Original subtitles

Syd-ney.

Wow! What have we got?

Opera House. Bit exciting, isn't it?

I know! I know, isn't it stunning?

How good's the Harbour Bridge in all its glory?

Yeah, seriously!

What a spot. It's pretty epic.

Not bad, is it? Welcome to Sydney, baby.

We're here in glorious Sydney today, and I'm so excited.

This is home.

This is where I've been for the last 27 years.

Energy is palpable. We're so lucky.

(THEY GREET THE JUDGES)

I'll just be here for the rest of the season.

Good morning, everyone.

(CHEERING)

(EXCITEDLY) Welcome to Sydney.

Check out this view. Yeah. Pretty amazing.

The Opera House, the Harbour Bridge.

And just over there, one of Sydney's local watering holes,

Squire's Landing.

(ALL TALK AT ONCE)

Today, that's where your service challenge is taking place, right?

Alrighty. Let's get you into teams.

Alright. How many colours will there be?

18? Can I look?

No, you're never allowed to look! A green again!

Orange! No peeking. No peeking.

Orange!

You go last. Orange!

Three! Three orange.

DECLAN: Three teams today. Orange, green and blue.

I'm feeling pretty good and pretty confident about my team.

Oh, Depinder, are you feeling the testosterone?

(LAUGHTER)

Just a little bit. How are you, mate?

No, they're cool. I'm really happy with my team.

Now, this restaurant,

it's not just known for its incredible views,

but also tasty bites, classic pub grub.

And, today, you'll be in charge of the kitchen.

Oh, my God. Yum.

That is right.

You're gonna be serving up a good, honest pub feed.

Yes. Nice. Cool. Yes.

Each team, they'll pick one starter

and one main from a menu of pub classics.

But we don't just want cookie-cutter classics, right?

We want everything we love about pub food -

revamped, restyled and revolutionised.

Now, we've got a cheeky surprise for you.

Of course you do.

There's a bit of a catch. Always.

Only half of your team will be in the kitchen at one time.

Oh, no. OK.

Three cooks to start.

And then, at the halfway mark, one of you will need to hand over to your other team-mates,

and they'll be left to finish the cook

and serve your dishes to the diner.

JEANÐCHRISTOPHE: Oh, yes.

They'll need to serve to 75 diners.

Oh, wow. Oh, OK.

Today, you'll be serving some very special guests.

Surf lifesavers. Ooh!

So, to pull together your pub menu,

you've got 3 hours and 15 minutes.

Your starters, they'll need to hit the pass after 2.5 hours.

And your mains - 45 minutes after that.

The team to cook the best menu overall

will win immunity from Sunday's elimination.

Oh, my God. We need to get this.

We've got to do it, guys.

SOFIA: Today is a good day to take risks

because there's no better pay-off than immunity.

Those of you kicking off the cook,

your time starts as soon as you hit the kitchen.

Are you ready? CONTESTANTS: Yeah.

On your marks, get set, go!

JEANÐCHRISTOPHE: Good luck!

Go, team! Whoo-hoo!

Get in there!

I'm in orange today. We've got Beau and Declan.

Couldn't be happier with this team. Let's do this thing.

What have we got there? We are taking over the pub.

There's not a team captain as such with the challenge today,

but I've sort of been put in a leadership-type role.

Wings, salt and pepper squid. Nachos, chicken parmi,

roast of the day. Fish and chips. Fish and chips. OK.

On the menu, we've got three starters and three mains.

These are pub classics that we can choose to recreate.

Let's go. Well, I reckon squid for a starter.

Yeah. Agreed. Yeah, main? Let's go...

Mate, fish and chips for sure. We've got the wings.

That sounds bloody excellent, gents. What are they? Kingfish? Yeah?

Kingfish wings, juicy.

Obviously, it can't be normal chips, right?

Potatoes are a bit boring.

What if we do, like a, um, like, zucchini fries?

You know, when you cut into... We'll do a little beer batter. So, battered? Beer batter?

Using the finest beer from the brewery here?

Yeah. We are at James Squire.

We need, like, a cohesive kind of flavour profile to go with it, right?

Yeah. Um, so it's not just classic pub.

I'm thinking, like, Asian or Mediterranean.

Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Mediterranean style.

My strategy today is to have

a cohesion between the starter and the main.

So we're kind of going to go down the Mediterranean kind of path

with our recreation of the classic fish and chips

and our salt and pepper squid.

Can you calamari, Chef? Yeah, definitely.

I wanted to go seafood because we've got Declan here.

He's going to prep like a machine.

So, are we using the tentacles or we just want the hoods?

Maybe just the hoods.

Nah, use the tentacles. Use the tenties?

Andy will hate us if we don't use the tentacles, man.

No, no, no food waste, please. Alright.

Hello. Hello, hello.

So on my team today is Samira, Sarah and me are going first.

This is a disaster.

Can't believe they picked up everything.

Who are these people?

So we wanted to do wings. We wanted to do calamari.

There's none left.

It's not going well so far.

You could do eggplant parmigiana. Chicken parma.

We can do Middle Eastern nachos.

I can make flatbread, deep-fry and cut them into triangles.

We really don't have a team leader today.

And we are having a little bit of trouble here

deciding on our menu.

Um, why don't we do, like, the crispy skin with the mushrooms

and all of that, like, do a Middle Eastern parmigiano?

I think we're struggling here because they took everything.

Hello. Harissa nachos.

No, no, no, we can't mix too much.

No, no. Too much, too much.

All three of us are very kind of strong-minded.

I think stick to the fish and chips.

With the fish.

I'm just worried for main, it's not going to be enough.

So, today, we picked up snapper wings.

They're not as big and juicy as the kingfish wings,

but the orange team has it.

I reckon we can do that for main.

I think we can. We don't have enough.

I feel like wings are just made for entree.

We are really not agreeing with each other.

We need to decide.

If we don't decide on this dish soon,

we will really be behind.

We are in a pickle.

Jean-Christophe, first time in Sydney!

Oh, what a pleasure.

I have been waiting for a very, very, very long time.

And you know what? It's really worth it.

Spectacular. It's pretty impressive.

It's turning it on for you.

I know! Blue sky! Look at the weather. Yeah, the weather is great.

And we've given 'em a menu of classics,

pub classics to choose from,

and take inspiration from that and elevate it.

For starters, we've got wings, nachos and salt and pepper squid,

all smashing... Nice!

Oh, yeah.

And then for the mains, chicken parma, chicken parmi,

whatever you want, fish and chips and roast of the day.

So there's no excuses here. Oh! Amazing!

Those classics can be interpreted in so many ways,

but I still want to feel that urge

to have a pot of beer with anything that I'm eating today.

Absolutely. It's interesting with pub grub,

I think, like, there is a limit to how much you can change it,

'cause then people aren't satisfied.

When you go to a pub, you kind of know what you're craving for.

You need to recognise it. We need to recognise it.

Yeah. So it's going to be...

It's going to be interesting to see the line that they bridge.

Yeah. It has to be informal, more relaxed.

Yes, yes. No shishi?

No shishi, yeah! (LAUGHTER)

Alright. I'm gonna start portioning these up, man.

Oui.

Myself, Rhi and Darrsh on the blue team.

I put my hand up to run the start of service

and make sure I get everything handed over to our second team.

We had an idea about brining some spatchcock,

and so what we're going to do is halve the spatchcock,

brine it and then dredge it

and treat it exactly like you would wings

and serve that with a little capsicum sauce.

And then for the main course, we chose fish and chips.

So we're doing a pan-seared barramundi

with essentially like a tartare beurre blanc.

Darrsh is doing the fish at the moment,

getting all these trimmed out.

I'm just trimming up these spatchcock

and got Rhiannon over here,

who's concentrating on getting

all of the accoutrements for the entree done.

We want to get as much prep done for the second team to come in.

So they walk in, make sure those pieces of protein are cooked really well.

Time flies, teams!

Service starts in two hours.

Come on, let's go.

But we are not big on parma, are we?

I kind of like the idea of a Middle Eastern nacho.

Is this, like, for roast?

Should we make a roast?

I'm really worried now

'cause I can see the other teams

already started chopping something.

So, I'm just like, "How do you even chop something? We're still deciding what to cook!"

The idea, I think the fish wings. There's three.

We can do three. For what?

The main. I love the fish main that we picked. I love it.

I love the fish main. I think it's so interesting.

We really need to lock this menu in as soon as possible.

The girls still want to go ahead with the snapper fish wings

for our main.

I agree on it. We locked it in.

Otherwise, we'll have no meal at all.

OK, let's do fish and chips. Yes.

And they're just beautiful. And then we do nachos.

We do Middle Eastern nachos. OK, done.

So we finally decided on our menu.

For our entree, we will have

Mediterranean, Middle Eastern-inspired nachos.

And we're going to have fish wings for our main.

Whoo! Guys, now that we have clear picture,

let's just punch and do as much...

Sarah, fish and chips for me? Yes.

You guys are here using, are they snapper wings?

Yes, we are. Yeah. We're basically making,

like, a crispy double-fried wings. Yeah.

And then fried chips on top.

Um, so really crispy with, uh, sumac.

I'm just gonna say, I think this is

a massive risk to serve snapper wings.

I get the dish, but snapper wings are small.

That's what I think.

It just doesn't seem like it's going to hold up to the other dishes.

Whoo! Jesus.

Ah, well, I'm confused.

It's really tough not knowing

what's going on in that crazy kitchen at the moment,

what sort of food they're working on in there

and what we're walking into.

But we've got Samira, Snez and Sarah.

I call them the Flavour Queens.

I cannot wait to see what they've come up with.

SNEZ: Behind, behind. Sorry, guys.

Green Team, you look like you're a bit stressed.

Are you alright?

I want to cry. But I'm not. 'Cause we can do this.

OK, guys, we have a problem. Yeah.

SAMIRA: Andy comes over and puts a lovely spanner in the works

by telling us that the fish wings does not feel like a main.

Back to the drawing board we go.

What are we going to do with the fish?

We'll just keep the same, with the sauce.

Keep that as starters.

Yes. With the harissa and with the chips on top.

OK. So the nachos are gone now. Yeah.

We are now doing the fish as the entree

and we will be changing the mains.

Do you want me to halve quails? And we serve quail halves?

I can carve them really quick.

Season them up and cook them. With eggplant, though?

Yeah.

Reality, now... We don't want to...

..the main thing is, like, to have a dish.

Let's just grab the pans. I'll pan-sear 'em.

All they have to do is finish it off in the oven.

Yeah. It's not going to take more than 20 minutes.

Can you go get them? Can you go get them?

OK. Right now, we need to have something up.

So I told them, "Grab me all the quails.

"I will break them down."

Give me the quails. Bring me all the quails!

Oh, how many do we need? "Bring all the quails."

Excuse me, excuse me. OK, this is madhouse.

OK. That's one.

We will use the eggplants to make like a mutabal,

which is an eggplant mixed with herbs

and lemon and olive oil as the base.

So, finally, we have made a decision,

and I'm feeling really great.

Oh, my God, thank God.

Right now, we need to crack on with prep work.

ANDY: Samira! Samira!

OK. What did we end up on?

We are going to do the fish as starter instead

because it is a smaller portion.

And then for mains, we switched to quails.

So what menu item are you channelling?

Roast. 'Cause we're going to roast it. Roast of the day. OK.

And we're going to serve it up with a nice baba ghanoush now.

Good luck. Thank you very much.

Don't underestimate the changeover.

Thank you. Thank you. Good luck.

Guys, you should have your menus locked in by now.

You have one hour before changeover.

Come on! Let's go!

How are you? Good. Getting a bit sweaty.

This is my game, Declan's my name.

Yeah. Staying true to that?

Yeah. I like it.

I love service challenges.

I think they're my favourite kind of challenge.

I love working with other people,

trying to create something that you could never do by yourself.

Callum, nuts are done! Lovely.

There's a whole bunch more macadamias on the bench there, Beau.

Can you get 'em in, mate?

We're doing salt and pepper squid

as our kind of take on a classic pub dish.

Mediterranean kind of flavours with za'atar salt and pepper.

And instead of that kind of traditional mayo,

we're gonna do a beautiful romesco sauce,

roasted capsicums and peppers, make it nice and creamy.

Should be a cracker. They're looking good, Beau-y.

Nice and full of flavour. Oh, yeah.

They're looking good.

Beau is like a prep machine.

He's got zucchinis and capsicums and eggplants on

and using Declan's strength today, he's trained in cleaning that seafood.

He's folding that calamari like Superman on washing day.

He's killing it. It's cold. It's freezing.

I think with a challenge like this,

it's important not to overcomplicate it.

Because if there's anything lost in translation

with that handover period, we've seen it in the team relays

and things in this competition before,

you can go cactus pretty quickly.

So I think simple, good flavours executed perfectly. Let's go.

Need a bigger container.

Jamie, let's go.

What have you got? Hey, mate.

We've got some beautiful fish in there.

Let's utilise that and do the fish and chips.

As your main? As the main course.

And then for starters, we're doing a twist on chicken wings.

So we're using some spatchcock.

Got those brining in some of the James Squire's beer as well,

just to infuse those flavours. Yeah.

And once those come out,

they'll go into a dry dredge and then fry.

And then that's going to be served with

a whole lot of beautiful stuff

that Rhiannon's making.

Fried chicken. It sounds easy. It can go so wrong. Yeah.

It can be really greasy. Absolutely.

I think we'll be able to pull it together.

But it's all about making sure

that brine penetrates that spatchcock.

Get that flavour in and get the right fry.

So that's where we're at. Got it. Let's go.

Thanks, Jamie. Backs, backs, backs.

Thank you, guys.

I think there's a misnomer that fried chicken is easy.

It's not.

Getting a good fried chicken is a big difference

between just chucking something in a fryer.

We're concentrating on building the flavour.

It's my job to make sure that I translate all that

we've done to Laura and the team when they come in,

so that they can get the right cook on the chicken.

SNEZ: OK, fish goes in.

You want to put more salt in?

I'll add salt in the dry spice as well.

OK. Yeah. Yeah.

Now we change the snapper fish wings for our entree.

We wasted so much time on deciding what to do here,

and we really needed to get it done quickly.

So I quickly cleaned them, put them in my buttermilk marinade

because I need to move on to that main.

We need one more thing to elevate the quail dish,

to let it relate more to being roasted.

Beautiful. How about jus? Quail jus? Yeah.

I think a jus is a good idea.

Give me the bones.

Where are the bones? Yeah.

We need to make sure our roasted quail is reflecting

on a roast of the day.

So we decided to add this beautiful jus to tie it all together.

And Sarah, straightaway, getting onto it.

I can get it started.

Finally, have a clear vision and clear idea of what we're doing.

And we're just punching through. We're chopping everything.

Getting the prep ready.

We just got into a groove, making progress.

Three of us, mum modes on, chop, chop, cut, cut.

Let's get it done.

I will not allow anyone's baba ghanoush be better than mine.

Snez, we've got to do this right.

OK. This is your baba ghanoush.

And this is your lead of the kitchen.

(ALARM SOUNDS) Oh.

Are you joking? No!

(ALARM GETS LOUDER)

Hey, that's a fire alarm.

We've got to get out until it's safe. Come on.

RECORDING: Evacuate now! (ALARM SOUNDS)

RECORDING: Emergency! (ALARM SOUNDS)

Oh, my God, the fire alarm has just gone off.

We just had to evacuate. RECORDING: Evacuate now!

Hopefully, we're not burning anything back there

and we can get back in, crack on and get the dish out!

Alright, guys, it's time to get your mojo back.

It is safe to go back into the kitchen.

You're nearly an hour down, so you've got to push,

because there are only 31.5 minutes until change-up.

Come on!

Sorry. Sorry.

Any spatulas...? Ooh!

We're back. Welcome back.

Definitely not as sweaty as we were, are we?

ANDY: Well, there's nothing like a false fire alarm

in the middle of prep time to get you going.

Bit of drama. They're all back in there now.

It's safe to get back in the kitchen,

but it's really put them under pressure

because it's not long till changeover now,

and it kind of halts any of the momentum that you had.

And there's a little bit to talk about, isn't there, with the menus?

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm gonna start with the green team.

They originally thought that doing deep-fried snapper wings

as a main was a good idea for fish and chips.

So they've pivoted.

They're going to go their beautiful snapper wings

that they've dredged in buttermilk,

and they're going to fry for an entree. Behind, behind.

So they're hitting the wings for starters.

And then, for their main, they've gone roast of the day.

They're going to do a butterfly piece of quail

and roast that in the oven.

And then that's going to be served with a baba ghanoush.

Let's go, girls. We've got this. SAMIRA: Yes, we got this.

OK. So blue team, they're doing a spin on wings.

They're going to do the spatchcock.

They've brined it and they're going to dredge it.

And they're going to deep-fry that.

Deep-fried, you said?

They are brining it.

So we're hoping that flavour is going to go in

and tenderise it a little bit as well.

And then for their main,

they're going to do a pan-seared barra

with a James Squire cider-reduced beurre blanc sauce.

Yeah. And they'll have some sort of potato element

to represent the chips as well.

Yeah. I'm a little bit concerned. the second team

will be just coming to cook.

Yeah. It's a lot to do.

Yeah, there is a lot to do.

It's fraught with a bit of danger. Behind.

And then orange team, for their entree

they're going to riff on salt and pepper squid.

Declan, like, bolted for the squid

and was like, "No one else is using this today."

They're doing a salt and pepper za'atar seasoning

that they're going to run.

And then also a romesco sauce.

So, like, kind of a play on Mediterranean.

Sounds really delicious. POH: Yeah, yeah, it does.

Declan's cleaning these squid just absolutely beautifully.

So I'm actually looking forward to seeing

how that one comes together.

Yeah, same. And then for their main,

they've got these beautiful kingfish wings.

So they're going to do a play on fish and chips

and then some zucchini fries.

So that'll be kind of "the chip element."

SOFIA: Sounds a lot like a Callum menu.

So the question is,

can the next three do it without Callum?

Yeah, that's true. Hm.

CALLUM: Doing well, gents. Doing really well.

ANDRE: I have no idea what we're about to step into.

Yeah, the anticipation is pretty crazy.

We don't know, really,

if we're going into, like, war or calm and peaceful.

So fingers crossed they're all set up for us to go.

Mate, I think that's good.

It should be quite refreshing underneath

with the deep-fried stuff. Yeah.

The last couple of minutes. Alright, guys, let's go. Come on.

One of the most important parts of this challenge today

is that handover.

Yeah, I'm gonna do the handover today.

That communication is really important.

So whilst I'm going to use my words, I'm also trying to write

a little prep list for them,

just so that they can always refer back to it.

I do not want there to be anything lost in translation.

It's got to be clear. It's got to be concise.

It's got to be accurate.

SAMIRA: I have never done quails so fast in my life.

I'll be doing the handover.

I'm feeling great now.

We're a bit under pressure,

but we've managed to pull everything together.

We pretty much have not left a lot of jobs on the other team,

so they're pretty much going to have to fry the fish for us,

roast the quails for us and just assemble and plate up.

Every other element has been done.

Even seasoning has been done for them.

We're pretty much through all the jobs that we set out to do.

Handover is coming

and I need to make sure everything's labelled.

Kitchens are about organisation and efficiency.

After I label everything, I write up a list of what we've done

and most importantly, what still needs to be done.

We've done a bulk amount of work.

Their job is to make sure it's perfectly cooked,

because cooking our starter

and main protein to order is a big task.

Alright, tools down. That is it.

Everybody out except the person in charge of changeover.

Let's go. Come on.

Alright.

Let's go. Good luck, Cal.

Hi. Hi.

How are we doing? Good.

Talk to us, Cal. Talk to us.

OK. So... Can't put it back.

The pub dishes... Listening?

The pub dishes are salt and pepper squid for entree

and fish and chips for main.

OK, so seafood, seafood. That's what we're recreating.

Yep. What we're going to do is,

for our salt and pepper squid,

we're going to do a za'atar spiced kind of salt and pepper fried squid.

Yep.

So Declan's cleaned it all within an inch of its life.

Amazing.

Callum, the culinary calculator has set us up perfectly.

Everything tagged and written down.

Clear direction in the dish.

So the wings are here.

There's 70. Wow.

Excellent mise en place.

Zucchini baba ghanoush is here. Amazing.

And all we have to do now is get this service done,

the three of us.

And it's put us in a really good position.

So it's only us to fail now 'cause they've succeeded.

Spatchcock.

So you've got 36 halves brining in the James Squire.

Yep.

And then you've got 32 portions of the barra.

Yep. Alright.

Alright. The more you're talking, the less you're cooking.

You've got 30 seconds left of handover.

Entree... Yes.

..harissa on the base. Yes.

The fish wing that's fried.

The chippies on top with the seasoning.

Beautiful. Charred lemon. Yeah.

Done. OK. You're amazing.

For mains, we have seasoned quails here.

OK.

It's a roasted dish, so we need to roast them.

It has to be roasted. Don't deviate and pan fry.

OK.

It's already set for you guys on 216.

OK. Bang it in, high heat.

Give it a half hour. Take it out. Check if it's cooked.

Five seconds.

So it'll be the eggplant. Yep.

It'll be the two pieces of that quail.

And we also started the process of a jus.

Three, two, one. Let's go. Everyone out.

Thanks. Good job.

See ya. See ya. OK. Keep going.

You guys have done an amazing job. Have I confused you guys?

No, no. No.

You guys are amazing.

Samira's handover is amazing.

I am astonished with the amount of work

that the first three have gotten done.

All we have to do is just bring everything together

and we're going to have some amazing dishes.

Fish wings still need to be battered and fried.

We need to fry the chips

and the quail still needs to be roasted for the main course.

I'm going to get the quail in now.

Samira told us to cook the quail for 30 or 40 minutes at 217 degrees.

Done. We're in.

You need to hustle, team.

The starters need to be heading to tables in just 20 minutes.

Better.

LAURA: OK, cool.

After the handover, I am actually a little bit worried.

Both of our courses with the entree and the main

have both got proteins that we need to cook a la minute

so there's a lot to do last minute.

Making sure the chicken is cooked through.

Super crispy. The fish has got crispy skin.

Also cooked perfectly.

Having two dishes that rely on a lot of work

at the end of service, that's hard.

How are you, everyone? Chef, well. How are you?

How are you? Yeah. Very well, thank you.

Good, Chef. How are you? So...

..I understand,

looking at your menu... Yes.

..or the previous theme menu,

obviously.

Guys, not trying to panic anyone, but it's a lot to do.

Yes. There's so much to do.

Cooking chicken to order, cooking the fish to order,

this could be a train wreck.

Heads up, crew.

The diners, the lifesavers, are starting to arrive

and they are hungry.

15 minutes till service.

Oh, my God. Both the fish and the spatchcock

need to be cooked to order,

which is such a big task.

But we need to think methodically here.

The starters are going out soon,

so we need to crack on to that spatchcock

and we can think about the fish later.

We're good, guys. We're good.

I feel like

with any service challenge in MasterChef,

it always comes down to the last few minutes.

You're killing it, Theo.

We're on a roll.

BEN: OK. Fresh ones, guys.

Behind you, behind you, behind you. Behind.

I'm frying the fish wings.

We've got to get that out for entrees.

I've got first batch out. They're looking good.

Really nice. The guys are prepping more for me.

The adrenaline's pumping.

We're definitely feeling the pressure.

Lemons are almost done.

We need to carry these dishes through and make them taste amazing,

but also look great on the plate.

The surf lifesavers are seated. They're hungry

and you've only got three minutes till service. Let's go.

Time in this challenge is evaporating.

Ben, how long please? Benny, how long in the fryer?

BEN: Two minutes.

We need to set the pass for entrees. Yeah, yeah. OK. Yeah, yeah.

You alright, Depinder? Yep. I'm just plating down.

We're all good. Setting up for entrees.

25 plates. Yeah, just doing it right now.

Prep time is over, crew. Get your starters flying out.

Service has started. Let's go.

ANDRE: As service starts,

I'm still cooking the kingfish wings for the main.

And so Depinder has to take the lead on the pass this time.

You can pretty much run this pass, right?

Yeah, I can. OK, I'll be fine. Right.

So that is our romesco squid. Yep, start on the side.

This little bit... Four and four... Yeah.

We're done. Yeah.

The romesco hits nicely.

A bit of yoghurt on there to elevate it.

BEN: Coming past. Coming past. Tentacles coming past.

The cook on the squid's perfect.

Fennel certainly brings some brightness to it.

I sit back and look at our starter and I'm quite proud of it.

Service, please.

I would order it. I would eat it. It is delicious.

Beautiful dish. Beautiful dish. Come on. Get that out.

Great. Oh, we're on.

POH: OK. Thank you. WAITER: You're welcome.

Very cute. Wow!

OK. Yeah, now we're talking.

That's pretty cool. Good.

So we're on the orange team starter, za'atar squid with romesco sauce.

So this is obviously their take on salt and pepper squid.

OK.

What do we think?

I love the look of this. Same.

I really like that.

I think it had a great ode to the original.

The work that Declan did on that squid is phenomenal.

Yeah, it is. You know?

Cleaned perfectly.

I loved how we had the difference in textures

from the tentacles to the tubes as well.

That romesco sauce is so lovely

and sweet and nutty

and it's got that-that beautiful, coarse texture.

It's exactly how it should be.

The tenderness of the squid is absolutely spectacular,

and I like so much the addition of the crunch

of the fennel and the coriander and...

It is magical.

The perfect little starter.

I need more squid, Benny. BEN: Yeah.

More tentacles, babes.

Here we go.

SARAH: Theo has managed to get all the chicken done,

so it's time to start plating.

This capsicum sauce goes down first.

The colour is absolutely popping on the plate

and it's got this beautiful

roasted Mediterranean flavour in there.

That fried golden crispy chicken

sits proud on top of that.

Beautiful chicken, Theo.

We've got that beautiful little honey zesty dressing.

A little drizzle

so you kind of get that salty, sweet, vinegary pop.

The beautiful dried olives.

And then some parsley.

We have pushed ourselves to get this out.

It is looking so good.

Service, please.

Thank you.

Soon as these entrees are out,

it's just crack onto that fish straightaway.

There is no break. There's no reset time.

It's just go, go, go.

Hello. Whoa!

This is a starter?! SOFIA: That is huge.

Thank you.

OK, so this is Blue's starter.

Chicken wings. What do you think?

Ah, it's a beast of a portion. Yeah.

Pubs are known for their generosity.

It's very appealing. Attractive, colourful.

Yeah. Really bright.

Well, well, well, well, well.

So this is such a complete starter.

The chicken is deep-fried superbly.

It has that beautiful crunchiness of the crumb.

This pepper sauce is a delice.

It's rich,

it's powerful, it's spicy

and the roasted olives on the top of that - hallelujah.

You love it.

So if you don't like it, you've got a problem.

(ALL LAUGH)

For me, what was the surprise was that parsley salad.

The sweetness in that... Yeah.

..to support that olive was such a genius move.

I thought the brine was genius.

When we had the fire alarm break, I reckon they were just, like,

licking their lips 'cause they knew

the longer that spatchcock could sit in that brine,

the better it was going to be.

And it turns out that way.

This is 100% better than your average pub feed.

It takes pub food to a whole new level.

That was a challenge today,

and I think the blue team have...

..have surprised me in the way that they've smashed out the park.

Beautiful.

Oh, hot chicken. Hot chicken.

Hot chicken.

Alright. Service, please.

Service, please.

I'm feeling really positive about our starters.

We've got the spicy Middle Eastern harissa

at the bottom.

Looks beautiful.

The fish looks fantastic.

It's really nice and crispy.

It still contains so much juice in there.

That looks absolutely beautiful, Audra.

We've got those little crispy potatoes

and it sits right on top.

Some lemons.

I'm looking at the dish, it looks absolutely beautiful.

I know it's going to be delicious.

Alright, service.

We're going to nail this.

Wow. Hello.

Oh, crispy. Wow.

Thank you.

So we've got green team's starter here.

It's their take on wings.

Fish wing, obviously.

What do you think, guys? This is not your usual pub fare.

It looks like the perfect kind of starter

that you'd want at the pub.

Like, a little bit fried, a little bit gnarly.

Something possibly spicy and acidic underneath.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I reckon, let's dig in. Yeah, let's do it.

Let's eat.

Oh, they're cooked so well. Look at that.

Oh, I reckon this is a slide-off-the-bone situation.

Oh, wow. Yeah. Mine's just slid off.

Mm.

Mm-hm.

Uh-oh.

Who prepped the fish?

So green team's starter, fish wings with spicy harissa sauce.

Very, very tasty.

That fish, the actual flesh,

and the cook on that fish is incredibly succulent and moist.

But I'm really frustrated

because as much as I love the dish,

it was just mouthful after mouthful of scale.

So I was kind of picking all these bits out as I was going.

I, too, got so many scales.

Scales! Like, it was just like

they didn't even look at the wings

before they put them in that buttermilk marinade.

The thing I love the most is the fish is deep-fried perfectly.

Yeah, it is.

But it's not clean enough,

so I'm a little bit disappointed.

AUDRA: Service, please.

Our starters are down and now we need to nail the mains.

So I go and check on the quail. Roast of the day.

That's over already.

That's way over. Way.

That's way over.

So they're all over. Why would they say 30 minutes?

The legs are perfectly cooked.

They're still really nice and pink on the inside,

but the breasts are overcooked.

That's way over.

Way over.

TIM: OK, get them all out right now.

Yeah, I'm totally gutted.

I mean, but you can't turn back time,

and we've just got to keep going.

It's OK. It is what it is.

Let's just do the best we can.

So I'm at the pass,

and the first thing I put down

is a little quenelle of the eggplant.

And then two of the half quails go on.

I've got the jus over.

And then a little dusting of the dukkah.

I mean, the dish actually looks really beautiful,

but I am still worried about the cook of the quail.

I think there's a high possibility we may be in trouble today.

Service, please.

I see dishes.

Oh, thank you.

Alright, so this is the main course from green team -

roast quail with eggplant,

which is their take on a roast of the day.

Um, OK.

This is delicious.

However, it's overcooked. Mm.

It's pretty and it's superbly flavourful.

It's just... I've obviously got superbly disappointed

about the toughness of the breast,

which is far overcooked.

I really enjoyed the French meets Middle Eastern thing

that this dish had going on for it.

That said, when I close my eyes and think roast of the day,

it's, you know, it's hearty, it's generous,

there's maybe something starchy in there,

there's absolutely some kind of thick sauce or gravy.

And this dish doesn't have that.

They've confused roasting a protein

with roast of the day.

That's right.

BEN: OK, fresh ones, guys.

So we've done eight so far. We'll just keep going.

Right. Yep.

There's a lot going on our plate.

The zucchini, zucc, hanging out with a little dob over there.

The wings are sitting proud, like this.

Little kingfish wings.

Beautiful. That looks legit!

Salsa verde.

The zucchini chips in some beautiful beer batter.

Can you please put the salad on these, too?

Zucchini salad over there.

Everything's massive. It's a heavy plate.

It's full of food.

It looks really, really good.

It has to be generous. We can't be tight on portion sizes.

Load the plate,

pack it full of flavour and create some wow factor.

Service, please. Mains away, please.

Service, please. Company, company.

Thank you so much.

Whoa! ANDY: Ho-ho-ho!

OK.

Thank you. That is amazing!

It looks like a pub dish, though.

Two wings. Wow, wow, wow.

So the orange team main course.

We have grilled kingfish and zucchini fries.

Plus some... I'm, like, dying to get into this.

Don't burn the roof of your mouth.

Scheisse Minnelli, that is a good plate of food.

Was that a Scheisse Minnelli? Yeah, man.

There's your promo line.

This is the most original fish and chip that I ever had.

Every single thing on the plate is faultless.

I think this is a miracle.

You know what?

I will go to a pub every night for a dish like this one.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Fish wings are grilled. so perfectly, seasoned perfectly.

And then these, that batter on that is perfection.

Yep.

And that zucchini mash on the bottom

is just so lovely.

It's slippery,

and texturally it kind of matches with the flesh on the wings.

I have had my fair share of pub meals in my time,

and I've got to say,

this is probably the best pub meal I've ever had.

Beautiful.

Service, please.

I'm really happy with how our starters went out,

but I'm looking over at the orange team,

and their mains are looking incredible.

There's so much at stake today.

Immunity is on the line,

and it's going to come down to the mains

and how our fish is cooked.

That barramundi needs to be juicy and needs to be crispy on the top,

seasoned perfectly.

And that many portions cooked perfectly

is so hard to achieve.

Argh!

That's asking for trouble.

Fish up.

We're in full swing of service for mains course.

Everything is riding on Theo.

He's got 50 pieces of barramundi to pan-fry perfectly.

I have so much faith in Theo.

I mean, honestly, I have to have faith in Theo -

he's the person that's cooking the fish.

So to plate up our fish and chips,

we've got our James Squire tartare beurre blanc

on the bottom, crispy barramundi.

Theo, that fish is flaking in my hands.

Beautiful.

That beautiful fennel salad on the side

and then our side of potatoes.

So, Alana had the idea to bouge up those roast potatoes

with a creme fraiche, herby, zesty dressing

on the bottom of those potatoes

and then some gorgeous salmon roe on top.

That's a bougie potato.

Jamie and the guys left us with a lot of work,

but it's all come together.

All their hard work

is now just absolutely shining on the plate.

Service.

Four and one, please.

Oh, I see plates.

That's the last main course, yeah? OK! Thank you.

So let's have a look. Ooh!

Pretty. Thank you.

Oh, it smells lovely. It does.

The fish looks good. Oh, wow, look at that.

ALL: Oh! Yes!

That's it.

I was just about to say

I could do with some potatoes, with fish and chips.

That is a little bit of a boss move.

That... That's a flex.

So here we are. This is the last main course.

This is the blue team.

So we have barramundi and cider sauce,

and you look like crispy roasted potatoes

and keta salmon eggs.

If this taste the way it look,

I'm going to be jumping in that water.

Ha-ha!

This is elevated pub food at its finest.

The fish is cooked so well. There's so much flavour in there.

That sauce is so luscious,

full of herbs and just had that little touch of sweetness,

which was really lovely with the fennel.

The potatoes, like so, um, so luxurious,

so decadent with the caviar on top.

Amazing. Loved it.

Look at this.

So we got the crispiness on the fish,

and then this translucent layer,

and then it's completely flaking.

So delicious and juicy and white. look at that.

I can't believe how soft it is.

I just realised, my time in Australia...

..eating barramundi fish,

that was the most...

..best cooked, tasty piece of fish of barramundi ever in my life.

I thought orange team's was the best pub meal I've ever had.

Do you think this one is better? Or where we sitting on this?

That cook was total, utter madness.

(LAUGHTER) Yes!

You're telling us!

There was an 'alarming' amount of chaos.

Like, literally. (LAUGHTER)

But you all managed to keep your heads above water...

..and pull out an elevated pub feast

as incredible as this view.

Well done!

(CONTESTANTS WHOOP) Give yourselves a clap.

That said, only one team can win immunity, right?

Yep. So, sadly,

we're taking one of you out of the running.

Green team.

Both your courses, flavour-wise, they were sound,

but your starter, it had scales,

and your main, it just didn't scream roast of the day.

So that leaves blue team and orange team.

Your starters...

..they were on par. Really?

Blue Team, that chook, it was crispy, juicy and generous.

Orange Team, that was a great ode to the OG squid.

The romesco sauce - that was on the money.

So it came down to the mains.

(NERVOUS LAUGHTER) Boy, did you make our job hard!

Because, well, guys, like,

both teams gave us elevated pub perfection.

The proteins, they were beautifully cooked.

Flavours are singing, textures humming.

They had it all.

There was one dish...

..that is the best pub meal that I've ever had.

Whoa! Wow!

Whoa! Wow.

And it was cooked by...

..Orange team!

(CHEERING)

Hey, Blue Team, I said it was a tough decision, and I meant that.

Yeah, it was. We were splitting hairs.

You came THAT close.

You should be so proud of what you put up today.

Thank you. Well done, guys.

Congratulations, Orange Team.

You just won immunity.

Yes! So good.

Everyone else, buckle up for a tough elimination challenge.

ANNOUNCER: Sunday night on MasterChef Australia...

I've got two words for you -

Fish King.

Josh Niland! (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

..he's a true trailblazer.

(ALL GASP)

It's not what I expect at all.

And this elimination is one cracker of a challenge.

Whoo! LAURA: This dish could send me home.

(EXHALES)

I think having a baby is easier than this.

And next week...

Ixta Belfrage!

Blayne Bertoncello!

..two more trailblazers

make their debut

in the MasterChef kitchen.

(ALL EXCLAIM)

Wow.

Captions by Red Bee Media