Original subtitles

VOICEOVER: Previously on MasterChef Australia...

Adriano Zumbo!

(CLAPPING AND CHEERING)

..they kicked off sweet week...

(LAUGHTER)

It's jelly!

..with the king of confectionery.

DARRSH: Adriano was THE guy that got me into cooking and baking.

Jelly took centre stage in their incredible creations.

JOSH PERRY: How cool is it making my own jelly?

ADRIANO: I think it's delicious.

I think it's really well done.

The look is like out of a book.

JEAN-CHRISTOPHE: Bingo! It's just phenomenal.

That is unbelievably good!

And it was Alex who had the sweet smell of success.

POH: For the rest of the week,

you'll be up in the gantry, safe and sound.

Tonight...

..their heads are in the clouds.

Will they conquer the peak of sweets?

ALEX: Oh, my God!

Let's go! (CLAPPING AND CHEERING)

SUMEET: It looks beautiful behind there.

Morning, all!

Ah, what's going on?

I see a whole bunch of fluffy clouds.

Wow!

What's going on?

Well, I know this looks pretty special, right?

CONTESTANTS: Yeah!

But get your head out of the clouds for now, because...

..you're gonna need to focus today.

Sweet week continues.

Immunity is up for grabs.

And today's challenge - Whew! It is massive!

Alex won her spot in the gantry yesterday...

Hello! ..but today is a new day.

Play your cards right,

it could be you up there tomorrow.

Right! Today's challenge,

it's a blast from the past!

GILL: Oh, OK.

Since the very start of MasterChef, this dish,

it's captured as many hearts as it has broken them.

OK. Ahh!

It tastes as spectacular as it looks,

and it's one of the reasons we call this guy the Patissier of Pain.

Ooh! Oh, wow!

Zumbo, over to you!

(NERVOUS MOANING)

Righto, guys, are you ready?

DARRSH: No! Yeah!

Yeah, you ready?

ALL: Oh! (LAUGHS)

ALEX: Oh, my God!

What the hell?

That looks epic!

It's a croquembouche! Yeah, it is!

Beautiful! Oh, my God!

Wow!

What? Oh, no!

Today, your challenge is to create your very own version

of a croquembouche.

DARRSH: When I first saw the croquembouche,

I would have been 16.

I still remember it like it was yesterday,

just being wowed by it and trying to tell my friends

about this amazing thing that I'd seen on TV.

Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined

that I'd be here in the MasterChef kitchen

with Adriano Zumbo, croquembouche.

It's a surreal moment.

Today, we want a stack of choux that's unique to you,

in both looks and in taste.

Be unique and yourself.

Be creative, you know? Make something fun.

Yeah.

Harry, I'm waiting for a fish-shaped croquembouche.

(LAUGHTER)

It's in the repertoire, yeah! (LAUGHS)

You will have two hours.

That's still not long!

The cook to bring us the best croquembouche

will win immunity.

We're giving you full creative freedom

to do whatever you want,

including shopping for your own ingredients.

That's right, gang.

Head on out to Coles to get everything you need.

(APPRECIATIVE CHEERING)

We'll see you soon! So, good luck!

Bye! Bye.

Au revoir!

Let's go!

GILL: Let's go, Pezza!

LOCHY: Today's immunity cook,

we've been given two hours to recreate, in our own minds,

Zumbo's tower of terror,

the croquembouche.

And I'm thinking I'm going to go with lemongrass

and make that the flavour profile,

because I don't think anybody else is going to go down that route.

Right.

Hey, I'm just looking for some raspberries.

Oh, amazing choice.

Raspberries provide the perfect tartness to any dessert.

Our freshest raspberries are 100% Australian grown,

and they're hand-picked, so they are perfect.

How many do you need? Um, I reckon about six.

Awesome.

OK, I've got what I need.

(CHEERING)

ALEX: Let's go, guys!

Right, you've got what you need from the shops.

Your time starts now. Come on!

Today, I'm making a croquembouche that is gonna be different.

I'm making a Jenga tower of eclairs, and I'm going to fill them

with a whipped pistachio cheesecake and raspberry jam.

I'm terrified. I've never actually done a croquembouche before,

and I don't really do choux pastry that much.

I usually just go buy it,

so I'm nervous.

Nat. Hello.

Hi, Nat. How are we doing?

How are we feeling about dessert?

Um, like always, I feel quite often terrified of dessert.

But especially that one. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

That one's insane!

But you're not making that one, you're making...?

I am making my own one, which is gonna be Jenga-style.

Jenga...? Jenga...? Jenga?

Like...like the game?

Yeah. OK. Yeah.

No, I'm doing long ones. Fingers. You're doing eclairs?

Mm-hm. And why this?

My parents used to throw birthday parties

where we had loads of papaya salads.

There was nothing special. No balloons, none of that.

Obviously, all my Australian friends would come over

and they'd be like, "Where's the Pass The Parcel?

"And where's, like, the Jenga?"

And like, "This is such a weird birthday."

It smells like fish, smells like shrimp.

And it was like, "Oh, Nat's the girl with, like, the weird parents."

The pongy house. Yeah. Aw.

Yeah, I was really embarrassed. Aw.

So, when I turned 11, I begged my mum for a 'normal' birthday

because I knew that I had a crush that was coming over,

and it was the first time that I hadn't really told my mum

about the fact that it was a girl.

It was kind of you coming out. Yeah, yeah.

So that Jenga party, it was the first time...

It was very Caucasian-based.

We had Pass The Parcel and we also had eclairs.

They were coffee eclair, though.

My parents were just like, "Yeah, kids will like a coffee eclair."

(LAUGHS)

That is one hell of a story. I love it.

If you can pull this off, you are more than nailing that brief.

Thank you. Nat, you really are a unique snowflake...

Aw, thank you.

..and you definitely are challenging the notion of a croquembouche.

Yeah, I know! Good luck. Good luck.

Thank you so much. Love it.

I'm so committed to this idea 'cause I think it's very creative

and it's artistic and it's different.

But I'm not only doing it because it's different or out-there,

I'm doing it because it's such an expression of myself.

I'm so excited about this challenge

because not only are we asking these guys to make a croquembouche

in just two hours,

we're also asking them to inject their personality

and creativity into it as well.

What do you think success looks like today?

I feel like this is very much a glamour dish,

and it does have to look beautiful. Yeah.

We might see some big towers, but size is not important.

Size does sort of matter.

I know, but today it doesn't! (LAUGHS)

It's not the size, it's the execution!

(LAUGHTER)

Oh, they're good.

They're really good.

I've got some of these beautiful, really ripe finger bananas,

and I'm going to be using them

as my custard in the middle of my choux.

Yeah, going bananas. That's about it.

So today obviously the croquembouche, new one to me.

Made choux once,

so touch wood she's going to go right for me today.

But I'm going to try my version.

It's going to be like a banoffee style.

So I'm going to make a banana sort of custard to go in the centre.

I'm going to make just a normal choux,

and then we're just going to have some toffee wrapped around it

to try and bring it all together.

My dish today is inspired by my Auntie Gayle.

She's the choux queen in our family.

She's a great cook, Auntie Gayle.

She makes the best cream puffs that she fills with a custard,

and it's so crispy on the outside, but so luscious in the inside.

That's what I'm thinking I've got to achieve.

But this is all new to me. I've never piped choux before.

I don't know what I'm doing.

I'm just trying to get some nice little shapes.

So I pipe them around, like a Mr Whippy in a cone,

and I want them to be about the size of a 20 to 50 cent piece.

I'm pretty happy with the shapes I've got.

I just hope that they rise and look really good at the end.

Sumeet. Hello.

I'm going to be doing a classic croquembouche shape,

so I'm going to go the conical shape. Yeah.

And I'm going to fill it with two different types of fillings,

so the strawberry and basil with a cream Chantilly, I'm thinking.

OK.

And then the other is going to be a lemon curd cream.

Right.

Gill, what croquembouche are you making today?

Um, today, I'm channelling Vietnamese smoothie,

which is avocado and jackfruit.

Oh, cool. Yeah.

Then I'm going to do a ginger caramel as well.

OK. Yeah.

Lochy. ADRIANO: Hey, Lochy.

Flavours are? I'm going to make a lemongrass creme pat.

Right.

And then in my caramel, I'm going to be using my lemongrass

and then some roasted shaved coconut with white chocolate together,

to just, like, crumble over the top. Rightio.

I'm making a classic choux pastry,

but with my spin on a spiced cocoa crackling.

Crackling is basically a sugar cookie that goes on top

of choux pastry.

It's tasty, but what its function really is,

is to keep each choux bun in perfect circles.

She's soft and really hot.

My fresh ingredient from Coles I've chosen is a pumpkin.

Everyone's going to be leaning in towards fruit,

and I'm hoping this slight difference in choice

is going to help me stand out.

Hey, Mimi. Hey, Mimi. Hey, guys. How are you going?

As a seasoned croquembouche maker, how are you feeling?

I'm so nervous, but I'm so... I love this challenge so much.

Adrenaline, you're pumped. I see it. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

What are you gonna do?

Oh, croquembouche to me is such, like, a Christmas thing.

So my mind went straight to, like, pumpkin spice.

Right. Pumpkin spice.

The key thing I'm doing is a miso pumpkin creme pat.

Really just dialling it back, keeping it classic today. Perfect.

Keeping it classic with a pumpkin miso creme pat

and cocoa crackling!

It sounds like a lot,

but it's really all of those warm, toasty flavours.

That's exciting.

Uh, what do you think about the crackling?

It is a beautiful texture.

I love crackling, and it gives that buttery, biscuity... Me, too. I love it.

It also can sometimes hide your mistakes, like...

Exactly, yeah. ..with the choux top. Absolutely.

What kind of a shape are you going to?

My idea is to make it like a semi dome,

looks like a pumpkin coming out of the ground.

Right, nice. Yeah.

You're making a lot of smart decisions.

I think you've got a great plan.

You've just got to execute and make it delicious. Yes.

Good luck. Thanks, Mimi. Thanks, guys. Thank you.

I think I've just gone over the board

with flavours and techniques in the past.

Today, I'm keeping it simple.

They're going in.

I'm really going to try and celebrate the flavour

of pumpkin and miso.

It's a great flavour. It works with caramel.

I think this is going to be a good one.

You have 1 hour and 30 to go.

Go, guys! Come on!

Woo! (APPLAUSE)

Let's go, Harry.

I've already done my choux mix.

Um, so I'm looking pretty good for time, I reckon.

So I thought I'd just take this little moment

and make the creme pat.

So, for today's cook, decided to take the gamble

and doing something weird and wacky.

Harry. Gentlemen, what's going on? How are you, mate?

I'm good.

I can smell something fishy.

Yeah. So it's katsuobushi, dried bonito.

In here, obviously? Yeah.

Fish in filling. Is that what's going on?

Yeah. I've always wanted to have a crack at a fish dessert,

so I thought today might be the day. Oh, wow.

I think Poh was joking when she said,

"You should make a fish croquembouche."

But, yeah, I think I'm gonna get fishy with it.

I'm not the dessert guy, so maybe I can be the seafood dessert guy.

Fish in creme pat.

Yes, mate. Fish creme pat.

(LAUGHS)

So katsuobushi is a dried and smoked bonito fish.

I think it's got a beautiful umami sort of flavour to it,

but it's also, in my opinion, quite sweet.

How are you going to...?

Are you going to balance the umami flavour out with anything? You've got to be careful.

So, I'm doing, like, a raspberry gel.

So, I'll pipe that in first,

and then I'll pipe the creme pat in after that.

Raspberry and katsuobushi-filled choux buns!

Hey, a first for everything. Yeah, you heard it here first!

You're either going to put yourself on the map...

Or put yourself overboard! Yeah.

Putting seafood into a dessert is something that I've wanted to do

for a long time.

I know it's incredibly hard to execute.

But I think if I can pull it off, like,

it's definitely something that could put me up on the gantry.

Yeah, hopefully it's, uh, not gross! (LAUGHS)

SOFIA: Hi, Darrsh. Hey, Sofia. Hey, Poh.

Hey. Have you got some choux in the oven?

Is that why it's so clean around here?

Yeah! Choux in the oven. Good job.

Creme pat cooling down, and hopefully firming up.

I'm just moving on to the fresh component,

which is the strawberries, now.

What flavour? Strawberries and cream.

That's what I'm going with.

These are flavours that I really, really love,

and I think that I don't want to...

I know probably today there's going to be some...a lot of citrus

and stuff like that, that can be a bit, like, in your face. Yeah.

And I really want to lean into just like a really nice, elegant dessert. Yeah.

Good luck, Darrsh. Thanks, guys. Thank you, thank you.

In this kitchen, I've cooked some desserts that have been a bit

weird and wacky.

And I think, with this particular one,

my spin is actually to keep it really classic and French.

So, I want to go simple flavours, like strawberries and cream.

I've chosen some beautiful fresh strawberries from Coles,

and I'm making some strawberry jam.

The creme pat is going to be quite smooth, but also a bit rich.

And so, I want those strawberries to kind of cut through all of that

and for it to work together in the entire profiterole.

POH: Savindri, what are you doing?

I'm doing a mango and green chilli compote

and a toasted coconut Chantilly.

So, it'll be, like, just a very light, fluffy cream... Yeah.

..and then you're just going to add...

A bit of mango with a bit of chilli through it.

Jamminess. OK, yeah.

'Cause I don't want the creme pat in there. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Well, I want to...wanted to sort of veer away from the classic. Yeah.

I actually love choux with cream.

My mum used to do stewed pineapple and cream in there

with chocolate ganache topping. Oh! Oh, yeah!

That's your vibe. So, that's where my love comes from.

Yeah. OK.

These are all bold flavours that I'm doing today.

Mango, green chilli, coconut.

That is literally me in the form of a little profiterole.

I don't necessarily know if the judges are gonna, like,

completely vibe with it, and that's fine.

I'm not getting eliminated.

I want them to go, "Oh, even her desserts have chilli."

Looks good, Mimi.

I know a lot of the other contestants are doing jams and fruits today,

so if I'm just doing one filling and keeping it simple,

I want to hit the mark on this today.

I make a classic creme pat,

except I'm infusing it with miso and pumpkin.

It's a very classic recipe.

I'm keeping things simple today,

but with just a few manoeuvres, hopefully create something really special.

There's sugar in the caramel, there's sugar in the choux, there's sugar in the crackling.

So I don't want it to be too sweet.

When you think of pumpkin and cocoa and spices,

you really think of holding a mug and hugging it close to you.

So, what I really want from this creme pat

is to have that richness, to be toasty and nutty

and comforting.

That's what I'm going for.

I open my oven, I let the steam out from all of my choux buns.

They look so cute.

They are so adorable and small.

I'm forwards thinking,

"How am I going to build this pumpkin-shaped croquembouche?"

I have attempted a croquembouche before.

There was some height to it, but it didn't look great

and, funnily enough, I've never attempted it again.

God, I'm scared for myself.

SOFIA: You've got one hour to go!

Woo! Go, guys! Hustle, hustle!

Whoo-hoo!

JOSH PERRY: Choux are in the oven.

It's time to get onto this banana custard mix.

Well, the main thing to make a silky smooth texture

with the banana is that I stew 'em perfectly,

so they've reduced right down and there's no hardness in it.

And then just get that out of the saucepan

and just give it a nice pulse with the blender

and really bring it together, so it's silky

before I add it to the mix.

Pezza. Hey, Pez. Hey, chefs. How are you doing?

What's going on, mate? I'm going alright.

Just having a bit of fun and...

Told you it'd be another first!

Oh, mate!

What have you got in terms of filling?

I went bananas today. I'm thinking banoffee sort of filling.

So bananas, brown sugar.

I'm going to make a nice custard, I guess.

And then I'm going to put some nice little lairy toffee,

obviously put it together. Yeah. Beautiful.

How'd your choux go? Yeah, how's your choux?

Oh, look, mate, I've done them and they're in the oven.

They're in. Shall we have a look? But they... (SIGHS)

They're all out of whack. Are they?

Yeah. They look like...

Oh, jeez.

Yeah, they look like little ducks. Oh, that's just from the piping.

I just went around like that and then stopped on the top

and just pushed it down with a bit of water.

Is that where I've gone wrong? Yeah.

So when you pipe choux... Yeah.

..most people do what you do because they see it's round. Yeah.

They think they've got to draw it.

But just put the bag in one place... Yeah.

..push, and it'll create a round bulb. Yeah.

Then pull. Just leave it. That's it.

Ditch them and start again? No, no, you don't have time.

You're just going to have to roll with them, do the best you can. Yeah.

Make them work for you. Yep. You know what I mean?

Be creative. Yeah, ugly delicious. Yeah.

You know what I mean? Ugly delicious. Yep.

And I'd make sure that filling is smacking. Yeah.

Shit. That's what you've got to do.

It's pissed me. But anyway, all good. No, no, don't let it piss you.

You, out of all people, could pull this off in terms of those shapes.

Do you know what I mean? Yep.

See what we can do. That's it.

Thanks, guys.

The choux are just not perfectly configured.

So when it comes to trying to build this croquembouche,

it's like a jigsaw.

It's going to be very difficult without nice sturdy little pieces.

I'm going to have to pivot,

and I'm going to have to see if I can bring something else together.

At this stage, I'm just trying to get this banana custard right.

Make sure my flavours are good.

Then, move on to how I'm going to...

..whether I'm going to do it a little bit different in plating up.

ALEX: Oh, that looks so creamy, Pez.

Tastes yummy. Yeah, I bet.

It's coming there, champ.

When the boys sort of seen my choux, they weren't perfect,

which has just thrown me a bit out on a limb.

But they said to try and use it to your advantage a bit.

Mine look like dog turds.

Nah!

So I'm going to change it up a bit. Are you? (CHUCKLES)

They look like boulders that I dig out of the paddock at home.

We pulled them out, and we put them in a pile down by the river

and made a beautiful spot to sit and relax.

So, I'm thinking along the lines of something like that.

What are you going to do?

I think I'm going to try and do, like, some boulders in the paddock with some dirt.

Boulders in the paddock! (LAUGHS)

Cool.

But the more I think about it, maybe this is what I needed -

something to go wrong, to make something better.

Is that your dirt? That's my dirt.

Smells alright. Tastes better.

Yeah, it does.

My dish now is spun on its head.

If I can make something blue, like a river.

Food colouring? Yeah.

The new version of my croquembouche now

is going to be something from the farm.

So I'm thinking, let's take this to what I call God's country.

Well, so far it looks interesting.

Exciting.

Who are we excited about?

I'm really excited about Nat's.

She's not really doing a croquembouche.

She's doing eclairs and doing a little Jenga tower.

That is epic. Yeah.

Look, I'm most excited about Mimi.

I think she's doing pumpkin and miso.

I think they go really well together.

And she's got, like, a little cocoa crackling with some spice in it.

It's exciting if she can pull this off.

I think she's going to have something really delicious.

I've got a question for you. SOFIA: Yes.

Do you want dried bonito flakes?

POH: On my... Harry? Yeah!

Yeah.

Yeah. He's going there.

He's going there. I knew it!

He has steeped all of this katsuobushi in his milk

for his creme pat, which is, like, it's there.

Like, it's not just a couple of little sprinkles.

POH: Well, it can't be... Exactly.

..'cause that would just be, like, fishy.

It is there.

And then, he's going to do a raspberry jam, OK?

What? What are you talking about, Willis?

I am worried, and massively excited if he gets it right.

HARRY: This is my third dessert in the MasterChef kitchen,

but it's probably, like, my fifth dessert in my whole life,

so I think it was a pretty bold move to try and add seafood to it,

at this stage in my dessert career.

I think this dish represents me as a cook

because it's a seafood dessert, I'm the seafood guy.

Like, I live and breathe it, every day.

I think my biggest concern for this cook

is that it tastes terrible.

It's all going to be about balance.

Like, I'm using some pretty bold and adventurous flavours

and I'm just going to have to get the flavour profile perfect,

otherwise it's going to taste terrible.

(CHUCKLES TRIUMPHANTLY)

We're thick.

I was struggling for a second there.

How's the balance?

Like, I don't want it to punch you in the face with dried fish.

It definitely does.

Oh, really?

OK.

Tried the katsuobushi custard and the raspberry together,

and I really like it.

I think it's a yummy combo.

It's probably one of those things that you've tasted so many times...

It's so hard because, like, I'm cooking this, like, fish dessert

based on my palate,

but I eat so much seafood, like, maybe my judgement's

a little bit out of whack.

If you get the balance right, it could definitely work.

Yeah. Alright. Thank you.

I just tasted the bonito creme pat with the raspberries

and it actually could work if he gets the balance right.

Really? Yeah.

And then you've got the caramel layer on top.

It'll dumb it down a bit, too. Yeah.

ALEX: Let's go, guys. Hustle, hustle.

Oh, they look great, Sumeet.

Yeah, Pez!

Adriano Zumbo's in the house, and you've got big 'chouxs' to fill.

You've got 30 minutes to go!

JEAN-CHRISTOPHE: "Big 'chouxs' to fill." I like that! ADRIANO: Yeah!

(LAUGHS)

I'm currently dipping my choux buns into the caramel

to get a light coating, so I get that cracking effect on the outside.

My caramel is beautiful orangey pumpkin colour.

I think it'll be wonderful with the caramel

because the caramel is part of the flavour.

That's what I was thinking when I designed or season the food.

I finished dipping my choux buns into the caramel.

Now I have to move on to assembly.

I'm just going to build this with caramel

and be really careful with doing it.

POH: They look like shiitake mushrooms!

(LAUGHTER)

Harry's putting fish in his dessert,

so that's not the weirdest thing I've seen today! (LAUGHS)

Heads up.

Right now, you need to start making decisions on what's going to get you

a finished croquembouche because you've got 20 minutes left.

From what I can see, a hell of a lot to do. Come on!

ALEX: Let's go, guys. 20 minutes.

Push, push!

I am filling my cold choux buns

with a little bit of my spicy mango compote.

Waiting on my caramel, which is pissing me off a little bit

'cause it's one of those things, like, if you don't get it

to the right texture and temperature and taste,

then you can't build this thing, and it's not going to stick.

I can't do anything without my caramel.

I have done everything else.

My choux are filled. They're ready to go.

I just want this caramel ready.

My caramel is taking so blooming long.

It's like watching grass grow, isn't it?

It's actually really frustrating

because there's literally nothing else

for me to occupy my time with, other than watching this caramel

and telepathically trying to communicate with it to caramelise.

If I can't get the caramel right,

it means that I'm not going to have a croquembouche,

so incredibly stressed about it.

Me and caramel in this kitchen are not friends

because for some reason it takes forever.

All my choux are ready, everything's done

and I'm literally waiting for this caramel to start boiling

and caramelising.

I'm so stressed.

OK, I think it's...I think it's starting to come together.

Yeah. Here's hoping I build it in time.

You have 10 minutes to go!

ANDY: Come on. 10 minutes!

JOSH PERRY: Yeah, look, it's construction time.

Time to bring this bad boy together.

Today's dish is Take Me Home To God's Country

with Banoffee Croquembouche.

God's country to me is sitting down by the river,

a nice little rock wall.

What better spot to escape for a couple of hours?

Having a beer, chucking the fishing line in,

trying to catch a trout.

Yeah, look, that's what I call God's country.

POH: Pez, you always have a way of making us smile.

I'd leave it, I'd leave it. You like that texture?

What were you going to do? Flatten it?

Yeah. Nah.

Looks like there's waves? Yeah.

(LAUGHS)

Your tongue's blue! Oh, well. It's all good.

(LAUGHS)

It's looking really, really nice,

but I think I need to set it alight with a couple of nice little trees.

Give it that homely feel. That's what it's missing.

ALEX: You got a tree now? Sick, Pez! (LAUGHS)

It looks like Jurassic Park!

ANDY: Have you seen Pezza's?

You know, like, it's that Aussie cake shop. Yeah.

Like, when you get the Woman's Weekly cake, do you know what I mean?

Yes! I love it.

Mate, '70s are back, bro. Oh, they are, man.

I put food colouring in some fondant to make a little pumpkin stem.

It's wildly different! Oh, my God.

Mimi's making a little pumpkin top.

ALEX: It tells a story. (LAUGHS)

God, this is so bad.

It's like when Harry Potter gets his wizard hat.

This is so much fun. (LAUGHS) It's so silly.

She's making a little top like a pumpkin...

Right, yeah. ..to sit on top.

Like, the stem part. Yeah. Cool.

Literally never had this much fun ever in one of these challenges.

It's a funky punky! (LAUGHS)

We're gonna get there. We're gonna get there.

Let's go, Hazza. A few minutes left.

I got so much to do.

I've got to build this 'croquem-fish'.

In my head, the way I want this dish to look is kind of like one

of those little soy sauce bottles with the cute little red lids.

That's sort of the goal.

But, look, I'll settle for something that even remotely resembles a fish.

Come on, Natty-boo.

NAT: My raspberry jam and pistachio cheesecake eclairs

are looking great.

I'm stacking my eclairs for my croquembouche and it is working.

It's becoming Jenga.

It's very sticky and intricate

and I'm being very careful, but it's working.

It looks like Jenga.

How do you say that? Jenga?

Jenga. You know the game? Ah, no.

I'm so proud of myself.

I never thought I could make a croquembouche eclair.

And it's coming together

and it's going to be my story on the plate.

Is there a world where it could fall?

Can you imagine?

I really, really hope that when the judges taste this dish,

they're going to feel playful, like a little child.

Just like picking up the Jenga piece and eating it.

I hope they just have fun with it.

Get 'em stacked up! One minute to go!

Let's go! Come on!

Let's build it. Bring it home.

SAV: I have somehow managed

to construct a little tower of croquembouche,

and to me, a croquembouche is not a croquembouche

without the sugar work on it.

So I'm going for gold.

I'm taking that whisk and spinning that thing around,

and the higher I raise it, the finer it spins.

So it actually creates these beautiful sugar strands.

WOMAN: Oh, Sav, that is so pretty!

DARRSH: A few minutes left

and it's time to just add those finishing touches

to my strawberries and cream croquembouche.

I'm adding some edible flowers and a touch of colour.

I want to impress Zumbo.

Your croquembouche needs to be finished in 10...

JUDGES: Nine, eight, seven,

six, five, four,

three, two, one!

Whoo!

(CHUCKLING)

(LAUGHTER)

(APPLAUSE)

Nice work, dude.

Oh, I think it's leaning! ANDY: It's gonna fall.

It's falling down. SOFIA: That's moving.

That's moving. That's falling.

The Jenga irony. I can't do anything.

Oh, no.

Oh! Oh!

Oh, Natty!

Jenga.

I mean, I'm looking at it and I can't do anything to change it.

It is very ironic, but, I mean,

I guess it did make Jenga.

ADRIANO: That's theatre.

It's a risk. Table theatre.

It is Jenga. (CHUCKLES) That's the game. That's the game.

We gave you a tall order today

to put your own spin on a giant of the dessert world.

We're looking for the top dish for Immunity.

So let's see how you went.

First dish we'd like to try, let's go, Mimi.

I don't think I'll be able to stop giggling.

POH: Oh, my God, that is...

ADRIANO: Oh, look at that. (CHUCKLES)

This might be...my favourite thing I've ever made.

(SOFIA LAUGHS)

Your personality is absolutely in that.

This is my Bouche-kin.

Bouche-kin. Bouche-kin.

Croquembouche that's flavoured with pumpkin.

OK, OK.

Not a pumpkin-bouche.

A pumpkin-bouche!

Pumpkin-bouche.

(CRUNCHING)

Mimi, that is an absolute belter!

Ah! Well done.

Ah!

You combined everything that you're good at today,

fun and creativity in terms of what you produce and how it looked.

The knack of choux pastry because it's really well done.

The crackling is epic, and you could

smell the waft of cocoa when it came up.

And then it is so well balanced,

that pumpkin and miso cream, it is ripping.

Put that in a window, just that profiterole,

they're flying, absolutely flying. Thank you.

You reverse-engineered the flavour profile of this,

from the caramel backwards.

And that was very, very smart.

Because if you taste that pumpkin and miso custard,

it is very savoury.

But with that caramel, the balance is so perfect.

Mimi, that's what I came here for, is to see this, yeah.

Like, that is bangin'. It's different. It's fun.

I mean, that pumpkin and miso custard,

I could eat buckets of that.

They're so smooth, creamy, silky.

And the flavour, like, the little saltiness,

the sweetness from the pumpkin, it's just a match made in heaven.

Wow. Thank you.

Like, I don't say that very often, but that flavour,

I'm putting that in my pocket.

Thank you.

Next up, it's Lochy!

(WHOOPING AND APPLAUSE)

LACHLAN: This is the Lochem-bouche -

lemongrass creme pat, lemongrass, caramel.

And roasted white chocolate and coconut.

I am so into that lemongrass filling.

You've just put the perfect amount of that Aromat in there.

It's velvety, it is brimming to the edges of your crisp choux.

I like it. You can give yourself a 'creme pat' on the back.

(LAUGHTER)

You're up next, Gill.

Yeah! (APPLAUSE)

GILL: Today I've made you guys avocado, jackfruit croquembouche

with a ginger caramel.

JEAN-CHRISTOPHE: Your choux are distinct.

Your filling is a 'delice'.

Absolutely top.

Avocado, nice and green is really what avocado should look.

And you've combined it with this jackfruit.

You got that ginger, lime, it's fantastic.

Your choux are cooked perfectly.

I think you've done a very good job.

Thanks, chef. Thank you.

Sumeet. (WHOOPING AND APPLAUSE)

SUMEET: So this is my croquembouche with basil, lemon, strawberry jam

and a thyme Chantilly cream.

POH: Sumeet, I think you've done a great job.

The choux buns are lovely and crispy on the outside.

I think you did a really good job on the strawberry jam.

Could have probably gone one less herb, I think one or the other.

OK.

So either go for the basil or the thyme.

OK. But apart from that, well done.

Thank you.

Next stop, Pezza!

PEZZA: Brief today was to make our own take on a croquembouche.

I think I've done that.

I hope that the judges like it.

VOICEOVER: Get inspired by our fabulous home cooks.

Stream full episodes of MasterChef Australia

now on 10Play.

(WHOOPING)

(SOFIA LAUGHS) ANDY: Yeah!

How can I say this in English?

What the hell is this? (LAUGHS)

That's my paddock at home.

Take Me Home To God's Country, that's what I'm calling it.

Aw!

So they're just the boulders.

And that's the little creek.

And there's where I just sit and have my banana and a beer

while I'm just trying to get away from the missus

for a couple of hours.

(LAUGHTER)

ADRIANO: I love it.

You know, I think it's retro.

I grew up on Woman's Weekly cookbook with all the kids birthday cakes,

and, for me, that's straight out of it.

I think that's awesome 'cause I think that plays to you,

tells a story about you.

I think you've done really well from where you were

with the swirly choux when we first saw you,

to bring this out and tell your story about yourself.

I think it's great. Thanks.

You put that in front of anyone,

and I challenge them not to crack into the biggest smile.

It's so joyous.

Pezza, I love it. Banana flavour's awesome.

You know, it's really punchy.

When you eat it with that dirt, it just balances out so well, right?

It just gives you that real homely crumble pie taste.

It's like you've put crackling, but you get more intensity

of that because it's separated.

I really enjoyed that with that brown sugary crumble,

really balanced with the banana.

Your choux are super crisp.

They may look wobbly, but they are crisp.

Hats off for nailing all those things,

and I just love your creativity.

Pezza, your superpower is your honesty

and I think that is what is amazing about your food.

Like, never change that.

And that filling is an absolute ripper.

It's so simple and so delicious.

And it is an absolute smile maker, so, well done.

You want to open a restaurant on the farm.

I would do that dish.

If I went to your restaurant, I would be stoked

because it's you and you know you're coming to your place.

And you've never seen that weird thing that's on that plate anywhere,

and it makes it uniquely you.

And that's why we love what you do in this competition.

Thanks, mate.

(CHEERING)

Pezza, Pezza.

There you go.

I told you, you should have it in the butcher shop.

Next up with their croquembouche - Sav.

(APPLAUSE)

SAV: So I've made a Tropical Croquembouche.

I love the colours.

I've got a roasted coconut Chantilly

and a very small amount of a green chilli and mango compote

in there as well.

We have a spicy Sav in a choux.

You can definitely see and taste spicy Sav in that dish.

I love that really light chilli flavour

infused into that fluffy coconut filling.

Your choux are lovely and even and I love that colour

of the turmeric that's just given it this glow of yellow.

Your caramel is actually the perfect colour.

I love the level you've taken it to,

and I love that little wisp of sugar work you've done on the outside.

Thank you, thank you. (APPLAUSE)

Phew! Darrsh, we'd love to taste your dish next.

(WHOOPING)

ANDY: Hey! There we go.

ADRIANO: Looks like a baby version of mine.

DARRSH: This is my Strawberries & Cream croquembouche.

So there's two fillings inside the profiterole.

There's a classic vanilla creme pat as well as a strawberry jam.

Is there strawberry in any of them?

Uh, there should be strawberry in there, yeah.

Have you guys got strawberry jam in yours?

ANDY: Anyone got strawbs? I haven't.

I had two and none of them had it.

Nope.

Nope. Nope.

I don't reckon there's any strawberry in that.

I reckon you forgot it.

I saw it on your bench, I know you made it,

so I don't doubt you for that.

But, yeah, unfortunately, you just didn't get it in there.

I love the look of it.

I love the creme pat.

It's creamy, it's vanilla, it's delicious.

The choux's good, it's a good size.

I love the sponge sugar.

It's fine, it's delicate, it's beautiful.

And you've got colours with the flowers, and the little pink beads

gave it a nice bit of character.

Shame you didn't get that strawberry jam in there.

You know what I mean? 'Cause that would have just sent it home. Yeah.

Thank you. Thanks, guys.

ANDY: Thanks, Darrsh. (APPLAUSE)

Next up, it's Nat.

Nat! Hello.

I've done The Jenga Of Life. (CHUCKLES)

Um, it is a choux pastry with pistachio whipped cheesecake

and a raspberry jam.

(SNIFFS)

Nat, I love your idea and the fact that you did eclairs,

like, really caught my eye.

You know, you take your own path, and I really admire you for that.

The only reason why it collapsed

is because you didn't dry your choux out, that's the reason.

'Cause you haven't got the hard caramel to back it up.

Yeah.

Once the weight goes on top,

there's no structure. Yeah.

That's the only reason why that collapsed.

There's nothing else.

I've been there. I know exactly the feeling.

So, you know, I like cheesecake.

I like your filling. I think it's delicious.

Pistachio and raspberry, classic match.

Unlucky that it fell over, but well done.

Thank you.

Nat, we know you're a risk taker and we love that about you.

And we love how it presents in your ideas.

I love the texture of the cheesecake pistachio cream.

I think anything that incorporates pistachio,

it's always nice to have a bit of that nutty crunch.

Really excited to see what the rest of Dessert Week

has in store for you.

ANDY: Thanks, Nat. (APPLAUSE)

Now, for the most interesting combination of the day - Harry.

(APPLAUSE)

HARRY: I've done a katsuobushi creme pat with raspberry gel.

So, fish and raspberry in a profiterole?

Yeah.

So I sort of just had, like,

an idea and a goal to do seafood in a dessert.

(WHISTLES SOFTLY)

I love that you are just pushing it out.

If you got this right, you could be up there.

Let's see how we go.

So, fish and raspberry in a profiterole?

Yeah.

Let's see how we go.

(SNIFFS)

(LIGHT CHUCKLING)

Oh.

Um...

Uh, um, sorry.

There's a lot to unpack here.

(LAUGHS) Oh, shit.

We'll start with the choux, shall we?

Yeah, yeah.

Irregular. Yeah.

But they do have a nice crust on them.

Now, let's get to the flavour.

I was kind of hawking on this

because I thought it was obviously very interesting.

I think it can work...

..but I don't think you've got it quite right here.

For me, it's too

katsuobushi cream forward. Mm-hm.

I feel like you needed to use it as a seasoning

rather than the core here.

And the pairing it with raspberry was very smart on your behalf

because it does have that bright acidic punch.

And it could have lent itself, if done right,

with the smoky, umami love that the Katsuobushi brings to this.

You're mad.

You nearly made it. Cool. Thanks.

Next time.

Harry, this is, um, a very thought provoking dish.

(LAUGHS)

I do love that your passion for fish knows no bounds...

(LAUGHTER) ..or boundaries.

Yeah. I joked about it being fish-shaped.

I joked about you putting fish in this and you actually did it.

I thought I would hate that combination

of katsuobushi and raspberry, but there is something compelling there

that is the genesis of something else.

Harry, I love the idea.

Over the years, I've done so many crazy things,

and I love the way you think, there's no boundaries, right?

Because there is no boundaries in cooking.

Everything is possible. You just need to tweak it.

I think that's where you're at here.

I can tell you how to tweak it.

You need to caramelise the sugar, you need to steep it with black tea

and you need to add salt.

If you went away and did that again,

I reckon you'd get very close to nailing that.

Thanks. Well done, though. Well done.

Oh!

Adriano, did they do the croquembouche justice?

Yeah. I think you did an amazing job.

And you had two hours. It's fast.

You know, some of you did a little bit better than others.

Some of you, you know, have got a little bit of practice to do.

But overall, I think you should all be very proud.

You know, you smashed it out,

you made choux, you made custard, you made caramel.

And there's new skills that you all have in your repertoire

that you can just keep chugging away at and perfecting.

Well, we're about to find out whose profiteroles

will have them rolling on up to the gantry for the rest of the week.

I am full of them.

(LAUGHTER)

A few of you came really close to Immunity today

with impressive and expressive dishes.

One of you not only nailed every element,

but also created a compelling flavour combination

encased in the most delectable choux.

And that cook was you...

..Mimi.

(LAUGHS)

I can't believe it. I am so happy.

Croquembouche challenge. Tower Of Terror. It's mine!

Mimi, that dish was everything we asked for and more.

We wanted to see your personalities shine today

and yours was the brightest in the room.

Thanks, Sofia.

You are safe for the rest of the week.

(LAUGHTER)

As for the rest of you, if you don't win Immunity tomorrow,

you could be going home on Sunday.

Bonsoir. Sleep well.

See you tomorrow.

Au revoir!

Well done. Ah! How good?

VOICEOVER: Tomorrow night on MasterChef Australia...

One little thing stands between them and winning Immunity.

ANDY: Use those outside voices.

It is going to get loud in here.

Partners...

Lochy? I'm still going.

Are you still going? Yeah.

..making identical dishes...

Literally have to make the same dessert without seeing each other.

..will be a tall order.

Yeah. Going into oven now. It's in.

Lochy, shut up! You're so loud!

Oh, man. Just try

and keep it together, yeah?