NARRATOR: Previously, the pressure wrapped up
for the top five teams of the competition
in the ultimate instant restaurants...
Bigger, better, and harder.
Two entrees, two mains, two desserts.
..where favourites.
Rob and, Liam faltered early.
You had to fight to eat it.
They're not all cooked.
With their only chance of survival,
an epic fail from Janey and Maddie.
I think maybe Janey and Mad might be going home.
It's either us or Janey and Maddie.
But the Kitchen Queens...
I think this was your best dish tonight.
..reigned Supreme.
You are safe.
Rob and Liam, you guys have been eliminated
from My Kitchen Rules.
As we finally landed at this year's semi-final teams.
We've done it.
Pete, top four
and we're going straight to the finals.
Tonight...
Our final four teams are back in Kitchen HQ.
This challenge is incredibly important.
With a massive semifinal advantage up for grabs...
That could make all the difference, yeah?
You need to give tonight's cook everything you've got.
..in the biggest challenge MKR has ever seen.
Tonight we're all creating a banquet.
(CONTESTANTS EXCLAIM)
Look out this is ridiculous.
But if they thought this was a battle...
(SCREAMS)
Mum, careful.
Janey and Maddie are in trouble.
If it's overcooked, it's game over.
..their biggest critics will be themselves.
You are the guests at your own banquet.
Wow.
This is the first time
you've been able to tell each other directly
what you think of their food.
We are hard critics. This will be awkward.
And no-one is pulling their punches.
Let's see who can handle the truth.
My chicken was a little bit dry.
Of course.
That piece was a little tough.
Here we go again.
Not really such a fan.
It tastes like a bread roll.
I feel you have some problem with your taste buds.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC)
Feels great to be in the top four.
We worked very hard to be here.
Kitchen Headquarters has been a rollercoaster for us.
Cooking against the clock,
it gives me so much anxiety.
But tonight we fight
until the last minute.
Let's make it happen.
We had a pretty average cook at hour,
ultimate instant restaurant
and we want to get back on track today
and prove we're a massive threat
and we're coming for this title.
Mum and I know that
we have what it takes to win
this competition and whatever happens,
mum and I can walk away with our heads held high.
Pete.
We're top four of Australia home cooks
and we're not to be reckoned with.
We're going straight to the finals.
Mike really wants that glitter.
Yeah, I want that glitter to come down.
(GLITTERING SOUND)
(REACTIONS)
Oh, my god. Who's coming to dinner tonight?
There is this massive table where the judges usually stand.
Why? Another twist?
Oh, no, no. Yes, another twist.
Good evening, bonsoir, bonsoir.
Hello, hello.
The top four teams.
(APPLAUSE)
Janey and Maddie, there's a lot of teams
who said you wouldn't make it this far.
What do you have to say to them?
(LAUGHS) We made it.
Simone, we're here.
(LAUGHTER)
First some news.
No-one will be eliminated today.
Oh.
Good.
(LAUGHTER)
What the hell?
I already had Janey and Maddie's
farewell speech prepared.
No-one is going home.
But this challenge is incredibly important
because it will determine
who will cook against who going into the semifinal.
Tonight's first place team will cook off in the semifinal
against tonight's fourth place team and second and third
will face off in the other semifinal.
Oof. OK.
The purpose of this cook
is to determine the ranking for the semifinals.
We do not want to face off with Simone and Viviana.
I'm sure it'd be a hell of a challenge.
Plus the top two teams after today's cook
will receive an advantage in their respective semifinals.
You will receive an extra five minutes
for each course
that could make all the difference.
Oh, my goodness, Maddie,
how amazing would it be to win the time advantage
and the semifinals and it's like a golden ticket
into the grand final.
I've got goosebumps.
Tonight we are asking each of you
to create a delicious banquet.
You will have two hours for your main
and one hour for your dessert.
So, who are your mystery guests?
We can tell you this much.
They know a thing or two about food
and are not shy to tell you about it either.
That's all we can tell you for now.
(REACTIONS)
So, if you want to win the competition,
you need to give tonight's cook everything you've got.
Leave nothing in the tank.
The store room is open and is stocked
with everything you will need for this course.
Cooking teams, to your benches.
Aprons on.
OK. That's you.
What are you thinking? Mine.
So, excited for this.
Something that kind of fits the bill
is like Middle Eastern feast kind of thing, bit of lamb.
Beautiful. I'm thinking chicken.
What are you thinking?
What's better than our wonderful lasagne banquet?
Stay traditional today.
Let's stick to the tradition.
Teams, your time starts now.
Go, go.
Yeah, yeah.
Slow down.
We gonna get our meats.
Oh, la-la-la.
Our fruit for dessert Honey.
Woolie's has everything we need. Everything.
Panko. Panko. Panko. Panko.
It's a hard, hard challenge.
We've never done banquet
in this competition.
I'm looking forward to it actually.
Of course you are my little positive bunny.
My goodness.
How beautiful does the fish look, Maddie?
How gorgeous does it look.
It's amazing.
Right, I'll get started with the lamb
'cause that needs to get in the pressure cooker ASAP.
For main, we're making spice lamb shoulder
with Middle Eastern sides, salads and dips.
I'm gonna try and make a pita bread. Yep.
It should be fluffy, light.
People can just pop their food in it, you know.
When we think banquet food and share plates,
Middle Eastern is kind of the one we land on together, like...
It comes to mind.
We've got humus, tahini, farro, salad.
We want to be first today
and if Janey and Maddie come fourth they're the weakest cooks
and that would be an easier semi final.
That's what we want to cook for today.
The only way to do this is use your hands in.
The biggest concern for me
about this dish is definitely the lamb.
I'll just put a bit of stock in the bottom of those.
Yep. Chicken stock. Yep.
With roast lamb shoulder you could be putting
a lamb in the oven for up to six hours.
You better hurry up. Let's go.
We don't have the luxury of six hours
so we're gonna have to use a pressure cooker.
Come on, Lamb's in.
Let's get that cranking so it's nice and tender.
Yeah.
We need to start the sauce as soon as possible.
Yeah.
Because it has a slow cooking time.
So, I'm gonna chop onion,
carrot and celery for the ragu, for the lasagne.
Alright.
Tonight we're cooking lasagne
with the orange and fennel salad and broccolini.
This is definitely our jam. Yeah, it is, eh.
Is not gonna be focused too much on fancy presentation,
but the taste is gonna be delicious.
It's gonna be all about tasting, amore, today.
We are going to wow the judges with simplicity.
It is such a simple dish.
It is a risky move,
but we hope full of flavour.
So, we're gonna keep this lasagne sheet thin
but still having a little bit of bite.
We are gonna have just enough time
to develop the flavour.
That will be the challenge today.
We are confident we love this food.
And, amore, there's gonna be like a massive advantage too,
so let's make sure we take that one home.
We want that advantage.
We're not good at cooking against the clock.
The dough need to rest for 30 minutes.
So, the more advantage we can get,
the closer we are to the grand final.
We need to be number one.
Mikey, Mikey, mushroom, chicken.
What are you doing, Mikey? Mikey, what are you doing?
What are you cooking? We're cooking Japanese today.
We're going to Japan. Oh, wow.
Yeah, we're doing something different too as well.
(LAUGHS)
What are you doing? Lasagne.
Oh, beautiful. I love lasagne.
Lasagne is my favourite.
Yes. Well said.
And there is space only for one Italian team in here.
(SPEAK ITALIAN)
Pete, I'm just putting the honey in here
with the soya sauce and some seed oil.
Yep.
We are going to flip the lid on this challenge
and we're doing Asian today.
I'm gonna put the ginger and the garlic in.
It's gonna have to have like a sweet and salty taste.
We'll be cooking sesame ginger chicken with miso eggplant,
truffle fried rice and char grilled shishito peppers.
I just hope that if we nail the flavours
and the judges enjoy it.
So, Pete, I'm marinating the chicken
so I'm putting my fingers underneath the skin.
Yeah.
Because the flavours really need to soak underneath that skin.
There is definitely a risk that we won't nail
the flavours of Asian style.
A bit hard with these sleeves, but hey.
But we just want to surprise everyone
with our knowledge of these flavours.
As a cook you've got to know lots of things,
different techniques and different styles
and flavours and I think today
we could prove to everyone
that we just don't cook pasta and risotto.
I can't imagine any of the teams
or the judges thinking
that these two Italians are going to be pulling this recipe together.
Snug as a bug in a rug.
We've got it in the bag.
I'm just trimming up this trout.
Don't want to waste any of this beautiful ocean trout.
For the main banquet today
we are making ocean trout with a parsley,
macadamia crumb, creamy potatoes, honey, carrots and charred leeks.
Everybody wants to bring their A game today, including us.
I definitely think that the other teams,
they won't expect mum and I to get this time advantage today.
Alright, Maddie, I'm gonna put these leeks on.
It's hot.
It's OK. We want them blackened.
When we say char, we want char.
We would just love to get
a little bit of revenge
from all the dissing
that's been going on.
Oh, my god. (SCREAMS)
Oh, my god. Maddie's on fire.
No, it's Janey's hair.
Don't panic, everyone.
Thank you for your dissing because it's just made us stronger.
Coming up...
You are the guests of your own banquet.
..another MKR first.
Tell each other what you think of their food?
Things could get a little bit nasty.
A little bit ugly.
We'd probably put a lot more cheese in a lasagne.
You make a better lasagne, good on you.
My chicken was a little bit dry.
Yeah, well, you look a bit dry yourself, love.
Um...
We do not expect any compliments from our competitors
at this point of the competition.
I totally disagree.
That's the way we love to make it.
Half an hour down, mum.
OK. That's gone real quick.
We've never had a banquet-style meal
in Kitchen Headquarters, so it's a first.
Banquet to me means lots of food.
Yeah.
This is a huge cook-off for these four teams.
The next time they meet it will be in the semifinal.
Ah, I want (INDISTINCT)...
And they're cooking here for a big advantage.
I'm feeling a bit under pressure
but that's what the kitchen's all about.
So, if you come first today, who do you cook against?
The first team cook against the fourth team
and the second team cook against the third team.
So, obviously one of the stronger teams
want to end up with one of the weakest teams
'cause then you can sort of judge a semifinal out that.
Amore, who do you want to go up with?
Oh, Janey and Maddie, their bench
doesn't looks the greatest to be honest.
Whoo.
Just want to win. (LAUGHS)
Simone and Viviana, guess what, they're doing pasta.
For a change.
Pasta sheets are looking very good.
Make sure to don't wet this area. OK?
Yes, sir.
They're doing your lasagne
with an orange and fennel salads and broccolini.
Orange and fennel salad.
Fresh, fresh, fresh and, amore, we got the broccolini ready
for the oven.
OK.
Because he's like our purist Italians,
what makes their lasagne standout?
As you know the more you cook the ragu,
the more flavour you get into it.
Yeah, you don't want it too watery.
So, the sauce is reducing nicely.
Yes.
Now, we need to just to develop the deepness of the flavour.
So, Simone, you on time?
Yeah. Good boy.
You're our hardest competitors.
Come on, mate. You're making me blush.
(LAUGHS)
We definitely don't want to cook
against Simon and Viviana.
They are amazing cooks.
They're gonna be very hard to beat. Yeah.
Mike and Pete are cooking sesame ginger chicken...
This chicken's on fire.
Hopefully not.
(LAUGHS)
..with miso eggplant, truffle fried rice
and charred shishito peppers.
Right, Pete, I'm about to char grill the eggplants.
Mike and Peter have decided to do Asian today.
The only thing that's the alarm bells ringing is the rice.
I hope it's not too wet because that on a platter
is not gonna look good.
I've got the miso in here.
I've got the sake in here. I've got the mirin in here.
These eggplants look amazing.
This is the chickpeas for the hummus.
It's a bit of tahini. Go straight in.
Caz and Fergus.
Their menu is spice lamb shoulder
with Middle Eastern sides, salads and dips.
Sounds absolutely amazing. Yeah.
But wow, a lot of work.
Keep forgetting about the time. Hey.
Fingers crossed they're gonna be ready on time.
Anything can happen.
Yeah, they're looking great.
Tender? Yeah.
We got the lamb shoulder, which they have braised,
which is spiced and they've got in a little stock.
So, we'll just finish it in the oven, yum.
Then they're gonna crisp the top of the lamb shoulder.
The risk of that is, is drying out the lamb in the oven.
I'm just covering the lamb with foil.
If they nail every element of this,
they're the strongest team here today.
OK.
You know, Maddie.
We're doing a banquet today and banquet really means a feast.
It does.
So, last one, we've got Janey and Maddie.
So, I'll get the fish out
after I've done the last couple of carrots
and I can make the crumb for the fish.
OK.
So, they're doing ocean trout with parsley and macadamia crumb,
creamy potatoes, which is like a dauphinoise.
Yep.
Honeyed carrots and charred leeks.
I'm just taking off the outside of the leeks.
As we know, Janey and Maddie did very well the other night.
Yes, and they could do very well tonight.
Every time you doubt 'em, they come back.
Is there any room for these leeks to go in the oven?
At the bottom?
One hour to go.
Pick up the pace.
Yes, sir.
So, now we need to start composing our lasagne.
Amazing.
How is the pasta feeling, baby?
The pasta is feeling perfect.
Now, make sure the water is boiling.
Lasagne is very popular in the world
for a very good reason...
Because it's so good. So good.
You can't bring a lasagne and not nail it as an Italian,
you know, we would've to rip our passport off.
You don't think it's gonna be dry?
How?
It's impossible to dry lasagne.
Only you cook a lasagne like that.
Lasagne is just so good.
In its simplicity,
there is a lot of depth flavour
and we really, really want to be in a higher spot,
you know, in order to get the advantage.
Amore, we need to get the lasagne in now, like, legit now.
Five extra minute in every course it can honestly make the difference.
Vai. Ready to go. Let's go.
So, it's a pretty good advantage to be honest and we need to get it.
We need to get it, baby.
Top here.
See you later, baby.
We'll get this fish prepared,
work out when we need to get them on.
OK.
I'm getting started on the crumb for the fish.
Oh, shivers.
We've roasted those macadamias.
We added in some Panko, some parsley, lemon rind.
We want to be in the top at the end of the day, don't we?
How good would that feel?
That would be amazing.
Being at the top volume into the semifinal.
That would be incredible.
It would be amazing to get an advantage after this cook.
Maddie and I have never had an advantage.
It is looking beautiful.
Everybody wants this
and we're gonna show them
that we can do this.
This will help it get nice and crispy in the oven.
You happy with that amount?
Beautiful. We need to get this fish in.
OK, OK. I can hear you. Let's get them in.
Understand, all of them need to go in.
It's really important to get that fish on.
It has to be perfect and if it's under or overcooked,
we will be crucified.
And put them all on 200. OK.
Teams are allowed to work on the dessert.
Start them in this session. How do you think they're going?
Well, Simone and Vivian have started already big time.
Now, it's to make the shape for the dessert.
Tonight we're making for dessert maritozzi al pistachio.
So, they need to prove as a bun shape.
Maritozzo is little sweet bun, topped with cream.
Perfect.
I believe that Mike and Pete also have started.
Making cannolis.
Since we're going Asian themed,
we're gonna provide an Asian themed cannoli tower.
Fantastic.
For dessert, we'll be creating a cannoli tower
with a miso custard and a yuzu custard.
The cannoli king is back.
Alright, Mike.
I'm getting off to the first batch of cannoli.
By the time our main course is up,
we need to have 60-70 cannoli shells put aside.
We're just gonna have to motor.
Yeah, keep going.
(UPBEAT MUSIC)
For dessert, we're making
a pistachio and saffron baklava cake.
The topper for our saffron cake we're gonna make a baklava
and essentially it's just layer and layer and layer of this filo, yeah.
With butter in between every layer.
Yeah.
There we go in.
Ten minutes to go. Let's move it.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC)
Just gonna check our fish, Maddie.
For us, we like a fish sort of medium rare.
We don't mind it a bit pink.
It's not cooked.
I wanted that fish to be cooked.
How's that one going?
'Cause they're such thick pieces of fish.
I know.
We didn't probably factor that in enough.
We don't want to be putting
stuff on the plate
at the last minute.
We really want to take some pride in that presentation.
Still raw, Maddie, raw.
No, it needs to go back in.
This is just a disaster.
That flesh has to be cooked.
It can't be raw.
(INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC)
Ten minutes to go. Let's move it.
How's that one going?
Because they're such thick pieces of fish.
I know.
We didn't probably factor that in enough.
Still raw, Maddie, raw.
I'm gonna turn the temperature on the oven up.
Why don't we put this one back in?
"Cause we know this one's not quite ready.
OK, put it on top there.
I'm feeling really stressed out.
We want that fish perfect, don't we, Maddie?
Yeah. That's a hero of our dish.
For Maddie and I to finish on top,
we need to cook our trout perfectly.
I'm worried about Janey and Maddie and the trout's
because if it's not done well, it's game over.
We want it just cooked.
Just.
Oh, my god, Maddie, if we can pull off this meal,
I would be beside myself with joy.
Be amazing to get the time advantage in the semifinals,
but I know we have a mountain to climb now.
There's a lot to do, isn't there?
Yes. I'm panicking.
Am I gonna get this plate out?
Next thing we need to do is get those potatoes out
so they sit and calm down.
Great work. You're a champ, mum.
This is a huge cook-off for these four teams.
Amore, it's just me and you against everybody else.
How they score today
will have a huge impact in the semifinals.
Teamwork. Look out. That's right.
Makes the dream work.
The first team cook against the fourth team
and the second team cook against the third team
and they're cooking for a big advantage.
There's a lot riding today.
We got to get first place
out of this cook and take the time advantage.
Petey and I are gonna win this.
It will probably take us straight through to...
The grand final.
Alright, Mike, I'm gonna fry this truffle fried rice.
Beautiful.
We've added a truffle to this fried rice
because it's something that I've tried
before at a restaurant and I thought it was amazing.
Beautiful.
The truffle fried rice is left of field.
Mike, one thing we cannot forget is the truffle.
It's a delicate ingredient with a real earthy flavour.
You got it.
But the risks that come along
with the experimenting is failure.
OK, so the rice doesn't look great to be honest with you.
I think the pan is not hot enough.
So, Pete, we've got all these people to impress today.
I really do think that it will go well,
but do you know what?
Who are we to judge our own food?
I'm sure there's gonna be plenty of judges at the table.
Ooh, my goodness.
Maddie, Just gonna check our fish.
That looks good to me, mum.
Alright, we'll leave it sitting there.
I'll put this on top 'cause this one's been at the bottom.
Let's have a look.
We'll take it out and check it.
It's not, it hasn't cooked as much as the others.
I reckon it's cooked.
OK, well, leave it to sit, if you are happy, I'm happy.
Alright.
Oh, that looks lovely.
Thanks, Mike. Is it cooked?
No, it's raw. I thought so.
We're doing, we're doing Japanese-style fish just for you.
I'd pop it back in the oven if I was you.
Don't even go there.
Five minutes left, come on, hurry up.
We need to make sure we stay on time.
Yep.
Make this a banquet to remember.
Lamb's not dried at all, Ferg.
Beautiful, mum. That looks sick.
The lamb is the centrepiece.
We're just gonna pour some more of that stocky liquid
that it cooked in over the top.
That's gonna keep it really moist.
Well, it looks pretty juicy to me.
We've got the salad with the farro and the kale.
I am happy with the way it's coming together.
I think it looks pretty damn good.
Rustic Middle Eastern, just as we'd hoped.
I think everything on that
platter has a place there.
So, we'll just have a nice little fan bread on the side,
don't you reckon?
Yeah. And then sauce is there like that.
We've got a lot done.
I'm stoked with our effort.
The Italians haven't got their lasagnes out yet.
Hello.
Amore, we need more salad on it. OK.
Wow.
Like Caz and Fergus, they have so many sides, baby,
but I think our sides are gonna be enough.
The orange and fennel salad will bring a little bit of freshness
to cut through the lasagne.
We got the broccolini, they're cooked.
The broccolini is gonna be a little bit of crunch.
Amore, lasagne. Looks perfect.
Nice crunch on top.
And that's exactly how we serve a lasagne at home.
Beautiful.
Lasagne looks a bit dry, Mike.
(LAUGHS) No it's not.
Stop it.
Things could be looking up for us.
Undercooked fish, dry lasagne.
Perfect chicken.
Get the rice underneath first. Chicken on top.
Pete, need to hurry up.
Because I want to put some truffle on top
before the chicken quick.
I'm gonna be belting it with a whole truffle.
Beautiful.
Hopefully with great risk comes great reward.
I'm just gonna use the rest of this truffle.
I'm using it like I haven't paid for it.
Mum, careful of the crumb.
Mum, careful.
It's all good.
Watch your lane.
Janey and Maddie, they are running around.
The heads chopped off.
I can't see anything plated.
Mum, careful of the crumb.
You put those bits on there.
Mum, behind, behind, behind. I need get this here.
Alright, I'll put those on as well.
All we have to do is put the asparagus
on the plate and the carrots.
Yeah.
And get that potato out of the oven.
Perfect.
I really hope we've done enough today.
I think it looks beautiful.
30 seconds. Come on.
Alright, Mike, we've got the shishito peppers.
Do you want to drizzle a bit on the fish or not?
No, I don't.
I need to get the pesto into the jars.
Make it moist. Oh, my god. My life's a mess.
Don't stress, don't stress, don't stress.
Five, four, three, two, one.
This is got to be banging.
Hurry up, amore.
That's it, stop cooking.
Move away from your benches.
(INDISTINCT).
Nice job.
Well done, my friend.
Well done. We absolutely nailed it.
This is definitely out of left field even for us.
For us.
I'm happy. Allora.
Presentation wise it's not the best.
Flavour wise, we got there.
Well done. Hectic.
Look, if it tastes half as good as it looks, I think we'll be OK.
We're giving them enough salad.
(LAUGHS)
Well done. Love you.
Looks beautiful.
It does look beautiful.
Oh, that was just...
That was intense, wasn't it?
Yeah. Great job teams. Well done.
Now, it's time to taste your incredible banquet,
but first we need to bring in your special guests at a banquet table.
Eight special guests.
Please welcome...
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC)
..yourselves.
(LAUGHTER)
Yes.
You are a guest at your own banquet.
(LAUGHTER)
That's fantastic.
This is the first time you guys
will be able to tell each other
what you think of their food.
Wow.
That's awesome. I can't wait.
I can't wait either.
Please grab your platters
and join us up here at the banquet table.
I just wonder if everybody would be honest.
You can't help yourself.
You look at the dish and you'll think,
"Oh, that doesn't go with that.
That doesn't go with that."
And for us there looks like a few hits and misses.
I'm bracing for the worst
and how personal people might take this.
So...
Yeah, things could get a little bit nasty.
A little bit ugly.
(SOFT INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC)
Teams, welcome to your banquet table.
Doesn't it look great?
It looks beautiful. It is, isn't it?
Yeah. Lovely.
This is the first time
you've been able to tell each other directly
what you think of their food.
This will be interesting but awkward.
My mouth has got me into trouble
a lot of times around the table.
I know it's a competition,
but I don't really like offending my other teammates.
(LAUGHS) It's hilarious.
So, let's start with Janey and Maddie's
ocean trout with parsley and macadamia crumb,
creamy potatoes, honey, carrots
and charred leeks.
Very colourful.
Let's go.
The biggest concern for me at the moment
is I wanted that fish to be cooked perfectly
and it could have been cooked a little bit longer.
Bon appetit.
I think it's amazing. The flavours are banging.
Isn't that what you say, Colin?
Um...
It just feels like it's just too much oil.
In the crumb? In the crumb.
Vegetables are overcooked.
Mike's being Mike 1.0 today,
but we do not expect any compliments
from our competitors.
Maybe a little too sugary the carrots.
Will it beat lasagne?
It can't beat lasagne.
Nothing beats lasagne. Sorry.
I find it really hard to hear these critiques,
but we didn't expect people
to rave on about our food,
but when it's our turn, we'll do the same.
OK, let's try the next dish.
Mike and Pete's sesame ginger chicken with miso eggplant,
truffle fried rice and charred shishito peppers.
It is definitely a gamble for us
when it comes to Asian cooking versus Italian.
It's a risky move, but I think it could pay off.
Fingers crossed.
What are we thinking of the presentation of this dish?
Maybe it could have been zhouzhed up but a little bit more.
Of course.
(INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC)
It was a bit of a sort of a lazy dish
in terms of being chicken and rice.
It wasn't a wow dish for me.
The flavours were knockout.
Eggplant was delicious, those roasted peppers.
Yum.
And the chicken skin on mine was, yeah, I gobbled all that up.
For the rice, yeah,
I think maybe it was a little bit too wet.
If you've served with the chicken not on top,
maybe it would've stay a little drier.
But as flavour profile, I really like it.
I love your flavours.
They're really delicious but...
Oh, I can't wait to hear this.
Here we go again.
..probably something I'd eat sort of
midweek rather than for a banquet.
I'd like to visit her house
on a Tuesday night and see
if this is exactly what she's dishing up.
I reckon she's on the two minute noodles.
If it's fried rice, it's a bit mushy.
It's more like a risotto we scenario and my end of my chicken
was a little bit dry.
Yeah, well, you look a bit dry yourself, love.
I can tell you it was pretty...
It came out perfect.
But anyway, side note.
I really don't know what to say
when it comes to Janey and her opinion critiques.
Oh, she'll get her just desserts,
at dessert time.
So, our next banquet dish
is Caz and Fergus's
Spice Lamb shoulder with Middle Eastern sides,
salads and dips.
At this stage of the game, I wouldn't be surprised
if people were talking down other people's dishes
just trying to further themselves.
So, I'm expecting a bit of pushback on what we've prepared.
But you know, we just got to sit there and cop it.
How is it getting critiqued to your face?
So far so good.
(LAUGHTER)
Wow.
What Fergus and Caz did, it's impressive.
I know how hard it is to cook slow,
you know, cook meat.
That's a huge feat.
That piece here I had was a little tough.
The meat was very nice and tender.
I did really enjoy the humus.
It was very well executed.
This is why Caz and Fergus
are our biggest competition.
I do not want to go against them for semifinal.
It's just yum, It's just, like,
so much taste and love on that plate.
Every mouthful is like it's a burst of something popping in your mouth.
It was an almost perfect dish.
Yeah, just like a midweek dish.
And then we get down to business.
(LAUGHTER)
Our final banquet main is Simone and Viviana's
lasagne with orange and fennel salad and broccolini.
I honestly cannot wait to hear
what Janey has to say about the lasagne.
She's gonna say something for sure.
For sure.
You know we know Janey. So...
For sure.
We expect her to say something silly.
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC)
We'd probably put a lot more bechamel
and a bit more cheese in a lasagne.
I don't quite understand.
The broccolini was, like, just a bit dry.
It didn't really belong on the plate with lasagne to me.
You make a better lasagne.
Good on you. Great.
Whatever.
It's good.
Amore, it's OK, we can handle it.
It was a bit dry.
What do you mean dry?
I'm used to a wetter lasagne.
That's all.
If he doesn't like our lasagne,
maybe it's not real Italian.
(LAUGHS)
We've just tried four banquet dishes
that you have created.
Did you banquet said you deserve to be here?
We'll let you know soon. Thank you.
We'll call you back soon for dessert.
Thanks, guys.
Let's quickly talk through each dish.
So, Caz and Fergus spice lamb shoulder
as a banquet dish it made more sense than
any other dish on the table.
I think the flavours were there.
I would happily eat that one again.
Very clever.
So, Janey and Maddie's ocean trout.
It's simple but done well.
And the fish was cooked perfectly.
Perfectly. Perfectly.
I love the crumbs over the top because you get a different texture
of crunch and then soft fish.
Mike and Pete's ginger and sesame chicken.
I know that Mike and Pete are trying to show us
different cuisine that they may know.
I did enjoy the flavours of the chicken and the eggplants.
The mistake they've done is added the truffle
in that rice, it was really silly.
To be honest.
I watched 'em fry that rice and there wasn't much frying going on.
It was a bit of stewing,
so I don't think it was gonna really help it.
Simone and Viviana's lasagne.
That was a really good lasagne.
I thought the broccoli were, excuse my French, quite boring.
Yep.
It's, when you look at a banquet dish
like you eat with your eyes number one
and that one you're like, "Mm", it's Monday night dinner.
It's a good lasagne.
And the pasta was, it was silky smooth
and there was good flavour in that ragu.
They've done this justice but everything else didn't match.
I thought. Yeah, bit of a mixed bag.
We've got some decisions to make.
Yeah.
But we still got dessert to play with.
So, everything could change.
100%.
Still to come...
(BLEEP) sake.
..the final four are battling it out.
We need those in. I know, mum.
For the game changing time advantage in the semifinal.
Put it back down, all dripping underneath.
And at the banquet table Janey's once again,
playing with fire.
Tastes like a bread roll.
I would've drizzled with that syrup.
Hectic. It doesn't work for me.
You might have some problem with your taste buds.
Buddy. Are you right?
(UPBEAT MUSIC)
Teams, back to the kitchen please.
So, today's semifinal decider
is a banquet challenge.
Now that the mains are done,
the second part of that challenge
is a dessert challenge.
Great job, guys, so far,
but I will announce Caz and Fergus are in the lead.
So, time to catch up.
Ding, ding, ding.
What about that little announcement?
Red hot.
Look, we're ahead, but we need to hold onto that lead.
'Cause we want this advantage and going into a semifinal cook.
But it's still anyone's game.
You have just one hour to finish
and plate your dessert platters.
Are you ready? Yep.
Your time starts now.
We're making the maritozzi with cream and pistachios.
Maritozzi is a little sweet bun topped
with cream and pistachio cream on top.
It is so important to get this buns right
as we need to catch up with the main that we did.
Do you think that the dessert will save us?
Dessert is amazing.
Our maritozzi is very good so there is a very good chance.
At this point we would've liked
to have already blind baked our tarts,
which we haven't done.
For dessert we've decided to make a gin and tonic tart
with a vanilla bean and juniper ice cream.
The pastry feels like a really good consistency.
I love the flavours in these dessert.
It's beautiful. Yeah?
It'll cook beautifully. Yep.
And we thought what a creative and elevated way
to finish a banquet.
The ice cream's in the freezer...
Yeah. ..ready to go so...
And we know it doesn't take long to do the actual filling for the tart.
It's really just making sure that the pastry is cooked.
Mum and I feel a bit annoyed at ourselves
that we didn't get this done sooner.
Feeling really stressed with how much
we have to get done in an hour.
One thing we don't have is time.
Alright, Mike, so we're gonna be doing the cannoli towers.
We've got the cannolis done. Yep.
For dessert we'll be creating an Asian inspired cannoli tower
with a miso custard and a yuzu custard.
Alright, so this is the yuzu custard.
I'm adding yuzu juice and some matcha
to give it a colour difference.
Yuzu is like a Japanese lemon, it's super zingy.
That's gonna make the other teams green with envy, Pete.
It is definitely a gamble creating Asian flavours with the cannoli.
Let's just hope they're both delicious.
Now, it's just a matter of piping the custard into the shells
and then assemble the towers.
I'm privileged to be next to the cannoli king.
Chocolate's ready for me to make our tower.
We know we can do well with these cannolis.
We scored two tens last time we served them.
How are you going with your sticking them on?
Good. I'm going. OK, Pete.
Great.
I'm just gonna keep piping.
And this time we've got the additional glamour
of having them in a tower.
Probably just need to work a bit faster.
I'm not trying to put pressure on you.
So, we feel really confident that it will pay off.
We haven't done one tower yet,
so we just need to absolutely motor.
This looking pretty good. Ferg.
Not bad.
For dessert, we're making a pistachio
and saffron baklava cake.
These cakes, we're gonna slice 'em through the middle.
So, we've got two layers on each
and then we're gonna sit the baklava on top.
Icing in between, decorate with pistachios,
decorate with some rose petals.
Pretty. Lovely.
Awesome. It'll be a pretty dessert.
I just hope it tastes pretty good.
Mum, I'm just working on the syrup
that's gonna go on top of the baklava for dessert.
So, Caz and Fergus really nailed the main course,
but as we know they can't be complacent.
They're gonna nail the dessert as well.
I might try and trim the tops of these cakes now to put the...
Yeah, the topper on.
It's a big cake.
It is a big cake.
Just hope the cake is enough to kind of keep this lead...
I know.
..because, you know, like Simone and Viv
will pull out something great.
Getting the maritozzo in the oven.
Simone and Vianna
are doing a maritozzi with pistachio.
They look light. They've risen a lot.
That means they're full of air and when you cook it,
there's gonna puff up.
You've got 30 minutes left.
Let's finish this banquet with some beautiful desserts.
Remember, plan to get this in the oven in the next five minutes.
Both of them. We've only done nearly one.
It seems that Janey and Maddie are far behind
compared to the rest of the teams.
It's good, darling.
I'm just worried if it's too thin.
It's not too thin, sweetie.
OK, do you want to get started on the next one?
You get started on that one.
I'm looking at her pastry, it looks a bit thin
and then she's putting more pastry on top of it.
And then she's pressing with the fingers and I don't know.
I just hope they're gonna be ready on time.
They've done well with their main course.
They've got to keep on doing well with the dessert,
otherwise they may drop down with the dessert.
Yeah.
The filling for this gin and tonic tart needs to be perfect
and every extra minute of these being in the oven is gonna count.
We are so not where we want to be time wise.
We need another hour for this dessert
and the time is ticking away so quickly.
Yeah, mum, once the tarts are blind baked,
we have to get the custard filling straight in there
and we have to get it cooking in the oven.
We are just absolutely panicked
that we are not gonna be able to
put a dessert on the banquet platter.
So, in the custard, mum, we have gin.
A little bit more gin.
(LAUGHTER)
Not a lot of time left on the clock.
I think those two girls are in trouble,
to be honest with you.
I think we should just get the gin and tonic and forget about the tart.
I think they're gonna need a gin and tonic after this.
We started so well with our main,
but we are way behind with our tarts for dessert.
This one's not on. Oh, that's on, that's OK.
It's OK. It's OK, OK. It's on, it's on.
We put blood, sweat, and tears into this competition.
So, not being able to plate up anything
that would be soul crushing.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC)
We have to get them out and get custard filling inside.
We really need to have that custard in those shells.
If the custard isn't cooked in that tart,
we do not have a dessert.
We do not have anything
to serve except for a bit of ice cream.
If the custard isn't cooked, then we're cooked.
Basically, what can I say?
So, these are our four top teams battering away.
Buns are ready and wonderful gold.
And they're cooking here
for a big advantage in the semifinals.
Any advantage can make all the difference.
That's right.
Pete, I think they're running late.
Cool. That's good to know.
I'd be so happy if we beat them.
And now's the chance.
Quickly. Let's go.
Are they gonna be cooked enough at the bottom?
Yes. I promise you they're cooked enough.
The last thing we want is for the knife to go
in the middle of that tart and the custard oozes out.
We need those in.
So, the custard really needs to be set in this dessert.
I know, mum. I know, I know.
I'm working on the same programme as you.
OK, now if you want to carry them gently over
and I'll open the oven.
OK.
We are running out of time.
Because one side's a bit. Hang on, put it back down.
Put it back down. Put it back down.
I'll get a new tray for it. Why?
Because it's door dripping underneath.
Get it out for a second. Really?
Yeah.
20 minutes to go.
Will your dessert save you? Come on.
Simone Viviana are doing a maritozzi with pistachio.
So, brioche, you cut in half
and you open and then you fill it with cream.
You want it full of air like a little cloud.
Baby, I am doing the pistachio cream...
Yeah.
..that is gonna go at the bottom of the bun.
We hope that our guests
will get a hit on the face
with the pistachio.
Amore, I'm very proud of this.
Very good.
With dessert, we've been doing
very, very well
and we really hope that tonight,
dessert is gonna be our redemption again.
Do you know what maritozzo is, baby?
No. Shame on you.
Mike and peace are creating cannoli tower
with miso and yuzu custards.
Pete, we didn't cut the towers short enough.
They're actually too big.
Oh, my god.
We didn't make them right size.
We are not gonna have enough
cannolis to finish all of those towers.
Alright.
Do you really want to cut it?
Yeah.
(TENSE MUSIC)
That looks like surgery.
King of cannoli might be losing his crown, mate.
That's alright.
We're just gonna put...
Pop two on top.
The power of the cannoli king,
he just thinks on his feet like that.
Oh, this oven's not turned up at the top, is it?
It's on. It's flashing.
Wait, what's on, sorry, what's it on?
It just heating up to this 200.
You've moved it to 200. OK, alright.
So, Janey and Maddie are doing gin and tonic tarts
with vanilla bean and juniper ice cream.
These are our candied lemons.
Put these in the oven.
If they don't cook the tarts quickly,
we may not have dessert at all.
Really gonna take the tarts out at the last second.
Ten minutes to go.
Janey and Maddie are a bit hectic right now.
Mum, this is not on.
This could be really good for us.
We need to hold onto that lead to cook against the weakest team.
They look great.
It's construction time.
So, for our baklava cake, we've got our cake,
we've got our cream cheese icing,
another layer of cake, a little bit more icing,
purely just to stick the baklava lid onto.
Wow.
We can tidy that up anyways. Yeah, yeah, OK.
That looks great.
Do you want me to pop a few of these rose pedals on?
Yep.
Five minutes left. Come on.
Let's go. Alright. OK.
We cannot afford not even one little mistake on this maritozzi.
We really want to climb the ladder up.
I'm putting the pistachio cream on the bottom
and the whip cream on top.
So, like, the pistachio is gonna be kind of like a surprise.
We got it. We got it. We got it.
Oh, that one's looking beautiful.
I can probably even take that out.
OK, go.
We are pushing this to the wire.
Taking the tarts out of the oven.
It looks like the custard is set, which is amazing.
So, get a spatula. Need to take it off there.
Yep, yep.
Do it really gently, darling.
Oh, it's gonna crack.
Mum, mum, mum, I'll hold it.
No, no, no, no. I need to pull the paper off.
No, leave the paper.
We've got bigger issues in the paper.
Oh, my goodness.
Maddie, I forgot about the lemons.
Oh, my god.
Pete, I see Janey and Maddie have got a hot mess at the moment.
I think we are just gonna have to pick the best ones.
We are gonna have to put two on each top.
We can't use burnt ones. Yep.
That's OK, no, that's all good.
Simone. Oi.
Don't that look a little bit dry?
Amore, the only dry thing is your sense of humour today.
I know.
Only one minute remaining. Let's go.
It looks amazing. Looks better than I hoped for.
We are putting pistachio nuts on top.
I'm just gonna give it a bit of a dust.
Yep, go for it.
This ice cream's looking good.
Careful. Look, what you've just done.
Well, you do it. Well, you do it. OK, I see.
Can you pick that off? Pick that off.
Yes, you do the others, quick.
Ten, nine, eight, seven, six...
Um, oh.
Are all the sauces on?
Yep.
..five, four, three, two, one.
Stop cooking time's up.
Step away from your benches.
My goodness. Well done.
I can't believe it.
We got it done.
Oh, my goodness.
That was a hard push.
That's probably the most
impressive looking dessert we've made.
We're on top.
Hopefully keep it that way.
Pete, you're still the cannoli king in my eyes.
I don't care what they say.
You're full of cream.
(LAUGHS)
Honestly, I'm very happy with the flavour.
Yeah.
Amore, let's hope.
Yeah. Let's hope.
Thank you. Teams.
It was nonstop action in your kitchens.
We love to see that.
You've made your desserts.
Now, join us at the table to try 'em.
Careful, careful, careful.
Steady hands.
I've got steady hands, Pete. Yeah.
OK, let's go.
We really hope that this dessert
will bring us up there to get advantage
on the semifinal.
We need this to help us to win the competition.
We need to get it, baby.
(SOFT INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC)
Thank you for this beautiful banquet of desserts.
So, let's find out how you all did.
Let's start with Caz and Fergus's
pistachio and saffron baklava cake.
Wow.
Hopefully there's a really good chance for us
to get a top position in the semifinal.
Well, bon appetit.
(LAUGHTER) Merci.
I don't even know where to start.
It is nice.
It is very hard to eat.
I probably would've wanted the cake bits
to maybe be sliced a bit thinner
and maybe drizzle with some of that sort of syrup
that reminds you of baklava.
Do feel like the cake was a little bit out of balance.
I reckon half of this of the cake with the crispness
wouldn't be just perfect to go through with the fork,
but overall the presentation was wow.
So, well done.
Now, for the cannoli king,
Mike and Pete's cannoli tower
with miso and yuzu custards.
I'm feeling nervous.
People are gonna be thinking, they're gonna be tasting
this beautiful creamy sweet feeling where with doing Asian fusion,
it's a risk and it can go terribly wrong.
The tower of cannoli look majestic.
Absolutely fantastic.
Honestly, presentation wise is a ten.
Cheers.
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC)
Um, I thought the filling on both of them
was just beautiful.
The texture was gorgeous and the presentation,
I've never seen a cannoli tower before.
Stunning. Well done.
Yuzu one is not as good as the miso I'd say.
It doesn't feel like it works for me in the cannoli,
but your cannolis are just really fantastic.
So, would you say he lives up to the name of Cannoli King?
Absolutely. Mm-hm.
Phew. Very happy, Pete.
Janey's bent her knee
to the king of cannoli
and rightly and so.
The cannoli shell was impeccable.
It was honestly, it was melting in the mouth was a great effort.
Well done, guys.
Amazing.
I'm so pleased, like,
I think we might be on the top
of the leaderboard.
Let's try the next dish.
Simone and Viviana's maritozzi al pistachio.
Maritozzo is a little sweet bun topped
with cream vanilla flavours in it
and pistachio cream on top.
Looks lovely.
Dessert has saved us in the past before,
so we really hope that dessert
is gonna save us again tonight.
It's gonna maybe give us this kick
to be at the top.
Smash this.
I was a little bit surprised.
It really is an afternoon tea
rather than a banquet dessert.
Janey, you finished already.
(LAUGHS)
I've had eloquent sufficiency as my mother would say.
That filling was amazing.
So, um...
Yeah, elegant and a lovely little dessert for me.
Well done.
Love that.
I could picture myself in a cafe in Italy
having an espresso eating this.
It was perfect and I could eat that day in, day out.
Thank you. Grazie.
Thank you, Mikey. You're welcome.
It tastes like a bread roll rather than dessert.
Hectic.
It's a little bit dense down the bottom.
Would've probably liked a bit more cream,
yeah, I was a little bit disappointed.
I feel you might have some problem
with your taste buds.
Buddy. Are you right?
Maybe I could have had a little expresso
on the side to dip it in.
That would be good.
I don't need that.
You know what?
I'm looking at the tart
of Maddie and Janey doesn't look that appealing.
Maybe this is Janey last attempt
to distract everybody else
from her dessert.
OK.
Finally, Janey and Maddie's
Gin and tonic tart
with vanilla bean and juniper ice cream.
I feel like everything that could go wrong
in this dessert has gone wrong today.
But I'm really proud that mum and I have pushed and pushed
to get these tarts cooked
and we think the plate looks beautiful.
We just hope that the judges love the taste.
Janey and Maddie's gin and tonic tart.
It looks a bit like something you'd cook on a Wednesday night.
Definitely something you'll cook on a Wednesday night.
(INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC)
Oh.
Hands up I'm not driving home.
I do feel like there was way too much flavour of alcohol.
You need to taste it
if you say it's gin's in the dessert.
I do think the base is a little under.
Yeah, I'm the same.
The pastry, it was all over the place
as in texture wise and cooking time.
The side kind of overcooked
while the bottom was undercooked.
Janey is excellent for giving out critiques
and really good at nit picking.
She's not good at receiving critiques,
you know what I mean?
I totally disagree.
I think the pastry underneath is actually perfect.
That's the way we love to make it.
Pastry was undercooked can confirm.
I think out of all of the dessert we had tonight,
like, this was probably the weakest.
I'm feeling really disappointed
that sort of it was a very sledgehammer review.
It was like, "This isn't good, this isn't good, this isn't good,"
but, you know, don't really care at this particular point in time.
At the end of the day,
the judges are the one that makes the decisions.
Interesting little day, wasn't it?
Great fun.
Everyone's now tried a main
and a dessert offering from all of us.
It's now up to the judges to decide what was best and who is first,
second, third, and fourth heading into the semifinals.
I do not want to go
against Caz and Fergus on semifinal.
They're dangerous, man.
We do not want to face
Simone and Viviana.
They are the team to beat in this competition.
Yeah.
Teams, today you gave us fantastic minds
and wonderful desserts.
The top team will compete
in one semifinal against today's bottom ranked team
and teams two and three
will go head to head
in the other semifinal.
I'd like to cook against Janey and Maddie in a semifinal.
We'd have a good chance against those two.
Plus the top two teams today
will also have an advantage in their semifinal cooks.
You will receive an extra five minutes for each course.
That could make all the difference, yeah?
Simone and Viviana, we're gonna start with you.
Lasagne with orange and fennel salad and broccolini.
I think you got some great flavour into that ragu.
Broccolini, a little bit overcooked, a little bit sad.
Mike and Pete, your banquet main was
sesame ginger chicken and truffle fried rice.
I think the chicken was delicious.
The ginger really came through,
but the rice was probably not fried in a hot enough pan.
Janey and Maddie, ocean trout with parsley and macadamia crumb.
The trout was perfectly cooked.
The crust over the top was a great texture.
I really enjoyed also the leeks.
They were melting in the mouth.
Caz and Fergus, spice lamb shoulder with Middle Eastern sides.
The lamb was succulent, spicy, delicious.
That was restaurant quality to me.
You're here to play. You guys are here to play.
Get out. Restaurant quality.
Don't know what restaurants Colin's eating at,
but that's-that's awesome.
Caz and Fergus are on top for the main.
Now, we got dessert, so bring it on.
Maritozzi time.
Alright, for your dessert, Simone and Viviana,
you served maritozzi al pistachio.
The flavour combination and the intensity of the pistachio
I think was wonderful.
I wanted more, but this was a lesson in baking.
Thank you, chef.
So, for your banquet tonight,
we score your entire meal...
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC)
..30 out of 40.
30.
30 is a good score, but definitely beatable.
Mike and Pete for your banquet dessert,
you served cannoli tower
with miso and yuzu custard, like, wow.
Like, you get that tower at a party, you know it's a party.
The king of cannoli
and I think you should keep that crown for-for sure.
Those cannolis were absolutely delicious.
The king and I say whoop-whoop,
whoop-whoop, whoop-whoop.
For your banquet tonight we score your entire meal...
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC)
..31 out of 40.
Thank you.
Oh, my god. Wicked.
That puts us ahead of the Italians.
I'm so happy, Pete, so happy.
Hopefully we'll be cooking versus
Janey and Maddie in the semifinal.
They'd be easy to beat,
especially if we get the time advantage.
Janey and Maddie,
for dessert you served gin and tonic tart.
The pastry was slightly undercooked on the bottom,
the custards, that lemon gin and tonic.
I think you just went a bit too far with the booze.
The gin was very overpowering,
but do you know what, ladies?
There was a time, I didn't think
we were gonna get anything up
and we'd just be drinking gin and tonics.
We score your entire meal...
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC)
..25 out of 40.
That was painful.
So, with one team left to score,
Mike and Pete, you currently sit top
with 31 points and in last place,
Janey and Maddie, with 25.
Caz and Fergus, for dessert,
you prepared pistachio and saffron baklava cake.
I think that cake at the bottom could have been half the size,
but the baklava top, wow.
The cake, a good flavour.
I actually like the texture and I love that orange syrup
but your ratios were-were out of line.
For your banquet tonight
we give your entire meal the score of...
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC)
..32.
(CHEERFUL MUSIC)
Which means tonight's top team
is Caz and Fergus.
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
Unreal. Number one.
Who'd have thought of it?
Oh, let's go.
Now, we know the semi-final matchups.
Caz and Fergus,
you'll be facing Janey and Maddie
and going into the semifinal
with an advantage.
Mike and Pete,
you'll be facing Simone and Viviana.
Yeah, so the modern Italians
are gonna be facing the traditional Italians.
And you will carry a crucial advantage too.
I'm happy that our Italian ancestors
got the advantage because they will need it.
(LAUGHTER)
Brilliant.
We'll be cooking against Janey and Maddie.
Look out, I can't wait to be there at the grand final.
It's gonna be good.
We have what it takes to beat Caz and Fergus.
We want to win this competition.
How glorious would it be to be winners of MKR?
I tell you, I'm excited. I'm bringing the popcorn.