Gordon: Previously on "MasterChef Junior"...
You'll have to recreate one of my signature dishes at the same time I do.
Gently. Look at me. What are you doing? Let's go, guys.
Ravioli's cooked beautifully. Really, really well done.
- The pasta is gluey. - I give that to you.
It's raw.
Aarón: The sauce, we need more.
The person that will not be moving on is Molly.
- ( sniffling ) - Bye, darling.
All: Bye!
- Tonight... - Come on.
it's an epic semifinal cook-off.
How much time do we have?
And the pressure is on...
It's kind of getting intense now.
- You got it. - Woohoo!
as the top three battle it out...
This is it, make or break. Right now it's anyone's game.
...to claim a spot in the grand finale.
This is a dish for me that can sit in any good restaurant in America.
Exquisite. Congratulations to...
- Yes! Yes! Yes! - Yeah!
Welcome, everybody, to our incredible
"MasterChef Junior" semifinal.
Trust me, tonight the pressure is on.
The three best young home cooks in all of America
are about to do battle right here
in the MasterChef Junior kitchen arena.
They're all fighting for a spot
in the "MasterChef Junior" grand finale.
It does not get any bigger than this.
The question is who will get the chance to win it all?
We're about to find out.
Please welcome our three incredibly talented
young "MasterChef Junior" semifinalists.
First up, we have an amazing 10-year-old from Scarsdale, New York.
Please welcome Liya, ladies and gentlemen.
Liya: I am really excited right now.
When I first started, I didn't know I'd get here.
I can't believe I made it this far.
I am this close to the finale.
Next up, an 11-year-old from Austin, Texas.
Please welcome Grayson.
Grayson: Walking into the MasterChef kitchen tonight
is completely different than any other night so far.
There's a huge crowd.
It's hard not to get super nervous
because this means so much to me.
Last but not least, an eight-year-old
from Darien, Connecticut, please welcome Ivy.
Ivy: I'm the youngest in the competition,
and now I'm going into the semifinals.
That feels amazing.
I'm one step closer to the finale,
and I'm not ready to go home yet.
Tonight is the semifinal.
In our eyes, you're all winners.
Let's get that absolutely clear.
Liya, how exciting is this?
What's been your driving force
to get you to this point tonight?
I think the driving force is, like, probably my family.
I want to honor my family's heritage with my food.
Well done, young lady.
Grayson, you've been so ambitious.
Where does that ambition come from?
Food is a big family thing for me.
My parents and my family really introduced me
to the different restaurants in Austin.
And so I got really curious to try to re-create some of those dishes,
so I've been trying to learn as much as I can.
Amazing. Ivy, you're just a second-grader.
Where does this confidence in the kitchen come from?
Mostly my mom and dad
because they've been so supportive for me,
and that just kind of boosted my confidence.
Does anything faze you?
Um, not really.
Don't change that. Love that.
You guys have been in our kitchen for a long time now.
It's like we've all become one big family,
and I'm sure after all this time,
you're all missing your own families a little bit.
But not for long because we have some very special guests tonight.
Liya, your parents, Iwin and Austin,
and your big brother Leo.
Grayson, your parents Christina and Brad
and your little sister Estella.
Hey, bud. Come here, baby.
And Ivy, your parents George and Christina
your siblings Lilly, George, and Phoebe.
Mwah! We love you. Love you.
Welcome, all of you. Good to see you.
Iwin, Austin, we have had so much fun
watching Liya perform here in this kitchen,
and she's spoken so much about you and your family's restaurants
and how much she's helped out and learned from you.
I wondered where those dumpling skills had come from
because they are something else, really, truly.
Brad, Christina, in your opinion,
what does Grayson need to do to succeed this evening?
You know, the thing about Grayson is
he's got the biggest little heart in Texas, I guess I'd say.
He's also a super fierce competitor,
so I think if he puts those two things together today,
- he's unstoppable. - Thank you.
Estella, how much have you missed your brother?
- A lot. - A lot, right?
It's just we eat take-out every night now.
Grayson, go home quick. They need you.
- Save us. - Man!
George, first up, she's fearless, she's super-confident.
Where does that steely focus come from?
I think coming from a pretty big family and being the youngest,
she has to fight for everything that she gets.
And she knows how to give orders,
I know that, and people listen.
Well, thank you all.
Without your support,
they wouldn ‘t be the talent they are today, so...
With that said,
families please give your loved one a final hug
and take a seat, please.
I'm so proud of you.
- You got this. - Love you.
- Good luck. - Okay.
Right, it's time to get this incredible semifinal started.
Two of you will be moving into the grand finale.
One of you will be watching that final faceoff
from the sidelines.
Make sure it isn't you, understood?
All: Yes, Chef!
Guys, you will have just one hour
to make us the best dish of your life.
Your families are not here
just to inspire you emotionally.
They're also here to inspire the dish
that you will be making this evening.
So channel them.
Maybe something you used to make them,
something you ate at home,
or something inspired by where you live.
Show how much you've learned here,
show your journey in this kitchen,
but make it exceptional.
Tonight, we don't want you just to make one plate.
No, no, this is the semifinal. You are the three best.
So tonight we want you to make three identical, stunning dishes,
one for each of us.
I said the gloves are off. This is it.
Right, Ivy, Grayson, Liya, are you ready?
- All: Yes, Chef! - Let's have 60 minutes on the clock.
Your 60 minutes start now.
Daphne: Let's go, let's go!
- Okay, um... - Okay.
I just have to put myself out there.
You have to represent yourself on every single plate
because that's what the judges are looking for.
They want to know you not only by talking with you,
but by eating your food.
You can do it, buddy! You can do it. You can do it.
( chanting ) Liya, Liya, Liya, Liya!
Gordon: Good girl.
- Do you want some help? - Yes, please.
Don't drop the champagne.
- ( chanting ) Ivy, Ivy, Ivy! - Let's go.
You okay? Good girl. Well done. Let's go.
- How exciting is this? - Man.
Three talented individuals not just cooking live
in front of all their families, but also a big live audience.
60 minutes from now, a spot in the grand finale.
We've had all these months together to see them grow,
to see them learn, and now to be able
to put it on display, give us a dish
that really speaks to their families, who are here.
Aarón: And it comes down to this.
This is going to set the tone and determine
if they're going to make it into the finale.
This is tense, really tense.
Liya: This is the first time
I'm cooking in front of so many people,
and the pressure is building and building.
And I'm like, "Liya, get into your focused mode."
Love you!
That's it, Ivy. Good job, Ivy.
Good job, Gray.
So here's the big jeopardy, because each individual
now has to produce three dishes, one for each of us.
Right, to make sure each of us
consistently gets their best work.
That's a tough and tall order.
And this is the first time
they've had to produce
three dishes at the same time here.
That's right.
- Right, how are you feeling? - Good.
Good girl. Tell me about the dish.
I'm making pork dumplings
with a salt and pepper blue prawn and a spicy aioli
because I think it really shows my family and my culture.
And how old were you when you made your first-ever dumpling?
- Um... - Do you remember?
Sev-- five? Seven? I don't know.
Five? Seven? That's amazing. What are you worried about?
Right now I'm just worried about
if I don't get my dumplings done on time.
And tell me about the stock.
How are you going to flavor this thing?
The stock is basically just going to be the shells of the prawns.
Smart. Now, what have you got in there?
Pork, blue prawns, scallion, ginger, and corn starch.
Good. And you're going to roll that dough super-thin, okay.
- Get those shells on. Get that broth working... - Yes, Chef.
...so it literally gets better and better with flavor.
Yeah.
How does this dish separate you
from your competitors to get you into the finale?
Since I'm doing, like, Asian cuisine
instead of, like, steaks and, you know, the regular stuff,
this is really going to be different from others.
Sure. Now you've got a bad cut on the thumb.
Are you going to manage with one hand?
Even if, like, something's in your way,
you still have to keep on cooking.
You're absolutely right. You're absolutely right.
Yeah, Liya!
Gordon: But I'm excited to taste these dumplings.
You've just got over 46 minutes.
- Can you make it? - Yes, Chef.
Get those shells on, get that broth boiling away,
- and remember, three stunning plates. - Yes, Chef.
Young lady, good luck, okay? Keep it going. Well done.
Go, Liya!
Breathe, Gray.
Whoa, feels like walking the plank down here.
- How do you feel? - I feel pretty good.
Grayson, tell us a little bit about what you're cooking today.
So today I'm making pan-seared hamachi with Dungeness crab,
a yuzu aioli, and I'm going to do radishes three different ways.
Okay, and I'm just going to remind everyone, you are 11 years old,
but we know, having watched you cook over the last few months,
that this is just par for the course for Grayson.
You love an elevated dish.
I'm definitely drawing inspiration
from my family's favorite restaurant in Austin,
and I love the kind of cuisine that they do there
because it has so much diversity,
and that's what I want to bring to the table.
Are you nervous tonight to have your family here watching you,
or does it give you that much more energy to perform?
I mean, I'm a little bit nervous,
but I can't be super nervous doing the thing that I love.
Daphne: I love that.
So you're making this aioli right now. What's the flavoring?
Yuzu, and then I'm going to add
a little bit of lemon olive oil.
- Did he teach you this? - Yes, 100%.
Daphne: The first thing that caught my attention
when you were describing this dish is the crab.
Yeah, so I went crabbing with my godparents
and my friend Sky last year in Portland with my family,
and so that was a memory that I really loved.
All right, cool. I'm going to let you get to it.
40 minutes left. Everybody's doing a great job.
We'll check in with you in a little bit.
That's the cubed butter for the beurre blanc.
I'm nervous because there are a lot of people here.
This is a lot of pressure for an eight-year-old.
I mean, like, oh, my gosh.
- How are you, sweetie? - Good.
All right, Ivy, talk to me about your dish. What are you making?
I am making a halibut with a champagne beurre blanc,
white and green asparagus, and a celery puree
because I love making French food.
Awesome sauce. Now, how does your family
have a big influence in this dish?
My dad makes a lot of asparagus at home,
and then my grandpa makes a lot of fish,
and he also eats a lot of fish.
Yeah. Does grandpa like to share,
or is he just one of those guys
that eats the whole thing by himself?
Well, I don't like fish, so...
You don't like fish?
Grandpa, really? Come on.
So you chose halibut.
Halibut's a very dense, beautiful fish,
but it can overcook if it's not nurtured and taken care of.
So is there anything that's concerning you at all?
Not really, except for, like, time.
Time?
Yeah, that's a good thing to be concerned about.
All things considered, how does it feel
cooking in front of all these people here?
A little bit crazy.
A little bit crazy, huh? All right, so, Ivy,
- you're going to poach your fish, right? - Yes.
All right. Do you have your poaching liquid on, mija?
- Where's it at? - Not yet.
All right, you know what you should do is probably get that on.
You can kind of do this right here at the end,
Let's get that poaching liquid going, okay, mija?
Come on, Ivy!
- She is doing a great job. - Good job, Gray.
Looks beautiful, Gray.
Three amazing dishes. So, Liya, she's got her work cut out.
She's chosen not to go down that easy route,
and she's making her own dumpling.
But the paste looks beautiful.
She's got pure spinach incorporated into the flour,
this nice, bright, fresh green.
She made the mix
and then literally took it out of the bowl,
chopped it up again to make it super fine.
- I saw that. - So she's going all out tonight.
You are doing great, Liya! Just like what we did.
Aarón: I'm a little concerned about Liya.
If she's going to rush the dumpling process
and make those skins a little too thick,
the dumplings might come out gummy,
and then that filling won't cook properly and it'll be dry.
- Yes. - Yeah. Interesting.
Ivy's doing poached halibut with a champagne beurre blanc,
white and green asparagus, and a puree of celery root, which can be challenging.
But she's actually prioritizing a little bit wrong.
- Damn. - What she's doing is
she was working on the asparagus,
but she didn't have her poaching liquid on
to actually poach her halibut.
Halibut's a very unforgiving fish.
- It goes dry very quickly. - Absolutely.
So there's a lot of jeopardy there.
I think Ivy has also got her work cut out for her
in terms of timing, with just 60 minutes.
Watch the temperature, watch the temperature.
Get in the zone, Gray. You look good, bud. You look good.
Yeah, Grayson is hard at work
making hamachi that he's planning to sear.
I would like to see him start to season that,
at least get some salt on it,
just start to permeate some of that fish.
He also has a pickling watermelon radish going,
and he made a gorgeous yuzu aioli,
a really nice, fatty complement to that kind of mild fish.
He could potentially have a big pitfall
if he overcooks his yellowtail and those pickles overpower
the delicate nature of the yellowtail.
Well, here's the other thing.
He says he wants it seared,
so if it's cooked all the way through,
- he hasn't achieved his goal. - Yeah.
Let's go, Grayson, let's go.
Gordon: We're halfway, guys. 30 minutes to go. Come on.
It's kind of getting intense now.
Gordon: Let's go.
Grayson: I'm feeling really nervous.
Even if it was just a regular immunity challenge,
cooking in front of a live audience would be hard.
But this is to decide
who gets into the grand finale.
Literally one tiny mistake could mean I'm done.
We're halfway, guys. 30 minutes to go. Come on.
Let's go. Oh, boy.
- Brad, how you feeling? - Good, good.
I mean, I'm just-- I could not be more proud of what he's accomplished,
and to be part of him on this track he's on,
it's just super inspiring as a parent.
And from day one when he came in,
he was telling us about how many times you cooked together.
Brad: You know, all kids have their own thing they fall into
and that they're naturally attracted to,
and right away he just seemed to understand it,
and he just learned and learned.
Yeah. Christine, how proud are you?
Oh, my gosh, I couldn't be more proud.
It's amazing. He has been dreaming this up for so long,
and to see it happening is unreal.
Absolutely. Estella, how good is your big brother?
He's really good.
Do you think he could become America's next MasterChef Junior?
- Yeah. - High-five? Good girl.
- Come on, Ivy! - Ivy!
( cheering )
Unbelievable.
- Hi, Liya. - Hi.
- How are you feeling? - I'm feeling really good right now.
I think I'm really on track, and I think I have enough time
- to finish the dumplings. - Beautiful.
And how do you feel about the mixture on the inside?
I think it's really good.
I think I have all the flavors that I wanted it to have.
Now you're getting those blue prawns out.
Yes. So I'm basically going to go fry the tails,
and then also fry the heads.
Oh, that's nice, to give it a little extra texture
and crunch to the dish, a little extra salt.
I love that. Were you always a really competitive kid?
So, like, even if it's my brother or anyone,
I will always, like, try to do my-- like, be better than them.
Is that true? Have you ever had to let her win?
- Uh, yeah, you know. - All the time.
- Yeah. - What do you mean? I always beat you.
How exciting is it to have your family
in the kitchen with you tonight?
It's really fun and exciting,
and I'm just really happy that they can see me cook again.
What do you think is going to give you the biggest problem?
I'm just worried about, like, my dumplings
not being fully cooked on the inside,
and not getting everything on my plate.
I cannot wait for you to perform this dish perfectly.
Get it going. 22 minutes. Good luck.
- Thank you. - Good luck, everybody.
( chanting ) Ivy, Ivy, Ivy!
Right, how are we doing, young lady?
- How are we feeling? Three portions, right? - Good. Yeah.
Tall order. Are we on it?
- Yeah! - Good girl.
So puree's on, champagne beurre blanc is on.
How are you going to poach this halibut?
I'm going to put it in fish stock, champagne.
It's going to have bay leaves,
black peppercorn and thyme in it.
Wow, you are not keeping it simple, girl, are you?
You want this spot in the finale, right?
Yes.
And what's the one part of this dish you're worried about?
The one part that I'm worried about
is that I might overcook the fish.
You're going to sear it first and then poach it, right?
- Yes. - So the searing is going to get
the color and the flavor, and then we'll get
the moisture from the poaching, okay?
But when you put it into that,
remember the secret. Lay away. Why?
Because you don't want the oil to splash on you.
That's right. Keep it going. Come on.
That's good, Ivy.
- Mom, dad, how are we? - Hi, how are you?
How is Liya faring right now? You feeling good?
- Yeah, she did a really... - She did a great job.
- ...great job. - Would the dim sum chefs at your restaurants
be very proud of her right now?
- Oh, definitely. - Right?
She's throwing down, huh?
- It's amazing. - Aarón: So at your house,
do you have a five-gallon bucket of chili oil
that she just takes to school every day or what?
How does that work?
You know, believe me or not,
she doesn't like spicy food.
- No? - No.
She can hardly handle the black peppers.
- Yeah, really? I love it. - Yes, really.
- I mean-- see? See? - See, see, see, see, see?
- No! - Not anymore.
- Yeah, exactly. - Not anymore? Okay.
Awesome. Well, that's one of the things
that she's probably discovered through this whole journey
is new flavors, new textures.
And hopefully we've taught her some things
that she can bring home into the kitchen
and to your guys' restaurants.
- Thank you! - I'm doing it.
15 minutes remaining. Come on.
That's it, Ivy. Good job, Ivy.
Whew! Hi, ladies and gentlemen.
Hi, George, Christina,
Ivy's parents in from Connecticut.
What is going on right now watching your eight-year-old
cook in front of all these people?
- Hello. Hi, everybody. - My gosh.
Well, this is the first time we've seen her
in quite some time in the kitchen,
and it's unbelievable how much she's grown
since she's been here. It's amazing.
She has so much poise. She's so confident.
How did you create this beautiful creature?
I mean, she just kind of runs the show at our house.
We let her go in the pantry
and figure out what she wants to make.
It sort of plays right into her whole
fashionista side of things
because this can be a canvas for her in the kitchen.
And she loves creating dishes, and it's just amazing to watch.
Are you excited for her to bring some good recipes home for you to benefit from?
- Oh, my gosh. Cannot wait. - I can't wait.
- Cannot wait. - We wish you all the best of luck.
- Thank you. - Thank you so much.
We love getting to see Miss Ivy in the kitchen.
Go, go, go, go!
- Grayson! Grayson! - Aarón: Grayson?
- Yes. - ¿Cómo está, mijo?
- Let's get these open, okay? - Got it.
Don't be afraid to do a little seasoning action.
All right, so, Grayson, I think you've done a great job throughout
this whole journey to really integrate
a lot of acid and pickles into your dishes.
Is that something that you gravitate towards or what?
Yeah, before I came here, me and my dad really liked
to experiment with pickling different things
because I think acid really adds a lot to a dish.
You're going to sear this hamachi,
and the idea is that you want the inside rare, right?
Yes. My future in this competition rests on this one dish,
and if that hamachi is overcooked even five seconds,
it will be dry, and I might go home.
So what kind of role
do you want the crab to play in your dish?
It's a vehicle for a lot of different flavors,
and I like the natural sweetness that it has.
So I'm going to do the crab with some green apple
and I'm marinating it in yuzu.
Man!
All right, good luck, mijo. Stick with it.
We're down to 10 minutes to go. Come on.
Ivy's fish is coming out.
Why is Ivy taking her fish out?
She should let it poach in there for the next 8-10 minutes.
So her fish may be undercooked.
10 minutes to go. Come on.
Why is Ivy taking her fish out?
She could sear the halibut, put it in the liquid,
turn the liquid off, and let it poach in there for the next 8-10 minutes.
So her fish may be undercooked.
This is a tricky move here.
You can see her thinking, I need this done by now
so I can start on the next thing.
Let's go, chefs! Let's go, chefs!
- Let's go, chefs! - Whoo!
Wow. This is tense. Really tense.
- Yeah. - Grayson is super focused, by the way.
He is now searing off that hamachi,
but look at the care he's put into that.
Yeah, he's a person that understands
the importance of clarity when it comes to plating
- and combining all the elements. - Sure, sure.
Good job, Gray.
Come on, Ivy.
Ivy's fish, fascinating,
because she's searing it first and then poaching it.
- It could be a show-stopper. - Yeah.
She's doing a great job.
And I've just noticed the thinness
of the dumplings on Liya.
- They are super thin. - Aarón: Yeah.
You know, this moment is really coming down to precision and timing.
I mean, we are down to the final wire here.
That's right. Five minutes to go.
Start plating. Come on, let's go.
Almost to that finale, you guys.
Get it on the plate.
Make it look good. Make it look good.
- You don't see that every day. - Yeah.
Beautiful plates, beautiful plates.
Finishing touches. This is it, make or break.
One's going home, two's going to the grand finale.
This is tight. Right now it's anyone's game.
- Okay. - One minute to go! Come on!
Please! Oh, boy.
- This is incredible. - You got it.
- Ándale! Woohoo! - Come on, chefs!
( chanting ) Grayson! Grayson! Grayson!
You got it, Ivy!
Wow, the energy here is great.
Gordon: Right now it feels like the finale.
Ten, nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four,
- three, two, one. - And stop!
( cheering )
Amazing.
I'm so scared.
Well done!
Ivy, Grayson, Liya, that was incredible.
- Thank you, Chef. - Great job.
Now for the most exciting part from a judge's point of view
is to taste those incredible dishes.
A spot in the "MasterChef Junior"
grand finale is on the line.
Right.
- Shall we? - Yes.
Wow. All three of you, what an amazing job.
Credit to your parents, your schools,
but more importantly to yourselves.
That was electrifying. Well done.
Give yourselves a round of applause, come on.
Amazing.
Now the first dish we'd like to taste
belongs to Liya.
Please, very carefully bring your dishes up.
This tasting is the most important of the season
because this is going to let me be in the finale.
So I have to prove to the judges
that I should be the next MasterChef Junior.
Liya, please describe your dish and give us an insight
to the connection to mum and dad.
So for today I have for you a pork dumpling
with a salt and pepper blue prawn and a spicy aioli.
And the connection is basically just my culture
and my family because I feel like dumplings
are very important to our culture,
and it gives a lot of memories to when I first started,
so I'm really happy that I got to show you guys.
Young lady, they say that we eat with our eyes.
This looks like it's just come
from a cover of a food magazine.
Absolutely amazing.
It's gorgeous.
- Shall we? - Yes!
Liya, the dumplings are exquisite.
Good job!
I want to say thank you to mum and dad right now
because I know the essence of your family is inside that dumpling.
It's hard to believe you made this in 60 minutes.
What would I change?
I saw you poach those dumplings
in that incredible fragrant broth.
I want some of that broth on this plate.
I don't want to see golf leaf.
That for me should be
inside a chocolate, something decadent.
Love the little refreshing garnish
of the tiny little baby vegetables.
This is a dish, for me, that can sit tonight
in any good restaurant in America.
- It's that good. Well done. - Thank you.
The biggest jeopardy moment for me on your plate,
I was really worried that you weren't going to be able
to roll those dumplings out thin enough,
and let me tell you, you nailed it on these.
Thank you.
I'm going to disagree, respectfully.
I actually love the gold leaf.
The gold actually provides this backdrop to the tobiko on top
so that it surprises you, it excites you.
And you do eat with your eyes,
and it is an adventure on the plate.
The only thing I'm missing here
is a little bit of sauce,
but truly so much to be proud of here.
- Thank you. - Really well done.
Good job!
Yeah, Liya, for me,
I love the way that everything
on this dish is very thought-provoking.
When it comes to the actual dumpling,
I would've loved to see perhaps some lemon zest
or lime zest inside of it because it's very pork-heavy,
so just something to break that up would have been nice.
But everything on this dish is just phenomenal.
- Thank you. - The future is bright
with young cooks like you in it.
- And gold. - Right.
Dad, tell me, back home in the restaurants,
do you put gold leaf on top of your dumplings?
My chef cannot handle it.
Tonight we've just experienced
one of the most glamorous dumplings on the planet.
Delicious. Congratulations, Liya.
Well done.
Good job, Liya.
- You did good. - Thank you.
Grayson.
Grayson: Going into this tasting,
I'm feeling pretty good
because I'm really, really happy with my plating.
But if that fish is overcooked or undercooked,
that could be me walking out that door tonight,
so it has to be perfect.
Okay, Grayson, please tell us what you've made tonight.
I made for you a pan-seared hamachi with Dungeness crab,
yuzu aioli, and radish three ways.
This is inspired by all the different dinners
I've had with my family around Austin.
And also I went crabbing with my godparents,
and so that's why I used the Dungeness crab.
I think the idea conceptually of searing a piece of yellowtail
and keeping its integrity what it is by having it rare on the inside
says so much about your sophistication.
I can see the sear that you got here.
It's not an aggressive sear.
It's just enough to lock in the juices, right?
Yes.
Oh, yeah. Yeah.
- ( cheering ) - That's it.
Grayson, visually it looks like
it's just come out of a top Japanese restaurant here in California.
It's stunning, young man.
Thank you.
Grayson, you know,
there's some breaking news in Austin, Texas,
because they have a new talented young chef in town.
Delicious.
Young man, the dish oozes sophistication,
you seared that hamachi beautifully,
and the pickling on the daikon is amazing.
It's delicious, but it's an expensive piece of fish,
and so next time, leave us begging for more.
- Got it. - Treat it almost like a forbidden fruit.
But you've nailed the cook, and we're now starting to see
the sort of fireworks that you can create.
Yeah, Grayson, it's really fun to get to see you plate.
The precision that you work with is really astounding.
You're 11 years old, and I trust your hand
so much, I would let you be my dentist.
That is how impressive this dish is.
Thank you.
I agree, the fish was cooked beautifully,
and I will tell you, there's no crab left on my plate
because I dug it all out and gobbled it right up.
- Well done. - Thank you.
Good job, Grayson!
Aarón: I'm just in awe because this kind of food
is very difficult to pull off because it's so nuanced,
and it is dependent on everything going right
in order for it to work and be harmonious.
For me, it just needs more herbs,
like, rip some Thai basil inside of that crab mixture.
Let that be another interesting note.
- Got it. - But other than that, it's almost perfect.
You're going to be a force to be reckoned with, as you are right now.
Thank you, Chef.
Miss Ivy.
Ivy: I'm so nervous.
This is the hardest thing
I've ever done in my life.
I mean, this dish is going to decide
if I'm in the finale or if I'm not.
- Yeah, Ivy! - Thank you.
It's all going to come down to the cook on my fish.
Ivy, please describe your dish.
What I have for you today
is a halibut with champagne beurre blanc,
celery root puree,
and white and green asparagus and caviar.
- ( whistles ) - Now, Ivy,
how does this connect with your family?
My dad, he cooks a lot of asparagus,
and my grandpa, he makes a lot of fish
and he also eats a lot of fish.
And the caviar is because it's so fancy,
and I love fancy stuff.
And the white-- the white asparagus
and the beurre blanc are because
I love doing French foods and cooking them.
Mademoiselle, you've just transported me back to Paris.
- It looks gorgeous. - Thank you.
It's elegant, but it's shown,
as always with you, you know how to dress smart.
Thank you.
Ivy, my halibut is cooked
absolutely beautifully, yes?
Here.
I've got a wonderful sear,
and then the actual fish is still glistening here,
which is very hard to do.
And with you, young lady,
and your performance in this competition so far,
that is no fluke.
At eight years of age,
I was not cooking food like this.
So, congratulations. Well done.
I love that you chose to do this green and white asparagus
because some are more delicate,
and some are a little bit more textured,
and some have more crunch to them.
So you are-- you're interested.
You keep wanting to take more bites.
But my fish is very raw.
It's still pretty translucent here in the middle.
You obviously were cooking all three pieces all at once.
You need to be careful to take a look
and see if your pieces are evenly sized,
because otherwise they will cook
at different temperatures, at different rates,
but I think this one could have done a little bit longer.
But the star on this plate is the beurre blanc.
It's delicious. Well done.
Ivy, my fish is cooked perfectly.
I do agree the flavor of the beurre blanc is delicious,
and I truly am impressed by you
because I'm the father of an eight-year-old,
and my son shows very little interest in the kitchen.
I think that you need to hang out with him.
Maybe we'll set up a date.
And you can teach him a little bit about cooking,
because obviously me as a chef is not getting through to him.
- Good job. - Thank you.
- Good job. Good job. - Good job.
Ivy, Grayson, Liya,
definitely all three of you
have made your families incredibly proud.
You've made us judges incredibly proud as well.
Now for the sad news. Unfortunately, only two of you
will be going through to the grand finale,
and right now, Miss Daphne, Chef Aarón and myself
have a very difficult task
of determining which two those are.
Thank you. Excuse us.
Oh, my gosh.
Three incredible dishes.
We have our work cut out for us.
I think these are the strongest young cooks
we've ever seen in the competition.
- Yes. - Yeah.
So Liya's dumplings, with that pork and blue shrimp.
Liya at every level elevated that dish.
Her plating was so beautiful.
Sure. It just missed the cooking broth.
- Absolutely. - I'm going to be honest.
Not a big fan of the gold leaf.
She needed something
to bring up that dark green of the dumpling.
Not for me.
The filling was very pork-heavy
- and needed more aromatics. - No.
Let's be honest.
They were restaurant-quality dumplings
that were exquisite.
Absolutely.
And Grayson came in with that beautiful seared Hamachi
that sat on a bed with crab salad. Exceptional.
- The guy's precision. - Aarón: It's breathtaking.
Too much Hamachi.
Of course you want to put a big piece on there,
but you don't realize
that more is not always better in this context.
Guys, he treated that Hamachi
- with just the amount of sear and color. - Yeah.
And that for me was what was magical.
Ivy: This is going to be a really hard decision for the judges.
I just wish that fish was cooked.
Now, Ivy's seared, poached halibut
on a bed of celeriac puree.
And then that asparagus with the beurre blanc,
topped with caviar.
It looked very French, didn't it?
It had that elegance on there,
and that beurre blanc was delicious.
It needs perfect technique,
and she cooked consistently well throughout her three plates.
My fish was cooked perfectly.
And so was mine.
Mine was very raw,
but my asparagus were cooked beautifully.
What we can agree is tonight there were three great dishes,
but two were outstanding.
- Are we all in agreement? - Yeah.
- We are, Chef. - Let's get to it.
Let's deliver the news.
Oh, boy, what a night.
Ivy, Grayson, Liya, congratulations.
- Thank you, Chef. - Thank you.
Tonight, all three of you
produced three incredible dishes,
you know, dishes that we've come to expect
from the adult version of this competition.
Tonight, I think that has been
the best three dishes that we've witnessed
this season of "MasterChef Junior."
- Well done. - Wow!
- That's nice. - Good job.
Great job, great job.
But honestly, we've just struggled
deliberating and debating how to separate you three.
Look, we knew you were the top three coming in here,
but you showed us, you proved it.
You guys all worked so hard,
and you've learned so much,
and no matter what happens tonight,
we are so proud of all three of you.
Aarón: This is extremely difficult for us as judges
because, you know, we're all parents as well.
So we are so impressed and we applaud you.
All right, there are three of you in front of us,
but only two of you are moving on
to the "MasterChef Junior" grand finale.
The two home cooks
who will be facing off in the grand finale...
the greatest culinary battle of their young lives...
Congratulations to...
Liya and Grayson.
- Oh, Ivy. - Ivy, we're going to miss you so much.
You're awesome.
Ivy, hold your head up high.
We have never, ever, in the history of this competition,
have a second-grader go this far.
It's true.
Amazing.
Now, tonight we asked for three stunning dishes.
My halibut was cooked perfectly.
Chef Aarón's was cooked perfectly.
Unfortunately, Miss Daphne's was undercooked.
And had you cooked those three halibut identically,
then trust me, young lady,
you'd have a spot in the finale.
It was that close.
Daphne: Ivy, I just want to tell you,
you are hilarious and sweet and smart,
and you show that greatness
comes in all shapes and sizes,
and you are just beginning
your incredible culinary journey.
Ivy, I love the fact that you tackled a protein
that you might not necessarily like,
but you wanted to show us
and show your family most importantly,
that you were paying homage to them,
and I think that is such a sweet aspect
of who you are as a person.
Now it's time to come over here and say goodbye, please.
- Ivy. - We're going to miss you.
Right. Come here, you.
Oh, mademoiselle, I'm going to miss you.
Oh, my Lord, I'll miss you.
Good girl, okay, I'm going to miss you, too.
Ivy: This whole entire competition was a great experience,
and I'm so proud of myself because I made it this far.
I couldn't be more proud of you, okay?
I've grown so much.
Oh, my gosh.
I mean, like, when I first came into this competition,
I struggled with a cobbler.
It's not fluffy and airy.
I think we've all made that mistake.
And I made it so far from there.
I've gained a lot of confidence in this kitchen.
Nothing intimidates her.
I mean, I'm pretty tough.
Gordon: Eight years of age, flambe.
- How cool is that? - Yes!
Some of my favorite moments were the doughnut challenge.
Mmm. The lightest doughnut we've had tonight.
When I was captain of a winning team.
Congratulations, red team.
And cooking for Gordon Ramsay.
The actual steak you've nailed.
That's the hero. Delicious.
The rest of the sauce, beautiful.
The dish shows great confidence. I love that.
Ivy: I came into the MasterChef Junior kitchen
as a foodie fashionista,
and now I'm going to leave the competition
as a MasterChef fashionista.
Bye!
Gordon: Next time on "MasterChef Junior"...
Welcome, everyone...
...It's the biggest cook-off of the season.
...To our "MasterChef Junior" season eight finale.
The pressure is intense.
It all comes down to this.
Oh, gosh.
Gordon: It's a really good dish,
your best ever in this competition.
As only one will be crowned champion.
This is truly a winning plate.
Congratulations goes to...