MasterChef Australia (2009–…): Season 14, Episode 61 - Episode #14.61 - full transcript
Peter Gilmore has created some of the most famed and punishing pressure tests in the program's history. For a spot in the semifinals, contestants must simultaneously cook two of his most complex dishes.
ANDY: Billie...YOU are our first
semifinalist for 2022.
(APPLAUSE)
Oh, Billie!
BILLIE: To be here in
the semifinal is amazing.
Last time, when I won MasterChef,
I was very young.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
I felt a huge amount of pressure to
pursue a career in the food industry.
I would like to offer you...
(GASPING)
..a job at the Fat Duck.
(CHEERING)
Going straight to the Fat Duck
in England,
while it was such an amazing
experience, I wasn't ready for it.
(EXHALES)
Just felt like I wasn't
good enough to do it.
That scared me a bit, I think,
and steered me away from food
and cooking.
Get one?
After having my daughter,
I was working on the farm, loving it,
but was wondering
what was sort of missing.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Coming back has been
a bit of an awakening
and definitely a bit of a kick
up the butt I think that I needed.
This is just deeply
impressive food.
You're a very clever
and thoughtful cook.
I've really found that love and that
passion again for cooking creatively.
ALDO: Yes, Billie!
JOCK: We weren't here
in Billie's season,
but I think we're beginning to see
why Billie won.
Winning this competition again,
it would really cement the fact
that I belong in food.
It's made me feel like me again.
MELISSA: Sarah, you have been busy
since the SECOND
you left this kitchen -
books, restaurants, TV shows.
SARAH: Over the last eight years,
I've worked nonstop
to build an incredible career
that I'm now really, really proud of.
What's drawn you back to
the MasterChef kitchen?
I mean, it's just such
an incredible experience.
I think from the outside,
a lot of people probably think
that things have just kind
of fallen in my lap.
But I was raised by
a tough single mum
and we didn't have a lot
of money growing up.
From 17 years old,
I was working five jobs.
I've always worked really hard
at my skills
to allow my skills to push through.
I feel like I'm constantly
having to prove
that I'm worthy of the success
that I've had.
Why are you nervous to serve
these kind of dishes?
ANDY: Yeah.
This is the direction
that I would like to head in.
Do you feel more vulnerable
because you've found your thing
and therefore you're revealing
yourself?
Mm-hm.
My butter-poached lobster
really was a turning point.
That has all the refinement
of a three-Michelin-star dish.
I didn't realise that coming back
this time,
it would give me so much confidence
to go down that route of fine dining.
Phenomenal.
MELISSA: Spectacular.
An absolute belter.
I could not have imagined that
when I first stepped foot
into the kitchen eight years ago,
that dream of winning MasterChef
would finally be within reach.
DANIEL: Can't believe
I made the semifinal of MasterChef.
(CHUCKLES) You bloody ripper!
Oh, man. How good is that?
Being from Darwin and from my circle,
MasterChef is world's apart.
I remember coming here
and freaking out
'cause I'd never actually eaten
a kohlrabi
or I'd never eaten a celeriac.
You're brunoising an onion. Do you
know that that's what you're doing?
I just learned something.
Daniel.
Yes!
(APPLAUSE)
The day I stepped in the MasterChef
kitchen just changed my life.
I'm calling it
You're Bacon Me Go Nuts.
It's a...textural journey...
that ice-cream.
(LAUGHTER)
I'm loving this, man.
I...have studied my arse off.
This is my braised kale
with a vibrant cucumber broth.
ANDY: Everything that you've learned
in this competition was in that bowl
and we absolutely loved it.
I might be the underdog, but...
JOCK: Stupendous work.
The flavours are endless.
Very, very, very good.
Yes! I got a clap!
In my job as a firefighter, it became
apparent to me that, unfortunately,
life can be short.
I had this realisation
I didn't wanna kick the bucket
and regret not taking that step
and seeing what was there for me.
I'm not here to put socks
on centipedes,
I'm here to have a bloody crack
at it, I'm here to win.
(CHEERING)
BILLIE: Oh, look at this.
DANIEL: It's so pretty, isn't it?
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Whoo!
Welcome to the semifinals.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Whoop-whoop!
Yeah, guys!
It might seem obvious to say it
out loud, but...
..one day out from possibly winning
a whopping 250 large
and being crowned
Australia's MasterChef for 2022.
Yeah, that's what you want.
(APPLAUSE)
Oh, wouldn't read about it.
Here to support you today are your
old teammates turned friends.
They're just as excited as we are
to see one of you lift that trophy.
Alright, Sarah, Daniel, Billie,
as you know,
today is a service challenge.
Yesterday, we asked you to go home
and have a think about
your perfect three-course menu.
You will need to cook us
an entree, a main and a dessert
for 20 diners plus the three of us.
All up, that is close
to 70 individual plates of food.
No mean feat.
You will have four hours
until your entrees need to start
leaving the pass.
From there, you'll have 45 minutes
per course
to send all of your plates.
Only the top two contestants today
will secure a place
in the grand finale.
This is far from your first service
challenge so trust yourselves today
and bring it on home.
One more thing.
What?
You didn't think
that we'd make you guys
tackle this beast of a challenge
alone, did you?
Oh, we get help!
So, back running the pass today
is a friend and mentor
of this very kitchen.
He's back to inspire you, to push you
and to make sure that you deliver
the best bloody food that you've got.
Please welcome, back in the house,
the man, the myth...
..the legend...
..Shannon Bennett, everyone!
Yes!
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Yes!
BILLIE: Oh, it's so good
to see Shannon Bennett.
Yes.
Hey, Sarah.
Hi.
Dan. Billie. How are you?
Good. How are you?
Good.
He did the service challenge
in season seven,
and such a nice presence
in the kitchen.
Always full of advice and wisdom.
I'm just so glad he's back.
Shannon, you've run a heap of these
challenges in your time,
what's the one thing you think
is gonna get these guys through?
It's the most simplest thing -
keeping things clean and organised
is the key.
And not to panic.
I've seen situations that just say,
"Oh, my God, it's all over."
Half an hour later, you've nailed
one thing you didn't think
that you could nail
and all of a sudden,
you're back in the game.
And I suppose my job is to make sure
that all three of you,
your dream stays alive
and we make it as hard as possible
for these three
to decide who goes home.
So let's have some fun doing it.
Righto.
Now we're all here, let's do this.
Prove to us that you belong
in the grand finale.
Good luck. Your time starts now.
Go, guys!
(CHEERING)
Go, guys!
ALDO: Go, Sarah!
MAX: Come on, Dan! Let's hustle!
DANIEL: Planning my menu last night,
I didn't sleep.
I'm so nervous to do three courses
by myself.
I spent all night thinking about it,
this menu.
I wanted to really show
where I've come from in cooking
to what I am now.
Being from Darwin definitely has
inspired a lot of my food.
Let's go, Dan.
Tropical. Nice.
Today, I wanna show off my
understanding of tropical flavours.
Something with fruit,
with the natives.
I think the pressure today is
it's a bit more personal.
This is my chance to show the judges
how much I've learned
throughout this whole time, in
regards to flavour and techniques.
(EXHALES)
Wow. Well, thank you so much
for coming back into the kitchen.
You walking in here just, I think,
was that extra boost of energy
that they needed.
This is big.
This is a really big day.
This is the big-time.
This is the culmination of all
of that work
is all coming now to
stories on the plate.
And this is where you wanna be,
I mean, cooking your food.
And I think in the kitchen right now,
we have three epic cooks
so I can't wait to see
what they're cooking.
Alright, Shannon, few minutes into
service, you better get in there
and see what they're up to.
Good luck, mate.
Thanks, buddy. Thank you.
Good luck.
Cheers, mate.
ALDO: Go, Sarah.
My cooking style that I've discovered
over this season
of French techniques
with Indian flavours
has really inspired my menu today.
My entree is scampi served
with a consomme,
served with a kind of masala
salsa on top of the scampi.
My main is my take
kind of on a saagwala.
So it's a lamb spinach dish.
'Saag' is spinach.
It's a spinach curry.
So for this dish, I am just keeping
it really quite light,
so not heavily spiced, because
this is my take on the saagwala.
And then finishing off
with a chai dessert.
So I'm doing a milk chocolate chai
mousse with the poached pears,
and then a hazelnut caramel as well.
Everything is riding on this menu.
It's showing my journey cooking
this style of food.
And this is what I wanna do
for the rest of my life.
So it needs to be perfect.
The first thing I need to do is
get my lamb prepped for the main.
I'm just moving on to
the brine for my lamb,
so I wanna get that in
for quite a bit of time.
I'm brining my lamb because
I want to add as much flavour
and tenderness as possible.
Come on, guys! Come on.
Let's go, guys.
Come on!
Come on, Billie.
Oh, I feel really lucky to be here
again for the semifinal.
Lots of work to do though, holy hell.
I've come to realise
I really love cooking dishes
that are stemmed from memories.
You know, especially being a kid,
I think that's when a lot
of your fond food memories start.
So for my entree, I'm doing
a pea, mussel and horseradish soup.
And then the main is a bit of an ode
to a childhood classic -
apricot chicken,
which I always loved growing up,
so I'm doing apricot duck
for the main.
And then for dessert,
I'm doing a lamington.
I'm not starting on the entree
straightaway
because I need to put all of my focus
into this dessert.
The entree's quite simple in its prep
so it's one of the jobs I can leave
to the tail end of this four hours,
hoping that I have enough time.
Go, Billie.
Go, Bill.
You got this, mate.
This lamington has a lot going on
within the dish.
It's a dessert that I've
been working on.
So, it's a chocolate mousse with a
cherry, strawberry and orange centre.
It's covered in a tempered
chocolate coating,
served with some coconut snow and
some nice little crispy bits as well.
Nice, Billie.
So I've started my dessert and the
spheres are in the blast chiller.
The next thing I need to start on
are preparing these ducks
for the main course.
Good hustle, Billie.
I need to work fast
because I have so many elements
still to do for this dessert.
Keep it up, guys. Go, Dan!
Oh, how big are they?! Nice.
You don't get fish this small
in Darwin. (LAUGHS)
I get to work on my entree
and I'm most excited about doing
cured kingfish.
Good filleting, Dan!
I often cook a raw or pickled fish
at home, we call it namas,
and it's just that quick,
beautiful thing,
it's very refreshing, very zingy.
And this is a refined version
of that.
Dan.
G'day, Shannon. How are we?
Good, mate.
Explain to me quickly,
I know you're under the pump.
Entree, I'm doing
a lemon-myrtle-cured kingfish.
Mm.
Um, it's gonna have a coconut
emulsion underneath it,
like a little creamy element.
Um, then a pineapple sauce,
like an acidic number.
The main is gonna be a barbecue
coral trout, curry sauce.
Curry sauce, I'm calling a coastal
curry, like, a mix between a laksa
and a jungle curry sort of sauce.
The dessert, I'm thinking of doing
a chilli rum pineapple tarte Tatin.
Mm.
And a coconut sorbet.
There's too many similarities
in your entree to your main course.
Hearing Shannon's concerns,
oh, it's really thrown me off.
Fruit, uh, fish. Fruit, fish.
Yep.
Entree, main.
If I'm, uh, a diner out there,
I'm wanting variation
in what you're doing.
You've gotta have
a real think about this
and work out a substitution
that's not fruit-based.
OK. Mm.
Hearing that your menu isn't great
from the start is such a concern.
Fruit, uh, fish. Fruit, fish.
You've gotta have a real think
about this
and work out a substitution
that's not fruit-based.
OK.
Alright. Good luck.
Thanks very much. Cheers.
MICHAEL: You got this, Dan!
I'm going to take on Shannon's advice
and just alter things.
It's still the bones of the dish,
so it will be the fish -
a light fish entree and a cooked fish
main, but changing it.
Let's go, Dan!
I'm thinking for the entree,
I can still do the lemon-myrtle-cured
kingfish and the coconut emulsion,
but do a pickled red onion instead
for that bright acidity.
That eliminates the pineapple.
MONTANA: You're good, Dan.
Keep your head straight.
I'll be using a lot of lime
and kaffir lime for it instead,
rather than repeating the pineapple.
Keep working, Dan.
Keep working, mate.
I'm going to add a paperbark oil.
Beautiful black oil
that just contrasts really well
with everything.
So I figured that's gonna add a very,
very cool dimension to the entree.
So to make that,
just need to burn some paperback.
Yes, Dan!
Work it, mate. Work it.
Kill the flames with two bowls
and then...
Oh, no, it's made a little vacuum.
(LAUGHS)
Oh, it's sucked all the oxygen out.
Once I finally get the bowls
to crack open,
I throw the paperbark in the blender
with charcoal powder and oil
and just blitz it on high
for five minutes.
And then strain it through a soup bag
and then you get this beautiful,
like, squid-ink-colour oil.
Gonna go back to being a fireman?
Or are you gonna be a chef now?
Or you haven't decided?
See how well I go with this.
(CHUCKLES)
Do you rate yourself now, mate?
Good work, Dan.
Yoo-yoo.
Well, the good news AND the bad news
is that you're halfway there.
Two hours to go!
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Let's go! Come on.
Shake those tail feathers!
Good work, Sarah!
Go, Sarah. Come on.
SARAH: So, I am going to
pressure-cook some lamb for my jus.
It also gives me the option of adding
little pops of shredded lamb as well,
so I think it's a really nice
addition for the main.
You're on a roll now, Sarah.
I need a lot of time to prepare
my entree and main.
There's so many elements
going into each dish
and so I really need to make
sure I get all of the prep done
before service.
Sarah just looks so unflappable,
doesn't she? It's amazing.
Mm.
She's just so calm.
Very calm.
I'd be like a headless chook.
MINDY: Let's hustle, Sarah!
So, I am just moving on to my scampi.
So for my menu today,
I'm starting off with a scampi
with a really beautiful broth.
Need to move. There's a lot to do.
This dish, it's all about simplicity
and perfection,
so I am skewering these to make sure
they stay nice and straight.
Pop them into the water,
blanch them for one minute,
and I need to allow them
to cool before I peel.
It's gonna take a while.
It is pretty ambitious, doing
two extremely complex dishes
that need a lot of prep work,
but if I nail this,
I know it's gonna be amazing.
Little more! Little more!
Yeah, get it, Billie.
You got it!
(LAUGHTER)
(CHEERING)
Whoo!
Uh, so...
..got a few things on the go
at the moment.
I've done my fruit inserts
for the lamington.
I've butchered all of the duck,
got the necks in the oven
to make the sauce.
Got the duck breasts,
are in the sous-vide machines,
and I'm starting the chocolate mousse
for the dessert.
Go, Billie.
My dessert is a lamington.
It's not a traditional lamington,
but it's my new take on a lamington.
This dessert is quite technical
and time-consuming,
so I've got a huge mountain to climb
to prepare my entrees and mains.
Hey, Billie.
Hey, Shannon.
That mousse actually looks great.
Yeah, I'm pretty happy with that.
That looks really good.
Oh, yeah. That's good.
That's good, Billie.
Thank you very much.
I'm feeling really good
about the dessert.
MICHAEL: Yes, Billie.
My mousse is looking really nice.
It's light and it's all combined
really well.
MAX: Billie, it looks so light,
mate.
(CHUCKLES) Hope so.
Then inside is the cherry,
strawberry and orange sorbet
so it provides
that temperature contrast.
I need to get it
into the blast chiller
so I can actually dip these
lamingtons in the chocolate.
Look at Billie. Oh, that's
a little insert into the...
MONTANA: Yeah, for the mousse.
Must be like a jelly or something.
Doesn't matter where you're at
on your prep list,
you've got 90 minutes
until the entrees leave the pass.
Come on.
(ALL SHOUT ENCOURAGEMENT)
I'm feeling pretty good.
Just need to keep the momentum up
so I can get everything done.
ALDO: Go, Sarah. Come on.
MINOLI: She's still doing scampi?
Hmm?
She's still doing scampi?
Yeah, she is.
Doing really well, Dan.
SARAH: Oh, my God.
This scampi is a nightmare to peel.
I totally underestimated
how long this was going to take.
But I need to jump onto the dessert
so I can get started
on poaching the pears.
My dessert is masala chai pears,
and I am going to sous-vide my pears
'cause they need a long time to cook
to make sure they're nice and tender.
Sarah.
Hello.
ANDY: Uh, the all-important scampi.
Uh, you've got a lot to peel, hey?!
I know. That is a lot.
There's 1.5 hours to go.
Like, I don't know
what I was thinking.
Salsa made?
No, the salsa's not made.
Sauce is not finished,
salsa not made.
Honestly, I have a lot to do.
That was a really bad idea,
wasn't it?
(ALL SHOUT ENCOURAGEMENT)
SARAH: I'm almost done.
No, I'm not. 20 more. (CHUCKLES)
Wish I could do them for you.
I wish I could just come in
and help you.
I know. (LAUGHS)
The key is the entree, just keep
pumping through this entree.
Just push through, yeah.
Because that's number one
priority for you.
Yep.
I think I've just underestimated
the amount of time
the prep for the scampi would take,
so I'm just gonna have to push.
Billie, Dan, Sarah, it's time
to get your priorities right.
There is 45 minutes to go.
Come on. You can do it.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
BILLIE: Oh, my God, I'm dying.
I knew this challenge was gonna be
tough and full of pressure,
in regards to time,
but I didn't anticipate
having to move this fast
at this stage of this challenge.
I'm very quickly running out of time
and I haven't even started
my prep for the entree.
Heat the mussels up in there.
MICHAEL:
What have I done with that again?
For my entree, I'm doing mussels
in a pea and horseradish soup,
and the entree's quite simple
in its prep
because I knew the dessert
would take up a lot of my time.
With the mussels, I wanna cook them
quite quickly
in a white wine, shallot
and garlic broth.
And then I'll use the cooking liquor
that the mussels have come out of
to form the base
of my pea and horseradish soup.
(SIGHS) That's a few more.
She's such a machine.
Yep.
I'm trying to work really fast.
This is quite manic, but I have
to try and control the nerves
and keep going.
(MUTTERS)
All my elements for my entree
are done.
My main, my curry's been simmering
away great,
that just needs to be strained
and then reduced and balanced
and then that'll be done.
Uh, the fish now is just going
in the sous-vide.
While that's in
the sous-vide machine,
I get started on the dessert.
Oop.
The coconut sorbet is just gonna
reinforce that, like,
nice tropical flavour.
I'm quite happy with it, so I throw
it into the ice-cream churner.
Now it's time to get
ready for service.
Go, Daniel!
Listen up, guys,
we're pretty hungry
but we're nowhere near
as hungry as these guys.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
30 minutes to go. Come on.
BILLIE: Wow.
Seeing the diners come in
makes me realise that we're getting
pretty close to service
and I am feeling a bit frazzled now.
I'm currently multi-tasking
on a lot of different elements
for this entire menu.
Get rid of you.
Oh, my God, I made a mess.
I need to finish the garnishes
for the entree
and start the apricot gel
for the main course.
(MUTTERS)
MELANIE: She seems stressed.
Only 30 minutes left.
My main,
I have to start searing the duck,
so that might be a job that I'm doing
WHILE I'm serving my entrees.
Great work, Billie!
MICHAEL: You're on a roll now,
Sarah.
SARAH: This is the last one. Great.
I've finished peeling my scampi
but I still need to make my salsa,
blowtorch my scampi, and plate.
For my salsa, I've got finely diced
shallots, chive, coconut, vinegar,
finger lime and some fried garlic.
This is going to add
a really beautiful freshness
and I think it's just gonna
really finish off the dish.
ANDY: We've got a restaurant
full of hungry diners
and service starts in one minute.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
SHANNON: Wow, look at that.
Looks like squid ink.
It's like a car oil, even. (LAUGHS)
Amazing.
Mmm. Wow.
Smoky?
Really smoky.
Shannon's a big fan
of the smoked paperbark oil
and I'm so happy with that.
Good boy, Dan.
Service is about to start,
so I've taken the cured kingfish
out of the fridge.
I've just gotta wash the cure off
now, pat-dry them
and then I need to slice it,
ready for service.
Bang.
ALL: Ten, nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four,
three, two, one!
JOCK: That's it!
(APPLAUSE)
Oh.
I've been running around like mad
for this last four hours
and now it's time to start
sending out the entrees,
but I didn't quite get everything
done in those four hours,
so while I'm cooking
these duck breasts,
I'm also sending out my entrees.
Service, please.
Great work, Billie.
ALDO: Come on, Billie.
Looks amazing. Come on.
I've gotta watch these...
SHANNON: Once you've done these,
they're OK for the moment,
but I would try and turn
them down even more.
The duck?
Yep.
Just so they're nearly ready
to carve.
Yep, OK.
I'm running back and forth from the
entree service to these duck breasts.
This is not ideal,
but I didn't want to wait
until just before mains service
to perfectly cook these ducks.
Thank you.
I can hear the sizzle of the skin
and hear the fat coming out.
I'm sending out these entrees
and I can't give my full attention
to these duck breasts.
(SIZZLING)
DANIEL: Prepped,
ready for service now.
The way I'm gonna be plating it is
I'm doing a spiral
of the coconut emulsion,
then I'll be spreading out,
layering the kingfish.
On top of that, I'll be laying
three rounds of the pickled onion.
Then dripping on the paperbark oil
and then garnishing with a few little
garnishes of kaffir lime
and micro coriander.
SHANNON: You're a chef now.
(CHUCKLES)
Service!
(CHEERING)
Yes, Dan!
Thank you.
I'm really stoked with the way the
kingfish came together in the end.
I wanted it to somehow reflect home.
Like, put a lot of myself in it,
and I hope they like it,
I really do.
Whoa.
MELISSA: Oop.
Thank you.
Thank you.
ANDY: Yeah, right. OK.
Didn't expect it to look like that.
It actually looks
really, really good.
Yeah.
So, this is the entree from Daniel -
lemon-myrtle-cured kingfish,
coconut emulsion, charred and pickled
red onion and the paperbark oil.
Wow.
Yeah. Presentation's fantastic.
I agree.
What about this guy? Huh?
The smoked black dressing
is bloody delicious.
I don't know how he does it.
He looks like...a tornado.
You know?
And there's a lot of work here.
He spent a lot of time
on that kingfish
that he cured in lemon myrtle, salt
and sugar for just the right time.
The coconut emulsion has kind of a
zingy yet rich kind of quality to it
and then you have
that gorgeous, smoky paperbark.
The texture of that kingfish
was beautiful.
It's a fantastic dish.
It's a real triumph for Daniel.
BILLIE: I'm really quite rushing
to get these entrees out.
I'm really happy with
the mussels, but
I'm really not happy
with how they look.
It looks clumsy and not
well thought through at all.
Service, please.
Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
But I feel like I have
bigger fish to fry.
I need to concentrate more on this
duck breast for the main course.
So I just hope the flavours that
I've got into everything are there.
JOCK: Amazing. Thank you.
MELISSA: Hello. Thank you.
ANDY: Thank you.
Gentlemen,
we have our entree from Billie.
Mussels with pea
and horseradish soup.
Yeah, I'm on the fence.
I mean, there's some
lovely technique here,
the soup has a beautiful texture.
Yeah.
The balance is an issue.
It's too far on the acid side,
and that really hasn't let
the horseradish shine through.
The mussels have been cooked
obviously in wine
and it's now hanging around
as quite a prominent flavour
in the soup itself.
What I will say, though, is
the mussels are beautifully cooked.
It's an interesting one.
I'm not altogether sure I love it.
The balance is out,
and we never see that from Billie.
Never.
Alright, we're good to go.
I need to get this entree out.
I've got my scampis done,
I've blowtorched them.
Adding my salsa,
a little bit of lemon zest,
and then the consomme is gonna be
poured at the table.
OK, service!
I'm so happy with the flavour
of this dish.
It's been such a struggle
to get this done.
But I really need to push hard now
because I have spent so long
on this entree,
I've fallen behind with my main
and I've got less than 45 minutes
to get it out.
JOCK: Thank you.
Ooh, wow.
From Sarah, her entree of scampi,
curry, salsa on top.
I am...
..mystified how she managed
to do that.
I thought this dish was never
gonna come together.
Not only has it come together,
it is absolutely stunning.
Full flavoured,
but it's not overpowering
to the point where you can't taste
the scampi anymore.
And then that little salsa,
it's, like, zesty, it's oniony,
it's herby and finger limey -
those little pops of onion
and finger lime together
along with the scampi
and then the clean broth,
it's just delicious.
Look at the consomme, it's so clear,
it belies the amount of flavour
that's going on.
You know, it's spice-laden and it's
really, really beautifully balanced.
When you get seafood that's prepped
like that, that's all you want,
and she's really stripped it
right back, given us three elements
and knocked it out of the park.
Service!
Yes, Dan.
(APPLAUSE)
The last of the entree plates go out
and it's straight onto the next step.
How do you feel after that entree?
I feel like one-third
of the way done. (LAUGHS)
OK.
Mains is gonna start soon.
I'm probably gonna have to eat
into the mains service time
because I still have to...
do so much for my dessert.
The sorbet is out of the churner,
tastes really nice,
super smooth and creamy.
Now I've just gotta put it
into an ice-cream tray
and get that into the freezer.
Now it's time to do my tarte Tatins.
Oh, there's rum in it.
Dan, it's smelling really good, man.
A good tarte Tatin to me is
the fruit's cooked beautifully
tender underneath
and the caramel goes up the sides
and the pastry soaks it up,
and it gets, like, nice and chewy -
easily my favourite dessert.
But it just comes down
to cooking time
and making sure that it
caramelises properly.
Tartes are looking really good.
I'm excited about 'em.
Just gotta finish balancing my curry,
quickly cook this fish,
and then that's it.
BILLIE: Service, please.
ALDO: Well done, Billie!
That looks ridiculously good,
Billie.
No. No, go home. Go home.
I have all my elements ready
for the main course.
I have the radicchio,
I have the apricot gel,
I have the apricot and duck sauce,
and the only thing I have to do now
is to slice into these duck breasts
and see how they're cooked.
It's the biggest part of the main
dish, so I'm very nervous right now.
Oh!
Bugger.
I slice into the first duck breast
and, while there's still
a blush of pink there,
it's definitely overcooked.
It's... Yeah, it's not good.
ALVIN: How's it look?
ALI: A touch over.
Oh.
Oh, Billie.
My heart is sinking right now.
It's a big mistake.
It's a really big mistake.
Could be, yeah,
big enough to send me home.
Oh, shit.
BILLIE: I can't believe
I've overcooked my duck breasts.
I think I let the pressure
get into my head.
I was focusing so much on dessert.
SHANNON: How did you go?
Did you cut one?
I did. It's a little...
It's a little bit over.
It's a little bit over there
but the skin's down...
You'll get a bit of heat from this.
Yeah, I know.
There's nothing I can do
about this duck breast
and no way I have time to cook
anything else,
so I'm just gonna have to go with it.
It's devastating,
seeing those pieces of duck,
knowing that they're overcooked.
But as I'm plating this dish,
I know the other elements of
the main, I'm really happy with.
Service, please.
I'm just gonna have to trust
the slip-up with the duck
won't cost me my place here.
ANDY: Ooh, we got some duck.
JOCK: Ooh-hoo-hoo.
Thank you.
That doesn't look medium.
No.
Thank you.
So...
..this is Billie's main
of apricot duck, roasted radicchio.
I'm gutted for her.
That's... Look how cooked
it is down one half.
You can see it's grey at the top
and then it's slightly pink
towards the base.
It's a shame for Billie.
Like, I'm really gutted for her
because if you look at the bottom,
you could kind of get away
with medium,
you know, it's, like, just
in that medium category.
But the bit up the top
is definitely just over.
Rendering...best I've seen
in the MasterChef kitchen, ever.
Sauce - delicious, fantastic.
Clean flavour but also deliciously
sort of smooth and fatty
and...and really, really glossy
and beautiful.
I love the freshness and the tartness
in her apricot puree.
It sort of has this sharpness that it
needs and it almost gives the dish
its fresh element that kind of
brings everything together.
And then the radicchio
was absolutely perfect -
the right amount of char
that you want
and then that really soft sort
of fleshy texture
to the rest of the radicchio itself.
There's nothing wrong with
any of the other elements...
Nup.
..other than the cuisson
on the duck.
So apart from the duck,
we've got a perfect plate of food.
Yeah.
But we don't have a piece of duck,
so where does that leave Billie?
Service, please.
How good does a beer sound, Sarah?
Oh! I think a bottle of
champagne for me.
Bottle of champers?
Yeah. 'Cause I'm a bit more
bourge than you.
(CHUCKLES)
ALDO: Sarah, check the lamb.
For my main,
my dish is inspired by a saagwala,
so it's lamb with a spinach puree.
Go, Sarah. Come on.
I've got my saag on the go,
I'm cooking my lamb
at the same time.
Let's hustle, Sarah!
I'm feeling pretty frazzled
right now
and we only have 45 minutes
to get out each course.
There is still a lot to be done.
(WHISTLES)
SHANNON: Burning the bloody hairs
on my arms.
Plenty of heat in this one.
I realise the time's
getting away with me
and I really need to get
this fish on.
OK, have you tested one?
I don't have time to do
a tester piece.
You've done this before, right?
Yes.
Yeah. Done.
So I put all the fish on the hibachi
at the same time.
Cannot stuff it up now.
Like, you know, that skin.
Yeah.
It's gonna curl no matter what.
Have you seasoned it?
Yes.
OK.
I reckon this one's
not far off ready.
I can smell it.
Smell it starting to char?
No, no, careful. Yeah.
Sticking. Sticking.
Oh, of course it sticks.
The old fish-and-hibachi thing
has got me again.
Knew it would happen.
I just don't have time for
this to be sticking right now,
and that's what they're all doing.
I'm worried about how
I'm gonna fix this.
Like, what do we do now?
ALDO: Come on, Dan, come on!
BILLIE: Final four. OK.
Service, please.
Those two.
My last mains leave the pass
and it's a big relief.
I'm excited about this dessert
and I think I have time
to really perfect it.
(EXHALES) Just need to
make the coconut snow.
I need to make the coconut snow.
Go, Billie.
I imagine this lamington just
looking quite plain on the plate,
so it's just
a chocolate-covered cube.
But the idea is that cutting in, you
get that really rich, creamy mousse,
that nice sorbet
and the coconut snow as well,
which adds a bit of fun.
It wouldn't be semifinals
without a bit of liquid nitrogen,
and, yeah, I'm pulling out
all the stops
to try and make it through
to the grand final.
Oh, wow.
She's so organised.
OK, that's good.
Dan, Sarah...
..no more time now, I want mains up.
Let's go. Everyone.
Mains away. Come on,
your plates leaving the pass.
MINDY: No mains have gone
out for Dan or for Sarah,
and Billie's finished her mains.
Come on, Sarah!
MICHAEL: I think he and Sarah
are both in a bit of strife.
JULIE: It's driving me mental
how long that's taking.
Service starts, which to me means...
service starts, you know,
diners should be getting food,
and Billie's doing that.
BILLIE: Final course.
Billie is ready to serve her dessert,
Daniel and Sarah are not
sending out their mains.
(SARAH SIGHS)
ALDO: Sarah, call service.
I'm not ready.
DANIEL: We almost have ready
for one plate, almost.
JULIE: Things are starting to sort
of fall over a bit for them.
MICHAEL: I don't think Sarah
and Dan are gonna get done.
Argh! I need to hold someone.
Wow, half an hour into main service
and we have not seen a single plate
come out for Daniel
OR for Sarah at this point.
That's very worrying.
If they finish service late, we're
gonna have to judge it accordingly.
DANIEL: Oh, my God, where am I at?
So I'm now late for service
and the diners and the judges
are waiting for their mains.
Oh, man.
Every piece of fish was over the
hibachi just stuck to the thing.
SHANNON: Oh, my God.
Yeah, oh, man.
And now I'm thinking it's probably
'cause I sous-vided it,
it's probably moistened
the skin too much.
I shouldn't have done this. Argh. Oh.
MELANIE: You've got this, Dan!
You've gotta push.
Yeah. I know, mate, yeah.
I've gotten myself
out of sticky situations before.
This is a terrible feeling,
but...I can get through it.
Where's all my...bloody...
The way I'm gonna try and unpeel it
is get a palette knife underneath
and just sort of wiggle it underneath
and pop it off.
Oh, shit.
It seems to work, but the skin's not
charring up the way I want it to.
(SIGHS HEAVILY)
You got this, Dan!
It's gonna have to do.
It's all I can do right now.
I've gotta get something out.
You gotta start serving.
I just need to cut 'em and
portion 'em, and then it's done.
Go, go, go.
(ALL CHEER)
MAX: Let's go, Dan! Come on, mate.
ALDO: Come on, Sarah Todd.
Come ON!
I'm really behind here
and it's not great.
Oh, my God.
I need to check.
Tastes good though.
I'm really happy with the flavours
and I think everything works
really well together.
Come on, Sarah!
So I'm plating one dollop of saag,
two pieces of lamb,
finishing it with that beautiful
shredded lamb and my jus.
OK, service.
When diners are waiting
for their next course,
they get quite frustrated
and this is definitely going to be
taken into consideration
with the judging.
Oh, God.
So this dish needs to be perfect.
Beautiful!
You've got just six more plates,
Sarah. Come on!
SHANNON: Yeah, nice.
DANIEL: It's very moist.
Yeah, it's beautiful.
The mains are finally going out.
Service.
I'm hopeful that the flavours
are good enough to get me through.
Five more plates.
OK.
It tastes what it's supposed
to taste like
but it's just not as good
as it can be.
Service!
(APPLAUSE)
Well done, Dan!
Well done, Dan!
Thanks, guys. Love you.
MELISSA AND JOCK: Thank you.
OK. So we have our main from Daniel -
barbecued coral trout,
coastal curry sauce.
How's your cuisson looking?
My fish is actually nicely cooked.
Yeah, yours looks good.
It's glistening.
Start with the fish
'cause it's a little bit...
..to the reverse of Billie,
isn't it?
Um, the cuisson on the fish
was beautiful.
It was, like, still glistening,
super shiny and great,
but then you get to the skin.
Because he's gone really hard on it,
hasn't had time to, like, crisp up,
so it's really rubbery.
It's sort of somewhere
in the middle for me.
The curry sauce is not
perfectly balanced.
The fish, the skin,
not an overly pleasing thing.
I'm a little bit disappointed,
I'm a little bit left wanting here.
I kind of enjoyed the curry sauce
with the fish.
Obviously, not the skin.
It definitely reeks
of a dish made in haste.
Yep.
But I've gotta say, what he did
put on the plate, except for that,
was pretty good.
OK, service.
We're getting some lamb.
Thank you.
Thank you.
OK, an unfortunately late main of
lamb, saag and spiced jus from Sarah.
My lamb's nicely cooked.
OK, Sarah's slightly late lamb dish,
it was worth the wait, I reckon.
The lamb is cooked perfectly.
But for me, the stars, weirdly,
is not the lamb loin at all,
I REALLY enjoyed that saag.
Pairing that with that spiced jus,
it is genius.
And that was what
we were looking for with Sarah -
to be able to bring that French
technique and Indian flavours
and merge them,
and she definitely has.
Such a beautiful nuance
of flavour within it.
And then you look at the spice jus
as well, it's very complex.
It was a very smart main course.
Very, very tasty.
My lamb was cooked perfectly.
It was just not on time.
Home stretch!
HARRY: Home stretch, Billie.
ALVIN: Home stretch, baby!
Whoa!
Home stretch.
I can finally see the light
at the end of the tunnel.
We are so close to finishing
this insane challenge.
And all I have to do
is send out these desserts.
Service, please.
Plating up is pretty simple
for this dessert.
I put the lamington
in the middle of the plate
and scatter around some
of the coconut feuilletine mixture
and then put a huge spoonful
of the coconut snow on top.
Ooh. I went heavy-handed on that one.
Thank you.
Hi.
ANDY: Ooh.
JOCK AND MELISSA: Thank you.
Wow! This looks very cool.
This is Billie's dessert
of lamington.
It looks pretty cool. Huh?
Yeah. I think so too.
(CRUNCH!)
Oh-ho, yeah!
Whoo!
I'm into that.
Look at that!
What are we calling this?
Coconut snow.
Wow.
What a dessert.
That's crazy, that one.
What a dessert.
(LAUGHS)
That was a cracking dish.
Absolutely loved it.
A really, really different take
on a lamington.
The chocolate mousse -
great flavour,
really nice aeration
through the mousse.
Beautiful little centre to that
as well, um, cherry.
And then round the outside,
that feuilletine all crumbled up
with the coconut snow.
I mean, there's nothing to
complain about here.
No.
All of these flavours and these
textures have a sense of nostalgia
and play about them,
and we know that when Billie
is firing on all cylinders
and she's able to kind of
take that inspiration
and then really pair it
with perfect technique,
she can achieve dessert greatness.
I think it screams of a dish
that has been worked on
throughout the whole cook.
She's executed it perfectly
and that's all you can ask for
when you're cooking three courses
in a service challenge.
Service, please.
ALVIN: Yes, Billie! Yes!
Oh, yay. I'm finished.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Yes, Billie!
Well done, Billie!
Thank you.
All of my mains are out
and it's time for dessert.
Where's your mousse?
Mousse, yeah.
Get your mousse ready.
I've made my mousse,
so that is ready to go.
Ginger crumb is done.
I have poached my pears.
I just need to put it all together.
Still not quite there.
Those pears have been in
the water bath for over three hours
and they're not quite cooked through.
Oh, my God.
I've already put myself
behind with service
and this could mean that I'm gonna be
late with dessert as well.
You think just chuck it in the pot
for a little bit longer?
You haven't got time.
Really?
No. No way.
I think this will be
what sends me home.
Oh, God.
Applications for next season
are now open.
Go on! Get on it!
Must be getting pretty late now.
Come on.
Still not quite there.
SARAH: Those pears have been in
the water bath for over three hours
and they're not quite cooked through.
Goddamn!
I'm already behind.
There is nothing I can do
at this point,
I have to serve.
I've got my pears on the plate,
one dollop of my mousse
with some spiced ginger crumb...
Oops.
..and a caramel.
ALDO: Come on, Sarah!
Hustle!
Service.
I'm now really questioning,
you know, is it enough?
MELISSA AND JOCK: Thank you.
Dessert from Sarah.
Masala chai pears.
JOCK: This is a great dessert.
I loved the spice combination
that's going on in it.
Tastes fantastic.
It's got that touch of Sarah
that she does - that spice.
Really good, but the pear,
it's undercooked.
I mean, mine was pretty undercooked.
I'm just looking at yours, Andy, you
had a bigger bit of pear than I did
so that must be...
It's crunchy.
That must be really crunchy.
It's really not a texture
that is either here nor there,
it's not fresh and crunchy,
it's not tender and poached,
it's somewhere in between.
Unfortunately, she's left the door
open with the dessert.
Where will that leave her today?
We'll soon find out.
SHANNON: Let's go, Dan.
You've gotta catch up.
You clean everything down,
and send, OK?
(ALL CHEER)
Bang. Straight out.
Thank Christ for that.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
I just hope the puff pastry is cooked
perfectly, there's enough caramel,
the pineapple is nice and tender.
You've got your sorbet made, yeah?
Yeah, it's done.
You gotta hurry.
It's in the freezer.
Now I've just gotta
get my sorbet out.
I just wanna double-check
the consistency for it.
So I go to the freezer to grab it...
..then I'm, like, surely
I didn't put it in the blast chiller.
Oh, I left it in the blast chiller!
What's wrong?
Oh. I left my sorbet
in the blast chiller.
There it is...
Oh!
..a solid block of sorbet.
You've gotta go, Dan.
Like, could you cut chunks
and then fix it?
In the history I've been doing this,
everyone's got all the plates up.
You can do it!
ALDO: Come on, Dan!
It can be done. Come on.
(SMASH!)
Oh, my God.
Be really neat. OK? Really neat.
Two, four, six, eight, 10, 12...
You gotta go. Gotta go.
Service.
All the plates up.
(SIGHS)
I feel terrible.
I'm the last person
to send the desserts out.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Oh, dear.
Sauce.
From Daniel,
his dessert of rum caramel
and pineapple tarte Tatin.
You got the best-looking one
over there.
Um...this was meant to be
with a coconut sorbet.
Yep.
It's a dessert that kinda...
exemplifies his cook.
It's great on paper...
..and a great idea, but...
..the execution just isn't there.
And it's because he's been
on the back foot
basically the whole
four hours of prep.
There's some good work going on here,
but, unfortunately, there's just
a lot of attention to detail
lost today in this dessert.
This is dangerous territory.
I really feel for him.
(SIGHS)
You know?
Unbelievable entree, pretty good
main course, fail on the dessert.
Yep.
SARAH: Congratulations, guys.
Oh. Well done, you two.
Wow.
That was crazy.
Wow, is everyone really sore?
Yeah. I've got a shin splint.
I don't know where that came from.
Oh.
Well, I think we just witnessed
how hard a three-course service
challenge is for the semifinals.
We really need to kind of weigh up
whose flaws outweigh
other people's flaws
to decide who's going to end up
in our grand finale.
Yeah. It's not clear-cut, is it?
No.
I think we've got a very, very
big decision to make.
That was the service challenge
to end all service challenges.
Shannon... (LAUGHS)
..I'm sure these three appreciated
you being here as much as we do.
Yes.
For me, uh, you should be all
very proud. Extremely proud.
Thank you.
Thanks, Shannon.
Put your hands together
for Shannon Bennett!
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
First and foremost,
this was a service challenge.
We can't ignore that fact.
And some of your courses were late.
Daniel and Sarah, both your mains
and desserts were tardy.
That can't be overlooked.
Let's get down to the food.
We'll start with the entrees.
Billie, we were excited
about your entree
and though the mussels
were sensationally cooked,
the flavours of your dish
were out of balance.
We were left a bit confused.
OK.
Daniel.
That kingfish was cured beautifully.
And the play between
the coconut emulsion
and the paperbark oil
was unbelievable, mate.
Well done.
Thank you. Thanks, guys.
Good on you, Dan.
Sarah.
The scampi were perfectly cooked.
The broth was clean and complex
and the salsa was
bright, fresh and acidic.
It was you at your very best.
Well done.
Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
When it came to the mains,
unfortunately,
none of your dishes were flawless.
Billie, everything on the plate
was perfect...
..except the duck was overcooked.
Mm-hm. Yep.
Daniel, the fish itself,
mate, it was cooked beautifully.
But the skin, it was stretchy.
Sarah, the flavours in your dish,
they were rich and complex
but you were also late for service.
Now to desserts.
Billie.
Your lamington was perfect. We
wouldn't change a thing. Well done.
Thank you.
On you, Billie.
Sarah, your pears were undercooked.
Daniel...
..that dessert...
..was not your finest work.
And while the flavours were good,
the execution was well off the mark.
This...combined with the fact
that two of your dishes
were served late...
..is the reason why, I'm so sorry,
Daniel, you're going home.
(WOMEN SIGH)
It's all good. (CHUCKLES)
Oh, shit.
It's fine. It's fine.
JOCK: Ah, Daniel.
Mate, it's been an honour,
watching you grow.
Your progress throughout this
competition has been extraordinary.
We've loved having you
in the kitchen.
Have you enjoyed being here? Surely.
I've loved every minute of it.
I can't put it into words.
Like, I genuinely never expected
even to make it here,
let alone make it this far.
It's been so hard.
(LAUGHTER)
Seriously, so, so hard.
Like, the work and effort
I've put in, it's paid off tenfold.
And I honestly hold all of that
to everyone here and to you guys.
Yeah, I'm very proud of myself.
Well, Daniel, you're a credit
to not only yourself
but this competition.
But for now,
it's time to say goodbye, buddy.
This is the best bit.
ANDY: Oh, he's gonna bear hug me!
He's gonna bear hug me!
(LAUGHTER)
Well done, mate.
Oh. You did the Territory proud,
you know that. Keep cooking.
I made top three. Like...
How cool is that? I made top three.
Oh!
Well done, guys.
I've genuinely fallen in love
with food in a different way
since being here,
in a way that I never expected.
Proud of you, mate.
Thanks, mate. Thank you.
To me, that's an amazing prize
on its own and I'm so thankful.
ANDY: Billie and Sarah...
..you've been dreaming about it
since day one
and you have done it.
You two are into the MasterChef
grand finale for 2022!
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Thank you.
Thanks, Shannon.
(BOTH LAUGH)
Which way do we go?
ANNOUNCER: Tomorrow night
on MasterChef Australia,
it's all come down to this.
Will Sarah take the title?
SARAH: That dream of winning
MasterChef is finally within reach.
Or can Billie make history...
Is this the dish you wanted to
bring us in the finale?
..by winning
for a second time?
And...
Please welcome...
Oh, my God.
..one huge mega star.
..Heston Blumenthal!
(CHEERING
AND APPLAUSE)
Captions by Red Bee Media
semifinalist for 2022.
(APPLAUSE)
Oh, Billie!
BILLIE: To be here in
the semifinal is amazing.
Last time, when I won MasterChef,
I was very young.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
I felt a huge amount of pressure to
pursue a career in the food industry.
I would like to offer you...
(GASPING)
..a job at the Fat Duck.
(CHEERING)
Going straight to the Fat Duck
in England,
while it was such an amazing
experience, I wasn't ready for it.
(EXHALES)
Just felt like I wasn't
good enough to do it.
That scared me a bit, I think,
and steered me away from food
and cooking.
Get one?
After having my daughter,
I was working on the farm, loving it,
but was wondering
what was sort of missing.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Coming back has been
a bit of an awakening
and definitely a bit of a kick
up the butt I think that I needed.
This is just deeply
impressive food.
You're a very clever
and thoughtful cook.
I've really found that love and that
passion again for cooking creatively.
ALDO: Yes, Billie!
JOCK: We weren't here
in Billie's season,
but I think we're beginning to see
why Billie won.
Winning this competition again,
it would really cement the fact
that I belong in food.
It's made me feel like me again.
MELISSA: Sarah, you have been busy
since the SECOND
you left this kitchen -
books, restaurants, TV shows.
SARAH: Over the last eight years,
I've worked nonstop
to build an incredible career
that I'm now really, really proud of.
What's drawn you back to
the MasterChef kitchen?
I mean, it's just such
an incredible experience.
I think from the outside,
a lot of people probably think
that things have just kind
of fallen in my lap.
But I was raised by
a tough single mum
and we didn't have a lot
of money growing up.
From 17 years old,
I was working five jobs.
I've always worked really hard
at my skills
to allow my skills to push through.
I feel like I'm constantly
having to prove
that I'm worthy of the success
that I've had.
Why are you nervous to serve
these kind of dishes?
ANDY: Yeah.
This is the direction
that I would like to head in.
Do you feel more vulnerable
because you've found your thing
and therefore you're revealing
yourself?
Mm-hm.
My butter-poached lobster
really was a turning point.
That has all the refinement
of a three-Michelin-star dish.
I didn't realise that coming back
this time,
it would give me so much confidence
to go down that route of fine dining.
Phenomenal.
MELISSA: Spectacular.
An absolute belter.
I could not have imagined that
when I first stepped foot
into the kitchen eight years ago,
that dream of winning MasterChef
would finally be within reach.
DANIEL: Can't believe
I made the semifinal of MasterChef.
(CHUCKLES) You bloody ripper!
Oh, man. How good is that?
Being from Darwin and from my circle,
MasterChef is world's apart.
I remember coming here
and freaking out
'cause I'd never actually eaten
a kohlrabi
or I'd never eaten a celeriac.
You're brunoising an onion. Do you
know that that's what you're doing?
I just learned something.
Daniel.
Yes!
(APPLAUSE)
The day I stepped in the MasterChef
kitchen just changed my life.
I'm calling it
You're Bacon Me Go Nuts.
It's a...textural journey...
that ice-cream.
(LAUGHTER)
I'm loving this, man.
I...have studied my arse off.
This is my braised kale
with a vibrant cucumber broth.
ANDY: Everything that you've learned
in this competition was in that bowl
and we absolutely loved it.
I might be the underdog, but...
JOCK: Stupendous work.
The flavours are endless.
Very, very, very good.
Yes! I got a clap!
In my job as a firefighter, it became
apparent to me that, unfortunately,
life can be short.
I had this realisation
I didn't wanna kick the bucket
and regret not taking that step
and seeing what was there for me.
I'm not here to put socks
on centipedes,
I'm here to have a bloody crack
at it, I'm here to win.
(CHEERING)
BILLIE: Oh, look at this.
DANIEL: It's so pretty, isn't it?
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Whoo!
Welcome to the semifinals.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Whoop-whoop!
Yeah, guys!
It might seem obvious to say it
out loud, but...
..one day out from possibly winning
a whopping 250 large
and being crowned
Australia's MasterChef for 2022.
Yeah, that's what you want.
(APPLAUSE)
Oh, wouldn't read about it.
Here to support you today are your
old teammates turned friends.
They're just as excited as we are
to see one of you lift that trophy.
Alright, Sarah, Daniel, Billie,
as you know,
today is a service challenge.
Yesterday, we asked you to go home
and have a think about
your perfect three-course menu.
You will need to cook us
an entree, a main and a dessert
for 20 diners plus the three of us.
All up, that is close
to 70 individual plates of food.
No mean feat.
You will have four hours
until your entrees need to start
leaving the pass.
From there, you'll have 45 minutes
per course
to send all of your plates.
Only the top two contestants today
will secure a place
in the grand finale.
This is far from your first service
challenge so trust yourselves today
and bring it on home.
One more thing.
What?
You didn't think
that we'd make you guys
tackle this beast of a challenge
alone, did you?
Oh, we get help!
So, back running the pass today
is a friend and mentor
of this very kitchen.
He's back to inspire you, to push you
and to make sure that you deliver
the best bloody food that you've got.
Please welcome, back in the house,
the man, the myth...
..the legend...
..Shannon Bennett, everyone!
Yes!
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Yes!
BILLIE: Oh, it's so good
to see Shannon Bennett.
Yes.
Hey, Sarah.
Hi.
Dan. Billie. How are you?
Good. How are you?
Good.
He did the service challenge
in season seven,
and such a nice presence
in the kitchen.
Always full of advice and wisdom.
I'm just so glad he's back.
Shannon, you've run a heap of these
challenges in your time,
what's the one thing you think
is gonna get these guys through?
It's the most simplest thing -
keeping things clean and organised
is the key.
And not to panic.
I've seen situations that just say,
"Oh, my God, it's all over."
Half an hour later, you've nailed
one thing you didn't think
that you could nail
and all of a sudden,
you're back in the game.
And I suppose my job is to make sure
that all three of you,
your dream stays alive
and we make it as hard as possible
for these three
to decide who goes home.
So let's have some fun doing it.
Righto.
Now we're all here, let's do this.
Prove to us that you belong
in the grand finale.
Good luck. Your time starts now.
Go, guys!
(CHEERING)
Go, guys!
ALDO: Go, Sarah!
MAX: Come on, Dan! Let's hustle!
DANIEL: Planning my menu last night,
I didn't sleep.
I'm so nervous to do three courses
by myself.
I spent all night thinking about it,
this menu.
I wanted to really show
where I've come from in cooking
to what I am now.
Being from Darwin definitely has
inspired a lot of my food.
Let's go, Dan.
Tropical. Nice.
Today, I wanna show off my
understanding of tropical flavours.
Something with fruit,
with the natives.
I think the pressure today is
it's a bit more personal.
This is my chance to show the judges
how much I've learned
throughout this whole time, in
regards to flavour and techniques.
(EXHALES)
Wow. Well, thank you so much
for coming back into the kitchen.
You walking in here just, I think,
was that extra boost of energy
that they needed.
This is big.
This is a really big day.
This is the big-time.
This is the culmination of all
of that work
is all coming now to
stories on the plate.
And this is where you wanna be,
I mean, cooking your food.
And I think in the kitchen right now,
we have three epic cooks
so I can't wait to see
what they're cooking.
Alright, Shannon, few minutes into
service, you better get in there
and see what they're up to.
Good luck, mate.
Thanks, buddy. Thank you.
Good luck.
Cheers, mate.
ALDO: Go, Sarah.
My cooking style that I've discovered
over this season
of French techniques
with Indian flavours
has really inspired my menu today.
My entree is scampi served
with a consomme,
served with a kind of masala
salsa on top of the scampi.
My main is my take
kind of on a saagwala.
So it's a lamb spinach dish.
'Saag' is spinach.
It's a spinach curry.
So for this dish, I am just keeping
it really quite light,
so not heavily spiced, because
this is my take on the saagwala.
And then finishing off
with a chai dessert.
So I'm doing a milk chocolate chai
mousse with the poached pears,
and then a hazelnut caramel as well.
Everything is riding on this menu.
It's showing my journey cooking
this style of food.
And this is what I wanna do
for the rest of my life.
So it needs to be perfect.
The first thing I need to do is
get my lamb prepped for the main.
I'm just moving on to
the brine for my lamb,
so I wanna get that in
for quite a bit of time.
I'm brining my lamb because
I want to add as much flavour
and tenderness as possible.
Come on, guys! Come on.
Let's go, guys.
Come on!
Come on, Billie.
Oh, I feel really lucky to be here
again for the semifinal.
Lots of work to do though, holy hell.
I've come to realise
I really love cooking dishes
that are stemmed from memories.
You know, especially being a kid,
I think that's when a lot
of your fond food memories start.
So for my entree, I'm doing
a pea, mussel and horseradish soup.
And then the main is a bit of an ode
to a childhood classic -
apricot chicken,
which I always loved growing up,
so I'm doing apricot duck
for the main.
And then for dessert,
I'm doing a lamington.
I'm not starting on the entree
straightaway
because I need to put all of my focus
into this dessert.
The entree's quite simple in its prep
so it's one of the jobs I can leave
to the tail end of this four hours,
hoping that I have enough time.
Go, Billie.
Go, Bill.
You got this, mate.
This lamington has a lot going on
within the dish.
It's a dessert that I've
been working on.
So, it's a chocolate mousse with a
cherry, strawberry and orange centre.
It's covered in a tempered
chocolate coating,
served with some coconut snow and
some nice little crispy bits as well.
Nice, Billie.
So I've started my dessert and the
spheres are in the blast chiller.
The next thing I need to start on
are preparing these ducks
for the main course.
Good hustle, Billie.
I need to work fast
because I have so many elements
still to do for this dessert.
Keep it up, guys. Go, Dan!
Oh, how big are they?! Nice.
You don't get fish this small
in Darwin. (LAUGHS)
I get to work on my entree
and I'm most excited about doing
cured kingfish.
Good filleting, Dan!
I often cook a raw or pickled fish
at home, we call it namas,
and it's just that quick,
beautiful thing,
it's very refreshing, very zingy.
And this is a refined version
of that.
Dan.
G'day, Shannon. How are we?
Good, mate.
Explain to me quickly,
I know you're under the pump.
Entree, I'm doing
a lemon-myrtle-cured kingfish.
Mm.
Um, it's gonna have a coconut
emulsion underneath it,
like a little creamy element.
Um, then a pineapple sauce,
like an acidic number.
The main is gonna be a barbecue
coral trout, curry sauce.
Curry sauce, I'm calling a coastal
curry, like, a mix between a laksa
and a jungle curry sort of sauce.
The dessert, I'm thinking of doing
a chilli rum pineapple tarte Tatin.
Mm.
And a coconut sorbet.
There's too many similarities
in your entree to your main course.
Hearing Shannon's concerns,
oh, it's really thrown me off.
Fruit, uh, fish. Fruit, fish.
Yep.
Entree, main.
If I'm, uh, a diner out there,
I'm wanting variation
in what you're doing.
You've gotta have
a real think about this
and work out a substitution
that's not fruit-based.
OK. Mm.
Hearing that your menu isn't great
from the start is such a concern.
Fruit, uh, fish. Fruit, fish.
You've gotta have a real think
about this
and work out a substitution
that's not fruit-based.
OK.
Alright. Good luck.
Thanks very much. Cheers.
MICHAEL: You got this, Dan!
I'm going to take on Shannon's advice
and just alter things.
It's still the bones of the dish,
so it will be the fish -
a light fish entree and a cooked fish
main, but changing it.
Let's go, Dan!
I'm thinking for the entree,
I can still do the lemon-myrtle-cured
kingfish and the coconut emulsion,
but do a pickled red onion instead
for that bright acidity.
That eliminates the pineapple.
MONTANA: You're good, Dan.
Keep your head straight.
I'll be using a lot of lime
and kaffir lime for it instead,
rather than repeating the pineapple.
Keep working, Dan.
Keep working, mate.
I'm going to add a paperbark oil.
Beautiful black oil
that just contrasts really well
with everything.
So I figured that's gonna add a very,
very cool dimension to the entree.
So to make that,
just need to burn some paperback.
Yes, Dan!
Work it, mate. Work it.
Kill the flames with two bowls
and then...
Oh, no, it's made a little vacuum.
(LAUGHS)
Oh, it's sucked all the oxygen out.
Once I finally get the bowls
to crack open,
I throw the paperbark in the blender
with charcoal powder and oil
and just blitz it on high
for five minutes.
And then strain it through a soup bag
and then you get this beautiful,
like, squid-ink-colour oil.
Gonna go back to being a fireman?
Or are you gonna be a chef now?
Or you haven't decided?
See how well I go with this.
(CHUCKLES)
Do you rate yourself now, mate?
Good work, Dan.
Yoo-yoo.
Well, the good news AND the bad news
is that you're halfway there.
Two hours to go!
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Let's go! Come on.
Shake those tail feathers!
Good work, Sarah!
Go, Sarah. Come on.
SARAH: So, I am going to
pressure-cook some lamb for my jus.
It also gives me the option of adding
little pops of shredded lamb as well,
so I think it's a really nice
addition for the main.
You're on a roll now, Sarah.
I need a lot of time to prepare
my entree and main.
There's so many elements
going into each dish
and so I really need to make
sure I get all of the prep done
before service.
Sarah just looks so unflappable,
doesn't she? It's amazing.
Mm.
She's just so calm.
Very calm.
I'd be like a headless chook.
MINDY: Let's hustle, Sarah!
So, I am just moving on to my scampi.
So for my menu today,
I'm starting off with a scampi
with a really beautiful broth.
Need to move. There's a lot to do.
This dish, it's all about simplicity
and perfection,
so I am skewering these to make sure
they stay nice and straight.
Pop them into the water,
blanch them for one minute,
and I need to allow them
to cool before I peel.
It's gonna take a while.
It is pretty ambitious, doing
two extremely complex dishes
that need a lot of prep work,
but if I nail this,
I know it's gonna be amazing.
Little more! Little more!
Yeah, get it, Billie.
You got it!
(LAUGHTER)
(CHEERING)
Whoo!
Uh, so...
..got a few things on the go
at the moment.
I've done my fruit inserts
for the lamington.
I've butchered all of the duck,
got the necks in the oven
to make the sauce.
Got the duck breasts,
are in the sous-vide machines,
and I'm starting the chocolate mousse
for the dessert.
Go, Billie.
My dessert is a lamington.
It's not a traditional lamington,
but it's my new take on a lamington.
This dessert is quite technical
and time-consuming,
so I've got a huge mountain to climb
to prepare my entrees and mains.
Hey, Billie.
Hey, Shannon.
That mousse actually looks great.
Yeah, I'm pretty happy with that.
That looks really good.
Oh, yeah. That's good.
That's good, Billie.
Thank you very much.
I'm feeling really good
about the dessert.
MICHAEL: Yes, Billie.
My mousse is looking really nice.
It's light and it's all combined
really well.
MAX: Billie, it looks so light,
mate.
(CHUCKLES) Hope so.
Then inside is the cherry,
strawberry and orange sorbet
so it provides
that temperature contrast.
I need to get it
into the blast chiller
so I can actually dip these
lamingtons in the chocolate.
Look at Billie. Oh, that's
a little insert into the...
MONTANA: Yeah, for the mousse.
Must be like a jelly or something.
Doesn't matter where you're at
on your prep list,
you've got 90 minutes
until the entrees leave the pass.
Come on.
(ALL SHOUT ENCOURAGEMENT)
I'm feeling pretty good.
Just need to keep the momentum up
so I can get everything done.
ALDO: Go, Sarah. Come on.
MINOLI: She's still doing scampi?
Hmm?
She's still doing scampi?
Yeah, she is.
Doing really well, Dan.
SARAH: Oh, my God.
This scampi is a nightmare to peel.
I totally underestimated
how long this was going to take.
But I need to jump onto the dessert
so I can get started
on poaching the pears.
My dessert is masala chai pears,
and I am going to sous-vide my pears
'cause they need a long time to cook
to make sure they're nice and tender.
Sarah.
Hello.
ANDY: Uh, the all-important scampi.
Uh, you've got a lot to peel, hey?!
I know. That is a lot.
There's 1.5 hours to go.
Like, I don't know
what I was thinking.
Salsa made?
No, the salsa's not made.
Sauce is not finished,
salsa not made.
Honestly, I have a lot to do.
That was a really bad idea,
wasn't it?
(ALL SHOUT ENCOURAGEMENT)
SARAH: I'm almost done.
No, I'm not. 20 more. (CHUCKLES)
Wish I could do them for you.
I wish I could just come in
and help you.
I know. (LAUGHS)
The key is the entree, just keep
pumping through this entree.
Just push through, yeah.
Because that's number one
priority for you.
Yep.
I think I've just underestimated
the amount of time
the prep for the scampi would take,
so I'm just gonna have to push.
Billie, Dan, Sarah, it's time
to get your priorities right.
There is 45 minutes to go.
Come on. You can do it.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
BILLIE: Oh, my God, I'm dying.
I knew this challenge was gonna be
tough and full of pressure,
in regards to time,
but I didn't anticipate
having to move this fast
at this stage of this challenge.
I'm very quickly running out of time
and I haven't even started
my prep for the entree.
Heat the mussels up in there.
MICHAEL:
What have I done with that again?
For my entree, I'm doing mussels
in a pea and horseradish soup,
and the entree's quite simple
in its prep
because I knew the dessert
would take up a lot of my time.
With the mussels, I wanna cook them
quite quickly
in a white wine, shallot
and garlic broth.
And then I'll use the cooking liquor
that the mussels have come out of
to form the base
of my pea and horseradish soup.
(SIGHS) That's a few more.
She's such a machine.
Yep.
I'm trying to work really fast.
This is quite manic, but I have
to try and control the nerves
and keep going.
(MUTTERS)
All my elements for my entree
are done.
My main, my curry's been simmering
away great,
that just needs to be strained
and then reduced and balanced
and then that'll be done.
Uh, the fish now is just going
in the sous-vide.
While that's in
the sous-vide machine,
I get started on the dessert.
Oop.
The coconut sorbet is just gonna
reinforce that, like,
nice tropical flavour.
I'm quite happy with it, so I throw
it into the ice-cream churner.
Now it's time to get
ready for service.
Go, Daniel!
Listen up, guys,
we're pretty hungry
but we're nowhere near
as hungry as these guys.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
30 minutes to go. Come on.
BILLIE: Wow.
Seeing the diners come in
makes me realise that we're getting
pretty close to service
and I am feeling a bit frazzled now.
I'm currently multi-tasking
on a lot of different elements
for this entire menu.
Get rid of you.
Oh, my God, I made a mess.
I need to finish the garnishes
for the entree
and start the apricot gel
for the main course.
(MUTTERS)
MELANIE: She seems stressed.
Only 30 minutes left.
My main,
I have to start searing the duck,
so that might be a job that I'm doing
WHILE I'm serving my entrees.
Great work, Billie!
MICHAEL: You're on a roll now,
Sarah.
SARAH: This is the last one. Great.
I've finished peeling my scampi
but I still need to make my salsa,
blowtorch my scampi, and plate.
For my salsa, I've got finely diced
shallots, chive, coconut, vinegar,
finger lime and some fried garlic.
This is going to add
a really beautiful freshness
and I think it's just gonna
really finish off the dish.
ANDY: We've got a restaurant
full of hungry diners
and service starts in one minute.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
SHANNON: Wow, look at that.
Looks like squid ink.
It's like a car oil, even. (LAUGHS)
Amazing.
Mmm. Wow.
Smoky?
Really smoky.
Shannon's a big fan
of the smoked paperbark oil
and I'm so happy with that.
Good boy, Dan.
Service is about to start,
so I've taken the cured kingfish
out of the fridge.
I've just gotta wash the cure off
now, pat-dry them
and then I need to slice it,
ready for service.
Bang.
ALL: Ten, nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four,
three, two, one!
JOCK: That's it!
(APPLAUSE)
Oh.
I've been running around like mad
for this last four hours
and now it's time to start
sending out the entrees,
but I didn't quite get everything
done in those four hours,
so while I'm cooking
these duck breasts,
I'm also sending out my entrees.
Service, please.
Great work, Billie.
ALDO: Come on, Billie.
Looks amazing. Come on.
I've gotta watch these...
SHANNON: Once you've done these,
they're OK for the moment,
but I would try and turn
them down even more.
The duck?
Yep.
Just so they're nearly ready
to carve.
Yep, OK.
I'm running back and forth from the
entree service to these duck breasts.
This is not ideal,
but I didn't want to wait
until just before mains service
to perfectly cook these ducks.
Thank you.
I can hear the sizzle of the skin
and hear the fat coming out.
I'm sending out these entrees
and I can't give my full attention
to these duck breasts.
(SIZZLING)
DANIEL: Prepped,
ready for service now.
The way I'm gonna be plating it is
I'm doing a spiral
of the coconut emulsion,
then I'll be spreading out,
layering the kingfish.
On top of that, I'll be laying
three rounds of the pickled onion.
Then dripping on the paperbark oil
and then garnishing with a few little
garnishes of kaffir lime
and micro coriander.
SHANNON: You're a chef now.
(CHUCKLES)
Service!
(CHEERING)
Yes, Dan!
Thank you.
I'm really stoked with the way the
kingfish came together in the end.
I wanted it to somehow reflect home.
Like, put a lot of myself in it,
and I hope they like it,
I really do.
Whoa.
MELISSA: Oop.
Thank you.
Thank you.
ANDY: Yeah, right. OK.
Didn't expect it to look like that.
It actually looks
really, really good.
Yeah.
So, this is the entree from Daniel -
lemon-myrtle-cured kingfish,
coconut emulsion, charred and pickled
red onion and the paperbark oil.
Wow.
Yeah. Presentation's fantastic.
I agree.
What about this guy? Huh?
The smoked black dressing
is bloody delicious.
I don't know how he does it.
He looks like...a tornado.
You know?
And there's a lot of work here.
He spent a lot of time
on that kingfish
that he cured in lemon myrtle, salt
and sugar for just the right time.
The coconut emulsion has kind of a
zingy yet rich kind of quality to it
and then you have
that gorgeous, smoky paperbark.
The texture of that kingfish
was beautiful.
It's a fantastic dish.
It's a real triumph for Daniel.
BILLIE: I'm really quite rushing
to get these entrees out.
I'm really happy with
the mussels, but
I'm really not happy
with how they look.
It looks clumsy and not
well thought through at all.
Service, please.
Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
But I feel like I have
bigger fish to fry.
I need to concentrate more on this
duck breast for the main course.
So I just hope the flavours that
I've got into everything are there.
JOCK: Amazing. Thank you.
MELISSA: Hello. Thank you.
ANDY: Thank you.
Gentlemen,
we have our entree from Billie.
Mussels with pea
and horseradish soup.
Yeah, I'm on the fence.
I mean, there's some
lovely technique here,
the soup has a beautiful texture.
Yeah.
The balance is an issue.
It's too far on the acid side,
and that really hasn't let
the horseradish shine through.
The mussels have been cooked
obviously in wine
and it's now hanging around
as quite a prominent flavour
in the soup itself.
What I will say, though, is
the mussels are beautifully cooked.
It's an interesting one.
I'm not altogether sure I love it.
The balance is out,
and we never see that from Billie.
Never.
Alright, we're good to go.
I need to get this entree out.
I've got my scampis done,
I've blowtorched them.
Adding my salsa,
a little bit of lemon zest,
and then the consomme is gonna be
poured at the table.
OK, service!
I'm so happy with the flavour
of this dish.
It's been such a struggle
to get this done.
But I really need to push hard now
because I have spent so long
on this entree,
I've fallen behind with my main
and I've got less than 45 minutes
to get it out.
JOCK: Thank you.
Ooh, wow.
From Sarah, her entree of scampi,
curry, salsa on top.
I am...
..mystified how she managed
to do that.
I thought this dish was never
gonna come together.
Not only has it come together,
it is absolutely stunning.
Full flavoured,
but it's not overpowering
to the point where you can't taste
the scampi anymore.
And then that little salsa,
it's, like, zesty, it's oniony,
it's herby and finger limey -
those little pops of onion
and finger lime together
along with the scampi
and then the clean broth,
it's just delicious.
Look at the consomme, it's so clear,
it belies the amount of flavour
that's going on.
You know, it's spice-laden and it's
really, really beautifully balanced.
When you get seafood that's prepped
like that, that's all you want,
and she's really stripped it
right back, given us three elements
and knocked it out of the park.
Service!
Yes, Dan.
(APPLAUSE)
The last of the entree plates go out
and it's straight onto the next step.
How do you feel after that entree?
I feel like one-third
of the way done. (LAUGHS)
OK.
Mains is gonna start soon.
I'm probably gonna have to eat
into the mains service time
because I still have to...
do so much for my dessert.
The sorbet is out of the churner,
tastes really nice,
super smooth and creamy.
Now I've just gotta put it
into an ice-cream tray
and get that into the freezer.
Now it's time to do my tarte Tatins.
Oh, there's rum in it.
Dan, it's smelling really good, man.
A good tarte Tatin to me is
the fruit's cooked beautifully
tender underneath
and the caramel goes up the sides
and the pastry soaks it up,
and it gets, like, nice and chewy -
easily my favourite dessert.
But it just comes down
to cooking time
and making sure that it
caramelises properly.
Tartes are looking really good.
I'm excited about 'em.
Just gotta finish balancing my curry,
quickly cook this fish,
and then that's it.
BILLIE: Service, please.
ALDO: Well done, Billie!
That looks ridiculously good,
Billie.
No. No, go home. Go home.
I have all my elements ready
for the main course.
I have the radicchio,
I have the apricot gel,
I have the apricot and duck sauce,
and the only thing I have to do now
is to slice into these duck breasts
and see how they're cooked.
It's the biggest part of the main
dish, so I'm very nervous right now.
Oh!
Bugger.
I slice into the first duck breast
and, while there's still
a blush of pink there,
it's definitely overcooked.
It's... Yeah, it's not good.
ALVIN: How's it look?
ALI: A touch over.
Oh.
Oh, Billie.
My heart is sinking right now.
It's a big mistake.
It's a really big mistake.
Could be, yeah,
big enough to send me home.
Oh, shit.
BILLIE: I can't believe
I've overcooked my duck breasts.
I think I let the pressure
get into my head.
I was focusing so much on dessert.
SHANNON: How did you go?
Did you cut one?
I did. It's a little...
It's a little bit over.
It's a little bit over there
but the skin's down...
You'll get a bit of heat from this.
Yeah, I know.
There's nothing I can do
about this duck breast
and no way I have time to cook
anything else,
so I'm just gonna have to go with it.
It's devastating,
seeing those pieces of duck,
knowing that they're overcooked.
But as I'm plating this dish,
I know the other elements of
the main, I'm really happy with.
Service, please.
I'm just gonna have to trust
the slip-up with the duck
won't cost me my place here.
ANDY: Ooh, we got some duck.
JOCK: Ooh-hoo-hoo.
Thank you.
That doesn't look medium.
No.
Thank you.
So...
..this is Billie's main
of apricot duck, roasted radicchio.
I'm gutted for her.
That's... Look how cooked
it is down one half.
You can see it's grey at the top
and then it's slightly pink
towards the base.
It's a shame for Billie.
Like, I'm really gutted for her
because if you look at the bottom,
you could kind of get away
with medium,
you know, it's, like, just
in that medium category.
But the bit up the top
is definitely just over.
Rendering...best I've seen
in the MasterChef kitchen, ever.
Sauce - delicious, fantastic.
Clean flavour but also deliciously
sort of smooth and fatty
and...and really, really glossy
and beautiful.
I love the freshness and the tartness
in her apricot puree.
It sort of has this sharpness that it
needs and it almost gives the dish
its fresh element that kind of
brings everything together.
And then the radicchio
was absolutely perfect -
the right amount of char
that you want
and then that really soft sort
of fleshy texture
to the rest of the radicchio itself.
There's nothing wrong with
any of the other elements...
Nup.
..other than the cuisson
on the duck.
So apart from the duck,
we've got a perfect plate of food.
Yeah.
But we don't have a piece of duck,
so where does that leave Billie?
Service, please.
How good does a beer sound, Sarah?
Oh! I think a bottle of
champagne for me.
Bottle of champers?
Yeah. 'Cause I'm a bit more
bourge than you.
(CHUCKLES)
ALDO: Sarah, check the lamb.
For my main,
my dish is inspired by a saagwala,
so it's lamb with a spinach puree.
Go, Sarah. Come on.
I've got my saag on the go,
I'm cooking my lamb
at the same time.
Let's hustle, Sarah!
I'm feeling pretty frazzled
right now
and we only have 45 minutes
to get out each course.
There is still a lot to be done.
(WHISTLES)
SHANNON: Burning the bloody hairs
on my arms.
Plenty of heat in this one.
I realise the time's
getting away with me
and I really need to get
this fish on.
OK, have you tested one?
I don't have time to do
a tester piece.
You've done this before, right?
Yes.
Yeah. Done.
So I put all the fish on the hibachi
at the same time.
Cannot stuff it up now.
Like, you know, that skin.
Yeah.
It's gonna curl no matter what.
Have you seasoned it?
Yes.
OK.
I reckon this one's
not far off ready.
I can smell it.
Smell it starting to char?
No, no, careful. Yeah.
Sticking. Sticking.
Oh, of course it sticks.
The old fish-and-hibachi thing
has got me again.
Knew it would happen.
I just don't have time for
this to be sticking right now,
and that's what they're all doing.
I'm worried about how
I'm gonna fix this.
Like, what do we do now?
ALDO: Come on, Dan, come on!
BILLIE: Final four. OK.
Service, please.
Those two.
My last mains leave the pass
and it's a big relief.
I'm excited about this dessert
and I think I have time
to really perfect it.
(EXHALES) Just need to
make the coconut snow.
I need to make the coconut snow.
Go, Billie.
I imagine this lamington just
looking quite plain on the plate,
so it's just
a chocolate-covered cube.
But the idea is that cutting in, you
get that really rich, creamy mousse,
that nice sorbet
and the coconut snow as well,
which adds a bit of fun.
It wouldn't be semifinals
without a bit of liquid nitrogen,
and, yeah, I'm pulling out
all the stops
to try and make it through
to the grand final.
Oh, wow.
She's so organised.
OK, that's good.
Dan, Sarah...
..no more time now, I want mains up.
Let's go. Everyone.
Mains away. Come on,
your plates leaving the pass.
MINDY: No mains have gone
out for Dan or for Sarah,
and Billie's finished her mains.
Come on, Sarah!
MICHAEL: I think he and Sarah
are both in a bit of strife.
JULIE: It's driving me mental
how long that's taking.
Service starts, which to me means...
service starts, you know,
diners should be getting food,
and Billie's doing that.
BILLIE: Final course.
Billie is ready to serve her dessert,
Daniel and Sarah are not
sending out their mains.
(SARAH SIGHS)
ALDO: Sarah, call service.
I'm not ready.
DANIEL: We almost have ready
for one plate, almost.
JULIE: Things are starting to sort
of fall over a bit for them.
MICHAEL: I don't think Sarah
and Dan are gonna get done.
Argh! I need to hold someone.
Wow, half an hour into main service
and we have not seen a single plate
come out for Daniel
OR for Sarah at this point.
That's very worrying.
If they finish service late, we're
gonna have to judge it accordingly.
DANIEL: Oh, my God, where am I at?
So I'm now late for service
and the diners and the judges
are waiting for their mains.
Oh, man.
Every piece of fish was over the
hibachi just stuck to the thing.
SHANNON: Oh, my God.
Yeah, oh, man.
And now I'm thinking it's probably
'cause I sous-vided it,
it's probably moistened
the skin too much.
I shouldn't have done this. Argh. Oh.
MELANIE: You've got this, Dan!
You've gotta push.
Yeah. I know, mate, yeah.
I've gotten myself
out of sticky situations before.
This is a terrible feeling,
but...I can get through it.
Where's all my...bloody...
The way I'm gonna try and unpeel it
is get a palette knife underneath
and just sort of wiggle it underneath
and pop it off.
Oh, shit.
It seems to work, but the skin's not
charring up the way I want it to.
(SIGHS HEAVILY)
You got this, Dan!
It's gonna have to do.
It's all I can do right now.
I've gotta get something out.
You gotta start serving.
I just need to cut 'em and
portion 'em, and then it's done.
Go, go, go.
(ALL CHEER)
MAX: Let's go, Dan! Come on, mate.
ALDO: Come on, Sarah Todd.
Come ON!
I'm really behind here
and it's not great.
Oh, my God.
I need to check.
Tastes good though.
I'm really happy with the flavours
and I think everything works
really well together.
Come on, Sarah!
So I'm plating one dollop of saag,
two pieces of lamb,
finishing it with that beautiful
shredded lamb and my jus.
OK, service.
When diners are waiting
for their next course,
they get quite frustrated
and this is definitely going to be
taken into consideration
with the judging.
Oh, God.
So this dish needs to be perfect.
Beautiful!
You've got just six more plates,
Sarah. Come on!
SHANNON: Yeah, nice.
DANIEL: It's very moist.
Yeah, it's beautiful.
The mains are finally going out.
Service.
I'm hopeful that the flavours
are good enough to get me through.
Five more plates.
OK.
It tastes what it's supposed
to taste like
but it's just not as good
as it can be.
Service!
(APPLAUSE)
Well done, Dan!
Well done, Dan!
Thanks, guys. Love you.
MELISSA AND JOCK: Thank you.
OK. So we have our main from Daniel -
barbecued coral trout,
coastal curry sauce.
How's your cuisson looking?
My fish is actually nicely cooked.
Yeah, yours looks good.
It's glistening.
Start with the fish
'cause it's a little bit...
..to the reverse of Billie,
isn't it?
Um, the cuisson on the fish
was beautiful.
It was, like, still glistening,
super shiny and great,
but then you get to the skin.
Because he's gone really hard on it,
hasn't had time to, like, crisp up,
so it's really rubbery.
It's sort of somewhere
in the middle for me.
The curry sauce is not
perfectly balanced.
The fish, the skin,
not an overly pleasing thing.
I'm a little bit disappointed,
I'm a little bit left wanting here.
I kind of enjoyed the curry sauce
with the fish.
Obviously, not the skin.
It definitely reeks
of a dish made in haste.
Yep.
But I've gotta say, what he did
put on the plate, except for that,
was pretty good.
OK, service.
We're getting some lamb.
Thank you.
Thank you.
OK, an unfortunately late main of
lamb, saag and spiced jus from Sarah.
My lamb's nicely cooked.
OK, Sarah's slightly late lamb dish,
it was worth the wait, I reckon.
The lamb is cooked perfectly.
But for me, the stars, weirdly,
is not the lamb loin at all,
I REALLY enjoyed that saag.
Pairing that with that spiced jus,
it is genius.
And that was what
we were looking for with Sarah -
to be able to bring that French
technique and Indian flavours
and merge them,
and she definitely has.
Such a beautiful nuance
of flavour within it.
And then you look at the spice jus
as well, it's very complex.
It was a very smart main course.
Very, very tasty.
My lamb was cooked perfectly.
It was just not on time.
Home stretch!
HARRY: Home stretch, Billie.
ALVIN: Home stretch, baby!
Whoa!
Home stretch.
I can finally see the light
at the end of the tunnel.
We are so close to finishing
this insane challenge.
And all I have to do
is send out these desserts.
Service, please.
Plating up is pretty simple
for this dessert.
I put the lamington
in the middle of the plate
and scatter around some
of the coconut feuilletine mixture
and then put a huge spoonful
of the coconut snow on top.
Ooh. I went heavy-handed on that one.
Thank you.
Hi.
ANDY: Ooh.
JOCK AND MELISSA: Thank you.
Wow! This looks very cool.
This is Billie's dessert
of lamington.
It looks pretty cool. Huh?
Yeah. I think so too.
(CRUNCH!)
Oh-ho, yeah!
Whoo!
I'm into that.
Look at that!
What are we calling this?
Coconut snow.
Wow.
What a dessert.
That's crazy, that one.
What a dessert.
(LAUGHS)
That was a cracking dish.
Absolutely loved it.
A really, really different take
on a lamington.
The chocolate mousse -
great flavour,
really nice aeration
through the mousse.
Beautiful little centre to that
as well, um, cherry.
And then round the outside,
that feuilletine all crumbled up
with the coconut snow.
I mean, there's nothing to
complain about here.
No.
All of these flavours and these
textures have a sense of nostalgia
and play about them,
and we know that when Billie
is firing on all cylinders
and she's able to kind of
take that inspiration
and then really pair it
with perfect technique,
she can achieve dessert greatness.
I think it screams of a dish
that has been worked on
throughout the whole cook.
She's executed it perfectly
and that's all you can ask for
when you're cooking three courses
in a service challenge.
Service, please.
ALVIN: Yes, Billie! Yes!
Oh, yay. I'm finished.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Yes, Billie!
Well done, Billie!
Thank you.
All of my mains are out
and it's time for dessert.
Where's your mousse?
Mousse, yeah.
Get your mousse ready.
I've made my mousse,
so that is ready to go.
Ginger crumb is done.
I have poached my pears.
I just need to put it all together.
Still not quite there.
Those pears have been in
the water bath for over three hours
and they're not quite cooked through.
Oh, my God.
I've already put myself
behind with service
and this could mean that I'm gonna be
late with dessert as well.
You think just chuck it in the pot
for a little bit longer?
You haven't got time.
Really?
No. No way.
I think this will be
what sends me home.
Oh, God.
Applications for next season
are now open.
Go on! Get on it!
Must be getting pretty late now.
Come on.
Still not quite there.
SARAH: Those pears have been in
the water bath for over three hours
and they're not quite cooked through.
Goddamn!
I'm already behind.
There is nothing I can do
at this point,
I have to serve.
I've got my pears on the plate,
one dollop of my mousse
with some spiced ginger crumb...
Oops.
..and a caramel.
ALDO: Come on, Sarah!
Hustle!
Service.
I'm now really questioning,
you know, is it enough?
MELISSA AND JOCK: Thank you.
Dessert from Sarah.
Masala chai pears.
JOCK: This is a great dessert.
I loved the spice combination
that's going on in it.
Tastes fantastic.
It's got that touch of Sarah
that she does - that spice.
Really good, but the pear,
it's undercooked.
I mean, mine was pretty undercooked.
I'm just looking at yours, Andy, you
had a bigger bit of pear than I did
so that must be...
It's crunchy.
That must be really crunchy.
It's really not a texture
that is either here nor there,
it's not fresh and crunchy,
it's not tender and poached,
it's somewhere in between.
Unfortunately, she's left the door
open with the dessert.
Where will that leave her today?
We'll soon find out.
SHANNON: Let's go, Dan.
You've gotta catch up.
You clean everything down,
and send, OK?
(ALL CHEER)
Bang. Straight out.
Thank Christ for that.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
I just hope the puff pastry is cooked
perfectly, there's enough caramel,
the pineapple is nice and tender.
You've got your sorbet made, yeah?
Yeah, it's done.
You gotta hurry.
It's in the freezer.
Now I've just gotta
get my sorbet out.
I just wanna double-check
the consistency for it.
So I go to the freezer to grab it...
..then I'm, like, surely
I didn't put it in the blast chiller.
Oh, I left it in the blast chiller!
What's wrong?
Oh. I left my sorbet
in the blast chiller.
There it is...
Oh!
..a solid block of sorbet.
You've gotta go, Dan.
Like, could you cut chunks
and then fix it?
In the history I've been doing this,
everyone's got all the plates up.
You can do it!
ALDO: Come on, Dan!
It can be done. Come on.
(SMASH!)
Oh, my God.
Be really neat. OK? Really neat.
Two, four, six, eight, 10, 12...
You gotta go. Gotta go.
Service.
All the plates up.
(SIGHS)
I feel terrible.
I'm the last person
to send the desserts out.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Oh, dear.
Sauce.
From Daniel,
his dessert of rum caramel
and pineapple tarte Tatin.
You got the best-looking one
over there.
Um...this was meant to be
with a coconut sorbet.
Yep.
It's a dessert that kinda...
exemplifies his cook.
It's great on paper...
..and a great idea, but...
..the execution just isn't there.
And it's because he's been
on the back foot
basically the whole
four hours of prep.
There's some good work going on here,
but, unfortunately, there's just
a lot of attention to detail
lost today in this dessert.
This is dangerous territory.
I really feel for him.
(SIGHS)
You know?
Unbelievable entree, pretty good
main course, fail on the dessert.
Yep.
SARAH: Congratulations, guys.
Oh. Well done, you two.
Wow.
That was crazy.
Wow, is everyone really sore?
Yeah. I've got a shin splint.
I don't know where that came from.
Oh.
Well, I think we just witnessed
how hard a three-course service
challenge is for the semifinals.
We really need to kind of weigh up
whose flaws outweigh
other people's flaws
to decide who's going to end up
in our grand finale.
Yeah. It's not clear-cut, is it?
No.
I think we've got a very, very
big decision to make.
That was the service challenge
to end all service challenges.
Shannon... (LAUGHS)
..I'm sure these three appreciated
you being here as much as we do.
Yes.
For me, uh, you should be all
very proud. Extremely proud.
Thank you.
Thanks, Shannon.
Put your hands together
for Shannon Bennett!
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
First and foremost,
this was a service challenge.
We can't ignore that fact.
And some of your courses were late.
Daniel and Sarah, both your mains
and desserts were tardy.
That can't be overlooked.
Let's get down to the food.
We'll start with the entrees.
Billie, we were excited
about your entree
and though the mussels
were sensationally cooked,
the flavours of your dish
were out of balance.
We were left a bit confused.
OK.
Daniel.
That kingfish was cured beautifully.
And the play between
the coconut emulsion
and the paperbark oil
was unbelievable, mate.
Well done.
Thank you. Thanks, guys.
Good on you, Dan.
Sarah.
The scampi were perfectly cooked.
The broth was clean and complex
and the salsa was
bright, fresh and acidic.
It was you at your very best.
Well done.
Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
When it came to the mains,
unfortunately,
none of your dishes were flawless.
Billie, everything on the plate
was perfect...
..except the duck was overcooked.
Mm-hm. Yep.
Daniel, the fish itself,
mate, it was cooked beautifully.
But the skin, it was stretchy.
Sarah, the flavours in your dish,
they were rich and complex
but you were also late for service.
Now to desserts.
Billie.
Your lamington was perfect. We
wouldn't change a thing. Well done.
Thank you.
On you, Billie.
Sarah, your pears were undercooked.
Daniel...
..that dessert...
..was not your finest work.
And while the flavours were good,
the execution was well off the mark.
This...combined with the fact
that two of your dishes
were served late...
..is the reason why, I'm so sorry,
Daniel, you're going home.
(WOMEN SIGH)
It's all good. (CHUCKLES)
Oh, shit.
It's fine. It's fine.
JOCK: Ah, Daniel.
Mate, it's been an honour,
watching you grow.
Your progress throughout this
competition has been extraordinary.
We've loved having you
in the kitchen.
Have you enjoyed being here? Surely.
I've loved every minute of it.
I can't put it into words.
Like, I genuinely never expected
even to make it here,
let alone make it this far.
It's been so hard.
(LAUGHTER)
Seriously, so, so hard.
Like, the work and effort
I've put in, it's paid off tenfold.
And I honestly hold all of that
to everyone here and to you guys.
Yeah, I'm very proud of myself.
Well, Daniel, you're a credit
to not only yourself
but this competition.
But for now,
it's time to say goodbye, buddy.
This is the best bit.
ANDY: Oh, he's gonna bear hug me!
He's gonna bear hug me!
(LAUGHTER)
Well done, mate.
Oh. You did the Territory proud,
you know that. Keep cooking.
I made top three. Like...
How cool is that? I made top three.
Oh!
Well done, guys.
I've genuinely fallen in love
with food in a different way
since being here,
in a way that I never expected.
Proud of you, mate.
Thanks, mate. Thank you.
To me, that's an amazing prize
on its own and I'm so thankful.
ANDY: Billie and Sarah...
..you've been dreaming about it
since day one
and you have done it.
You two are into the MasterChef
grand finale for 2022!
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Thank you.
Thanks, Shannon.
(BOTH LAUGH)
Which way do we go?
ANNOUNCER: Tomorrow night
on MasterChef Australia,
it's all come down to this.
Will Sarah take the title?
SARAH: That dream of winning
MasterChef is finally within reach.
Or can Billie make history...
Is this the dish you wanted to
bring us in the finale?
..by winning
for a second time?
And...
Please welcome...
Oh, my God.
..one huge mega star.
..Heston Blumenthal!
(CHEERING
AND APPLAUSE)
Captions by Red Bee Media