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MasterChef
MasterChef is back for its eleventh year with more fantastically talented amateur cooks who want to take a shot at the coveted MasterChef Champion title. Out of the hundreds that auditioned, forty amateur cooks are through to battle it out over four weeks of heats, producing some of the most inspiring, exceptional, unusual and disastrous food ever seen on the series. Tonight, the first five amateur cooks try to prove to Judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be the 2015 MasterChef Champion.
Five amateur cooks try to prove to Judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be the 2015 MasterChef Champion. Firstly, the contestants are given just one hour and fifteen minutes to dazzle the judges when they are asked to cook their calling card, a practised dish that represents just who they are as a cook and showcases their talent. After tasting all five dishes, John and Gregg, without telling each other, each pick their favourite dish.
It's the first quarter-final of the series and the four talented heat winners have no time to rest on their laurels as they continue to fight for their place in the competition. The week's best amateurs are put through the mill with a seriously daunting test - the critic's brief. The home cooks have to impress just one food critic with two dishes. They are given the critic's brief and must create a main and a pudding based on it.
As the second week of heats begins, five more amateur cooks try to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be MasterChef Champion 2015. Firstly, the contestants are given just one hour and fifteen minutes to dazzle the judges when they are asked to cook their calling card, a practised dish that represents just who they are as a cook and showcases their talent. The two lucky cooks who do best will be safe - for now - and sail straight through to the third test.
As the second week of heats begins, five more amateur cooks try to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be MasterChef Champion 2015. Firstly, the contestants are given just one hour and fifteen minutes to dazzle the judges when they are asked to cook their calling card, a practised dish that represents just who they are as a cook and showcases their talent. The two lucky cooks who do best will be safe - for now - and sail straight through to the third test.
It's the second quarter-final of the series and the four talented heat winners have no time to rest on their laurels as they continue to fight for their place in the competition. The week's best amateurs are put through the mill with a seriously daunting test - the critic's brief. The home cooks have to impress just one food critic with two dishes. They are given the critic's brief and must create a main and a pudding based on it.
As the third week of heats begins, five more amateur cooks try to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be MasterChef Champion 2015. Firstly, the contestants are given just one hour and fifteen minutes to dazzle the judges when they are asked to cook their calling card, a practised dish that represents just who they are as a cook and showcases their talent. The two lucky cooks who do best will be safe - for now - and sail straight through to the third test.
Five more amateur cooks try to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be MasterChef Champion 2015. Firstly, the contestants are given just one hour and fifteen minutes to dazzle the judges when they are asked to cook their calling card, a practised dish that represents just who they are as a cook and showcases their talent. The two lucky cooks who do best will be safe - for now - and sail straight through to the third test.
The week's best amateurs are put through the mill with a seriously daunting test - the critic's brief. The home cooks have to impress just one food critic with two dishes. They are given the critic's brief and must create a main and a pudding based on it. The brief has been set by the candid food critic and ex-chef Charles Campion, who asks them to cook a main based on the following instructions: 'I am looking for a cook who can successfully make either a classic British dish or a genuine Indian one. Someone who can do simple dishes well, without over-elaborate presentation
As the final week of heats begins, five more amateur cooks try to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be MasterChef Champion 2015. Firstly, the contestants are given just one hour and fifteen minutes to dazzle the judges when they are asked to cook their calling card, a practised dish that represents just who they are as a cook and showcases their talent. The two lucky cooks who do best will be safe - for now - and sail straight through to the third test.
In the final heat, five more amateur cooks try to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be MasterChef Champion 2015. Firstly, the contestants are given just one hour and fifteen minutes to dazzle the judges when they are asked to cook their calling card, a practised dish that represents just who they are as a cook and showcases their talent. The two lucky cooks who do best will be safe - for now - and sail straight through to the third test.
The week's best amateurs are put through the mill with a seriously daunting test - the critic's brief. The home cooks have to impress just one food critic with two dishes. They are given the critic's brief and must create a main and a pudding based on it. The brief has been set by eagle-eyed and astute food critic William Sitwell, who asks them to cook a main based on the following instructions: 'I enjoy spicy dishes and I am looking for a cook who understands how to get the best out of ingredients. I want to see a light touch - a cook who is being guided by the ingredient and what the ingredient calls out for, not what he or she thinks is trendy or will impress.'
The competition is about to get serious as Knockout Week begins. At the end of this week only the best eight cooks will become semi-finalists. After four weeks of fierce competition only the 12 best cooks remain, and the battle is on as they come together for the first time.
Knockout Week continues as the remaining 11 contestants are split into two groups and get their first taste of professional cooking when they have to run an entire lunchtime service on their own. In this episode, the first group head to Typing Room, a London restaurant over seen by Lee Westcott, a protégé of Jason Atherton and Rene Redzepi's Noma. During a busy service, the five amateurs are responsible for serving up every dish on the menu to paying customers. Who will falter as they cook in a completely unfamiliar and demanding environment?
As Knockout Week continues, the second group of amateurs get their first taste of professional cooking. They head to Theo Randall at the Intercontinental, a London restaurant awarded Best Italian in Britain in 2013, where they will be responsible for serving up every dish on the menu for a busy lunch service. As the competition hots up, who will sink and who will swim?
At the end of Knockout Week, the competition has been whittled down to nine extremely talented amateur cooks - all of whom are desperate to reach the MasterChef semi-finals. At MasterChef HQ, they have only one challenge: to cook one superb show-stopper dish to completely wow the judges and secure their semi-final place. The nine have one-and-a-half hours to create their masterpiece. Failure now is not an option. Only the eight best amateurs will become semi-finalists, inching closer to being crowned MasterChef Champion 2015.
It's the first of the semi-finals, and tonight the eight best cooks come together to battle in a team challenge, the relay invention test. Split into two teams of four, both groups must create one dish between them, using the humble chicken, as well as a range of vegetables, herbs and spices. Each team member has just 20 minutes to make their contribution to the dish, and they must do so without communicating with one another.
The MasterChef semi-finals continue with a spectacular challenge as the eight remaining cooks head to Lincolnshire for an event they will never forget. They must cook a 50th anniversary celebration lunch for some of the most well-loved members of the British armed forces - 90 pilots and the support crew of the Red Arrows.
The MasterChef semi-finals continue, and the pressure is on as tonight one more chef leaves the competition. First, the seven remaining amateurs face a challenge that will really put their skills to the test. They must cook the judges just one dish... but this time using scraps, trimmings and leftovers. Their choice of ingredients for the challenging scraps test includes chicken giblets and skin, bones, a pig's ear, fish heads and bones, roes, potato peelings, vegetable offcuts, stale bread and cheese rind.
It's the last of the semi-finals, and it's do or die for the best six amateurs as they cook off to win a coveted place in the prestigious MasterChef final week. The contestants have just one challenge to win a place in the final five - to cook an outstanding dish to win over three of the country's most feared restaurant critics - Charles Campion, Tracey MacLeod and William Sitwell. Serving food to these masters of the dining room is a daunting task for the most adept chefs and these talented home cooks now have to put their skills and palates on the line. At the end, judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace face a difficult decision - who to take through to next week's MasterChef finals week?
