins of anchovies.

So if that is not featured,

I don't know what is.

One minute, crew!
Whoo!

(JUDGES CLAP)

Goes so fast.
CATH: Oh, man, does it ever!

THEO:
I'm happy with the cook on the fish

and this sauce, it's got
that good punch of Dijon,

it's balanced.

And then that dill oil
is just gonna really

lift this dish
to here it needs to be.

So hopefully that will keep me
out of round 2.

Come on.

I had quite a good idea about
how I would present the fish.

It would have the salad underneath
with the fish on top.

I've quickly blanched
a couple of asparagus spears

to have that right on top just
for that little bit of green

and little bit more freshness
to the dish.

Oh!

I want to present
a beautiful dish today

packed with beautiful flavours

featuring that Dijon mustard

I think I have balanced
that Dijon mustard.

But has Theo done a better job?

Here it is.

10, 9, 8,

7, 6, 5,

4, 3, 2, 1.

That's it!

DECLAN: Good job.

ANDY: Well done, guys.
THEO: Good job, Cath.

Yeah. I'm just really
proud of myself.

Well done.
Yeah.

Ohh! Good work.

Oh, my God, if I beat Brent,
I'm in frickin' Finals Week.

You have no idea how crazy
that would be to me.

Like, it is, like,
quite literally...

It would be, like, the biggest
dream-come-true of my whole life.

than the person standing next to you
to avoid round 2.

The first duel that we're gonna taste
is the Dijon duel

and the first dish that we'd like
to taste belongs to...Cath.

(CONTESTANTS CHEER)
Good one, Cath.

Cath, what have you made us?

So I've made a Dijon-glazed trout
with a potato and fennel salad,

which has a Dijon dressing.

MELISSA: Cath,
I'm really proud of you,

because watching you progress
through the competition

and watching the way
that you're plating,

this was really elegant in the way

that you strive to present something

with a little bit more finesse.

I really appreciate that.

It was a good plate of food,

but it does require
just that little bit

of the fine-tuning
in terms of balance.

Yep.

Cath. The trout was cooked nice.

The sauce...
Mm.

..overloading it with dill, I would
have pulled back on the dill

so the Dijon really does shine.

It's a good dish,
so we'll see what happens.

I thought the fish
was cooked beautifully.

No bones. Really great.
Yeah. Phew!

Um, I love that you took care
to glaze it all the way around.

Really good job.

My issue is,
between the dill and the fennel,

you have a very, very aniseed-y note

that just overpowers
the Dijon mustard.

Yeah.

And so while it is a nice dish and
while the fish is cooked beautifully,

I feel as if you've just
missed out in the brief.

OK.

Thanks, Cath.
Alright.

Thanks, guys. Thanks.

All good. All good.

It looks beautiful. Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah, it looks epic.

The next dish we'd like to taste
belongs to Theo.

(OTHERS CLAP)

Hello.
G'day.

What have you made us today?

I have made pan-seared kingfish

with Dijon sauce and then
a little bit of dill oil.

Thank you.

(EXHALES SLOWLY)

Theo, great concept
for the challenge.

Yeah, yeah.

I think you hit the brief
out of the park.

The overwhelming flavour
is Dijon mustard.

Yeah.
So I've gotta commend you for that.

Theo. Very nice, mate.

Very nice.

The cook in the fish is good.
Your dill oil, great work on that.

It's fantastic. Beautifully bright
in colour and in flavour.

I think the concept
of the dish was great.

I think you've done rather well.

I think the sauce work
was really, really good,

and then you've elevated it
by adding that little bit of oil

just to, A, give a beautiful
visual cue and contrast,

but also to just support
and enhance the mustard.

So I think you've done
very, very well.

Thanks, guys. Cheers. Thanks.
Well done, mate.

Well done, buddy.
Thanks.

OK, over to the anchovy battle,

and the first dish we'd like
to taste belongs to you, Rhiannon.

(OTHERS CLAP)

OK, Rhiannon, what's the dish?

Uh, it's grilled chicken
with anchovy salsa. (CHUCKLES)

Nice.

Rhiannon, you came in here
all guns blazing today

and I love that because
usually it means brilliant food,

and it is full of flavour.

I loved the anchovy stuffing
under the skin, over the hibachi.

It gave it beautiful smokiness,

beautiful kind of
bacon-y, savoury richness

that adds to the chicken skin -
instant seasoning.

Happy days.

That...that anchovy salsa.
Yep.

You've kept them
in their freshest state

and that's when anchovies,
at a high quality, are their best.

100%.

Thank you.
Thanks, Rhiannon.

(EXHALES)

(WHISPERS) Oh, wow.

The next anchovy dish we'd like
to taste belongs to Brent.

BRENT: I had such a frantic cook

and I don't know why
I decided to make a pasta

at this stage of the competition.

But hopefully the judges like it.

What have you made us, mate?
Uh, so...

I've made you

lobster and anchovy pasta.

(TENSE MUSIC)

Brent. (CLEARS THROAT)

Um...

The pasta...

..you know, it hasn't been dried,

so it's more in the sort of
soft noodle side than as pasta,

therefore it can never be al dente.

Other than the two pieces
of fried anchovy on mine,

if it hadn't been for that,
I wouldn't have tasted it.

Yeah.

We all have bad cooks,
like, bad dishes.

This is...

..definitely one of yours, man.

Brent, you and anchovies,

it should have been
a match made in heaven

because you get them, you love them,
we all love them.

And, I mean, the lobster
is nicely cooked

but the pasta isn't really pasta.

This was not your finest moment
and that may cost you.

Brent, mate, none of the elements
are really executed that well,

apart from the cook on the lobster.

Cook the food that YOU are good at.

You know, this isn't your food.

Have you cooked a pasta dish
in this kitchen?

Nup.

Strange to bring it out
in the biggest cook, yeah.

So cook your food.
Your food is dynamite.

Yep.
You are dynamite.

Thanks.

I'm pretty gutted, to be honest.

It's just not my kind of cooking.

And it's just not cooking
I should be doing

at this time of the competition.

So I know I'm definitely in round 2.

(DRAMATIC MUSIC)

The two of you to do that made
the top 4 of MasterChef 2023.

Just let that sink in.

Let's start with the Dijon duel.

Theo.

Dijon dominated your plate.

And, Cath, the dish
was more dill than Dijon.

You missed the brief.

Because of that, Theo,
you're joining Declan in the top 4.

JOCK: Now the anchovy duel.

Rhiannon, that anchovy salsa
was beautiful.

Brent, your dish had issues,

the biggest of which was the pasta.

For that reason, Brent,
you're heading into round 2.

Which means, Rhiannon,
congratulations,

you're in the top 4!

Theo, Rhiannon, congratulations!

Get your aprons off and join Declan
in the gantry. Well done.

Well done. Good work, Theo.
Nice one, Rhiannon.

MELISSA: Get your aprons off!

RHIANNON: Good luck, Cath.

(THEO AND BRENT SPEAK INDISTINCTLY)

Well done.

You did good, you did good.

Alright, buddy. It's us.
Come here. Come here.

Hey. Yep.

Deep down, I'm pretty gutted.

I'm cooking for survival
up against Cath.

She's a strong cook and, um, yeah,
it's gonna be a big challenge.

Cath, Brent,
this is your last chance.

Only one of you will make it
to Finals Week.

For the other,
it's the end of the road.

All throughout this competition,
you've been accumulating knowledge,

elevating your skills,

on your way to becoming
a master chef.

And with those skills, your dishes
have become next-level good.

But today we want you to bring us

your best dish of the competition
so far.

There's no rules.

No restrictions.

CATH: Hm!

we have pushed everything else
to the side

so that you have every opportunity
to step up

and take your dish
to the next level.

Finals Week, it is a special time,

and only the best dish in this round
will get you there.

Pantry's open, garden is open.

Everything is at your disposal.

You'll have 75 minutes
to cook anything you want.

I don't need to tell you
what's at stake here.

Don't let the dream end here.

Game faces on, you two. Good luck.

Your 75 minutes starts now.

(CONTESTANTS CHEER)

CATH: Let's go, buddy.

I'm putting
my round 1 cook behind me.

I'm up against Brent.

It's gonna be
a really big challenge.

But I'm just gonna give it
everything I've got.

The judges want us to show where
we've come from in the competition

and why we deserve
to go into the Finals Week.

So I immediately
think about a dessert

that I've been forming in my mind

and I've actually talked
to my daughter about it.

I can't reach it.
What do you want?

Uh, no, Davidson plum,
yeah, and wattleseed.

I've really been exploring using
Australian native ingredients

and I just really want to use
the skills I've learnt

in the dish today.

(JUDGES AND CONTESTANTS CHEER)

Here I come!

So I'm gonna be making
a wattleseed shortbread

with a chocolate parfait,
a Davidson plum sauce

with some vanilla dippin' dots.

Bloody oath! I got the whole bench.

I have not made this dish before,

so am I taking a risk on this?

Yes, I am.

I've got this. I'm not giving up.

I'm not going down
without a fight, I tell ya.

This is for my beautiful girls.

This dish is all about
my girls today.

I remember our girls,

they must have been, you know,
8 and 10 years old,

and I remember going into the city.

There was a stall there
with these dippin' dots

and the girls just loved them.

(UPLIFTING MUSIC)

I've been probably more homesick
than what I thought I would be,

but this has been just
a beautiful rite of passage for me

to just rediscover myself,
rediscover who Cath is

and rediscover, you know,
what my dream is.

So thinking about them
just motivates me to keep going.

I am just gonna fight so hard.

Nice, Cath.
(SOFTLY) OK.

Oh, round 2.
And what a cracker we actually have.

Like, two fierce competitors
in this competition.

Brent knows how to create
big, bold flavour.

He's great with cooking savouries,

proteins over fire,
we love to see that,

and lots of aromats.

And then, of course, Cath,

we've seen some really great
sweet dishes from her

and I do see the hallmarks
of desserts going on there.

You know, I think,
at the end of the day,

75 minutes is a good
amount of time, right?

So it should be enough to refine
the dish a little bit as well

and that's what
I'm gonna be looking for today.

Simplicity, sticking to what you're
good at, playing to your strengths.

That's all you need
to complete a tasty dish.

No limits, no excuses.

Yeah, look, um,
I'm not feeling the greatest.

Anything I do in life, I try to make
sure everything is the best I can do,

so when I take up dishes to
the judges that is not my best,

I'm pretty filthy with myself,

especially at this point
of the competition.

Last round was probably
the worst cook I've ever done.

Um, but I've decided that I'm gonna
stick to the flavours I love

and I'm just gonna get
into this cook.

Brent...bit of a hiccup
this morning.

Um, yeah.

Talk to me about what the dish is.

Yeah, so I'm going chicken adobo

but sort of my sort of style,
my take on it.

It's gonna be cooked over the fire
like I love to do.

It's gonna be on a skewer,

which is like my little...
little trademark thing.

Yeah.
And a beautiful glaze over it.

Get it nice and charcoaled. A really,
really, like, in-your-face sauce.

Everything spiced to the max.

And then it'll be maybe like
a salsa with everything.

Your prep's looking
really, really good.

Yep.
How are you feeling?

Yeah, I was actually
pretty upset with myself, um...

I could see that. I think we could
all see it and feel it.

And, um, it was just
a backwards step for you.

Yep.
Good luck.

Thanks, Mel.

Ooh, it's smelling good already.

Come on, guys.
Go, guys.

Let's go, Cath!

Um...

Now, let's just keep everything
organised today.

For my parfait dessert,

I get onto making
my Davidson plum sauce,

which I combine
with some raspberries.

Letting that simmer off a little bit.

It's gonna be bitter, sweet,

it's gonna have a little bit
of umami in it,

so a mixture of flavours,

which will go beautifully
with the chocolate parfait.

OK, do you know what?
We're actually gonna stop this.

Then... That's cool enough.

(WHISPERS)
OK, let's just fold this in now.

Next, I'm getting onto
making my parfait,

so it needs to be a beautiful,
rich, chocolate flavour.

So it needs to be
light and airy as well.

(WHISPERS) OK, sweetie.

I've had some hits and misses
with my parfait in the past,

so today I've got to focus
on getting everything perfect.

Let's just relax.

OK.

Come on, Cath.

(STAND MIXER WHIRRS)

Cath.
Hi there.

Hey, Cath.
How are ya?

Hi. I'm good!
What's cooking?

I'm going to do
a wattleseed shortbread

with a chocolate parfait,
with a Davidson plum sauce.

And I'm gonna use the liquid nitrogen
for the dippin' dots.

A lot of big flavours
to balance here.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Especially with Davidson plum.

And even chocolate. What percentage
chocolate have you used?

Well, actually just used, uh, 54.

It doesn't look very dark.
Nah.

Words of advice.
Yes, buddy?

Keep looking at that clock.

Yeah, yep.

And if you have to pivot...
Yep, sure.

..make a quick decision.
Yeah, thank you.

Come on, Cath.
Yeah, thank you, thank you.

You're up.
Thank you.

(OTHERS CLAP)
RHIANNON: Come on!

I'm worried about
the chocolate parfait.

In my haste in the pantry,

I've just grabbed 54% chocolate,
not the darker chocolate.

RHIANNON: I'm just a bit worried.

You know what I'm saying?

Yeah.

Oh, my God. It's too sweet.
It's not right.

(SIGHS)

Right.

Let's just chill out, OK?
Let's just chill out.

Come on, Brent. Let's go, Cath!
Come on, Cath!

You can do this. You can do this.

Do I have enough time to make
another parfait?

I still have to finish off
my Davidson plum sauce,

make my shortbread,

make my dippin' dots,

but if I serve this parfait
and it's not the right flavour,

it's really going to be
what sends me home.

Hey, Cath.
Yeah! Hi, Mel.

Just checking in on you.
Thank you.

I'm just considering
doing another parfait,

'cause I've used the 54% chocolate,

and I'm just wondering whether
that's not bitter enough.

Cath...
Do you want me to stop?

No, not at all.
I need to keep going.

Keep going.

I just want you to take a breath...
Oh, thanks, I forgot to breathe.

And don't do things with haste.
(EXHALES)

No.
OK?

Yeah, no, you're right.

Give it your best, give it your all.
Yeah.

And I'll just give myself a cuddle.
Good.

This is for my daughters today, Mel.

For my daughters, yeah.
Yeah. You got this.

Thanks, Mel.

Right, let's just chill out, OK?

Let's just chill out.

(INTENSE MUSIC)

Come on, Cath, just make it again.
It's got to be right.

Get some more chocolate
and get this parfait done.

I'm wanting to use
the darker chocolate

because that has that bitterness.

I don't want it to be too sweet.

(SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)

Good old Cath style,

having to pivot.

But I think, um...

I think it's a wise decision.

So I've just got to get it now
in the freezer.

Go, Cath.

Cath's now doing
a dark chocolate parfait,

so, I mean, in all honesty,
it is elimination,

and today's the day to make it

so you don't have doubts
with your dish.

Oh, man, I'm shaking.

Watching it's bloody anxious,
you know?

It's Cath and Brent.

THEO: Keep pushing, guys.
Come on!

Let's go!

And, like, I'm thinking,

"I'm really worried 'cause one of
my mates is going home."

Cath's been worrying me
from the beginning, you know,

and it's been good to have a mate,
like an older mate,

I guess, through the whole thing.

You can do this.
Oh, she's alright.

She's just having good memories.

I think a lot of Cath's inspo
is her family,

and I think, you know,
Cath really enjoys it.

I'm just worried with Cath,
with time.

Ugh!

BRENT: For my chicken adobo skewer,

I'm making a zesty charred salsa.

There's Vietnamese mint, mint,
coriander, charred corn

and charred cucumber.

Just put it on the hibachi,

char...char it a little bit.

It's gonna go in the salsa.

There's a big salsa on the bottom,

and then fresh herbs

and some chilli.

I'm still feeling frazzled
after round 1.

But cooking on the hibachi...

..I can smell that smoke,

and it reminds me of being with
my wife, Shon,

and my little man, Alfie.

I just want to show him, you're
gonna fall, you're gonna stumble.

It's life. It throws curve balls.

But, you know, it's just about
getting back up...

..doing the hard work, doing the
things you need to do for yourself,

and then just dusting those knees off
and getting back into it.

I still want to be here,
I want to make it to finals,

so I'm just gonna draw on
the emotions,

get the family in my head.

That's my happy place,

and, you know, this is the food
I love to cook.

I'm thinking,
"There's only three elements.

"It's the chicken, the salsa
and a sauce."

It's a quite simple dish.

I'm worried, maybe, the simplicity.

You know, obviously, at home,

it's just sort of all in one pot,
easy, you know, over rice.

Today, you know, I've got to
bring it up a level,

sort of think of something else
I could do

and really elevate this dish.

Um... Alright.

Bang, light bulb on.

I know what I've got to do.

I run out to the garden
to grab some betel leaf.

I really love, you know,

once it sort of touches the heat
of the hibachi,

it goes quite peppery.

RHIANNON: Come on, Brentles.

And that pepper in that salsa,

that sort of taste, you know,

would really marry up with the sauce.

Oh, scheissen!

I've got lots and lots happening,

and you can see that my bench
is becoming a bit of a mess.

Oh, Catherine!

OK, come on.

Come on.

Come on. Come on!

I'm making my second parfait,

and my stress is escalating.

(WHISPERS) One cruisy chick.

I know I have a lot to do.

I need to motor.

That looks good, Cath.
Yeah.

Get it in the freezer.

Yeah.
Nice, Cath, nice.

It's gonna get into
the blast chiller now.

(SOFTLY) Come on. Come on, Cath.

(WHISPERS) Get it in, get it in.
Whew! Get it in.

Fingers crossed that this second
parfait sets in time.

(WHISPERS) OK, well done, well done.

Well done.

Biscuits are in the oven,
just have to do the anglaise

to make my dippin' dots.

Go, Brenty.

BRENT: Alright, that's good.

I'm stoked with the sauce
in the pressure cooker.

I've got to get it out now.

I'm gonna reduce the sauce
in two pans.

One's gonna be my glaze
and one's gonna be my adobo sauce.

Yeah, well, this is the glaze,

so I want this one probably
a little bit sweeter.

The glaze will be there to, you know,

brush over that chicken
as I'm cooking over the hibachi.

It'll be all about balancing it now.

So now I'll just put it
on a low simmer,

and start cutting up my chicken,
that I'm gonna put on the skewer.

Oh, yeah, I know my way around
a bloody bit of meat on a skewer.

DECLAN: You would have had a couple
of chicken kebabs in your time,

wouldn't you, Brent?

Yeah, mate, you know it.

Couple of late nights out, finished
off with a couple of chicken kebabs.

THEO: Woke up the next morning,
indigestion.

BRENT: Heh. Yeah.

I know exactly,

when I wake up in the morning,
I know what I done that night.

Elimination day's always a sad day,

and I've been in my fair share
of eliminations

to know the pressure you have
down on the floor.

Just being up here today

we've got a good camaraderie,
the five of us,

and that's two of our mates
down there on the floor today.

Good thinking, Brent.

Brent's just sticking with
what he loves

and what he's good at,
and that's working on that hibachi,

coming in with a dish
that screams 'Brent'.

75 minutes, you'd want to make sure
you balance your flavours.

He does have that adobo
sauce component.

He really wants to hit the nail
on the head with that.

The cook on the chicken as well
is crucial.

20 minutes to go, the glaze is
reduced to the right consistency,

it's time to get the chicken on
and start basting that baby.

There's a real pressure point now,

so I'm a bit worried
about the cook of the chicken.

Sizes of the chicken vary.

When it gets into that middle there,

it's got all the other chicken pieces
covering it.

Focus on that one last thing

that is gonna make or break
this dish.

This is the thing
that could send you home.

If I've served up raw chicken,
I'm going home.

If I've served up chicken
that hasn't caramelised

and got that depth on it,
I'm probably going home.

So, I've only got three elements.
I need them all perfect.

No matter what happens,

bring us a dish
that you're proud of.

You've got 15 minutes to go.

RHIANNON: Come on, guys! Come on!

Let's go!

BRENT: The last 15 minutes is purely

all eyes on this chicken.

This is my special little baby.

I'm not leaving its side,
I don't want it to burn,

but I want that caramelised, you
know, those little burnt little bits

that just hung down,
they've collected flavour,

which is constantly
sort of turning it.

Keep an eye on your chicken, mate.

THEO:
Yeah, keep basting that, Brenty.

Yeah, the chicken's gonna tell me
when it's ready.

It's all on that chicken right now.

Come on, Brent, you got this.
Stay in it.

Five minutes to go!

Come on, guys!
Come on, guys!

(OTHERS YELL ENCOURAGEMENT)

Whoo!

(TIMER BEEPS)

My timer's gone off
for my shortbread.

Yep, done.

They're done, they're cooked.

I go to the blast chiller,

I check on my parfaits...

Come on, guys!

It's set, so I go,
"Yes! It's done! It's set!"

Looking good, Cath.
They look good, Cath.

So I take it out
and put it in the freezer

ready to plate it up.

Nice, Cath.
Right, that's done, that's done.

What are you still doing?
I'm gonna do the dippin' dots now.

I've got to get the, um...

..uh, liquid nitrogen.

Time has been one of
the biggest challenges

that I've had in the competition,

and here I am, this cook,
it's down to the final minutes.

And I'm feeling
that same dreaded feeling

of running out of time.

You alright?
Yep.

Calm, Cath, Calm.
Yeah, OK.

Have you got a timer
on your shortbread?

(EXHALES) Yes.

This is the bit now where,
if the wheels come off,

you're in trouble, right, so just try
and keep it together, alright?

THEO: Come on, Cath.

I've made my anglaise.

All I need to do now
is use this liquid nitrogen

to make these beautiful
dippin' dots.

Oh, she's doing it.
Doing the dippin' dots.

I put the anglaise
into a squeeze bottle

so it makes it easier to drop into
the liquid nitrogen.

Come on, guys!

I'm powering through.

I just want to show my girls
I am not gonna give up.

That's done, sweetie.

(DRAMATIC MUSIC)

Finals Week or final dish,

and you've only got
three minutes to go.

Come on!
Come on, guys!

Let's go!
Three minutes, come on!

Let's go!

BRENT: The chicken's almost done.

Salsa's done,
sauce is just about there,

I'm looking at the dish
and, you know,

I'm thinking that, you know,

this is Finals Week food.

There's one more secret weapon
that's up my sleeve.

Guajillo chilli salt.

So the salt is just
the guajillo seeds, roasted,

and they sort of start
to get a little bit sweet,

a little bit fruity,
blitzed up with salt.

It gives this, like, you know,

the little chilli spice,

but sort of fruity chilli spice.

And, yeah, just sprinkling that
on the meat

is, you know, all it takes sometimes
to be that 1% better.

It's seasoned,
it's ready to rock'n'roll.

I'm just gonna quickly get this up.

(DRAMATIC MUSIC)
(WHISPERS) OK, well done.

I have to plate up my dish.

God help me.

But then I realise

I actually made a huge mistake.

Oh, my God.

I've actually got my parfait
in the fridge, not the freezer.

Oh, my God.

(SIGHS)

It's just starting to melt.

The pressure,
it's really gotten to me.

I am really cross with myself.

This is now, it's dire.

(SIGHS)

on 10 play.

(BIRD CHIRPS)

Um...

Final touches.
One minute to go. Come on.

One minute! Come on!

It's just dawning on me now that
the parfait was left in the fridge,

not the freezer.

Everything should have been
in the freezer.

My dippin' dots are on the plate
and, already, they have just melted.

They've just gone. They are
no longer dippin' dots on my plate.

Come on, Cath. You can do this.

(DRAMATIC MUSIC)

BRENT: Plating up, the adobo sauce
is in the jug, ready to go.

It's punchy, it's spicy
and it's very tangy.

The salsa's zesty, it's acidic,

but I'm a bit worried about
the cook of the chicken.

There you go.

If the chicken's undercooked,
I'd be just devastated.

It would be really sad if this was
my last cook in the kitchen.

You know,
I put so much hard work into it.

Come on, guys.

JUDGES AND CONTESTANTS:
10, 9, 8, 7, 6,

5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

JOCK: That's it!

ANDY: Well done, Cath.
Well done, Brent.

Oh!

Um, you know,
I'm not too sure how Cath went.

(CATH WEEPS SOFTLY)

You right, Cath?

Did you put everything into it?
Yeah.

Well done. You should be so proud.
I am, mate.

Alright?
Yeah.

Well done.
Thanks, buddy.

Thanks.

Look, it was a whirlwind,
but you know what?

That was awesome.

Well done.

It was a great cook. It was just...

Honestly, that was... (SNIFFLES)

..full of Cath, full of love
for my daughters today,

so, um, that's it, you know?

So, that's love on a plate.

(SIGHS) Here we go.
Good luck.

I'm pretty stoked with this dish.

Channelled the family

and the love of the food
I love to cook

and my biggest worry
is the cook of the chicken,

but hopefully it's cooked perfect.

JOCK: Alright, Brent.
G'day.

Take a seat, mate.

What did you make us, mate?

So, you've got chicken adobo,
Brent-style.

Park round 1, which you have...
Yep.

..and now you're here, are you happy
with the plate of food?

Yeah, I'm happy with
the plate of food.

The brief was bring, you know,
something that you love to cook

and you're staring at it.

How is it, because, you know,

I think that you are known
for your big flavours,

but you've really kind of developed
that into a style of late.

I think that the fascination
for the hibachi

has come from
travelling around Australia.

Mm.

Two or three times a week, you know,
the fire's going

and I was just cooking over the fire
'cause it's just...

It's there and you've got
a few hours to kill.

It's just me.
It's just simple and I just...

I like it looking simple,

but just, like, the flavours
just outdo the simplicity.

Crazy that your competition's come
down to some chicken on a skewer.

Yeah.

Let's hope this
doesn't send you home.

So, I reckon sauce it up.

Yep.
We'll get stuck in.

Yeah. Give it a nice squeeze of lime.

Yes, sir.
Enjoy.

Thanks, mate.
Thanks, mate.

If I may say,
this looks pretty stunning.

Sure does, and it smells amazing.
Yeah.

I think maybe round 1
needed to happen, you know,

like, for him to go,
"That ain't me."

Yeah.

And for him to just go,
"The food that I cook

"that I love to cook
is good enough," you know?

"It is great."

Well, well, well.

He's not in the room
in front of us, but...

Very, very, very,
very, very good dish.

(UPLIFTING MUSIC)

Like, my mouth is still salivating.
(LAUGHS)

As far as the cooking goes,
brilliant cooking on the chicken.

It was perfectly cooked.

Just the right amounts of
crusty, lacquered garnish in there,

the smoke off the hibachi.

And he stood there. Did you see him?
Did you see him cooking it?

Didn't leave its side.

Every one minute, 90 seconds,
he was basting, turning,

baste, turn, baste, turn,

and that has resulted in

an absolutely perfect
little skewered chicken.

Well, I have to say that was

lip-smackingly, smile-inducingly
joyful 3D food.

You know, it really just
leapt off the plate

in terms of the flavours
going on here.

There's layers of that beautiful
toothsome, smoky, juicy chicken,

then all of the zingy, vibrant
elements of the salad.

And the sauce - the sauce
just brings everything together.

It's a salad that's come from a guy
who's at the top of his game

because the charring of
the cucumbers and the corn

and the fresh herbs and the spice

and then the dressing
is just so well balanced

and zingy and fiery.

And he knows the food now

that he should be cooking
in this competition.

And, yes, it's simple,
but it's just done differently.

It's done his way
and that's why it's so good.

Good luck, Cath.

(DRAMATIC MUSIC)

This dish is not, uh,
what I envisaged that it would be,

but I've got something on the plate
and I love the flavours.

Hi, Cath.
Hey, Cath.

Hey. How are you going?

Is there a tiny little bit of hope

that my ugly, delicious flavours
work?

Alright.
Have you remembered to breathe?

Yeah.
Good.

You know, coming in today,

I just wanted to celebrate
where I've come from,

so I've done that
and I was really happy with my cook,

but I'm quite disappointed
how it's now presented.

Sure.

So, I just have to just breathe
and accept that.

I really wanted this to be,
you know,

a beautiful biscuit with a dome

surrounded by the dippin' dots
with some flowers.

So, I had a vision.

It's really not
looking like that, but...

(MELISSA AND CATH LAUGH)

And, look, I did change my parfait
to a darker chocolate...

Yeah.

..so I am happy
I've done that, yeah.

Well, I think it's time for you

to finish dressing your plate
to your taste.

Right. So, how do we do this now?

ANDY: Yeah!

Just there! Let's go.
Yeah. Amazing.

Oh, there you go.

Thanks, Cath.
JOCK: Thanks, Cath.

Thank you. Thanks so much.

OK.

It's fair to say that this is not
what Cath had envisaged serving us.

It can't be.
No.

I think she put it in the fridge.
She only put it in the fridge?

She put it in the fridge,
not the freezer.

Yeah, so, I think it was that.
Yeah.

The flavour profile of that sort of
raspberry Davidson plum chocolate

and then the anglaise
from the dippin' dots,

it's a classic flavour profile,
it's familiar, it's comforting.

There's absolutely nothing wrong
with that particular part of it,

but you look at the execution
of what's happened

and your heart
kind of has to break for her.

The flavour's not bad.

Like, it's kind of, like,
chocolate mousse-y-flavoured.

The Davidson plum sauce
is more raspberry, kind of,

than Davidson plum.

It's nice enough in itself.
It's very sharp.

I'm gutted for Cath 'cause I know
she was trying so hard today

and she was so positive.

I think the biggest thing
that Cath might regret

is not cooking something
that she's so familiar with

as a whole dish.

And it does...

I'm upset for Cath because
you never want to see someone

who's been such a great character,

who's cooked so many good dishes
in this competition,

who's on the doorstep of Finals Week
go out like this.

So, um, it's unfortunate.

Brent, Cath,
take a big old deep breath.

You each came here
with a dream to be realised...

..and we know that neither of you
are ready to let it go just yet.

But this is still a competition

and a decision had to be made.

Brent, your dish was simple.

It only had three elements.

But...

..it was smoky, succulent chicken.

It had a supercharged salad

and a sauce that
brought it all together.

Honestly, mate,
we couldn't fault it.

Cath,

your dish wasn't everything
that you wanted it to be today...

No, no.

..and we're sorry to tell you

that there were some serious flaws
in it as well.

Yeah, yeah.

In addition to that,
you came up against a guy

who is at
the top of his game right now.

Absolutely. Yep.

So, in the end,
the decision for us was clear.

Easy.
I'm sorry, Cath. You're going home.

Yep.

Give her a round.
You can clap now.

(LAUGHS)
ANDY: You're not going anywhere yet!

Oh, mate.

(SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)

Cath...
Oh, man.

..honestly, you are the reason
why this very competition exists.

Yep, yep.

This is a place for people like you,
and like me...

Mm!

..to take what we thought
were only dreams...

Yep.
..and try and make 'em a reality.

You pour your heart into every dish
and we can taste that.

We loved some of your dishes.

Those lemon curd mascarpone
choux buns. Remember those?

Yeah, I do.
That squid ceviche you made?

They will live on with us.

Yeah.

You embody the very spirit
of this kitchen

and that's why we love MasterChef,

that's why we love you.

Thank you.

I hope you know
just because you're leaving today

doesn't mean
your food journey's over.

Oh.

You will always be a member of this
beautiful MasterChef family, Cath.

Yeah.

How would you describe your time
in the kitchen?

Oh, look, um...

(TEARFULLY)
Oh, it's just been an absolute joy.

Thank you so much.
I'm just so proud of myself.

Top 5 in MasterChef -
not many people can say that.

I'm a legend.
You're a legend!

(ALL LAUGH)

Rhiannon, you've been pretty close
to Cath over your time.

What have you got to say about her?

We're like the original roomies.

We've been roomies the whole way...
Yeah.

..and we've had a bloody blast.

Like, it has been so good.

Cath, I think you can tell
from everyone here

we've loved having you
in the kitchen,

but it's time to say goodbye.

Come and give us a hug.
Aww, thank you.

You should be so proud
of what you've done.

Thanks for being so... Thank you.
Oh, no worries. Well done.

I am so proud of where I've come
in the competition.

Oh, you're a legend.
Thank you so much.

Thanks for cooking for us.

Top 5. Goodness me!

It has been joyful...

'Bye, darlin' girl.

Yeah.

Love you heaps.
Yeah, forever.

Yeah.
OK.

I am so proud of myself
for taking that leap

and doing this.

Thank you, guys. Thank you so much.

Yay! Whoo! Whoo!

Give it up for Cath, everybody!
(ALL CHEER)

I'm an advocate for women over 50.

Julie Goodwin inspired me, really,

and, honestly,

it's gonna be exciting
if I've inspired someone else.

NARRATOR: This week
on MasterChef Australia...

THEO: I'm so close to the end now.

DECLAN: I want this
more than anything

..just four remain.

BRENT: It's been a long journey
and now I'm here.

I'm hungry for it.

And...

RHIANNON: Oh, my God!
Hello, guys. How are you?

Peter Gilmore! (LAUGHS)

To make it
through this week...

You're not getting
the recipe,

so you've got to
remember it.

..they'll
have to impress

the best of the best.

You will need
to keep up with

Curtis Stone!

JOCK: Let's go!

Who will make it
to the grand finale?

Captions by Red Bee Media