Tag Archives: Elimination Test

MasterChef SA Season 3 episode 13: Sweet Treat; Penny Fitchet spiced out of Elimination Test!

MasterChef 3 12 Contestants in aprons on beachEpisode 13 of the third Season of MasterChef SA continued its location in Mauritius, and the creators of the two weakest dishes in episode 12, being Penny Fitchet and Roxi Wardman, were to be pitted against each other in an Elimination Test.

The five successful Finalists from episode 12 received a sweet reward, being a MasterClass in Mauritian sugar by the Long Beach Executive Pastry Chef Sandra Scioli.  She showed them the different types of sugars produced in Mauritius, and which sugars are better to use for different types of baking.   It also demonstratedMasterChef 3 13 Sandy Scioli to the Finalists that the outcome of a dessert can be influenced by the type of sugar one uses.   Ian Young was impressed by the plating, ‘because it was very precise and very organised.  And you can see that a pastry chef has got a calmness about them that is very systematic. What she put on the plate was beautiful‘.

The Elimination Test was described as a ‘Fusion’ Pressure Test held at the Hasu Japanese restaurant at the Continue reading →

MasterChef SA Season 3, episode 12: Spicy sunshine cuisine in Mauritius, judged by MasterChef UK 2012 winner!

MasterChef 3 12 Contestants in aprons on beach It was lovely to escape to Mauritius with the Top 7 Finalists of Season 3 in episode 12 last night, and one could almost smell the mix of African, Chinese, Indian, and French spices which characterises Mauritian cooking.  Sparkling spicy Mauritian MasterChef UK 2012 winner Shelina Permalloo was the visiting judge, and broke the monotonous three-male-judges team we have experienced for all three seasons of MasterChef SA!

Shelina took the seven finalists to the fruit and vegetable market in Mauritius capital Port Louis.  She spoke to them about the food heritage of the country, and how it inspired her cooking and success. Many of the fruit and vegetable items stocked in the market were unfamiliar to our South African Continue reading →

MasterChef SA Season 2 episode 18: Chef Jackie Cameron wins cook-off against Tiron Eloff, Joani Mitchell spiced out by Bobotie!

MasterChef 2 18 Tiron and Jackie Whale Cottage PortfolioThe dishes prepared in last night’s episode 18 of MasterChef SA were extreme opposites, from international fine dining cuisine to a hearty local family dish.  No Immunity Pin was won, and likable Joani Mitchell was sent home.

The show started with the cooking duel between Tiron Eloff and Chef Jackie Cameron from Hartford House in the Natal Midlands, which Tiron had won in making the best Coconut dish in Tuesday’s episode 17.    The restaurant is an Eat Out Top 10 Restaurant regular, and Chef Jackie is beautiful, warm, and friendly, and it was a pleasure to meet her at the Eat Out gala dinner in November, sitting at the table with her and her Hartford House colleagues.  Chef Jackie was filmed at the hotel, and she showed off MasterChef 2 18 Jackie Cameron Whale Cottage Portfolioher vegetable garden, supporting locally sourced produce, and her policy is to not overcomplicate dishes.  For the cook-off she had made a Guineafowl dish with coq au vin gnocchi, roasted garlic, garden pea purée, seared mushrooms, oven-crisped Parma ham, and pecerino shavings. For the honour of participating in the cook-off, Tiron was allowed to wear a MasterChef SA jacket with his name on it, and he said that he could get used to wearing it.  He looked very Continue reading →

MasterChef SA Season 2 episode 7: Mystery Box 7 ingredients unlucky for some, Herman Cloete wins Mosaic MasterClass!

MasterChef 2 7 Mystery Boxes Kitchen Whale Cottage PortfolioThe first Mystery Box of Season 2 provided a surprising challenge in episode 7 last night, particularly as it contained chicken as one of the seven ingredients for a dish to be prepared within 45 minutes. The Finalist making the best dish would go to Pretoria, for a MasterClass on plating at Chef Chantel Dartnall of Eat Out Top 10 Restaurant Mosaic at The Orient.  Surprisingly some of the previous stars chickened out, while others shone.

The judges said that they were testing the ability of the Finalists to think on their feet. They were not given a recipe to prepare a dish within 45 minutes from all seven the ingredients: chicken, capers, verjuice, toasted bread crumbs, bone marrow, ricotta cheese, and asparagus spears.  Chef Benny MasekwamengMasterChef SA 2 7 Ingredients Whale Cottage Portfolio said that the number of ingredients related to the MasterChef SA prize of a VW Golf 7, and that  7 is a lucky number.  Chef Pete Goffe-Wood challenged the Finalists to ‘delight and surprise‘ the judges, and to serve them ‘fabulous food‘. Speaking amongst themselves, the judges feared that some of the chicken might be undercooked, but they did praise the variety of chicken dishes which they had seen prepared. Continue reading →