Wed, May 9, 2012
MasterChef Australia is an Australian competitive cooking game show based on the original British MasterChef. It is produced by Shine Australia and screens on Network 10. Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston served as the show's main judges until 2019.
Sun, May 6, 2012
Hundreds of hopeful contestants competed for a place in the Top 50. They each had an hour (plus an additional five minutes in front of the judges of final cooking and presentation) to prepare a dish of their choice, with a number securing their place in the next stage of the competition.
Tue, May 8, 2012
The top 12 performers from the Mystery Box challenge had six hours to travel to the Mornington Peninsula, collect their choice of ingredients and prepare a dish that showed off the fresh produce of the region. Contestants struggled with organisation and timing, some forgetting ingredients, others getting lost, leading many to change their dish last minute. In the end, Audra, Amina, Andrew, Jules, TK and Dalvinder impressed the most and won their place in the Top 24.
Wed, May 9, 2012
The remaining contestants were given the choice to compete for one of five spots in the Top 24, with elimination as the result should they fail. In a challenge set by Matt Moran, the ten contestants had to fillet and bone a salmon and produce a dish of their choice. In what was a first for many, filleting the fish proved a challenge, with a number of contestants failing to remove the scales. In the end, Alice, Matt, Sam, Tregan and Wade earned their spot in the main competition while five others were eliminated. The remaining challengers competed to gain an advantage in the next challenge: they had to quickly whip cream into 150 grams of butter and present it to the judges. Beau won the right to study the dish for the next challenge.
Thu, May 10, 2012
In their first Pressure Test, Shannon Bennett brought a twist on the classic Peach Melba to the MasterChef hopefuls. With two hours on the clock, contestants struggled with the many technical components of the three-hatted dessert. The six standout performers (Andy, Julia, Kylie, Lydia, Ben and Beau) won their place in the Top 24, while the remaining contestants were assessed by the judges and whittled down to twelve final hopefuls to compete for the last 6 places in the competition.
Fri, May 11, 2012
MasterChef Australia is an Australian competitive cooking game show based on the original British MasterChef. It is produced by Shine Australia and screens on Network 10. Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston served as the show's main judges until 2019.
Sun, May 13, 2012
The remaining twelve hopefuls faced a French Invention Test set by Jacques Reymond at Montsalvat, an artist colony in Eltham. With 90 minutes on the clock, contestants proved their worth cooking both sweet and savoury dishes. Reymond was very impressed with some contestants skill and ability to capture the "essence of France," and Debra, Filippo, Mindy, Kath, Mario and Emma secured the final places in the Top 24.
Wed, May 16, 2012
In their first Team Challenge, contestants took over the running of two of King's Cross best restaurants, Ortolan on Bayswater and Concrete Blonde. With five hours of preparation time and three hours to cook and serve, teams also had to run the Front of House and spruik to possible customers. The Red Team, under Emma's leadership struggled initially with delegation of duties, leading them to fall behind and start service late. After a shaky start, they found their rhythm and were praised for the quality of their dishes, especially with dessert made by Kylie. The Blue Team thrived under Andy's leadership and their ability to bring in customers. Their dishes earned praise from the judges, especially Ben's scallop main, but were criticised for their dessert. In the end, it was decided by how much money each restaurant made, and the Blue team's initial organisational edge saw them the victors by over $500. The Red Team were sent into their first elimination challenge.
Thu, May 17, 2012
In a three-round pasta-themed challenge, the Red Team fought for their places in the competition. In the first round, contestants had to identify different kinds of pasta with the first six to make a wrong guess moving to the second round. First-in-line Kevin incorrectly labelled one of the hardest varieties (lasagnotte), and as no-one else could identify it correctly, his decision pulled the next five people in the line into the second round. Kevin, Jules, TK, Mindy, Emma and Kylie then had to make 250 grams of fettuccine from scratch with the first four declared safe. Kevin and Jules were left in the final round, in which they had to reproduce a Ricotta and Egg Yolk Raviolo with Sage and Burnt Butter Sauce. Despite excelling in presentation, Kevin's lack of seasoning and imbalance of flavour led him to be the first eliminated contestant of the series.
Fri, May 18, 2012
MasterChef Australia is an Australian competitive cooking game show based on the original British MasterChef. It is produced by Shine Australia and screens on Network 10. Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston served as the show's main judges until 2019.
Sun, May 20, 2012
In the Mystery Box challenge, contestants were faced with a range of ingredients that had to be "cracked", such as eggs, crab, nuts and spices. With the judges only tasting their favourite three dishes, the twenty-three hopefuls fought to gain their attention with some inventive dishes. Filippo beat out Mindy and Debra to gain the advantage of picking the core ingredient for the Invention Test. Tasked with making the perfect sandwich using tomato as the core ingredient, the quality of dishes meant the judges were faced with a difficult decision. Filippo, Mindy and Debra excelled again and along with Dalvinder were the Top 4, but it was Mindy who impressed the most. While TK, Wade and Lydia made enough mistakes to fall into the Bottom 3, and face elimination.
Mon, May 21, 2012
Carrie, Kate and Fiona faced off in the Pressure Test after cooking the three least impressive dishes in the Invention Test. They were asked to replicate a chicken dish from chef Peter Gilmore. Fiona had a slow start but she finished strongly and cooked the chicken perfectly but her dish lacked detail.
Thu, May 24, 2012
The first of a two-part Elimination Challenge consisted of a Taste Test, in which the contestants had to guess the 25 ingredients of Gary's Moroccan Tajine, with the first 5 contestants to get an ingredient wrong going into the elimination round. Debra, Matt, Filippo, Emma and Andrew fought it out, given the choice of any 5 ingredients from the tajine to make a single dish in 45 minutes. Matt and Filippo were the bottom two, but despite some errors, it was Matt's undercooked lamb that sealed his elimination.
Fri, May 25, 2012
MasterChef Australia is an Australian competitive cooking game show based on the original British MasterChef. It is produced by Shine Australia and screens on Network 10. Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston served as the show's main judges until 2019.
Sun, May 27, 2012
In a biscuit-themed Mystery Box, Julia beat out Ben and Amina with her Melting Moments. In a Mexican-themed Invention Test Julia chose cactus and prickly pear as the core ingredient. And while Mindy won a second shot at immunity, beating Alice and Dalvinder, Julia found herself in the Bottom 3 with Andrew and Kath, and a Pressure Test battle.
Mon, May 28, 2012
Kath, Andrew and Julia were faced with the task of reproducing Maggie Beer's Upside Down Grape Cake with Ginger, Raisin and Lemon Wafers and Olive Oil and Verjuice Ice Cream in only 90 minutes. Julia managed the best overall reproduction of the cake and its garnishes. Both Kath's and Andrew's cakes were very undercooked, but won praise for their accompaniments, Andrew with the best ice cream and Kath the best wafers. In the end, it was Kath's collapsed cake that led to her elimination.
Wed, May 30, 2012
The teams were tasked with creating a three-course fundraising dinner for OzHarvest - a charity organisation that collects leftover produce from restaurants to feed the needy. The winner of the challenge would be decided by the guests, who paid as much as they thought the dinner was worth. Teams picked up ingredients on behalf of OzHarvest and created their menu from what was available. The Blue Team's decision to inform guests on where the produce was sourced led them to receive a $20,000 donation, winning them the challenge and raising $32,012 in total for the charity.
Thu, May 31, 2012
In the first part of the elimination, contestants had to correctly name 10 different kinds of poultry. The first five to guess incorrectly, would go on to the second elimination round. TK, Julia, Debra, Tregan and Alice had 60 minutes to cook a dish with poultry of their choice. The bottom two consisted of Julia - with undercooked duck - and TK. It was the latter's uninspiring turkey stir fry, which she put together in 10 minutes after overcooking her turkey breast, that sent her home.
Fri, Jun 1, 2012
MasterChef Australia is an Australian competitive cooking game show based on the original British MasterChef. It is produced by Shine Australia and screens on Network 10. Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston served as the show's main judges until 2019.
Sun, Jun 3, 2012
In the third Mystery Box of the Top 24, Dalvinder beat Audra and Beau with her nostalgic sweet and sour pork dish with egg dumplings. In the Invention Test, contestants got their pick from three classic "seductive" combinations to use as a core ingredient: strawberries and cream, champagne and caviar, or chocolate and roses, while Dalvinder had no restrictions. As there would be no bottom 3, Andy sat it out with a badly burnt hand. Tregan and Filippo were beaten by Sam and his refined "Seafood for Two" dish, which featured elements such as a champagne jelly and caviar cream.
Mon, Jun 4, 2012
Tasmania Week began with a four-team Market Stall Challenge, which took place at Hobart's famous Salamanca Markets. The teams had to set up stalls and sell dishes made exclusively from market-sourced ingredients, with the team that impressed the judges with their quality and total earnings declared the winners. Each team served some delicious fare, but it was the Blue Team's (handpicked by Sunday Challenge winner Sam) range of clever dishes that won them the right to cook off for a shot at immunity.
Tue, Jun 5, 2012
As the winning team from the Salamanca Challenge, Sam, Kylie, Ben, Mindy and Amina traveled south to Kettering to cook for a spot in the Immunity Challenge. They first had to net a salmon, the weight of which would determine their cooking time, and then cook using their catch. Sam and Amina, who had the longest cooking times, produced the Top 2 dishes of the day but Sam's slightly overcooked salmon gave Amina the shot at immunity. In a more traditional Immunity Challenge, chef Philippe Leban of The Source at MONA, outcooked Amina on a tricky dessert, beating her on total points (25-22).
Wed, Jun 6, 2012
The contestants were divided into two teams for an Afternoon Tea Challenge, Andrew captaining the Reds and Amina the Blues. The teams had to produce four dishes to serve at an afternoon tea at Launceston's Cataract Gorge for 100 guests, who would vote for their favourite. While some contestants foraged on local farms for ingredients for their dishes, others milled flour in Oatlands - a process that wasn't without incident. The Blue Team, buoyed by excellent presentation and a high quality of dishes (including Julia's Melting Moments), took the challenge by a landslide 60 votes to 12, leaving the Reds facing another Elimination Challenge.
Thu, Jun 7, 2012
The Elimination Challenge in Stanley began with a Skills Test - the contestants having to cook the perfect medium rare steak. Kylie, Ben, Andy and Sam were the first contestants found to have incorrectly cooked their meat, sending them through to the second round: an onion ring cook-off. Kylie and Ben most impressed, leaving Andy and Sam to compete in the final round: at the Stanley Hotel both contestants had to cook one dish for 50 people. Andy (cooking beef cheek) and Sam (cooking crayfish) were both praised for the quality of their food as well as their sportsmanship throughout preparation and service, leading the judges to declare a tie and keep them both in the competition.
Fri, Jun 8, 2012
MasterChef Australia is an Australian competitive cooking game show based on the original British MasterChef. It is produced by Shine Australia and screens on Network 10. Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston served as the show's main judges until 2019.
Sun, Jun 10, 2012
In the Mystery Box challenge, contestants were given a single egg and asked to make it the hero of their dish. The Top 6 were selected and ranked, with Kylie's Poached Meringue the standout dish, over Mindy, Andy, Jules, Amina and Andrew, respectively. For the Invention Test set by Rick Stein, the winning contestants, in ranking order, picked a type of seafood and a country to inspire dishes which their teams would prepare. Stein was impressed with most team's ability to encapsulate the essence of their given country's cuisine, but it was Team Morocco (Jules, Alice and Tregan) who won the opportunity to cook for immunity. Given botargo to create a United Kingdom-inspired dish, Andrew, Dalvinder and Audra struggled with the unfamiliar ingredient and fell into the Bottom 3 and a Pressure Test.
Mon, Jun 11, 2012
Dalvinder, Audra and Andrew were given 3.5 hours to reproduce George's 'Greek Salad', an intricate dish featuring ten elements and various cooking techniques, such as a capsicum terrine, a black olive sponge and a cucumber ice cream. Audra produced the best replica overall and was the first declared safe. And while Andrew's decision to take a short-cut with his capsicum terrine led it to not set as a result, it was Dalvinder's lack of flavour and technical errors, despite having the best terrine, that led to her elimination.
Wed, Jun 13, 2012
The contestants faced a 24-Hour Team Challenge, running an entire day's service at the Shangri-La hotel in Sydney. Groups of three contestants each faced a shift in which they catered for hotel staff, served canapés for a function, covered room service orders and ran the hotel's restaurant. While both teams faced some problems with preparation and service, it was the speed and efficiency of the Blue Team that won them another Challenge victory.
Thu, Jun 14, 2012
In the first round of a three-round elimination, contestants were tasked with creating a dish in just 20 minutes. Kylie, Debra, Filippo and Amina produced the most impressive dishes and were declared safe. In the second round, the remaining contestants were given only 10 minutes to create a dish. Tregan, Sam and Emma's dishes were the best, with Mario and Julia left to face off in the final round. Given only five minutes, Mario opted for a simple salad while Julia cooked an intricate three-layered dessert. It was her innovative use of time and ingredients that saw her pronounced safe, as Mario was eliminated.
Sun, Jun 17, 2012
Contestants faced a Mystery Box set by the three previous MasterChef Australia winners: Julie Goodwin, Adam Liaw and Kate Bracks, who each brought a Box containing five of their favourite ingredients. The top four consisted of Audra, Andrew, Debra and Mindy, with Audra pronounced the winner thanks to her elegant dish of pork belly over noodles. Wade, Filippo and Emma's dishes were the least impressive, sending them into a Pressure Test.
Mon, Jun 18, 2012
Wade, Emma and Filippo had to recreate Gary's Quiche Lorraine without the aid of a recipe, and create an accompanying salad. Emma's effort was deemed the best overall; with the creamiest custard, the flakiest pastry and the best salad, she was the first pronounced safe. The biggest flaw in Wade's quiche was undercooked pastry, and his salad was deemed "careless". But it was Filippo's uneven stuffing, use of the wrong cheese (cheddar instead of gruyère) and "old-fashioned" salad that were enough to see him eliminated.
Wed, Jun 20, 2012
The two teams were tasked with catering a Sri-Lankan wedding ceremony for 450, with the guests to determine the challenge winner. Guest chef Kumar Mahadevan mentored the Red and Blue teams, both of whom struggled with the expectations of the challenge, the timing, food preparation and quality and having to work together despite competing against each other. The judges and guests were overall impressed with the dishes provided and it was a close call, but it was the Red Team who won by 243 votes to 207.
Thu, Jun 21, 2012
The Blue Team were faced with a cake-themed Elimination Challenge. Contestants had to pick out and correctly name a cake from a line-up. Emma and Ben were the first to guess incorrectly and were sent into the final elimination round. Ben offered to give up his place in the competition if it would save Emma, but after the judges made it clear that, should he leave, Emma would still have to cook, he decided to cook in the second round. Given 1 hour and 40 minutes to create a cake, both Ben and Emma were commended for their flavour combinations, but criticised for their "messy" presentation. In the end, Emma's dense sponge couldn't match Ben's sophisticated flavours and she was eliminated.
Fri, Jun 22, 2012
MasterChef Australia is an Australian competitive cooking game show based on the original British MasterChef. It is produced by Shine Australia and screens on Network 10. Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston served as the show's main judges until 2019.
Sun, Jun 24, 2012
In the Mystery Box Challenge contestants were given 60 minutes to make a soup of their choice. The top three consisted of Debra, Amina and Wade, with the latter's Mushroom Soup with Porcini Croutons picked as the judges' favourite. With "dude food" as the theme for the Invention Test, and Wade's pick of Japanese mayonnaise as the core ingredient, contestants cooked a host of indulgent and tasty dishes. Julia, Kylie and Tregan landed in the top three and it was Tregan that managed to win a shot at immunity, while Amina, Andrew and Sam were left as the bottom three.
Wed, Jun 27, 2012
In a 'home-style' challenge, contestants first had 90 minutes in the MasterChef house to cook for the chance at immunity from the next elimination. The top two dishes, picked from the judges' favorite five dishes, were Audra and Ben. The other three favourites were team captains in the next challenge: cooking a three-course meal in three different homes using ingredients only from those homes. Each team served up dishes with their own merits and criticisms given the nature of the challenge; the Yellow Team struggled cooking in a makeshift kitchen with limited cooking equipment. The Red Team were judged best overall, thus sending the Blue (with raw lamb) and Yellow (which did not serve up dessert in time) Teams to elimination.
Thu, Jun 28, 2012
The eight losing contestants had their pick from 120 ingredients, with a catch: any ingredient, when picked, could only be used once and only by that contestant. Besides the "first-come, first-served" rule, they also had to incorporate every ingredient they picked in that round and were given only 30 minutes. In the first round, using 8 ingredients, Andy, Amina and Mindy were pronounced safe. In the second round, using 5 ingredients, Alice and Debra were the top two leaving Jules, Julia and Tregan in the final round. Despite all serving up quality dishes with minor flaws, it was Tregan who was eliminated.
Fri, Jun 29, 2012
MasterChef Australia is an Australian competitive cooking game show based on the original British MasterChef. It is produced by Shine Australia and screens on Network 10. Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston served as the show's main judges until 2019.
Sun, Jul 1, 2012
In an Invention Test set by Heston Blumenthal from The Fat Duck, contestants got their pick from six core ingredients that would be paired with an unknown ingredient chosen by Heston. After it was revealed that all the ingredients (bacon, Vegemite, cauliflower, beetroot, caviar and blue cheese) would be paired with chocolate, contestants were given full run of the pantry to cook a single dish that highlights the given flavour combination. Kylie won the challenge and a shot at immunity with her Blue Cheese and Honey Sundae with Chocolate Fudge Sauce, despite other great desserts from Julia and Jules, who completed the top three. Beau, Andrew and Amina were the bottom three, due to lack of concept in their dishes and poor flavour combinations.