Original subtitles

Previously on "MasterChef: Global Gauntlet"...

Welcome, everyone, to the MasterChef kitchen. Come on!

...the auditions began with Europe...

- Poland! - I want to show how Greeks take care of America.

...as the first five white aprons were handed out.

You are Spanish through and through. A resounding yes.

- For me, it's a yes. - Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

- Oh, my God! - Risotto is a tricky beast.

- ( laughing ) - I just got an apron!

- Whoo! - Can't wait to see

what the other territories have in store.

It's gonna be an amazing season.

Tonight...

It's time for another qualifying round.

...the auditions continue with Asia-Pacific...

- I'm representing China. - I'm representing Pakistan.

For me, representing Vietnam on MasterChef.

...as more home cooks compete for a coveted white apron.

- My three daughters are watching. - Tell them I say hi.

Give me ten press-ups.

One, two, three. Let's go.

Big question is does Asia-Pacific have America's next MasterChef?

Flavor-wise, it's delicious.

It's the kind of thing you'd be asking for more of.

This tastes of history, culture, family.

I have to say yes because that's done well.

One of the most expensive cuts is overcooked.

It's a no from me.

- Wow. - This is unreal.

Isn't this wild? Look at this!

- Are you ready? - I am excited man. How about you?

- I'm dreaming, bro. - We're gonna move our wedding picture

and put that "MasterChef" trophy right into the center.

Oh, my God, is that the trophy?

- Yes! That's yours. - Whoo!

It's a global season. I'm so excited to be a part of it.

It's such an honor to represent Malaysia

in an international season like this.

I've got 69 years of experience

and I'm bringing everything to the MasterChef kitchen.

I think they're coming. Here they come. Here they come.

Joe: Let's go.

- ( screaming ) - Oh, my goodness.

( overlapping chatter )

( cheering )

- Yay! - Boom, boom, boom.

- Come on now. - Hi!

( laughing )

Let me get up there. Okay.

- Let's go! - Welcome back, everyone,

to the qualifiers of "MasterChef: Global Gauntlet."

Now, this season,

we are celebrating the American melting pot

and all the amazing cultures it holds.

We've already given out five aprons

to those incredible Americans with roots in Europe.

Now tonight it's time for another qualifying round.

- Whoo! - Woohoo!

That's right, tonight another territory

will throw down in this Global Gauntlet.

Now if you are one of the strongest home cooks that we see tonight,

then you will earn an apron

and a chance to rep your territory

in this incredible competition.

Not to mention, you will give yourself a real shot

- at the title, the trophy... - Yeah!

...and of course, the grand prize of a quarter of a million dollars.

- ( cheering ) - Let's go!

Right, the territory cooking tonight is known for its food

that is loved worldwide, let me tell you.

Because their culinary techniques

really do stand the test of time.

Tonight, competing in the qualifying round is...

Asia-Pacific!

( cheering )

- Let's go! - Whoo-whoo!

This is truly a sprawling group.

You've got every single one of those 48 incredible countries

from Afghanistan to Vietnam.

Plus, let's not forget Australia.

We want to see dishes that look and feel restaurant quality.

Dishes that represent your heritage and tell the story of home.

Remember, you need a yes from all three judges to earn that apron.

- Oh. - Okay, guys you will have

45 minutes to cook your signature dishes tonight.

Make every single second count.

Gordon: Now, all of you, the very best of luck

and we'll see you through those doors.

- Let's go. - Joe: All right.

- This is gonna be exciting. - Tiffany: Yes!

- Let's go! - Time to play.

- Here we go. Asia-Pacific. - Mmm!

- I love it. - Gordon: This should be exciting.

- It's gonna be be tasty. - I've had some of the most incredible food,

not just from Southeast Asia,

but as far down as Australia, New Zealand.

The street food is always something that is prominent.

Absolutely. Humble, delicious, but fragrance beyond belief.

And then of course in Asia, you have the Middle East,

those traditions that go back to the beginning of civilization.

Big question is, does Asia-Pacific have America's next MasterChef?

- Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! - Oi, oi, oi!

My name is Laurence, and I am from Kearney, Missouri,

and I am representing Australia.

I'm Aishu, I'm from Boston, Massachusetts, and I'm representing India.

I was born in India, my parents brought me to the U.S. when I was one,

and they gave me everything that they could

so that I could live the American dream.

This is my mom. She's taught me everything about being Indian,

and I think that's a hard job to do when you're living far away from home.

( cheers and applause )

- Tiffany: Hi! - What's your name, fella?

- Laurence - Laurence, I'm Joe. This is my friend Tiffany.

- Hello! - I know that!

- How you doing? - We're doing really well.

- What is that? - We're doing kangaroo.

- Kangaroo. Because you are from Australia. - With a mango sauce.

- It's not hard to tell, is it? - No, and you live where?

- Outside Kansas City. - Kansas City, the barbecue capital of America.

- Absolutely. Come on, baby! - Now it's coming together.

- Joe: And what's this? - A mango sauce for it.

How Australian can you get for a Midwestern dish?

- And who do you cook for at home? - Every Saturday night,

we have a dinner party, and for a few dollars each,

- you can come along and join us. - Can we come, me and Tiff?

As long as you're paying, yeah.

What is the most difficult challenge being an Australian

living in the center of the United States of America?

Uh, we have to be polite. We're not good at that.

- Australians are not good at being polite. - Nah, screw 'em all.

That's true. True.

- Good luck. - Good luck.

- Hi! Hello! - Hi! How are you?

What's your name?

- Aishu. - Where are you from?

( with accent ) Both: North of Boston.

- North of Boston. - Ooh, this looks yummy. What is this?

It's an orange cardamom olive oil cake

Ooh, all the right words. So is this traditional?

Um, no. I think Indian sweets are great,

but they're also very dense and they can be very sugary.

- They can be. - And that's not really my kind of dessert.

- This is your mom? Hi, Mom. - This is my mom.

Does she agree with you kind of rewriting the book

- of Indian desserts? - Maybe.

I've always been a little bit of a rebel Indian, you know?

Okay! What other traditions did you grow up with?

Well, another way that we learned about our culture aside from food was dance.

I performed all over Florida, where I grew up.

- Joe: No way. - Tiffany: Wow!

Aishu: And I love dancing.

- I kind of want to see it. - Yeah?

- We're gonna dance together? - Yeah? You want to come?

- On the stage? - Oh, my goodness!

- Come on. - All right guys, ready?

- Joe: All right, I'm ready. - Tiffany: No, I'm not.

You're gonna bend your knee

and then you're gonna put your arm like that.

- Oh, I have on heels. - Oh, I can't do that.

- 'Ey! And back straight. - That's it?

- Yep. - Where do we move?

- That's the dance? Oh! - Yeah. Well, that is one move.

- Holy moly! - Just one. I love it.

This all looks very, very delicious.

- I can't wait to taste it. - Thank you so much.

- Plate it up. - Tiffany: Best of luck.

Here we go. We're getting there.

Back in the early '70s, I learned how to cook at a culinary school,

but then gave it away so that I could get a 9 to 5 job.

But now I'm back in it.

I am here at "MasterChef" to close that circle of life

that says you started as a cook,

you're ending as a cook.

Six, five, four, three, two, one!

Whoo!

The competition is tough.

A lot of young people from all over the world.

Looking around, I think I'm the oldest person in the room.

So this would mean a lot to me

to be able to come home with a white apron.

My name is Laurence and I'm representing Australia.

I have made Kansas City barbecue kangaroo with a mango sauce,

and a passion fruit vinaigrette, coleslaw, and yuca fries.

Now let's get one thing clear. The kangaroo is incredibly difficult to get right.

- Yep. - Shall we?

- Yes. - Let's do it.

God, I can smell it from here. It smells delicious.

- Visually, please, what do you think, Tiffany? - Yeah, it looks rustic.

But there is a point where rustic kind of turns into something

- that looks like we're kind of rushing. - Yeah.

- Hopefully, it's cooked to perfection. - I certainly hope so.

- The temperature inside? - Going for rare.

- Rare. - Once kangaroo is over medium-rare--

- It's gone. - Chewy.

Right, let's get in there.

- So it's above rare. - Yeah.

- And it's heading towards medium. - Yeah.

Sadly, there's no blood left in that.

First off, you have got one of the most difficult proteins to cook properly here tonight.

Sadly, for me, it's a touch overcooked, so it's a touch dry.

But the flavors are there, let's get that absolutely clear.

Now, Laurence, to get your hands on anything tonight, you need three yeses.

Um, for me, it's a no to the MasterChef apron.

I'm so sorry. Continue flying that Australian flag.

- Thanks, Laurence. - Thank you.

- I'm gonna start plating in a second. - Okay. Don't worry.

( scattered cheering )

- You got it! - All right. Okay.

Oh, ( bleep ).

It's stuck to the bottom.

All right.

Oh, ( bleep ).

It's stuck to the bottom.

You got it, Aishu. You got it.

Aishu: All right. Okay.

Ugh, ( bleep ).

My cake, it kind of fell apart a little bit.

There's only five aprons and there's a lot of competition in the Asia-Pacific.

I am so nervous.

I want this apron so bad. I don't want to go home.

- All right. - You got it, Aishu. You got it.

I'm not doing it very clean.

- Okay. - Take your time.

- Only 30 seconds. - Whew!

- Keep going. You're doing great! - Aah!

- Oh, watch it. - Seven, six, five,

- four, three, two, one. - Whew!

- You did good. Really good. - Thank you. I did my best.

I had a last-minute struggle with getting out the cake.

And it's there, but it's messy.

Getting an apron means so much to me.

It shows me that I can really achieve the dreams that I go after,

and I really want to be able to show that to my children.

- Hi. - Hello! Come on in.

All right. My name is Aishu, and I'm representing India.

I made for you an orange cardamom olive oil cake

with a vanilla mascarpone cream, blood orange coulis,

- and a pistachio crumble. - So are you a baker?

I started baking maybe three or four years ago.

- Why not take the savory route? - I think I'm a perfect example

of not taking the safer route. I have three kids under three.

- Oh. - And I think life is more fun when you take the hard path.

- Very exciting. - Amazing.

First of all, there's the fragrance coming from here.

It smells delicious. Let's get that absolutely clear.

It looks a little bit sort of rustic,

almost like insufficient greasing of your mold.

- Shall we try it? - Yeah. Put a little bit on.

Joe: Ooh, that's super syrupy. Look at that. Sexy.

Aishu, I'll be honest. Um...

It does taste better than it looks.

Let's make that absolutely clear.

It's moist and delicious,

especially that fragrance from the chai.

- Thank you. - A lot of times when people

use cardamom, they go too far.

And this is enough to get your interest

and make you go back in for another bite.

The only thing that you are missing here is a little more salt,

and it would have balanced that cake.

This is like a home-style dessert. Delicious.

The mascarpone is a nice creamy contrast.

With the talent you have, you could be a real asset,

- so my vote's a yes. - Thank you.

There are some things that you definitely have to work on. But for me, it's a yes.

- So it's gonna come down to Gordon. - Thank you.

Um...

Would you say that your savory cooking is on par with your baking or better?

- Much better. - Okay.

Because if that's what you can do with your influence across the dessert,

I'm so excited to see you in your element cooking savories.

That's a yes to the MasterChef apron.

- Congratulations. - Thank you guys so much.

This has been a dream. Seriously. And an honor.

- Thank you. Thank you. - Both: Thank you.

( murmuring )

Yes!

Mama's going to be on "MasterChef"!

- Can you put it on me? - Put that on Mama.

Yeah! Thank you!

Oh.

It's a bold move to come with an olive oil cake.

She was just willing to come in and show us

that she can think outside the box

- and do something different. - Yeah.

Gordon: Yeah. Delicious.

- All right. - You got it.

Let's go, let's go, let's go.

I'm Shampa, I'm from Brooklyn, New York,

and I'm representing Bangladesh.

My name is Foo Nguyen, I'm from Irvine, California,

and I'm representing Vietnam!

For me to be the one here representing Vietnam on "MasterChef"...

( cheering )

You're doing great. You're doing great.

I come from a very small fishing village off the coast of Bangladesh.

Seafood heavy dishes are something

that we take pride in.

And of course, it's not Bengali cuisine

without masala spices.

I'm really excited to see how my Brooklyn

and my Bengali roots come together in this dish.

Let's go. Man! It smells good.

- Hello. How are you? - Oh, my God! Hi!

Oh, my goodness me. Good to see you.

- Hi. Nice to meet you. - First name is?

- And first name is? - Shampa.

Shampa, good to see you. And this is your--

- This is my husband. - Husband. Congratulations.

- That smells good. Really good, indeed. - Thank you!

- Yeah, yes. - So tell me about the dish. What you doing?

Shampa: Today, we're doing a halibut bhuna

- with a side of fragrant dal. - Right.

- And some basmati rice. - I love that idea.

It's a tough one to get right because there's no fat in the halibut.

- Yes. - So you are in danger of that fish going dry.

- Yes. - Bhuna. So you're going down the sort of tomato gravy,

- masala base, caramelized onions, ginger. - Yes! Yes!

- Bruh, have you been to Bangladesh? - Have I been to Bangladesh?

- I think I've been there more times than you. - What? You probably have.

You're coming up to nearly halfway.

- Yes. - Just over 25 minutes to go.

- Give her some love, everybody! - Okay, thank you.

- Let's go! - Whoo!

- You're doing great. - Young man.

- What's up, Chef? - How are you, captain?

- I'm doing well. Foo. - Good to see you. Foo.

- Representing Vietnam. - Vietnam.

- Yes, sir. - I'll be honest with you--

Oh, Foo. Foo, Foo, Foo, careful.

- Sorry, sorry, sorry. No. - Is it a race?

Do you want a race? Are you in a rush?

- You trying to get out? - I'm racing myself.

- Slow down, Foo. - I'll slow down.

- What's the dish? - Today, we're making a crispy

Vietnamese shrimp, crab, and pork egg roll

- with a dashi dipping sauce. - Wow.

- It's all about the filling. - You're right, Chef.

How are you going to elevate this thing? Where are we going with it?

It's predominantly a pork-filled egg roll that my mom made.

My mom is the true MasterChef in my house.

- Love that. - I wanted to apply

the seafood aspect to it as well.

Right. Do you know what Foo means in Vietnam?

- It means luck. - Good ( bleeping ) luck. Let's go.

- That's what I'm talking about. - Let's go.

- Let's go! Let's go! - Don't cut those fingers.

- ( cheering ) - Whoo!

Let's go.

Let's go, Asia!

- ( hooting ) - Ay-yi-yi.

There's a lot of technical skills in making this dish.

Don't break on me, egg roll. Don't break on me.

If the egg rolls get cooked too long, they can dry out.

So the dish in itself appears to be simple,

but there's a lot of complexity to it.

- I got to start plating. - You're making good time.

All right. That rice is perfect.

- Ten, nine, eight... - It's okay. You got it.

- six, five... - Killing it right now.

...four, three, two, one. - You're doing great.

( cheering, hooting )

Oh, my God!

Welcome. Tell us about the dish.

My name is Foo. I'm from Irvine, California.

Today, I made some Vietnamese crab, shrimp, and pork egg rolls

with a dashi dipping sauce and herb cabbage salad.

When we immigrated here to the United States,

people helped my family establish some work,

school for the kids,

and then my mom wanted to pay gratitude to those people.

- Wow. - But she had no money in her pocket,

so she made egg rolls, and we delivered them out to these friends.

- Did you bring her with you? - No.

- Sadly, my mom has dementia. - I'm sorry.

And so that's why it's so important to me.

Let's honor her by trying her recipe.

- Thank you. - Shall we?

Yep. Let's go.

Right, to the naked eye,

they look simple and a little bit pedestrian.

Although this is a nice dish, it's an egg roll.

Is it enough? So we'll have to see,

and that'll come through the taste.

Gordon: Shall we?

I have to say, this tastes nothing like a spring roll

that I've ever had in a restaurant.

All right, Foo, I have to say that this tastes nothing

like a spring roll that I've ever had in a restaurant.

It tastes nothing like I've ever had before.

This tastes of history, culture, family.

- 100% yes for me. - Gordon: Wow.

Sometimes I feel like spring rolls in general

can be just kind of one-dimensional.

Yes, it's crunchy, but not juicy in the inside.

This is juicy. It's a really good bite.

And I'm talking about a bite in a spring roll,

which is kind of crazy to me that I'm saying this.

It's delicious. And even the dipping sauce feels a bit elevated.

- It's a yes for me. - Thank you, Chef.

Oh, that's two yeses, Foo. So you need three.

What do you think, Gordon?

What you've done with the ratio of the crab to the pork

to the seasoning is exceptional.

There's a precision here that is absolutely tight,

bound beautifully, but seasoned impeccably.

- Thank you. - I suppose the problem I've got now is that...

your mother is not here to put this on.

Whoo!

- Congratulations, bud. - Thank you, Chef.

You've done yourself proud, your mother proud,

and keep flying that Vietnamese flag high.

- Great job. - Thank you.

( cheering )

I feel amazing. I feel so happy.

Not only am I representing Vietnam,

but I'm also representing my mom's recipes.

I know confidently, if she was here, she'd be very proud.

Let's go!

So, welcome. What is your name and what did you prepare for us?

My name is Shampa.

I'm representing Bangladesh today.

I prepared for you a traditional halibut bhuna

with a side of fragrant rice and dal.

I was born in Bangladesh, and then I moved to Brooklyn

when I was a few months old.

What does it feel like to be Bangladeshi

and live in a city like New York?

New York runs on Bangladeshis, man.

Like, we are such welcoming, hospitable people.

Bangladeshi people are amazing. They're some of the best cooks.

But you picked halibut.

Halibut's a deep water fish, very dense.

It can be dry. It can be tough.

If you nailed it, it could pay off. Shall we take a look?

- Shall we? - Yeah.

Visually, it looks elegant, right? I can smell it.

It's fragrant-- the masala, the base.

It looks very good, indeed.

- Thank you. - Shall we try it?

- Shall we? - Yeah.

Who's the chili for? Is that for Joe?

Yeah, it's for herb. I mean, it's traditional.

You've got to take a bite and then eat the food.

- That's just how we do it. - This stuff is spicy.

I'm-- wait for that later.

- Scaredy cat. - Yeah, you are.

Hee-hee.

So, tonight, you need three yeses to get your hands on an apron.

Um, let's deal with the protein. The fish is cooked beautifully.

- Joe: Yeah. - It's delicious. And the rice is beautifully seasoned.

The only thing that pulls this dish down,

the dal needs a touch more seasoning, if I'm honest.

The hardest part here was definitely the fish,

- and it's just gorgeous. - Yeah. Yeah.

I tasted the sauce. It was fabulous.

Like, there was spice, richness.

- That is a wonderful flavor. - Joe: Yeah.

I'm so shocked that the halibut is cooked the way it is.

- It's like really, really professionally cooked. - Thank you.

The rice is fluffy. The masala is appropriate.

All those compliments aside, in a competitive region

like Asia-Pacific, is it good enough for an apron?

- So let's start with Gordon. - It's beautifully executed.

You have this feisty persona that has a lot more to give, I think.

I do. I have a lot. I have a lot in me.

For me it's a resounding yes.

- Ooh. One yes. - I love the dish.

I mean, it's stunning. So I have to say yes because that's done well.

- Thank you. - Interesting.

- Are you a real New Yorker? - I'm a real New Yorker.

Joe, you left New York 10 years ago, kid.

- Once a New Yorker, always a New Yorker. - Exactly.

I have one thing to say. It's say yes.

- Stop! Oh, my goodness. - Congratulations.

- Great job. - Stop! Thank you so much.

It's okay, baby.

( gasping, laughing )

I just didn't get this apron for me today.

I got it for all the Bangladeshi women,

like our moms, our aunts, our sisters,

everyone that always doubted themselves.

The ones that know how to cook this cuisine,

this one is for all of you.

- Delicious. Absolutely delicious, yeah. - Oh, so good.

That's three aprons down. Only two to go.

- There's a lot of great cooks out there. - Yeah.

And it's a greater responsibility for us

in selecting who we give these aprons to.

It's a big responsibility this year.

( cheers and applause )

- Man. - You got it, babe.

Come on, Tony.

( cheering )

I'm gonna try to push that lamb. That's gonna be the last thing on the plate.

I'm Jaime, I'm from Queens, New York,

and today I'm representing Malaysia.

Hi, My name is Iman. I'm from Maryland.

I'm representing Afghanistan,

or as they say in Maryland, "Afghanistan."

My name is Tony, I'm from Minneapolis, Minnesota,

and I'm representing South Korea.

I am making an elevated miso-marinated ribeye

with kimchi fried rice.

I'm adopted from South Korea,

so I grew up having this on arrival day,

the day that I came to America.

My mom would whip up some delicious Korean food here.

So this is kind of an elevated twist

on something I had growing up at home.

Being a Korean adoptee, finding my identity through food

is something that I'm really proud of,

and so I want to be able to share that with other Korean adoptees.

Today I am making qabuli palau.

It's lamb with honey-glazed carrots and herb chutney.

In Afghan culture, what we do is we serve food

on large platters. It's a whole buffet.

I'm a buffet of a personality myself. I don't fit on one small plate.

So I'm really excited to share that with everyone here in the MasterChef kitchen.

Yeah, it smells really nice. So beautiful.

- Aww, thank you. - The food, too.

- One minute, babe. - All right.

- Yeah, we're good. - Love the colors.

- So pretty. - Yeah.

Six, five, four, three, two, one.

- Love you, Mom. - I love you.

( muted chatter )

Welcome, young man. Please tell us your name, where you're from,

and the heritage behind the plate.

My name is Tony, I am from Minneapolis, Minnesota,

and for today I've made for you miso-marinated ribeye with kimchi fried rice.

And I'm representing South Korea.

Excellent. Let's talk visuals first.

Joe: I'm drawn to the rice.

It looks crispy. It looks really good.

The steak, it's a little poached.

I'd love to have a steak with a little bit more of a crust on it, and a sear.

- You must be disappointed with that sear. - I am. You know,

that doesn't really define me as a chef.

Tiffany: What temp were you going for?

135, just to get it medium-rare.

Gordon: But this is medium already going to medium well.

The rice is delicious. You got that acidity and the heat from the kimchi.

But I've go to take you to task.

The ribeye, one of the most

expensive cuts, is overcooked,

and lacking that incredible sear

that you need on the ribeye.

Sadly, for me, it's a no. I'm so sorry.

- Thank you, guys. - Thank you.

Hi, my name is Iman, and I've made for you qabuli palau.

It's lamb with a honey-glazed carrots and herb chutney.

Where did you get your love for cooking?

Honestly, cooking for me was my stress outlet through graduate school.

- I have my PhD in sociology. - Mm.

I'm not just here for the apron. I'm here for the trophy.

- Ooh. - I'm going to be the first MasterChef from Afghanistan.

- Do you have a family. Who do you cook for? - Oh, absolutely.

Yeah, so actually my two-year-old daughter

is obsessed with you, Chef Tiffany.

- Oh. - Amazing.

She's your biggest fan.

Butter me up. I like it.

Joe: So you're looking at the three of us.

Can you do a brief sociological evaluation?

You know what, Joe? I think you get a wrong read.

You're just a nice East Coast guy who is saying it straight.

- You're just being honest. - Right.

And I think people need a dose of honesty sometimes.

- And what's his excuse? - Joe.

Gordon is a sweetheart. He's America's sweetheart,

even though he's British.

Tiffany: America's sweetheart?

- Joe: Even though he's British. - Yeah.

All right, what do you think, Gordon? How's it look?

Listen, Iman, it smells good. But, you know,

true to test, it needs to fall off that bone.

Sticky, unctuous, and everything you want from lamb.

- And how long did you cook it for? - Probably 40 minutes.

First, spiced it, and then I seared it,

and then I put it in the pressure cooker.

- It's a bit overcooked. - No.

For me, I love the chutney over the rice. The lamb is dry.

We have five aprons to give out for the whole region.

The plate is actually quite good, but a protein like that, I can't let it pass.

So for me, it's a no. I apologize.

- Thank you. - Thank you, Iman.

Aww.

It's okay.

It's always sad to say no, but we've got to keep the standards super high this year.

Gordon: If you can't nail the protein, you've got no chance.

- Yeah. - What a shame.

Now we don't have a sociologist,

which this group could use, quite frankly.

- Do you need some tender loving care? - I'm different than you,

because I at least admit what's wrong with us.

Us? Wait a minute. How did we get an us?

- There's a lot. Us. - I think I'm the most normal.

Joe, did you miss your therapist this morning?

- You look so hot. - Oh, yeah!

- Whoo! - Go, Fatima!

Ooh. She measures with the heart.

- She does. - Measuring with the heart.

- Measuring with the heart. - Let's go.

- ( cheers and applause ) - Hey!

- Good evening. - Hi! Good evening!

- Likewise. This is? - Jaime. I'm Jaime.

- Nice to meet you. - Jaime, welcome. Good to see you.

- And this is? - These are my three best friends.

Nice to see you. Please. Good to see you.

Tell me about the dish. What are you doing?

I am making Malaysian style wagyu beef skewers

- with a coconut rice. - Love that.

I really want to put Malaysian food on the map.

I love that. And day job?

When you're not cooking, what are you doing full-time?

I am a cooking content creator.

So I cook online. I also do live streaming.

How many followers do you have now?

I think on all my platforms,

probably a little over two million.

Gordon: That is incredible. Two million. That is amazing.

- Well done. - But I'm not here for followers.

I'm here to prove myself.

I'm here to prove that my food can taste good.

- This smells amazing, okay? - Yes.

- Do not overcook that wagyu. - I won't.

- Okay? Good luck, yes? - Thank you so much!

Let's go!

- Mmm. - Whoo!

Yes, Jaime!

This dish is really important to me

because my dad used to make it for me.

My dad is a big influence to my cooking.

Just seeing him when I was little with his giant wok, flames everywhere,

it feels like street food from Malaysia.

You don't even have to go to Malaysia to try it

'cause I had it at home all the time.

Tell me when I have a minute.

- My sense of time is not good! - You have a minute, baby.

One minute flat.

Wow. That char? Oh, my God.

- Go, Jaime. - Okay, you got this, Jaime.

- Go! - Five, four, three, two, one.

( cheering )

I've achieved a lot in social media,

but "MasterChef" is the one thing I need

to prove to myself that I can cook.

But also, my dream is to open a food truck with my dad

because I want to showcase Malaysian street food together.

- Hello, hello. - Hello.

I'm Jaime. I'm from Queens, New York. I'm Chinese Malaysian.

And today I have made wagyu beef satay

with peanut sauce and coconut rice.

My dad used to make this dish for me when I was younger

using leftover chicken meat,

and I wanted to elevate it by using some wagyu.

Yeah, you've definitely elevated it.

You just stuck $400 on there. Why wagyu?

So the wagyu really fits the marinated Malaysian spices

because it has more fat and less water content.

- So it ends up being really yummy. - Shall we?

- Yeah. - Both: Let's go.

Please!

I love the char that you have on the skewers.

Rice looks great. Love a little pickle.

Honestly, this is a beautiful plate of food.

- Thank you so much. - Gordon: Shall we?

- Yes. - So how long do you cook these for?

You know, in Malaysia, we don't really have a time in our head.

You cook with your eyes, right?

It's kind of a feeling, yeah.

And then what have you got in the rice?

It's cooked with coconut milk

to give it that coconut-y fragrance.

This is definitely giving street food vibes in all the best kind of way.

You elevated this plate in many ways,

from using the wagyu, which I personally love.

- Thank you! - I mean, who doesn't love unctuousness?

Um, it's fatty in a really nice way with all of the rice and all the peanut,

and all that flavor is really coming through.

- It's a yes. - Gordon: Joe, please.

For me, it's a resounding yes.

Thank you so much. Thank you, guys.

Right, flavor-wise, it's 100% there.

There's no two ways about that. It's authentic, it's delicious.

From the first bite, 100% yes. Congratulations.

- Oh! - Thank you!

You guys won't regret this. Thank you!

- Put it on. - Thank you. Oh, my gosh.

Thank you so much.

No matter what happens, we're there for her.

( squealing )

You got it! You got it! You got it!

( music playing )

I got the apron!

I wanted to prove that my dishes not only look good, but they taste good.

And I think I've done that, but I still have so much more to show.

- Yeah! - Yeah!

Guys, we've got just one apron left tonight.

- Woohoo! - All right.

It's gonna be a big decision.

We've got to measure this one very carefully.

- Yes! - Whoo!

- Time? - 35.

- Thank you. - You got this.

- Keep it up. - You got time. You got plenty of time.

My name is Fatima, I'm from Chicago, Illinois,

and I'm representing Pakistan. Whoop, whoop!

My name's Daniel, I'm 23, and I'm representing China.

As a Chinese person born in America,

I really struggled with my identity.

But food has always been a connection to that identity.

I started cooking when I was around eight years old.

And then while I was in college,

I noticed so many students didn't know how to cook.

So then I started my campus' culinary club

because I really cared about making cooking and food

and food more accessible for students.

- You got it. You got it. - Both: Yeah!

- Good! - Whoo!

- Yeah! - Go!

- Go, Fatima! - Come on!

- 20 minutes, honey. - 20 minutes?

- Yeah. - Okay.

I was born and raised in Karachi, Pakistan,

and I moved to the US when I was 15 years old.

I really learned how to cook from my mom.

I always watched her cooking in the kitchen.

Her food brought so much joy to the people in her life.

- Oh, that smells really good. - Yeah?

And I wanted to recreate that in my life with my family and my children.

It smells good. Let's go!

- Good evening. - Good evening.

And welcome to "MasterChef."

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

- And first name is? - Fatima.

- Nice to meet you, sir. - Tell me, what are you cooking

and where does it originate from?

I'm making a lamb chops masala.

It is from Pakistan.

Originally, my mom used to make it with goat.

- Mm-hmm. - But for "MasterChef," I'm using lamb.

The masala, are you doing your own masala?

I'm making a tomato onion-based masala

with all the traditional spices.

And then I'm gonna finish it with a hot honey glaze.

Wow, wow, wow. I didn't get that last time I was in Pakistan.

Hot honey glaze.

How good is mom's cooking on a scale of one to ten?

- Ten out of ten. - Ten. Ten.

Ten? I love that.

- 12. - 12?

- Fatima, very best of luck. - Thank you.

Both: Pleasure meeting you

Thank you so much.

- Right. - Hey, Gordon.

- How are you? - I'm doing great.

- This is a kitchen, not a gym. - Aww, well, it could be both.

Honestly, if your parents were here,

I'd tell them to dress you properly.

Is this your brother or your dad?

- Dad. Dad. - Yeah, he looks young. I know he does.

- Stop it. This is your son? - Yeah.

- I'm Shirley. - Shirley, how are you?

I can't believe I'm shaking hands with Chef Ramsay.

I can't believe I'm standing here with your son half naked.

- Yeah! - Honestly, dude, my three daughters are watching.

- Can you not get dressed? - Tell them I say hi.

Hold on! This is not a dating kitchen.

It's a kitchen that is for cooking.

Now that you're dressed in your gym kit, give me 10 press-ups.

Let's go! Ten, let's go.

One, two, three,

four, five, six,

- seven, eight, nine, ten. - Let's go, baby!

- Yes! Yes! - ( overlapping shouting )

- There you go. - Right, tell me about the dish. What are you doing?

Yeah, so today I'm making a tofu and ricotta ravioli

with a mapo sauce and a rice tuile.

A tofu ricotta ravioli.

Mapo tofu is one of the first dishes my mom taught me how to make.

That fragrance from those Sichuan peppers,

- so it's floral, exciting. - Yes.

- It's hot, it's spicy, it's sweet. - Exactly.

Tell me about the raviolis.

I'm making the ravioli by scratch.

Got the dough resting right now, filling in the freezer.

- It's gonna be amazing. - Very best of luck, yes?

- Yeah, thank you. - Thank you.

- Nice. - Time?

- 5:40. - Where's the honey?

- Honey's right there. - Right here.

Oh, my gosh!

( gasping, laughing )

Whew.

- You're good. You're good. - You're good, yeah.

- You got it, Fatima! - 90 seconds.

- 90 seconds? - 90, 90.

Go, Fatima!

( overlapping shouting )

- Crowd: One minute! - Oh, my God.

- You got it, Daniel! - Yeah.

Ten, nine, eight, seven, six,

five, four, three, two, one!

( cheering )

- Oh, yeah! - Let's go, baby!

That was good. That was really good.

So proud of you. So proud of you.

Go, Daniel!

Hey! Welcome, welcome.

My name is Daniel, and today I made a tofu and ricotta ravioli

with a mapo sauce and a rice tuile,

and I'm representing China.

I've made a lot of traditional Chinese food,

but I really wanted to push myself this time.

So I also love to make pasta, and I know Joe loves pasta.

I do, I'm just kind of baffled

that you're representing China with ravioli.

- But I'm ready for anything. - It's a noodle, Joe.

- A dumpling, essentially. - It's great. It's great.

- It's an Italian dumpling. - There's no more rules.

My name is Fatima, I'm from Pakistan,

and today I've made for you lamb chops masala

with a hot honey glaze and braised onions.

Gordon: It smells good. Really good.

Tiffany: This is one of those dishes where I feel like

there's nowhere to hide. I only see meat,

- sauce, and a few onions. - Sauce, yes.

- Definitely, yeah. - You know? So everything has to be mind-blowing.

- Definitely. I get that. - You're scruffy, right?

- Yeah. - These look elegant.

And they're super thin 'round the outside here, which is lovely.

But it's about the center of that ravioli.

So tell me about the ratio of tofu and ricotta inside.

So it's half tofu and half ricotta, because I tried many different--

but I thought this offered the best texture and the best taste.

- What's the drizzle on top? - The drizzle is a doubanjiang oil,

which is a fermented chili bean paste.

It's like a Chinese bolognese.

It is! That's what it reminds me of.

Wow.

Gordon: How long did you cook them for?

About six minutes.

Tiffany: And the lamb chops are not cooked in the sauce?

They're not cooked in the sauce.

I just coated them in the sauce.

Fatima, the masala is delicious.

It's fragrant, it's rich, it's spicy.

But it doesn't need the honey,

especially when you made the masala that good,

- I'll be honest with you. - Fair. Yes.

I've got to take you to task on the lamb,

because my lamb is actually undercooked.

Um, I wish you'd used goat.

I make it at home with the goat.

Some dishes win or lose based on the choice of ingredients,

- and this was a poor choice. - Okay.

- So for me, it's a no. - Thank you, Fatima.

- Thank you. - Okay. Thank you.

Tofu can be unwanted sometimes.

It's very hard to make it flavorsome.

But you've whipped that ricotta beautifully.

The ground pork, the sauce is delicious.

- It's bloody good. Well done. - Thank you.

The little bit of that fermentation that's happening

with the little spices is really nice.

This is a very well-executed dish, Daniel.

- Thank you so much, Chef. - So it's a yes for me.

- It's a yes? - 100%.

All right. Come here a second.

You got, you got-- come here, come here.

You got two yeses, and I'm still not sure.

You speak any Italian? Let's just try it.

You've got to just say this, man.

- ( speaking Italian ) - Very nice!

- Bravo! Bravo! - Thank you so much, Joe. Thank you guys so much.

- Great job, Daniel. - Pull up your pants.

Oh, yeah.

- Let's go! - ( cheering )

Let's go!

Yeah!

He's got potential.

He could be one of our heavy-lifting stars

on the Asia-Pacific team.

This is better than some of the pasta I've tasted in Italy.

- Delicious. - Whoa!

I really can't believe it.

I mean, I've worked so hard for this moment,

and I'm really grateful to be here.

- Aww, I love you guys. - We love you.

Representing China, having my amazing family here,

it really means everything to me.

- So proud of you. - Yay.

Gordon: What a territory.

I think we've tasted some of the best food.

- It was the diversity and the energy. - Yeah.

I knew Asia-Pacific would raise the bar, and it did.

Tiffany: But you know Africa's coming in!

Joe: Oh, Africa's going to be interesting.

That's the one I'm most curious about.

- Two territories down, two more to go. - Exciting.

Next time on "MasterChef: Global Gauntlet"...

Tonight is our third intense qualifier round.

the audition rounds continue...

- Whoo-whoo! - Smooth!

- You know it! - ...as the Africa territory

battles it out for the white apron.

Round three, Africa. Could be the knockout punch.

- Whoo! - What am I doing?

I burnt my leeks. ( bleep )

The duck's cooked beautifully.

It looks like something out of a Michelin star restaurant.

It's like nothing I've ever tasted before,

- and kind of blowing my mind. - Can I just be honest?

It's good!

This rice is overcooked, starchy.

It doesn't have enough of that African flavor.

Straight to the point, it's a no.