Starters

“Why am I in this competition?”

The long, dejected faces of the red team at the end of Tuesday night’s team challenge set the scene for last night’s elimination challenge when Karen, Tiron, Amanda, Khumo and Joani had to cook it out to remain in the kitchen. There was nerves all round as the contestants knew from last week’s mystery guest chef David Higgs of the Saxon Hotel that the bar had been raised. It was Joanie’s first elimination challenge and she had no clue as to what was coming.

Judge Benny Masekwameng warned, “Today you have to fight for that apron; draw your energy from all sources. We want you to push the envelope, we want you to be creative and ask why you are in this competition.”

Judge Pete Goffe-Wood introduced the mystery guest chef with great aplomb: “Her food has been branded ‘global’ and ‘eclectic’. She is a self-taught cook and a very well known food writer and her current restaurant, The Leopard, is one of Johannesburg’s most beloved eateries. Please welcome the queen of creative cuisine, Andrea Burgener!”

Main course

“Think out the box”

Chef Burgener said she’s always done what she liked, as opposed to asking people what they wanted. She presented three dishes off her menu: quasi-Ethiopian steak tartare with cumin, lemon and onion dressing and pepper, salt and chilli to build it to individual taste; then a Korean spaghetti bolognaise with minced bulgogi-style beef served with noodles, a chilli on the side and slivers of cucumber on top; and finally an almost-gazpacho. Bowled over by the flavours and textures, the contestants were then tasked with creating something modern with influences from all over the globe. The contestants had one hour to prepare the dish and an open pantry to choose their ingredients. With Asian-inspired broth, tortellini, savoury pancakes, exotic samosas, curried chicken strudel and mussels on the table, time was of the essence!

Joani was first up in the tasting room and her dish was mostly well received, but the judges wondered if she had gone one ingredient too far. Amanda and her selection of samosas was in next and the chefs were impressed with her creative combinations, but was it “fusion or confusion?” wondered Pete. Karin walked in next with her “buffet table” as Andrew termed the many dishes she presented. While Pete liked all the dishes, there was no common thread and all the judges agreed she had over-seasoned.

Khumo looked daunted and overwhelmed from the start of the show and her wavering confidence showed. The judges were disappointed with her dish and the criticism was as raw as the onions she put into the savoury pancakes she presented. Last in was Tiron with his vegetarian tortellini served with an Asian broth, which Pete likened to a poker match that was his “all-in”. Tiron cleaned up the elimination challenge by winning favour from all judges with his dish, declared the best in the series so far.

Meanwhile, Kamini and her blue team headed off to the landmark Charly’s Bakery to get a Masterclass in the “mucking afazing” cupcakes for which Charly’s has become famous. All the cupcakes decorated by the blue team were being given to the children at the New Orleans Primary School and the contestants were visibly moved by the appreciation they showed.

Dessert

Back in the MasterChef kitchen, the judges lined up to deliver the verdict. Chef Andrea said she was amazed at how “out there” the contestants pushed themselves creatively, and the one dish she would definitely put on her menu was Tiron’s. Someone had to hang up their apron, and sadly it was Khumo’s turn to bid everyone farewell. The youngest contestant’s parting words of “be yourself and cook from the heart” were a fitting tribute to her culinary skills, as all the judges agreed. Invention challenge next week for the top nine!

After-dinner cheese

“Your dish looked like the Mad Hatter’s tea party,” remarked Judge Pete Goffe-Wood on Karin’s dish.

By Priscilla Urquhart