MONICA GASPS
This is the moment. There's no going back.
Let's go, let's go, let's go. Quick, quick, quick.
I've burnt my monkfish. No...
Just calm down!
...it's the MasterChef: The Professionals final.
It's all or nothing today. This is a big one.
I want to take that trophy home
and walk past it every day and just smile.
This is what I want.
It's definitely the biggest cook of my life.
I'm not going to leave anything behind and hopefully it's enough.
I feel like I have to win now just to do everything
that I've done so far justice.
I feel like the trophy is, like, literally just here.
Like I could almost grab it.
We're looking for a champion.
This is what they have been dreaming about.
Their food has got to go beyond marvellous.
It has got to be mind-blowing.
Just one last cook-off.
Winner takes all!
Let's go!
I was born and bred in Bristol.
I grew up with my mum and three sisters.
Growing up, I was definitely quite mischievous.
Didn't enjoy school as such.
I gave my teachers, you know, hell, really.
Woohoo!
I think he got away with being naughty cos the teachers liked him.
Go-karting is something I like to do.
I feel like I'm an F1 driver.
Come on!
I think he's very competitive.
Well, you can see in the go-karting just then
that he absolutely battered us! Yeah.
I was like, "Whoa, this is awesome!"
I got kicked out of sixth form.
So, the first kitchen I worked in was a two-rosette establishment,
so quite well respected.
Straight away, I just found a drive and passion for it.
It was a team collective and that's something that I really wanted
to get stuck in with.
Go on, then, take the spoon.
Wahey! Wow!
I met Courtney when I was 18, I think.
We kind of got on really well,
started talking and seeing each other a little bit.
He was just a cheeky chappy.
Like, he is... What you see is what you get with Tommy.
One thing led to another
and now we've got a baby and a house ourselves, so...
Oh! That's my bit!
OK, thank you.
Albie is just a bundle of joy, literally.
He's the happiest kid in the world. He really is.
Go!
They are just best friends.
Let's go! Wahey!
And they're always rough and tumble.
They are typical dad and boy.
Go and get it from Daddy. Get it.
Growing up without a dad,
it really made me learn that I don't want to do that.
I want to be the best dad I can possibly be.
Let's go to the pier. Race!
MasterChef is something I've always watched, I've always loved.
So, entering this competition has been one of the best things
I've ever done, for sure.
To be here today, saying I'm going to be in the final,
it does feel super surreal.
Is Daddy going to win? Yeah?
Yeah, that's right. Yeah. Come on!
We're so proud of you.
You've got this. We believe in you.
I've always said from the beginning,
like, I knew he was going to get to the final.
And I really do truly believe he's got it in him to win.
Come on, yeah. Come on!
So incredibly proud. More than I could ever say, yeah.
Tommy, right from the onset, he meant business.
That is a cracking plate of food.
It's actually quite delicious.
I'm trying to stop eating it, but I keep going back into it.
I like the way Tommy brings Asian twists into his cookery
that just elevates the dish to new heights.
Fabulous sauce.
I love the warmth of the chilli and the galangal that's in there.
A very, very nice plate of food.
That broth is absolutely banging.
It is a dish full of great things cooked really, really nicely.
If he has a weakness, it's giving himself too much to do!
I'm running around like a headless chicken.
The pop-up was super challenging.
Are all your sides done?
I need to finish my coleslaw, fry my shallot rings,
and obviously cook my beef.
Whoa! Yeah.
Unfortunately, the overall flavour is burnt - from the flatbread.
It was a hard day.
I think that's what knocked my confidence quite a lot.
Weren't we supposed to have some crackling?
Unfortunately, it's not worked today.
Your wanton is not cooked. This is dry.
Oh, that's so annoying.
Oh!
When the chips are down and you've got to really raise your game,
that's what a champion does.
Oh, mate, look at the cooking on that, Chef.
Look at that!
It tastes great. It's full of life.
Without a doubt, two outstanding plates of food.
Alchemist was, like, just crazy.
The whole time I was there, I was just like, "What is going on?"
Super inspiring.
It's definitely a first for me. I've never done this before, so...
Extraordinary.
I think my food has definitely become more meaningful.
I don't want to just put something on the plate because it tastes nice.
I want to put it on the plate because it's got a reason.
This is a wow dish.
I would eat it again. If there's any going, I'll have it.
Doing this competition has just giving me that real confidence
and understanding that, actually, you know, I can do it.
QUIETLY: Yes.
Wow!
I'm definitely going to go all guns blazing.
I want that trophy, so I'm going to give everything.
I was born in a farming town in Australia called Mildura,
pretty much only known for its grapes and oranges!
It's in the middle of nowhere.
I think the closest town's four and a half hours away.
I was always out riding horses or going for a hike
or going to the river fishing.
Mum left when I was three.
My brother and I ended up moving in with our nan and grandad.
Nan and I, at Christmas-time especially,
we would always cook the Christmas meal together,
making chocolate truffles and stuff like that.
I didn't have any ambition to be a chef.
I started front of house and then I went into the kitchen
to cover for a chef that was going on holiday for a month.
All of a sudden I was like, "Wow, this is really cool."
Instantly fell in love with everything about it, the pressure,
the pace, you know, I was like, "Wow, I think I have to do this."
All right, Chef. Bechamel's ready.
You can start by spreading that.
Vincent and I met in Australia on the Mornington Peninsula.
I was working at one restaurant. He was working at another.
Unfortunately, his restaurant caught on fire.
But luckily his chef knew my head chef
and sent him over to work with us.
And the rest is kind of history!
Kasae's very spontaneous, very gentle, nice
and always smiley.
So, yes, I asked her if she wanted to follow me first to New Zealand,
then we work a year in Sweden, and now in England.
It's been three years we are here.
Vincent and I want to open up our own restaurant
in the hopefully not-too-distant future.
I like this one.
The coriander? Hmm. Yeah.
Chocolate coriander's cool.
The idea of opening our own restaurant is very exciting.
For me and Kasae, it's one of the main goals.
KEYBOARD JINGLE PLAYS
Hey, guys. How are you going?
Hi, Kasae. Hi, sweetie. Hey, sis, what's up?
It's obviously hard with Nan being across the other side
of the world.
We've just been to Copenhagen,
which kind of only happens if you're in the final three.
Oh, my goodness!
Oh, well done.
Thank you. Wow. We're so proud of you. It's amazing.
All the best, love. We are all rooting here for you.
Thanks, guys. I'm sure you are going to win anyway!
Kasae is a chef I find really exciting.
She's inventive, she's creative and she dares to be different.
Your tart tastes delicious.
You've invented something a little bit different
with YOUR twist, and that's exactly what we wanted.
THEY GASP
I love the theatre of this.
I can't stop eating it.
Kasae's food is just fun.
That pear is fantastic!
That is stunning.
Sometimes it's been a little bit hairy, I'm not going to lie.
Eating it isn't fantastic, I'm afraid.
Oh, no, I'm leaking.
Ugh. There were definitely some points
where I thought that I was out of my depth.
No!
We've got guests out there waiting right now.
Even when the chips are down, she still keeps on battling.
She never gives up.
Service, please.
Mate, she's come out swinging with this one.
Service, please. Well done.
Kasae's roasting of that fish is literally perfect.
It couldn't be any better.
The further she got into the competition,
the more that talent started to come out.
Service, please.
Chef's table - being able to cook for all of those chefs,
that was really amazing.
The technical ability that you showed in that dish today,
you must have been really pushing yourself.
I think you should be very proud. A fantastic job. Thank you.
To go out there and receive amazing feedback, it put me on cloud nine.
Before the competition, I really didn't have that confidence
to fully be myself in my cooking.
Bit nervous about serving a two-star chef,
especially one like Rasmus.
It's very interesting. Also very daring. Thank you so much.
When Kasae is cooking at her best, she really blows my mind.
It's genius. Get you, Kasae.
She's going to give this final absolutely everything.
She is one determined cook.
Kasae, this type of dish would work in any top restaurant.
Coming from a small town in Australia, pushing myself to move
to different countries and now taking on this...
After everything, to lift the trophy at the end,
it would be incredible.
When I was younger, I was a bit cheeky and really annoying.
One of those annoying babies.
Tom was quite a feisty little boy, wasn't he?
Yeah. There would be little tantrums.
He wasn't the easiest.
Oh, my God!
Quite headstrong. Yeah.
Both my parents are chefs.
My dad's an exec at the hotel I'm currently at,
and then my mum's a pastry chef.
I think growing up with parents who are chefs is really nice.
You get great home meals, Christmas is always nice, when you've got
the full spread, but they're also obviously really motivated
and stuff, and I feel that definitely helps.
You sort of follow in their footsteps.
At school, the first few years,
I used to get lot of stick for being ginger
and then Ed Sheeran came about and it sort of all changed
and it became quite popular, so...
My cooking teacher at the time
entered me into a cooking competition.
I won that one.
And then the next one was something called Future Chef,
and I won that as well.
12,000 people entered it, and because he'd had that success,
he wanted to be a chef from there on.
My first job was actually at the hotel that my parents are at.
I've done a full circle,
gone to a few different Michelin star restaurants,
got loads of experience,
and then I've come back at a higher position.
He's very driven.
He wants it right first time, so if he doesn't get a dish correct,
there's a good chance of it being flung, and storms out.
But that's part of his drive. I think it is, anyway.
Got some steaks here, Tom.
Do the honours.
In a family barbecue,
yeah, it gets a little competitive when we're cooking.
Keep it shut?
Give it a minute to get some heat in there.
I think my dad would never admit that I'm catching him up
but I'd like to think I am.
Obviously, he's got quite a few years on me.
This is definitely ready.
Especially through MasterChef, doing all this different stuff,
I feel like I've aged cooking-wise, like, three years already.
Looks amazing. Wow.
It's actually well cooked. It is nice, innit?
Glad I didn't let you cook 'em!
One of the main reasons I encouraged him to enter MasterChef
was cos my father died in February
and he spent a lot of time with the kids.
Yeah. He was a really good grandad. Always really sweet.
Just really caring. Just the best grandad you could ask for.
I thought if he did that,
it would give my mum something to focus on.
My mum could watch it and it'd help her take her mind off things.
I think having Grandma down and watching it together would be great.
I reckon there'll be a lot of screaming and quite a lot of tears
as I go through. It's going to be exciting to watch.
One more round and could be home and dry, couldn't you?
One last push. Yeah.
To win MasterChef, I think, would just be the ultimate prize for Tom.
He's worked so hard all the way through.
To us, he's just a winner, isn't he?
I can't wait to see you come home with that trophy.
Oh, hopefully. Oh, God.
Don't jinx me.
We're going to put it on the telly.
You all right? I'm all right. You?
Slightly terrified.
Tom got the competition going with a bang.
Tom, that was a really good start.
Absolutely delicious.
Tom's dishes can be very inventive,
but they have their foundation in good classic cookery.
This is singing to me, this plate of food.
I absolutely love it.
There's nothing about this dish that I can fault. It's fabulous.
The first invention test was definitely a highlight.
You look very suave.
A dish inspired by sunshine.
He delivered that beautiful lobster.
It's absolutely sensational.
I pretty much felt his feedback was a really great moment for me.
His pastry's not only impressed us,
it's also impressed our critics, too.
My word. It's outrageously good.
That is the best dessert I've had on MasterChef
in all the years I've been here.
Tom's had a few bumps in the road along the way...
The first low moment for me was the last meal on Earth.
I'm not sure about this crispy pastry tube.
I don't taste the scallop in there at all.
I think that's a bit of a shame.
I thought I was out then.
The chef leaving the competition is...
...Cecily. Thank you very much.
The salt and pepper round was a proper push on the day.
There was a lot to do.
CLANK Oh!
What's actually happened?
I was vac-ing the air out of it and the bowl exploded.
When Tom's taken a knock, he comes back even more determined.
You put a bit of popcorn and some of that ice cream
with that dark chocolate - it's fabulous.
Tom may have felt the pressure through the competition,
but he's had moments of absolute brilliance.
The sauce here with the truffle, Madeira,
it just takes it to the next level.
The chocolate sauce is great.
It's got a lovely little flavour of the pigeon going through it.
Another cracking dish.
Wahey!
I felt my food has definitely developed during the competition.
That was absolutely on point.
But at the same time,
I feel like I'm getting a little more creative.
Looks good, huh? You could get a job here. Thank you, Chef.
What a way to start a service.
One thing is for sure, he is going to have a brilliant future.
I think that's really, really quite delicious.
I don't think I could have worked any harder.
I'm sure my mum and dad would back me up on the fact
that I've put my all into this.
I'm going in with full confidence
and hopefully I can pull it off on the day.
Some spectacular cooking is about to take place
in this kitchen. I think we're going to see a battle.
Any one of these chefs can lift this title.
It's who can hold their nerve.
Open the doors. Let 'em do their stuff!
Wow. What a journey.
It's been extraordinary.
We have thoroughly enjoyed eating your food.
It's been exceptional.
All three of you deserve your place in this final.
I am beyond excited for today.
Three courses that's going to crown one of you
as our MasterChef champion.
This has to be the best three dishes
you've cooked so far in your career.
Chefs, we want your heart and soul and your brilliance on these dishes.
Three hours. Off you go.
Today's massive. Definitely feeling it. Up against two very solid chefs.
So, head down and go, give it a spin and that's it.
We all deserve a place here,
so it's just who can do the best on the day, you know?
But I'm excited to get going.
It's a huge day, but I think it's the most excited that I've been.
So, hopefully that's a good sign!
I am not afraid to bring in different ingredients
and different flavour combinations,
so I think that maybe sets me apart from the other chefs.
Hopefully, that gives me a bit of an edge.
Kasae, Kasae! Hello.
How are we feeling?
I need to get a lot done, so I need to be moving really quickly,
but I'm feeling good. If you win today... Mm-hm.
...what will it do for you?
Phew!
My partner and I want to open up our own restaurant,
so this would be an amazing leg-up.
Would you put the trophy in the restaurant? Oh, absolutely.
As soon as you walk in the door at the reception area,
you would see it - I'd have no shame!
THEY LAUGH
Kasae has always added a little bit
of her fabulous personality into her food
and today is like no other.
Her starter is fish, pastry and cheese.
Now, there's three combinations that are a little bit unusual.
The dish is a ring of fried pastry.
It's going to have peas and asparagus that's been mixed
with a dill pickle gel,
caramelised goat's cheese foam on top,
and then just a little spotting of smoked haddock throughout it.
Whoa.
I've never been really keen on the combination of fish and cheese.
But then we went to the Alchemist
and I tried cod jaw with cheese on top of it.
I was like, "Whoa, this is actually really cool.
"Why have I been avoiding this for so long?"
We've got puff pastry that's wrapped round a ring,
and then that's going to be deep-fried.
How are they doing, all right?
A few broken ones here. Yeah, right.
Getting there now. Getting there. There we go.
She's flaking the haddock through her dish.
She's got to be careful that it doesn't dry out.
We've also got a foam that is made from smoked cheese.
It certainly sounds intriguing.
And whenever we've had intriguing combinations from Kasae before,
they've been mind-blowing.
Kasae's main course is a guinea fowl dish.
She's putting a mousse underneath the skin.
It's got black garlic, pistachio and apricot.
It's going to bring colour
and it's certainly going to bring a lot of flavour.
I want to try and show off a little bit of technique.
Guinea fowl can sometimes be a hard bird to work around,
getting the mousseline perfect so that it stays inside
when you cook it on the crown.
She can't afford for that skin to break.
You don't want that mousse coming out at the sides.
I'm also doing what I call a luxury jus.
It's a jus with some mayonnaise that's been emulsified
through it at the end. Wow!
My inspiration behind this one is our time at Tom Shepherd's.
I'd never seen a jus that had been thickened
with a mayonnaise before.
I was a little bit sceptical when I first tried it,
but it's so rich and so silky.
Mayonnaise going into a hot sauce could split straight away.
This is going to be all about the temperatures being just right.
She's making flatbread,
which she's going to finish at the last minute so it puffs up.
The fried flatbread, getting it to puff perfectly,
that one's going to be a little bit of a concern,
but I really wanted to do that and then stuff it with the guinea leg.
I think it really kind of works with the crunchy and the soft
and the fatty flavours from it.
Dessert is going to be apple and white chocolate mousse
set inside an apple-shaped mould,
and then it's going to have sour apple compote
and miso caramel inside of it.
And then an apple and wasabi sorbet on the side.
Whoa! Miso, apple, wasabi, chocolate.
Why am I not surprised?
I think it works. I hope you guys do, too.
I'm pleased you do. I take comfort in that!
I was lucky enough to spend a month in Japan for a holiday,
and I remember trying the most intense apple
that I'd ever tried in my life.
So, this is the inspiration for the apple dessert,
putting as much different apple techniques and flavours and textures
into the one dish.
Kasae's dessert is an apple mousse
which is shaped in the mould of an apple.
Inside the mousse is an apple and miso caramel compote.
And I want enough of that inside cos that will cut through
the sweetness of the mousse.
These need to be frozen, frozen solid, when I try and get them
out of the mould, otherwise they literally won't come out.
A sorbet that's apple and wasabi.
Wasabi - Japanese mustard that you get with your sushi!
I mean, it's about as daring as they come.
I really want the judges to be able to see that I've really fallen
into my stride with who I am as a chef and my flavour combinations.
Hopefully they're enough to win, but if they're not,
then I go out knowing that I've done myself justice.
Chefs, one hour gone.
Thank you.
If I were to pick my three courses that I would eat,
I'd definitely go for something like this.
I don't want it to be a disaster on the last day.
I don't want the last thing of them to remember me
is having a massive meltdown.
Hope for the best and hopefully come out on top.
Tom, cooking to be our winner. Yeah.
How are you feeling? I'm excited.
I've given myself loads to do,
cos it's obviously the final, so go big or go home.
Have your parents noticed a change in your style of cooking?
I think the main thing they've noticed is that I don't do
any cooking at home any more. I'm either at work or here.
Maybe they'll get scrambled egg out of me, but that's probably
what they've noticed the most, I'd say.
Tom is cooking lobster and tomato for his starter.
If it's done well, it could be quite delicious.
He's poaching the lobster tail and he's putting some lobster oil
through it, which he's making from the carcass of the lobster.
So, I picked this starter because lobsters are
one of my favourites to eat,
and then shellfish and tomatoes are a cracking mix.
Tom has taken baby cherry tomatoes
and he's going to put the claw meat inside.
He's got to get the claw meat beautifully cooked, seasoned,
and it needs to have a powerful flavour.
And I'm finishing it with a classic sauce called sauce americaine.
What's a sauce americaine, please?
It's like a really nice lobster bisque,
but with cream and whole tomatoes.
The sauce americaine is about great flavour of lobster,
and of course, you want the acidity and the freshness of the tomato
coming through the sauce, too.
His lobster dish is then followed by a beef and oyster main course.
Surf and turf. A bit of fun on here.
My favourite meat's beef. It always has been.
I've got beef fillet, got braised beef cheek, lovage emulsion,
salsify, oyster mushrooms.
Then I'm doing a beef tartare in the oyster shell with a little bit
of poached oyster going through that. Excuse me one minute...
FEET TAP EXCITEDLY
Beef fillet has got to be perfectly cooked, nicely sealed
on the outside. Needs to rest, too.
You don't want the beef fillet to bleed onto the plate.
Tom is making brick pastry, which goes very crispy, into a cylinder,
and then he's going to fill that with the beef cheek mix.
I think cheek looks a bit slapdash just chucked on the plate,
so I just wanted to put it in something that's nice and crisp,
that can sort of hold it.
Beef and oyster - it's such a classic combination.
I didn't want to do something too boring,
so I thought I'd implement lovage in as well - probably one of
my favourite-tasting herbs.
Lovage has got real bitterness,
so he needs to show a fine touch -
enough so you can just about taste it,
not too much that it starts to overpower the beef.
Tom is poaching one of the oysters
and serving that on top of the beef cheek.
I like the sound of this.
On the side of Tom's dish we've got a beef tartare
that's got chopped oysters going through that.
So, there's a whole variety of different seasonings
and flavours and textures.
You've got a lot of different things happening.
It's a lot to balance and a lot to get right,
so I'm going to be under a bit of stress for time,
but I do that every round, you know, so it's nothing new.
My dessert is an olive oil cake.
Then I'm doing a creme fraiche cream, with set lemon curd.
I love lemon desserts loads,
so I tried to save this to the end, and I've actually
used Marcus's recipe for the lemon curd, so hopefully he likes it.
Oh, it's one of my favourites.
It's got to be full of lemon flavour, lovely acidity
with a sweet background. It's fantastic.
Olive oil sponge - it's got to be light.
He's got an olive oil jam.
He's got to cook it down so it gets very thick.
I'm doing a fennel pollen tuille,
also toasted fennel seed ice cream.
Whoa!
I love fennel. I'm all over fennel.
I thought I'd just try something new. I think it tastes really good.
Fennel ice cream can work.
Consider it to be like a liquorice, but you need a fine balance
between aniseed flavour and sweetness.
Get it wrong, you haven't got enough sweetness,
you've got too much aniseed.
I think all these dishes, it's really nice British produce,
got a lot of belief in them, and, yeah, I'm feeling confident.
Chefs, you are halfway.
Good luck.
TOMMY: These three dishes, if you asked me three months ago
to do a three-course menu,
I wouldn't come close to this style of food.
But I'm very happy with them.
It's just all about today and the execution of them, really.
Tommy, come on, sum it up for me.
Biggest day ever, it really is.
Definitely feeling it. It's all led up to this, so this is it now.
How hard was it to choose these three dishes?
It was tough. I really want to blow you away.
A tough crowd to please, and I just want to give it everything.
Tommy is starting off with an scallop and aubergine dish.
Mmm! That sounds lovely.
He's got aubergines a variety of different ways.
We've got aubergine crisp.
We've also got an aubergine imam bayildi.
Imam bayildi is just a classic Middle Eastern aubergine dip.
I'll be making a really rich puree out of the aubergine,
tomato concasse and golden raisins, onions, some spices.
I want to get as much flavour into that puree as possible.
Tommy is also dicing some aubergines up and then he's going to pickle it
and turn it almost into a little salad part of the dish. I like that.
It's definitely a workhorse. It's got a lot of elements to it.
It's definitely going to be a push today.
It's just what I like to do - all or nothing, really.
Tommy's taking the roe of the scallop.
He's then making that into a mousse and turning that into a ballotine.
What Tommy needs to do is make sure that he makes a beautiful mousse.
Can't afford for the mousse to be split at this stage
of the competition.
So I'm going to top the scallop roe mousse with some crispy seaweed
for the texture, and umami,
and then I'll be putting some togarashi on top.
That's a nice Japanese spice blend.
We've got some chilli in there, sesame, a bit of heat,
a bit of flavour to it, so that should just bring it all together.
My main course is inspired by my style of food -
classic English ingredients but with an Asian touch.
So we've got a veal loin. That will be cooked
with some ox heart garum - really umami.
What's a garum, please?
A garum is a very traditional Japanese method
into making a paste or a sauce.
I've just taken an ox heart and cooked it down
really, really slowly for a couple of months.
It's really matured. Picks up a lot of flavour.
What have you been cooking it in? A slow cooker.
For a couple of months?! Yeah. Wow.
Tommy is braising the carrots in soy and sesame.
We've got carrot puree.
We've then got veal sweetbread,
but he's going to turn that into a Caesar salad.
The sweetbread will be the protein and then Caesar dressing on top.
Nice salad on top of that. Sort of a classic, you know.
Whoa.
He's got a lot of Asian ingredients.
We've got sake, we've got mirin,
hints of sharpness and saltiness.
I personally really like the sound of this main course.
Dessert is inspired by, quite literally,
my son's favourite fruit - blackcurrants. He loves them.
So I thought, let's do a blackcurrant dessert.
Choosing a dessert in homage to my son is just the best thing ever.
So I really want to make sure that this is knockout.
Tommy's making blackcurrant leaf chocolate aero.
Chocolate that's aerated,
and you want the flavour of that blackcurrant leaf coming through.
Think of it like a tea,
so it will have a bit of tanginess to it and a little bit of sharpness.
Too much of this can actually overpower the bitterness
of the chocolate.
Just put the chocolate in the vac pack machine.
It's looking quite good. I'm going to check in ten minutes
and make sure it's not deflating, so fingers crossed.
Got a blackcurrant gel.
You've also got a yoghurt crumb and a yoghurt granita.
Love the idea of the yoghurt, the crumb, to give it some texture.
Got a fig leaf mousse,
that's going to bring a touch of almond essence to the dish.
Just making a custard from the infusion of the fig leaves,
so a really strong flavour.
Can't help but notice you're wearing a lot of your ingredients
on your jacket. Yes, Chef. Sorry!
MONICA LAUGHS
He's not holding back.
He is bringing everything to the kitchen today.
And I like his bravery.
Chefs, you have 30 minutes remaining.
Kasae, are we going to be all right? Yes, Chef.
Looking OK. I've still got a fair bit to do, if I'm being honest.
I think the next 20 minutes are going to be the most important
of the day, to be honest.
HE HUMS TO HIMSELF
This is it - scared.
Ha! If you weren't cutting that, I'd pat you on the back.
Yeah. I'm scared enough with this.
KASAE: Yeah, baby.
Oh, my God.
SHE EXHALES DEEPLY
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Take your time.
Take your time. What's wrong?
Erm, the caramel is split out and it's taken out the base of it.
Well, you've got one there.
So just take your time.
It's not frozen enough.
It's not working? No. It's not working.
Change of plan. OK. Change of plan.
Listen, chefs, you have just 15 minutes.
Perfection! Perfection in 15 minutes,
that's what it's going to take.
Happy, Tom? Yep. Good lad.
You on track? I think so. Yeah?
I need to speed up, but, yeah, little last touches.
Tommy and Tom are in control here.
Kasae I'm concerned for.
I don't want Kasae now to trip over the last hurdle.
She's done so well in the competition,
but she does look under pressure.
There are just eight minutes left.
I mean, this is proper crunch time now. Focus.
Right!
This is my backup.
It's you that taught me to never throw anything away. That's right.
This is the flavours of the same dessert.
Exactly the same thing.
Just less aesthetically pleasing.
OK. Keep it going. Yes, Chef.
Chefs, you got two minutes.
Chefs! Your time is up!
Well done.
My heart's going a million miles an hour!
It's over. Well done. All done. It's all over. That's crazy.
Done. Finished.
Kasae, please do join us.
It's the longest walk of my life.
Ooft!
NARRATOR: Kasae's final menu
starts with a fried puff-pastry ring
filled with smoked haddock,
peas, roasted asparagus
and a pickled dill gel...
...topped with a caramelised goat's cheese foam...
...finished with a spring onion powder.
That's a lovely looking dish, and I'm so intrigued.
Beautiful pastry cookery. Love the little flakes of smoked haddock,
but the mousse that sits on top of it is absolutely sensational.
That lovely goat's cheese has got a little smokiness to it.
There's a sharpness to it as well,
which cuts through the richness of the dish.
I like this dish. I really do.
I'm loving this.
Smoky fish.
Aniseed from that dill gel is lovely.
All encased in something crispy. That's really good.
The foam has got a bit of saltiness to it.
You have put a twist on something that I would recognise
as a brunch dish - maybe a smoked salmon with a hollandaise.
It's reminiscent of that,
and it's a clever twist on it.
NARRATOR: For her main course,
Kasae has served guinea fowl cooked on the crown,
filled with a black garlic, apricot and pistachio mousse...
...a braised kohlrabi spiral
topped with a tamarind gel,
puffed fried flatbread
filled with a con fit guinea fowl leg and pickled kohlrabi...
...and a spicy chicken and mayonnaise jus.
That guinea fowl is absolutely sensational.
You've managed to get a bit of colourisation on top,
which has lightly caramelised the skin.
I think the puree underneath the apricots, the black garlic -
beautiful flavour.
The fact you've reduced the jus
and then you've finished it with mayonnaise is genius.
This brings a whole new level of richness.
I'm taking that recipe! SHE LAUGHS
That's great.
The kohlrabi is beautifully made.
The way that you've spiral led it,
that wonderful tamarind gel over the top is fabulous.
You open the bread up, you've got the leg meat of the bird,
and inside there, slightly pickled kohlrabi.
That is beautiful.
That is plate lickingly delicious.
NARRATOR: For dessert, Kasae has made an apple sponge,
topped with an apple, dill and white chocolate mousse...
...served with an apple compote and miso caramel...
...and an apple and wasabi sorbet.
The dessert wasn't what you were going to deliver?
No. It's supposed to be in a nice apple mould, sprayed with two
different types of chocolate to make it look like an apple.
Just not quite as aesthetic as I would have liked it.
Oh, wow.
Oh, my word.
That sorbet is shockingly brilliant,
and what you get is unmistakable hot wasabi mustard,
which very quickly goes and sharp apple comes in.
The compote is really strong apple flavour,
but you've got a bit of meaty miso in there as a finish.
The sponge works really well
with the amount of apple and white chocolate mousse.
Of course, you've got this apple and wasabi sorbet -
has the peppery-ness and a big hit of apple freshness
that goes with it.
I love it.
It's original. It's so you.
The wasabi in your apple sorbet is a complete no-no in my head,
but on my palate it's a treat.
This may not look the way you wanted it to,
but it's certainly delivering on flavour.
I like this. I like this a lot.
Thank you.
We've had three fantastic plates of food,
all with quite unique points of difference,
which is what your journey has been in this competition.
And you've taken it right to the wire. Well done.
I couldn't have done it without you pushing me and telling me
to keep going and don't quit.
I really appreciate everything and I will take away so much.
Knowing that it wasn't as refined as it should have been,
I still feel like I've got something left I need to show,
which is unfortunate, but I would rather have negative comments
about my plating than my flavours!
Well done.
It was the longest moment of my life. Nice one. Well done.
Focusing on the positive, focusing on the positive,
not thinking about the negative.
Tom, are you ready for us?
Yeah. Come on, then, Chef.
The way you are presenting your food
is just so beautiful.
NARRATOR: For his starter, Tom has served a poached native lobster tail
with blanched red and yellow cherry tomatoes
filled with lobster claw meat
in a lobster and chilli oil,
topped with lemon verbena gel
with courgette balls
and a creamy lobster and tomato sauce americaine.
The lobster - perfectly cooked, absolutely delicious.
Great flavour in the sauce.
Really, really good. Very well made.
The tomato - lovely lobster claw inside.
Big flavour. This is a cracking dish.
You've got a lemon verbena gel.
I do like the notes of it.
I find that the big flavours that are on this dish
are from your sauce.
Very much like a lightened bisque.
The tomatoes and the hints of chilli through that - it's delicious.
Love the sweetness of the tomato with lobster meat.
There's a slight hint of chilli. I'm really enjoying that.
This is a great dish.
It's a light dish that really packs a flavour punch.
It's very nice.
NARRATOR: Tom's main is seared beef fillet
on a bed of pan-fried oyster mushrooms,
served with braised beef cheek wrapped in brick pastry,
topped with a poached oyster,
with a lovage emulsion,
salsify,
beef and red wine sauce,
and a beef and oyster tartare.
GREGG: That looks sensational.
Absolutely wonderful.
Thank you very much.
I'm finding it really difficult to find a problem with this.
Your beef cheek, it's got lovely texture to it.
It's nice and moist.
The oyster on top is great.
The little pastry around the outside is cooked just right.
The sauce is rich and full of body.
Everything on this plate
is cooked beautifully.
And your attention to detail, Tom, is exquisite.
Thank you. Well done. Thank you very much.
Your beef is perfectly cooked.
There's a light seasoning around it.
Oyster mushrooms - beautiful.
What I really enjoy, the lovage puree.
With celery-like flavours, it's refreshing,
and I think it cuts through the richness of the sauce.
Your beef tartare is lovely and fresh.
The oyster is like a seasoning through it, and that's delightful.
That beef sauce is like one of the best gravies I've ever had.
It's proper thick, meaty Sunday roast gravy.
That's absolutely smashing.
I'm loving it all.
NARRATOR: For dessert, Tom has made an olive oil sponge
filled with olive oil jam,
topped with a set lemon curd,
creme fraiche cream,
fennel tops,
and a fennel pollen tuille,
served with a fennel seed ice cream.
Mmm-mm!
Oh, mate...
The sponge is the right texture.
You've got a little bit of crispiness on the top
and then you cut into it
and look how beautiful... That olive oil jam
has thickened in there.
I really like that.
The fennel ice cream has the flavours of aniseed.
It's just a delightful way to finish your meal.
I love it. Love it, love it, love it.
I've got sponge that's peppery olive oil.
I've got olive oil jam in there - more peppery, but it's sweet.
Then, of course, you've got the sharpness of lemon curd,
The tuille on the top has got a flavour of aniseed, of fennel.
almost like a freshly squeezed lemon.
It's pretty and it's small, but its flavour profiles are amazing.
Very yummy.
It's absolutely sublime.
It's light, it's flavoursome.
You're hitting sharpness with the creme fraiche,
the crunchiness of the tuille
and the aniseed coming through in the ice cream.
You've just hit the notes beautifully.
It's like a great piece of music.
You get to the end of it and you want to play it again.
You display classical cookery skills,
that's what you were brought up with.
But you're now brave enough and confident enough
to bring in the flavours that you really love.
That is such a winning formula.
Yeah, just thank you for all the support
and dealing with my constant nervous energy.
I've really enjoyed the process and thank you for having confidence
in me and putting me through. I really appreciate it.
Tom, well done, and thank you very, very much.
Thank you.
I'm proud of myself. It's been a hell of a journey.
But the final day, and it all went well. Didn't have any disasters.
Obviously, I don't want to count my chickens and guess too early,
but I don't think I could have done much better, to be honest,
so feeling good.
Tommy, please, sir.
That's smart, Chef. That is properly smart.
Well done. Thank you.
NARRATOR: For his starter, Tommy has served pan-seared scallops
spiced with curry powder,
aubergine relish spiced with turmeric and cumin...
...and an imam bayildi aubergine and tomato puree...
...poached golden raisins,
lemon and chaat masala yoghurt...
...aubergine crisps...
...and a scallop roe mousse,
topped with crispy seaweed,
flavoured with togarashi - a Japanese spice.
The scallop - beautiful and sweet.
Love the seasoning on those.
The imam bayildi is sensational.
Spicy. Like the raisins, love the yoghurt,
freshness and sweetness on the plate as well.
And of course, you've got the little crisps on top
that will just give a little bit of crunch.
Really good. Thanks so much.
My scallops are beautifully cooked.
The aubergine chutney, which is quite salty,
and though I like it, I need something to cut through this
and I actually find it in the raisins.
So I would like a bit more of the raisins there.
Salty, almost sweet roe.
There is a hint of chilli pepperiness to it.
And of course, the seaweed is giving you chewy saltiness,
like a condiment. It's very clever. Well done.
NARRATOR: Tommy's main is a pan-seared veal loin
in an ox heart garum,
a soy and sesame seed carrot,
carrot and ginger puree,
crispy kale,
pickled carrot discs on a carrot-topped Parmesan pesto,
crispy sweetbread dressed in a Caesar salad,
and a veal, soy, mirin and cornichon sauce...
.finished with the aromas of rosemary.
GREGG: I love the smell of that rosemary.
It's almost like the smell of a pine forest.
Rose veal - a tad dry on the outside,
but ox heart garum is very interesting
cos it just brings big flavour into the rose veal.
The sauce, the soy and the mirin going through that,
good, good, meaty sauce.
The carrot puree is lovely, it's smooth, you can taste the ginger.
Love the textures of the different carrot parts you have here
with the sesame to the pesto.
But my most favourite thing on your main course is the sweetbread
with the Caesar dressing over the top of it.
I think it's very clever.
Thank you.
You've got flavours of Parmesan cheese, which to me is Italy.
You've got flavours of ginger, mirin and soy, which is Japan.
I've got lovely veal, I've got lovely sweetbread,
and I'm deciding which bit of the world I'm taking them to!
It's really lovely.
NARRATOR: Finally, for dessert,
Tommy's made a blackcurrant leaf chocolate aero,
with fig leaf mousse and crumb,
blackcurrant gel,
fresh blackcurrants
and a frozen yoghurt granita...
...finished with fig leaf aromas.
Tommy, you've got this aero chocolate which is so light
and has the hint of the blackcurrant cos you've infused it with the leaf.
It's delightful and it's fun.
And then you're eating the granita
and catching some of the frozen yoghurt in there,
so it's got a little chewiness in there, which is bringing
even more fun, a little surprise to it.
It's a quirky dessert. Do I like it? Yes.
Great. Thank you.
Your aerated chocolate is bitter and dark and full of flavour.
You've got the fig leaf cream on top that is incredible.
The flavour I get from it is almond.
Clever, sharp, precise.
Delicious.
Again, another fabulous dish, Tommy.
I've got the rich darkness of chocolate,
really sharp blackcurrant,
frozen yoghurt sourness.
That is delicious.
You, Chef, are a class act.
You're taking humble ingredients and you're really elevating them
by bringing in those Asian flavours.
You've been doing it all the way through the competition,
but you've just improved it all the way through.
Well done, you. I think your little boy will be so proud
of what you achieved.
Yeah, overwhelmed. Some amazing comments there.
Just want to say a massive thank you. It's been a real privilege,
a real pleasure. It's been every emotion I've ever felt.
Yeah, amazing.
To think it's all done now is a super-weird feeling,
but, yeah, I'm super happy.
KASAE: Good job.
I've delivered three dishes that I really wanted to deliver,
and all the judges seemed to enjoy them,
so that was just fantastic.
What a brilliant final.
Absolutely fantastic talent.
We have, without a doubt, three very exciting chefs.
That was a great cook-off.
Kasae, for me, is such a unique chef,
and I love the bravery she brings into her cooking.
She just puts ingredients together that I wouldn't imagine.
So, a caramel cheese with smoked fish, but it really worked.
The guinea fowl with the unusual flavours underneath the skin
and the sauce was quite exceptional.
She's been intriguing all the way through the competition.
My, isn't she exciting?
Tom - that boy's a talent.
The flavours of his dishes.
For me, they enter the world of exquisite.
Tom's food today was technical, it was beautiful,
and most importantly, it was delicious.
I find now he's bringing his little modern twist,
his personality, his cheekiness, into his cooking.
That boy's a talent.
A proper talent.
Tommy put everything into that cook-off.
It was an amazing menu.
It's the introduction of flavours from around the world that I love.
Tommy is class.
Three very, very strong dishes from a very accomplished chef.
God, it's so hard to tell if it's enough or not, to be honest.
I would be ecstatic if I won,
but I'll just let the judges deal my fate.
It would be incredible if I did win.
Nothing will quite compare to it,
and I think everyone at home would be incredibly proud, too.
Obviously, everyone wants that trophy.
I worked so hard for this moment.
This is it - I've got to do it now.
Congratulations to all three of you.
You brought magic to this MasterChef final.
Well done.
Chefs, you are an absolute credit to the jackets you wear
and to the industry that you represent.
Thank you.
So, chefs, we have made a decision.
Our MasterChef: Professionals 2023 winner is...
...Tom.
Oh, my God.
Thank you. You deserve it.
You deserve it. Well done. Thank you. Great work.
Tommy, Kasae,
it's been an absolute pleasure to be in this kitchen with you both.
Thank you. Thank you very much. Off you go.
Well done, you two. Thank you.
I'm pretty gutted, actually. It was so close.
I've loved the competition. I really have.
I've learnt so much. I'm really happy.
I can walk away proud, for sure.
I'm going to go home, spend some time with Albie.
He may be asleep when I get home, but maybe I'll wake him up,
give him a good cuddle.
Of course, I'm a little bit disappointed,
but it's been a huge learning curve.
I've learnt that it's OK to be a little bit different
in your cooking and it's OK to express yourself
in different ways on a plate. I very much plan on taking that
and putting that into my own restaurant in the future,
so watch this space.
Hey! There you go.
There you are, Chef. Thank you.
Which do you want first? That one, definitely.
You want that one first? Cheers.
Cheers. Thank you so much. Here you go. Congratulations.
Oh, God.
Honestly, I'm so lost for words right now.
It's been such a good experience, and I've done it.
You know, it's here, I'm holding it. I couldn't be happier right now.
Incredible.
The minute that young chef stepped into this kitchen,
he's been consistent and he's delivered at every single level.
His food has been cracking throughout,
and he's still so young.
I think today we watched a very young chef come of age,
someone that's always had the technical ability,
but today was brave enough to put his own stamp on the classic food.
It's beautiful,
and it's absolutely banging delicious.
THAT is why Tom is our champion.
LINE RINGS
Hello? TOM'S DAD: Hello?
He's only gone and done it...
No BLEEP!
THEY LAUGH
Yeah. So proud. Thank you. You're going to have to speak to your mum.
Oh, she's crying.
It's really nice to hear how proud they are.
It's a big, big moment for me and them.
MUM: I'm so happy for you. You're the best. Honestly.
For now, I'm going to enjoy this.
Holding this bad boy up in the air and just enjoy the moment.
MasterChef champion Tom.
Cheers. Wahey! Wahey!