Welcome to the Able And Game recap of the Masterchef Australia Sunday Night Mystery Box/Invention Test and the start of I'm So Scared It's Gordon Week!



The episode starts with the contestants arriving and Gina starts reminiscing about Nigella week while creepy slow mo stalking footage of her starts playing. How can we ever top Nigella - The Goddess of the Kitchen? With the god of swearing to your face and telling you you're a twat - it's Gordon week!

Matt calls him a legend. Matt has obviously watched all of Kitchen Nightmares, including the ones where he goes to the Costa Del Sol. My big question is will Gordon take off his top at some point during the week when he changes into his chef whites?

Everyone is very excited to see Gordon Ramsay and Sashi says the sacrifice to be on the show is now worth it and Jess does a pony hop because she's watched his YouTube cooking videos. Sashi tells Gordon he is his idol and Gordon responds "are you f***ing kidding me?". The sound department's head beeper has had to hire in extra staff this week.

Gordon tells the contestants that they don't realise that outside of Australia, Masterchef Australia is kinda a big deal. Gordon is a judge on Masterchef America and often tells the producers to get their shit together because the Australians are cooking better than professionals in France and England.

He has chosen the ingredients in the Union Jack topped mystery box, because this is the best of the British.

The box contains:
Scallops
Tea
Rack of Lamb
Peas
Cauliflower
Beer
Mustard (Hot English)
McVities Digestive Biscuits

Why he didn't choose a McVities HobNob seems somewhat peculiar, but who are we to judge Gordon's mystery box.

He goes through them, ingredients he grew up with, and I realised Gordon does that thing where he talks to you as though you've disagreed with him.

"PEAS! COME ON?! PEA PUREE?! PEA SOUP?!
Gordon, nobody said peas are shit. Why the 'tude about peas?

Why are the biscuits in there? So that when they've finished cooking they can have a cup of tea and a f***ing biscuit.


They have 75 minutes to cook a dish that includes at least one ingredient, they are tasting only 5 dishes and the best dish goes straight through to Tuesday Nights Immunity Pin Challenge.

The cook starts and everyone is frantic and frazzled and wondering if they are going to get yelled at. There is visible tension in the air. Khanh is petrified, Jess is excited, scared but so happy.



Gordon has some lines. Don't fanny about being his favourite. He also tells people exactly what they are doing wrong and what they need to do to fix it. None of that questioning from Gary, George and Matt, then a funny look and asking another round about question then walking off looking perplexed.

Dehydrated peas on your lamb rack Gina? STOP, they're too wet and it won't work.

Not seared your meat before adding the cauliflower crumb Aldo? Stop, take it off, sear it, then add it back on.

Brendan is back and cooking one handed, his hand is bandaged up with a glove over it and he asks the judges if they saw a photo of it. Gary says he would love to see a photo!
Gordon comes and asks him how he is and he said he is going okay, Gordon tells him he NEEDS TO GET HIS LAMB IN THE OVEN!

Tasting Top 5

Reece is shocked when they call out his name because he has clearly under cooked his meat. I suspect Gordon likes his meat cooked a lot rarer than the judges and they are just pretending this is cool and they like it blue.

Brendan is also shocked he is being tasted. But his seasoning is ON POINT (another Gordon catchphrase).

Gina has made giant yorkshire puddings and Gary is VERY happy. Gordon says it is a great gastropub meal you would pay $50-$60 for. Gina says it is an out of body experience.

Sarah has overcooked the lamb and Sarah looks fearful. Gordon let's rip and they zoom in on the lamb and it looks delightfully pink. The rest of her dish is good, including the cauliflower leaves which Gordon would normally feed his rabbit.

Sashi has made a dish that is delicious despite him not having any spices. Gordon tells him it was worth travelling 17000 miles for.
He also tells him he has balls and Sashi laughs nervously.

Sashi is declared the winner and goes up to the gantry. He is the man who launched the cauliflower donut.


Invention Test:

BURGERS BURGERS BURGERS!

Ben: "easy as, piece of cake in my world"
Gordon: "the key to a good burger is attitude"
Gary: "I want everything under the sun"

They have 75 minutes and they have to create a burger and at least one side. Or more sides. Gary would prefer more sides.

Ben has decided he doesn't want to reinvent the wheel, he wants to make a simple beef burger.

Michelle is thinking fish or seafood. Out of the box.

Brendan is wanting to make a lobster burger (roll, everyone corrects him and says roll)

Khanh is making a fried chicken burger.

Chloe is making a Katsu Curry Burger.

Samira is making buns, from scratch.

Reece doesn't even eat burgers and wants to go basic.

Lisa has melon balled potatoes and then we never see her again.





Wheels start to come off a few people's buses.

Ben's wheels have come off and Gary tells him to get his bowls of the bench and tackle this meat like you've got a job to do. Ben: "yeah, bloody oath"

Michelle's polenta chips are stuffed.

Chloe's chips are soggy.

A lot of people don't get airtime this episode and I'm going to assume it is because they didn't say the following line:

"{insert whatever it is they are cooking} can't be overcooked OR it can't be under cooked, it has to be [wait for it] perfectly cooked"

Jo asks Gordon if he want's to see her buns. He says yes. Jo shows him two buns, they are her bun options.

Tasting:

Samira's burger has alfalfa in it. They commend her on making her own buns and George says it's not open a packet chef, it is Masterchef. Even though she was the only one who opened a packed (of flour) to make the buns, everyone else just grabbed pre made buns from the pantry.

Michelle has made a prawn burger and they cut it open then George prods at the middle of the burger and asks if it's cooked. Michelle says it should be, because remember it can't be under cooked and it can't be overcooked, it has to be perfectly cooked. George then says he can't, he can't eat it. Gary agrees it wouldn't be a good idea. Matt then explains how cooking works: heat penetrates through, in this case not all the way.

Brendan didn't overcook the lobster thank goodness (they've already blown the budget on overcooked lamb rack!)

Chloe's curry sauce is soggy mess.

Jess made brioche buns again and that was super down played in editing.

Genene gets a tick tick tick for her Friday night burger.

Gina's pork and veal burger is executed badly.

Khanh made a fried chicken burger that is yum.

Ben walks up and the danger music plays, not the danger music that then turns to uplifting music. There is a slight difference between the styles of music, this one has a tense menace to it. He prays it is cooked through, cut to ad break.

Ads over and the music has stepped up a notch, it is now classic tension music. Music stops as George hacks the burger open with a large Global bread knife and a shocked Gordon utters "it's ... raw in the middle". The meat is prodded with a knife, then Gordon thumbs at the raw meat and says "the actual burger, is still raw". He clarifies this because he doesn't want us to think the large iceberg lettuce is still raw. Gordon then flicks his hands to get rid of all the raw meat that has become attached to his fingers. Matt does not explain to Ben how heat is transferred to cook things.

Reece is up next and his onion rings are the best side out of everyone and the burger is yum. Reece's fear in only being able to cook dessert has not come to fruition.

Top Two:
Reece and Samira

Masterchef has a rule, if you're dish is inedible then you're in trouble.

Bottom Three:
Ben
Michelle
Chloe (soggy sauce and wrong potato for her chips)

Gordon then give the three losers a pep talk. He says the road from the bottom is better than the one at the top and Sashi is laughing and shaking his head because his road was SO MUCH BETTER!

He tells them to GET A GRIP, they answer yes chef. He can't hear them and they all shout YES CHEF, except Ben who says YES GORDON!

Stay tuned for tomorrow night where the bottom three have to keep up with Gordon, it will be a masterclass in stressed out faces judging by the ad.

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