(CONTESTANTS EXCLAIM) Whoa-ho! Grazeland!
..an almighty Service Challenge...
I knew it would be big, but I didn't think it would be that big.
I can't believe it. It's epic. It's...it's crazy.
..needed a herculean team effort to feed the masses.
I want you to go faster, 'cause there's a mountain of jobs.
I've just gotta cook 400 pieces perfectly now.
What could go wrong?
It was a very close contest...
ANDY: That is some serious skill.
MELISSA: Beautiful, juicy, plump mussels and really great flavour.
Perfectly cooked. Absolutely belting.
..with the turquoise team taking the title.
Congratulations! You are headed into Immunity.
(ALL CHEER)
Tonight...
CATH: This is the biggest Immunity Challenge yet.
..a plethora of surprises awaits the winners.
PHIL: A beautiful day! Oh! ADI: It's a new day. Oh!
The white apron is a nice feel.
White apron is a great feel. Yeah.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
CATH: What's that?
It's a present.
Wow!
On all of the benches, a huge gift box.
What's that?
My heart skips. Yoo! I'm going on this side.
I can, like, hide behind it. (LAUGHS)
Oh, Adi!
I know.
Would you like a stepladder? I would love a step stool, thanks.
(LAUGHTER) I'm gone. I'm gone.
Oh, you all look very chipper.
And how could you not be? Because it is immunity day.
And of course it wouldn't be immunity day
without Shannon Bennett in the house.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) Thank you.
So far, Big Week has been supersized and full of surprises
and we are continuing the theme today
by leaving some big gifts on your benches.
You can open your gifts now.
(CONTESTANTS EXCLAIM)
Ohhh!
(APPLAUSE) Ooh!
What's this thing?
Oh! They're all different!
Everyone's got a different electrical appliance.
Oh, my God!
Declan has a pressure cooker. OK.
Then Amy has a stand mixer.
I've always wanted one of these.
I'm a little unsure what's going on.
Phil, what have you got there, mate? Looks like an ice-cream machine.
Ice-cream machine. Your favourite appliance, mate.
Yeah. Yeah.
How about you, Robbie? What have you got there?
I don't know.
(ALL LAUGH)
Mate, that, my friend,
is a cold-press juicer.
It's gonna be interesting how to use it.
Cuddle up to it, mate. You gotta get to know that.
Ah, Robbie!
You must use your gifted appliance in your cook today.
But, of course, there is a catch.
Ah. Of course.
That appliance will be the only plug-in appliance
that you can use in your cook.
So that means there's no extra stick blenders.
There's no extra nothing.
Surprise! (CONTESTANTS FAUX-CHEER)
You'll have 75 minutes to cook us whatever you want.
The pantry and garden, they're fully open.
And of course, the best dish will win immunity from Sunday's elimination
and will win its maker a shot at this pin in round 2.
But that's not all.
We got more gifts. (CONTESTANTS COO)
Harvey Norman has been powering the MasterChef kitchen
for the past 10 years.
And today, thanks to them,
the best dish in round 1... will win...
..a $10,000 gift card...
(GASPS)
..to spend at Harvey Norman... Oh, my gosh!
..to fully stock your dream kitchen.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
I have just finished a new kitchen.
Imagine what I could do with that.
And guess what - 75 minutes starts now.
ADI: Oh, my God. AMY: Argh!
PHIL: Let's go, team!
Oh, let's go!
Okey-dokey-artichokey.
Cream, butter.
Oh, berry vanilla.
Hmm. I might try that.
This is a huge Immunity Challenge today.
WOMAN: Go, Cath! Whoo!
ANTONIO: Let's go, Cath!
I am so lucky today.
I've got the beaters.
I think back to how many beaters that I've licked
over the time making cakes with my mum.
All of those birthdays that I've shared, it's just pure joy.
I'm gonna make my mum's cake
and I'm gonna lick the beaters afterwards.
(LAUGHS)
Mum's birthday cake was always a very simple butter cake.
And I'm going to make a berry vanilla jam to go between my cake.
My mum was the finance manager in our house,
so...and it depended how we were going
whether or not she'd use one or two eggs.
So I'm going out there and using two eggs today. I'm gonna go crazy.
(BEATER WHIRRS)
ANTONIO: It looks really yum, Cath. Really.
Yeah.
Well, this is exciting, isn't it?
There's a couple of curly ones out there, though,
that automatically, I think, add pressure.
MELISSA: Speaking of pressure, pressure cooker.
Challenging. Yeah, pressure cooker. There's...
Yeah, I mean, you can do, like,
a 10-minute pressure cook on some lentils.
You could get beef cheeks and cut them up if they're in there,
or short ribs or anything like that,
and short ribs will cook in 35, 40 minutes.
And you've already made the instant gravy sauce with it as well.
Just reduce that. Yeah, then reduce it down.
Love an all-in-one.
Poor Robbie. He's never seen a cold-press juicer.
Didn't know what it was. Poor guy.
Buy it for 10-grand one,
and he's got no idea what this bloody utensil is.
Not only do they get 10 grand but...
Deh-deh-deh-deh! Deh-deh-deh-deh!
A shot at an immunity pin in round 2.
What's worth more - that or 10 grand?
10 Gs! (ALL CACKLE)
Declan, yes! Alright, Dec!
Those knife skills. Wow.
DECLAN: I want immunity more than anything.
So I've got a pressure cooker today.
Um, so I'm making Thai-inspired, Asian-style,
sorta, um, steamed chicken with rice.
It's gonna be beautiful.
Look, I'm a bit green with a pressure cooker.
Um, but it is, like, a big oven at the end of the day.
And it's just gonna help cook my chicken nice and juicy and tender.
It's also gonna enhance all these beautiful flavours together
in the one pressure cooker.
I'm really hoping, um, I can bring a beautiful dish.
RALPH: Let's go, guys!
ANTONIO: Let's go, Adi! Come on!
ADI: I got the air fryer today.
It's the only one out of all these appliances that I've never used.
I'm gonna do kataifi prawns.
Giving it a go. Nothing to lose today but a lot to win.
AMY: I've only used a KitchenAid in the MasterChef kitchen,
so, um, yeah, I'm pretty stoked with what I got today.
So I'm going to make a loaded sardine flatbread.
Real puffy bread, pan-fried sardines kind of vibe.
It's just me. (LAUGHS)
GRACE: Feel a little bit hard only having the deep-fryer.
But, um, I'm gonna make a harissa-charred lettuce,
anchovy and potato croquette,
um...with some sort of sauce.
So I got the, um... I got the, um, juicer.
I've never used this before. I've never seen one of these before.
so it's gonna be very interesting for today.
And I'm just gonna do a duck with an orange jus and a bit of veggies.
So...
ANDY AND JOCK: Robbie!
How you going, boys? Good, mate. You?
All good. Excited.
Have you worked out the little contraption over here?
Um... (LAUGHS)
What are you gonna do with it? You've got oranges.
I assume they'll be going through it.
Yeah, I'm gonna put the orange through
to make my juice for... jus for the...my duck.
Cook it in here for six minutes. Medium-rare duck with a sauce.
You're going a little bit French with the oranges.
Is it kind of like a bit of a take on duck a l'orange?
I just saw the other guys do it, so I'm gonna try.
(LAUGHS) Perfect.
That's what this place is all about.
If I don't try, I'm not gonna learn anything, brother.
I need to practise as much as I can
and, you know, I wanna step up my level.
I've gotta start pulling something out different, bro.
'Cause... I love it.
What would 10K do for your kitchen, mate?
Like, 10K of equipment.
That would be fantastic. I think, you know, for my wife and kids.
I think that'd be good assets for me for producing stuff.
So I've got my eye on it, so...
You'd be even fancier.
Like, you're starting to cook some fancy...fancy stuff, mate.
So I'm hoping I'll pull this off, brother.
Brother. Good luck. Thanks, mate.
I think my wife would be very happy if I got this today for her.
When I cook, I think about my family and my wife and everyone at home.
My wife is very encouraging and I wanna be...get this one today, bad.
PHIL: I've got the ice-cream machine today
which I'm absolutely rapt about.
I'm gonna use it to make mashed potatoes in today.
No, no, no. Definitely not.
I'm making a nice tea ice cream today
with chocolate mousse and a hazelnut crumb.
It is a bit of a redemption cook for me today.
My first attempt didn't go down so well.
I've made you chocolate brownie and ice cream.
I tried to impart some smoke flavour,
but it really just marred the whole dish just off.
There's problems in flavour.
Pull back with ingredients and... Yeah.
..techniques and doing things to those ingredients
to try and make them something that they may never be.
And I think that's what happened with the flavour of the ice cream
and the smoking as well.
OK.
Phil. Hey, Phil.
Jock. Andy. Ice-cream redemption.
It is. How's that looking for you?
I knew it was gonna come sooner rather than later but...
You didn't know it was gonna be forced.
Didn't know it was gonna be a forced decision.
What have you got? Making a tea ice cream.
With a chocolate hazelnut biscuit and a chocolate mousse.
What kind of tea is it? Uh, English breakfast.
Andy hates English breakfast. Does he?
I'm not a mad tea fan but...
Why do I keep picking stuff that you guys hate?
I'm ready to be surprised. Yeah.
So English tea ice cream. Yeah.
Chocolate biscuit, did you say? Chocolate hazelnut biscuit.
Yeah. With a chocolate mousse on top.
Right. You got a bit to do. Yep. I do.
Mate, he's got a pin in his pocket. Yeah.
There's 10 grand up for grabs. Yeah.
It's, like, you wanna be... All out.
..putting your best foot forward.
Like, you've got three elements.
They just have to be literally faultless.
Yeah. Good luck. Thanks, guys.
Yeah, pressure's definitely on for this
'cause there is that little doubt trickling through the mind
that maybe, you know, this could go wrong again.
But I have to focus and make sure I nail it.
It's all about the flavour today, boys.
Make sure you concentrate on the present. 45 minutes to go.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) Yeah, guys!
CATH: Yes. 45 minutes!
OK.
Although, good old-fashioned beaters. I grew up with them.
Hey, guys. Anyone wanna lick the beater?
RUE: Yes, yes. Throw it to me! That's the best part.
Mm.
Making that batter just brings me back home.
Oh, good. Awesome. Ooh.
Best bit of making the cake.
I've finished making the batter and I've put them into the oven. Done.
This is my mum's cake, so I make it off by heart.
Hi, Cath. Hey, guys.
Hey.
You made some baby cakes.
I made some little cakes. What sort of cake did you make?
So, do you know what, I'm making my mum's cake that she makes for our...
..every birthday.
OK, we love a birthday cake. So...
Very simple cake. Is it a sponge or...
You know what, it's a butter cake mix.
OK. So just a butter cake.
Very simple. I've actually, um, used...
So, uh, a berry vanilla.
I'm actually, um, doing a berry jam to go in between.
Did you taste it? I did.
It's very sweet.
Oh, Mel, you're looking like...
You've just said, "That's very sweet,"
and then you're putting a jam with it.
I'd be working on balancing that. Yeah, yeah, OK. Yeah.
OK, Cath, good luck.
I tasted the batter.
It's sweet, but I didn't think it was overpowering.
I'm now second-guessing whether or not I've done the right thing.
I've already got my cakes in the oven.
So I don't know what to do with it.
WOMAN: Go, Cath!
Um... Oh.
I've already got my cakes in the oven.
Mel is concerned about the batter.
Don't want you being too sweet.
What do I do?
Um... Oh.
OK. Lemon, salt.
I've got basil.
So I have an idea.
I'm gonna do basil jam. RHIANNON: Noice, Cath!
Mum would be wondering why I'm doing a basil and berry jam.
She'd be saying, "Oh, Catherine, what are you doing?"
I'm always called Catherine when Mum's cross.
RHIANNON: It's different. It's unusual.
ANTONIO: Beautiful, Cath.
ANDY: The time has come to kick it up a gear
'cause you've only got 30 minutes to go.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) JOCK: Let's go!
Whoo! That's the way.
I love a deep-fryer. GRACE: Yeah.
Do you love a deep-fryer? I do love a deep-fryer.
I'm gonna do potato, anchovy, garlic, shallot croquettes.
Have you made croquettes before?
No. (LAUGHS)
JOCK: Adi. ANDY: Hey, Adi.
Hi, guys.
What's that?
I've done a, um, mayonnaise with the prawn heads
for my kataifi prawns.
They have crisped up,
so the air fryer has cooked 'em, that's for sure.
Do you want a pin? Yeah, I really do.
Do want the 10 grand? I really, really, really, really do.
Which do you want more - the 10 grand or the pin?
Honestly, the 10 grand is, like, it's in hand, it's done.
The pin is hard to get, so that's what I want.
Ohh! She's got a point.
MELISSA: Hello, Amy. AMY: Hello.
We are curious to know what you're going to make with your stand mixer.
So today I'm making a loaded sardine flatbread.
Gonna do, like, a fresh verde on the bottom
and then grilled sardines.
That's...
That is a quiet nod of approval from Shannon Bennett.
(LAUGHS) Yay.
(MUTTERS)
I have the ice cream, so I'm making ice cream.
I've got the anglaise in the churner.
My chocolate mousse is done.
So just working on my hazelnut biscuit.
THEO: Go, Phil. Come on, mate.
It is a bit of a redemption cook for me today.
If I put up two bad ice creams in a row,
it's, uh, yeah, not gonna be good for the reputation.
For one of you, the shopping starts in 15 minutes.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) Come on!
WOMAN: What is that?
Peanut chilli sambal. Oh!
It's bloody yummy.
(AIR HISSES LOUDLY)
Yeah, Dec! Yay!
Whoo! Oh, Declan. Yes.
Alright, Dec!
Oh, that's juicy.
I'm making a Thai-inspired chicken and a peanut sambal.
MALISSA: Smells good, Declan.
I'm using the pressure cooker today, not only to cook my whole chook
but also to produce this beautiful, tasty broth.
Oh, that's good.
I'm just gonna use that stock from the pressure cooker
and reduce it down to really enhance those flavours of the broth.
I'm hoping it's gonna pack a lot of punch
because I really wanna win immunity from this week's elimination
and go through to the round 2 cook.
I just want it to balance perfect
when I put all these fresh herbs on top.
Cakes out. Looking good. Uh, they're looking good.
I'm working on the cream in the middle.
The jam's up. Hopefully I've balanced that OK, so...
I'm just trying to balance that sweetness, you know?
(APPLAUSE) Man!
How awesome is this! How awesome is this!
Just thinking about my family and bringing that in the kitchen
is, um...
..just really...
I'm representing my family.
Oh, so much fun.
ROBBIE: Very nice.
The orange sauce has got a nice taste to it.
Just gotta get me mushrooms done on the side.
Ready to go. Feeling good.
Who wants it? Three minutes to go!
(APPLAUSE) MELISSA: I want it.
Yeah, so do I, actually.
PHIL: My biscuit has cooled and I've cut that, ready for plating.
Mousse is ready.
My ice cream is done
and I'm really happy with the infusion of the tea flavours.
But I'm just hoping it's enough
to have a bit of redemption in the ice-cream cook.
One minute to go!
ANDY: Come on, guys, let's go! MAN: Go, come on!
JOCK: Come on, guys! MELISSA: Yes!
(APPLAUSE)
DECLAN: I'm happy with the taste. It's flavoursome.
Jam-packed full of spices and herbs
and beautiful, succulent, juicy chicken.
JUDGES AND CONTESTANTS: 10, 9, 8,
7, 6, 5, 4,
3, 2, 1.
That's it! WOMAN: Ohh!
Good job, brother! Good job.
Bloody hell. Well done.
Ohh!
Ohhhhh!
How good's that! Oh, that was awesome.
The first dish we'd like to taste belongs to...
..Cath.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
JOCK: Oh, wow.
Oh, wow! Wow!
Here we go.
Look at this!
Here we go!
Cath, what's the dish?
So this is our family birthday cake.
So I'm one of 10 children,
and, uh, so every...
..every birthday, my mum would make this cake.
Um, so I had a beautiful, nostalgic, joyful cook today.
May I?
Ooh!
Let's get stuck in.
Cath, it's a bloody good birthday cake, gotta admit.
I like that you're trying to think,
"How can I take it to the next level?
"Mum did this, but I'm gonna put the basil in there
"to try and make it next level."
So, really good effort. Well done.
Cheers.
Thank you for inviting us into your family.
I loved the cake.
I thought that the... the jam and the cream
are both really fresh and a little bit sour,
which really lifts everything up.
Absolutely delicious.
Thanks.
Cath, it was great. I can't fault the texture.
Really lovely. Yeah. Great taste.
Really delicious. So, well done.
Nice work, Cath. Oh, thank you.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Mum's gonna be very proud.
I think she's gonna take the accolades for this.
Next up, Phil.
PHIL: I feel like in the MasterChef kitchen,
making ice cream is a rite of passage
and my first attempt didn't go down so well.
So I'm really hoping that today I can redeem that.
Phil, what was your appliance again? The ice-cream machine.
Ice-cream machine. What's your dish?
I made a tea ice cream with a hazelnut biscuit.
It's quite an unusual dessert.
Tea ice cream, plus this sort of chocolate mousse.
Like, what... How did you get there?
Phil, quite an unusual dessert.
Like, tea ice cream
plus this sort of chocolate mousse.
How did you get there?
Well, I kinda went down the route of tea and biscuits,
so that's where the inspo came for today's dish.
Alright, let's try it, shall we?
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC)
Phil, there's some really good work going on here.
Flavours are really lovely, from the tea-infused ice cream
really showing the qualities of the tea.
It has a beautiful aroma about it
and you've just done everything so beautifully.
And I like how deep and chocolatey the mousse is.
You've executed every element really nicely.
ANDY: I think you did a really good job
and you've got a lot of great technique.
You can taste the tea in the ice cream
and the tea does get a chance to really shine.
Really rich, solid mousse.
It's mental, the progression that we've seen.
You're starting to really, really get to a place where you wanna be.
The ice cream - guess what.
The texture's great.
(UPLIFTING MUSIC)
Really nice biscuit. This is a redemption dish for you.
Well done, mate. Thank you, guys. Appreciate it.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER) Whoo!
Give us a cuddle, Deccy. Give us a cuddle.
It's nice to have a bit of redemption in the ice-cream cook,
so, excited to see if I can get myself free
from Sunday's elimination and to have a shot at that immunity pin.
Next up, Robbie.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER)
Robbie, what appliance did you have?
I had the juicer. (LAUGHS) (LAUGHS) You had the juicer.
If this dish was on a restaurant menu, what would it be called?
Robbie's duck.
Yeah, there it is! (CONTESTANTS LAUGH)
Let's get stuck in.
Some pretty good flavours going on here, Robbie.
When I taste the sauce,
I do get the flavours of the orange-carrot kind of juice
and it gives it a really nice earthiness and some detail.
That in combination with the duck, very, very good work.
The flavour on the duck was brilliant,
the cook on the duck was brilliant.
I think you're a flavour-smith, right?
You understand flavour, you create good flavour.
You cook great-tasting food.
Well done, mate. Thanks, Robbie.
Thank you, mate. WOMAN: Good job, Robbie!
Well done!
The next dish we'd like to taste belongs to Amy.
AMY: Today, I've made a sardine flatbread.
I used a KitchenAid.
SHANNON: You've got a really successful dish.
The flatbread is really tasty.
But the big question is, is this worth 10K?
MELISSA: Next up, it's Grace.
GRACE: I've made anchovy and cheese croquettes
with a chilli and yoghurt sauce.
And you used the...? Deep-fryer.
For someone who's never made a croquette before,
I think you did a good job.
The flavours inside are really nice
and the fry on the outside's really great.
Thanks, Mel.
Adi, what did you cook?
ADI: I've done kataifi prawns with a mayonnaise.
SHANNON: I've never used an air fryer before,
so I was, with keen interest, looking at you.
With that beautiful mayonnaise, you're looking at a great dish.
Thank you, guys. WOMAN: Well done, Adi!
Next up, Declan.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER)
DECLAN: All I want today is to win this round
and have the opportunity in round 2.
Oh, it smells so good.
JOCK: You had the pressure cooker, right?
Yeah, pressure cooker.
So, this is a Thai-inspired chicken broth
with a peanut-lime sambal.
Cucumber to break away from that chilli spice.
Declan...
..I loved it.
This is the exceptional food that we're looking for.
Thank you. Thank you so much.
It's delicious. Thank you, Shannon.
You've got the passion. It was really tasty.
Really enjoyed it. Like, actually really good restaurant food.
It's perfect, mate, so well done.
Thank you.
You've brought us some really interesting dishes along the way
in your curries
and we're starting to see some refinement
in the way you're cooking
and the flavours and the balance.
This is another level again. It is so well done.
Wow.
For me, it's the best dish that you've cooked.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER) Deccy!
Yeah, mate!
Oh, I've got goosebumps.
You should be very, very happy with yourself.
You've cooked the best dish that you've ever cooked today
and I think we all agree
you've also cooked the best dish in round 1,
which means, mate...
..you've won this.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER AND APPLAUD)
10,000 bucks from Harvey Norman, mate.
Here it is!
She's all yours.
What the hell? That's great! There you go, big guy.
That's wild. That's crazy.
Wow.
How does that feel, mate?
(LAUGHS) Yeah, I'm so excited.
I'm so excited that I've got the opportunity now
to, like, purchase these items
and work with them at home.
So, thank you to you guys and thank you to Harvey Norman.
Oh, there you go. Mate!
You have also won the right
to compete for an immunity pin in round 2.
Yeah, bring it on.
And not to mention, you've won immunity from Sunday's elimination.
(LAUGHS)
I'm bloody over the moon. It's unreal.
What a day. I've got goosebumps.
Declan, welcome to round 2.
Thank you.
In this round, all you have to do is beat the chef.
And, being Big Week, we have brought out the big guns.
The chef you'll need to beat has worked at prestigious restaurants
such as Arzak, Mugaritz
and the iconic El Bulli in Spain...
What?
..which was ranked the best restaurant in the world
not once but five times.
Wow. CATH: Oh, come on.
More recently, he's teamed up with none other than Chris Hemsworth...
Oh!
..kick-start his app, Centr, as key chef.
He's helped him transform into the god of thunder
through the power of clever cooking and nutrition.
Wow.
Please welcome to the kitchen...
..Sergio Perera!
(CONTESTANTS CHEER)
AMY: Hello there.
(LAUGHS)
I feel like if I was down there, I'd be, um...
..be a bit distracted by...by him, but... (GIGGLES)
He's gonna be great to watch. I know.
DECLAN: Sergio Perera,
his reputation
and his experience in cooking,
it's definitely intimidating,
but bring it on.
Declan, what's your first impressions, mate?
Um, you're a good-looking bloke, so...
(ALL LAUGH)
But, yeah, looks aside,
like, hopefully the both of us can plate up an amazing dish today.
Absolutely.
Under these cloches are four unique flavour pairings
and while these pairs might look strange together,
we promise they do match.
They are the perfect partners.
Your job will be to deliver on that promise
and use them both in a delicious dish.
Declan, you'll pick a pair first,
which will leave three for Sergio to pick from.
Declan, you will have 75 minutes.
Sergio, you will have 60 minutes 'cause professional chef.
The pantry and garden are both open and at your disposal...
..but the flavour pair that you choose
should be front and centre of your dish.
Do you understand? Yep.
I do.
Declan, if you beat Sergio, you will also win that pin.
Bring it on.
"Bring it on," he says. Yeah. (LAUGHS)
Declan, it's time to shine and it's time to choose your flavour pairing,
which means, Sergio, you can head to the locker room, mate.
Best of luck.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER)
Righto, Declan, you will have the choice of...
..dark chocolate and parmesan.
CATH: Wow!
Carrots and raspberries.
(CONTESTANTS EXCLAIM)
Mushroom and blueberries.
WOMAN: Interesting!
And, finally, mandarins and tarragon,
WOMAN: Yum. Alright.
We will leave you to stew on that and we'll hand over to Shannon.
Mate, very best of luck. Yeah, thank you.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER)
I really wanna impress the judges,
so eyes are on the prize for round 2.
Declan, what are you thinking?
So, I think, um, fish... A fish?
..is my strength.
Fish is your strength. That's great. OK.
Fish, citrus, the beautiful aromats of the tarragon.
Let's go the mandarin and tarragon.
OK. Well done. Yeah, let's do it.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER) Come on, mate. You've got this!
15 minutes, Sergio is gonna be right on your tail.
Yeah.
Your time starts now.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER) Go, Declan!
DECLAN: The last couple of chefs that have walked through the doors
have been masters at what they do,
so I expect nothing less from Sergio.
Tarragon. Spinach.
If his cooking matches his looks,
I've definitely got my work cut out for me.
So, I'm going French-style today with the tarragon,
so I'm gonna do a tarragon butter sauce
with a beautiful piece of steamed kingfish.
It's a firm white-fleshed fish,
so it will hold its texture together nicely.
Yes.
And then I've got a mandarin, fennel and watercress salad.
What's this sauce called? What's the classic name?
Um, a burnt blanc?
Beurre blanc. Beurre blanc.
Not burnt blanc, OK? (LAUGHS) OK, yeah.
Beurre blanc, OK? I'm not gonna be burning...
You're not gonna burn it, OK?
We'll have you speaking French within the next couple of weeks, for sure.
(FRENCH ACCENT) And today I will be making a beurre blanc.
(LAUGHS)
If you put all these elements together,
the fish is cooked perfectly...
Yep.
..really, it's gonna be hard to fault, no matter what Sergio does.
OK, yeah. OK? I've got faith in you.
Thank you, thank you. I'm going to get Sergio.
Sergio, Declan is well underway. You'd better come with me.
Feeling nervous?
Oh, you know, wouldn't be fun if I wasn't.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER)
WOMAN: Hello!
Let's go.
Declan had the choice of bitter chocolate and parmesan,
raspberries and carrot,
mushrooms and blueberries,
tarragon and mandarin.
Hm.
His choice was tarragon and mandarin.
Alright.
So, that leaves you with these end three to choose from.
OK.
What are you thinking, Sergio? (EXHALES)
I do love the idea of berries... Yeah, yeah.
..with something that's got tremendous umami,
such as mushrooms.
Yep.
So, I think I'm gonna go with that, yeah.
Very interesting. Yeah. Yeah.
Well, Sergio, your 60 minutes starts now.
(CONTESTANTS CHEER)
There's a lot of acidity and brightness to fruit,
especially the blueberries,
so I think me choosing that is gonna be great with seafood.
I just want to do something that's a bit different.
You know, I think people are afraid of utilising fruit with seafood.
To be honest, I have no clue yet what I'm gonna cook,
but I feel confident
that I've chosen some great flavour combinations.
I just need to move.
I think that's the best thing for me to do, is just keep moving.
Hey, Declan? Yeah?
Do you know Sergio's also cooking fish?
Oh, beautiful. (LAUGHS)
What's your catchphrase again, mate?
Declan is my name and fish is... fish is my game.
Oh, OK. Whoa. You're up against it, Sergio.
I like that.
Yeah, I can see the competitiveness in that guy. (LAUGHS)
I can tell he wants it.
It's gonna be a good challenge for me, so I'm really...
..I'm really looking forward to this.
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Declan, Sergio. Time flies when you're having fun.
30 minutes to go.
Motor! (ALL CHEER)
Go, Dec! Come on, Sergio!
I'm cooking for that immunity pin. No-one's won it yet.
All I need to do is beat Sergio Perera,
a renowned world chef.
You know, I'm just gonna try and forget he's there,
focus on what I'm doing at hand
And I think that's just the best way I can approach it.
CATH: This is your day, buddy. (LAUGHS) Thank you.
How's that reduction?
You need to get that whisking.
Get that whisking with butter. Yep, some butter.
I'm working on my tarragon beurre blanc.
One block, cubed, that I prepared earlier.
A lot of butter goes into this sauce.
I wanna emulsify it with white-wine vinegar
shallots, garlic and, of course, tarragon.
How's that reduction?
RALPH: Let's go, Deccy.
Ooh, yeah.
I think it's gonna pair perfectly with the fish
and my mandarin salad.
Hurry now, because your fish...
You gotta get your fish done.
And that fish is gonna take a good 15, 20 minutes to cook, yeah?
I'm gonna make a bit of a...
..a bit of a puree.
A puree with the fennel.
WOMAN: Ooh!
ROBBIE:
(LAUGHS) He's got Robbie's touch!
ALICE:
ROBBIE:
I've gone for the...the mushrooms
and the blueberries.
Bit of an odd combination, but I think it could work.
Being from Spain,
cooking is a very big thing.
They take their ingredients so seriously.
I wanna pay honour to the ingredients that I'm using.
I've got these blueberries that I've lightly sauteed
in a little bit of almond oil
to bring out the sweetness and the tartness.
Now I'm just grilling these beautiful mushrooms.
Getting them nice and soft.
This will accompany the fish.
Oh, very nice. Hibachi mushrooms.
Did you put herbs in the hibachi? I did, yeah.
That way, you get the burnt smell of it in there.
Smells beautiful. Nice.
Definitely starting to feel the pinch a bit here,
but, you know, the good thing about working for so many years
in these restaurants is that everything is a timed event.
So I think I'm feeling a bit nervous
but I'm also confident - I think it'll work.
CATH: Beautiful, Declan. Look at that.
Just working on the dressing for the salad.
Nice, fresh, citrusy salad.
Let's go, mate. Let's go.
Push, push. He's going back to the fishy.
There's only 20 minutes to go.
Ooh! Hello, Mr Fishy.
The fish needs a good 15 minutes in that steamer.
Come on, Dec. How's he going?
Let's go. Let's go.
Shannon's standing at the end of my bench.
He's worried that, you know, time is ticking
and I'm sort of cutting it really fine.
OK, hurry.
Wanna put a timer on that? Do you want a timer?
It's really important to get this fish cooked perfectly.
Time is of the essence.
Come on, guys! Come on!
How you going? Good.
It's getting there, it's getting there.
Yeah. When are you gonna get your fish on?
I'm gonna get it on right now, actually.
They're quite small, so they'll cook fast.
You've been out in the garden? Yeah. Yeah.
You've found sorrel and... Some sorrel.
Yeah, nice.
Well, just remember, those blueberries and mushrooms,
they need to sing.
Got it.
So many incredible elements happening right now.
I mean, you've got the smell from the hibachi
and the chestnut mushrooms.
You've got the fennel puree with a licorice scent to it.
You know, everything just feels perfect right now.
So that's a great thing, 'cause I was quite nervous in the beginning.
ROBBIE: Sergio, what's the other thing you used in there?
What's that? You put in the sauce.
The last two bottles, what are they?
So that's vincotto,
which is a beautiful, very acidic... from the grape.
So that's gonna really accentuate the berries.
I think Robbie has a crush too. Yeah.
Mm-mm.
Too quiet over here. Everything OK?
Oh, just making sure I've got everything.
Yep. So you've got the blueberries,
which have sort of got a bit of pickling juice or something?
It's got a bit of almond oil, some orange zest.
Getting there.
I've got all my bold flavours.
I've got my sauces, everything ready to go.
And I feel confident.
Is it good? It's sweet. It's sweet and...
Yeah, lovely. Are you gonna get it done?
I am. Good.
Yeah. Five minutes to go!
Come on!
Come on, guys! Let's go! Five minutes. Let's go, come on.
It's time to start plating up.
Test it. Test it.
I test my fish with a skewer.
If there's any resistance, the fish isn't cooked.
It's still a bit too much resistance.
This could lose my opportunity at beating the chef
and, you know, taking home that immunity pin.
This is gonna be so close.
Yum!
Looking at this fish now, it looks perfect.
I think I'm ready to go and plate this up.
I've got my fennel puree and I've got my blueberries.
There's beautiful flavours and beautiful colours here.
I think I have achieved
the pairing of the blueberries and the mushrooms.
WOMAN: Look at that plating.
Stunning. Stunning.
This is the home stretch. One minute to go!
Come on, everything on the plate! Yes, guys! Come on!
That's ready.
The fish is cooked.
Season nicely. Seasoned it.
I'm so happy.
You're like an architect now. Yeah, I know.
You're an artist. Yeah.
Yum!
The mandarin, the freshness in the salad,
my tarragon with the butter,
it's gonna pair perfectly with the fish.
Just hoping that the mandarin and tarragon
really shine.
ALL: 10, 9, 8,
7, 6, 5,
4, 3, 2, 1.
Step away!
(CONTESTANTS CHEER)
Oh! Good stuff!
That was a good one! Yeah, it was bloody awesome.
Oh, that looks beautiful.
Oh, I gotta see what you did!
The blueberries and the mushrooms!
Man, that was...that was very difficult!
Oh, look at that!
There's absolutely no difference from what I did.
(LAUGHS)
Declan's dish looks... I'm amazed.
If you're happy, I'm happy. Looks beautiful.
I'm excited to see what the judges think.
Don't know about you two,
but I'm pretty interested in a couple of things.
Firstly, the choices that both Declan and Sergio make,
because there's a couple of interesting ones out there.
Secondly, how Declan went.
Yeah, four really interesting flavour pairings there -
some of them a little bit gnarly.
Should we get the first one in?
Let's do it. Let's do it.
Here we go.
Pan-seared snapper, fennel and mushroom puree,
braised blueberries and herbs.
Beautiful. Thanks, mate. Thanks, mate.
Smells pretty good from here. Yeah.
It's intriguing too. I'm looking forward to seeing what's underneath.
Fish, I can see.
I've hit the blueberry payload.
It's hiding down the bottom.
OK. Ciao.
Thank you. Grazie.
The blueberries are nice.
Like, they're nice and... They pop in your mouth.
Fish is...is cooked through.
Like, moreish. I wanna keep eating it.
There's some undeniable skill going on there.
The smoothness of the puree,
the burnished skin of the snapper I thought was quite lovely,
the beautiful smoke and char coming through the mushrooms.
I thought it looked like a very interesting plate of food.
It did. It had lots of levels.
But I don't know that I'd say it was the most cohesive dish.
Mmm, you're totally right.
For me, the puree should have been more mushroom-forward
so it was, like, a no-brainer on mushroom and blueberries.
And then it would have linked in
those little smaller charred mushrooms to the whole dish.
Shall we score? Mm-hm.
DECLAN: I've got butterflies in my stomach.
You never know in this competition if you've done enough.
ANDY: Here we go.
DECLAN: I'm proud of what I've plated up.
Ooh!
Hello!
But...I'm extremely nervous.
MELISSA: Hello.
SERVER: Steamed kingfish with tarragon beurre blanc.
JOCK: Beautiful.
ANDY: Thank you.
I actually, genuinely, wouldn't know
if that is Declan or Sergio.
Yeah, I'm the same.
You guys can have the healthy salad.
Thank you.
Hey, when you have the mandarin, the fish, the sauce,
a little bit of everything together...
..it's magic.
This fish is beautiful.
The sauce could have done with a finer strainer,
that's all I'd say,
but the flavour of it and the balance was exceptional.
Beautiful.
So I've got to say, this is a really, really nice plate of food
that I would happily pay for in a restaurant.
I agree. I think it was a lovely balance of flavours.
I think the mandarins added that little pop of juiciness
to every bite.
It was just really well rounded.
The sauce was super-vibrant and green,
and just humming with tarragon.
So tarragon and mandarin were definitely there,
so the brief is definitely ticked.
Um, love a little bit more salt.
But apart from that, solid effort from whoever cooked it.
Mm.
Well, it is now the moment of truth.
You guys have got to tell us who had which flavour pairing,
'cause we actually couldn't tell today.
Declan, what did you have? I had the tarragon and the mandarin.
Nice.
Chestnut, mushrooms and the blueberries.
Gotcha. Very interesting.
Declan, we might crack on with you, eh?
Please.
Mate, today you definitely met the brief.
The flavours and the textures, they were great.
So I scored your dish
8 out of 10.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) Nice one!
Declan, your dish was a textural delight.
Ooh.
I gave it
an 8 out of 10.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Declan, every component of your dish played a role,
and it played it beautifully.
I scored your dish...
..9 out of 10.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Sergio, that means that you need a score of 26 or more
to beat Declan.
You nervous?
Yeah, I'd say so. (LAUGHTER)
Some pretty big scores there.
Well, I thought your dish was very well executed.
I scored it...
..8 out of 10.
CONTESTANTS: Oh!
Sergio, some really great cooking on that plate.
But the puree kind of got in the way
of the mushrooms and the blueberries for me.
I scored your dish a 7 out of 10.
CONTESTANTS: Oh! Oh!
Ooh!
Every element on your dish was delicious.
But the final dish
just lacked a little cohesion for me.
I gave it...
..a 7 out of 10.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Which means...
Wow.
Oh, my God. ..Declan...
(CONTESTANTS SQUEAL) Huh?
..you have won one of these, my friend,
the coveted immunity pin.
Come on!
(SOARING MUSIC)
Wow.
Oh!
Declan, honestly, mate, really, really well earned today.
That was a beautiful plate of food.
How you feeling, mate?
I'm impressed with myself.
I never thought I could do it.
Yeah, very proud.
Sergio, take it from a guy who knows,
mate, it's not easy in this kitchen.
But, mate, still showed you at the top of your game,
and you're an absolute legend, so well done.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Thank you.
Declan, three wins, immunity from Sunday's elimination,
a shiny new immunity pin
and a massive prize.
JOCK: The hat-trick. Yeah.
Well done, Declan! (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(EPIC MUSIC)
Everybody else, on Sunday, we cap off Big Week
with a big elimination.
So get a good night's rest. It's game on.
CONTESTANTS: Thank you. 'Bye.
Sergio, well done, mate. Loved that cook.
(CONTESTANTS SQUEAL AND LAUGH)
NARRATOR: Sunday night on MasterChef Australia...
RALPH: It's black apron day. Someone will go home.
It's the big finish to Big Week...
(GASPS)
..with an epic Elimination Challenge.
MELISSA: This is your opportunity
to slow-cook, pickle, marinate.
So many possibilities.
The pressure is on.
RHIANNON: I'm absolutely packing it.
That is bloody scary.
Are you good? I'm good.
You're freaking me out.
Captions by Red Bee Media