Original subtitles

ANNOUNCER: Previously on MasterChef Australia...

ANDY: Go!

(WOMAN SHRIEKS)

Our top seven are a cut above.

Oh, that smells delicious.

So, a week of immunity challenges...

# A, B, C, D, E, F, G! #

..put the X in extraordinary...

ANDY: That was a stunner.

SOFIA: That is a picture of perfection.

Oh, my goodness.

POH: I can feel this little electric current

running from you to the dish to Andy,

and it's Jock.

That's your best pasta I've ever eaten.

That's unbelievable.

..which spelled success for Laura.

And... Michael Wilson.

(CHEERING)

His Tower of Terror...

Wow.

(GASPS)

Eight layers of absolute precision.

..was a massive win for Jamie.

It was your first pressure test in 12 years,

and you won it.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

Tonight...

..an elimination means time is up for one of our incredible cooks.

Oh, my God.

Here we go, gang.

Find a bench. It's game time.

BEN: More cloches.

LAURA: Another cloche.

I see.

Hey, everyone.

Hello. Hi.

Today...seven becomes six.

And even though we don't want to see any of you go,

the only person who can shield you from elimination is you.

You have a massive decision to make today.

And it has everything to do with what's under these cloches.

Are you ready to find out what it is?

I'm going to count you in.

You can lift them in three, two, one.

SARAH: Oh, gosh.

It is time.

On that clock is 90 minutes.

That is the amount of time that you have to cook with.

In round one,

you can make anything you like,

using as much or as little time as you want.

The moment you finish your dish, stop your timer...

..bring it to us and we'll taste it.

Golly!

If you cook one of the top two dishes,

you're safe.

But if you cook one of the three least impressive dishes...

..you'll find yourself cooking in round two

with whatever time you have left.

Oh, my God.

That's 45 each.

Meaning how you play this is vital.

You can use more time in round one to try and perfect your dish

or play it safe and leave yourself a buffer.

Your 90 minutes starts now.

(SHOUTS OF ENCOURAGEMENT)

JEAN-CHRISTOPHE: Good luck.

Good luck. Good luck.

Good luck. SNEZ: My God, you're so fast!

Guys, Callum!

Wow, what a challenge.

Oh, my God, this is mad!

Time split - I've seen this challenge before.

I've never done it.

I'm not prepared for it, if I'm honest.

Ben's already cooking. He does that.

He goes straight to the equipment and puts pans on before he goes in.

Allez! Allez, Ben. Good luck.

So my strategy here is to cook something quickly.

If I can pull out a dish that is fast,

I might be able to save myself.

And if I can't, it'll leave me loads of time

in order to come up with a dish for round two.

Let's go now.

(MUTTERS TO HIMSELF)

Come on, Ben.

Oh, yeah.

POH: Last in, first out. SOFIA: Nice!

Very efficient shopping.

Look, this challenge is all about strategy.

And really, there are a few ways you can do it.

What would you do?

I would just go all out in that first dish.

I'm going all in. So how many minutes?

90.

If this doesn't work... I'm really screwed.

No. You're out.

Last time you did this,

you used 89 minutes... Yeah!

..and thankfully made it.

Yes.

And you didn't have to cook in round two.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

But do you know what? There was no strategy behind it.

So how do you...?

So don't really talk to Poh on this one, right?

I would do a short cook to start.

So belt one out. Maybe a raw dish, seafood, something like that.

30-minute cook.

In round two, I'd leave my best dish.

I absolutely agree with Andy.

You spend less now

to have a lot more for round two and be safe.

They're all so good, though. They're all so good.

I know, I know.

I'm feeling really good.

I'm feeling really hectic.

I've never done this challenge.

So I'm making this beautiful

like a lardo and Wagyu skewer.

So a crazy quick cook that's super delicious.

Time was never my friend in this kitchen,

but I feel lately I kind of changed.

My strategy today is

I want to use less time in round one,

but smash it with the flavour.

So I'm going with a quick 35-minute cook.

Wagyu is this beautiful cut of meat that cooks really quickly.

I'm also making this beautiful green sauce

and a delicious aioli,

so I'm really confident in my choice of dish today.

If I nail it,

the flavour is there, the technique is there.

They're hopefully going to keep me safe

from round two.

Come on, Snez, punch.

Thank you.

I'm a pretty quick cook.

I'm one of the fastest here, I'd say.

But the risk with cooking a quick dish, obviously,

is that you don't have time to build flavour

and you might not do everything perfectly.

Hey, Ben. Hello, hello.

How are you? Hi, Ben.

I'm very rushed right now. Hit us with the strategy first.

Strategy is I'm cooking a delicious dish

that's gonna take half an hour. Right.

It's gonna be delicious King George whiting,

tomato butter sauce, basil oil

and a cucumber and mussel sort of salad.

That does not sound like... I know.

..a short-cook dish. It's right.

But the fish cooks super quickly, and so does everything else.

It sounds like it should take an hour.

It's gonna take half an hour. As simple as that. Yeah.

So I'm not taking my time and having a coffee break.

I'm just smashing it out as quickly as I can.

And the quality's still going to be there.

That's my goal. So we'll see what happens.

I'll be hawkin'. Good luck, mate.

The way to get flavour into this dish

in a little amount of time

is to use the richness of the tomatoes and the butter,

with the saltiness of the mussels

and the char from the cucumber

with the beautiful King George whiting.

And multi-task my...

Multi-task everything,

trying to get this done

so I can hopefully be safe in round two.

LAURA: Come on, Benny. JAMIE: Go, Benny.

CALLUM: With a time challenge like today,

I think I'm going to try and use

just under half of my cook time

to try and cook a really good dish, but leave myself enough time

that if I need that insurance policy for round two,

I've got it there.

Callum, hit us - strategy. How you going? How are you?

What a challenge.

He is the strategy master. So what is the strategy?

Um, so strategy, but not gambling, right?

I'm going to keep plenty of time for my second cook.

Yep. So this is going to be a good dish.

Hopefully I won't need the second cook.

What is the dish?

Yeah, so I'm going to do a little take on moules frites.

So it's the kind of Belgian dish that's got mussels cooked in cider.

But I'm going to do it in a really fun little format.

So I'm going to sort of make little edible mussel shells

and serve it inside that.

It's just a... Hhha.

..one-bite situation.

(BOTH MIMIC HIM)

You have to make that noise as well.

Alright. Good luck. Thanks, gang.

Now, my version of moules frites

is going to be quite different to the classic.

So I have to take the time to nail the flavour profiles.

I have to get this right.

LAURA: Come on, Cal. Let's go.

You've had 15 minutes. You have 75 minutes on the clock.

Good luck.

Yes, yes, yes.

It looks like this is going to be your quickest curry ever, yeah?

Uh, one of them. One of them.

You're always cool, yeah?

Even in a hurry.

In general, like, when I make chickpea curries at home,

I don't use canned chickpeas.

I would pressure cook it for ages,

and then I'll slowly build flavour.

There'll be whole spices.

There'll be dry spices.

God, these packets.

Today I'm going to do a really quick chickpea curry

without compromising on the flavour.

Depinder. Hey, guys.

What's the strategy and what's the dish?

So the strategy is to split it halfway.

OK.

And stay as close to 45 minutes as I can.

OK. What's your dish?

My dish is going to be street food today,

so I'm doing aloo tikki chole chaat,

which is basically, like, this stuffed potato patty.

On top of that,

you've got a really flavour-bomby chickpea curry.

So you just take one bite and it's like a flavour bomb.

And then I'm going to do two chutneys

and a yoghurt sauce on top.

In 45 minutes? Yeah, I'll do it, I'll do it.

Righto. We trust you. Good luck.

OK, thanks.

45 minutes is going to be a push.

Normally, I would have at least an hour

to build that depth of flavour,

but I'm going to put all my eggs in one basket

to get it done in that time.

I do not want to cook in round two.

JAMIE: That was good, Depinder.

So for this green sauce I'm using tarragon,

parsley, chives.

It's going to be full of flavour.

It needs to complement the fatty Wagyu and lardo skewer.

Olive oil.

So next element I need to get on is my aioli.

So my aioli is going to kind of add the creaminess to this dish

and also the little zing of garlic through it as well.

Why is this happening?

I blitzed it and it splits.

What?! I never split mayo in my life.

So I need to start again.

OK. Deep breath.

You see, time is obviously an issue with you.

Yeah.

Because you need to control your measuring.

Yes.

You're going to do the same mistake again.

You should not... I know time is important,

but you should not compromise your standard, yeah.

Good luck.

I cannot believe this.

This is just not happening.

LAURA: What's wrong? My mayo is splitting.

I always do it the same way.

Oh!

This is the second time.

Second time - splits again.

It's really frustrating

that this is happening on black apron day,

and especially when I don't have time.

I need to do it again.

I feel like I wasted 10 minutes.

I didn't do a single thing.

So annoyed.

Think you can be the next MasterChef?

Only one way to find out. Applications are open now.

Head to the link below and apply.

We'll see you in the kitchen.

It's Snez vs the mayo. Holy moly!

Where's my salt?

I never give up.

JAMIE: Come on, Snez!

I really have to do it.

This time it has to work.

What the hell is happening today?

Oh, my God!

(EXHALES)

LAURA: Snez. Snez. Snez!

Just breathe. Hey, hey, hey. Breathe, breathe.

It's just happening third time.

I'm gonna go over the time that I set.

That means if I do end up in round two,

I'm not gonna have much time to cook.

Come on.

I don't know what anyone else is doing around me.

I just know that I am making a really fun dish.

It is creative and a little bit conceptual,

and it's a dish I can make in 30 minutes.

Basically, it's kind of, um, a take on soldiers and eggs.

So I am going for beautiful lamb skewers

and dipping into pomegranate hollandaise sauce.

Obviously it's MasterChef,

so it needs to be a little bit fancy.

Not just going to do boiled eggs on toast.

How the hell does this work?

This little egg tool just cuts off the top of the egg

in a perfectly round circle.

So I'm going to use this

and pour my pomegranate hollandaise sauce

back into it.

OK.

So you do have that play on soldiers and eggs.

Oh, that really works.

I like this dish,

but it can be risky to do just two elements.

So I really need to nail these so that I get safe from round two.

LAURA: Come on, Sarah!

Yeah. Beautiful. Beautiful.

Going alright, so I've got the sauce reducing.

I've got my cucumbers charred. Got my mussels cooked.

What I'll do now is cook the fish and plate it up.

Ben's definitely taken the Usain Bolt approach today.

And it's like speed, speed, speed.

This is hectic. I'm just trying to do things so quickly

without making mistakes.

Um, so I'm just going to do my best and hopefully get it through.

I'm making a pan-fried King George whiting

with a mussel and charred cucumber salad.

Come on, Benny.

Pretty much everything is done except for the cooking of the fish,

but it's in there for literally two minutes.

It's out. It's crispy. I'm really happy with it.

The plating is going to take me hopefully less than a minute.

I don't have time to waste. Get the salad on there.

I get the fish on top.

The creme fraiche, the sauce.

Puck stop!

Hit the clock. 66 minutes to go.

I did it in less than 24 minutes.

I can't believe it. I'm stoked.

24 minutes.

Ben, you've just stopped your clock.

It's time to taste your dish.

That was fast! Oh, very good!

When the judges taste this dish,

I want them to have the flavour of the fish,

the texture of the salad and the mussels,

and not for a second to think

that this was done in less than 30 minutes.

First course is served. That is ridiculous.

Wow. That's why we call it rapido!

Fast food.

You've made this in 23 minutes and 48 seconds.

How are you so speedy?

Um, I'm in a rush to get up there.

(ALL LAUGH)

What's the dish, Ben?

It's King George whiting

with a mussel and charred cucumber salad,

a tomato butter sauce and a basil oil.

Ben, your fish is impeccable.

What I love is that combination of flavours.

It's simple. It's also quite original.

You manage to execute a dish even under your timing,

which is fantastic.

What I loved about the dish -

the fish was prepared and cooked so beautifully.

I thought the dish overall ate pretty well.

I would have liked to touch more acid.

I felt like that the creme fraiche with the butter

kind of dragged it down a bit.

However, those mussels were cooked really beautifully.

Um, some positives, some negatives.

Mm-hm.

I think your mussels were just cooked.

Almost borderline.

Unfortunately, I got a bit of a beard in mine,

so I think that's what happens when you rush, right?

Yeah, I thought I checked every one of them, so...

When you make a little mistake like this

with competitors like that,

it could be the thing that sends you into the next round.

Let's see if your quick stick strategy pays off.

Thank you. Nice, Ben.

(APPLAUSE)

That's a bummer. That's bad.

That's a real bummer.

Gutted.

But the one thing on my side is

I've got a lot of time for round two to cook,

and all these other guys are still cooking,

even though my judgement's finished.

So the longer they take, the better it is for me.

You've had 30 minutes and there are 60 minutes left to go.

There's always that little voice in the side of your head going,

"Hang on a minute, Benny's already gone up.

"Maybe I should be rushing up now."

But I really need

to start cracking onto these edible mussel shells.

And the tricky thing is, they're quite delicate to work with.

And I can only make one at a time.

I'm using mussel and kind of squid ink batter

made from the actual cooking liquor from the mussels itself,

with that cider in there as well.

And I've only got one mussel mould here.

Each mussel shell I'm cooking

takes about two minutes or so to cook,

so I'm going to burn five or 10 minutes here.

LAURA: Did it work, Cal? Yeah, mate.

I feel slightly more rushed making this dish

than what I maybe had planned at the start of the cook,

but I think knowing that I'm pretty happy

with all the elements,

I think it's worth every second.

There's no point doing a quick dish if it's rushed,

'cause then it's not going to be good.

Where's my garlic?

I'm still building flavour in this chickpea curry,

so I'm going to let this simmer in its spices for as long as I can.

Yum.

Meanwhile, I'm going to start working on my pea filling.

This is where the flavour is going to come from

when you bite into that aloo tikki,

which is the potato patty.

I need to move super fast.

I've got a lot to do,

so I'm just working at the speed of light at the moment.

Normally I would have at least an hour to make this dish.

But today I'm going to try and do it in 45 minutes.

Head down, bum up.

JAMIE: Depinder. Good?

Yeah, I think so.

I'm just trying to get it done. Hustle.

Yeah, trying.

But every single element has to be done perfectly.

That's the only way to save myself from round two.

I might actually make it.

Breathe, Snezzy. Breathe.

(EXHALES)

Oh, thank God! Far out!

This aoili really knocked off my time.

I'm really happy I have it now

'cause I cannot waste another second.

I already went over my time,

and I'm just doing my Wagyu and lardo skewers.

Small twist...

Snez, what happened to your mayonnaise?

Did it split or did it...? It just split straightaway.

And then last time, I managed to do it.

I do have my green sauce. I need to pass it through.

This is finishing off.

I'm going to glaze it last minute as well.

Cook it. It's going to be...

How long is that going to take to cook and rest?

Not long, I'm going to add extra five, 10 minutes to myself

to make sure I nail this and it's perfect.

That was not the plan, was it?

No, it absolutely was not the plan.

But, um... Yeah.

Come on. Yes.

Push on. Let's go! I can do it, Andy.

SARAH: I'm starting to get a little bit worried.

I wanted to get this done in 30 minutes to save that time

in case I need it for round two.

My pomegranate hollandaise sauce is done,

but I haven't even started my skewers yet.

There's only two elements on this plate,

so I want these lamb skewers to be cooked perfectly...

Oh, shit, that fell in. Oh, my God!

They're falling apart.

..but the skewer mixture, it's just not holding together.

Ooh.

If I don't fix this, then I don't have a dish.

Oh, shit, that fell in.

They're falling apart.

90 minutes on the clock, it's two rounds,

we are nearing the halfway mark,

and my lamb skewers are just kind of falling apart.

LAURA: Come on, Sarah.

I know it is going to eat into my second round,

but I need to fix this and cook them again.

But I need to make sure that they're not overcooked.

I'm just going to make sure

they're super delicious and juicy and, um, keep...

Yeah, get it done.

CALLUM: Good? Perfect. Primo.

I'm really happy with these edible mussel shells.

They look pretty much like a dead ringer for a mussel shell.

We're going to pop some of the confit potato in there.

Some of that apple and radish slaw on top with the braised mussel.

And I think that it is the dish I promised the judges.

So, yeah, I'm feeling really happy with that.

Beautiful. Thanks for the support, Loz.

I popped the last garnish onto my last mussel

and I smashed that clock to stop it.

(BUZZER) I have stopped.

Hopefully I'm not in round two, but if I am,

I should still be able to cook something really good in the 50 minutes I've got.

Callum, you've stopped your clock. Bring it down to be tasted, mate.

Wow, look at that.

Oh, that looks like a... (CHOMPS)

One... (CHOMPS) ..coming up!

SOFIA: I'm sorry, is that an edible shell?

It is. It is.

I know! I just clocked it!

So, I'm calling it moules frites,

which of course is that classic dish of mussels braised in cider,

with confit potato underneath.

There's an apple, radish and fennel slaw on top of that.

Mussel poached in cider, finger lime

and Geraldton wax on top.

One hit, yeah? Yeah, go for it.

(CHOMPS)

I love it when someone brings up a dish

and I can feel that we're all trying to keep a poker face,

because that is so good!

That mussel shell, it's the most perfect texture.

It just completely falls apart in your mouth.

The most satisfying, lightest crunch.

And the hero is still the mussel.

Remember, moules frites is French.

What is important is you've retained the mussels' flavour.

You got the textures of the chips without the chips,

and your seasoning is correctly on the top.

Well done. Thank you very much.

(CHEERING) Thanks, everyone.

Well done. That's amazing. Thanks, mate.

SARAH: Everything is ready to go.

My lamb skewers are looking beautiful.

I've got that glaze on top.

I've poured my pomegranate hollandaise sauce

into my egg shell, and I'm plating up.

LAURA: Beautiful, beautiful.

OK, stop. (BUZZER)

Oh, God, 49 minutes.

(CHUCKLES)

I wanted to get the dish right.

I'm just hoping the cook on my lamb is nice and juicy.

I took my time with it, so hopefully that is right.

Sarah, you're done. Time to taste your dish.

I see. Eggy soldiers!

Dippy eggs! Dippy eggs.

Today's dish is spiced lamb skewers with pomegranate hollandaise.

Sarah, this is a real nowhere-to-hide dish.

Only two elements. Do you think you've nailed them?

Yeah, I think so. I think it's tasty.

And, um, it's a good dish.

Yeah, this is really fun.

Sarah...

..I love that little char

that I got on the outside of my skewer,

and the hollandaise's beautiful, silky texture.

It clung on to that skewer so well.

I was standing there like I was at the fair with a Pluto pup,

which I loved.

Um, I thought you could have went a little bit harder

with the spice mix.

And I hate to say the skewer was a little dry on mine,

so I hope for your sake it's different down the end.

It's very tasty,

but I've got to acknowledge it might be,

and I think it might be a little bit too dry.

You know, I love the way you cook, so...

Yeah. ..good luck.

Thanks, Sarah. Thanks, Sarah.

Well done. Thanks.

You're halfway through your 90 minutes.

You have 45 minutes to go! Come on, everybody! Allez!

SNEZ: All other cooks are finished,

and it's just me and Depinder still cooking.

It's done.

I'll get the stuff from the garden!

She's gone to the bloody garden.

Where's the lovely herbs?

The lovely herbs?

I feel like I lost 15 minutes just on this aioli.

I really need to make sure this dish is perfect, so it saves me.

Oh, my God.

Where's my time? Where's my time?

(BUZZER) 41 minutes!

(PANTS)

Done.

Snez, you're finished. We'll taste your dish now.

41 minutes and 14 seconds

was definitely not the position I want to be

if I need to do a second cook.

SOFIA: Pretty! Oh, it looks pretty as a picture.

OK, what have you made?

I made a Wagyu and lardo skewer

and green buttermilk sauce,

aioli on top, and some herbs from the garden.

This was meant to be a 35 minute dish.

Max.

It nearly took you 50 minutes. I know.

Firstly, the presentation was a 10.

It looked absolutely cracking.

Such a delicate presentation, and the skewer was cooked perfectly.

I thought the sauce was delicious,

and I loved all those zingy herbs that you put in there,

and the colour was just stunning.

How long did you spend on your mayo in total?

Probably 15 minutes.

Right, I think you could have saved yourself 15 minutes,

because I don't think your dish actually needed that mayo at all.

I agree, yeah.

You've got this fattiness from the Wagyu, which is so beautiful,

and then the mayo almost obscures it.

And now I'm wondering if the thing

that you spent 15 minutes trying to perfect,

that you didn't even need,

could be the thing that sends you into round two.

Good luck. Thank you.

Oh, babe.

JEAN-CHRISTOPHE: OK, you had 50 minutes.

Now, 40 minutes left to go.

Depinder is the last cook still cooking in round one.

Faster!

Go faster. Faster.

The chickpea curry is really tasty. It's got a depth of flavour.

This is the time I wanted to be done with my dish,

and I'm still constructing my potato patties.

Got to go. Go, go, go.

I'm stuffing them with the pea filling.

I still need to fry them. I still need to do a yoghurt sauce.

Come on, Deep, hustle.

Yep, I'm almost there.

Move, move. Come on.

Yeah.

Yes, look at that. Look at that.

Beautiful.

I'm feeling extreme amounts of pressure right now,

because every minute

beyond this point is potentially a minute off my round two cook.

I don't know how long these potato patties

are going to be cooking, but I need them to be crispy.

I don't want to compromise on that texture,

because that's what makes up my dish.

Oh, my God. It's literally that one thing.

Pfffft!

JAMIE: Come on, Deep, hustle.

My two chutneys. Yeah.

My plating is complete,

minus these potato patties.

I press down to allow

for more surface area to cook in the ghee...

It's getting there.

..and I can finally see it browning, and I'm like, "Thank God!"

OK, this is looking really bloody good.

OK.

I take out my potato patties.

They look amazing.

This is how an aloo tikki should look.

I'm gonna stop the clock now.

(BUZZER)

Nice, Deeps.

Depinder, you're the last to finish.

That wraps up round one. You can bring your dish down now.

I've got everything crossed for myself right now.

I've got the least amount of time left

compared to everyone else.

If I have to cook a dish in 35 minutes...

..I don't know what I'm going to do.

Depinder, what's your dish?

So, today I've made aloo tikki chole chaat.

So tikki is the actual patty, which is stuffed with peas.

And then the chole is the chickpea curry.

And then you have the yoghurt, the two chutneys, the masala on top,

and you just devour it.

Are you gonna make it for us?

Is that the deal here? Yeah, show us how it's done.

(PATTIES CRUNCH) JUDGES: Oh!

Not what I was expecting. Oh-ho-ho!

I feel like all that hard work has just been crushed. I know!

No, but that's the sound you want to hear.

Yeah, you want to hear that. It's an amazing sound.

It looks so generous in flavour and colour,

and the smell coming off it, it's extremely enticing.

Depinder...

..this is such a scarfable dish.

Like you really just want to dive in and just, you know, get into it.

It was really worth the time that you invested

in frying that tikki really well,

because it's just got that lovely crunchy outer coating.

And then in the middle, it was just so nice and comforting and smushy.

Yeah, beautiful dish. Oh, thank you.

You are the only one who did not use any protein.

It's just veg, spice and your knowledge.

And you know what? Your dish is...

..magical.

What I did not know is

the point of using this crispy, very special potato

who was impeccable and support all the flavours.

And you've nailed it. So I'm so pleased for you.

Thank you.

Depinder the gambler, huh?!

(LAUGHS)

She gambled today,

and she said "flavour bomb,"

and it is an absolute flavour bomb.

You couldn't have described it any other way.

Great gamble, great strategy, whatever you want to call it.

And it may very well have paid off, Depinder.

We've got a decision to make.

Yeah.

Woo! Good luck.

When looking for the least impressive dishes,

it's getting harder and harder to narrow it down.

That said, if I call your name,

you're cooking in round two.

Snez, you spent too much time making that mayo,

to the detriment of your dish.

Yep.

Sarah,

so close,

but you needed to spend just a little bit more time

amping up those flavours.

And lastly, Ben.

That was a massive achievement in such a short amount of time,

but sadly, your dish lacks some refinement.

I got a beard in my mussel. Soz.

Callum, Depinder,

you're safe.

Congrats. Thank you.

You can join the others on the gantry. Well done.

This is it, you guys, the final round.

You can cook anything you like, but just a reminder -

you only have the amount of time you didn't use in round one.

So, Snez, you have 41 minutes.

Sarah, you have 49 minutes.

And Ben, you have 66 minutes remaining...

Oh, great. ..which means you're starting first.

OK.

Ben, it's time to start your clock now.

Come on, Ben! (APPLAUSE)

Go, Benny!

CALLUM: Let's go, mate.

BEN: I've got a lot more time than both Sarah and Snez.

Come on, Ben. Let's go, Ben. Come on, mate.

BEN: I've got about 20 minutes before they even start cooking.

That's 20 minutes I can use to prep things better

and add more flavour to my dish.

In round one, I was trying to do everything as fast as I can,

cutting corners.

In round two, I'm going to take my time

and execute everything perfectly.

Come on, Benny. Let's go, Benny.

Cheerleaders!

Use your time wisely. Ooh, good basket.

I'm not leaving a beard in a mussel or anything stupid like that.

Ben. Hello, Ben.

Guys, how are you going? Really good.

Are you feeling the pressure? There's definitely pressure. There's always pressure here.

You were the only one out of the three that landed in round two

that actually, like, stuck to what they said that they were going to do. Oh, that's good.

You said you were going to go like the clappers,

and you were going to leave yourself enough time

to cook a banger of a dish.

How is this dish going to be that dish?

Because this dish is going to be a scallop tortellini

with a bisque sauce on it, a squid ink emulsion

and a little bit of fennel, so balanced perfectly.

It's going to be full of flavour.

And I'm going to use every minute of that 60 minutes

to make a very flavourful sauce that no-one else has the time to do.

That's a... That's a very, very, very smart idea.

Yeah, it's the first thing I've got on,

it's the last thing I'll finish,

and everything else will come together in the middle.

You just need to make sure that this dish tastes

like it was cooked in 66 minutes.

(LAUGHS) Yeah, I will.

It's going to taste like it was cooked in two hours.

Yeah. Yeah, even better.

Good flavours, Benny. Smells good, Benny.

My advantage in this cook is that I've got more time.

Any guesses, Laura? Some pasta!

I can make the pasta, include more elements,

and I can use every one of those 66 minutes

to add flavour to this dish.

I can feel the other guys watching me.

And this is great because I can basically get in their heads

and show them how much I can do in 20 minutes, before they even start.

Better not to watch. Yeah, yeah. True.

Hey, Snez, how are you feeling?

I'm so nervous.

I feel like Ben's been cooking for hours.

That's how I feel. Yeah, yeah.

Yeah.

I had a beautiful idea for a dish number two,

and it needed at least 55 minutes.

Now that I have only 40 minutes, I can't do that dish anymore.

I need to pivot, and I need to think of a replacement.

Round two,

and I am here to bring everything that I have.

I've got 49 minutes.

I wish I had a little bit more.

I think around about an hour is a good amount of time

in this kitchen.

Anything under that is definitely stressful.

Sarah, you had 49 minutes left from round one.

You can go start your clock now.

Go on, Sarah! (APPLAUSE)

DEPINDER: Let's go, Sarah.

I came here to take risks in the kitchen,

and that's who you're going to get today.

I decide on a dish that is hard to pull off.

It is creative and a little bit conceptual,

but I want to show technique, and I have to nail it.

Pastry in 50 minutes.

She doesn't have long enough to do that.

She must be doing something else.

JEAN-CHRISTOPHE: She knows what she's doing.

CALLUM: She's trying to make rough puff.

Wow, that is pushing it.

Sarah. Sarah.

Hello. Are you doing pastry?

Yes. Shortcrust.

What's your dish?

It's my take on a scallop pie, basically.

And I'm making a vichyssoise. So, spiced leek vichyssoise.

And that's going to be around the outside.

OK. The scallops,

I'm kind of turning into a bit of a flower on top, in a way.

I don't know whether 'flower' is the right word.

There's a dramatic flower, too. I like it.

Yeah. Sounds like a lot of work.

Why are you doing that when you've only got 49 minutes?

She loves the risk. I do, I do.

Loves the adrenaline.

It's pumping like crazy! I can't even tell you.

It's very ambitious. Make sure you can pull it off.

Yes. You are biting off a lot here, Sarah.

Yeah. And you don't have a lot of time?

No, I do not.

DEPINDER: Come on, Sarah.

I am definitely pushing myself today.

And it is all about timing.

If any single step needs to be redone,

then my entire dish will be ruined.

Snez, the wait is over. Yep.

Your 41 minutes starts now!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) JAMIE: Come on, Snez!

Let's go, Snez Dog!

My strategy in round one was to have a knockout dish in 35 minutes,

and then have plenty of time to cook in round two.

It didn't work.

OK, baby. Come to mama.

I used too much time for kind of...

..oh, not really a knockout dish.

Butter, sugar, salt.

And now I'm left with only 41 minutes for a knockout dish.

(LAUGHS)

LAURA: Let's go, Snezzy. Come on, Snezzy.

But I've been in this situation before.

I can fight. I never give up.

My strategy here is to go with a dish

that I can cook with my eyes closed.

It's going to have that beautiful, homey flavours that we all love,

but it's going to be elevated and refined.

Snez. Hi.

ANDY: Snez, how are you going? Very good.

Great. That's good.

Bit less chaotic than the first time.

It's just because I have this kind of clear idea now... Yes!

..and I feel good, so I'm ready.

Tell us. Tell us about the clear idea.

OK, so I'm going with a flavour that I love.

I'm just gonna try to make it kind of refined,

like it would come out of the restaurant.

So I'm doing this like mushroom ragu,

and I'm gonna have, like, a whole grilled mushroom sitting on top,

soft polenta, porcini cream,

like, classic, delicious but refined.

OK, execute this and elevate the components...

Yes. Yep. ..so that it doesn't feel

like it was cooked in 40 minutes. Yes.

Make us feel like it was cooked in an hour.

You know what I mean? Yes. That...

That's the plan. Yeah.

Yes. Because that's what it's going

to take because you've got... That's right.

..a highly conceptual dish behind you in Sarah,

and then you've got to battle against Ben, who's had 66 minutes

to create his dish. Yep.

You just need to focus on the task at hand now.

Yep. And it is flavour.

That's it. (EXHALES HEAVILY)

Thank you. Good luck.

Yeah. Thanks, guys.

CONTESTANTS IN GANTRY: Ooh!

(LAUGHTER)

BEN: This fish sauce is going to be my secret weapon,

because I can use a whole hour to put flavour into it.

I'm also making a scallop mousse cappellacci,

which is sort of like a nun's-hat-shaped pasta.

Look at that pasta, Benny.

Pasta can be a risky thing because if it's not right,

you're going home, especially, like, in this elimination.

But I am pretty confident with it.

Now I just need to execute.

I've got the bisque sauce on, I've got fennel charring,

I've made my pasta dough - it's going to rest.

The pasta is going to be epic.

And then the sauce is going to be next-level.

So I've got no chance other than just doing these things perfectly.

It doesn't matter when you started. You've all got 26 minutes to go!

CALLUM: Let's go, guys! JAMIE: Come on, guys!

DEPINDER: Let's go, guys!

That really did go very fast. Yeah.

BEN: Now I have to spend all of my time

getting the scallop mousse absolutely perfect.

Oh, Benny. Beautiful, beautiful.

So I weigh out some of the scallops and add salt to it.

I blend it up, then add a little bit of egg,

and bit by bit some cream till I get the right texture.

Despite having the most time out of anyone,

I'm working like anything to try to get this going,

and I can't afford to take my eyes off the prize here.

Let's go, Sarah. You got a timer on for your pastry?

I'm just going to watch it. BOTH: OK.

The pastry for this scallop pie is in the oven.

How long does it need to be in there for?

The whole time, basically. BOTH: OK.

It is insanely risky cooking pastry in this amount of time.

You think... You think your tart will be crispy enough, yeah?

Hopefully. It's...

No, it will be. OK. You're sure, yeah?

Yeah.

But all I can do is keep my fingers crossed.

So, next I get started on my vichyssoise.

I've got my leeks, which I'm sauteing down,

and adding into that my potatoes.

I've got a bit of stock going into that.

While that is starting to simmer,

I move on to my curry leaf oil.

Curry leaves.

I want this to have that little touch of South India

in terms of the flavour profiles.

I can't see them.

Curry leaves. That's not curry leaves.

I love the flavours across India,

so this really is, truly, I can say, my style.

Curry leaves. I can't see them.

What did I come here for?

Oh.

I'm feeling so much pressure.

I feel like Ben and Sarah have been cooking for hours,

but I'm definitely going crazy a little bit today.

No time to think. I'm just going with things that I love.

For my polenta with mushrooms,

my polenta is on the stove,

and I need to get onto that mushroom ragu.

My mushroom ragu today is going to be kind of soft,

but mushrooms still have a texture.

It should be kind of quite fragrant from the thyme,

from wine, from all the aromatics, shallots, garlic.

And when mixed with polenta, it's just going to be a perfect match.

I don't think people, many, have cooked polenta in this kitchen,

but I think, if done well, it could be a really knockout dish.

Spoons. Did I bring spoons? No.

My plan here is to cook it low and slow

and make sure it's nice and soft and absorbs all the flavours,

and it's so creamy and delicate.

So this dish pretty much is how I cook at home.

Like, a homey flavour.

And, yeah, I'm just trying to do it today a little bit differently,

a little bit more elevated.

BEN: For the scallop cappellacci, it's time to strain the bisque.

Just going to get all of the liquid into a pot.

And I need to reduce that down with a little bit of cream

until I get a really nice sauce consistency.

Let's go, here, let's go. That's cooked. Pasta time.

This is coming down nicely. Really thick, really tasty.

Fennel's braising away, pretty much done.

And just need to roll the pasta,

get it filled and make it perfect.

Rolling out the pasta takes time, and there's no short cut here.

I've got just enough time to do it.

You've just got to laminate it and do it long enough

that the pasta has the right texture.

It's as simple as that. There's no rushing it.

CALLUM: Pasta looks lovely, Benny.

There's so much pressure on my shoulders.

I don't want to go home.

Again, what's standing between me staying in this competition or not,

is how well I can make these pasta shapes.

Go, Benny. Come on, guys, under 15.

The time is evaporating really quickly,

and there's so much going through my mind.

I've got to make five or six of the most beautiful pasta shapes

I've ever made in my life -

thin, stuffed to the brim.

I need to get them in the water and cooked in time to get it

on the plate, and there's very little time to spare.

Let's go, guys.

Sarah, how's your pastry?

SARAH: Uh, it was still a bit blonde before.

I've got my pastry in the oven, and I have my curry leaf oil done.

I am now working on my vichyssoise,

and I'm just balancing it out

with a little bit of cream, a little bit of butter.

Can you tell me when there's four minutes left?

DEPINDER AND LAURA: Yeah.

But I'm starting to freak out.

There's not much time left on the clock,

and I still don't know if my pastry is going to be done in time.

OK, guys, five minutes to go!

Allez!

BEN: I just want to reduce it down as fast as possible.

LAURA: Oh, my gosh.

This is, like, plating time, not cooking time.

This is, like, proper chaos.

Where's the soy...? That thingy? Oh!

Did I have it?

There's not that much time left.

Snez, what are you doing? Just get on with it.

I'm really concerned. This is crazy.

Honestly, I don't even know if anyone is going to have

a complete dish on a plate.

JAMIE: Pull it together. Come on.

SARAH: I still don't know if my pastry is going to be done in time,

but while I'm waiting, I am moving on to my scallops.

So I'm slicing these thinly

so that I can place them in a flower shape.

I need to be really delicate with this.

DEPINDER: Come on, Sarah, you got to cook those scallops.

Four. Come on, Sarah, let's go.

I'm cooking them only on one side.

I want caramelisation on the base,

and I want them to be beautiful and opaque on top.

Come on, Sarah. Home stretch. Home stretch.

Seriously, Sarah in round one,

I'm really angry at you.

You could have just given me two more minutes,

and this would have been absolutely a breeze.

Have you tasted everything, Snez?

Where's my spoon?

I'm happy with my mushroom ragu.

My polenta is creamy, it's lovely.

And as soon as I finish it off with some Parmesan and butter, it's just going to be spot-on.

My butter, butter, butter, butter, butter!

Not finished, Chef.

I'm running out of time.

So for my pine mushrooms, the plan is just to quickly pan-fry them

and to finish it off with some butter, thyme and garlic,

which I'm going to be basting as I go.

Even if it's a vegetable,

the cook on the vegetable is really important.

This dish is all about mushrooms,

so this is why I'm choosing to put the whole mushroom on top.

Visually, also, it's quite striking, as well, when you receive it.

And also, I really love cutting into a whole mushroom.

I'm just hoping it's enough to keep me safe.

Two minutes! LAURA: Come on, guys!

Come on! DEPINDER: Let's do it.

Come on, guys, it's smelling incredible. It smells incredible.

BEN: I'm running out of time.

The pasta's not finished cooking.

I've still got to get it into the sauce to coat it,

so I decide to start plating up the fennel

because that's ready now.

Oh, Ben, that looks amazing.

I've got my braised fennel there,

but I also want some freshness in the dish.

So I shave some of the fennel really finely,

which is going to add loads of crunch.

Nice, Benny.

I've made the pasta as well as I could with the time I had.

I've got as much flavour as I possibly could into that sauce.

Strategy in round one didn't pay off completely,

but it's afforded me the time to make what I think

is a really good dish in round two,

and I've had time to get flavour into that sauce and make pasta,

which no one else can do.

Hopefully, that's going to set me apart and keep me safe.

One minute to go!

JAMIE: Snez, pull it together. Come on.

Oh, my God!

SARAH: I'm in the last minute of this plate-up,

and I pull my pastry out of the oven.

LAURA: Nice, Toddy.

Oh, my gosh, my pastry is done. Thank goodness.

But there is no time to waste.

Oh, God, it's stuck. Use a spatula.

Oh, my God.

I'm trying to get my scallops out of the pan,

and I'm really struggling to get it out.

Can you scrape it with something else?

Oh.

This is meant to be a beautiful rose formation.

If this falls apart, then the dish is ruined.

Come on, Toddy. Come on, Toddy. Come on. It still looks fine.

Oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God!

Come on, Sarah, get it on the plate!

You got it, you got it.

Nice, Toddy. Nice. Beautiful.

I get it onto the plate.

Oh, it is done, and it's beautiful!

Woo! Come on, guys, let's do it on the plate.

Your time is up in ten...

JUDGES: Nine, eight, seven,

six, five, four,

three, two, one!

That's it! ANDY: Ah!

That is it. (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

Wow. Well done, guys.

SNEZ: Oh, my God. Well done.

Well done, Toddy.

(SIGHS) That was a lot.

Well done, guys.

I had more time than everyone but I was pushed right to the limit.

Really well done. Snez, well done.

Well done, girl. Not sure.

I'm pretty proud of what I presented in 40 minutes.

But knowing Ben and Sarah,

they're going to come up with amazing dishes.

So it's going to come down to small details.

BEN: Walking this up to the judges, you know,

I can't help but be a bit nervous.

Hey, Benny. Hey, Ben.

Hello. ANDY: Hey, mate.

It is a real double-edged sword, having more time

because I think that puts more pressure on me

to deliver a better dish,

even though that should be my advantage.

I'm not 100% confident here that I'm safe.

Ben, what have you made?

I've made a scallop cappellacci with a shaved fennel,

braised fennel, squid ink emulsion and a prawn bisque sauce.

Do you think you used your 66 minutes wisely?

I think so.

So I had the sauce working the entire time.

Had enough time to make pasta.

So, there's definitely a bit of extra pressure though. Yeah.

Yeah. (CHUCKLES) Thanks, Ben. I think we need to taste it now.

Thank you. Good luck, yeah?

Great use of his time.

I thought the pasta work was magnificent.

It was, like, filled to the brim,

and a beautiful cross section on that pasta as well.

The sauce is really reduced,

but then when you get it with that...especially the raw fennel,

and obviously with the scallop-filled pasta,

then it really starts to come to life.

I think that's the best sauce that Ben has provided on MasterChef.

I am quite mesmerised, actually, the way he did it.

And I'm super, super impressed.

I think he's used his leg up with the time really well.

He's got heavy-hitting flavour in his dish

that you can only buy with time. Yep.

SNEZ: I picked the wrong strategy.

Hello. Hi, Snez.

And I left myself only 40 minutes to finish up my second dish.

I actually feel a bit deflated.

If this dish is the last dish I put up in this competition,

I'll be really devastated.

OK. What have you made?

So I made a soft polenta with mushroom ragu

and porcini cream.

That must have been difficult.

Yes!

You know, just to shake off round one, really.

It was so stressful.

Ben was half into his cook when I started,

so it was really... Like, you know, it doesn't help.

I feel like everybody's at the top of their game,

and I know I can cook, but can I keep up?

Was you intimidated by everyone?

I was so intimidated, especially at the start.

Even now, and when I see all these beautiful dishes passing me,

I'm like, "Oh!"

I feel like I'm still kind of delivering this rustic flavour here.

Well, when we see what you did last year,

and now what you've done coming into the kitchen,

you know, in Back To Win... Yeah.

..surrounded by legends,

we are so, so proud of you.

Yeah. Thank you.

Thanks, Snez. We'll taste now. Thank you.

Thanks. Thanks, Snez.

JEAN-CHRISTOPHE: Good luck.

Thanks, Chef.

I think there's some good flavours across the board, right?

You know, from the polenta to the mushroom ragu,

some deep caramelised-onion flavours,

and then the polenta is seasoned really nicely.

The problem that I've got are weirdly the pine mushrooms on top.

Yeah. They're quite dry.

And that skin on the top of the mushroom cap

has gone really tough.

Something in the way that they're cooked in the pan

and have sort of dried out,

that just kind of dampens the rest of the work

that she's put in to the dish.

I think this is a really pleasant-tasting dish.

The polenta was quite well cooked and had lovely seasoning in it,

and the mushroom ragu was lovely, as well.

But I think what worries me is, when you're cooking a rustic dish,

you need enough technical elements in there

to know that you're in the race.

SARAH: I'm definitely nervous walking to the judges

because I had so many things to get right in this dish.

Hi, Sarah. Hi.

Hi, Sarah. Hi, Sarah.

SARAH: I had to get the pastry right.

I had to get those scallops cooked perfectly.

I had to get both sauces done.

And I ended up really rushing.

Sarah, what have you made?

Curried scallop pie.

Seared scallops - just a gentle sear on the base -

a mildly spiced vichyssoise and a curry leaf oil.

Attempting this dish was definitely ambitious.

There's a time and a place for extremely risky dishes.

But today's an elimination.

So I don't know if that strategy has paid off.

In round two, you ended up with about 49 minutes.

Yes.

But you chose to make a dish

that usually would take somebody about 75.

Definitely, the pastry was my biggest worry.

And I also just wanted to make sure that I'm showing enough technique

and doing something that is complex enough

to be worthy of being here.

Well, we love having you back in this competition.

Would you mind finishing your dish for us?

Yes. Thanks. Thank you.

OK, enjoy.

Thanks, Sarah. JEAN-CHRISTOPHE: Good luck, yeah?

I think this is such an elegant dish.

What I love is the fact that she used some French technique.

Vichyssoise is about how to condense the potato and the leeks

to get that very unusual flavour.

But what she did is to get it to another level with the spices,

which is very, very, very smart.

What's really clever is the sort of half-cooked scallop,

and the freshness that it delivers

clarifies the spice, and it lightens it.

And then, when you put the curry leaf oil on top,

the smokiness of that oil just adds another level of brightness.

I think she's done a really good job,

and she's stuck to her guns.

She's still got her signature move in place. (LAUGHS)

Risk-taking? Risk-taking.

And I think it's really paid off.

A lot of contestants would be hard pressed

to make this in 75 minutes,

and Sarah pushes herself to the absolute limits

to knock it out in 49.

She's a wizard. She's an absolute wizard.

Two of you smashed it today.

And unfortunately, one of you stumbled.

The cook going home brought us a dish,

but the star of the show was dry.

That impacted the taste and the textures.

And in the end, the lack of time

showed on the plate.

Snez... I got it.

..I'm so sorry, you're going home.

It's OK, guys.

You probably haven't really had a chance to think about

how extraordinary it is how far you've come.

Not only have you set a new PB, you've nearly gone all the way.

I think so too. I, like...

Just today, coming here thinking, "I'm fighting for top six.

"How did that happen?" Yeah!

All I wanted was to survive the day one when I came here.

This is where I exited in the first Back To Win.

So I know exactly how you feel.

Snez.

Chef.

There's only one Snez.

You should be very proud of yourself - you know.

Yeah.

You know, you can see clearly

you are a fighter, a survivor,

you never give up,

and you are super positive.

You know, when you say that you were intimidated

walking into the MasterChef kitchen,

I will not believe you.

We love you. You are fantastic.

Thanks, Chef.

And please, never, never stop being Snez.

I don't think I can. (LAUGHTER)

Thank you, Chef.

Snez, we're really going to miss you,

but it's time to say goodbye.

Thank you.

Big hug.

(APPLAUSE)

Oh, Sofia! Well done, Snez.

Thank you. Thank you.

You get to go on MasterChef once,

but to get to go twice and to experience all this...

I'm going to miss you, Chef. JEAN-CHRISTOPHE: All the best.

..it was just...it was... It's so special.

BEN: Well done, Snez.

I'm so proud of myself today,

getting this far and making all these friendships.

Give it up for, Snez, everybody! (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

(BREATHES DEEPLY)

It's a pure magic.

ANNOUNCER: This week on MasterChef Australia...

"What a journey." Far out.

..with their loved ones behind them...

BEN: "When I asked if they want Daddy to come home soon,

"the answer was, 'Not yet. We want him to win.'"

..they're literally putting everything on the line...

This is the everything box!

(EXCLAIMING)

Oh, I'm so screwed!

..for the cook of a lifetime...

One of Australia's most iconic restaurants.

Please welcome Hugh Allen.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

..and...

Julie Goodwin and Nat Thaipun!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

..for a spot in the top five.

BEN: The standard is so high in this competition,

and it is hard to stand out,

so you've got to do it in anyway you can.

Whoa! Oh, wow.

Winning this competition, is going

to take everything you've got.

Bring it on.

Captions by Red Bee Media