MasterChef – Thurs, Jul 20 – Curtis & a relay

Three contestants must create a dish worthy of a place in the semi-final. Later, Curtis “Coles” Stone drops by to take part in an invention test relay.

Karlie, Diana and Tamara have 75 minutes to cook whatever dish they like, using an open pantry. Loser is eliminated. They have to pick a flavour, a cuisine and a concept.
Diana goes the seafood route, grabbing crayfish to go in a Thai-style broth.
Tamara is making “campfire brownies”, inspired by her camping desserts which are apparently cooked inside an orange. Hmm, she just made a choc orange dessert the other day. Her cuisine is Chinese. Yeah, because brownies are the new fortune cookie.
Karlie goes Chinese, her specialty, and is creating pork belly with XO sauce, “heroing” chilli.

Diana is getting a worrying amount of air time, talking about childhood memories, and they are showing photos of her family – is she going home?
The edit is making a big deal about Karlie’s sauce being hot, but that’s what XO sauce is meant to be, surely. If she weakens it they are bound to say it’s not authentic.


Tamara’s anglaise has Chinese five spice in it, so that makes it Chinese… right? Why didn’t she just say her cuisine was American? I’m intrigued by the whole cook-in-an-orange concept but it does not seem very Mastercheffy at this stage of the comp. And why has she not wrapped them in foil, as she would when cooking on a campfire? Surely they won’t get hot enough.


Matt announces they are travelling from Broome, to Malaysia to China with their dishes – guess he couldn’t bring himself to say the brownies were Chinese, too.
Ben looks sharp up on the gantry in his dark jacket – it’s not often you see them in anything other than T-shirts. Wardrobe must have got him one with extra big sleeves.
The cook is over and it looks like Tamara knows she’s a goner.

THE JUDGES TASTE


George says the concept is more important than the ingredients or cuisine. What a toss.
Cool, calm and collected Diana is tearing up a little. I hope she has a great cooking career ahead of her. The judges adore the dish – and that she got emotional about her family.


The judges adore the XO sauce – what a beat-up the earlier editing was. Tamara is totally going home; social media is going to explode.


The judges don’t look enthusiastic about tasting Tamara’s dish. They love the sauce and ice cream but the brownie looks like raw cake batter.

THE ELIMINATED CONTESTANT IS …
Tamara. Again. (And the internet goes wild!) She gets the special treatment of the judges revealing a blackboard menu of her past “hits” that she can use if she opens her Broome cafe. She gets lots of cuddles.

Masterclass is next but I’ll watch that at the weekend.



Facebooktwitterredditmail

102 Comments

  1. Please dont insult Chinese cuisine,Tamara Just because you add chilli it is Chinese. There are many Chinese cuisines dont use chilli.

  2. Tasting the food then flicking the contents of the spoon back into the pot??
    Nah, on me shit list and I hope she’s eliminated tonight.
    Retch!๐Ÿ˜–

    • And not Chinese. It really upset me to say that is Chinese.

      Tamara is going home even if her dish is good. She just didnt do enough in the 75 mins. Wonder what she did with the rest of the time?

      • Campfire brownies ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ๐Ÿ’ฉ

  3. I really, really hate chocolate and orange/citrus in general as combination. Jaffa cakes are an abomination (like pineapple on a pizza). Or mint and chocolate…
    I know, most people love that. I do not. Somehow it doesn’t bring out the chocolate flavour and makes the mint/citrus taste really artificial.

  4. I’m doing a mini recap so can’t read any of your comments yet, but I can imagine what some of you are saying!

    • Off to Rachel Khoo, Broncos v Bulldogs. Anything to get away from those horrid campfire brownies

  5. Is everyone happy? Um judges…not many people would think of it as tragedy.

    OMG…no other contestant has had such a send off.

    • Really glad to know she doesn’t get away with substandard cooking again but I’m not sure I can bear the OTT exit comments from the judges. I might follow Terese’s example and mute it.

    • That send off was a disgrace! The worst thing is, if that brownie had been cooked she would have gone through.

      • That’s true – whenever they could possibly fudge some reason for keeping her they have but we all knew at some point she would stuff up so badly that even they couldn’t justify not sending her on her way.

  6. I just saw Tamara’s “Chinese Brownies” being taken out of the oven, to put it gently they were not visually pleasing. What I really thought “Gawd they look horrible.”

  7. What an overreaction in sending her out. Are they so out of touch with how she appears to the viewers, and how jubilant we are?
    The really scary thing is that if the brownie had been cooked they would have saved her. Despite the poor concept, inaccurate cuisine and incredible simplicity of her food.

  8. Of course Garry is going to ask the Chosen One for advice. Can they make it any more obvious ๐Ÿ˜ ๐Ÿ˜ ๐Ÿ˜ 

  9. YESSSS! I’ve been watching on delay, and finally she is gone! I was worried early that she would make it through, because it really did feel like TamaraChef tonight. Please be gone Tamara, and never grace my television again, after Sunday that is, where I’m sure you can be relied upon to give running commentary.
    I’m happy with the final 3, they are all very talented, and have not reached Tamara levels of camera hog, and I still pick Ben for the win, even though I am sick to death of him making ice cream.

  10. I think after their critiques of the first dishes they had to send her home. If she had stayed there would have been riots at Pyrmont.

  11. What I still can’t get past is that they didn’t ask her to justify how her chosen cuisine was Chinese, it really defies logic.

    It shows her lack of basic skills that she didn’t realise that without the direct contact with the embers of a campfire and orange just wouldn’t conduct enough heat in an oven for those Chinese Brownies to cook.

  12. This is no “tragedy”, Jowl$y.

    Best night of Ma$terchef for three months.

    Though that isn’t much to beat.

  13. Tamara being half Sri Lankan always say she wants to cook Asian.
    She has never cooked a good curry with spices.

  14. Now that I’ve cleared that bit of vomit out of my mouth from that exit scene …..
    just in case the other contestants didn’t realise the favouritism of the judges they thought they’d hit them over the head with it.
    At least I will be able to watch the finals content in the knowledge it will be Narcissa free (except for the commentary they are bound to give her in the Grandfinal).

  15. I see the semi-final is a service challenge. Kinder to get rid of Tamara tonight rather than watch her fail yet again in one of those. The favouritism even as she was was eliminated was absolutely sick-making.

  16. She finally left. Those brownies looked shocking. The last time I looked brownies are American not Chinese.
    Matt’s face when he tasted Karlie’s sauce was hilarious. But in the end they all loved her dish.
    I really like the final 3. All well deserved.
    I love the final masterclass where the judges have the tables turned on them. Always some funny comments. George’s naughty chair was hilarious.

    • Didn’t they? Raw batter with five spice! Not even vaguely a Chinese dish. Monumental fail.
      I hated, hated,hated the hands to her face surprise and delight at the OTT and fawning farewell.
      SPEW!

    • I always enjoy the mystery box the contestants choose for the judges. Interesting to see the different personalities when they cook. Even with overcooked pork,Shannon’s looked beautiful. George’s basil ice cream with raw looking pork looked awful. Gary’s looked messy but obviously tasted wonderful.

  17. Finally! But of course, the farewell had to be bigger than Ben Hur – did she develop a cure for cancer as well?
    I suppose it won’t be long before Narcissa graces our television screens again, in one way or another – that’s when she stops gazing at her own reflection in her perfect, chocolate mirror glaze.
    Commiserations to the judges, who propped her up for soooo long.

    I like Diana, but can she do anything other than Asian? And while Karlie seems to be an all-rounder, her faux, croaky voice is really grating.

  18. So far except Julie G and Adam Liaw did well after winning MC, most of the later winners didnt really go on to open their restaurants. Not good publicity for MC.

    I dont think Diana will leave her accounting career to actually run a restaurant. Karlie just want to be a food critic. That left Ben. He may open a cafe as he can have a new career. Cant see him losing.

    • Hi LP, some of the eliminated contestants have done better in opening restaurants. Reynolds – Koi Dessert Bar, Chippendale; Andre’s Cucina & Polenta Bar, Adelaide; Rose Adams The Middle Store; Poh has a cafรฉ called Jamface; Samira Modern Middle Eastern at the Islamic Museum Melbourne; Philip Vakos Bahari Hellenic Place, Melbourne; Andy Three Blue Ducks at Alexandria, Sydney. It’s the same as the winners for The Voice et al, the winners rarely go on to anything but the runners-up will often do better.

      • Yes, I know. But not the winners. At least Andy did his apprenticeship to become a credited chef. He knew he has a lot to learn.

        Maybe the winners think they cant go and finishef their apprenticeship to become a real chef.

        I like Billie and Elena. I am disappointed that they just do a bit of this and a bit of that. Not really that serious with the food business. $250K is not going to last forever

        • I think quite a few contestants don’t actually want to work in restaurants. Horrible hours and low pay. Any contrstant over 30 is more likely to have a mortgage that would be impossible to pay off on an apprentice wage.

          • I think this is where Masterchef has dug it’s own grave. Why cant you enter the competition and get crowned Masterchef and not feel obliged to spout a lot of tripe about wanting to have a food dream and open a food business?
            However, their shtick has been that they are going to give cooks an “apprenticeship” in the masterchef bubble that will set them on the path to greatness. So they are obliged to talk up the ridiculous dreams. Julie Goodwin wasn’t obliged to long to open a restaurant or have a cafe with her name on her own blackboard.

          • I agree. That is why I never believed what they say on wanting to open a cafe or restaurants. Just producers making them say that. Its more about winning $250K

  19. “God’s in his heaven, all’s right with the world”, with thanks to Robert Browning. She’s gone!! Bliss oh joy. Now we can enjoy the final two nights without a care in the world. All three are good cooks, so it doesn’t concern me who wins the contest now. Suffice it to say we are bound to suffer yet more over-exposure of Tamara in the finals edit, squeaking and hand-gesturing ad infinitum. The farewell menu board was a disgrace. I do hope the Gs or one of their minions read these comments posted during the contest. If there is another year, could we hope for a more even-handed approach?

  20. Tamara’s final dish was laughable. The cuisine was Chinese….a brownie inside an orange. Yeah, right, sure…that definitely makes me think of Chinese food. ๐Ÿ˜‰ Just because she used some five spice and chilis does not a Chinese dish make. She made sludge in an orange and another ice cream & sauce. Campfire brownies (sludge)… is that all she could come up with? LOL
    I am glad she is finally gone but the way she exited was nauseating. Have they ever presented an exiting contestant with a blackboard menu before? That was just OTT. Telling her that all those professional chefs would be waiting to go to her restaurant….just keep feeding the ego. She was NOT one of the best amatas eva on MC. The stooges are delusional.
    A final without Tamara puts a smile on my face.
    I’m going to order some Chinese food for dinner tonight. I’ll make sure to ask them if they have brownies.

  21. I’m beginning to think that the producers are rubbing their hands with all the comments and talk about Narcissa’s favouritism and final elimination. I suspect that everything that has happened has been carefully orchestrated, and that the young, blonde, favourite is now as entrenched as a character as the villain is. There is a standard story arc, designed to create a social media storm of cries of favouritism, and part of that arc is to make sure that the ‘bunny’ is eliminated just before the finals so that viewers will stay with the finals, and the ‘love’ for the remaining finalists is increased by contrast. In this case, the menu board idea was probably seen as a master stroke, a final full stop to increase the commenting. I can imagine them giggling to themselves while editing, knowing that the board would get a big reaction.

    Maybe you all knew this anyway. I don’t like the feeling of being played, though.

    • I agree, Fijane. The Gs genuinely liked Tamara, the producers saw this and decided to play it up with the edit. They know how the audience has reacted in the past to “favourites” like Georgia. They want people loving to hate contestants on social media. Thankfully MC is not at MKR level with it’s so-called villains but I see no need for it at all. GBBO is a fab cooking show with zero fake drama and people love it.

    • i HATE being played and after last year with Georgia said I’d be a wake up to it this year! I totally agree Fijane – I am sure being talked about is the aim.

      The hope I CLING to though is that the producers will realise – thank you ratings for CLEAR message – that the manipulations have gone too far. Yes, the audience are talking (tick – strategy worked) but we are then switching off in disgust (strategy fail).

      I know I did. I barely watched for weeks and am just coming back a bit more regularly for the end. And the rest of my family were even less interested than I was – and it used to be a solid family event!

      But I can’t face another season of this where the pleasure is far outweighed by the pain.

  22. Why is it when I watch I envisage this – Preston as the Grand Poohbah in all his inflated pomposity, George as the Court Jester complete with cap and bells and lastly Gary as a dancing bear.

  23. I really dont care who wins now. The 3 deserved to be Top 3. I am over Ben with all the ice cream he is making.
    Hopefully we see some delicious food in the last 2 episodes.

  24. She who just departed will be on Studio Ten at 10:05 this morning. What a pity, I’m going out at 10:04!

  25. Benita is selling tickets for her Long Lunch at $120 per person. Anyone going………

    Peter Ben and Ray also supposed to have a 6 course dinner at $129 per person in Perth on 19 Jul. Do they think they are so good that people will fork out money to attend??

    • Ben was selling weight loss products during his afternoon cooking show today. Emma and Linton are terrible.

      The ex contestants don’t understand how disposable they are.

  26. So, ding dong, the wicked witch is eliminated. At long last.

    And she received a “going away” present from the judges? That is stunningly discourteous to the others who have left. Wow.

  27. From Matt Sinclair’s (aka Intense Matt) restaurant – yum! Remember way back in ye olden days of MasterChef, when we were sooo over panna cotta? And now, in this era of ice cream, we’d kill for someone to make a PC!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *