Celebrity MasterChef judge John Torode was left panicking after one contestant made a major blunder
Monde Mwitumwa TV and Celebrity Reporter
22:26, 04 Dec 2025Updated 22:53, 04 Dec 2025
John threw his head in his hands after a mishap(Image: BBC)
Celebrity MasterChef’s John Torode threw his head in his hands as he was forced to step in after Ashley Cain made a huge blunder.
During Thursday’s (December 4) episode of the BBC hit show, Ashley was among the stars who made it through to the semi-final of the competition.
In the third and final heat of the competition, the reality TV star competed against Rugby legend Alun Wyn Jones, singer Alfie Boe and comedian Noreen Khan as they battled for a place in the final.
For the first time the celebrities had to work in pairs, with judges Grace Dent and John Torode giving each duo a recipe. They had to deliver two identical portions of that dish, but only one member of each duo has access to their recipe.
Things seemed to be off to a flying start as Ashley was paired for Alun and they managed to wow the judges with his impressive palette and his ability to work well in a team.
John Torode was forced to step in(Image: BBC)READ MORE: BBC Strictly pro says ‘news is out’ in exciting career update after snubREAD MORE: BBC One Show’s Alex Jones makes surprise announcement minutes into show
However things took an unexpected turn for the worse for Ashley during the solo challenge as he made a huge blunder while making a two-course meal for guest judges and former series alumni Craig Doyle, Amy Walsh and Kadeena Cox.
For his main dish he decided to make teriyaki salmon with noodles and pak choi. With time running out, Grace pointed out: “Ashley you’ve got four minutes now.”
Ashley rushed to the oven to discover that he put his fish in the wrong oven that wasn’t on, which meant it was not cooked. A stunned John rushed over and asked: “You put it in the wrong one?” Ashley admitted: “I didn’t know there was two.”
John had no choice but to step in as he said: “OK, I’ll tell you what we are going to have to do. Get the wok on and we’re going to pan-fry it quickly Ashley.”
Ashley Cain had to accept extra help(Image: BBC)
Pacing around the kitchen, he continued: “OK, quickly, quickly. We’ve got to do this. This is going to take you about four minutes. You’re going to be about to minutes over.”
The situation proved to be overwhelming for John as he put his head in his hands and co-host Grace jumped in and asked: “What have you done to John?”
A devastated Ashley turned to the judge and said: “I’m so sorry John.” Attempting to cheer Ashley on, John shouted: “Come on Ashley, you’ve done harder things.”
Despite the mishap, Ashley managed to finish his dish in time and carefully presented his dish to the judges. The stars efforts seemed to pay off as he made it through to the final.
You can catch up on Celebrity MasterChef on BBC iPlayer