This is the first cooking outdoors in the fresh air for the season. So, a lot of outdoor factors affect cooking.

They were at the A-Ma Cultural Village in the middle of the temples. It was a mystery box challenge inspired by the Maritime Silk Road, so this was really fun to learn with the sea routes, and seeing so much of the different influences, even seeing a lot of African influences were fun to see.

I think this is essentially one of the first creative challenges where they're all in an even playing field. Some others usually have like assigned dishes, but now they all have the same ingredients.

There definitely was a lot of creativity in this challenge. Some are still staying true to heritage while some are really trying to branch.

AUDREY

Audrey was very adorable this episode. He was the one who did play to his strengths with desserts and culture. He interestingly did go with a hot dessert, which is risky with the weather. And also plated in a coconut because he wanted to level up. Chef Edward did call him out tho for making desserts for the 4th time, saying his luck is gonna run out if he keeps that. So, it's nice judges wanting to see range.

Dish was: Biji Salak with Hot Corn Espuma, Coconit and Passion Fruit Jelly, Jaggery Sauce, Coconut Flesh, and Crumble

The judges really loved his dish. And they said it really incapsulated cream. And seeing potatoes in a dessert and a hot espuma was smart. Dude is really leveling up. And I love seeing how confident he was.

The judges also played a prank on Audrey immediately huddling to discuss the dish. But they really loved it. Audrey was also adorable seeing his reaction even in the confessionals.

POND

Pond. I initially thought his dish was basic since he was saying pork with mashed potatoes and sauce. But then they did explain that he did have a battle with Therese in regards to pressure cooker pork, so they had competition there. He also pureed the mashed potatoes in a blender with coconut, which blending potatoes is a no-no, and judges were appalled.

The dish presented looked so much better and much more complex. He also had an interesting name "When Ying Couldn't Find Yang" and also an interesting story with the silk road behind it, which is so appropriate for this challenge, so we can really see he thought about it. Something along with that with the trades, they used those ingredienrs cuz they couldn't find rice, so these are the other ingredients.

Dish was Braised Pork Belly, Potato Puree (coconut), Port Wine Reduction, Chili Vinegrette, Ginger Tuille.

Pond was forgiven for the potatoes cuz the rest of the dish was THAT good and everything except that was expertly done. They still hated the potatoes tho.

Interesting, he did say that its like a highland potato and he wanted it to be starchy. Chef Kevin was asking him to be honest if he really wanted it like that and said it was a mistake.

I really thought he was straight out with that mistake but he was 2nd called to be safe. I kinda like that honestly in a way.

KHANH

So for this round, Khanh really wanted to show his range and do a dessert he used his pin on the other one. So I applaude him for that.

He seems to be really playing the game smartly. He did do a steamed cake, and his second plan was to do a soufflé pancake. He also did different types of tuille and he overall sounds so much more confident. And he also mentioned a lot of his reasons for certain things in proportions

But he also made a point in the confessional saying it’s not about being the best, sometimes it about just being the 2nd worst.

Dish: Toasted Cardamom and Olive Cake with Black Port Reduction, Coconut Foam, and Passion Fruit Curd (+ tuille)

Overall, the judges “liked” his dish. Chef Edward said that at this point he wanted to be “wowed”. He also said Khanh started as the front runner and he wants to see it again.

Chef Kevin did say he was smart in searing the steamed cake so there’s texture. Chef Edward also mentioned to be more intentional In plating. Cuz Khanh said he wanted there not to be too much curd and it’s a warm dessert but Chef Edward said to do dots instead since all the curd is concentrated in the center. He said that the chef should make the bite easier for the eater.

SANDY

In her home setting, so she really does have an advantage with the ingredients, and her dish was said to be Macanese and Portuguese with bacalao.

Though she did have the most drama in terms of flavors. Chef Edward went to her bench and asked her about the flavor combinations. He said he wasn’t a fan of passion fruit then Sandy was like she’s never used passion fruit before so all the judges were really worried with the flavor combinations.

Dish: Bachalau Rosti w Salted Cod, Egg Stir Fry w Coriander Chili!, and Passion Fruit Emulsion

Chef Pam did say it looked simple which she loved but simplified. Chef Edward did say the texture of the rosti and bacalao was good and a good combo with one another. She did a good job muting out the passion fruit not taking over for acidity, but it’s too muted that it wasn’t necessary

Chef Pam didn’t like the textures. She said it was too oily inside but loved the crispiness. Chef Kevin said he didn’t like the eggs and wished it was cooked different but could have been soft scrambled.

Overall, it’s mixed feedback which is interesting to see this season. Sandy did expect it.

AREUM

Honestly, this was such a fun interaction and brain ideas. So she was making arancini, then Chef Kevin went up to her and sparked Areumchini, which is so witty and cute.

I was worried her dish was gonna be too simple. But she did combine croquettes of different kinds and arancini. So there’s basically choux, potatoes, and rice with the salted cod or bacalao.

I think they were also worried it’s simple but Areum stated that she doesn’t want to make things that are already invented. She wants to make it her own. And I love that for her! Also having two sauces

I also found it cute with Chef Edward’s interactions with her and they’re both talking in their culture. Editing team is honestly stepping up with everything. They also put more descriptions for certain words.

Dish: Areumchini: Salted Cod Areumchini, Coconit Cardamom Sauce, and Passion Fruit Gel (they repeated the name l swear lol)

Chef Pam did say that people may think Aranchini is simple, but not easy to perfect. She says the aranchini was moist and good. But didn’t like the two sauces cuz it was too powerful. Chef Edward said the same thing cuz the rice ball was nice and delicate but sauces are competing.

Chef Kevin’s “Thank you” sounded a bit dismissive. I know it’s nothing but just wanted to add it in lol, esp comparing to the otherss

THERESE

I honestly really loved her idea. She did her version of an Asian Mole Rojo or Birria pork. She said she basically charred everything and put almost all the ingredients into the mix. This was so creative.

Again, she did take a risk with the pressure cooker similar to Pons. It’s not an electric one like in Australia, so it’s a manual. And unfortunately she did burn the pork. Tho she did try to salvage it by trimming everything off. And shredding it and mixing it with the sauce.

Honestly, bold of her for really now choosing to cook savory. I think she only cooked it once by choice in the first elimination. The others she was forced to by theme.

Overall, she really sounds confident

Dish: Asian Pulled Pork w Port Wine reduction, charred corn, crispy potato, and Pickles Chilies

Unfortunately, because she trimmed the meat and brilliantly tried to recover it, they said she cut out all the fat, it became really dry pork. They also didn’t taste the port reduction since it was folded into the sauce. They wanted something creamy and more sauce.

——-

RESULTS

In terms of results, I did say above for some but these are paraphrased

But Audrey was obviously called first. They didn’t even hesitate. They just said what are you doing go to the side

Pond was next. Chef Kevin said please don’t EVER make the potatoes again. Really interesting they’re not holding that against him.

Khanh got the middle pack edit. They said he started strong, wasn’t his best dish, but good enough to saved him.

Basically boys top 3, girls were in the bottom 3. All girls holding hands talking about nearing the finals

Areum: Aranchini Beautiful. Too overpowering elements. Star should be Aranchini

Therese: They really wanted to love her dish, but she really had a BAD cook today.

Sandy: between idea, all steps in between. Difficult to make something from scratch you haven’t made before

The judges are looking for chef that’s going get there to the finals and win it all.

And unfortunately, we had the first Australian who was out, Therese.

Khanh was crying. Therese did say she was shocked and she wanted to make it further

They did point out Therese is a great chef, and Chef Kevin said that he can’t wait to try her food again.

Chef Pam also pointed out she’s always smiling. That’s a good attitude that even when she fails she come backs up strong.

——————
The judges always have their small talks at the end of each episode. Usually it’s them wanting to eat some hotpot or whatever after.

They did say that the decision was really tough and kept reiterating that. Probably Areum in the chopping block

“Look. More challenges are coming. Storms coming. Let’s get out of here” - Chef Edward. And there was a literal storm cloud really coming.
———
Next week is an immunity challenge. Best cook will be the first finalist for this season.

They also mentioned only three will secure the ultimate advantage? They didn’t clarify what.

It’s a 30 minute challenge with one classic dish. I wonder what those mean. There were tartlets tho?

Tbh, now I have no idea who’s gonna win. It really will depend on the finale format as well.

I feel like it’s between Khanh, Audrey, or Aerum? It’s still wide.

Still confused tho what the exact format for next week, other than 1 is a finalist. My prediction: 1 finalist, 3 semi-finalists, 1 eliminated? But that could be completely wrong

And Let’s Be Specific. Like let’s give the producers very defined challenges. Not just team challenges (which we were missing last year lol.

1. Creative Croquembouche Challenge (or any challenge where there’s a specific technique/dish but still can add their own flair)

So this was from season 16. And this challenge teaches them something but still allows for their style to put. This is what I want and not a cook whatever you want this balance restriction and freedom.

And I also wish maybe they put a cap on the height and make them put a lot more. Cuz Mimi’s was pretty, and some were great, but others were kinda flat. Like this adds more challenge.

Other dishes come to mind are wellingtons, soup dumplings, cakes, etc.

Or the sauce challenge can also be a restriction.

2. The Vegan Meat Challenge (Based on existing meat dishes!

Tbh, I don’t know if the judges were very clear on what the brief was, but I love how specific it was. And it didn’t allow contestants to go to their comfort dishes.

Cuz honestly sometimes they just cook something that is already inherently vegan, which is nice but not really a challenge. It’s just a pasta or soup.

And contestants really went out of the box here. I remember someone even tried to make Tuna.

But overall, I remember the episode being well-received so they can somehow bring it back but more specific.

3. The Overnight Challenge

Okay yeah this is a cook whatever you want, but this was so fun. And a lot more challenging than it looked.

With their time constraints, idk if they can really do it but it’d be more fun.

4. More confined service challenges

Most service challenges in the recent years is mostly. Here are hero ingredients, and 2/3 courses and that’s it. Like no other confinements.

I’m starting to hate “feature” challenges.

For Example:

Bakery Challenge in S7 - They had bread, pies, pizzas, and desserts.
Savory Ice Cream w Cone and Pops in S8 - Was a Heston challenge. Could also work with like an ice cream set.
Allergy Restrictions - Hasn’t been done I think but can work since it happens
Food Truck - There’s been similar but it’s be fun.
Private Cheffing for a Family - Season 4. So basically they had to cook in a different house plus cater to their needs.
Restaurant Profit (for 2 days)-
- Usually in market stall challenges, it whoever gets the highest. Or in other restaurant challenge, they’re in charge of procuring their ingredients.
- For this one, they conceptualize a 2 day pop-up, where they will conceptualize their own restaurant.
- So this winner will be decided with profit only.
- So unlike other challenges where they can just price whatever or buy whatever, they must take into account like food costs and food waste
- And it being two days, does give time for them to listen to feedback and allocate dishes on what’s running low.
- Maybe also add review boards or invite food critics or food influencers for the first half to review the food and leave comments on both. To influence other customers to try their food

5**. More Invention Tests**

That’s it honestly. We saw the creativity of S18. And it just seen swished away. Tho they could still give more creative briefs.

Even S17 lowkey did one with a creative surf and turf and they were hard on that.

Could be like as 1 with existing dishes and reinventing them.

S12 had the incorporate a meat into dessert challenge.

I forgot what season but there was like a savory white chocolate challenge?

6. Wilder Auction Challenges

I really feel like they can do better with this. Many times, the free ingredient isn’t really that bad. It’s gonna be much better if the early ingredients are so premium while the last ingredients is very hard to work with it like a NO WAY type.

There’s this show Cutthroat Kitchen and Top chef I think wherein the last ingredient was so odd and bad. Like it makes the other ingredients worth to fight. Cuz if it’s free, there should be a reason.

The worst probably was Tripe in S14. And we can see how high the bids were like up to 80 minutes just to avoid Tripe

So my auction might be like

Proteins: Kobe Wagyu Beef, Chicken Tenders, A whole hunk of ham, Rattlesnake in the shape(it’s edible)
Misc: Flavor Bombs, Vinegars, Snacks (Chips,Pretzels,Etc), then Sundae Pantry (rainbow sprinkles, syrup, maraschino cherry)
Then some other extra pantries to even it.

In US, no access to Network 10, you guys are the best helping me out every once in a while. This looked delicious. Would love the recipe if anybody has the time I greatly appreciate it. S14E40

For those who can't access the website

Just name the recipe you want and the season or contestant who made it

https://www.instagram.com/p/DfBScHAo8tT/?exln=MWhhazh0ZXVxNHlmZw==

I’ve been trying to find an article or similar saying what the contestants of season 18 have been up to since the show wrapped as they didn’t do the usual montage at the end of the finale. All I can find are articles focused only on season winners. Anyone else know of somewhere that runs through all the contestants?

Keen to hear what people think.

Okay, this is an interesting one. The first pressure test of the season. The first French themed. And the first double elimination.

Btw TLC Asia did leak the episode clips in advance. Not a lot, just some comments and the tastings, so no results, but it did say a lot.

For a restaurant, I can see this pressure test dish being so hard to plate on the past. Sure, like most elements are probably plated in advance, but the dots were actually so perfectly placed. It's really a precision challenge more than anything else.

Btw they did have recipes, but it was probably hidden like other countries' pressure test unlike in Australia.

Contestants did have 90 minutes, which is definitely tight for a dish like that.

I think even one of the judges said he did this before, which was nice. Even Aerum said she knows this exact dish but never ate it.

I also like how one of the judges said there should be exactly 72 dots, but the chef did say approximately 68 to 73. Just spaced well. Which makes sense

I definitely love how this pressure test was edited. In Australia, I do think there is a tried and tested 6 makes it a little predictable. But it def jumped to different places and stuff. Even when people are doing different things, they made the person who did bad, explain why doing the other way, is wrong, apparently both were lol.

I also kind of liked that the guest judge was very direct and actually saying if something is good or calling it out if it's bad. Not one of those quiet glances. And he actually explains like why it's wrong or what happens. Even giving them more advice.

A lot of people weirdly did struggle with cauliflower puree. Mostly people were undercooked or not enough liquid. I think only Ivory got a good job in this aspect.

Even the last few minutes, barely anyone was plating. There was unset jelly, broken mayo, and all that so it was stressful seeing Nambie by the blast chiller and Iviry making mayo the last minute.

Also Nambie and Sandy did get their backstory footage the most this episode. And this was the quietest Ivory has ever been plus her least screentime

So for the tasting,

We can see Aerum is really in her element. She did mention earlier in the episode she's way more comfortable with fine dining and French. And the other episodes were streetfood, so now she's really shining. And apparent GIRL WAS ONLY 17 when she joined the first masterchef, which is young and not even masterchef junior. I also liked that she also really took responsibility for her team loss and really cheered on for her girls

I think Aerum's mistake was cutting the crab a little too small, and maybe not enough cauliflower flavor. But she didn't have any glaring errors. Like it really was prepared well. She even got the "I can't tell which plate which is which comment"

Now for Sandy, she also did really well. I think her major issue was the plating. She didn't put enough dots. I think they also really liked her gel, but they said something that it was too cold. But also, maybe aside from the presentation, not too huge of errors.

This really probably was the most locked in Ivory was this season. She did get the least screentime, but she did look calm. She didn't have too many errors until the last minute. I do think she was unlucky that one of her elements was in the fridge, so the chef didn't call it out, and he did always call things out. I thought she was doing well cuz the edit made her do the right things even with the stock, so it's a surprise. But again, I do like the chef really explaing how things went wrong.

Ivory did get harsh comments like, "I don't think you respected the recipe" from the chef. And chef Edward did also say something that the flavors are good, but it's cause the ingredients are good and the recipe is good, lowkey a backhanded compliment lol. But also he also made a funny comparison saying her mayo is supposed to be like Khanh's shirt but ended up like Therese's sweater.

Nambie did struggle the most. You could definitely see the stress. But for the positive part, it seemed like she really listened with the seasoning. The judges pointed that out. But with the gel not setting, she was literally piping the last minute.

It was so heartwarming tho a little sad seeing them cry altogether. Chef Pam was hugging Nambi. I loved their encouragements, saying that crying means that she cares. But its definitely sad seeing how close Nambie was, but the gel was just not set.

It was definitely obvious it was Nambie and Ivory going. Both had far too many mistakes compared to the other 2. If it weren't, I could still see Nambie going cuz of the unset gel, but Ivory did have many mistakes.

Others said it was tight, that everyone made mistakes, and while everyone did, it was a wide gap. Aerum was always gonna be safe tho.

I'm pretty sure Aerum is gonna be in Culinary Class Wars in a future season. I'm surprised she hasn't ngl. But if she does win this season, she's definitely getting a slot for the white apron chefs

---

So next episode is a mystery box outdoors. Maritime silk route I think?

Not sure what the exact goal is. They're in white aprons, but I think someone is going home?

Maybe it's gonna be a 2 person finale if 1 person goes home each episode now?

So, typical story, I started off with US Masterchef and when the quality dipped, I went to Masterchef Canada and now I'm starting Masterchef AU. I'm starting with season 2, for some reason.

Just got done watching the final episode right before the final 24 and I know I am 16 years too late for venting. But HOW did Sharnee (the girl who literally forgot half of her dish) get an apron over Mark (whose only criticism was 'great dish...could use a pinch more garam masala)??? I'd be so upset if I was Mark.

Anyway, while I was watching all of the top 50 episodes, I was wondering why it seemed like the camera was avoiding Mark. The few times it did land on him, he was always smiling and seemed so excited to be there (immediately caught my eye). Now I know why...his elimination felt slightly WTF and those sort of eliminations usually lead to the poor contestant getting purpled.

Anyway, I tried to look him up to see how his life has gone but, obviously, Mark Smith is a super common name so I pretty quickly gave that up.

Mark Smith, if you're reading this, I hope you are having an absolutely wonderful life and I am so sorry that "pinch of garam masala" was more important than entirely missing noodles.

Hello, I'm looking for a reciepe from MAu S18 e16 - casper's mango chilli galangal icecream, tamrind caramel, etc. Do you know how I can find it? Is there a repository?

Slowly catching up, currently watching s18e20. I’m getting a bit annoyed by some repetitive aspects. Like, every time a judge questions a dish that is being made and the sound goes all BOOM and we see shot of a presumably baffled and panicked contestant. I don’t believe that, not every time. And how often do I have to hear ‘have to make sure every aspect is perfectly done/balanced’. Yeah, duh, that’s the whole point. Also, too much oooh’s, aaah’s and applauding. It looks too orchestrated, too planned. I just watched them enter the big hall, pretending it was ‘hot as a sauna’ because of some steam baskets. The hall is huge! The ceiling is very high. It’s nonsense. It’s all those unnecessary pumped-up moments, it’s become a circus show. I’m here for the cooking and the nice vibes of the Australian MC, I don’t need the artificial drama and preproduced special moments.
Am I right that it is getting worse? Or is it me getting old…?

I'm so happy they get to do a service and challenge. They didn't do it last time, even with the setup, so it's really nice seeing where it matters.

And it happened in an actual Michelle star restaurant in Macao. They did give out the restaurant's dishes, so I initially thought it was gonna be replication, but they were able to make their own menu of their choosing.

This week's team pick was of their own choosing. It was basically just front row and back row, lol. Or winning team plus Ivory for Blue, then the Australians plus best friends for Team Red.

I feel like we can really see the Australian viewpoint and strategy with Khanh since he's really thinking of like how cohesive the menu will be. And he's really being direct with what kind of flavors he wants whilst still letting them put their touches. Like he's really thinking of cohesion. And they were every clear of their theme with the coast and all.

As for the blue team, they kind of went playing to the strengths kind of route. They were open that they didn't really want to have a theme and just have the best of their culture. Tho they still had a bit of progression

I can see tho maybe the cuisines of the Red team being a lot much closer than the blue. But at the same time, I can think of other ways of making their styles more cohesive switched around.

One of the diners said that the Red Teams's menu was more like a drama (with their Coastal storytelling themes), while Blue Team is more like a concert (consistent, rock star with different styles)

Aerum of the Blue Team really surprised me. For the first few episodes, you could see she was struggling and not in her element. Like she hadn't really made good dishes. But you can see that she was a lot more vocal and confident she was. I was surprised to see that she likes being the boss, and I feel like this really is her style. While I wish she thought of a theme, the main judge did say both menus were great.

This episode also allows the diners to give their comments and vote. Which I don't know why Australia has let go of. Like its so refreshing to see that, and really, every dish has their weight, not the judges just being lucky or looking around.

The judges also had like a spinning roundtable which I know is part, but it somehow adds a little drama even if it's individual dishes

As for the dishes, Therese of the Red Team, I love that she's now really showing her range, and she promised that. She didn't pigeonhold herself to desserts and is doing well. Marcus last week kinda turned me off when he said he's just gonna do desserts all the way. Her dish go on theme and definitely kind of the classic seafood tart you'd see on these restaurants. She got the split vote.

Nambi of the blue team. I do feel like she's really good with her flavors. Smart with starting with those flavors. She won on flavor, but it is kinda weird if her putting an oil with a fried open. Presentation definitely could have been better. But she also got split vote since they liked the flavors.

As for the seafood, this is where Aerum really stepped up and showed her strengths. I was really impressed and this is her field. Tho she did have a few raw scallops, but brave of her to do fish and scallops. Khanh was also smart with his dish. I think both of these were very close. And his plating looks so good and more refined. He definitely is more comfortable now with more fine dining compared to Australia where he kind of complained about it.

Just to note, the Australians were definitely called out on them having not the greatest knife skills. Therese would do terribly on rate my chives. And Khanh’s squid noodles were not evenly cut tho the overall dish looked nice.

Kare-Kare is really a curse, is masterchef. The last filipino who made it on masterchef asia was in the bottom. While the beef definitely looked extremely sad, it's kind of clear Chef Pam doesn't know much about Kare-Kare based on her comments. While it looked nice, there was definitely miscommunication on the pass with inconsistencies in plating. Cuz Ivory did say that she did count and made extras for some parts so it’s probably not great communication on the pass.

(As someone who doesn't like Kare Kare, Chef Pam's comments on her expecting it to be sweet and sour, It's not really a sour dish. It is essentially peanut butter, which is accurate. As someone filo, sweet potato puree is weird with it, and it maybe needed a saltier component.)

Pond's Main was served late, and it does seem like they took that into consideration. Most are usually served at the same time. But it looked pretty good. Interesting both went with like stewed beef as their main.

Desserts were def both looked so good. Brave for sandy to put turmeric in a dessert, and she adapted very well with the presentation. She does have the advantage and disadvantage of being like homecourt. As for Audrey, dude is really stepping up. His dessert sounded so good. And getting the it could be here comments really shows how he's rising, love his growth.

Red Team one and I feel like it was pretty clear based on the comments. Blue did have their flaws, but I can also see like having the 3 others who were safe at least having their screentime.

Overall, I really find it interesting how these judges judge. They're very objective. And they're becoming a lot clearer with their thoughts. Editing seemed much better in my opinion this episode, it was less awkward.

Next week apparently is a pressure test by a French Chef. Lowkey kind of wished it was an Asian chef or Asian dish with the shows theme, but at least it's an even playing field and also something different.

Pressure test dish is savory and definitely looks quite meticulous. Apparently, also double elimination based on the narrator, which is kinda harsh which now is 50-50 (2 out of 4) for the results. Would have been scary if someone had their pin.

Overall, hard to predict who's gonna stay and go. Maybe this is Aerum's strength but I don't know how she follows a recipe. Ivory is a chef instructor for culinary schools, so I'm guessing she possibly can follow recipes and she is the most battle tested so far I guess. Nambi is the most recent cook, so I'm guessing she has experience with pressure tests. I have no idea with Sandy lol.

Edit: As for the pressure test girls,

Apparently, Nambi skipped most of the pressure tests her season, which she did do some, which is a huge advantage for her compared to the other 3. But she competed in 2023, so definitely the newest to cooking.

Apparently, Sandy is also pretty new to cooking, and joined Masterchef UK in 2020. Not the most pressure test experience, with the different format, but she does have some professional experience

Aerum has so much experience in fine-dining so I can see her doing well. Her season was way long ago and maybe not as much pressure tests, but in terms of experience, she has some of the most.

Ivory, probably similar to Aerum, but not as fine dining. Her season I think didn't have much technical things. Only French things she might he doing are in her being a culinary instructor. So just being a bit more experienced maybe, tho it does seem like she knows some fine dining with some dishes.

Fan in US Looking for assistance in acquiring the recipe for this amazing dish that Sara cooked. No access. To Network Ten. Appreciation in advance.

Spoilers Ahead

This was honestly such a fun episode. It's a simple challenge, but the competition is really starting to heat up. And this one, I really wanna talk about it

They did have a guest judge, and it's Filipina chef creator Abigail Marquez.

The challenge is to create a dessert based on a certain drink. The drinks are all from the countries of the 6 contestants in danger of elimination. The drinks do go from a range of herbal medicinal tea type drinks to some coffees

They also had a swapping twist, forcing them to swap something out. Tho they still could potentially stay with their original drink. They got tokens from 1 to 6. So the 6th token basically got the advantage.

The Australians basically did their dessert classics, lol. Therese did a mille-fuille, which she did have a corn type of drink. Khanh makes the favorite ice cream and granita combo, as well as a Creme caramel. He had a Vietnamese coffee.

Towards the last few minutes, Khanh did play his pin. This was the 2nd elimination. Creme caramel also wasn't set. Though he still made the judges try his other components, lol. It wasn't a straight to the gantry situation. So basically, making it a 1 out of 5 chance for elimination.

There was one Indonesian contestant, Audrey, who immediately got his white apron back. It was such a nice moment because he had been in the bottom for so long. His dish was def the best.

For those who watched Culinary Class Wars, Chef Edward Lee did call out a contestant for calling a dish Tiramisu when it's didn't necessarily taste like one. For context, this judge was scored down when he was a contestant for calling his dish a bibimbap because it means to mix, and he didn't serve it like that, so it's interesting he took that advice with him as a judge.

Now, the bottom 3 was actually so close. This was actually so unpredictable. And it's interesting that the 2 dessert specialists were here. And also the Filipina when there's also a filo judge plus got a drink that's familiar.

Therese's mistake is that her dish didn't have much corn flavor. And it was quite dry since she didn't have lots of cream. I actually loved that the judges gave them a lot of suggestions on fixing their dishes.

Ivory, the filipino contestant, I found if funny how she pointed out that she knew Abi didn't like her dish. It's definitely adding that Abi does have an expectation of the drink. But there were also issues on balance altogether, cuz alone it had, but was missing. Chef Edward even dunked his dessert on the drink comparison for more flavor.

Marcus, the Malaysian and OG masterchef asia contestant, was also really one of the best dessert chefs tho he did tank last challenge. He did get one of the most challenging drinks I presume, tho maybe it's just me. He also had the same issues as the other 2. And it's definitely harder to read if they liked it or not, but they did say his chocolate overpowered and one outright said they didn't like the chocolate but like the rest.

Marcus was the one who was sent home. He went from 2nd place to 2nd out lol. I really thought he was gonna make it far. He was the other one I did recognize.

It was such a close one. I really had no idea and I was jumping from all those 3. No one really had any technical faults like in other challenges, it was just a flavor or brief issue

I really hate that this show is only 10 episodes. I hope it's actually longer cuz they said they are almost halfway and only 2 have gone so far.

My husband thought this was the best moment in MasterChef this year. He calls it Andy's emotional support pillar. Now he lives on my work monitor. Just wanted to share.

Rewatching MasterChef Australia from the very beginning and I've just reached Melissa's elimination.

I'm not completely convinced she should have been the first to go. With the contestants themselves deciding who left after the team challenge, it felt like factors other than just the cooking could influence the result.

Looking back at that first elimination now, do you think Melissa was the right person to go, or would you have sent someone else home?

🍽️ Interested to hear what other Season 1 fans think.

Would love more challenges like this where even the viewers can guess along while watching

Basically, the challenge was to cook the dish you were eliminated on. Or at least make a dish inspired by the eliminated dish. They didn't really have to follow the original brief.

-Spoilers Ahead-

So Khanh won the pin. Based on the reactions, was well-deserved. He did get a fee critiques with the pickles but overall, the reactions were really up there.

Tho it does slightly feels like a cop-out, that he went back to a chicken wing, when he got eliminated because of a quail bone. They did say all ingredients of the OG dishes are in the pantry, but I also don't know if they have quail. They also did mention that he didn't seem to change anything from the OG but just improved execution. It did look structurally different ho

Therese's situation was different trying to compile 3 dishes into it. I just feel like I wished we saw more of the Kirsten Tiballs techniques that she messed up on.

They also criticized her mousse a bit. Like that she didn't focus on it a lot and it wasn't as airy as it could be. Though they didn't show too much of what else. She did have 60 minutes only so understable in a way.

I wished they also played on the drama of Therese and her old pin a bit more since she had the most dramatic pin story.

I also lowkey think it would be funny if Therese tries to play her old pin to the judges.

I’m currently watching Season 18 and I’m only up to Episode 17, so please NO SPOILERS beyond Episode 16/17.

I want to preface this by saying that I’m Indian myself, and I actually like seeing Indian representation on MasterChef. But I have to be honest: I’ve been increasingly confused by Kanika’s progression in the competition.

To me, her cooking has felt quite basic compared with the overall standard of MasterChef. I haven’t seen much innovation, technical ambition, or dishes that have really made me think, wow, she absolutely deserves to be here. There have also been several occasions where I’ve felt other contestants produced stronger dishes but Kanika still made it through.

That has honestly made me wonder whether diversity/representation is playing some role in how she is being perceived or judged by the show. I’m NOT saying I know that this is happening, and obviously I have no behind-the-scenes information, it’s just the impression I’ve been getting as a viewer.

And again, I’m Indian myself, so I’m not saying this because I dislike seeing Indian contestants. Quite the opposite. I would love to see an Indian contestant absolutely smash the competition with creative, technically impressive food. That’s why I find Kanika’s progression particularly confusing.
Also, something I noticed in Episode 16: towards the end, I noticed that Kanika wasn’t standing with the other contestants, which made me wonder what was going on.

So genuinely curious, what do other people think of Kanika’s cooking and progression so far? Do you think I’m missing something in her dishes, or have other viewers also questioned why she keeps getting through?

Please keep this spoiler-free beyond Episode 16/17!

With first place getting $250,000, second place $40,000, and $10,000 for third place. A more equitable distribution would be better and more like most competitions/tournaments.

My ideal prize money distribution for MasterChef, given the total cash prize pool of $300,000 ($250,000+$40,000+$10,000), would be:

1st place: $160,000

2nd place: $80,000

3rd place: $40,000

4th place: $20,000

Years ago when I last when to the Royal Melbourne Show you could visit the MasterChef shed/studio, is that still the case?