MasterChef Week 2 Recap Blog

 Author’s note: I’d like to apologize for the lack of images found in my recaps. I often have very little time to put these things together and more than usually find myself scrounging together late night hours just to get the recaps done. I’d also like to think that you’re here not only to know what went on, but to get my personal opinion on all things in the kitchen. And readers? For that you must read!

OPENING

The episode opens like any other, with a magnificent view of the MasterChef kitchen and pantry lighting up as the competition comes to its next round. Enter the judges, followed by the contestants. All 22 of the remaining potentials line up in the front of the kitchen, the judges before them. “Great to see you all,” Gordon addresses them. “You are now all officially a part of the biggest cooking competition in the entire world.” What a statement, eh? There they are, one of twenty-two possible MasterChef’s— all vying for a shot at $250,000.00, an opportunity to write their own cookbook and a title that puts them in the rankings among very few.  “To win this competition, you’ll have to be the last one standing here in the MasterChef kitchen,” Graham follows up Ramsay before Joe exclaims to the contestants, “Make sure you bring us your A-game every single time you put something on a plate.”

Never before have they been shy to impart the severity of what being America’s next MasterChef means, but it seems that this year the competition has significantly gone up. These statements are not only bold, but they’re true. As a fan, I’ve seen what it takes to make it through this grueling endeavor and never has it been easy. Once again, I find myself amped up and excited to get to the competition, wanting— needing to know who will be crowned victor; which is exactly why I was more than ecstatic when the contestants then made their way to their stations and we were presented with the next challenge, this year’s first Mystery Box Challenge!

MYSTERY BOX CHALLENGE

“It’s time for the world’s biggest cooking competition to truly begin,” Gordon opens as the contestants wait patiently at their stations, staring at the boxes in front of them. For this challenge, the contestants are given 90 minutes to make something restaurant quality to present to the judges. The only ingredients allowed to be used in this challenge will be found under the box atop their station.

Inside the box is: Chocolate, bananas, strawberries, blueberries, brandy ladyfingers, extracts, honey and ground coffee.

Cut to big Willie immediately and he’s happy as a bear full of honey. But uh-oh, here comes the twist: At the end of the challenge, at least one contestant will be going home. This is new to a mystery box challenge, but it isn’t unusual at this stage in the game. It certainly does make things interesting though, especially considering all they’re given to work with leads to dessert and anybody that knows anything about food knows this isn’t going to be an easy task.

This is affirmed as the allotted 90-minutes begin and we’re given the judges insight on the competition at hand, “So Mystery Box Season 5; we open with desserts,” Joe explains to the other two judges. “Technical, very difficult ability,” Ramsay agrees. Graham says that it will help them weed out the ones that don’t deserve to be there. Joe asks what the biggest mistake the other two will expect out of a challenge, Graham says over complication and I totally agree. Desserts need to be precise because baking requires exact measurements and cooking times and adding too many components could really hurt any one of these contestants.

A lot is seen being done in the kitchen, but the first contestant to showcase their work is Courtney, our little overachiever. She is making a Honeybee cake with crushed pecans and a honey-caramel glaze. Followed by Willie, my dawg! He’s making a spicy gingerbread cake trio and we’re given a bit of background information on him; he says he comes from a big house with thirteen people and that food is what brings them together, which— we prolly coulda guessed, Willie. However, his confidence level is still through the roof as he whips up his cake, so let’s hope that he doesn’t let down that big family just yet. Following Willie, we actually get out first look at a new contestant:

Cutter; he is ex-military search and rescue and a petroleum “land man” by day, viewing MasterChef as another opportunity he can pursue in his life. He is making a cappuccino pudding with a vanilla whipped cream and chocolate biscotti on the side. Ramsay then checks in on Astrid and she is extremely nervous. “I don’t bake, Chef,” she says. He is shocked, but asks about the lavender in her shortcrust, which is for the lemon bars she says she is making.  After checking in with her, we’re given one more introduction:

Jaimee; a bakery assistant that says she’ll be pretty devastated if she doesn’t win this challenge. She says cooking is her life and that it’s basically the only thing she is good at, but that growing up in a small town has hindered her. She is making a chocolate pecan brownie and Joe says that he is thinking she has a big advantage in this challenge.

45 minutes left to cook and Ramsay makes his way over to Elizabeth who is making a strawberry balsamic cake with a honey mascarpone icing that she is calling a “Strawberry tall cake”. Ramsay escalates the drama in the kitchen and decides to ask her, “Who do you think is going to screw up tonight.” She points ahead of her and says, “Leslie,” because he “flaps his jaws too much and doesn’t cook enough.” 30 minutes left to cook and he’s retorting back, “I never said anything to you, Elizabeth… never once. You don’t know where I’ve been!” She scoffs, replies with “You live in Malibu” and Leslie is even quicker with the defense, stating that he’s from Malibu because he worked hard to get to where he was at in his life.

(Uh… remember the previous episode when he mentioned he was a stay-at-home dad because he was happy to let his wife make all the money?)

Anyway, Elizabeth calls him out on this and the bickering escalates to a point where the judges come to check in. After a few wise words from Ramsay about him being the elder and being more respectable in this situation, he turns and apologizes and the contestants are able to get back to their cooking. There’s a minute left to cook and final plating begins. We see a lot of confident faces, but Ramsay reminds them that for one of them—it’s their last minute cooking in the MasterChef kitchen.

After tasting and judging, the judges call up two contestants:

Cutter and Astrid.

Then, they call up two more contestants:

Big Willie and Courtney.

The big twist is that two of them are in contention for the worst dish and that two of them are in contention for the best dish. Remember, at least one person will go home after this challenge, but we could be seeing a double elimination right down to 20 contestants right here and now.  The judges are just about to reveal the two worst dishes and MC cuts to the first commercial.

When we come back, we find out that it’s Cutter and Astrid with the worst dishes in the challenge. Cutter immediately begins shaking his head and prompts Gordon to ask him why, to which he says that it’s his first time trying something like it and that he thought he did pretty good. Ramsay says that it’s a “proper kick in the ass” that he put a MasterChef logo on his pudding. Joe comes up and he has that look on his face, with the vein popping out and you can tell he’s about to give it to this guy good. “Do you know the meaning of biscotti?” he asks before explaining that “bis” mean’s twice and “cotti” cooked in Italian. Cutter asks if he should have flipped his biscotti and Joe says that normally you would slice it and bake it twice. He then looks onward to the other contestants and exclaims that this is why they’re there, to distinguish who is and who isn’t deserving of making it to the next round.

Astrid then presents her lavender infused lemon tarts and you can literally see the dismay on a plate. Ramsay immediately picks up a tart and starts scraping the bottom with a knife. It’s raw dough! “What do you do with something that isn’t fully cooked?” He asks. “Keep it in the oven.” Graham says that even though pastries may not be her strong suit, that any MasterChef should be able to come into the challenge and figure out a way to step up their game whether they’re cooking seafood or desserts.

After deliberating, it’s agreed that Cutter, although presenting a horrid pudding still managed to present something edible. Raw dough is a no-no, Astrid and you’re going home!

As for the winner of the challenge, it is between Big Willie and Courtney. First to present is Courtney, with her honey cake and mixed berry coulis. Graham immediately says that it looks like a restaurant dish and upon tasting, asks if she used salt in anything. She says that she used a small bit in everything and he compliments her on her ingenuity, saying that it’s a smart way to balance the overly sweet effects of both honey and caramel. Gordon follows, saying that he loves the crunch and that her balance was just right. Willie follows her with his spiced gingerbread cake, mascarpone and spicy berry compote. “Beautiful, well presented—small, dainty and shows a lot of finess”, Joe says. He is impressed and says that it’s a great effort. Gordon says it is amazing as well. “It is a party in my mouth, Willie!”

The decision is close and we’re not revealed a winner of the challenge before a second commercial break, but when we come back, Courtney is given the win. As usual, the winner of the mystery box challenge is given a huge advantage going into the elimination test that is to follow. In the MasterChef pantry, she is given three options that are all made with ground meat:

Meatballs, meatloaf, or hamburgers?

Before she makes her choice, it is revealed that she is safe from elimination this round and will not have to cook in the next challenge. Courtney says that she feels like she can change the entire game with her decision and ends up picking the meatloaf for everyone else to cook, which I agree with. As far as the three go, it’s the hardest to make “restaurant quality”. With meatballs, you can couple in fresh pasta and have the potential to go many different ways. Spicy or sweet? Asian or Italian? Hamburgers are essentially just as easy. What average American can’t spice up a cheeseburger? Meatloaf on the other hand, is so staple that it’s going to be difficult to throw some flare into it. Courtney is definitely thinking outside the box.

The judges and Courtney leave the pantry and walk out to the rest of the contestants, but just before they present her decision to the rest of the chefs, she’s given a third, new advantage going into this competition. With only 20 chefs left out there to cook, she is allowed to choose ten that will automatically be safe and will not have to cook in this challenge. With this revelation, my jaw literally hit the floor. How is Courtney going to play this? Is she going to be cutthroat out of the gate or is she going to try and form alliances? Remember, team challenges  are right around the corner—maybe she should consider catching more flies with honey than with vinegar. After all, she did just make a honey cake! But—this is not the case. She immediately saw it as a chance to get out one of her tougher competitors and immediately starts sending up the weaker chefs to the balcony. Safe from elimination this round, by Courtney are:

Leslie, Jaimee, Gordon, Elise, Cutter, Francis, Kira, Ahran, Elizabeth and Christian.

Her reasoning behind saving these competitors is smart, in many ways. These are people she thinks she can beat later on down the road. They thank her, but they understand that this is like a double edged sword. She is literally insulting you by saving you. Dan Woo isn’t oblivious and claims that him, along with the other nine remaining contestants are the top ten. Courtney compares herself to a puppetmaster, playing puppeteer with the other contestants. Has she made a smart move, or just a tough decision for the judges? After Courtney joins the rest of the saved contestants on the balcony, the meatloaf is revealed and Willie is once again ecstatic. “Ground meat and I go way back”, he claims.

You don’t say, Willie?

ELIMINATION CHALLENGE

Judges podium: Graham and Gordon are discussing the technique behind meatloaf. “You don’t want a big ol’ hunk of meat,” Graham says. They recommend roasting garlic and roasted mushrooms. Joe once again asks what they expect most people to make the mistake of doing and this time, it’s the tasting that concerns the judges. Gordon explains that you cannot season a meatloaf after it’s already been cooked, so he suggests that once you get your mixture done that you fry off a small piece in order to taste and adjust accordingly.

Judges begin their rounds and Dan explains that he is doing a southern Asian take on meatloaf and Gordon looks at it questioningly but wishes him good luck. Stephanie, a contestant we hadn’t yet been properly introduced to is making a blue cheese cream sauce for her lamb meatloaf. Joe claims that it’s very unconventional and asks if she’s out of her mind or if she wants to go home. Following Stephanie is Francis whom is doing a shortrib and lamb meatloaf that he is questioning putting cheese inside of.

Whitney follows Francis and is given another big intro, where she admits to going to culinary school but not being able to finish. She claims, as everyone does, that she is the next American MasterChef. She is making an “Asian style” meatloaf with a mango glaze.

Willie is showcased again and Gordon comes over to taste his food, which Willie exclaims is delicious. Thirty seconds left to cook and the judges are meeting again before plating begins and the timer ends. They show concerns for some contestants, but praise others. The clock ends and the hands are up. It’s time for final presentation and tasting. First up on the docket;

Francis: He did a Burrata stuffed meatloaf composed of shortrib and lamb with charred bok choy and a romesco sauce. Gordon asks if he’d ever tried meatloaf and burrata together and he claims that he hadn’t. He says it’s a bold move that worked and that he just wants to eat more and more of the dish. Graham also compliments it, while Joe claims that it is a MasterChef idea to stuff meatloaf with burrata and to couple it with romesco.

Stephani is next to present her dish and comes up to the podium with a lamb meatloaf with couscous and a blue cheese sauce. Ramsay immediately taunts her for using both blue cheese and couscous, knowing that their flavors would never complement each other. After taking a bite, he decides he is incapable of swallowing it and spits it into his napkin. He says it’s very dry and that there is lots of chili flakes. He questions blue cheese and chili flakes together. “H-O-M-E. That’s where you should be heading.”

Whitney follows Stephani and Dan says that upon a glance, it appears very “pedestrian” and that there doesn’t seem to be a lot going on. She presents her Caribbean meatloaf with lemongrass and soy sauce and Graham says that although the meatloaf has mushrooms and lots of components throughout it, he can’t really taste anything past the sweet potato mash she coupled it with along with her sweet mango glaze and that if anything, it’s like a strange meat dessert. Gordon says he can’t think of anything worse to go into a meatloaf than mango and lemongrass, the meatloaf is dry and overcooked—“the first thing that popped into my mind was a TV dinner,” he says, “but this is more like a TV disaster.”

Next up, Christine with her veal and pork meatloaf, topped with a fried egg and some basil fennel pesto. Graham claims that the flavor is great, but isn’t sure if the egg is necessary. Following Christine is Jordan who did a pork and veal meatloaf with a roasted tomato cream sauce. Gordon opens his comments with, “You cannot season a meatloaf after it’s already been cooked,” but claims that this may just be the contestants’ age showing through. Daniel follows with his lamb and ground beef meatloaf served on top of a sweet potato mash with roasted carrots and it is given good reviews by Joe, who claims to like everything about the dish.

Daniel is followed by Willie, who presents his pork and beef meatloaf with creamy mashed potatoes and roasted brussel sprouts coupled with bacon and pine nuts. Gordon gives him compliments on his “great effort” and claims that everything is done perfectly. Dan Woo is last to present and his food snob attitude is then heavily butt-hurt when his Asian style veal, pork and shortrib meatloaf is given poor reviews. “That is absolutely disgusting,” says Ramsay. “The blend is way too wet and I’m not a huge fan of raw brussel sprouts.”

Now that the presentations are done, it’s time to crown the winner of the elimination challenge and although many are in the running, Francis is given the win and the advantage leading into the next challenge. As for our bottom three dishes: Stephani, Dan Woo and Whitney are all called up to the podium.

“None of you did a meatloaf justice,” says Ramsay before asking Dan to step forward. “You cooked out of control tonight, you absolutely humiliated a meatloaf and you got far too cocky. However, there were two dishes worse than yours.” For now, Dan Woo is safe and Stephani and Whitney are left standing at the podium before the judges. Chef Ramsay looks up to the balcony and asks Courtney if she knows who is going home at this point and she claims that she does.

“One of the most important things about food is passion and love,” she says. “I believe this person is lacking in those qualities.” Ramsay claims that she is on fire tonight and that Stephani is safe because Whitney didn’t bring her passion to the plate. Two contestants down, twenty left to go. Next time, we have our first team challenge and Francis has the advantage leading into it. What do we expect? One more goes home next week. Can’t wait to see who it is!