Original subtitles

We've thrown a few curve balls in there.

No! (LAUGHTER)

Yes! (LAUGHTER)

They took a gamble and chose a letter.

I got belachan. It's definitely not something in my comfort zone.

For some, it spelled success.

This is a dish that's gonna be on your menu for a very long time.

But others struggled...

You haven't featured the kale adequately.

..leaving two fans and two favourites

to face tonight's elimination.

SONG: # 'Cause you're hot, then you're cold

# You're yes, then you're no

# You're in, then you're out

# You're up, then you're down

# You're wrong when it's right

# It's black and it's white

# We fight, we break up

# We kiss, we make up

# You're hot, then you're cold

# You're yes, then you're no

# You're in, then you're out

# You're up, then you're down

# You're wrong when it's right

# It's black and it's white

# We fight, we break up

# We kiss, we make up

# You don't really want to stay, no

# But you don't really want to go-o

# You're hot, then you're cold

# You're yes, then you're no

# You're in, then you're out

# You're up, then you're down. #

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

DANIEL: Going into my first pressure test, a little bit nervous.

As a fan, it's something I've always wanted to give a crack myself.

I've sat there watching it at home

and thought I'd love to give it a go,

so I'm keen to dive headfirst and just see how I go at it.

But it always seems quite stressful and, um...

..I reckon it IS gonna be quite stressful.

As I'm sure the four of you are aware, today is a pressure test.

Which means that you are in the danger zone of going home.

Tommy.

Tough week for you. How are you feeling?

It's definitely nerve-racking,

but I think I'm ready to, kind of, enjoy and destroy, right?

Enjoy and destroy! He's back. I love it. (CHUCKLES)

Well, we have a delectable task for you today,

set by an incredible chef.

A viral sensation since opening his kitchen to Melbourne,

there have been lines out the door.

A cult figure in the pastry world...

..please welcome former head pastry chef of Dinner by Heston...

..and creator of Tarts Anon...

..Gareth Whitton!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

CHRISTINA: Gareth Whitton comes in and I'm like...

.."He's hot!" (LAUGHS)

Damn! (LAUGHS)

I totally forget that I'm in a pressure test!

How am I gonna concentrate now?

Hello, mate! G'day.

MATT: I know exactly what Tarts Anon is.

I follow them on social media.

Their tarts look perfect.

You can expect something complex.

Whatever it is, it's gonna be at the highest level of pastry.

Gareth, Tarts Anon is just tarts.

It's just tarts. Like, why tarts?

I think it's, why not tarts, you know?

Anything can be a tart. Anything can be in a tart as well.

I guess it's more a fact of making it work.

And your work is so...exact, and that's why you're here today.

Yeah, well...

So, there's no mystery today

to what you guys are gonna be cooking, right?

Gareth, do you want to show 'em what it is?

Love to.

So, today, you'll be cooking one of my favourites...

WOMAN: Oh, nice. (ALL EXCLAIM, GASP, LAUGH)

Smoked pecan and butterscotch tart.

Oh! Sounds incredible. Yum!

TOMMY: This tart looks like the most textbook tart you'll ever see.

It looks like it could be in a museum.

ANDY: It looks perfect.

So...good luck. (CHUCKLES)

Thanks, Andy. You're really helping with the nerves. (LAUGHS)

(LAUGHS)

God! I've made, like, three tarts in my entire life.

And solely because I'm not good at them.

I don't bother playing with them, because they're just so meticulous

and my big, grubby fingers

never really work in the tart casing too well.

Just typical that on a pressure test,

if I'm going home today, it's gonna be on a tart.

I suppose everyone's dying to know - what's on the inside?

Let's do it. Let's go.

WOMAN: Oh, wow. Yum!

Oh, my God! Ohh!

So good. So good. Ohh!

So, inside the shortcrust pastry tart shell...

..we have a salted caramel butterscotch

and then a pecan frangipane made with pecan puree and brown butter,

then glazed with a smoked maple syrup glaze.

I may or may not have drooled on it while waiting, so...

Enjoy. Looks beautiful.

It is. And scary. (CHUCKLES)

It is also scary.

Righto, dig in.

Oh, Tommy's going hard! That's the go.

TOMMY: I'm looking at the tart. I see the layers.

There's that tart layer, there's the caramel layer

and the frangipane layer.

I think the layers' ratios is going to make a really big difference

on how this tart is gonna taste.

I need to make sure I get these elements perfect.

What are you tasting, mate? The caramel at the bottom.

Really, like, dark notes of flavours, which I really love.

Not too sweet. Lots of textures.

It's, like, perfect.

I'm really worried that if I stuff up one of these elements too badly,

I might just be going home.

Terrifying.

The colour of that tart shell, it's, like, golden.

Probably past golden, I would say.

I reckon that's got to be a pressure point.

Absolutely.

The thinness as well is key.

So, that milk caramel, that's another pressure point.

Absolutely. It's gonna require constant stirring.

'Cause all they want to do is burn, and that's gonna give

a quite unpleasant burnt milk taste to the caramel,

something that we want to try and avoid.

It seems like you could go on forever about the pressure points.

That's something I'm getting a bit worried about.

CHRISTINA: It seems like every element is a pressure point.

I do not cook a lot of sweet dishes.

So this pressure test does not play to my strengths at all.

Time for some all-important rules.

You'll have a total of two hours and 50 minutes

to re-create Gareth's tart.

And you'll have - # Da-da da-da! #

..this entire pantry at your disposal,

because you'll also need to create a little side hustle for your tart.

Anything from a sauce to a cream.

We're gonna leave that entirely up to you.

Yes, 'cause the extremely difficult tart is not enough.

(LAUGHS)

Now, the least impressive dish of the day, they'll send its maker home.

Good luck, guys. Good luck, everyone. Cheers. Good luck.

Gareth, do you want to kick 'em off?

Good luck.

Your time starts now.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

125 grams unsalted.

This is my first pressure test this season.

My pressure tests in season five,

I think I broke down in every single pressure test.

Oh, shake it off. Stop it.

I had a cry.

So, today, I really need to watch my emotions

and I need to stay on top of them.

MAN: You've got this, Christina.

I've brought a photo of my family with me today,

because in my previous season, I always had a photo of my kids

whenever I was in an elimination...

350 plain flour.

..and I found that that would always ground me.

So I'm hoping that my family photo today will do the same thing.

Yes, Christina! Whoo!

The shortcrust pastry, first thing I'll do is cut up all of the butter,

and I put it all into the stand mixer

along with a little bit of salt,

and then I beat it with a little bit of the flour

just so it looks like wet sand.

Once it gets to that consistency, I pour in the cold water,

so then the dough just comes together.

MICHAEL: Looks good, Christina. Thanks, Michael.

Good luck, Tommy. Go, Tommy.

TOMMY: My first element on the recipe - shortcrust pastry.

The mixture has kind of all combined...

MAN: Go, Tommy!

..and now I've got to bring it together by hand

before I put it in the fridge to rest.

My strategy today is just get my head down, bum up -

read the recipe, continue cooking,

and then not be fazed by anything else.

Obviously it's a pressure test, so you're bound to make mistakes.

I just hope I don't make a really big one.

Go, Tommy! Go, guys! Come on!

Ho-ho! Bang-on.

One-in-four chance in leaving MasterChef today.

It's always scary when you put it into those odds.

"Mix on low speed until it starts to resemble..."

Especially if you start adding up

the experience that the favourites have.

WOMAN: You're doing an amazing job.

It sort of makes the odds feel a little bit shorter.

Uh, I would really hate to go home today. I'm not ready.

I feel like I've just sort of...

(BOWL CLATTERS)

Hold that thought. (CHUCKLES)

So, while I'm trying to follow this recipe,

at the same time, I am thinking about that at the moment.

HARRY: Like a bull in a china shop, mate!

Yeah, true, eh?

(LAUGHS)

Ooh!

Already off to a rough start,

but I'm just... (LAUGHS) ..I'm just going for it.

I'm just giving it a crack.

I'll try and get this dough cohesive.

STEPH: Don't... Not too fast.

You're done. That's it. Done. Stop, stop.

It gets together and I just wrap it up and throw it into the fridge,

and she's resting now.

Go, Dan! Whoo! Whoo! Whoo! Whoo!

The next step is the milk caramel.

Good job, Dan.

Uh... MAN: Quick, quick, quick!

Come on! We've got to move, mate. Go, everybody, go!

My strategy today is

spend a good few minutes reading through the recipe.

I just block out everything around me.

Um... (MUMBLES)

Come on. Matt, come on.

(SIGHS)

I'm looking ahead and Matt, he's so calm.

He loves tarts. He is in his element.

And I'm getting super nervous.

"Pour cream into a small saucepan and warm..."

This recipe is so specific.

I can't even read this thing properly.

Like, the words are moving around.

It feels like I'm re-reading the same line

over and over and over again.

"Pour cream into a small saucepan and warm to simmering point."

But I will get sent home if I don't finish the dish.

I know that much.

I'm here in the MasterChef kitchen.

I'm addicted to it now, and I want to see

what I'm gonna be able to do in the next few weeks.

I'm not ready to go home yet, so I've just got to keep going.

Keep moving really fast. Yeah!

Matt, come on. Go, Matt, go!

MATT: My strategy today was to really take my time

and read the recipe properly.

But now I'm a little behind in this cook,

so I need to do these things fast in order to catch up.

Go, Matty! Good work, Matt.

"Whisk to ensure the mixture does not stick to the bottom.

"Cook until it starts to turn to a medium dark caramel,

"approximately 155 degrees."

The milk caramel is quite an important layer

on the bottom of the tart.

It kind of gives it a nice, kind of dark caramelly flavour

that really enhances the sweet and savoury flavours.

You've got this, Tommy. You're doing an amazing job.

DANIEL: "Whisking to ensure

"the mixture does not stick to the bottom of the saucepan."

If any of it burns, it's just gonna permeate through the dish

and just throw the whole thing off.

So that's just ringing in my head over and over and over again -

don't screw up the caramel.

Go on, Dan. You got this, buddy.

This is taking forever.

ALVIN: What temperature does it need to go to?

155. It's sitting at 102.

I just need to start moving quicker, but this caramel is taking forever.

Tommy's got his on the higher stove.

Cook it on that one? Yeah.

This is definitely a worry, because I don't want to fall behind.

That is definitely crucial in a pressure test.

Come on, Christina. You're working on your upper body strength!

Beautiful. Whoo!

You should all be rolling out your tart shell.

We need to move.

Come on, guys. Pick up the pace.

Come on, guys! Come on, guys! Come on!

Man, how long is this caramel taking?!

It's taking forever, right?

A lot of whisky business. (LAUGHTER)

Go, Matty. Keep moving.

MATT: I know I'm so far behind.

There's definitely a sinking feeling.

It's an uneasiness. It's an anxiousness.

Good on you, Matt.

I just need to be frantic and get this done.

My dough is resting in the fridge.

I'm gonna get onto the milk caramel.

I know I have to start working on the other elements

while I'm still working on this milk caramel,

but I can't, 'cause I can't leave it on the stove or it will burn.

Go on, Matt. Come on. You can do it.

Come on, guys!

Yes, Christina!

Come on, Tommy.

Tommy, that looks awesome.

Oh, beautiful. Yeah!

Yeah, she's thickening up nicely.

You're almost there, Dan.

This is taking a while to get to temperature.

Hasn't started caramelising yet.

(SIGHS) It's taking its time, eh?

Keep going.

CHRISTINA: So, when the caramel comes to temperature,

I strain it into a baking tray.

Alright, Christina! It's tart time! Yeah!

Now that the pastry has rested, I need to roll it out nice and thinly

so I can line the tart shell with it.

Use your elbow if you need to. That's right.

Gareth's pastry was really nice and thin.

It's very hard to get really thin pastry with a nice, even spread.

I don't cook with pastry at all, so it's not an easy task.

Why can't it be a Portuguese pressure test?

(SIGHS)

Make it perfect - it's that simple! Two hours to go!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

Come on, Dan the man. Let's go.

It's getting close, Matty.

Yeah, 139. It's starting to go.

Keep going, Christina. Go, Christina.

CHRISTINA: My pastry seems to be big enough to put into the pastry tin.

But I just don't know if it's thin enough.

I don't want to fall behind,

so I'm just trying to stay on top of the time.

Come on, guys. Let's go.

Come on, Dan. It looks great.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

Go, Dan!

Yeah, OK. Nerves are kicking in here! (LAUGHS)

Yeah. Great. Whoo!

You got it!

TOMMY: My shortcrust pastry, I'm trying to be really finessed with it,

but I need to just make sure I get it in the oven so it can blind-bake.

Use a knife, Tommy. Yep. Just patching up some spots.

Get it in the oven, Tom.

If I take too long to put this tart in the oven,

then I won't be able to finish it.

I'm filling my pastry with some rice to hold it down

so I can blind-bake it.

The recipe says to put the tart in the oven for 35 minutes.

Nice. Well done, Tommy.

I now need to move on to my frangipane filling,

which is kind of the main bulk of the tart.

Nice, Tommy.

Come on, Christina. You've got this! Whoo!

Go, Christina! Alright, Christina, you got this.

Beautiful! Yes, Dan. Good job.

Go, Matty. Good work, Matt. You've got it.

MATT: I've made a few tart shells before,

and I made them pretty successfully.

Thankfully, this is actually the process I follow

to make my shortcrust pastry at home.

So, it's nice following something you're familiar with.

ALI: Matt, if you use a bit of the offcut of the pastry

to push it into the things, it's better than using your fingers.

This is how I do at home, so I'm just used to that.

But I have to be really careful

to push it carefully into the corners of the pie tin,

making sure there's no air pockets so that it doesn't shrink...

..and also keep it an even thickness so it forms a perfectly even crust.

Hey, Matt. Hello.

What do you think of the pastry so far?

This is incredibly impressive.

I've got to say, your corners are looking pretty spot-on.

That's leaving the gluten

absolutely nowhere to go when it's gonna be in the oven,

so you're hopefully looking at zero shrinkage.

I think what also is key is

getting that into the oven as fast as you can.

Yep. Yep. As time is ticking.

OK. We'll leave you to it. Keep pushing, OK?

I can tell Gareth's really worried about the fact

that I'm the only one without my tart shell in the oven.

Oh, the unsalted.

So, knowing how important timing is with this cook...

..I'm a bit panicked.

You've only got an hour and a half to go!

(APPLAUSE) Lift it, guys!

"Brown butter. 250 grams unsalted..."

Push, push, push! You've got this!

All we need is one perfect tart. Come on, guys. Pick up the pace!

MATT: Andy's been putting the pressure on

because everyone is falling behind on this cook.

Beautiful, mate. Perfect, Matt.

And I'm behind all of them.

Everyone else has got their tart shells

blind-baking in the oven already,

so I am motoring to get this together.

That's it, Matt. Good on you, Matt.

I need to do these things fast in order to catch up.

Good work, Matt. Go, Matt, go!

With an hour and 15 minutes to go in the cook,

I need to get onto the frangipane filling.

This tart's gonna have a lot of time in the oven

where I'm not doing anything and can't do anything to it,

so in order to have the time to get it in, I need to be hustling now.

Come on, guys. Keep going.

CHRISTINA: Time is definitely playing on my mind,

because I'm struggling with the frangipane filling

and I'm getting very emotional.

I look at my family photo and it does help,

but it also really pulls on the heartstrings.

Breathe. Take a moment.

Alright, Christina, you got this.

But I have to stay on top of my emotions because I have a job to do.

All good, Christina. You can multi-task.

Thank you.

I just need to start moving faster and not let my emotions take over.

Just a couple more minutes until the tart shell comes out,

so what I'm doing is I'm just trying to clean my bench down...

Oh, it's actually coming out of the oven.

Yes! Come on!

Deep breaths. Take it easy.

(SIGHS) Yes, Jock. Yes, Chef.

Go, Christina!

(ALARM BEEPS)

Go on, Dan.

Looks good, Tommy!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

ALVIN: He's actually caught up. Go, Matty! Whoo!

Come on, guys!

DANIEL: So, I've pulled my tart shell out of the oven

and the next step is getting to work with the caramel.

Outer layer. Cool.

I'm putting a nice, even layer of caramel on the bottom

and it'll be topped with the frangipane.

With Gareth's tart, there was a rough line of where the caramel sat,

but it also merged into the frangipane.

So now I have to try and actually figure out

where that line of caramel is.

About a sixth of it, yeah.

You just have to make sure the ratios are correct.

TOMMY: The tart recipe says it needs 50 minutes for its final cook.

I'm so flustered right now.

I'm struggling to get the caramel

nice and evenly at the bottom of my tart,

but I need to really move on to my frangipane layer.

I've got my wet mixture and I'm combining it with my dry ingredients,

then I pour it into my tart shell on top of the caramel.

I don't really know what a pecan batter is supposed to look like,

so I hope I get this right.

Guys, I can't see any of these tarts in the oven.

You need to push!

Yes?! Come on!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

I'm stressed for sure,

but I need to make sure these pecans look good, right?

Come on, Daniel. Push. Got to get it in the oven, man.

You're almost there, Dan. Keep going.

(WHISPERS) OK. 50 minutes, Christina.

I only have 50 minutes left.

If I don't get the tart in, it's going to be raw.

It's not going to cook all the way through.

Go, Christina. Come on.

That's it, Christina! Stay focused!

(TEARFULLY) Yeah, trying to.

Nice, Tommy. Very nice, mate.

I can hear other people's tarts going back into the oven.

That's it, Matt. Go, Matt. Almost there. Looking good.

OK.

I need to get this tart into the oven now.

Keep going, Christina. You've got this.

But I still have to finish off that frangipane filling,

and it's very complicated.

(PANTS) "Combine the warm brown butter

"with the pecan puree in a jug."

The issue with this kitchen is that I want to stay here so badly.

Is this the brown butter? Smell it.

Yeah.

And there's all of those time constraints

and...you overthink things.

Christina, move faster than you have ever moved before.

I'm trying!

I'm trying to stay on top of my emotions, but that's not happening.

(SNIFFLES)

I'm just totally losing it right now.

Go, Christina. You got this.

Keep going, Christina. You're doing really well.

Go, Christina, you're fine.

Just breathe, mate. Just breathe. Come on, Christina.

The emotional side of things is definitely getting to me.

(SNIFFLES)

"Add dry ingredients." OK.

This tart is going to take 50 minutes to cook in the oven,

but I'm still working on the frangipane filling.

So I just need to take a breath, calm my nerves,

and just keep moving forward with it.

You've got this, Christina!

Is it going to rise in the oven?

Yes, a little bit.

Only a little bit.

I'm going to fight till the very end.

I'm definitely not giving up.

Nice, Christina!

Daniel.

Yo! You got to move, man.

It needs to be in the oven. Yeah.

Tommy and Matt's tarts are in the oven already.

So it's just me and Christina who still don't have them in.

I know I need to motor.

I just chuck these pecans on top.

Ooh, jeez.

Get it in. Good work, mate.

It's going in the oven now. I don't have any more time to waste.

Well done, mate.

Come on, Christina! Come on!

Yes, Christina!

It's beautiful!

Looks lovely.

Beautiful!

Yes, you!

CHRISTINA: I've popped the tart into the oven with 40 minutes to go.

Well done. Thank you.

Give us a hug.

Come on. Do your side hustle now. Pull it together.

I don't know if that's going to be enough time to cook it.

Has anyone seen my bag of coffee?

Behind. Behind. Yeah.

This pressure test is interesting, because the main element, the tart,

is in the oven now.

You can't do anything else for the tart,

and now we've got this side hustle.

For my side hustle, I'm doing, like, a coffee anglaise.

Look at that. Hey!

Coffee would go really well with this tart.

It's got those same dark savoury notes to it,

and I think it might really elevate the tart.

I'm really happy with that. Yep.

I'm now going to work on my maple glaze.

The maple glaze on the tart,

it's just a beautiful layer on top of the tart.

It's sweet, but you get that beautiful smokiness,

which makes it really, really nice.

Let's get this sorted.

I'm blitzing up my maple glaze to get it nice and shiny.

I strain it into a copper pan so I can use it later

on top of the tart.

I love it. I love chai. So good.

I've been practising my desserts

and I've learnt a chai creme diplomat,

which means whipped cream and custard, essentially.

So I'm going to make that.

I've been practising it and now it's time to show a little bit

of my dessert skill.

MATT: For my side hustle,

I'm gonna make a simple whisky Chantilly cream.

How's it taste, buddy?

Get some whisky there?

Yeah, it is coming through. I don't want too much.

I want the Chantilly cream not too sweet

to overpower the flavour of what's not a very sweet tart.

Back in the fridge for a little bit?

Yeah, 'cause they're gonna eat it cold.

Good job, Matt.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

Oh!

Oh, my God!

Is that too much cream? Never.

(LAUGHS)

CHRISTINA: The tart is so perfect on its own,

I don't actually think it needs anything.

So I decide to whip some creme fraiche and use some maple syrup

to slightly sweeten it and bounce off the maple syrup

that's in the tart.

What are you thinking? Does it need salt or anything?

A little bit of cream. A little bit of salt.

It's almost tart time.

Two minutes to go.

ANDY: Come on!

(CHEERING) Come on, guys.

Stunning. Yes, Matt!

Beautiful, Dan. It's so pretty!

I've pulled my tart shell out of the oven and I'm stoked.

It looks good. It looks cooked.

It looks a little bit uglier than some of the others.

But I'm happy with it. I'm proud of it.

Oh, Tommy!

TOMMY: Looking at my tart shell,

it doesn't look as beautiful as Gareth's.

Ugh! This is so terrifying!

There's definitely little things that I'm worried about.

Like, maybe I rushed it too much and I missed some little details

that I'm not sure of.

But at the end of the day, it's going to hinge on how well

everybody else did.

And I have no idea where I kind of sit in the pack today,

so hopefully I've done enough.

Come on, get your tarts on the plate.

You've only got one minute! Come on!

OTHERS: One minute!

Oh, my God. It's on the edge. It's on the edge.

MATT: My tart's looking good.

It doesn't have any cracks in it.

So I'm hopeful that the tart has cooked through all the way.

I think I've done as much as I can today to keep myself safe.

Come on, you've got to get it out.

Get it out, Christina.

CHRISTINA: Everyone's taken the tarts out of the oven.

And I'm just kind of holding myself back, not wanting to pull it out.

It is so nerve-racking because all I want to do

is pull it out of the oven, but I need to leave it in there

so it can cook all the way through.

Come on, Christina!

It's now or never. I've got to get the tart out of the oven.

ANDY: She's coming out now.

Just pray to the baking tart gods that it's going to be cooked

all the way through.

30 seconds!

30 seconds! Get it on the plate!

(CHEERING)

Oh, Tommy!

Here we go. Ten!

ALL: Nine, eight, seven...

Christina, bring the plate closer to it!

..four, three, three, two...

..one!

JOCK: And that's it!

TOMMY: Time's up. Tart is on the plate.

I can do no more with this tart, it's up to fate now.

Yes, Dan! Well done, guys! Whoo!

Well done, boys!

Looking at the other benches, the tarts all look amazing.

But you can't really tell until the judges dive into the tart,

and that's the most scariest part,

like, not knowing what will happen from here on.

Well, the old worry beads got a workout today. Holy mackerel.

That is some tart.

And of course, we don't even know how they're going to go,

because you can't open it, right? Yep, exactly.

They can't see what's inside that tart until it comes

to the tasting table.

One thing's for sure - someone's going home.

MATT: Heading into the tasting room,

I'm actually really proud of what I've done today.

Right, Matt? How you doing?

I'm doing good. How are YOU doing?

Hopefully good after this.

I feel like I've followed the recipe in a hugely stressful environment,

under an immense pressure,

and I'm really happy with how my tart's looking.

Matt. First pressure test in the bag.

How does it feel?

I guess no matter what happens today,

I feel like I've achieved something.

Fingers crossed it looks good when you taste it.

What's the side hustle, Matt?

I've done a maple and whisky Chantilly cream.

Alright, mate. We'll taste it now. Thanks, buddy.

Thanks. Thank you very much. Thank you.

ANDY: The tart shell looks great.

I don't think it's the same as yours in terms of caramelisation,

but it's pretty close.

Agree.

He's had enough time too to finesse the pecans on top, which is great.

I can't handle it.

I need you to open it. I was gonna say...

I need you to open it.

Should we see if it's cooked? OK.

Ooh...

What are you thinking?

I think it looks pretty good.

Pastry looks thin too.

Mm. It's lovely.

Really nice shell.

Technically we can see in the corners of where the pastry creases

at that right angle

how even and consistent the thickness is through there,

which is a real telltale sign for good technique.

And we were all worried that she might be raw, but it's not.

It's cooked perfectly.

And great flavour to back it up.

The whisky cream side hustle is strong, but I kind of like it.

Pecan and whisky - nice.

I think he's done a really great job.

He nailed it.

Good luck, Dan. Cheers, guys.

I was slower than almost everyone else getting my tart into the oven.

And the thing that's killing me is I don't know what it looks like

on the inside, so I don't know how cooked it is,

I don't have if the pastry's blond at all.

Daniel.

G'day, guys. How are you, mate?

Hey, mate. (SIGHS)

All these little things are now playing in my head.

The uncertainty of everything is killing me inside.

(SIGHS)

VOICEOVER: Hungry for inspiration?

Daniel. Andy.

First-ever MasterChef pressure test.

What did you think?

That is, um...

That is rough. That is rougher than hessian underwear, that. It's...

(LAUGHS) Rougher than hessian underwear?

Yeah. It's just... (LAUGHS)

It is tough, very hard, yeah.

What about the side hustle?

So, I've done, like, a chai tea-spiced creme diplomat.

Well, we're gonna cut the thing open,

um, but you have to leave first.

Alright, no worries, guys. Cheers. MELISSA: Thank you.

Thanks, Daniel.

Pecan placement...

Abstract. At best. Yeah.

Chaotic. Yeah.

This is another one that I'm worried about.

It went in pretty late.

His was...second-last to go in.

There's a bit of movement in the middle there as you're cutting it,

I can see.

Nope. Looks great. (LAUGHS)

It's alright. It's pretty good.

Looks really good. It looks really, really nice.

The shell's quite even and thin.

It is nice and thin.

Thank you.

It's pretty tasty. Mm.

He's done a really good job.

I think the chai diplomat is actually, for me, that's great.

Mm. Look at that!

It's so thin. The colour too, it's...

And the colour of the base is...

..is nut brown.

It looks...it looks unreal.

I think this is a great effort by Daniel.

And first pressure test

and uncomfortable territory, I think for him, pastry land, anyway.

The frangipane, the cook on his is so impressive.

Bit rough and ready with the pecan nuts.

The shell itself, the thickness...

Mm. ..is fantastic.

A tremendous effort from someone

who doesn't make any kind of pastry on the reg.

It has probably the best caramelisation on top.

The colour of the baked frangipane

is pretty close to what we want it to be.

I think we might have a secret gun pastry cook...

Maybe. ..brewing, you know, in this mix.

TOMMY: See you guys later. CHRISTINA: You got this.

Walking back into the restaurant room, I'm terrified.

Tommy. What up, fam?

How are ya? Living the dream.

That's good. (CHUCKLES) Living the dream.

The feelings that it brings back IS not good.

Your heart kind of drops.

But, you know, I'm gonna try to stay composed.

Hopefully, I've done enough.

Ooh.

So what did you end up doing for your side hustle?

Uh, a little coffee anglaise. A little bit of spices in there.

I think it will go well with the tart.

Yep.

Well, mate, I reckon we'll taste, so thanks for that.

Cool. Enjoy, guys. Love ya.

Right.

What are we thinking about the look, Gareth?

His tart shell's...

..a little on the thick side.

And it is a tiny bit pale.

Mm.

How's it look? It's...

..surprisingly well held together.

I was expecting it to be a little bit doughier.

Which is great.

And how's the caramel ratio looking? Also really good.

Tommy's pastry is, um, a little bit rough

and a few cracks and holes and whatnot in the sides,

and a little bit thicker.

The frangipane itself is cooked, first of all,

which is a massive tick.

The caramel, though, 10 out of 10. I agree.

The caramel is perfect,

both in the way that it's held up inside the cake

but also the flavour.

And the coffee custard, I think the flavour goes well with the pastry.

Yeah, it eats really well as a one-two combination.

But when I look at Tommy's tart shell and then the frangipane,

the devil is in the details.

CHRISTINA: First time going into that tasting room this season,

I am not looking forward to it at all.

Good luck, Christina. Good luck, mate. Thanks, guys.

It's really nerve-racking.

Thank you.

I've...given it everything today.

I haven't left anything behind.

(IN SINGSONG VOICE) Christina. Hey.

Today, I just wanted to curl up in a ball.

I cried but I kept pushing through.

I'm very proud that I managed to get all the elements on the plate...

..but when the judges cut open that tart,

I have no idea if it's going to be cooked all the way through.

And it just...

That is a terrible feeling.

But you pulled it together. You finished.

I was really proud that even though I was crying,

that I managed to kind of pull it all together, um,

and just, like, keep pushing.

I've learned how resilient I can be and produced such an amazing tart.

So hopefully, it tastes good. (CHUCKLES) Fingers crossed.

What did you end up making as your side hustle?

I went with like a creme fraiche, just a whipped creme fraiche.

I have a little bit of maple syrup in there,

just to echo the maple in the tart.

And I didn't want anything to compete with the tart,

I want it to be all about that.

And then just hopefully, that complements it.

Here's hoping you have another opportunity to cook for us.

Yes. But it all, I guess, rests on...

..what's happening on the inside of that tart.

Yep.

So we'll taste and, um, we'll let you know.

Thank you. Thank you.

ANDY: Thanks, Christina. Thanks, Christina.

OK, so, Christina's does look a bit different to your tart.

Look, there's a lot less pecans on there than there should have been

but I've gotta say,

you can mess around putting the exact amount of pecans on there

or you can get it in the oven. (CHUCKLES)

Slice away, mate.

That looks squidgy.

(INHALES) Oh.

Yeah. Raw in the middle?

Yep.

Pastry's a touch...thick as well, gotta say.

Watching Christina cook today, I mean, she fell apart

and somehow, she managed to scoop herself up and keep going,

and sadly, it feels a little bit like that, you know what I mean?

The tart case isn't quite there,

presentation-wise, there isn't quite enough pecan nuts in there.

There is a very gratifying deep, rich intensity to her frangipane.

Mm. The nuts have been roasted properly,

pureed very well.

Sadly, it's just undercooked.

Which is a shame.

I'm absolutely gutted for her because the flavour is fantastic.

100%. I found myself wanting to go back for more

because the flavour of it is...

So good. ..pretty brilliant.

It's...exactly how we want it to be.

And with the creme fraiche,

I've always really enjoyed the acidity

that things like the souring of yoghurts and creme fraiche can have

and the way they balance against caramel.

And this is a really great example of that for me.

Props to her because, honestly, I didn't think she was gonna finish.

And the creme fraiche was perfect, you know.

And then, the frangipane tastes amazingly

but it's got flaws in the technique.

But flavour can do a lot for you in this kitchen.

Yep.

Well, correct me if I'm wrong,

you won't forget about this pressure test any time soon, will ya?

ALL: No.

Gareth, how do you reckon they handled the pressure today?

Given the time constraints we put on them

and all the pressure points that we touched on

at the beginning of the cook,

I think we had four pretty incredible tarts

so I think, yeah, they should all be very proud of themselves.

I agree. Yep.

Well, it's been a pleasure having you in the kitchen.

Everyone, give it up for Gareth Whitton, everybody!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

Right, let's get down to business, we need to send someone home.

And it comes down to how closely your tart resembled Gareth's

and the impact of your side hustle.

Two of you really impressed us today.

And surprisingly,

it's the two with the least amount of experience in this kitchen.

Matt, Daniel...

..your tarts were delicious.

And we... None of us wanted to stop eating them.

You guys should be so proud of the effort that both of you put in today.

Safe to say, you're not going anywhere.

Well done, lads.

Best of luck.

Yes!

Oh, my God.

You just wouldn't... would not read about it.

Good job.

Best of luck.

The fact that my tart was up there in the best of today

is just an unbelievable feeling.

Tommy, Christina,

it was clear that the cook overwhelmed one of you.

And there were flaws in every part of your dish.

But the greatest problem...

..was that the tart was in the oven too late

and as such, it didn't cook through.

Which unfortunately, is why, Christina...

Yep. ..you're going home.

Oh, my God.

I'm gutted that I'm leaving the competition.

I let the pressure get to me

and the trying to keep up and I really should have just...

..cooked, um...

..better. (CHUCKLES)

I should have just cooked better.

MELISSA: Well, Christina, it may be the end of your time here

but this is just one chapter in the story that you are creating.

And we can't wait to see what's on the next page.

Yep.

I've had so much fun, I really have.

So happy that I came back. I got to meet all these cool new people

and I've made some lifelong friends.

Bring her in, bring her in. Bring her in.

And even though there were some really low moments,

the highs were just incredible.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

I'm going to start cooking more Portuguese food

and getting that out there.

So I'm excited to see what the future holds.

Give it up for Christina, everybody!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

VOICEOVER: Tomorrow night on MasterChef Australia...

It's Clare Smyth!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

..one of the world's best chefs

brings the ultimate fine dining service challenge.

HARRY: I'm so pumped.

There is so much that I can learn from this incredible woman.

Will her three Michelin stars...

MINDY: I am just starstruck.

..inspire a win for the fans or the favourites?

Captions by Red Bee Media