ANNOUNCER: Previously on MasterChef Australia... GARY: Welcome to MasterChef 2016. ..some of the best amateur cooks in the country wowed the judges... Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! ..dish after mouth-watering dish... GARY: Absolutely bang-on. GEORGE: A-ma-zing. I love it. It's a big yes from me. Wow. ..with a record 19 aprons handed out. Thank you! This is what MasterChef is about. Congratulations and welcome to the top 24. (SQUEALS) MasterChef has gone to another level. Tonight... There are 11 of you but only five aprons left. ..they will fight like never before. I'm gonna cook my little heart out. This challenge is like the mystery box on steroids. Ah! I reckon you're under the pump. It's just crazy pressure. ANNOUNCER: They'll draw on strength they never knew they had... You've got a basket, but this ain't no picnic. I'm feeling quite stressed, but I really like it. Time to put your dream on the line and your food on the plate. ..and put up food they never thought possible. That's a top job. You've cooked that perfectly. It's just absolutely delicious. But which four will impress the judges enough... I don't have any hesitation. ..to take their place in the MasterChef kitchen? Captions by Ericsson Access Services. www.able.co.nz Captions were made possible with funding from NZ On Air. Able 2016 (LAUGHTER AND CHATTER) We're going in. Wow. This is it. (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) MILES: It's my big chance to cook again today. Blow it and it might not come around again. So I've got to step up and show the judges what I've got. WOMAN: Oh, God. Oh, goodness. ELISE: I've got my game face on. I'm going to cook my little heart out and get one of those aprons. Welcome back to day two of the judges' auditions. It's nice to come in, isn't it, with a round of applause? Maybe calm those nerves a little bit? MAN: No. (LAUGHTER) Maybe not. But can we tell you, the cooking has been absolutely phenomenal. And that's why we gave away a record of 19 aprons on day one. Unbelievable. But it also means that it's extra hard for you. There are 11 of you but there are only five aprons left. And today, four are up for grabs. Blow us away today and you'll secure an apron and you're in the top 24. If you don't, then you'll go into a pressure test tomorrow where there's only one apron that you'll be vying for. Before we can give you an apron, we want to see more. More technique, more flavour, passion. Lots of passion. Cos in here, nothing else matters. And to give you the best chance to show us what you've got, we've put together some very special baskets. You'll notice that each basket has one of your names on it. That's because each basket contains 10 ingredients specific to each of you. 10 ingredients you told us before you came to the auditions that you cooked with all the time. MILES: Oh, what were they? (LAUGHTER) Your challenge is so simple. Take familiar ingredients used all the time in your kitchens at home and turn them into something special. Turn them into something that's gonna have the three of us saying, 'You have to have an apron.' So, here are some rules. You have 90 minutes. You must use at least one of the ingredients in your basket. You also get a little pantry of staples which are underneath your bench. So, are you ready? Yeah. Fired up? Yeah. Imagination firing off? Your time starts...now. (CHEERING) WOMAN: Oh, my God. WOMAN 2: I'm next to you. Yes! MAN: A couple of salmon. MAN 2: Lots of red meat. A lot of protein. Oh, yeah! (CHUCKLES) Well, we said yesterday that home cooks ain't what they used to be. But neither is what they've got in their pantry. You know, prosciutto, salted capers, beef ribs, galangal. I mean, it's a really great selection for our amateurs to cook with. MAN: Come on, Molly. I think, as always, the struggle at the beginning of the competition is knowing when to pull back, in all honesty. You know, if you've got some simple ingredients, you're gonna feel the pressure of trying to be flashy, add a little extra element, where, you know, things can potentially go wrong. They need to make it count today cos they don't want to be cooking tomorrow. No. Absolutely not. I've got a chicken and a lobster. Ooh. Nice. It's so good to get another chance to cook today. And I get to cook with one of my favourite ingredients - lobster. My name is Harry, I'm 21, I'm from Townsville and I'm a cocktail bartender. Back home, I go to Magnetic Island all the time. Going diving is one of my favourite things to do cos I love harvesting my own seafood. There's nothing better than catching your own seafood, taking it straight out of the water and cooking up a feast. Today I'm going to do a grilled lobster with a coriander sambal and also, like, an Asian chicken broth, as well, to go with it. I like what you've got in your basket of ingredients. Me too. So, these are the things that you have at home. Absolutely. So, we've got chillies, fish sauce, galangal, ginger, garlic. What's that? Coconut cream. Coriander, cashews and a lobster. A lobster. Beautiful. Do you always have a lobster in your fridge? Maybe not always. You're earning too much cash, that's what's going on there, isn't it? I wish. There are no excuses today. I've got to nail this dish. I'm gonna put Magnetic Island on a plate and the judges are gonna love it. (CHEERING, APPLAUSE) MAN: Good job, Adam! WOMAN: Go, Melissa. MELISSA: It is amazing. It is the biggest adrenaline rush I have ever, ever had in my life. JORDAN: My favourite things probably aren't the best to cook with, they're more just to eat as a snack. I have Oreos, apples, feta, prosciutto. Yeah, just a really random bunch of food. My name is Jordan. I'm 22 and I'm a graphic designer from Sydney. When I finished high school, I actually looked into enrolling in pastry school but it was kind of a risk, so I just did the safe thing and went to uni and did exactly what my parents do and went into the media and advertising industry. My food dream is to have my own kind of dessert empire. I would usually make something sweet, but today, I really want to prove to the judges that I can do savoury too. WOMAN: Go, Jordan. ASHLEY: What are you making? Prosciutto, basil, feta and egg yolk ravioli. Nice. Yum! And whatever else I can think of. And I really want a wow factor today, so I'm hoping that the wow factor will be when the judges cut into the ravioli and the egg yolk spreads over the plate. How are you going? It's a start. Getting there. MAN: Come on, Jordan. Whoo! MILES: I'm cooking a pie today with a little bit of a twist. I've got some beautiful cuts of beef shin, coconut milk, capsicum, garlic, ginger. It's not your traditional Aussie meat pie. It's gonna have a little bit of an Asian kick. As a park ranger... ..these are the sort of flavours I like to cook up on the camp fire. Simple but with a bit of a punch to keep it interesting. The aim today is to get the judges to join the Mile's pie club. The first thing to do is get the beef shin in the wok, get it cooking down and nice and tender to get those flavours going. What's happening in there? That beef shin is just tenderising itself. Are you gonna put it in the pressure cooker? No. Really, the key here is to get as much flavour in that mixture as possible, cos I reckon you're under the pump cooking a pie in an hour and a half. Instantly, the lights go on upstairs. I'm gonna get a pressure cooker. That's what I like to see. I've tried cooking this dish before without the pressure cooker, but I think with the time limit, it's probably the best option. So, took their advice on board and we'll rock'n'roll. The plan is no plan. Just wing it. Hey, Jordan, how you going? Good. You're making pasta. Yes. I'm worried for you... ..cos that pasta is super-dry. Um, you should get a really soft kind of crumb, right? That's what you're after. And then put it together and knead it. Yeah. Pasta is pretty easy. It's only two ingredients most of the time. So, for them to just tell you to start all over again means it must be pretty terrible. The more I have to remake, the less eggs I have. And I'm now halfway through my egg supply. Go, Jordan! (CHEERING, APPLAUSE) I've got to say, I'm glad that my apron is safe around my neck and I'm glad I'm not cooking under this kind of pressure. This challenge is like the mystery box on steroids. They've all picked their 10 favourite ingredients to cook with, but who knows if these flavours even go together? MIMI: I've got a lot of great ingredients in my basket, but at the top of the list is a whole snapper. It just looks fantastic. My family love seafood. I often cook snapper for them and I love to cook it. So, I grabbed the snapper and just started filleting. Well done, Mimi. It's looking good. I'm thinking of making a crispy skin snapper with a chilli and coriander broth, but I can't just serve snapper and broth. And although I've got lots of herbs and spices, I don't have any vegetables. So I've got to think outside the square and make something that will complement my fish. I've got some chilli peppers, which are actually more like a spicy fruit than a vegetable, but if I roast them, I might be able to take the edge off the heat and make them more like a roasted capsicum. That's my plan. It better work. Come on, Mimi! (WHISTLES) WOMAN: Go, Molly! Wow, the pasta looks amazing. I'm feeling quite stressed, but I really like it. (LAUGHS) Nice. Lovely. Elise, what are you making? I'm making a pistachio-crusted lamb with, like, a butter, fennel and a parsnip puree. Yum. I've chosen quite a simple home-style kind of meal. So I've got to get that lamb absolutely perfect. Come on! So, Elise, you're playing into their classical French hands here, yes? Yes. That's what I'm trying to do. Showing them what else you can do. You know the issue with lamb, we've already seen it undercooked. Yep. And overcooked is death as well. So, something this simple, every single element, perfect. Yep. Thank you. I'm hoping that it shows a bit of technique and I get one of those white aprons. You've got this, Elise! Good job. Keep it up. Stay focused. An hour and 10 to go. That's amazing, how fast that's gone. JORDAN: I'm cooking an egg yolk ravioli with feta, prosciutto and basil stuffing. I really need absolutely perfect pasta, but as I'm kneading out my second batch of pasta, I just... ...I know it's not right again. It's just really tight. Yeah. Like, really tight. I don't know what you're doing. I know. Neither do I. It's just crazy pressure when you know how much is on the line. I don't even really know what to do at the moment. WOMAN: Keep going, Jordan. It's pretty desperate times. I don't know whether I'm gonna cry or throw up cos it's just kind of the apron slipping away further and further and further. JORDAN: There's a lot of pressure today to get an apron. Only four aprons for 11 of us is pretty low odds. My second batch of pasta just isn't working at all. I know that I just have to do it all over again. But I now only have one egg left for my filling. It's really my last chance now to get it right. All I want at the moment is to get an apron and literally all I can think is that if I don't get this right, then I'm gonna be cooking tomorrow. You've got a basket but this ain't no picnic. One hour to go! One hour to go. (CHEERING) It's flying. Time is flying. Come on, guys! Good job! MAN: Good job, Adam. Whoo! (CHEERING) My name's Adam. I'm a business owner and I'm from Adelaide. Today I'm cooking roast chicken and chips with a mushroom medley. I wanted to cook something simple but execute it really well. I'm pretty confident cooking chicken. I grew up on a chicken farm, so I know how to cook chicken. So, as long as I get that element right, which is the hero of the dish, it should be good enough to get an apron today. Because my dish is quite simple, I know I need to make a punchy sauce to go with it. So, I've chopped up some of the mushrooms and I'm just sauteing them off in the pan with some oil and butter. One thing I do have in my basket is a tin of my favourite vegetable stock, and I know that it's got a lot of flavour punch. I'm hoping that the vegetable stock will really enhance the sauce and therefore enhance the dish. And I'm feeling pretty confident at this stage. The atmosphere today is phenomenal. It is electric. Everyone is frantic. They all want one of those four aprons. WOMAN: Come on, Lauren! Whoo! HARRY: Today I'm cooking a beautiful grilled lobster with a coriander sambal and an Asian chicken broth. Yesterday my dish wasn't up to standard. It's got a definite kick of chilli, there's some complexity but the balance is a little off. So, I really have to try my hardest to show that I've learnt my lesson and make sure that the balance of the broth and the sambal work well with the meat of the lobster. Go, Harry, go! MIMI: At the moment, I'm feeling really great. I've pin-boned my snapper, my broth's smelling amazing and my chillies are roasting really nicely. Because I'm using chilli in a few different ways, to balance out the spiciness of the dish, I'm gonna add some crispy prosciutto to it. It should add a nice, salty, crunchy element to it. MAN: Come on, Mimi! (CHEERING) GARY: How many are you cooking for? Three very special judges. Alright. Good. In my basket, I have beef cheeks, blue-vein cheese, anchovies, herrings. I feel like it's like living out of home - like you've moved homes and you've just gotta deal with what you've got, and it's a bit interesting. I've picked my favourite things to eat as stand-alone items, but these pungent flavours do not go together. (LAUGHS) At all. WOMAN: What are you making? I'm gonna do, like, a variation of, like, a pappardelle pasta with some beef brisket. Oh, sounds delicious. Back at home, when I have this dish, I generally do it with tomatoes. I don't have tomatoes. But I need something else with this dish. I have some apples. And I figured you kind of do pork and apple... It's sort of similar. So, beef cheeks with some apples - it might work. OK... This is stressful. I know. It's intense, hey? MAN: How long have we got? Today I'm cooking a beef shin pie flavoured with garlic and ginger. The meat's been in the pressure cooker for about 30 minutes, infusing flavours. It feels great, and I put it into a pan to start reducing stock. I know the flavours might be on the simple side... ..but they'll work great in a pie. Good? Pretty good, yeah. Come on! I think that's gonna be a good dish. (CHUCKLES) Gonna be great! I'm cooking a crusted lamb rack with a parsnip puree and some caramelised fennel. I've spent a lot of time Frenching. It's looking amazing. That's really good. That's really good. But I've got one eye on the clock. My parsnip puree and my fennel are under way, and I'm making my crumb for my lamb rack. I've used pistachios, parmesan and parsley. The parsley puts a nice, fresh herb taste through it and the parmesan and pistachios gives it a nice crispy crust. Oh, I'm feeling quite good. Um...a bit confident. But we'll see how I go. Anything can happen. I'd love to try Elise's dish, cos I love lamb and parsnip. MAN: Come on, Miles! Let's go! GEORGE: Just a reminder. With 30 minutes to go, delicious, tasty - that's all we're looking for. Whoo! Come on! GARY: Come on! MAN: Come on, guys! Whoo! (CLAPPING) MAN: Let's go, guys. Come on. ADAM: Things are looking good at the moment. My chicken's cooking well and my sauce is reducing on the stove. Adam. George. What is this? Gary... What do we make stock from? We make stock from chicken. What... Is there any chicken in there? I'm absolutely kicking myself. Vegetable stock. What was I thinking? I can't serve this to the judges like this. There's an apron on the line. How the hell am I gonna fix this? (CLAPPING) Come on, Adam! 30 minutes to go and I'm in trouble. The judges have picked me up for using vegetable stock, so I've got to fix this mushroom sauce and quickly, but I'm really not sure how. I'm racking my brains as to how I'm going to get some more flavour into that sauce and I realise that I've got chicken bones in front of me, so why wouldn't I put them into my sauce? Hopefully if I can caramelise them, they'll give me the punch that I need so that sauce really pops. Time is starting to tick away now. It's really starting to move fast. But I haven't given up. I'm still working hard towards getting that apron. MATT: Adam, how's my chicken and chips going, mate? (LAUGHS) (CHEERING) The smell is making me hungry. MILES: Pies are generally a fairly simple dish and you wouldn't expect one to be worthy of achieving an apron from cooking one. But this pie's got really punchy flavours in there and the meat really falls apart. Did you put curry spices or something in there? A little bit of coriander and some cumin seeds. Oh, it's cumin. I know that I've got the flavours there, so fingers crossed it's gonna wow the judges. GARY: There's lots of different stuff going on. Dishes that are doing well? GEORGE: Harry. I like his dish. You know, he's got clarity in his thought and he's going with it. And lots of Asian flavours, big flavours. Lots of Asian flavours. And Elise. She cleaned those bones up beautifully. Perfectly. So, if she cooks that lamb beautifully, we're on a winner there. We're seeing some pressure, we're seeing some cracks. Jordan, we got really tight, overly-worked pasta. Yeah, but under this sort of pressure, the normal thought processes abandon you, don't they? And that's what we're seeing. What about pie man? Well, he's got less than half an hour to go. 25 minutes to go. He's still not put the pie in the oven. Yeah. MILES: I'm looking at the clock I've got to get that pie in the oven, otherwise it's just not going to bake. It might not be the most delicate or fancy pie, but it's in a generous tin, it's gonna be on the hearty side and I think this will do the job. (APPLAUSE AND SHOUTING) (WHISTLING) Argh! I'm cooking an egg-yolk ravioli with feta, prosciutto and basil stuffing. I'm really happy because my pasta has finally worked out. But for my filling, I'm down to my final egg. Everything is riding on getting this yolk into the ravioli. It's massive pressure and if I split it, I'm in real trouble. And it works. Good stuff, Jordan. (APPLAUSE) WOMAN: Nicely done! Which is a relief, because at least I have one ravioli that's going to make it to the plate. (CHEERING) WOMAN: Let's go, guys! Beautiful! I'm making beef cheeks with some apples and some pasta. I've only got 20 minutes left on the clock. I need to check on my beef cheeks. I open the lid... ..and it smells terrible. (SIGHS) I'm not happy with how my dish is coming along. It's...it's gonna be terrible. It's not working, it's not coming together. It's just...it's my worst nightmare. I don't want to serve it up today. And... ..I want to turn back the time. I want to start again. I want to go back into the test. WOMAN: Come on, Sarah. (SIGHS) And I want to be able to prove to the judges that this is something that... ..that I can do and that I deserve that apron. It's all there. You've just got to mine it. Don't get bamboozled. If it's a problem, bin it, go somewhere else. We only need to see one thing used. I need to come up with a different option and I need to come up with it quickly. I refuse to put up an empty plate for the judges. But I've got 20 minutes left on the clock. This is impossible. And I don't know if I'm up to the task. (SIGHS) I've got beef cheeks that I can't serve. I've got 20 minutes left on the clock. I need to pull something out. I need to dig deep. I refuse to put up an empty plate for the judges. Gelatine, raspberries. I've got cream, I've got sugar. I have raspberries, I have apples, I know I've got eggs. I'm gonna do a crepe with a raspberry compote. I know it's not flashy but at least it's something that I can hold my head up high to. I'm a tenacious, stubborn person and so if I go down, I go down with a fight. Go, Sarah. Come on. You've got this. SARAH: I think I've made the right decision. I think, at the end of the day, you've got to plate up what you're proud of and what you would be proud to have someone eat. That's all I can do. You want an apron, we want to give you one. You've got 15 minutes to pull your dish together! 15 minutes to go! Come on, guys. There's 15 minutes left and I'm really happy with how my broth tastes. So, now I have to focus on my lobster. I reckon it's going to take about 12 minutes to cook. I've got a nice garlic butter to go on the meat. Now I've got to get it onto the grill. This means so much to me. I've put so much of my heart into this and I really, really want that apron. My broth is ready, my prosciutto is crispy and my chillies are done. Fingers crossed it's not too hot for the judges. Now I need to cook my snapper. Looks good. Don't overcook it now. It's the centrepiece of my dish, so I want to make sure it's delicately flaky. With a beautiful crispy skin. Beautiful. (CHUCKLES) Calm down. I've got to go. Strainer. Strainer. 10 minutes to go, I look at my lamb and it's just not cooking. Come on, lamb! I need to take action and fast. I need to turn that oven up. It's as high as it can go. This is a risky move. The high temperature can burn my crumb on my lamb. Come on, little lambie. But to serve up undercooked lamb would be a disaster. Fingers crossed it cooks in time. Go, Elise! SARAH: With the crepe, I have some raspberries in a frying pan. I'm trying to reduce them down as quickly as possible to try and pull out some of the national sugars with them. When I see some apple that's not used, I start finely slicing them up, at least then to add a different texture. I put them into the ice bath to keep my apples as crisp as possible. I'm going to put something up. Yay! Come on, Sarah! Look at that. Go, Elise! Time to put your dream on the line and your food on the plate. Five minutes to go. (APPLAUSE AND SHOUTING) Come on! Go! Whoa. Go, Sarah! There's just chaos all around me and everyone is going crazy, trying to get their dishes done and... ..I am just staring into my pot of ravioli just praying that it's actually gonna hold together and cook like it should. I have to time it perfectly. Long enough so that the pasta cooks but short enough so that the egg yolk is still runny. I think it's done, so I take it out. I know it's a risk to serve just one ravioli... ..but it's really my only option. I'm going to dress it with a basil oil and prosciutto crumb to make it a bit more generous. I'm hoping that the judges really appreciate quality over quantity and hope that that's enough. Come on, Jordan! You can do it! It might be alright. Come on, guys! Four aprons, two minutes. Make the dish amazing! Two minutes to go. Come on, guys. The crepe is working. I've got a crepe. It looks like a crepe and there's raspberries happening. I have somehow managed to pull it out of the bag. (CHEERING) Slicing through my lamb, I can see that it's this beautiful, rosy pink colour. I think my lamb is cooked right, but it's all up to the three judges. That looks so good, Elise. Come on, Harry! I've got my broth in my jug, my lobster is rested and it's beautifully tender. I'm just going to plate it with a little bit of sambal and I've just got my fingers crossed and I'm hoping it's going to be delicious. Go, Ginny! Come on, guys! Come on, Miles. Come on, Miles. MILES: I'm in a world of trouble here. I've got the pie out of the oven, but the damn thing won't come out of the tin. It's stuck in there. 30 seconds! (PEOPLE SHOUTS ENCOURAGEMENT) I'm getting frantic. I'm thinking if I put it out now, it's gonna fall apart. I don't want to destroy it on the plate. 10 seconds to go! ALL: Nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one... That's it! (APPLAUSE, CHEERING) Well done. That was the most intense cook I've ever had in my life. I'm just so happy that I got everything finished and everything looks great. Oh, that looks amazing. I think I have worked really, really hard and hopefully my dish is enough to get me an apron. MILES: I really want to get that apron today. I don't want to have to cook tomorrow. Seven of us cooking for one apron - the pressure would just be mammoth. I'm absolutely sure the three of us are looking at different people than we were looking at 90 minutes ago. Maybe a little harassed, you know, the fog came down, couldn't think of anything. That's the pressure of competition. The first dish we'd like to taste belongs to Harry. (APPLAUSE) Taking my dish up to the judges, the emotions are running through me. I really hope I've learnt my lesson from yesterday. Now I've just got to keep my fingers crossed and hope they like it. Well, what do you call the dish? It's a grilled lobster with a coriander sambal... ..and also a chicken Asian broth. Why this dish? I love seafood and I love lobster and it means so much to me because I've grown up cooking and eating this food. It's the perfect match for me. Steady, Tiger. Yeah. I'm just gonna go for the lobster. I don't eat a lot of lobster, unlike you, Harry. You should. I think it's delicious and I think you've got some talent. And I think the fact that you're playing with these South-East Asian flavours, you enjoy it, I think shows. It really is a lovely dish. The sambal and the broth, it's just absolutely delicious. It brings out all the sweetness, brings out all the sweetness in the meat. So, for me, that's a really delicious dish. Yeah. Cooking a lobster isn't simple. You can overcook it, you can undercook it. And for me, you've cooked that perfectly. Well done. Thank you. (APPLAUSE) I couldn't have asked for a better reaction from the judges. This is really what I'm here for and I'm so proud of myself. Next dish we'd like to taste belongs to Jordan. Presenting my ravioli to the judges, I really wish that there was more on the plate. But my biggest worry is that egg yolk. I hope it's runny. So, what's the dish? It's an egg yolk, feta, prosciutto and basil ravioli with some basil oil. Do you reckon that dish is good enough to get into the top 24? I think if the egg yolk is runny, then I think so. OK. I don't think an egg yolk has ever been more important in my life. So, you reckon runny, huh? Yeah. So, we'll see. Pretty much my fate in the MasterChef kitchen is relying on it. So, you reckon runny, huh? Yeah. So, we'll see. I think it's runny. MATT: Yep. Yeah. That looks beautiful. MATT: Yeah. ASHLEY: Nice, Jordan. It's...a dish I'm trying to love. You know, you battled through, you showed some perseverance, you made pasta three times. Yeah. I actually like the filling. But I'm left thinking it's not quite generous enough. It's not quite moreish enough. Yeah. A lot of effort went into the pasta. Yeah. Where that's a five-minute job - make, rest, leave. Focus in on the wholesomeness of what makes food delicious. I know they wanted more, but they did like what was there. So...I might still have a shot. The next dish we'd like to taste belongs to Mimi. (CONTESTANTS CHEER) MIMI: Taking the dish up to the judges, I'm not sure if it's gonna be too hot. My heart is beating so fast. I can feel it through my shirt. What have you cooked? I've cooked a: Can I say, it looks beautiful. Yeah, it looks gorgeous. (CRUNCHES) Um... What you've managed to do, with remarkably few ingredients, is bring us a really beautiful plate of food. Snapper - really well cooked. Love the colour and the crisp on the skin. But the best thing is...is... ..by using the chillies in the broth, but also, then, by roasting them off like this, you turn the chilli into a vegetable, rather than a spice, and that chilli's become more like a capsicum... Yeah. ..become softer and sweeter through the cooking process. So, I think that's really smart cooking. And...we wanted technique, we wanted flavour, and you've given us both those things - well done, Mimi. Thank you. What I love about this dish, for me, is the addition of the prosciutto. The prosciutto is sort of needed there. Um, it sort of balances out the spiciness of it. I mean, I'm...I think I've started to sweat. (LAUGHS) Love it. And I'll sweat for that cos it's really tasty. Thank you. You know what's interesting for us is that this cook - and every year is exactly the same - is where it really reveals to us who can and who can't really cook to the standard of MasterChef. And you...can. Thank you. Cos that is absolutely delicious. And I'd like to be bold enough to say that I don't have any hesitation in giving her her apron. I don't know whether or not you want to do it, but I love it. Go with it, Gaz. You know what? You love it a lot. I love it. Not a problem. Up to Mr Preston, then. I'm just looking down at that and thinking, If I was sitting at a restaurant 'and I saw that dish against any other, 'um, what I'd order.' I'd order that. (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) MIMI: I'm in the top 24 of MasterChef, and I just cannot believe it. Thank you so much. This is crazy. (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) It's like going through a dream. I don't even believe it's happening. It's so surreal. Whoo! I honestly cannot believe I'm here and I'm just so excited. Thanks for that. Delicious. Oh! Sadly, one of the aprons is already gone. Mimi's wearing it right now. That means there are only three left. Lauren, your turn. (APPLAUSE) LAUREN: I have a beef with eggplant puree, an onion jam and a raspberry gastrique. MATT: The beef, delicious, beautifully cooked. And then, for me, the raspberry doesn't work. OK. GEORGE: Molly. I've cooked a salmon tartare with an egg. GARY: I think the dish is great, but it needs some freshness... Yep. ..along with the kind of richness of that salmon. GEORGE: Melissa. MELISSA: It's a roast fennel and salmon ravioli. It needs flavour. Yeah. It needs sauciness. So it lubricates them. Yeah. GARY: Ginny. GINNY: It's a ricotta and orange ravioli with a lentil and orange salad and a little, um, fennel cream. Now? Yeah, yeah. You like being close to Gary, don't you? He's got pretty eyes. GEORGE: Ohhh! Who, I do? (LAUGHS) (JUDGES CHUCKLE) It's just...all it just needs to be is dialled up a little bit more. Turn the volume up, baby... OK. ..so you and Gary can have a dance. (GARY LAUGHS, LAUGHTER) Adam! Chicken and chips. ADAM: Chicken and chips. Just...looking at the plate, you know, we get those lovely golden colours, which is fantastic. Let's just hope this gravy passes the test. Ooh, it tastes alright! It's tough because we come up there and basically take your little tin and... crucify you for it. You know, and then you've got to lift yourself up and cook a dish. And you did that! Thanks. Well done. Thank you. Big thumbs-up because you've nailed the chicken. There's some good elements on that and I'm really pleased for you. Well done. Thank you. Cheers. Three aprons left today. It's getting a wee bit cramped at the top, Adam. But you know what? You're crowding them out. That's good. GEORGE: Well done. Thank you, guys. (CHEERING) Well done, Adam. Go, Adam! Well done, mate. After hearing that, I'm just so super-relieved. And I'm just hoping that it's gonna be enough today. Next up, Sarah. (APPLAUSE) All things considered, I'm glad that I've got my dish up and I've just got to hope that it's enough today. So, what have you cooked for us? Uh, I have prepared a crepe with some raspberries and I've lightly dressed those with a bit of sugar as well. I commend you for not giving up. And I commend you for putting up a dish. Thank you. You know, it is what it is, and it's a crisp, golden crepe, which is great, and what you haven't been able to do is give it some thought and time to take it to another level. Imagine if you'd had time to maybe do three little crepes, you know with a little quenelle of cream in the middle. Yep. You learnt a very valuable lesson today, which is identifying that something isn't working early enough is the key to success and survival in this kitchen. Yeah. Thank you. (APPLAUSE) Good luck, Sarah. It's not terrible. It's not great either. But they've definitely seen the tenacity of me. Next up, Miles. (APPLAUSE) I've never seen anyone serve a pie in a tin in a MasterChef competition. Go, Miles! My heart's pounding. I'm nervous. I'm really unsure about what the judges are gonna think. And I don't even know how they're gonna eat it. GARY: Is that gonna come out? GEORGE: I'm gonna try for you. MILES: I am shaking, thinking that this thing is just gonna collapse in a big mess right in front of him. GARY: Is that gonna come out? GEORGE: I'm gonna try for you. I don't reckon. I'm gonna try really hard. Can you tease? (APPLAUSE) MILES: I'm just... I'm ecstatic. I'm relieved. I'm over the moon. There's a pie on the plate that looks like a pie. (CHUCKLES) MATT: Oh. Oh, it looks alright. Oh, hello. Really, you only got that pie in at really the latest possible moment, didn't you? And I just thought it's not gonna taste good. It's actually very tasty. That beef, really, you know, rest the fork on it and the beef just surrenders and go, 'Oh!' like that, it falls apart. Flavours are all great. It works. You know, if I didn't watch you cook at all and got that in front of me, man, I'd give you a big hug because it's really tasty. You can still hug me. Alright. (APPLAUSE) I'm on top of the world. Well done, Miles. Thank you. I've put up a dish that I'm really proud of. Is it enough? I'm not sure. Fingers crossed I'll walk away today with an apron. Elise. ELISE: I'm quite nervous. All I want is those judges just to taste that lamb and just love it. It looks great! Thank you. What is it? It's pistachio-crusted lamb with a parsnip mash and butter fennel. Smells good, looks good. And it seemed like you had a fairly clear idea from the get-go of what you were gonna do. Yeah, definitely. This is what I love to make at home, so I felt comfortable cooking it in the kitchen today. OK. And the pressure? It was great. I enjoyed it. Ooh! Someone who thrives on pressure. I think you've cooked... The piece of lamb I ate was delicious. It was tender, it was pink, the way it's supposed to be, and I love the caramelised fennel and then the sweetness of that parsnip mash underneath. So, that's a top job. I'm glad that you put up beautiful lamb that's Frenched impeccably, and I was watching you from a distance going, 'Great. That's awesome.' Because that's the skills you need to be able to, number one, get yourself an apron, number two, succeed in this competition. You've given yourself every chance with this dish of getting an apron because you've had clarity, you've had execution and you've also not done anything too mad. Thank you. (CHEERING, APPLAUSE) To have that lamb spot-on is the best feeling ever. I can feel it. I'm so close. Thanks, guys. And I want to get one of those aprons. That's what I'm here for. I think, for a lot of you, that's the toughest cook you've ever experienced. But the reward is worth it. Aprons. And today, there are still three left. The first cook to take their place in the top 24 showed us great technique. We thought it was bistro quality from start to finish. And that dish belonged to... ..Elise. (CHEERING, APPLAUSE) Great dish. Oh, my God! Well done. Aargh! I can't believe it! I can't believe I've got an apron. I'm just in utter shock. This is everything I've ever wanted. Today, one of you delivered on that promise you showed us yesterday. You brought us a dish that showed us who you are... ..in the most elegant and delicious way possible. That dish belonged... ..to Harry. (CHEERING, APPLAUSE) Congratulations. That was really good. HARRY: This means so much and I'm really, really gonna fight to keep my place in the competition. MAN: Well done, brother. That was great. There's one last chance to avoid tomorrow's pressure test where there's one apron left. We always say when your dish is simple, it needs to be packed full of flavour. It also must be perfectly cooked. The final apron today... ..goes to... ..Adam. (CHEERING, APPLAUSE) Well done. Thank you. I'm in the top 24. I'm absolutely ecstatic. There's seven of you left. There's one apron. You are incredible home cooks. What you need to do now is go home and really think about how much you want it. Cos the person that wants it more will get that apron tomorrow. You got it? ALL: Yes, George. See you later. MILES: I'm devastated that I didn't get that apron today. So I'm gonna go into tomorrow's challenge... See ya tomorrow. Yeah. ..and put up something that's gonna give me that last apron. You all good? SARAH: Yeah. I need that apron. I'm ready for a challenge and I'll go down fighting. There's no going back. ANNOUNCER: Next time ` seven cooks, one apron. The last apron. To win it... Please welcome Shannon Bennett. ..they'll have to conquer one final test... Oh, my God! ..to re-create this Shannon Bennett masterpiece. No idea how we're going to get this all done. Come on! Let's hustle. You're a little bit all over the shop. Are you feeling the pressure yet? Some will rise to the challenge. I can't believe this. For others, it will be a recipe for disaster. Oh! MILES: I don't know what I'm gonna do now. But for one contestant... MATT: Wow. You're a natural. You can taste chocolate. You should be exceptionally proud of yourself. ..it will be the sweetest victory of their life. That apron is about to change one of your lives... ..forever. Able 2016