The MasterChef Australia kitchen is filled with talented home cooks dreaming of the prize and the coveted title. But sadly, only one contestant can make it through all the mystery boxes and pressure cooks to be crowned the MasterChef winner for 2026.
Along with watching the contestant’s culinary journeys, this season is set to be a good one. Judges Poh Ling Yeow, Andy Allen, Sofia Levin and Jean-Christophe Novelli have returned to bring us their signature flavours of expertise, humour and compassion.
Plus, this season features an incredible list of celebrity guests, including Meghan Markle, Jimmy Barnes and Maggie Beer — just to name a few — and promises to lift the standard of excellence in the kitchen to higher levels than we’ve ever seen before.
Exciting, don’t you think?
Without further ado, here’s everyone who has been eliminated from MasterChef Australia so far.
Who has been eliminated from MasterChef Australia so far?
Episode 35 – Wednesday, June 17
To celebrate the final instalment of Sweet Week, former contestant and pâtissier Jess Liemantara – more famously known as Jess Lemon – returns to the MasterChef Australia kitchen for a Beat the Chef Immunity Challenge, where Hannah, Pat, Alyona and Bella must attempt to outcook the dessert queen herself.
Poh is visibly emotional seeing her former competitor back in the kitchen and can’t help but gush over how far Jess has come since her own MasterChef journey. The sweet reunion is short-lived though, because there’s an immunity pin on the line.
The challenge begins with each contestant selecting one of Jess’ signature macarons and cracking it open to reveal a number. In that order, they must choose from a selection of flavours to hero in a dessert. Once a flavour is chosen, it’s off limits for everyone else. Jess doesn’t get a choice at all – she’s left with whatever flavour remains.
Had Jess not been in the mix, we think Hannah’s dessert could have been the winner of the coveted immunity pin. (Credit: Instagram)
The contestants are fighting for an immunity pin that would almost guarantee them a place in the Top 10. But there’s a catch: if Jess outcooks them all, nobody gets the pin.
The available flavours are raspberry, lemon, hazelnut, ginger and fennel. Bella, who draws number one, makes the controversial decision to choose fennel. Alyona selects lemon, Pat goes with raspberry and Hannah chooses hazelnut, leaving ginger for Jess.
To level the playing field against the experienced pastry chef, the contestants are given 75 minutes to cook, while Jess has just 60.
Hannah creates a hazelnut and orange tart with hazelnut cream, orange mousse and chocolate ganache. Despite nearly losing the sides of her tart shells during the cook, she plates up a dessert that looks like it belongs in the window of a high-end pâtisserie. It earns a double slap on the table from Jean-Christophe, with the judges agreeing it’s her best dish yet.
Meanwhile, it’s Alyona’s birthday in the MasterChef kitchen, so naturally she decides to make a cake. Her lemon and thyme olive oil cake with lemon curd, blackberry coulis and Italian meringue is bright, balanced and packed with citrus flavour.
Pat serves up a raspberry and rhubarb tart loaded with technical elements. Unfortunately, he runs out of time, leaving several layers without enough time to properly set. The judges agree that with another 20 or 30 minutes, the dish could have been a serious contender.
Bella earns praise for her bravery in choosing fennel. She turns the divisive ingredient into a fennel and yuzu parfait with fennel sorbet and fennel oil. The judges love the clever flavour combinations and admire how confidently she leans into the unusual ingredient.
Then there’s Jess.
Despite entering the cook 15 minutes later than everyone else, she proves exactly why she’s one of Australia’s most exciting pastry chefs. Her dessert, “Ginger Threads”, features a delicate manuka honey wafer, ginger ice cream and yoghurt foam, all presented as a stunning sculptural masterpiece.
By showcasing ginger in such an elegant and refined way, Jess completely wins over the judges and takes out dish of the day.
Unfortunately for the contestants, that means nobody walks away with the immunity pin. Sweet Week belongs to Jess.
Episode 34 – Tuesday, June 16
As Sweet Week continues, the contestants are challenged to put their creativity to the test in a high-stakes Invention Test.
This time, the humble air fryer is the star of the show, with each cook tasked with creating a dessert featuring at least one element cooked in the popular kitchen appliance. The top four dishes will earn their makers a shot at immunity, while the cook behind the best dessert of the day will walk away with a $5,000 Harvey Norman voucher.
There’s just one catch: nobody is allowed to use an oven.
Pat’s gamble paid off! (Credit: Instagram)
With 75 minutes on the clock and access to the pantry and garden, the contestants quickly get to work.
Pat takes a huge risk by serving an apple tarte tatin with wattleseed and malt ice cream to none other than tarte tatin devotee Jean-Christophe Novelli. As JC cuts into the dessert, the room collectively holds its breath.
Thankfully for Pat, the gamble pays off.
The judges are blown away by the crisp caramelised edges and beautifully balanced flavours, with Sofia declaring it the best thing she has ever eaten from an air fryer.
Hannah also impresses with her “After Dark Donuts” featuring whiskey and chocolate crème pâtissière, dark chocolate glaze and Italian meringue. The indulgent dessert leaves the judges delighted and slightly tipsy, with Sofia even joking it’s alcohol forward flavour profile is “X-rated”.
They are particularly impressed that Hannah manages to get the donuts to rise in the air fryer – something several of them openly admit they doubted was possible.
Not everyone has a smooth cook.
Luke’s frangipane tart with spiced vanilla ice cream is plagued by fears it may be undercooked after he accidentally leaves a tablespoon of flour out of the mixture.
Those fears become reality when the judges cut into the tart and discover the centre is still raw.
The mistake proves costly, with Andy noting that the dessert otherwise had “boss flavours” and could have been a contender for dish of the day.
In the end, Hannah, Pat, Bella and Alyona secure the top four spots and progress to the immunity cook.
But it is Pat who rises above the pack, taking out the top dish of the day and walking away with both bragging rights and a $5,000 Harvey Norman voucher.
Episode 33 – Monday, June 15
Sweet Week gets even sweeter with an Ice Cream Taste Tet where contestants are challenged to identify a range of ice cream flavours, from classic favourites to some seriously kooky combinations. The first four contestants to guess incorrectly will be sent into the second-round elimination cook, where the least impressive dessert will be sent home.
Casper is the first to land in hot water after mistaking jackfruit for saffron. Annabel follows when she confuses orange for mango, Aaron mistakes cauliflower for parsnip, and Jackie incorrectly guesses rockmelon as watermelon.
With their fate now hanging in the balance, the four contestants are given 75 minutes to create a standout dessert using only the 48 ingredients featured in the ice creams from round one, plus a specialised under-bench pantry stocked with sweet essentials.
Annabel plays to her strengths, taking a strategic approach and focusing on flawless execution. Her miso and brown butter ice cream with chocolate mousse, passionfruit and chilli granita, and brown butter crumb is a huge success.
The dessert is so good that Jean-Christophe declares he wants to hire her.
Jackie, however, fails to impress with her figs, brown butter financier, orange and cinnamon ice cream, and mint and lime granita. The judges criticise the raw financier, label the fig a “poor decision” and question why the granita is even on the plate.
Casper controversially decides to reclaim the saffron flavour that landed him in elimination in the first place. His saffron and carrot ice cream with orange meringue, macaron kisses and vanilla bean and orange oil divides the judges.
While Andy, Poh and Sofia feel the bold saffron and orange flavours are too subtle, Jean-Christophe disagrees, praising the dish for its delicate and gentle balance.
Aaron, who openly admits desserts aren’t his strength, leans into his savoury expertise. Inspired by a tomato salad, he serves basil ice cream, tomato granita, olive oil and hazelnut crumb, finished with basil oil.
The judges are blown away, describing the elegant and sophisticated dessert as Aaron’s best dish of the competition so far.
Jackie’s plum dish in the first cook of Sweet Week was her proudest moment yet. (Credit: 10)
In the end, Aaron and Annabel take out the top dishes of the day.
Sadly for Jackie, her dessert falls short, making her the 12th contestant eliminated from the MasterChef Australia kitchen.
Episode 32 – Sunday, June 14
As the contestants enter the MasterChef Australia kitchen, they’re greeted by striped cloches perched atop bright pink plinths, looking like something straight out of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It’s a fitting welcome, because Sweet Week has officially arrived.
And who better to oversee the first challenge than dessert king Adriano Zumbo?
In this immunity cook, each contestant must choose a cloche and peek underneath. Whatever ingredient they find must be heroed in a dessert. If they don’t like what they see, they can swap for a second cloche – but there’s a catch. Whatever is hiding under the second cloche, they are stuck with.
With ingredients including tonka bean, fish sauce and kombu in the mix, the desserts are shaping up to be inventive, risky and more than a little unusual. Annabel, Petro and Bella have never even tasted their ingredients before, let alone cooked with them.
With 75 minutes on the clock, the pantry and garden open, and immunity on the line, only the top three dishes will be safe from elimination.
Alyona draws fish sauce with her first cloche and, shockingly, decides to stick with it. Turning the salty pantry staple into a vanilla, black pepper and fish sauce ice cream with fish sauce caramel, orange sauce and hazelnut crumb, she originally has the judges concerned she may have overused the ingredient. But then, she completely wins them over.
The judges are stunned by her ability to turn “yuck into yum”, with the dish praised for its balance and creativity. Not only does Alyona earn rave reviews, she also secures immunity and a place in the top three.
Joining her are Petro and Pat.
Petro in particular impresses with a tonka bean tart featuring tonka bean crème diplomate and tonka bean caramel. The flavours, textures and balance are so spot-on that Andy can’t believe he has never cooked with the ingredient before.
The feedback is far less sweet for Bella, who draws what Adriano declares is the toughest ingredient of the day – kombu.
Her dessert, aptly named “Kombu Chaos”, features kombu ice cream, kombu caramel and black sesame sponge. Unfortunately, her lack of familiarity with the ingredient proves costly.
The judges struggle to taste the kombu throughout the dish, leaving Bella disappointed.
With this being her first full cook since battling her way back into the competition, has time away from the kitchen left Bella on the back foot during what should be one of her strongest weeks?
Episode 31 – Wednesday, June 10
The contestants walk into the MasterChef Australia kitchen to find it transformed into a showcase of native Australian ingredients, all brought in by one of the country’s biggest wildlife warriors, Robert Irwin.
A passionate advocate for conservation and sustainability, Robert has the kitchen buzzing with his infectious energy – even leaving usually chatty Luke momentarily lost for words. But the excitement doesn’t last long. The smiles quickly fade when the contestants remember Robert is here to oversee an elimination cook.
The challenge centres around five native ingredients Robert is passionate about highlighting: lilly pilly, lemon myrtle, ooray plum, wattleseed and river mint. With 75 minutes on the clock and full access to the pantry and garden, the contestants must create a dish heroing one of the ingredients. The least impressive dish will send its maker home.
The key is balance. These uniquely Australian flavours are bold and distinctive, and while they can elevate a dish, they can just as easily overwhelm it.
Some contestants strike the perfect balance. Annabel impresses with her cured coral trout featuring ooray plum ponzu and macadamia cream, a dish the judges describe as delivering a “controlled pow”.
Others aren’t quite as successful.
Dot’s river mint doughnuts with raspberry ooray plum jam, river mint and white chocolate cream patissiere, and river mint sugar is a concept Robert is particularly excited to try. Unfortunately, the flavours are out of balance, proving costly for the usually consistent cook.
In a shock result, Dot is sent home, becoming the 11th contestant eliminated from the competition.
There are plenty of standout dishes elsewhere in the cook. Aaron impresses with his wattleseed ice cream, macadamia crumb, soy caramel and ooray plum turn, while Vinnie’s crown-roasted duck with macadamia and black garlic purée and an ooray plum glaze has Robert raving.
In fact, the wildlife conservationist declares it the best duck he has ever eaten.
Episode 30 – Tuesday, June 9
It’s officially the halfway point of the competition, and what better way to celebrate Aussie Classics Week than with a good old-fashioned comeback story?
Former contestants Lucy, Lydia, Megs, Alita, Miin, Jack and Belinda return to the MasterChef Australia kitchen for one last shot at glory, all hoping to win back an apron and rejoin the competition.
Bella is determined to secure an apron. (Credit: Instagram)
The brief is simple: cook the dish you’ve always wanted to make in the competition but never got the chance to.
With 75 minutes on the clock and full access to the pantry and garden, the returning cooks have the opportunity to showcase just how much they’ve grown since leaving the kitchen. With a place in the competition on the line, the standards are sky-high – and they deliver.
Out of the seven returning contestants, four dishes rise to the top.
Lucy impresses with her “sublime” corn noodle soup with scallops and chilli oil. The judges declare it the best bowl of noodles she has produced in the competition, praising both the flavour and execution of every element on the plate.
Lydia showcases her growth as a chef with a dessert inspired by both her Greek heritage and the humble Greek salad. Her feta and honey panna cotta features a tomato veil, mint and cucumber granita, olive crumb and olive caramel drizzle. The bold and unexpected combination leaves the judges thoroughly impressed.
Miin draws on his Malaysian roots with a barramundi masak lemak featuring kaffir lime oil. By combining a beurre blanc base with a traditional Malaysian gravy, he creates a traditional dish with a modern Australian twist that is refined, technically impressive and deeply personal.
But it is Bella who ultimately steals the show.
Nonna’s Garden. (Credit: Instagram)
Her dessert, Nonna’s Garden – a capsicum sorbet with chocolate verjuice crémeux, chocolate soil, fennel jelly and parsley powder – is unlike anything the judges have seen before. Packed with originality, technical skill and beautifully balanced flavours, the dish earns an enthusiastic table slap from Jean-Christophe, who declares it “unbelievable”.
The reward? Bella secures her place back in the competition and completes an incredible comeback story. Speaking to TV WEEK, Bella spilled on her return to the competition. You can read about it HERE.
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Episode 29 – Monday, June 8
Culinary legend Curtis Stone is back in the MasterChef Australia kitchen for this Aussie Classics Week elimination, and the challenge he sets is enough to make the contestants squeal.
The brief is simple: celebrate pork. The contestants can cook whatever they like, as long as pork is the hero of the dish. The cook with the weakest dish will be sent home.
As the contestants get crackling, things take a painful turn for Alyona when she badly burns her hand during the cook. With precious time lost tending to her injury, she is forced to abandon her apple sauce, leaving her worried she may have cooked her last dish in the competition.
Annabel also hits a hurdle. Originally planning to play it safe on the dreaded black apron day, she begins to second-guess her approach after Poh questions her technique for emulsifying the pork. Thinking on her feet, she switches to the chop-chop method she recently learnt from Dim Sim Lim.
The judges are impressed by the deep flavour and seasoning in her pork and fennel cavatelli with pork crackling pangrattato, although a few gristly pieces of pork stop it from being a top dish.
The top dish goes to Dot, whose pork and peaches dish – a prosciutto-wrapped pork with parsnip purée and peach ketchup – has the judges grinning from ear to ear. Andy is particularly impressed, declaring he would happily put the dish on the menu at any of his restaurants.
For Alyona, however, her injury proves costly. Without the apple sauce, the judges feel the dish lacks balance and that the elements aren’t successfully tied together, leaving the ratios out of whack, and she is sent to the bottom two alongside Jack.
Jack struggles to impress with his air fryer pork belly, pickled salad and roasted apple purée. While the pork is inconsistently cooked, the judges also feel the dish lacks a clear direction, with the Asian-inspired pork and French-style salad failing to come together.
Ultimately, it isn’t enough to keep him in the competition, and Jack becomes the 11th contestant eliminated from the MasterChef Australia kitchen.
Episode 28 – Sunday, June 7
It’s Aussie Classics Week, and Michelin-starred chef and restaurateur Curtis Stone is in the MasterChef Australia kitchen overseeing a Mystery Box challenge inspired by some of the nation’s favourite treats.
Waiting under the cloches are two familiar classics: pies and Neapolitan ice cream.
Half the contestants must create a family-sized pie complete with a side or condiment, featuring a perfectly flaky crust and delicious filling. The other half are tasked with creating a unique ice cream as part of a complete dessert, showcasing silky texture and balanced flavours.
The stakes are high. Not only will the top pie and top ice cream earn safety from elimination, but their creations will also be rolled out in Coles stores nationwide for a limited time.
The pie cooks arguably have the tougher task. In just 90 minutes, they need to prepare their pastry, cook a filling and allow it to cool before assembling and baking the final product.
Annabel impresses with her lamington-inspired toasted coconut ice cream, sour cherries and chocolate mousse, leaving Jean-Christophe visibly emotional.
“It’s beautiful,” he declares while choking back tears.
Dot also receives glowing feedback for her butter chicken pie, inspired by her time attending band camp in New Zealand.
Not everyone has a smooth cook.
Luke accidentally leaves his ice cream mixture in the freezer too long before churning, forcing him to spend valuable time rescuing it and ultimately abandoning the sponge cake element of his dessert altogether.
Aaron is also racing the clock. His spicy miso eggplant and coconut pie remains in the oven until the very last minute after a series of timing issues throughout the cook.
When it comes to the pies, Hannah takes the win with her beautifully executed cheeseburger pie, putting huge smiles on the judges’ faces.
Over on the dessert side, Pat cheekily serves an apple pie alongside his salted caramel ice cream and golden biscuit crumb. While he didn’t need to make a pie, the extra effort pays off. His ice cream is praised for its gentle, rich and velvety texture, while his shortcrust pastry is declared the best of the day.
As an added bonus, both Hannah and Pat’s winning creations are available in Coles stores across the country from today.
Episode 27 – Wednesday, June 3
Vinnie, Alyona, Lydia, Hannah and Annabel walk into a dreaded black apron cook only to be confronted by a classic MasterChef dilemma: what matters more – time or ingredients?
In a 75-minute cook, four pantries will be revealed every 15 minutes. The contestants can cook using their under-bench staples, but each new pantry offers increasingly desirable ingredients. The catch? The longer they wait, the less time they have to cook.
Vinnie, who holds an immunity pin, must decide whether he wants to play at all. After weighing up the challenge, he opts out, dramatically increasing the odds of going home for the remaining four contestants.
The first pantry contains herbs, spices and alliums. Lydia, valuing time over choice, spots onions and immediately commits, giving herself the full 75 minutes to cook. The others decide to hold their nerve.
The second pantry reveals fruit and vegetables. Hannah jumps at the opportunity, giving herself 60 minutes with access to two pantries. After a tense few minutes of deliberation, Annabel follows suit, leaving only Alyona waiting for the final reveals.
The third pantry contains “flavour bombs” – think anchovies, nduja, vinegars and truffle. Alyona still isn’t convinced.
Then comes the final pantry: seafood.
Alyona is thrilled. Trusting her instincts pays off as she finally commits, securing access to all four pantries and protein – which she desperately wanted. The downside? She now has just 30 minutes to create a dish worthy of staying in the competition.
Her gamble pays off. Alyona serves scallops with cauliflower miso purée and a herb and anchovy sauce, impressing the judges with her bold flavours and unwavering confidence.
Lydia’s MasterChef dreams fall apart at the last second – literally. (Credit: Instagram)
Annabel, however, struggles to make her dish connect. Her ricotta and leek filling with gnocco fritto is technically well executed, but lacks a clear concept. After Andy calls the dish “odd” and Annabel can’t shake the feeling she’s missed the brief, serving the judges essentially a fancy “chips and dip”. The criticism leaves the usually strategic cook in tears.
Hannah has more success with her syrup cake, strawberry ice cream and basil oil. Originally planning an overly complicated dessert, she wisely pares things back. Jean-Christophe praises the final dish, noting that four elements in 60 minutes was an impressive and smart decision.
Lydia’s onion tart with spiced butter and herb salad, however, falls apart at the final hurdle. The pastry crumbles during plating, with Poh comparing the texture to sand.
“I’m afraid to say this is not a tart,” Jean-Christophe adds.
It is a flaw the judges can’t overlook, and sadly Lydia is sent home making her the 10th contestant eliminated from the competition.
Episode 26 – Tuesday, June 2
After a dramatic elimination, the Top 15 enter the MasterChef Australia kitchen to find benches set for two – of course – as Perfect Pairs Week continues.
Waiting under the cloches are Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, with the judges noting the iconic combination of smooth milk chocolate and salty peanut butter is one of the world’s ultimate flavour pairings.
Using the sweet treat as inspiration, the contestants must work in pairs to create a dessert heroing chocolate and peanuts. With 75 minutes on the clock and four identical servings required for the judges, consistency is just as important as creativity. The bottom two teams will face the next elimination challenge.
The pairs are Lydia and Alyona, Dot and Pat, Luke and Grace (teaming up for a third time), Annabel and Hannah, Jackie and Emily, Jack and Aaron, and Casper and Petro.
Vinnie, who was unwell during the previous cook, watches from the gantry and automatically advances to the next elimination.
One of the standout teams is “Pot” – Pat and Dot – who serve a chocolate and peanut banoffee pie. Thankfully, the banana doesn’t overpower the hero flavours, while their whiskey peanut butter caramel is labelled “killer” by the judges.
Not everyone has such a smooth cook.
Casper and Petro’s miso salted caramel tart with peanut cremeux and tempered chocolate shard struggles with presentation after Casper drops a bowl and cuts his finger midway through the challenge.
Lydia and Alyona are forced into a last-minute pivot when their vanilla and peanut butter ice cream refuses to set. They swap it for a peanut mascarpone, but Andy feels the cheesiness overwhelms the dish.
Annabel and Hannah face an even bigger setback. Their peanut and chocolate tart with passionfruit salted caramel and peanut ice cream is the dish the judges are most excited about, but when the wheels come off late in the cook, they can only plate two of the required four tarts. The flavours are there, but the missing dishes prove costly.
In the end, Annabel and Hannah join Lydia and Alyona in the next elimination challenge.
Dish of the day, however, belongs to Pat and Dot, whose winning combination proves they’re the perfect pair.
Episode 25 – Monday, June 1
Perfect pairings week is heating up, MasterChef fans! On Monday night’s spicy elimination, the contestants had to choose one of five perfect pairings to work with during a 60-second cook.
They could pick between chilli and lime, pineapple and coconut, maple and bacon, soy and honey and orange and fennel.
Which one would you pick? I’d go chilli and lime!! (Image: 10)
Interestingly, there’s a big mix in ingredients but orange and fennel is the favourite with Casper, Luke, Hannah, Dot and Grace picking that combo. Emily, Jack and Petro go with chilli and lime, while Olaolu picks coconut and pineapple. Meanwhile, Lydia lands on maple and bacon and Jackie chose soy and honey.
For the judges, Casper’s orange and fennel dessert and Lydia’s stuffed savoury Loukoumades seem like the stand outs during the cook. However, they’re nervous about Luke’s papillote (a cooking method where fish is cooked in paper, although Luke does it in foil), which he’s never made before, and Olaolu’s trifle, which seems lacking in texture.
While Lydia, Aaron, Hannah and Casper were stand outs, sadly, someone has to go home.
Despite Luke’s fish being over done, it was Olaolu who was sent home for lacking to make the coconut and pineapple flavours sing in the trifle and serving up an “incredibly basic” dish for this far into the competition.
Episode 24 – Sunday, May 31
Welcome to Perfect Pairings week! For the next seven days, the contestants have to think about all the great culinary pairings. You know, salt and pepper, knife and fork, a MasterChef contestant and a hibachi grill, all the classics.
During Sunday night’s challenge, the contestants had to choose between two mystery boxes: one is silver and labelled “home” and the other is gold and labelled “restaurant”. Inside the home mystery box were ingredients home cooks love, while the restaurant one skewed towards items that would “excite your inner chef”, according to Sofia.
Originally 10 contestants chose the home mystery box, while six chose the restaurant. However, when the judges revealed that there would be two top dishes — one from each box — Hannah decided to jump ship to the restaurant side to better her odds.
The ingredients were revealed to be the brainchild of chef MasterChef alum Matt Sinclair and and Daniel “Dobbers” Dobra from Peli’s on the Sunshine Coast.
The home box ingredients.
The restaurant box ingredients.
The general consensus was that the restaurant box was the winner with more interesting and impactful ingredients.
While it wasn’t an elimination cook, the two top dishes would receive immunity from Monday night’s elimination. In the end, it was Pat who came out on top for the home box with his stuffed chicken Maryland. Meanwhile for the restaurant box, Annabel won dish of the day with her incredible duck.
Good hustle, team!
Episode 23 – Wednesday, May 27
During episode 23, it wasn’t about elimination for the contestants — it was about winning immunity. After Tuesday night’s relay challenge, the winning team were playing for a coveted immunity pin which they could use to bow out of any challenge and make it to the next stage of the competition.
In this cook, the contestants were joined by season one star Justine Schofield who challenged them with cooking French cuisine — a challenge that Jean-Christophe was particularly excited for. But as always, there’s a twist!
This time around, the judges are leaving the kitchen and will only be seeing the dishes when they get wheeled in for tasting at the very end and will have no idea who cooked what.
This bunch will be twiddling their thumbs off camera, I reckon. Image: 10)
As the cook begins, Jack admits that he’s really feeling the pressure knowing that Frenchman Jean-Cristopher will be critiquing his food. He decides to make a traditional lobster bisque, but is worried that he won’t have enough time to develop the flavours.
Meanwhile, Hannah admits that while she feels stronger cooking desserts, she wants to take a risk with a savoury dish. Hannah decides to cook duck a la ronde, a traditional French dish. Casper decides to do a roast chicken with baked potatoes and braised leek. Vinnie is cooking pate en croute, which is a French terrine that Justine refers to as “one of the most complicated dishes” he could have chosen to make.
While all chefs plated up wonderful dishes, the judges were absolutely “flabbergasted” by Vinnie’s terrine.
“This is a lot of work in such a restricted time,” Jean-Cristophe said in disbelief.
He won the immunity challenge, and rightfully so! Good work Vinnie!
Episode 22 – Tuesday, May 26
It’s time for one of the most dynamic and notorious challenges on the MasterChef menu — the team relay! In this episode, the contestants were divided into teams to compete for a chance to cook for immunity in Wednesday night’s episode.
How it works is that each contestant gets 20 minutes to cook one element of their team’s dish, with the first person getting to lead the direction of the dish before having 60 seconds to hand over to the next contestant. Plus, each dish must feature Greek yoghurt as the key ingredient.
It’s Alyona, Petro, Dot and Jack starting off today’s relay for their teams. (Image: 10)
For team purple, Jack decides to lean into the theme of Nostalgia Week with a basil-crusted rack of lamb, Hasselback potatoes, carrots and a yoghurt drizzle.
In team green, Dot decides to go for a dessert to play to her team’s strengths. She decides to make a panned galette with yoghurt, orange and thyme ice cream.
Team blue’s Alyona is making a roasted, marinated Greek chicken dish with potatoes, Greek salad and a tzatziki dressing. Her technique is to set up different bowls for different sections so the rest of the team can jump in right away.
While team red’s starter Petro is taking inspiration for his Greek and Cyprian heritage by making a pork skewers with a tzatziki sauce.
As the episode and the challenge progressed, the tension got higher and higher with each new contestant jumping in to develop their team’s recipe.
When they tasted the dishes, the judges felt that the dark blue’s team’s dish was a bit mismatched. They loved the red team’s pork skewer combo, but felt that the green team’s upside down pear tart was delicious, but undercooked.
In the end, it was the purple team that made it through to the immunity cook with their basil-crusted lamb. Nice one!
Episode 21 – Monday, May 25
Another new week, another elimination cook! But this week’s challenge is one of the most emotional yet.
As the contestants walked in, they could see this giant tree with fairy lights and photos hanging down from the branches. The tree represented a family tree, and as they went through the photos, many of the budding chefs were brought to tears a they reflected on their roots, their family and the way food connects them to their culture. It was truly beautiful.
When they got into the cook, they were challenged to create a dish inspired by their family tree. And, as an added bonus, the judges revealed that the winner would receive a $10,000 prize. Not too shabby!
While Dot and Aaron were able to sit out of the challenge after winning immunity, the rest of the contestants got to work.
One of the contestants most excited for the challenge was Olaolu, who admits that he feels best when he taps into his Nigerian heritage. He’s making a stewed vegetable dish called Efo Riro with silverbeet and semolina, which is a soup native of the Yoruba people of South West NIgeria and other parts of Yorubaland.
“This is inspired by my family,” he explained. “My dad really enjoyed meals like this so it feels good to cook it in this kitchen today.”
Olaolu’s family photo. (Image: MasterChef)
Miin was also excited to be showcasing his Malaysian heritage. He tells Andy that he’s making a dish which was his mum’s family recipe, called Kiam Chye Ark, which is a salted vegetable duck soup. As the dish usually takes two hours, he opted to use a pressure cooker to speed up the process and planned on serving it with noodles.
While Miin had great intentions, he struggled throughout the cook — especially when it came to the noodles which kept falling apart.
When the judges tasted the final dishes, they were most impressed by Olaolu, Petro and Anabel. Petro had made Cypriot raviolis with tomato and whey butter, while Anabel made a corn agnolotti with tomato and strawberry consommé with a basil oil.
Meanwhile it was Luke — whose creative paella became an over-cooked risotto — and Miin who the judges critiqued the most.
In the end, the judges gave the win to Olaolus with his brilliantly executed dish, while Miin was sent packing.
Although Miin was disappointed, he knew it was coming.
“When I was trying to make my noodles for the fourth time, and it still didn’t work, I was quite certain I was going to be eliminated,” Miin admits to TV WEEK.
You can read what Miin thinks about the challenge in our chat with him HERE.
Episode 20 – Sunday, May 24
It may not have been an elimination cook during Episode 20, but it doesn’t mean the stakes weren’t high!
To kick off Nostalgia week, social media superstar Vincent Yeow Lim — aka Dim Sim Lim — visited the MasterChef kitchen. First up, he gave the talented bunch of budding chefs a masterclass on making traditional pork and prawn dim sim. But then, the real challenge started.
With just 60 minutes on the clock, the contestants were tasked with creating any dishes they wanted, using the full pantry and garden in the MasterChef kitchen. The catch? It had to have one steamed element using the steamer basket.
The top 10 most delicious sounded dishes would be tasted and judged by the judges, with the top two dishes receiving immunity from Monday night’s elimination cook.
In the end, it was Aaron and Dot who blew the judges away. Aaron made a fish roulade with a prawn farce (a French mousse), but with an Asian flavour profile, while Dot created delicious chicken momos.
Episode 19 – Wednesday, May 20
In tonight’s black apron cook, Miin, Vinnie, Jackie and Lucy are confronted with one of the most intricate and high-stakes Pressure Tests in MasterChef Australia history.
The contestants fighting to stay in the competition must recreate guest judge, chef and writer Rosheen Kaul’s mind-blowing chou farci. A what, you ask? Good question – we had no idea either.
The lush, multi-layered cabbage dish features caramelised zucchini purée, topped with a morel and shiitake duxelle, lily bulb and vegetable stock rice, spinach and tofu mousseline and a perfectly runny boiled egg at its centre. The delicate layers are separated by steamed cabbage leaves, wrapped in savoy cabbage, then finished with a garlic chive and parsley beurre monté and fragrant chilli oil.
The elaborate dish takes a staggering three hours to cook and assemble – all at an incredibly fast pace.
Thankfully for Jackie, she holds an immunity pin – and after seeing the challenge, she wisely decides to play it. That leaves Vinnie, Lucy and Miin each facing a one-in-three chance of elimination.
The seven-page recipe immediately overwhelms the contestants. Lucy initially appears calm and confident thanks to her methodical approach to cooking, but her attention to detail soon slows her down and causes her to fall behind. While she manages to get every element on the plate and delivers stunning presentation, her flavours are unbalanced, with both her mousseline and cabbage are undercooked.
Vinnie, meanwhile, keeps a level head throughout the cook. However, he makes a risky mistake by removing the ring mould from his chou farci while steaming it during the final stage, potentially compromising the layers. Although his technical execution is strong, the judges ultimately feel he has been too heavy-handed with seasoning.
Miin struggles early while navigating the lengthy recipe, accidentally using all of his shiitake mushrooms in one element and forcing himself to rebalance flavours elsewhere. Then, disaster strikes during plating when he struggles to remove the cling wrap and splits his chou farci in the process. The usually calm cook looks devastated.
But despite the setbacks, Miin’s dish surprises the judges with its bold flavours and impressive balance. Much to his relief, he is named the top dish of the cook.
Sadly, it is Lucy who is sent home, becoming the sixth contestant eliminated from the MasterChef Australia kitchen this season.
Episode 18 – Tuesday, May 19
Around the World Week continues with an invention test, as a display of postcards featuring countries from across the globe is unveiled at the front of the MasterChef Australia kitchen. The contestants must choose not one, but two countries, then fuse the cuisines together into one cohesive and delicious dish.
The stakes are high, with the bottom four dishes heading into the next pressure test, where one contestant will be eliminated.
After being criticised in the previous invention test for not pushing his creativity far enough, Luke steps up in a big way. Choosing to combine Australian and Spanish flavours, he creates a seemingly bizarre strawberry gazpacho with kingfish, native Australian ingredients and basil oil – but the risk completely pays off.
“It’s really refreshing, really modern,” Poh says. “It’s a very accomplished dish for someone who’s flying by the seat of his pants.”
Meanwhile, Casper is firmly in his element, embracing the challenge by creating “something whacky” – Japanese dolmades inspired by both Greek and Japanese cuisine. The judges are blown away, revealing they have a “long list” of things they admire about the dish.
Casper, Alyona and Dot are ultimately named the top three dishes of the day.
Elsewhere in the kitchen, however, things unravel for Jackie and Lucy.
Jackie initially chooses South Korea and China for her fusion, but after a visit from Poh and Sofia to her bench, realises the flavours are too similar to create enough contrast. She pivots to Italy instead, but her steamed fish with tomato broth fails to capture Italian flavours, while the fish itself ends up overcooked.
Lucy also runs into disaster when the coffee crumb for her Vietnamese iced coffee cruller with condensed milk glaze and coffee crème burns midway through the cook. Without the strong coffee flavour, the Vietnamese inspiration is lost in the final dish.
Joining Jackie and Lucy in the next elimination cook-off are Miin and Vinnie.
Episode 17 – Monday, May 18
In this dramatic black apron cook during Around the World Week, contestants are greeted by the flags of five countries – Vietnam, Mexico, Lebanon, Japan and Italy – each paired with a mystery cloche. Hidden underneath each cloche is a secret ingredient the cooks must hero in a 75-minute challenge, but there’s a catch: they won’t discover the ingredient until after choosing their country.
Vietnam’s ingredient is lemongrass, Mexico’s is corn, Lebanon’s is eggplant, Japan’s is miso and Italy’s is tomatoes.
Jackie decides not to play her immunity pin – a choice later questioned by Jean-Christophe, who tells her, “I think you should have played your pin,” believing her miso and pumpkin cake was overly sweet and failed to translate well to the judges.
Italian contestant Vinnie, naturally, chooses Italy and feels right at home cooking with tomatoes, creating a cherry tomato pasta sauce that the judges absolutely love. Annabel also impresses after selecting Mexico, serving seared scallops with corn butter and salsa macha inspired by dishes she recently ate while travelling through the country.
Her only downfall? Serving three scallops to four judges.
“I wish I had a full one,” Sofia jokes.
“A full seven,” Andy quickly fires back.
Meanwhile, Lydia struggles with timing while making her stuffed eggplant with lamb, tahini yoghurt sauce and pine nuts, worried the rice won’t cook in time. Thankfully, the final dish is deemed “magnificent” by the judges.
The standout dishes of the day come from Emily, Annabel, Lydia and Pat, with the judges declaring they would happily travel for meals like theirs.
The bottom dishes belong to Olaolu, Jackie and Kanika.
Sadly, Kanika’s prawn taco with corn two ways missed the mark after she failed to deliver the tortilla – the key vessel of the dish. Paired with a bland sauce and too many unnecessary elements on the plate, the dish ultimately led to her elimination from the competition.
Kanika is the fifth contestant eliminated from the MasterChef kitchen.
Episode 16 – Sunday, May 17
Grab your passports – it’s Around the World Week on MasterChef Australia, and the contestants are challenged to create a dish inspired by anywhere in the world in just 75 minutes.
But there’s a twist. The cooks must hero at least one ingredient from guest judge Rick Stein’s mystery box, packed with snapper, lamb, crab, zucchini, new potatoes, English spinach, stilton cheese, chickpeas, passionfruit and mango.
And while the pantry and garden are officially closed for business, the contestants are given access to a towering spice rack featuring more than 120 spices from across the globe to help elevate their dishes – with at least one spice required to be used. Only the 12 most visually appealing dishes will be tasted, and the top four cooks will earn immunity from the next elimination.
While some contestants, like curry king Miin, confidently throw eight or more spices into their dishes, others – including Alyona – feel overwhelmed by the endless flavour combinations.
As the cook unfolds, several dishes leave the judges stunned.
Casper’s mango and chilli ice-cream with passionfruit granita and tamarind caramel is described by Rick Stein as a “cornucopia of delights”, even earning him a rare handshake from Andy Allen.
“You win this competition with plates like that,” Andy declares.
Meanwhile, Grace worries she may have undercooked her crumbed snapper with spinach purée and zucchini flowers, but the judges are blown away by the final result.
In the end, Grace joins Casper, Miin and Alyona as the top four dishes of the day, securing safety from elimination.
Episode 15 – Wednesday, May 13
As Viral Wonders Week comes to an end, MasterChef alum and social media sensation Khanh Ong enters the kitchen bringing his signature bubbly energy and chic style. But his return isn’t just fun and games – he’s setting a challenge to create an epic sandwich with a “banging” cross section and huge flavour in just 60 minutes, all in the hope of winning the coveted immunity pin.
This year, however, the immunity pin comes with a twist. Whoever holds it must decide whether to play it after hearing the challenge – but before the cook begins, unlike previous years where it could be played mid cook.
While self-proclaimed panini king Vinnie is devastated to miss out on the sandwich-themed immunity cook, the six competing contestants – Annabel, Aaron, Hannah, Lydia, Jackie and Miin – get straight to work.
Some inspired creations immediately impress the judges, including Lydia’s moussaka sandwich with lamb, eggplant, capsicum and saganaki cheese. Hannah’s nduja chicken sandwich with miso mayo, pickled red onion and crispy chicken skin also wows thanks to its impressive cross section, while Miin’s roti john with chicken curry and pickled daikon, wrapped in an omelette, earns praise for its creativity.
But it is Jackie’s bulgogi Philly cheesesteak with kimchi mayo and apple that completely blows the judges away. Poh can barely contain her excitement before blurting out: “I can’t wait – it’s bloody amazing.”
Andy is beyond impressed, declaring the sandwich “absolute dynamite” before adding: “That is legit tasty, proper viral food.”
Safe to say, Jackie absolutely nailed the brief.
Episode 14 – Tuesday, May 12
In the season’s first epic service challenge, the contestants are split into teams of three and tasked with creating a viral-worthy dish to serve to hundreds of hungry diners from a pop-up food stand. Joining the judges is social media food critic Lily Huynh, who boasts more than nine million followers online.
With just two hours to design, prep and cook their dishes, the teams quickly run into issues – from leadership clashes and conceptual disagreements to textural disasters. And then there’s Luke, who boldly volunteers to make tortillas for his team’s tacos from scratch… despite never having made them before.
“Don’t tell Grace [his team captain], I’ve only ever watched someone do this,” he admits.
Team Orange – Miin, Annabel and Jackie – are first up with their pork rendang tostadas. The judges and Lily are impressed by the rich flavours of the rendang and the crunch of the dumpling-skin tostada.
Team Red – Grace, Pat and Luke – serve a crying tiger beef taco. Luke’s tortilla gamble pays off, with Andy declaring them “insane”, but the dish is criticised for lacking sauce.
Team Blue – Lydia, Hannah and Aaron – struggle early, with the judges warning their original concept is too complicated. The team pivots to a crispy pork belly roti taco, and the decision proves worthwhile. Jean-Christophe, who famously eats most dishes with a knife and fork, even gets dirty for this one and uses his hands!
Team Purple – Emily, Vinnie and Petro – deliver Asian fish tacos. While the flavours impress, Andy’s taco is severely overcooked and dry unlike the other judges which are cooked perfectly, exposing inconsistencies in the cook.
Meanwhile, Team Green – Dot, Kanika and Olalou – hope their cheese ball vada pav – an Indian burger if you will – will go viral thanks to its dramatic cheese pull within the patty. While tasty, the judges find the dish too rich and in need of balance.
The only dessert comes from Team Yellow – Casper, Jack and Lucy – who serve a mango pandan mochi crepe. While the judges love the idea, the texture misses the mark, lacking the chewiness expected from mochi and making it difficult to eat as street food.
In the end, Team Orange and Team Blue come out on top and will now battle it out for immunity.
Episode 13 – Monday, May 11
Viral Sensations Week continues in the MasterChef Australia kitchen with the arrival of social media royalty Victoria Minell – better known online as @recipesbyvictoria – whose most viral video has amassed more than 200 million views.
Standing before five cloches, Victoria reveals her top five viral ingredients: cucumber, burrata, pistachio, rice paper and gochujang. With 75 minutes on the clock, contestants must hero one ingredient in a way never seen before, all with the hope of creating the next viral food sensation.
The stakes are high. The top dish will be fast-tracked straight to the immunity challenge at the end of the week, while the weakest cook will be sent home.
As the contestants get cooking, some dishes immediately show huge viral potential. Dot impresses with her smashed prawn san choy bow with tamarind sauce using rice paper, with the judges loving her balance of spice, citrus and herbs.
“You are speaking my language with this dish,” Victoria tells her.
Victoria is also impressed by Dot’s creativity in flavouring the rice paper itself by smashing the prawn mixture between the layers.
Not every experiment is as successful, however. Alita’s dumpling lasagne – inspired by a current TikTok trend – struggles to come together. Combining Chinese and Italian flavours with a burrata on top, the cheese melts into the layers and creates what the judges describe as a wet texture.
Meanwhile, Alyona takes a huge risk with a sour cream and avocado ice-cream with pistachio crumb – but the gamble pays off, earning her Top Dish of the Day and a fast track to the immunity challenge.
Sadly, it is Alita who is eliminated from the competition, making her the fifth contestant cut from the season.
“You mixed two cuisines that don’t really mesh in a ramekin,” guest judge Victoria says.
Episode 12 – Sunday, May 10
It’s Viral Wonders Week in the MasterChef Australia kitchen, and 19-year-old dessert sensation Catherine Zhang – who boasts over two million social media followers – is kicking things off.
Known for her viral fruit creations, Catherine joins the judges to challenge contestants to create a dessert that celebrates fruit. With just 75 minutes on the clock and only the 10 most visually appealing dishes being tasted, presentation is everything – with the ultimate goal of going viral. The top dish will also earn immunity from the next elimination.
During the cook, Casper begins to worry his dish is too simple after a stern visit from Poh and Catherine, while Pat faces the opposite problem – doing too much, including a controversial fish sauce and honey caramel.
Thankfully for Casper, his fruit sando choux buns with strawberry matcha cream impress the judges with their lightness, fluffiness and clean cross section. Pat’s ambitious take on ice-cream and jelly may not be a standout, but it is praised for its creativity – including his funky fish sauce.
The top dishes of the day come from Jack and Grace, with Grace ultimately taking out the win – and immunity – thanks to her inventive all-lemon dessert featuring lemon granita, lemon leaf ice-cream and lemon zest biscotti.
It’s a bold celebration of lemon with clear viral potential, with Poh declaring the dish has put Grace “on the map”.
“I flippin love this dish so much,” she adds.
The remaining contestants will now face a black apron cook-off to secure their place in the competition.
Episode 11 – Wednesday, May 6
After a tense first team challenge, the six contestants from the two weakest teams – Bella, Hannah, Alyona, Pat, Lydia and Olalou – returned to the kitchen to battle individually for their place in the competition.
As they entered, they were greeted by childhood photos of the judges displayed across the walls – a nostalgic nod to the family memories that shaped their love of food.
The challenge? Create a MasterChef-worthy dish that represented both themselves and their family. They had 75 minutes, with the least impressive cook facing elimination.
Bella took on an ambitious apple and cinnamon entremet, but with so many intricate elements, time quickly became her enemy. In the final moments of the cook, the dessert still hadn’t properly set, forcing her to cut it from the mould just to get it on the plate.
Hannah also found herself under pressure when Jean-Christophe questioned whether she had remembered a crucial ingredient in her sticky date pudding – salt. Unsure, she scrambled to make another batch.
Meanwhile, homemaker Lydia wowed the judges with her Avgolemono soup featuring chicken meatballs and a silky egg-and-lemon broth, leaving the judges speechless as they happily slurped every last mouthful.
In the end, the bottom two dishes belonged to Hannah and Bella. Hannah’s butterscotch sauce was labelled “unpleasant”, while Bella’s ambitious dessert suffered due to time constraints.
Ultimately, it was a heartbreaking farewell for 20-year-old Bella. Even Poh became teary as she praised the young dessert specialist for the heart and determination she brought to the table, and begged her not to let this moment stop her from chasing her dreams.
Bella is the fourth contestant eliminated from MasterChef Australia 2026.
Episode 10 – Tuesday, May 5
The contestants entered the MasterChef Australia kitchen to find coloured aprons waiting under their cloches – signalling the first team challenge of the season.
Split into teams of three, the home cooks were tasked with creating a MasterChef-worthy family feast, including at least two mains, three sides and a dessert – all in just 75 minutes.
With cuisines ranging from Middle Eastern to modern Australian and Indian, the pressure was on from the start. It quickly became clear that teams without a strong leader struggled, with clashing palates and portion issues causing chaos in some kitchens.
The standout team of the day was the turquoise team – Dot, Alita and Miin – who impressed with a Middle Eastern-inspired feast. Their menu featured spiced ribeye, lemon and garlic chicken skewers, cauliflower salad, baba ganoush, yoghurt and tahini, Middle Eastern pilaf and a Dubai chocolate pavlova for dessert. Dot’s mum’s cauliflower salad was a particular hit with the judges.
The purple team – Emily, Lucy and Aaron – also earned praise for their strong teamwork and cohesive Chinese menu, which included ABC soup, cucumber salad, Cantonese steamed snapper, lobster noodles, fragrant rice and mango coconut sago.
Unfortunately, not all teams found their rhythm. The pink team – Pat, Lydia and Olalou – struggled with flavour and consistency, while the navy team – Alyona, Hannah and Bella – overpowered their modern Australian dishes with heavy sauces.
Both teams now face off in the next elimination challenge.
Episode 9 – Monday, May 4
Another day in the MasterChef Australia kitchen brought another emotional goodbye, as one hopeful cook saw their dream come to an end.
As part of Family Favourites Week, the judges kicked things off by celebrating simple, comforting dinners, each showcasing their go-to “quick carb” for an easy midweek meal. Jean-Christophe prepared oven-baked pilaf rice, Andy demonstrated a two-ingredient flatbread, Sofia cooked a potato latke, and Poh served up noodles.
The challenge? Create a standout weeknight dish using one of the judges’ quick carbs – all in just 36 minutes.
Some cooks rose to the occasion. Annabel impressed with her pan-seared barramundi with Sri Lankan sambol and pilaf rice, even converting Jean-Christophe into a barramundi fan. Lucy’s “fakeaway” noodles with crispy beef and Petro’s prawn moilee with flatbread also earned praise.
But for others, the time pressure proved too much. Vinnie’s lamb cutlets and flatbread were undercooked, while Olalou’s lamb koftas were dry after using lean mince.
Belinda’s last-minute pivot from a chicken and rice dish to a smash burger using flatbread ultimately sealed her fate. The burger lacked caramelisation and flavour, sending her home and marking another tough elimination.
Episode 8 – Sunday, May 3
Family Favourites Week kicked off with a surprise visit from viral cooking sensation Andy Hearnden – better known as Andy Cooks – leaving the remaining 23 home cooks stunned.
Known for his signature catchphrase, “Hey babe, what’s for dinner?”, Andy boasts more than 16 million followers across social media and has become one of Australia’s biggest online food stars.
After demonstrating eggs three ways – a French omelette, tornado eggs and Japanese omurice – it was clear the challenge would centre around breakfast. Contestants were tasked with creating the ultimate morning dish, but Andy would taste only the 12 most appealing plates.
The dishes selected came from Alita, Aaron, Emily, Casper, Jackie, Jack, Hannah, Bella, Vinnie, Annabel, Dot and Kanika.
Aaron took a major gamble with fish congee topped with poached snapper, enoki mushroom tuile and chilli oil, using risotto rice instead of the traditional variety. The bold move paid off, with judges naming it Dish of the Day.
Kanika also packed a punch with her uttapam – a South Indian pancake served with coconut chutney, tomato chutney and sambar – inspired by the breakfasts her aunt made every Sunday.
“I’m hallucinating, but I love it,” Andy joked of the spice. “It is rich, sour and sweet… it is alive. It wakes you up in the morning.”
Not everyone had a dream start. Annabel, who admitted she was star-struck cooking for her TikTok idol, forgot to add garlic and ginger to her prawn and scallop toast with yuzu and gochujang hollandaise.
“I think I let the pressure of the kitchen get to me today,” she said. “Cooking for Andy Cooks, I think I was distracted.”
At the end of the challenge, Aaron, Kanika, Dot and Alita were named the top four cooks of the day and won immunity from Monday’s elimination.
Episode 7 – Wednesday, April 29
The pressure was on in the season’s very first Pressure Test, with national treasure Maggie Beer setting a challenge for Jackie, Jeff, Pat, Luke and Vinnie. Their task? Master her iconic sour cream pastry.
The twist was that contestants had free rein to create their own filling, sauce and side dish – allowing each cook to leave a personal stamp on the challenge while still nailing Maggie’s famously flaky pastry.
But with elimination looming, one mistake would send someone home.
As the cook began, Maggie’s warning about adding too much liquid too quickly proved costly for Luke, whose pastry became overly wet.
Vinnie also hit trouble when his gremolata accompaniment for a ragù and béchamel pie came under scrutiny. Was it a sauce or a side? Forced to rethink on the run, he pivoted by serving the béchamel as the sauce instead of inside the pie.
When tasting time arrived, two dishes stood out. Luke impressed with a rich Boeuf Bourguignon pie served with mash and horseradish sauce, while Pat delivered a chicken curry pie with mango chutney, apple, cucumber and coconut salad – inspired by the quarterly spice market cooks at his workplace.
“There must be some hardcore people at that spice club,” Andy joked.
Luke was ultimately the star of the day, with judges admitting they had underestimated the 19-year-old and praising the level he was already cooking at so early in life.
Sadly, Jeff’s Hong Kong chicken pie with garlic chilli oil and Chinese broccoli missed the mark. His pastry was undercooked and the filling lacked balance, making him the latest contestant eliminated from the competition.
Episode 6 – Tuesday, April 28
Walking into the MasterChef Australia kitchen, the remaining 23 home cooks were greeted by a giant display of cereals in every shape, flavour and colour imaginable.
For the first Invention Test of the season, contestants had to transform the humble pantry staple into something magical – and, hopefully, delicious.
With high stakes from the outset, the five least impressive dishes would be sent straight into the next night’s elimination challenge.
Some cooks, like ever-enthusiastic Dot, were thrilled by the creative brief. Others, including Lydia, were feeling the pressure, admitting it had been a long time since she’d even seen an Invention Test on the series.
The challenge proved the perfect way to measure imagination in the kitchen – and many rose to the occasion.
Twelve contestants chose to go savoury, including Dot, who wowed the judges with her “Trio of Corn Flakes”. She cleverly used the cereal in meatballs, creamy polenta-style grits and a crunchy pangrattato topping.
“The creativity of this dish, the invention of this dish, is epic,” Andy told a delighted Dot. “The celebration of corn flakes in a meatball dish said no one ever – but I love it.”
“I’d order this again and again,” Sofia added.
Others took the sweeter route, including Vinnie, who created a Coco Pops shell cannoli with Nutri-Grain ricotta filling.
“It’s not one for the traditionalists,” Vinnie joked, with Nonna no doubt watching nervously at home. Unfortunately, the judges felt the filling was too grainy.
“We want you to do well, but I can’t say that I like it,” Jean-Christophe told him.
The most inventive dish of the day, however, belonged to Casper. He recreated an actual bowl of Froot Loops using fried blue spirulina ravioli filled with fruit, served in a Froot Loops-flavoured panna cotta “milk”, alongside a clarified milk punch.
“I like that you used the blue spirulina to replicate the candy fake colour of so many cereals,” Sofia said. “I think this is probably the most inventive dish in the kitchen today.”
“I love that you cook with such intention,” Poh added.
At this early stage of the competition, the judges were impressed by the overall standard – but most of all by Dot, Aaron and Petro, who were named the top three performers of the day.
“You thought outside the box and used what was in the box to make something very special – well done,” Jean-Christophe declared.
Unfortunately, the five contestants missing the mark were Pat, Jackie, Jeff, Luke and Vinnie. They now face a Maggie Beer pie Pressure Test, where one home cook will become the next to hang up their apron.
Episode 5 – Monday, April 27
The very first elimination of the season kicked off with a sweet, heartfelt theme. The teams walked into the kitchen to find screens showing glimpses into the judges own home kitchens. They were then asked to create a dish which would treat the judges to a taste of their own kitchens and homelife.
After winning immunity, Casper was safe from the cook, but the rest of the 23 home cooks had to battle it out.
Sadly, it was Jackie and Megs in the bottom two.
Jackie cooked a shallot pancake. She’s initially attempted to make duck to go alongside it, but after accidentally cutting her finger, she wasn’t able to plate it up.
While the judges loved the chili crisp and the texture of the pancake, leaving out the duck would severely impact her chances.
“I can only imagine what it would be like if that perfectly cooked duck breast was sitting rosy and crispy off to the side,” said Andy
Meanwhile, Megs plated up prawns with herb butter, crispy potatoes and crostini.
“Megs, your prawns are uncooked,” Sofia said. Poh said that while Megs plated up five prawns, she should’ve used one of those prawns for a test before serving.
Meet your top 24! (Image: 10)
In the end, Megs’ uncooked prawns and lacklustre crostini saw her pack her bags.
In the opening week of the beloved cooking competition, we saw the Top 40 contestants be sliced and diced down to the Top 24.
Now, with the contestants wearing their crisp white aprons, the competition is well and truly heating up as they compete for the $250,000 AUD prize.
While more eliminations will be taking place this week, it’s worth noting that Casper has become the first contestant to receive a shiny immunity pin to place on his apron so far.
You can tune into MasterChef Australia on 10 or 10Play.
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