ANNOUNCER: Previously on MasterChef Australia, the top 24 faced their first nerve-racking challenge... Come on, guys. Under pressure. ..with inspiration from last year's MasterChef champion, Billie McKay. You're so adorable. I can't tell you. (LAUGHS) They delivered some impressive dishes. Oh, snap. GEORGE: Best dish of the day. I could keep eating it. But for Theresa, Ashley and Charlie... It's an absolute let-down. ..it was straight to elimination. Tomorrow, one of you's going home. Tonight, it's a game of chance. You're gonna pick a cloche. Which one they choose... This one. ..and what lies beneath could come back to haunt them, as they face one of the most pressure-filled hours of their lives. No, no, stop. Stop. (ONLOOKERS GROAN) I'm in panic mode now. Someone will be going home. Don't let it be you. Their future in the competition hangs in the balance. Beautiful. It's fresh. That is yum. Who will be the first to leave the MasterChef kitchen? I'm concerned about that. # Burning up # in my heart # like a flame, # like the brightest shooting star. # In our souls, # we all know # our dreams make us who we are. # We got today. # Ooh, yeah, yeah. # So spin me round and... # Ooh, yeah, yeah. # ...show me the way... # Ooh, yeah, yeah. # ...back to... # Burning up # in my heart # like a flame, # like the brightest shooting star. # In our souls, # we all know # our dreams make us who we are. # Captions by Ericsson Access Services www.able.co.nz Captions were made possible with funding from NZ On Air. Able 2016 THERESA: I think the first elimination is always the hardest. I let myself down yesterday and it was not a good feeling. And I will be careful. Little Miss Klutz. To make matters worse, I had a big fall last night and I hit my hand really hard on something and... No broken bones but just a lot of pain. I know I have to try to ignore it, but it is one more thing that's shaking my confidence. I don't want the nerves to come back today, 'cause that...that was my downfall yesterday. Good morning! Whoo! Got my boxing gloves on. (LAUGHS) How are you? JIMMY: Having 24 hours in the house is bittersweet. Theresa could go home today. That would be just devastating. I'm Theresa's brother, so I know her better than anyone. She just needs to focus, keep it simple and just cook. I know it's your birthday next week... What are you doing? And I didn't want to sort of do this, but, you know, you're gonna take this just in case. I'll be back. I'm not going anywhere. No, you're not. (LAUGHS) You'll be back. I'm not going anywhere. That photo's just a picture of my girlfriend. Keep it in the slat above my bed so I wake up to her every morning still. It's nice to see her face. To be here, I have given up my job and I've also left my girlfriend behind. She's been supporting me from the get-go, so I'm gonna fight hard. I don't wanna go home. There's no way I'm gonna let that happen. I see myself as a fighter, so today I'm looking at my black apron as armour. I'll be giving it everything I've got to keep myself in this competition. Let's do it. All good. Good luck. You too. I really don't wanna be the first person to go home. (ONLOOKERS CHEER) I'm really nervous. Butterflies in my stomach. Anything can happen. I can't imagine how you feel, dressed in black. Only been a day in the MasterChef kitchen and already the very real risk of going home. It's the first elimination of MasterChef 2016. So, let's see what you're doing. MATT: Right, here's how this elimination is going to work. In front of us here we have 12 cloches. Under each cloche is a different ingredient. Taking it in turns, you're gonna pick a cloche. Whatever is under that cloche, we want you to cook something delicious, heroing that ingredient. If...'cause today is all about second chances, if you don't like that ingredient, we'll give you a second chance - a chance to pick a second cloche. But be warned - whatever is under that second cloche, you have to take, you have to use. THERESA: There is always the fear of the unknown, so you're hoping that there'll be something that you can show your strength, but you know there's probably gonna be a lot that won't. It's a scary one. Very scary. We're looking for the two best dishes to save their makers. The worst dish... ..out those doors, pick up the bags, and have a very short period in the MasterChef kitchen. Theresa, what would you hate to see under one of these cloches? Um, I haven't had a lot of experience with, like, shellfish, so that probably would test me a bit. How about you, Ashley? What would you love to see under one of these cloches? Any type of seafood I'll be happy with. Charlie, you got in the top 24 cooking that beautiful poached pear with creme anglaise. What do you want - something sweet or something savoury under here? Sweet as. Oh, I definitely want chocolate today. (LAUGHS) Uh...so if you could just, like, put a little mark on one that's got chocolate on... (LAUGHS) Alright, guys, you're all clear on the rules? Yes. Charlie, step forward. Point to a cloche. They all look the same. (LAUGHS) They do. They are all the same. Funny, that, isn't it? Uh... It's lucky dip, dude. This one here? Yes, please. You sure? Uh...yeah. Probably as sure as I'll be. OK. Just give me some chocolate. Ginger. OK. I'm standing there trying to think of a dish using ginger. I'm just hoping that it's an open pantry so I can make a dessert, and then maybe I can use chocolate after all. Do you want a second pick? No, I'm gonna stick with ginger, I reckon. Yeah? Yeah. Sure? Yes. Ashley, it's your turn. I'm really nervous that I'm gonna lift a cloche that has something under there that I have no idea what it is. Right. This one. This one here? Yeah. OK. You're killing me. Mushrooms. Yeah. I'll take it. Yeah. Take it? Yep. Straightaway? Yep. As soon as I see mushrooms, I think, "Now's my chance to redeem myself for yesterday." Yesterday I cooked a mushroom and fennel ravioli with a beetroot sauce. It's an absolute let-down. If I can make those mushroom ravioli again today but make them well, I'll be happy. You got a dish in mind straightaway? Yeah. That's always a good thing. Theresa, your turn. I'm just praying it's not shellfish. Not sure if you're gonna be happy with this. Sure enough, it's prawns. My worst nightmare. That really makes me nervous. Jeez, you haven't jumped at it, have you? (LAUGHS NERVOUSLY) I'm scared if I don't take it, what else? Maybe I'll get offal next. I don't know. Still nine cloches left. Are you confident with crustaceans? Um...no. (LAUGHS) No, I'm not. But the fear of the unknown is almost frightening me more, I think. Yeah? So, that's a hard one for me. I've eaten prawns - I just don't cook it much. I'm gonna go with the prawns. Done. Theresa, prawns it is. Thank you. Let's find out what the other ingredients are, eh? Just for fun. Oh, yeah. Oranges. Seaweed. My favourite on a pizza - pineapple. I love a ham and pineapple pizza. (CONTESTANTS LAUGH) It's the best. Venison. Mint. Cardamom. Coffee. Matt Preston's afternoon snack - broccoli. (MATT LAUGHS) Finally... ..licorice. I'm stoked! GARY: Do you want some rules? Yep. Mm-hm. Remember, you have to hero your chosen ingredient. Charlie, you got ginger. Ashley, you picked mushrooms and, Theresa, you've got prawns. You have 75 minutes to cook us a delicious dish. You have an open pantry. I'm so stoked that it's an open pantry today, because I've got a dessert in mind. I just have to make sure that ginger is the real star of my dish. Remember, the consequences are dire. Two of you are safe but one of you is gonna be the first person to leave this competition. You fired up? Mm-hm. Your time starts...now. (ONLOOKERS CHEER) (LAUGHS) Oh, wow! Alright. I'm not starting this cook in a great place. I'm not confident with prawns, and that's hard to get out of my head. (ONLOOKERS CHEER) WOMAN: What are you doing, Theresa? I'm doing prawn with tarragon butter, avocado, prawn oil. Yum. MAN: Theresa's got hardly any ingredients. She's got prawns, flour, tarragon and salt. I've got to hero the prawns. So, I'm going to make prawn oil, which I can infuse into a prawn oil crisp and a prawn mayonnaise. Good one, Theresa! Good job. Come on, Theresa. I know I don't have a complete dish. I'm just not sure what else to put on the plate at this stage. I'm not really thinking 100% clearly at the moment. Hmm. Now I'm confused. Yeah. MAN: Ash, what are you thinking, mate? Uh, I'm gonna make pasta again, just a slow egg and then some crispy mushrooms and other bits and pieces. Beautiful, mate. Good job. Screwing up Billie's mystery box so much, my plan is essentially to do the dish again. But make the ravioli leagues better than what I did yesterday. The first thing I get to work on is my pasta dough. It starts to come together like pasta dough should, so I wrap it in cling film and then move it to the fridge to rest. Today I'm doing a ginger chocolate cremeux. Gonna have a little meringue shard there, ginger crumb and ginger caramel as well. CECILIA: Charlie, what's your ginger chocolate thing called? Uh, cremeux. So, it's in between kind of like a ganache and a mousse. It's, like, not too fluffy but not too dense. Alright. Nice. To hero the ginger in the cremeux today, I'm gonna grate fresh ginger in there, and also add a bit of ground ginger to let it infuse in with the cream. MAN: Is there enough ginger? Nup. Get it in there. Don't hold back on it. Hmm? It'll taste less gingery when it's cold. Yeah. That'll be sweet. My cremeux's gonna be awesome, because it's got a massive hit of ginger, which is gonna be perfect for this because it's the centrepiece of my dish. Nice, mate. Get it in. (CLAPS) GEORGE: A little reminder. First elimination - someone will be going home. Don't let it be you. One hour to go. Come on. (ONLOOKERS CHEER) THERESA: I've got my prawn oil on and that's going well. The colour is developing and the smell is nice. I can definitely taste the prawn. Oh, no, the mayonnaise. Mayonnaise, mayonnaise. Eggs! Oh, I didn't get eggs. I think the fear of yesterday caused so much dread in me that my brain just was not functioning at all, and I cannot afford for that to happen and send me home. Where are the spoons? I have to not let the nerves get the better of me. I have to be focused. Don't stress, don't stress, don't stress. I'm unravelling, and this is not what I want to do. Oh, shit. (LAUGHS NERVOUSLY) Sorry. CECILIA: Be careful! It's OK. I got it. I...I saved it. JIMMY: Take your time. It's OK. OK. Theresa. Yes. This looks nice. Thank you. You've butterflied them open. What have you got there? Um, prawn head oil, which I want to incorporate into the mayonnaise with a bit of chilli, maybe. And then on a bed of avocado with a tarragon butter, cook that in. Tarragon butter, mayonnaise. Oil. Too much? What's all the oils going on there? I don't know! You need some relief, some freshness. Yes, so maybe a mayonnaise might be too much. Well, it might not be, but you need some relief. Gary's trying to tell me something and trying to...I suppose indicate what I'm missing, and I...it's like he's speaking another language to me. 'Cause... Yeah. I don't mind having avocado, prawns, mayo, but then something that goes bang, then you go, "Oh, that's nice." More of a hollandaise, so it's got that lemony vinegar. No, no... No, no. No, you're not listening. No, some... No, no, stop. And I'm really confused at this point. Like, I don't want to lose the plot now. . No, no, you're not listening. No, some... No, no, stop. Stop. JIMMY: I'm really feeling bad for my sister. Theresa's looking a little bit stunned. What's your favourite thing to eat prawns with? Avocado. Right. And how have you eaten them with avocado before? Avocado and lemon. Yeah? And what else? Like, dishes you've eaten. Prawn, avocado, on a salad. With, like, a lemon vinaigrette. Of course. Light bulb moment. I'm gonna just go with a beautiful salad. Garlic, olive oil... It's such a simple thing, but the simplest things at the moment do feel like they are very difficult, because you're overthinking everything. Lemon. Today I'm cooking mushroom ravioli with a mushroom sauce, some fried mushroom and a slow egg. I'm feeling good. I've got my dough resting in the fridge and I get to work on my traditional sous-vide slow egg. What temperature's your sous-vide at? It's gonna be at 63. Slow-cooked eggs are super popular right now. I love them. Hopefully it can be used as some sort of saucing agent for the pasta, so the ravioli will have some creamy, eggy goodness. I love technology, so I try to bring that into the kitchen. Circulators fit in there, sous-vide, whippers... I wanna stay in this competition so much. I have so much to learn. Thank you! You're only on this earth for a limited amount of time. This is lovely. I want to be a chef, and to open my own place would be an absolute dream come true. Now I wanna follow my passion. MAN: Whoo! MAN: That's it, Ash. Looks good, mate. Looks good. NATHANIEL: What are you doing there, Charlie? I'm gonna try get a ginger caramel going and maybe some candied ginger on there as well. SEVERAL ONLOOKERS: Yum! I'm in my element here because, as a professional golfer, I'm really competitive. From the age of eight, I caught the golfing bug and I was absolutely obsessed. I'd spend hours out on the golf course and on the driving range. I've been a professional golfer for four years now. It's been incredible to achieve my dream. But in the last two years, I've discovered that I've got an even greater passion. Making food my life is something I've been thinking about constantly, so being in the MasterChef kitchen is exactly where I need to be. Alright, guys. Here we are. And I'm not going down without a fight today. Today is all about heroing the ginger, so I've gotta find a way to get ginger on the plate in every spoonful. A major ginger hit is gonna come from my caramel ginger sauce. What's the dish? A ginger and chocolate cremeux. Is it like a mousse, is it like a little marquise, is it a ganache? It's in between a ganache and a mousse, kind of thing. So it's gonna be pretty big. Yeah. You need some relief, something... Don't you think? Yeah. Something to go with it. It's like having a chocolate tart and cream. Yeah. Something refreshing. I need to listen to the judges and the advice that they gave to me, so I've gotta find freshness from somewhere and get it on the plate. You don't want to go home today, do you? No. No way. I don't know what I'm gonna do, but my instincts tell me that this ginger caramel might be a bit too heavy. ASHLEY: I start prepping a mushroom sauce and my filling for the ravioli. I have got mushrooms everywhere. Oh, my. So many mushrooms. WOMAN: That's nice, Ash. WOMAN: Yeah. I wanna prove to myself and the judges that I can cook. Ashley. Hey. You alright? Yeah, good. OK, so, this is the filling? Yeah. So, it is gonna be mushroom, mushroom, mushroom everywhere. Looking at that right now, it's not exciting. Think about the best mushrooms on toast. What are they? Garlicky and... Sauteed, garlicky... Yeah. They've got a tinge of golden brown. Flavour, flavour, flavour. OK. I have to make sure my sauce is on point for flavour. (ONLOOKERS SHOUT ENCOURAGEMENT) I don't want to be the first person to go from the MasterChef kitchen. Charlie said he wanted to do a dessert chocolate, so ginger and chocolate, beautiful combination. He needs a little bit of relief on that plate. Ashley? Love the sound of the dish - mushroom pasta with that slow-cooked egg. It's about redemption for him. And if he does redeem himself and does put up a great little pasta and mushroom dish, I'm gonna be really happy. And what about Theresa at the back? She's the one I was most worried about at the beginning of the cook. But she's kept it, you know, nice and simple - prawns, salad. For me at this point of the competition, taste is gonna win out. I love technique, I love all the showy stuff, but in the end, if it doesn't taste great, if it's not yummy, then I'm not gonna pick it as my favourite dish. My salad over this side. I'm happy with my salad. Beautiful colours, beautiful flavours. JIMMY: Yeah! (LAUGHTER, CHEERING) You know, but that might be too simple for MasterChef. So to take it to another level, I'm gonna do something a little bit different. What are you doing with the avocado, Theresa? I'm using it as a base for my salad. I've got my avocado and I've put the lemon in it so it doesn't go brown and I've smeared it onto some baking paper. I've never seen that before. Oh, you're chilling it? So I can cut it. Oh, yeah! That's interesting. I'm putting it in the blast freezer, and once it sets a little bit, I'm gonna cut out a shape that I want and I'm gonna flip it onto the plate. You could cut it up as it's been chilled or even frozen a little bit, and turn it round. Yeah. Smart. That's a smart idea. Yeah, smart. Jimmy, you better watch out. She's smarter than you. I know! 35, Ash. 35. OK. I go to the fridge to check on my dough... ..and it's not how it should be. WOMAN: How's the pasta looking? Not very good. It's a bit dry and when I push on it, it breaks. Bit of a problem. Make another one. Yeah. MAN: That's it, Ash. I decide to make another dough. I'm pressed for time, because I know that it's gotta chill for at least 30 minutes. I'm just making stupid, stupid mistakes. Relax. You got it, man. You got it. The dough's the dish. Without it, it's just gonna be mushroom and egg, and that's not a winning dish for the MasterChef kitchen. 30 minutes to go! Come on. Don't stop. Just keep working, man. You got it. He really needs to get that out. Come on, Ash. I'm extremely worried. Ash doesn't look confident at all. I'm running out of time. And now I know I'm in trouble. . You're cooking for your place in this competition. 30 minutes to go! Come on, guys. MATT SINCLAIR: Theresa's in a great place. She's absolutely nailing her prawn salad. But I'm a little bit concerned for Ashley. He's had to make a second batch of pasta dough for his mushroom ravioli. He's not in a good spot. Come on, Charlie. Charlie's also looking a little bit flustered. He needs a refreshing element to his dessert. Are you gonna do the caramel? Um...I feel like it might be a bit heavy. So, what did they say? Just needs something fresh, so... Yeah. ..I might do... Like a sorbet or something, or a... Maybe like a whipped creme fraiche with... Something... Needs something clean. I sprint to the pantry and I'm searching around, looking for something fresh and something a little bit creamy. I see the mango there and see some nice creme fraiche as well. (ONLOOKERS CHEER) So I'm gonna replace the ginger caramel sauce with a nice light, fresh mango cream. I think it's a great call to go for something a little bit lighter, fresher, just to sort of balance out the dish. But I seriously hope for Charlie's sake that he's got plenty of ginger in that dish today. There's no ginger in the shard. It's on the crumb, yeah. It's in the crumb? Two things with ginger? Maybe. He needs another one. He needs another one. Make sure you've got enough ginger on the plate, man. Huh? Make sure you've got enough ginger on the plate. Yeah. ASHLEY: I've got two doughs sitting in the fridge, but I decide to use the first dough because the second dough isn't well rested. Ash! Whoo! Come on! I need to make sure it's velvety. I need to be able to make sure it's laminated and it rolls properly. Good idea, Ash. I'm ecstatic. I am over the moon, you know? I've got pasta. My avocado towel is setting in the freezer and my prawn oil is ready to go. I'm feeling good. I just have one last element to prepare to really hero my prawns. I'm gonna make a prawn head oil crisp, sprinkled with a bit of salt, just for the crunch. Theresa, that smells great. Thank you. The prawn is the hero of the dish, and how Theresa's using it is just clever. I'm just really proud of her. WOMAN: Good job, Theresa. Nice. Whoo! I want to impress the judges and, you know, I know they love crunch. So I'm hoping that this crunchy prawn oil crisp is going to do the trick. WOMAN: Keep going, Ash. ASHLEY: My mushroom filling is cooked down, so I move the mushrooms over to a blender. NATHANIEL: Oh, that is going to be one hell of a mushroom sauce. I'm pressed for time. Come on, Ash. But I'm not about to throw in the towel. Come on, Ash. You gotta focus and knuckle down. I know with the amount of pasta that I have, I'm only gonna get maybe five or six of these ravioli made. So I can't make any mistakes. MAN: Go, Ash! NATHANIEL: Come on, Ash. Don't let this be your last 15 minutes in the kitchen! 15 minutes to go! Come on, guys! (ONLOOKERS CHEER) CHARLIE: With less than 15 minutes to go, I run over to the fridge, check on my cremeux. It's a complete disaster. You know, it's supposed to be nice and light and creamy, but there's fat on the top. It looks really, really gross. I'm really, really worried at this stage. Yeah, it's not good. But that's almost split. What's all this? Is this cream? GEORGE: It's fat. It's fat, isn't it? There is no way I can serve this up to the judges. I'm really worried for Charlie right now. That was basically his only ginger element. I'm in panic mode now because if I don't think quick, I'm going home. Hi, Carol. You're here for your hearing test. Yes, I am. Lovely. Come on through, please. (BEEP!) BOY: Hi, Mum. It's Eddy here. Huh! You are the best mum in the whole wide world. But sometimes you don't hear so well. Sometimes it makes me sad. I love you so much. (HEARTFELT MUSIC) I don't wanna be sad about your hearing anymore. CHILD: Something as little as a free hearing check can make a big difference. . With less than 15 minutes to go, my cremeux is a complete disaster. It's split, it's seized up, the fat's solidified on the top. There's no way I can serve this up to the judges. I've got to redo it. I don't have time to think. I've just got to drop everything and make another one. MAN: Ash, that smells really good, buddy. ELENA: Yeah, delicious. Ash is just flying through this last part of the cook. His raviolis are just looking gorgeous and the smell that's coming up to the gantry is mouth-watering. He's just got to pull this all together and he could really be onto a winner. Good work, Ash. Good work. My dish needs an element of crunch, so I decide to fry off some mushrooms. You're about 13 minutes away, Ash. I'm feeling extremely confident that I have enough mushroom happening on my plate. Charlie's been hammering. He's put together his second cremeux. Pressure's way on now. Just got to keep pushing and try to get it done, but we'll see. Compared to how long the first one took him to make, I think I've just seen him go up a gear. Just make sure you get that ginger powder in. Taste it. Nah. No time. I'm so under the pump, I don't even have time to taste it. I'm just praying that the flavours are right because I've got to get it into the blast chiller. It's make or break time. 10 minutes to go. Come on. (ONLOOKERS APPLAUD) Butter. My crisp is in the oven and I'm gonna move on now and start cooking my prawns. Oh, yum! I'm not usually confident with prawns so I'm hoping that I'll be able to do it right, you know, like, yeah, get them cooked well. WOMAN: Are you gonna fry that ginger, Charlie? Gonna candy it. Yeah. Because I've dropped the ginger caramel, I've got to get more ginger on the plate so I decide to candy some ginger. MATT SINCLAIR: At the end of the day, it's all about the ginger, so I think it's a great call 'cause it's gonna add that extra spice and kick to it. Come on, mate. Push, push, push, push. Wow! They look great. WOMAN: Awesome. What she put in it... She put the prawn oil in it. Argh! Whoa. Time to bring all these little elements together into one beautiful dish. Five minutes to go. And now I have to get my avocado out of the blast chiller. I'm hoping that it's not still soft because that's really hard to work with. Trying to think out of the box. Grow a little. JIMMY: That's great, Theresa. The pressure... Oh! I'm thinking, "Oh, don't make a mess." (ALL CHEER) That looks great. That looks so great! I'm so happy. It's actually quite set and it's beautiful-looking and it's fresh. I know my dish is gonna look pretty, so that's a relief. Come on, guys, three minutes! Push it! (ALL CHEER) I check on my second batch of cremeux. And thank God it's worked. Whoo! I've kept my prawns off my main plate because they're still a little warm and I don't want them to wilt my rocket. I'm gonna assemble it in front of the judges. The eggs have been in the sous vide machine for about 60 minutes now and I'm hoping they're cooked perfectly. When the judges cut into this egg, I want it to ooze everywhere so they can use that as a sauce for the pasta. Did it work, Ash? Yeah, mate. Oh, perfect. You're gold. Two minutes! Come on, two minutes! (ONLOOKERS CHEER, SHOUT ENCOURAGEMENT) I'm gonna pop all my different elements in little ramekins because I want to plate up in front of the judges to show a bit of technique and try and impress them. MAN: They look great, Ash. Thanks. I only have five or six of these ravioli made, so I can't make mistakes. I'm feeling the pressure. Ooh. And I can't believe what I've just done. I've put the ravioli into a frying pan with hot oil. I'm worried because it's going to make the ravioli crispy, overcooked, and it's not gonna be the right texture. Er, there's not much I can do about it. So I'm just hoping that they don't crisp up too much. MATT: One minute! It's got to be on the plate. One minute to get it on the plate. Come on, guys! Come on! Come on! MAN: Come on, mate. Come on, come on. Get it up. MATT: 10 seconds! ALL: 9! 8! 7! 6! 5! 4! 3! 2! 1! That's it. Time's up. (ONLOOKERS CHEER, APPLAUD) Interesting challenge. You know, and an important challenge because, really, you don't want to be the first one to leave the competition, I'll be honest. So a lot of pressure. Let's get the first dish in. CHARLIE: Good luck, Ash. Thanks, guys. THERESA: Yeah, take care. Brief was to champion the ingredient that we chose. I chose mushroom, and I believe I nailed that. However, I should not have fried my ravioli. I made a mistake there, but I'm really hoping that I've done enough to keep myself here. Ashley, what have you cooked? Mushroom ravioli, some crispy mushroom, mushroom sauce, asparagus and a slow egg. You were really confident. As soon as I lifted that cloche and you saw mushrooms, it was a done deal. Yeah, yeah, so I wanted to redeem myself from yesterday. What makes you want to stay? Yeah, I'm here to change my life. I'm here, you know... I've quit my job, I've left everything, and I want to become a chef. And I want to get my own place and I want to, you know, be happy and be successful. Ashley, time to taste. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. This thing about frying the ravioli, you know, I'm concerned it's going to toughen the pasta, it's going to be crunchy without being crispy. No, I'm concerned about that. I'm concerned about that. . MATT: This thing about frying the ravioli, I'm concerned it's going to toughen the pasta up, it's going to be crunchy without being crispy. No, I'm concerned about that. I'm concerned about that. Ashley's used a lot of sure-fire flavours, you know, garlic, sage, asparagus. But the egg should, when you cut it, dress the ravioli, add more richness. It's been slightly overcooked. At the end of the day, the real issue is the frying of the ravioli. The outside of the ravioli is very tough because of the frying, and it just impacts across the dish. Yeah. Got a positive - I think the concept of the dish is a good one. Commending the fact that there's lots of mushroom on this plate, but it's a shame he's taken it one step too far with the frying of the ravioli. Mm. Right, let's get the next dish in. Good luck. Thanks. Hope you do well. Oh, the nerves. It's something I've never felt before. It is a relatively simple dish but I think it's enough because I believe I'm highlighting the prawns. (LAUGHS) I'm sorry. What's the dish, Theresa? Tarragon butter prawns with a prawn oil vinaigrette with a prawn oil salted crisp. Theresa, first up, how are you? I'm good. It's a confusing state to be in. Really? I think your emotions just jump everywhere. One minute you feel you know what you're doing, the next you're really confused and...yeah. How do you feel now looking at that fully composed dish? Oh, I feel much better now. Like, I look at that, I'm proud. Theresa, thank you. Thanks. I like it. I think it looks really good. It looks light and summery. It looks very cleverly thought out and I don't think she approached the challenge like that. I think she was really confused. Yeah, I know. That idea of the crunch of the cracker, the springiness of the prawn, the creaminess of the avocado, the freshness of the salad. You know, picking a few choice flowers from the garden. Great choice of flatware. I think it's great. Yeah. Mm. Yum. Oh, they're tasty, aren't they? The basis of the challenge was to hero the ingredient and Theresa, prawn, she delivered. Prawn in its natural state, just grilled with that tarragon butter. Prawn oil made into that vinaigrette. And then this delicious, salty, you know, prawn cracker, prawn biscuit, whatever you want to call it. That is yum! Yep. I love it. I think it's great. This might be enough. Well, let's find out. Let's get the next dish in. All the best, Charlie. Good luck, mate. Thank you. Today was all about heroing the ginger. Because the second batch of cremeux was so frantic, I didn't even have time to taste it. I don't even know if there's enough ginger in there and if there's not, I'm in big trouble. My biggest concern with this dish is, will the judges see it as a chocolate dish or as a ginger dish? What is that? Er, this is a mango creme fraiche cream. Any ginger in that? Er, no, I didn't pop ginger in this. Does it help with the shakes? Just like putting. Yeah. Just got to concentrate. Well, Charlie, you got ginger as the ingredient you had to hero, so give us the name of your dish. It's a chocolate ginger cremeux with an orange zested meringue shard, mango and creme fraiche cream and a ginger crumb, with candied ginger. Is there enough ginger there, do you think? I think so. I think it's... Well, I'm hoping it's prominent enough in the cremeux itself and in that crumb. Mm-hm. And then just that sweet candied, um...ginger there - I hope that kind of ties it all together. How much do you wanna stay? Um... You know. With... Sorry. (LAUGHS) Golf being such a taxing sport that it is, um...and I've spent 10 years of my life dedicated to it... ..um...you know, I never thought of myself doing anything else. And two years ago, I found cooking and...you know, it's just been a turning point in my life, so... I'd be walking down the fairway just thinking about what I'm gonna cook for dinner or what dessert I wanna make, so, um...it was, like, you know, I was playing tournaments, but, you know, I was escaping from reality and, you know, just thinking about cooking. Well, you know what it comes down to always, doesn't it? Taste. Just comes down to how it tastes. And we've had some great-looking dishes. Yep. This is another one. So... I think we'd better, don't you? Yeah. Thanks, Charlie. Thanks, guys. What do you reckon, guys? Presentation? Yeah. I mean, it looks good. I mean, the first thing that I'm thinking, though, is where's the ginger syrup that he put that little candied syrup in? It just needs a little something. My concern is the other way. Is there too much chocolate? If we were to ask someone, what is this dessert - is it a ginger dessert or a chocolate dessert - which box will you tick? Chocolate. I think a lot of people would tick chocolate straightaway. Have to see what it tastes like. Yeah. . Where's the ginger syrup that he put that little candied syrup in? Yeah, I know. It just needs a little something. If you were to ask someone, what is this dessert - is it a ginger dessert or a chocolate dessert - which box will you tick? Chocolate. I think a lot of people would tick chocolate straightaway. Yeah, absolutely. And, look, at the end of day, he had to hero ginger, didn't he? Mmm. This is what it's all about. That's what it's all about. What's that? The ginger. Yeah, yeah. The candied ginger. That's the only bit I taste. Yeah, I know. In terms of ginger. I'm just thinking it needs that ginger syrup, you know. The candied ginger's delicious. Yeah. That's my only criticism. Yeah. 'Cause I think it's a tasty desert. Yeah, it's tasty. The cremeux's nice, it's nice and smooth. That mango cream gives you a little bit of light relief against that bitter chocolate. Yum. Yeah. Those little candied threads of ginger, they're very potent. Yeah. And by having a number on there, that helps. I picked a bit of ginger up in the crumb and also in the cremeux. But is that enough to say that ginger's the hero? I think that's the question. Yeah. Big day in the MasterChef kitchen. Serious consequences. This is the first elimination of 2016, and on the face of it, a very simple task. But sometimes the simplest things, as we know, aren't at all, are they? Especially in this place. The stress always gets to you. Today... ..one of you nailed the brief. Brought us a beautiful-looking dish that celebrated the hero ingredient. And that's why you are safe... ..Theresa. (CHEERING, APPLAUSE) JIMMY: I was just on top of the moon. It was pure elation. I'm just so happy for her. (LAUGHS) I'm so proud of you. So... (CRIES) Jimmy... Oh... (LAUGHS) Sorry. We can't help. We just caught you there. You just had a little moment. What does it mean to have your sister still in the competition? Amazing, but it's so bittersweet, because these two are incredible people as well. So... Good luck. Oh, you're a legend, Jim. Right - Charlie, Ashley, it comes down to the two of you, and it comes down to the dish that you cooked today. The judging criteria of this challenge was very specific - you were judged on how you heroed... ..the chosen ingredient and how delicious your dish was. Ashley, we asked for mushrooms and that's what you delivered. Mushrooms in your sauce, in your filling, and on your ravioli. But... ..your egg wasn't runny... ..your ravioli was tough from frying... I think the whole dish lacked the freshness and the elegance that we'd have loved to have seen. Your dish was flawed. Yep. Charlie, your dish was delicious. And it looked beautiful on the plate. However... ..the question we had to ask ourselves is did you hero the ginger enough? The answer... ..is yes. And that's why you, Charlie, are safe. I'm so relieved that I'm safe. I'm gonna take this as a big learning experience and really push on from here and build. I'm so happy to still be standing here today. Ashley, what can I say? It's unfortunate that you're the first one out of the competition, but hopefully this little experience that you've had has given you enough energy within yourself to go out there and do something in food. We've enjoyed having you here, but the question is, what have you enjoyed most? Uh... The whole experience. It's only been short, but it's unreal. It's been a good journey. Ashley, it's time to leave the MasterChef kitchen. Thank you so much. Thank you. Guys, say goodbye. It's disappointing to be the first person eliminated. But I've learnt to push myself and to not doubt myself. Yeah. (APPLAUSE) I feel as though as I've got loads more to give, but I've got so much more to learn, and that's what I'm going to be doing from now. So it's only up from here. ANNOUNCER: Next week - the godfather of modern cooking... Marco Pierre White! ..is back. There's no excuse to not create a great dish. I'm terrified. Start to push. This world-renowned three-Michelin-star chef... Yes, Marco. ALL: Yes, Marco! ..will challenge to them to the extreme... Quickly! Are you listening? Do you wanna go home? ..push them beyond measure. Where's the fish? Where's the fish? Hurry! I don't know what to do. He'll be disarming... Apart from a mess, what are you making? ..and charming. NIDHI: He's really a soft and very beautiful person. But when it comes to the crunch... (CRUNCH!) This is beautiful. ..it's all about the food. Bang. I get that big explosion. And one contestant will serve up a dish that will take Marco's breath away. This, without question, is the greatest dessert I've ever eaten in MasterChef. Captions by Ericsson Access Services