All language subtitles for MasterChef.The.Professionals.S16E17.1080p.iP.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-VTM

It's the Professional MasterChef
semifinals.

Last time, Kyle and Philippe
were sent home.

Now the best six will be split
into two groups

and sent to cook
under some of the UK's finest chefs.

We have, like, two minutes.

Lauren, we need to go.

Let's make sure
they're the best you can do, yeah?

Tonight, the first group battle

to secure their place
in finals week.

22-year-old head chef Charlie,

29-year-old sous-chef Lauren

and 24-year-old sous-chef Tom.

I'd say right now I'm feeling
the pressure more than ever.

It's high stakes now.

Pretty much someone leaves
every round from here on out,

so just hopefully it won't be me.

This is a place in the final four.

There's no playing around.

We've got to get in and get it done

and it's got to be perfect.

Every time we come to cook,

it's the most important one yet.

It definitely feels like a fight.

The competition gets hotter.

Our chefs are so close
to the finals.

The pressure for these chefs
is immense.

They've got to keep it together.

It's early morning in central London

and Tom, Lauren and Charlie

are en route to a restaurant
recently ranked

inside the top 50 in the world.

Ikoi, run by one of the UK's

most unconventional culinary stars,
Jeremy Chan.

I grew up in Hong Kong.

Cantonese cuisine
is very stimulating,

has many different types of spices
seafood, vegetables, meat.

I think that's definitely had
a big influence

on the way I think about food.

Jeremy moved to the UK at
eight years old and went on to study

languages and philosophy
at University in London.

After graduating, Jeremy spent
two years working in finance

before realising it wasn't for him.

I couldn't release all my energy.

Working in an office kind of
just made me very frustrated,

and I found cooking was something
that could be intellectually

very stimulating

and also physically very demanding.

Jeremy quit his job
and began cooking in restaurants

in London and Europe.

After just a few stages,

he decided to start
his own food venture

alongside close friend and
business partner Ire Hassan-Odukale.

You know, we started with frying
doughnuts in his mum's basement

and begging people to allow us to do
pop-ups in their spaces.

We had a very difficult
first few years

building the reputation
of the business.

After two years experimenting
and honing his unique food style,

Jeremy started to gain recognition

and in 2017 opened Ikoyi

in central London.

Ikoyi is named after Ire,

my business partner's birth place
in Nigeria.

My dad's Chinese,
and spice is a big part of my DNA,

and with Ire as well.

So we've really kind of honed
that approach -

how we look at spice

and how we apply it
to beautiful ingredients.

So it doesn't become boring,
it doesn't become repetitive.

It still adds
that little bit of magic.

The restaurant's ideology
is about accepting

and interpreting multiculturalism.

My food is about celebrating a way
of eating with many different types

of taste, stimulation and flavour.

Each dish is a layering of many
different types of experiences

and ideas and bringing that together
in one experience.

For some people,
that will make no sense.

It's chaos, it's meaningless.

And for me, that's exciting.

Within five years of opening,

the 28-cover restaurant was awarded

the prestigious accolade
of two Michelin stars.

Getting the second star was sort
of a crazy moment of recognition.

I felt like we deserved it,

but it was also very surreal.

I wanted to eat here for ages

and, unfortunately,
it wasn't quite in my budget.

So to come here and be able
to, like, see it,

be able to cook, is like a dream.

Like, super excited,
if you can't tell.

Nothing's ever going
to be easy in a two-star,

but I'm looking forward
to the challenge

and doing something
that I've never done before

and a style of food
I've never cooked before as well.

I think my plan
going into this kitchen

is just to not say anything
unless I'm spoken to.

I want to make a good impression

and not seem like
a little gobby chef.

I'm nervous for them, to be honest,
because

Ikoyi is not a traditional kitchen

and what they need to do is forget
everything that they thought

they knew about cooking
and come with an open mind,

as if they've never cooked before.

Hi, guys.

We have a very busy day today.

We're doing lunch service,

so follow me and let's get going.

The semifinalists will each
be responsible for cooking a dish

from Jeremy's
18-course tasting menu.

Sous-chef Lauren, whose food
so far has been influenced

by her Caribbean heritage,

will kick off service
with an octopus dish

that uses spices
from three different continents.

This dish is about
how we like to explore

many different flavours at once

and just give you
this multifaceted experience.

We have a charcoal grill here,

and Arj is going to cook this
for you.

We brush it in siu butter.

This is one of our secret weapons,
the siu butter.

So we have a lot of different things
going on there.

We have West African spices,
we have Chinese spices,

we have Mexican spices.

We just make this, like,
unbelievably powerful,

deep, rich flavour.

More bold flavour comes
from the dish's garnishes.

This is English asparagus.

And we made a glaze
with overripe plantain

mixed with some home-made miso,
some roasted garlic.

Karashina is
a Japanese mustard leaf.

When you barbecue them, it somehow
transforms that bitterness

into this very, like, meaty taste.

The octopus is served
with Jeremy's own take

on a Nigerian moin moin.

So the moin moin, it's kind
of like a bean cake dumpling

made with steamed pulses.

Mine has made
with summer cauliflower,

hen-of-the-wood mushrooms

that have been braised in dark beer.

They're pretty out there, like,
random combinations,

but they work really well together.

It's really clever. I've just seen
the classic moin moin. Yeah.

During service,
Lauren will have the challenge

of forming perfect quenelles
of an emulsion

with flavours of
a classic Nigerian spinach stew.

We use all the spices
that you'd use in an efo stew,

and we infuse them
into a neutral oil.

Efo is one of my favourite Nigerian
stews, so... That's awesome.

There's only three people
on our team that can do this.

No pressure at all, then, fine.

Caramelised onions that have been
braised with green olives.

This is the agrodolce.

This is a sauce which we make with

winter tomatoes and wine.

Here's our beautiful octopus.

The dish is then finished
with the barbecued karashina leaves.

And then they're just dressed
with this really light beurre blanc.

And the spiced plantain

and miso-glazed asparagus.

So next component,
this is our moin moin.

So we have some truffle here,

and then we have Cornish lobster,

which we make into a salad

and some crispy seaweed on top.

So this is the serving
that we're going to be preparing

for our guests today.

Nice.

There's so many different types of
cooking techniques

in that one dish - the steaming,

the caramelisation
of the moin moin dumpling,

cooking the octopus,
cooking the vegetables -

so it's quite a challenging one
for them.

I think if you gave me a list
of all the flavours' ingredients

on a piece of paper,
I would think you're mad.

But having it on a plate
and seeing it, it's genius.

It's a good challenge,

but I'm up for it.

24-year-old sous-chef Tom works
at a luxury hotel

with his chef father

and loves to cook the classics.

He'll be in charge of a dish
featuring one of Jeremy's

most prized ingredients -

British beef.

So we just develop that first
beautiful crust on the beef.

The beef dish is about
our passion for beef.

It's about representing British beef
in an exceptional and unique way.

And then how we cook it as well
is really interesting to me.

I had some incredible beef
and travelling in Spain

cooked over wood, fire and charcoal.

I wanted to combine a little bit
of that element of cooking it too,

just to give it
that smoky, deep flavour.

The rib of beef
is brushed in a glaze

made from Japanese tamari,

a fermented soybean sauce,

shiitake mushrooms

and an apple juice reduction.

So while the beef is resting,
we're going to cook the rice.

The beef is served with an indulgent
take on one of West Africa's

most iconic dishes -

jollof rice.

And we have this incredible

four-month-aged beef fat,
which we use to cook the rice.

When I eat this rice,
it tastes like eating a burger.

It's a really tough dish.

I think people overlook rice,
they think it's just rice,

but actually to do it exceptionally
requires skill.

What you're looking for
is a crispy texture,

loose grains,

and the rice not sticking
to the pan.

The plating begins with
a smoked pepper and aubergine sauce,

followed by Jeremy's
green goddess dressing

made from grilled cucumber juice,

green chillies and Greek yoghurt.

This is our beautiful rib.

And you're going to have to portion
it like this. OK. Per guest.

And then we glaze it with onions
and rosemary and caramel.

The last elements to plate

are a courgette stuffed
with spiced rye porridge

and a beef
and peppercorn reduction.

So this is our rice

and this is the lobster custard.

I think it adds a really creamy,

umami shellfish depth.

And then for the final step,
smoke the rice.

So every single guest in our
restaurant that comes to eat here

gets this for their main course.

How do you feel about making this?

Yeah, good. I mean,
I was hoping to get your beef.

Over the moon doing this one.
Awesome.

Good luck with it. Thank you.

It's just so amazing to see how they
get so many different wild flavours

and mix them all together
and balance it out so well.

Fingers crossed I don't bodge it up.

22-year-old Charlie is the youngest
chef left in the competition

and is head chef of a seafood
restaurant in Cornwall.

He'll be working the pastry section,

taking charge
of one of Jeremy's complex

and intricate desserts.

So we have some yoghurt,

and we whip it with a little bit
of Madagascan vanilla.

Then we do some pieces
of rose meringue.

You have to have an eye for detail.

On top of the meringue,

we have a hibiscus jelly

with some rose champagne
and spices.

The expectation for detail
that we have here is...

It's pretty high.

The jelly is topped with a
strawberry and timur pepper sorbet.

It's a Nepalese variety
of peppercorn.

It tastes like bubble gum

and has this really candied,
like, flavour to it.

If you look at the way
that I'm doing this,

I'm not scraping my spoon
on the side of the container. Yeah.

I'm literally rounding out
the sorbet

directly so that I can get
a perfect sphere.

I don't want people to look at that
and think

that someone's done that by hand.

It's almost like an object,
you know.

To finish, Jeremy adds fresh
strawberry and rose petals.

Very elegant.

Thanks.

We're not quite done yet, though.
Yes, Chef.

The dessert is served
with four petits fours.

The desert's something very unique
to us as well.

It's kind of like the multifaceted
way to have your dessert.

We start with the unripe,
salted green strawberry

with fermented Scotch bonnet
and lavender honey.

Then we have the rhubarb hand-cut
jelly, which is infused with

passion berry spice,

wasabi and sansho leaf.

And then we have the Batak
and salted caramel choux

with preserved pine cone.

And then the last bite is

the suya-spiced truffle ganache

with candied hazelnut.

How many other restaurants use this

many types of spices
in sweet servings?

Maybe one or two things,

but not in every single thing.

We're talking about
immaculate textures,

consistency in all the plates.

So, yeah, it's going to be hard.

It is so good.

So, so much detail.

I think there's just nowhere to hide
with it. There's no room for error.

It's midday

and morning prep is almost over.

Guests from all over the country

travel to taste
Jeremy's unique tasting menu.

And today, the three semifinalists
will be in the front line,

delivering to
his two-Michelin-star standards.

I'm excited to see how they react
in this environment.

It could either go really well
or it could be a disaster.

Guests are coming in
and it's getting a bit real now,

but hopefully we'll see it out
to the end, do a good job.

It's going to be stressful
because it's very intricate plating

and you've got to make sure
you're cooking everything

to the perfect, like, degree.

It's like day one all over again.

I feel like I should be over there
washing pots, but here I am.

First up to the pass will be Lauren.

So let's go six octopus.

And she'll have just eight minutes

to deep-fry
her moin moin steam pudding,

blanch her asparagus,

fry Kurashina leaves

and grill the octopus to perfection.

It's definitely a juggling act
between all the elements.

I think you could put some more
tamari on there afterwards,

give it one more glaze. OK.

How are you looking
with the karashina?

Oh, right, let me get that.

It's very delicate.

So I'm having to literally get it
to wilt a little bit

and then take it off.

OK, we need to start moving now,
because we've got to start plating.

It's now down to Lauren
to master the presentation,

starting with a perfect quenelle

of efo emulsion.

Whoo!

Can we get one more plate, please?

Here.

You have to make the shape
smooth there first.

If it's not smooth there,
it's not going to be smooth there.

Yeah, that's OK. Just go straight
up. Yeah, that's better.

OK, let's go with the agrodolce.

Just remember about the speed
of everything,

just to get the temperature
of everything nice and hot.

Lauren is struggling to keep up
with the pace of service,

so Jeremy has to step in.

Let's give Lauren a hand
with building the moin moins, yeah?

That's good. This is five octopus
ready to go.

Table two and three.

Next time,
have a little bit more rhythm.

Let's get the plates set up
a little bit quicker. Yes, Chef.

Normally, speed is definitely my
thing, but I think it's different

when you're thrown into
an environment that you don't...

You're not used to it
and you're trying to get

everything perfect,
so it slows you down

because you're mentally trying
to process everything.

First orders are also in
for Tom's aged rib of beef.

I'm going to do five beef
at the same time, Tom.

Is that good?

Yeah, beautiful.

He'll need to charcoal grill
each portion medium rare...

Maybe ten seconds on each side.
Yeah.

A little less with a thinner piece.

..and fry off his jollof rice
in beef fat.

How's the rice tasting?

Are you happy with it?

It's a question if you're happy
with it, to be honest, Chef.

It smells good.

I think it's really good.
I think you could just turn it up.

You hear that, like, high sizzle?
Yeah. I think it's there now.

OK. Let's get plates out
for the beef.

Is that thick enough?

Yeah, looks good.

To ensure the beef
leaves the pass hot,

Tom has just minutes to plate
the rest of the elements.

Is that...? Go a bit wider.
Little bit wider.

That's not too bad, you know.

And season the beef now. Yep.

Not too much, it's very strong.

Get that on the plate.

Almost touching the puree.

OK, put the courgette there, yeah.

You want to move fast now
because the beef's cooling down,

so you want to start moving quickly.

OK, let's get the jus on there.

OK, this is ready to go.

We need to get this rice out,
so don't slow down.

Let's smoke these rice. Yeah.

Is that enough?

Service, please.

I wasn't super happy with the beef.

I think the temperature
is a bit low. So the next round,

we need to get the beef temperature
up nice and quickly.

It's a lot more steps
than I'm used to,

but obviously
it's an amazing kitchen,

so it's to be expected.

In the dessert section,

Charlie's also under pressure.

Yoghurt at the bottom. Yeah.

Happy? That's good, that's good.

He needs to quickly but delicately

plate the pepper sorbet dish

before tackling
the four petits fours.

Go as fast as you can.

Now let's go with the sorbet.

Remember what I showed you?
To go in and turn your hand,

not scraping it up on the side.

Hoping that my Rocher skills
have come out to play today.

Fingers crossed
I can get that nailed.

We need to get the shape of this
a little sharper.

Yes, oui.

Put it down
with a little bit more force.

We don't have long and then we need
to do the petits fours, yeah?
Yes, oui.

Service, please.

I think these need
a little reshaping. Oui.

And we need something refined
that looks handmade

but still looks very sharp. Oui.

Mini bane of my life is
these little chocolate truffles.

They are, er...

..intensely hard to get right.

Try and get the fig jam
a bit more centred.

OK, now let's go, er,

jellies.

It's quite difficult to get
everything bang-on, but I'm trying.

The petits fours
are looking stunning.

Oui. Thank you, Chef.

OK.

Ready to go.

Service, please.

Trying to get to grips with a dish

I haven't done before
is quite tricky,

but I'm making it work.

It's one o'clock
and lunch service is at its peak.

For the next one, we're going
to cook the next ten, yeah? OK.

Having needed help
on her first orders,

it's now down to Lauren

to prove she can independently
master the plating.

I'm hoping to pick up the pace now.

OK, we have less than five minutes.

We need to go quickly. Yes, Chef.

Let's go, faster, faster, faster.

Keep going, keep going, keep going.

We have, like, two minutes, Lauren.
We need to go.

Lauren's stepped up the pace...

Just missing an octopus here.
Where's the...?

..but in doing so, has lost track

on the number of octopus
she needed to cook.

I mean, missing one octopus.

So we're down on one octopus,

so we're going to slice
this one, guys. Yes, Chef.

OK, let's send it.

I'm not really sure
how that happened,

but we got the plates out
in the end, which is important.

Given that it's her first time,

I think it's really encouraging
to see someone...

..you know, trying so hard.

On the beef,
Tom also has multiple orders.

OK, let's go ten beef. Oui.

After a slow start,

it's vital his beef, along
with the rest of the elements,

leave the pass hot.

I just think we need to go
a little bit faster this round. Oui.

Just careful it doesn't burn. Yeah.

Let's cook this. Go on ten rice.

Chef was saying that
he can sort of hear

when the rice isn't cooking well
by the crackle.

And that one's not doing it.

Careful with the temperature
of the pan. Yeah, yeah.

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

The beef looks great.

Let's use two hands. Yeah, oui.

Just pop them on, yeah? Yep.

This one is really, really good.

Let's plate the rice now.

Service, please.

You can start grilling
the next round of beef, yeah?

Service is well
into the second hour...

OK, let's go. Ten sorbet.

..and Charlie is still trying
to master the perfect sorbet sphere.

This one here. Yes, oui.

I feel like if you go faster
and you have a bit of a rhythm,

you're going to be more accurate.

It looks pretty good. Not bad.

OK, and then four more after this,
and then we'll do ten petits fours.

They are getting better.

That's looking really good.

Service, please.

This is definitely a type of detail
that I haven't come across before,

but definitely a level that I enjoy.

With just two tables to serve,

it's Lauren's last chance to prove

she can keep track
of her octopus orders.

So you have to literally grill,
glaze, grill, glaze

and get a really nice char on it
without overdoing it.

See, it's looking really beautiful.

Yeah, you're doing awesome.

This is looking nice.

Service.

Let's take these.

Good job.

Thank you, Chef.

It's a pretty tough one, though,
right? Yeah.

By the end, I felt like
you're plating was really natural

and everything looked really
beautiful, so you did a great job.

Thank you.

Yeah, it was quite stressful,
like, getting things done.

But other than that,
I really enjoyed it

and I'd love to carry on
and do another service,

just to really get the rhythm
and, yeah, get it all out perfect.

How's the beef looking?

I'll be like, two minutes on these.

Two minutes on the beef? Yeah. OK.

Yeah, the beef looks great.

Let's, er, get the sauces ready

and then start carving.

I'm too stressed to enjoy myself.

I'll enjoy myself at the end.

This is looking really good.

Ready to go, ready to go.

To monitor the beef, to get
that beautiful rice texture,

um, I think you did an amazing job.

If you worked here,
I think you could get up

to the standard very quickly.

Thank you. So thank you so much.
Thank you.

With mains finished,

all eyes are on Charlie
to complete service on a high.

All right.

Almost there.

Sorbet next.

So remember to just drop it in
a little bit. Yeah, oui.

Let it fall off your spoon.
Determined to get these four right.

Better, better, better.

It's much, much, much, much better.

Thank you.
Let's keep going like that.

Definitely feel like I'm in more
of a rhythm now than I was.

It's definitely not easy.

Make sure that it is evenly spaced.
Oui.

Yeah, they look great.

Nice job.

How did you find that experience?

Yeah, intense, difficult, very, um,

I think fiddly is the word I'd use,

but I definitely felt more confident
in the quenelle.

I think when I had a bit
more confidence in myself,

I think it felt more natural.

I thought it went very well,
to be honest.

I admire the way that
they threw themselves into it,

and I think everything
was pretty sharp, considering,

so I'm really happy for them.

Service is over.

But the semifinalists face
one more challenge,

to create their own dish,

inspired by what they've learnt
about Jeremy's food.

Don't be afraid to be bold
and take risks.

I love aggressive, intense flavours,

so don't be shy and do something
that inspires you.

They have just one hour.

Their larder includes
dry-aged pork...

..John Dory,

razor clams,

courgettes,

squash,

white strawberries,

and a variety
of Jeremy's global spices.

They smell amazing.
Some of them I have...

I haven't heard of before.

A bit of presh this, innit?

Just don't want to cook something
rubbish, do you know what I mean?

Jeremy's food
was very flavour-driven.

So that's maybe something
that I'm going to try and do today.

The point of this exercise is
for them to show their personality

and their skills.

However, I'm really curious to see

how someone interprets
what we do here.

It's very exciting
to see what's going to happen.

So my plan is to make
a pepper soup broth

and encompass some, like,
West African flavours.

So I've got a Roscoff onion, garlic,

chilli oil, dulse oil,

and some of the spices.

So I've just added the Scotch bonnet
to really get a fruity spice to it.

I've actually only had pepper soup
once, and that was in Nigeria,

but it was one of my favourite
dishes when I was there

and it was served with catfish,

so I'm going to see how that works
with the John Dory.

To accompany her dish,

Lauren has decided to do
a bold take on a pancake.

This is how I've made it,
just flour, water.

Roll it out.

Because the broth is going
to be super spicy,

it's just going to be overpowering,

so I want to do something
a bit different, a bit sweet,

put some strawberries in
and courgettes.

I want there to be a balance
on the side.

Not done this before,
so it could be a crazy risk,

but I'm definitely known
for taking wild risks with flavour.

Lauren talked a little bit
about some of the flavours

and ingredients that she was
inspired by, and she seems

very confident and determined,

so I'm excited
to see what she makes.

Definitely nervous.

See, I hope he likes some elements,
if not all of it. Would be nice.

Lauren has made
a Nigerian-inspired pepper broth,

spiced with Scotch bonnet,

smoked dulse and chilli oil,

served with charcoal-grilled
John Dory

and a pancake filled and topped

with pickled white strawberries
and courgettes.

I've had pepper soup in Nigeria.

It actually reminds me a lot of it.

That was very spicy, the one I had,

and I like how spicy this one is.

The fish is really juicy.

If you're going to a kind
of an aggressive broth like this,

it's important to have, like,
a really meaty,

rich fish like John Dory.

Some people might be like,

"Why are you using unripe
strawberries on a pancake?"

Why not? It's almost like
an unripe tomato. Yes.

I think it's a really good
accompaniment to this dish

because you need something
to kind of soak up

the intensity of the broth.

And I really like that you took
the message of, like, being bold

with the flavours
and not under-delivering.

Having a strong character
and knowing who you are

and what you want to do
is important.

And I think that, and I get
some good ideas from this.

Thank you.

Jeremy's comments were amazing,

like, he understood my vision,

appreciated the flavour combinations
and the reasons why I did it.

In my career,
I've doubted being so bold.

It reassured me that it's OK
just to be myself in the kitchen.

Yeah, I'm happy.

Inspired by the beef he cooked
in service...

Whoa.

..Tom has chosen to centre his dish
around char-grilled pork

spiced with Turkish
red biber chilli flakes.

Sort of cooking the pork similar
to how I cooked the beef.

I'm trying to sort of just show
I've taken on board a bit

of what they've showed me.

To accompany the pork,

Tom is making pan-fried turnips
and karashina leaves,

spiced in Indonesian lemon pepper,

and a squash puree

spiced with an aromatic chilli oil.

It tastes nice.
It's a bit spicy for me,

but I know
that's how Jeremy likes it.

I just made, like,
a little red vinegar,

onion type thing.

What can go wrong, eh?

That was really terrifying,
but I think...

I mean, hopefully it tastes nice.

Hello, Chef. How's it going?

Tom's dish is grilled pork
spiced with red biber chillies,

served with pan-fried turnips

and karashina leaves
flavoured with lemon pepper,

baked-in-charcoal, grilled squash

and squash puree spiced
with an aromatic chilli oil

and a red vinegar,
onion and peppercorn sauce.

It's very tasty.

I would destroy that in, like, five
seconds, probably. Thank you. Yeah.

The pork's cooked really well.

Um, I think it's the, like,
richness of the squash,

there's so much bitterness
in the turnip tops,

I get the peppercorn coming through.

I hope you're inspired
of using the spices.

Yeah, my knowledge of spices
is really limited,

so it's really nice to come here

and see how you sort of use them
in so many things.

It just sort of makes it seem
a little bit less daunting

to use them. Yeah.
Having no fear is really the key.

I think that's probably the scariest
thing I've ever done in my life.

So the fact that he enjoyed it
so much was a nice relief.

Charlie is basing his dish
on a ceviche of John Dory.

So I'm just going to make,
like, a citrus soy sauce

to ceviche the fish.

So I've got lemon juice and zest
in there.

Picked up some of the red biber,

so I'm going to blend this up
to a really fine powder.

So I'm going to use this as like
a dusting to go round the fish.

I'm going to try and crisp up
the John Dory skin.

I've never really done it before,
but we'll see.

To serve with the ceviche,

Charlie's, experimenting
with pickling

and spicing multiple ingredients.

So I've got my baby courgettes here

and I wrapped them in a maple verjus

and a white balsamic
with some of the Batak berry.

And then here I've got
the diced white strawberry,

compressed in juice
from the white strawberry,

and the biber there as well.

That's it. I think
it's very aesthetically pleasing.

I hope it tastes
as good as it looks.

If it does, then maybe
I'll be on to a winner.

Charlie has served
ceviche of John Dory

in a lemon, soy
and red biber chilli dressing,

served with roasted squash mash,

diced white strawberries

in a strawberry
and chilli dressing,

courgettes cooked
in maple verjus,

white balsamic
and Batak berries,

turnips pickled in lemon balm,

and crispy John Dory skin.

The dish looks really refined.

It looks kind of tropical.

I've never really had
anything like it.

I like the way that the vegetables,
the raw and the cooked,

blend together with the fish.

And you don't know
whether you're eating fish

or whether you're eating squash
or whether you're eating courgette.

So I think you did a really good job
creating that unfamiliar sense.

Whether intentional or not,

you've captured the spirit
of this restaurant,

which is to create unfamiliar,

slightly alienating,
unsettling feelings,

while at the same time
being delicious and fresh

and full of flavour.

I think you should be proud
of the work that you've done here.

It's really nice when you get
good feedback on your dishes,

especially from a chef
of that calibre.

I think the biggest thing I'll take
away from this is that there is room

to be more adventurous
and find my own unique personality,

and that's something
that I want to be able to do.

The contestants' time with Jeremy
has come to a close.

It's been a really wonderful
experience for me,

because they all have
their own personalities

and they're all equally dedicated.

Lauren seems to be
very flavour-focused,

and she took bold steps
with her ingredients.

And then Tom, I think his positivity
and his joy of cooking

really comes through in his dishes.

And you can tell it's food that's
made by someone who cares a lot.

Charlie seemed to take a lot
of the creative aspects

of the restaurant, the way
that we think outside the box.

So I think, like, if all three
of them nurture those aspects

of what they did today,

I think they're all going to do
very well.

This has been life-changing. Like,
just to see that there's someone

that is so bold doing well
with two Michelin stars

just shows that there's nothing
that can hold me back

being the way I am. Like,
it is so important just to be you.

Getting to the final six
and having experiences like this

has really driven me more.

The ambition to win the competition
has never been higher for me.

I loved every minute of it.

The standards are obviously so high,
but I can't wait to get back

in the MasterChef kitchen
and sort of just give it my all.

Hopefully, see myself
in the final four.

Welcome back to our kitchen.

I hope you've had a great time
with Jeremy and his team.

Bring that fire into this kitchen.

You know what's at stake.

You're now cooking for your place
in finals week.

At the end of today,

one of you is going to be leaving
the competition.

Chefs, one main course, one dessert,
at a very high level.

An hour and 45 minutes.

Off you go.

Coming from the Ikoyi kitchen
has definitely shaped my mindset

and just my whole approach
to going into the kitchen today.

Literally, bring that excitement
that I have for food,

flavours, bold plating,

and just really just go for it
and not hold back.

Lauren, what are you doing?

So I've taken it right back
to my roots.

I'll be cooking a jerk pork belly.

I've got a breadfruit crisp
with a pickled Scotch bonnet.

I've got a mango hot pepper sauce.

I've also got a fried dumpling with,
like, an escoveitch-style salsa.

So it's essentially, like,
pickled vegetables -

carrot, peppers, onions
and pimentos.

I've made it into a salsa,
so it's a bit sweeter.

And then for dessert, I've got
a hibiscus-compressed pineapple

with a chocolate mousse

and a coconut and basil espuma,

and some candied hazelnuts.

Wow. Lauren, you did bring
some of the flavours that

you grew up with
in the Caribbean before,

and we were really impressed,

but it's been a while
since we've seen that.

Yeah, so I thought it was only right
to bring that back,

because that's what I love
in the kitchen.

It brings that energy into me.

So why not bring it back to try
and get a place in the final?

Lauren has got a beautiful piece
of pork belly.

On the bottom of the tray,
she's got some hickory wood chips,

she's got Scotch bonnet

add some bay leaves as well.

She's covered it over with tinfoil.

She wants to give it a beautiful
charcoal flavour, smoky flavour.

Because I haven't got the barbecue,
the drum,

so I'm trying to imitate that
with the smoke gun

and try and really intensify
the flavours,

and then I'll get it in the oven.
It's pretty strong.

We've got Scotch bonnet
in the hot pepper sauce.

She's also pickling Scotch bonnet.

I just hope that the Scotch bonnet
is under control,

because that is
one hot chilli pepper.

Lauren is making some fried
dumplings, and just before serving,

she's going to cut them open

and scoop some of that vegetable mix
salsa to go inside it.

That sounds wonderful.

Flavours from the Caribbean
that we've loved so far,

and I'm so happy to see that back
in her cooking today.

Lauren's dessert -
she's taken the baby pineapples

and vac-packed them and cooked them
in a water bath with hibiscus.

She's making a chocolate mousse,

and she's going to top that
with a basil and coconut espuma.

So it's going to be very light.

It needs to have body.

It can't just disappear
on the plate.

Chefs, half an hour has gone.

I don't feel pressure.

It's more eager determination
and passion,

and I think those are the ones
that are going to get me through.

Charlie,
how was your time with Jeremy?

Yeah, I really enjoyed it.

What did you take away
from that experience?

I cook very clean food,

but sometimes I think it's good
to go a little bit more adventurous

with things, and that's
something I picked up from there.

What are you cooking?

So I've got a poached and roasted
monkfish, and then with that,

I've got a crispy monkfish cheek,
in breadcrumbs and deep-fried,

a pea and tarragon salsa,

and then a caramelised celeriac
compote, as well,

served with a roasted chicken
butter sauce. Nice.

And pudding? A filo tart
with pickled cherries

and raspberry vinegar underneath,

and then a tonka bean
and white chocolate ganache

on top of that,
poached cherries in red wine,

and some of my mum's elderflower
syrup that she made.

Wow, wow, wow.
See yourself in finals week?

Yeah, definitely. Good spirit.
Good luck. Good luck. Thank you.

Monkfish cooked on the bone,
fabulous,

because that retains
that beautiful flavour

and it keeps the fish
nice and moist.

What I love about the dish is he's
using the cheeks of the fish, too.

I like the idea of the peas
and the tarragon as a salsa,

so that's going to be nice and cold.

Charlie is making
a roasted chicken butter sauce.

We don't want it to split.

He's got to make sure
that the butter is whisked in

just at the end and it's not boiling
when he does that.

Charlie's dessert's a filo tart.

The tart needs to be crispy enough.

The white chocolate ganache
can't split.

It's got to set beautifully.

We've got pickled cherries
and we've got a macadamia nut

and oat granola with a basil oil.

Basil and white chocolate,
in my opinion,

work super well together.

I think that elevates the dish
to a new level.

Chefs, you have 45 minutes left.

HE EXHALES

I think my time with Jeremy
sort of made me realise

you can be a little bit more bold
with flavours,

because I noticed his plating,
although it's very precise,

it's sort of like
a few elements just together

that works really well.

So that's what I'm going to try
and do today.

Tom, what are you doing?

So, I'm making roast guinea fowl
with lettuce, black truffle.

Then I'm doing girolles
in a nice, thick sauce on top

to really bring it together.

And then the dessert is
a lemon thyme panna cotta.

On top of that, I'm doing,
like, a yoghurt and milk crumb,

some pickled blackberries,
crystallised white chocolate,

and then topping it with
a blackberry and a pastis foam.

What is it about your guinea fowl
and panna cotta

that it's special enough to see you
into our finals week?

I think they're quite adventurous,
but then I think they look smart,

so that should hopefully be enough
to get me through.

Guinea fowl can dry out
very, very quickly.

He's cooking it in
the water bath,

which will always retain
the moisture,

but it's when it goes into the pan

that he needs to be very,
very careful.

The puree of cep, we want
to taste the wonderful ceps.

We've got fresh girolles
going on the plate.

They need to be beautifully cleaned.

The sauce has got to have
the perfect consistency.

So, for the sauce,
I'm going to roast off the bones,

chervil, garlic, madeira,

and then I'll finish it
with the black truffle at the end,

because I know they all quite like
a truffle.

Followed by panna cotta,
lemon thyme. Delicious.

We have had hundreds of panna cottas
in this kitchen.

This has got to be spot-on.

We also have blackberries,
which he's putting in some vinegar

and also a blackberry
and a pastis foam

that's going onto the plate.

So, I'm sort of doing it in, like,
a glass bowl today.

I'm just trying to push the boat out
a little and just sort of do

something a little different
to what I usually do.

Right, chefs,
you have ten minutes left.

Let's start thinking
of finishing your plates.

How are you doing, Lauren?

I'm OK, yeah. Yeah?
Pork's looking good.

It's going to plan.

It smells good.

HE WHISTLES

I've got to take the guinea fowl off
the crown and then get it cooking.

It's crunch time now.

Charlie, are you happy
with the monkfish cooking?

Yeah, absolutely. Cook is good.

Right, chefs, you've got
three minutes left.

Three minutes.

We have one minute left.

Right, that's it. Time's up.

Ahh.

How'd you find it?
Quick. Quick, yeah.

For a place in finals week,

Tom has cooked
roast guinea fowl breast

topped with grated black truffle,

served with girolles,

charred sweetcorn,

fresh lettuce leaves,

black truffle shavings,

compressed lettuce
in seasoned water,

with cep puree
and a Madeira and truffle sauce.

Can I ask you a question? Yeah.

Where's the rest of
my guinea fowl breast?

I was worried
about...that you'd say this,

but I thought I'd just stick with
my guns and sort of neaten it up.

The guinea fowl breast
is beautifully cooked.

The truffle on the top is almost
like a seasoning over it

and it's delicious.

We have a gem lettuce,
which has been compressed,

it's been seasoned.

It's got a bit of texture.
It's wonderful.

The sauce here with the truffle
and Madeira is delicious.

And then it hits, the cep puree.

It just takes it to the next level.

The dish together is delicious.

You've got your sweetcorn,
which has been charred.

Very, very nice.
You've got girolles, very nice.

The sauce is absolutely beautiful,

but I want to eat it
with some guinea fowl.

Cutting a breast up
into squares, pieces,

there's nothing wrong with that
if I've got enough to eat,

and I feel like
I'm slightly short-changed.

I would like the rest
of my guinea fowl.

For dessert, Tom has made
lemon thyme panna cotta,

topped with salted
white chocolate crumble,

milk yoghurt powder,

a blackberry and pastis foam,

blackberries pickled
in raspberry vinegar,

and fresh lemon thyme.

Your panna cotta's
very, very light.

It's got a lovely little hint
of lemon running through there

with the thyme leaves.

Love the little crumble.

Great texture, not too sweet,

and the espuma is delicious.

And, of course, the slight pickling
of the berries on top are fantastic,

so they bring some real
freshness to the dish.

That's a cracking dessert.
Very, very good.

Thank you.

The pastis and blackberry foam,

I really love the flavour
of the aniseed running through it.

You've given a lot of
that white chocolate crumb

with a bit of salt
running through it,

so there is a lot of texture

and it's very much needed
in this dessert.

The pickling of the blackberries
on there, there's also a little hint

of surprise you weren't expecting.

For me, it's delicious.

They were happy with the flavours,
so that's a good thing.

The dessert, like,
I worked on it quite a lot.

The amount I've eaten
is just ridiculous.

So hopefully they can look past
the trimming of the bird.

I knew as I was trimming it
I shouldn't have bloody done it.

Lauren's main course is a smoked
Scotch bonnet-spiced pork belly,

served with a fried dumpling,

topped with a pickled
escoveitch salsa,

plantain and miso-charred
hispi cabbage,

a scotch bonnet pickled
in red wine and brown sugar,

a mango hot pepper sauce,

and breadfruit crisps.

Your pork belly
has been cooked nicely,

but I would want more of
the charring flavour through it.

I think you could really take
more of those barbecue flavours.

I really like the hispi
with that plantain-miso glaze.

I've not had that before.

The dumpling is nice.

It hasn't dried out.

And I love the little pickled salsa
on top of it.

The mango sauce on the side
is lovely,

but it's not all coming together,

and I think it's missing, you know,
something like a sauce

that binds everything together.

At this moment,
they're just individual little bits

I'm enjoying separately.

Love the bread. I think you've got
that beautifully cooked.

Just got a lovely little chewiness
to it, so I enjoy that.

And then the pickled Scotch bonnet,

they work great because you've got
the balance perfect.

The dish, I agree with Monica,

is individual things,
beautifully cooked,

but I think we're just a sauce
away from a completed dish.

Lauren's dessert is
a charred hibiscus and lime

compressed pineapple,

served with a chocolate mousse,

coconut and basil espuma,

and candied hazelnuts.

The pineapple is beautifully cooked.

You've infused it with hibiscus,

and that's also given it
the orangey glow to it.

The chocolate mousse for me
was getting just about the point

of splitting, but I like the flavour
of the dark chocolate in there.

The coconut and basil foam,

I think we could have done
with more of it on here.

It's very light.

You'd crystallised some beautiful
hazelnuts on the bench there

and then you put only a couple
on the plate.

Even though I like the pineapple,

I just feel there's so much more
you could have done

with the rest of the dessert.

I love the pineapple
with the hibiscus,

but I think we could have had
some other elements on the plate.

You've got great talent
and you've got great ideas.

I think you need to think
a little bit bigger out of the box.

I think you're playing it
a little bit safe.

I agree with their feedback.

I mean, it wasn't that
I was playing it safe.

I wanted a very simple plated
dessert with strong flavours,

but I definitely can do more.

I've got more in the tank
and hopefully I get the chance

to show them that and go through.

Last up is Charlie.

His main course is poached
and roasted monkfish on the bone,

served with crispy monkfish cheeks,

a caramelised celeriac compote,

pea and tarragon salsa,

crispy chicken skin,

and a roasted chicken butter sauce.

The fish is beautifully cooked.

The monkfish cheek, nice and crispy.

I love the celeriac puree
that you've caramelised.

You've got a little bit
of nuttiness going through there.

I'm struggling to stop eating this.

This is delicious.

Your pea salsa's got the caper
sharpness running through it

and, of course, tarragon.

A chicken sauce that's
been sweetened with that Madeira,

just delicious.

Well done you.

For dessert,

Charlie has served a filo tart

filled with a white chocolate
and tonka bean ganache,

cherries pickled in raspberry
vinegar and elderflower,

poached cherries in red wine
and pink pepper,

a macadamia nut and oat granola,

and a basil oil.

The pastry is lovely and crispy.

It's golden.

You've got the sharp cherries,

which you've macerated
in some vinegar on the bottom.

Definitely got that.

The basil oil is giving it
a sort of savoury note to it.

It's nice.

The white chocolate ganache
is a nice surprise with the tonka.

It's just too much of it
to the proportion of cherries

in the tart.

The granola is good.

It brings a bit of texture
to the dish.

I love the white chocolate ganache.

It is very, very dense.

I just wanted more fruit

and just less of the white chocolate
for me personally.

I was fairly proud of the dishes
I put up today.

The comments were fair
on the dessert.

I think I definitely lived up
to the expectation

of my fish dish.

Had that not been as good, maybe
I'd be a little bit more nervous.

But all in all, I still feel
fairly confident.

I've got to say, a high level of
cooking here from our three chefs.

Definitely some of the best cooking
they've done in the competition.

But there was also hiccups.

Nobody today got it
absolutely spot-on,

but we did eat well.

Charlie gave us
that wonderful monkfish dish

and I've got to say, Marcus,

my favourite dish of the day.

Cooked on the bone perfectly.

Beautiful presentation.

Tasted even better.

I agree with you. Dish of the day.

Pudding, not so much.

I felt the ganache
was rich and heavy,

sat on top of those beautiful,
delicate cherries.

Tom's main course was beautifully
executed, great flavours.

I just don't think the guinea fowl
breast was generous.

He cut it up into almost
like a little square.

I want more of it
with that delicious sauce.

If you've got guinea fowl,
give us more of it.

I thought today's panna cotta
from Tom was at a different level.

It was incredibly light,

a good-looking dessert
and really good on the palate too.

Lauren bringing back flavours
of the Caribbean.

Pork belly, she brushed with
the marinade and then charred it.

And then we had the hispi
with a plantain-miso glaze.

I'd never had that before.
I really enjoyed it.

But it just was missing
one more element for me.

I think that's a sauce, just to
gel it and stick it all together

so you can enjoy all those lovely
flavours.

Lauren's dessert, love the pineapple
with hibiscus through it,

but the chocolate mousse
was on the verge of splitting

and there wasn't enough
of the coconut and basil foam

on the top.

Technically, it wasn't
incredibly challenging,

and I think she could have done
a lot more with this dessert.

To get through today
would be honestly amazing.

I've got so much more to give
and we're so close.

I'd be pretty heartbroken,

a little bit annoyed and frustrated
if I went home today.

But all in all, I think
I did enough to get through.

I feel like it's anybody's game.

I'm kicking myself a little bit
about trimming the guinea fowl

a bit too much, but hopefully
it's not enough to send me home.

But we'll see.

Chefs, that was super.

You three are fabulous.

You've done a great job.
Your journey's been incredible.

We've had a lot to discuss
and we have made a decision.

The chef that is leaving us is...

..Lauren.

Lauren, it's always sad to say
goodbye to any chef,

but your journey
has been incredible.

You should be very proud.

I will follow your career
from here on in,

because I think
you've got something special

and I wish you the best of luck.

Going home now is just, like,
hurting a little bit more.

It's just like, damn, so close.

I think what I've learned
about myself in this competition

is just be myself,

be bold, be everything I am

and not be...not be ashamed
about it,

because it's clearly worked enough.

But today just wasn't my day.

Charlie, Tom, congratulations.

You're through to finals week.
Well done.

Well done, you two.

I don't know what to say.

You know, I'm just lost for words.

But it's a mega achievement,
and I'm just really proud of myself.

Finals week. Are you ready?

Yeah, absolutely.

To be in the final four
is a dream come true.

When you first get here,
the trophy's 32 people away.

It's now only four.

It's so close, but it's only
going to get harder from here.

I've just got to keep pushing,
really. Congratulations.

Well deserved. Well done. Well done.
Thank you. But keep it going.

Absolutely. Thank you, Chef.

Next time,
the semifinals continue...

..as the second group of three chefs

cook under one of the country's
most respected culinary stars.

It would be easier if my hands
weren't shaking, Chef.

Just make sure
they're the best you can do, yeah?

Only the best will go
through to finals week.

This type of dish would work
in any top restaurant.

It's just a delight to eat.