Masterchef (2010) s09e07 Episode Script
World Cup Dishes
Narrator: Tonight on "MasterChef" Keep your fingers out of there.
the top 19 face a mystery box Oh, my God! that's tough to crack.
I do not know how to cook with them.
And then Please welcome one of America's greatest soccer players.
Alexi Lalas? Are we playing soccer or are we cooking over here? Narrator: A world-class challenge - My God.
- with an end - What happened? - no one will see coming.
- Are you done? - ( sighs ) Come on, everyone.
( cheers and applause ) Yes! Top 19! Yes! It feels so good to have my apron still.
Back home in Michigan, I grew up in a family of four brothers.
( sing-song ) A mystery box! So, I'm a fighter.
Everyone sees a pretty face and the hair, but I've got some big guns underneath here.
I'm ready to pull 'em out and I'm giving 'em my all.
You are the 19 most talented, amateur cooks from all walks of life.
One of us gave each of you an apron.
It's on you to prove which judge identified America's next MasterChef.
So let's get started with the iconic mystery box challenge.
Are you ready to find out what's under your mystery boxes? All: Yes, Chef.
The side bits, keep your fingers out of there for now.
They move quickly.
- You good? - All: Yes, Chef.
Aarón: Let's do this on the count of three.
One, two, three.
( screaming, clamoring ) Oh! - I told you they move.
- Oh, my God.
Stunning California walnuts.
It's a million walnuts! It's a million of 'em! Oh, my God! Walnuts everywhere! I do not know how to cook with them.
The Chinese believe walnuts can make you smarter.
So I hope the walnut can make me smarter to get through the competition.
They are packed with amazing flavor whether you're roasting them, candy them, or even puréeing them.
There are endless roads to go down.
- It's amazing.
- Joe: You will have 45 minutes to make us one incredible dish featuring walnuts.
And the entire MasterChef pantry is at your disposal for you to use.
The person with the best dish in this mystery box challenge will get the biggest advantage in the entire competition so far.
Your 45 minutes starts now.
Let's go.
- Oh! Uh - Careful, careful, careful.
- Cauliflower, cauliflower.
- Excuse me, excuse me.
Oh, my goodness.
Spinach, spinach, spinach, spinach, spinach.
Walnuts? Give me a pecan.
I'm a Southern guy.
But hey, I know I can put something together that'll impress the judges.
So I'm thinking walnuts with blue cheese stuffed inside a bacon wrapped pork chop with a bourbon and walnut butter glaze.
Gordon: Let's go.
- So many nuts.
- Hey, Ralph, how's it cracking? Back home in Michigan I make this for my husband.
I make brownies for him all the time.
So, right now I'm making a dark fudgy brownie with walnut inside and walnuts on top.
I'm gonna do this for my family.
I am making a vanilla and walnut cupcake with a chocolate and walnut buttercream.
Hopefully I can pull it off in 45 minutes.
Mmm! Ain't nothing wrong with that.
How do you turn those humble walnuts into the star of the dish? And how do you incorporate it into your dish in a way that makes sense? ( sighs ) There's so many nuts.
I don't wanna see dishes that are just carrying walnuts for the sake of it, right? - They need to be integrated.
- Aarón: Absolutely.
The skin on that walnut.
They're very bitter.
You need to counteract that.
I think that all that bitterness, you wanna have some fat contrast.
Aarón: And they can get a little bit mealy if you over-marinate them.
Milk's down.
Don't cry over spilled milk.
Well, it's a great challenge because you could either go sweet or savory.
It's gonna be really interesting to see what they put on the plate with this very, very difficult challenge.
I'm super happy that we decided to use walnuts today.
I really wanna impress Joe today because Joe gave me this apron.
I am making a parmesan Alfredo with a red wine reduction, that has grape and roasted walnuts.
I'm gonna do a crispy pancetta bacon on top.
I'm not gonna crack under pressure.
Not today.
35 minutes to go, guys.
- I can do it.
- Bowen! How are you, buddy? What do you got going on? So I'm gonna make a pork shrimp dumpling with candied walnut, served with miso stock.
Is it normal to put candied walnuts in pork dumplings? No, but I think this will be good.
So, today I'm gonna represent myself.
So, I want to make my country people proud.
- Good luck, Bowen.
- Thank you.
Ashley, a professional grocery shopper from Florida, a home cook that I gave an apron to.
Tell me about the dish.
I'm doing a walnut herb-crusted cauliflower steak with a walnut pesto.
- Why no protein? - They are protein they have protein in them.
It's just not a meat protein.
Hold on.
You've gone vegetarian.
I have gone vegetarian.
I am making this dish because I actually got my boyfriend excited about cauliflower with this dish.
So I really wanted to highlight the nut and vegetables, 'cause I think they go hand in hand.
How are those cauliflower steaks? - They are tender, Chef.
- They're tender.
I'd like mine mid-rare, please.
Yes, Chef.
Gordon: 23 minutes remaining.
- Cesar.
- Yes, Joe.
How are you? What's the dish? What are you making? I am making pan dulce, which is Spanish for "sweet bread," but I'm using banana walnut as my flavoring for the bread, then I'm gonna make a walnut cinnamon caramel sauce to go with it.
This is what's great and what I appreciate about Cesar and why he has one of my aprons, 'cause he's not gonna go for something savory.
He's gonna go big with a pan dulce, and show off his baking skills.
But here's the deal, Cesar.
Did you bite off more than you can chew? I don't think so, Chef.
I'll be ready.
- Joe: Good luck.
- Thank you.
- Samantha.
- Yes.
- Pesto? - Yes.
I'm gonna be making a potato gnocchi with a walnut pesto.
You're gonna make gnocchi for Joe Bastianich? Yes.
If you have the confidence at 20 years old to whip out gnocchi in a 45 minute mystery box then - Good luck.
Thank you.
- Thank you, guys.
12 minutes remaining.
Use your time wisely.
An amazing mix of incredible dishes.
Aarón: Guys, if I could boast a little bit, all of the people that I have given my aprons are still here, - battling it out - Here we go.
showing that they can be America's next MasterChef.
I don't mean to toot my own horn, but I'm ecstatic - that I still have all my eight aprons intact.
- It's delicious.
Okay.
I've got five left, but at least those five, I can concentrate on my strongest cooks.
You know it's not how you start, it's how you finish.
- Aarón: It's true.
- I happen to have six.
I don't know who's gonna win or lose, but I know that among those are three finalists.
So, Aarón, the fact that you have all your mentees left is completely circumstantial.
One minute 45 seconds to go.
- We need to start plating.
- Come on, come on, come on! Love it.
I love it.
Come on, Cesar.
Gordon: One minute to go.
Come on! Come on, Taylor.
Show some finesse.
- Aarón: Let's push, Ralph.
- Oh, my God, it's coming down to the wire.
Judges: Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, - two, one.
- Gordon: And stop.
Hands in the air.
Well done.
Now, tonight, you were each given a single ingredient, the humble California walnut.
Joe: And now we've watched you all cook, and we've tasted elements of every single dish.
And there are three dishes that we are so excited, we cannot wait to try.
The first home cook utilized two proteins, and candied walnuts as well, and being mentored by myself.
Please step forward Bowen.
Let's go.
Bowen: Oh, my God! That feeling is so great.
You just fly into the heaven.
I truly have faith in myself, because I am the strongest man in the competition.
Okay, young man, describe the dish, please.
Bowen: I made pork shrimp candied walnut dumplings with miso chicken stock.
In China, dumplings symbol good luck, but walnuts symbol long life.
This plate is lucky.
The miso broth, yeah, we could smell it from here, smelling incredibly delicious.
I saw the way you were making the pasta by hand, and it was beautiful to watch.
In China we're always using by hand, so I think makes it more tasty.
You can taste the texture.
You're quite a technician, aren't you? You got the dumpling, you got the shrimp, the apple.
They've got that crunch running through.
Of course that's the candied walnuts.
And then you made pasta as well.
That's what this competition is all about.
- There's no stopping you, is there? - No.
The broth needs to be a little bit less thick, 'cause it's quite strong.
But it's a really good dish.
- Well done.
- Thank you, Chef.
I'm a little bit confused, Bowen.
Is this an Italian pasta dish or a Chinese dumpling dish? A Chinese pasta dish.
There's no pasta in China.
Okay, it's dumpling wrapper.
- Joe: Dumpling wrapper.
- Bowen: How about this? So this is like a fusion.
Yes.
The filling, I love it.
I love the crunchy bits.
I love the miso soup.
The only thing I would say, is this thing is completely not relevant.
I love the use of the walnut inside the ravioli.
- Your dish is very, very good.
Thank you, Bowen.
- Thank you.
Good job.
Aarón: The next dish that we want to examine further featured no meat in the dish.
This person took a lot of risk considering the 45 minute time limit.
Please step forward Samantha.
I'm ecstatic right now.
My love for Italian food comes from my dad and this is just reassuring that what I do, and, like, the risks I take are worth it.
Today I have for you a potato gnocchi with a walnut pesto sauce.
I love pesto.
I grew a bunch of basil this summer, and just made a ton of pesto sauce.
So you substituted the walnut in lieu of the pine nuts traditionally.
- Right? - Correct.
Pine nuts are usually a bit creamy.
I got the same effect from the walnuts, so that's why I went with that route.
The flavor's there.
Those walnuts work beautifully with the floral basil, and then the gnocchi are just light, puffy, and airy.
You didn't fall into the trap of adding too many other ingredients.
If you go to Italy, the pastas don't have all that frilly stuff.
So I think you stayed true to the essence of true Italian pasta by doing it this way.
You just need more.
- All right.
Thank you.
- Great job.
Dish is delicious.
Your gnocchi's got an amazing flavor.
Crisp on the outside, light and fluffy in the center.
That walnut pesto just makes it elevated.
- Yeah.
Yeah.
- Visually, it didn't have that wow factor.
But you're only 20 years of age, and you've nailed the gnocchi.
- Great job.
Well done.
- Thank you, Chef.
Joe: Those gnocchi were perfect.
The last choice was very, very difficult.
But this cook took a big risk making a sweet treat.
Please step forward, Cesar.
( whispers ) Yes! I'm doing a secret fist bump in the air because this dish symbolizes both my Mexican heritage with my American upbringing.
So, I'm a mixture of many things and produces one amazing thing.
Okay, Cesar, tell me about it.
I tried recreating pan dulce.
It's banana, it's walnut.
In the bottom I did crème fraîche with citrus and basil to balance the walnut.
But instead of using sour cream for my moisture, I grated an ear of corn, and all that milk that comes from grating the corn - I folded that in to my batter so it'll give it moisture.
- Wow! That's an interesting technique.
Where did you learn that? I had a recipe that included sour cream, and one day I said, "What if I take away the sour cream and use corn milk?" And that's where that came from.
You taste the banana, taste the walnuts.
Sour cream sauce is delicious.
Gives it a tang.
Your caramel sauce is complex.
And all three kind of work together, and almost give me a sense of eating a real restaurant dessert.
If I had to maybe suggest one thing, maybe a little sprig of something green - Right.
- just to make it pop a little bit more aesthetically, but really delicious.
- Good job.
- Okay.
Thank you.
Cesar, como estas? - Bien bien.
- Que bueno.
What I'm most impressed about is your finesse with your presentation.
Do you cook with this much finesse at home every day like this? I'm a high school teacher, but when I have breaks I like to do taco tastings out of my apartment, and I apply the same finesse that I do here.
- This dish right here has it all.
- Thank you.
Creaminess.
It has richness 'cause of the caramel sauce.
The cake is moist.
That's really spectacular.
- Thank you.
- What would I do different? Citrus salsa on top, just to break down some of that richness.
But I'm proud I gave you that pin.
- Thank you.
- Sigues adelante.
- Will do.
- All right, you'll do me proud.
- ( indistinct chatter ) - Yeah.
You're right.
But it's very good.
Wow! What a night.
Bowen, Samantha, Cesar, well done.
Each one of those dishes highlighted your culinary styles in a beautiful way, but there only could be one winner.
and you know that.
And that winner is Aarón: Three amazing dishes, each showcasing the mystery box ingredient, which are walnuts.
But there only could be one winner, that home cook that will get an unreal advantage in the upcoming elimination challenge.
And that winner is Cesar.
Yes! Cesar, congratulations.
Yeah, Cesar! Extremely proud of you 'cause you have one of my aprons.
And with that, why don't you join us in the pantry? I can't believe that something I do as a hobby in my one-bedroom apartment was just validated by the judges.
It's the greatest culinary moment of my life.
- Cesar.
- Hey! How's it going, Joe? - Hola! - Ah, nice! Forza Azzurri.
Huh? - What do you think? - ( laughs ) - Numero uno.
- Bastianich.
I love it.
- Look at that.
- Come on.
- Viva Méjico! Whoo! - Oh, Sanchez.
- Nice.
Loving it.
- It's all about Méjico.
This is what a real soccer kit looks like.
Bonnie Scotland.
There you go.
Come on.
Ramsay.
There you go.
- Love it.
- All right.
Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, and this year is a special one.
It's a World Cup year and FOX is bringing America all the World Cup coverage.
But unlike these two poor lads, my team is actually in the World Cup.
That's right.
Méjico.
Now, your first big advantage tonight for winning that mystery box challenge is you are safe.
Joe: Here's your second advantage.
You get to choose what everyone else will be cooking - in this elimination test.
- All right.
And when you go to a soccer game, no matter what country you're in, there's always amazing street food.
Roma, Milano, Naples are full with amazing Italian street food.
And one of my favorites is pizza fritta.
Okay.
Fried pizza filled with tomato, ricotta, salame piccante.
Gooey cheese on the inside, crispy on the outside.
It's quite difficult to do, because everyone knows pizza, but pizza fritta not many people in this country know about.
In Mexico on match day, one of my favorite things to eat on the way to the game, churros con chocolate.
- Yes! - They're beautiful.
They're dusted with a wonderful canela sugar on the outside.
You gotta make pâte à choux.
You have to put it in the piping bag, then as you're frying them you cut 'em with the scissors.
There's a lot of technique involved, that señoras all over Méjico take years to master.
When I'm walking through the streets of Glasgow on the way to the game, there's only one thing that I grab.
A big, juicy burger.
The intricacy of a beef patty.
Hot, seasoned, and more importantly, layered with caramelized onions, cheese, ketchup, and that bun.
So, as a competitor, you want to eliminate the competition, putting the best cooks in difficulty.
And this is a decision that can help you achieve that goal.
Gordon: Which dish do you want those talented cooks to make for us this evening? Um I I'm gonna go with - What is this? - Off you go, Cesar.
Aarón: This year it's a World Cup year, and come on, guys, how do you like these kits? - Awesome! - Super fly! For winning the mystery box challenge, Cesar got to decide what everyone else here has to cook.
- Sorry, guys.
- Now, the next challenge is an elimination challenge.
At least one home cook will be leaving the MasterChef kitchen after this next challenge.
Gordon: Right.
The dish you'll all have to cook tonight is being delivered by a very special guest.
- Oh, my gosh.
- Oh.
He has been to two World Cups.
He played for the U.
S.
Olympic team, and he is in the U.
S.
Soccer Hall of Fame.
Ooh! One of America's most incredible soccer players ever.
Please welcome Alexi Lalas! - Ooh, no way! - ( cheers and applause ) - Hello there.
- Good to see you.
Please.
Alexi Lalas is here? How exciting is this? Why is he here? Are we playing soccer or are we cooking over here? - Good to see you.
- Look at you guys.
Damn sexy! Look at those legs! - Huh? - Whoo! Whoo! - Good to see you, sir.
- Thank you! Thank you for having me.
Now you've got a very, very busy summer.
Big summer for soccer, big summer for FOX.
- We're going to bring you the World Cup.
- Yes! All of the players, all of the teams, all of the storylines, and bringing everybody together in celebration of the greatest game in the world.
Amazing, amazing.
Right, Alexi.
Would you please let these talented home cooks know what they're gonna have to nail this evening - to stay in this competition.
- You got it.
Your dish tonight is churros with chocolate sauce.
- Oh, God.
- ( exhales ) Gordon: Cesar, give us an insight to why you picked churros this evening.
Cesar: Because they seem like a simple dish, and people might have a false sense of confidence by seeing the churros there, 'cause not all of them are gonna come out the way they should come out.
Are you targeting anyone in particular? I kind of picked this for Bowen.
He's the strongest, plating is beautiful.
I know he has an excellent Asian palate, but I wanna know if he can step out of that zone - and cook other cuisines.
- Wow! Bowen: I'm really mad at Cesar, because he wants to use his advantage to send me home.
But I'm not chicken.
I'm ready for it.
Let's compete.
- All right, Cesar, - Yes, Alexi.
There are 11 players on a soccer team, right? - True.
- So for your next advantage, I am making you captain of your own soccer team.
As a team captain, you'll get to pick ten contestants to join you in safety up on the balcony.
Ten? Wow! Another advantage? For my first choice I decided to pick cooks who excel in baking.
Chelsea, Ashley, Emily.
I'm thinking, "What's the point of making them go through this if I know they have the ability to cook their way out of it?" Interesting.
Then I choose to save people that are excellent team players.
- S.
J.
- Gordon: S.
J.
- Ralph.
- Gordon: Ralph.
Farhan, Gerron.
And earning the respect of some of the stronger cooks will also be an advantage for myself.
- Ryan, Lindsay.
- Gordon: Wow! - Last but not least.
- Young Mark.
Joe: Come on up, Mark.
All right, Cesar, very interesting picks.
And Alexi, that completes your time here in the MasterChef kitchen.
And I know we'll see lots of you across the summer.
Alexi: I can't wait for this summer.
I hope you guys join us on FOX for what is going to be a spectacular World Cup.
And I can't wait to bring it all to you.
It's been an absolute pleasure having you here in the MasterChef kitchen.
Thank you so much.
Good luck to everybody here.
- Thank you! - Thank you, guys.
( cheers and applause ) Thank you! Thank you.
All right, so back to business now, guys.
You eight are about to cook for your lives.
Now, you will have just 30 minutes to cook us some delicious churros with chocolate sauce.
- Is everybody ready? - All: Yes.
Your time starts now.
- Come on, guys! - Come on.
- Run! - Run, run, run! Hurry! ( whispers ) Gosh, I'm shaking.
I'm not sure what this is.
I don't have a ton of experience in making churros, but honestly, I'm not nervous because I'm just sticking it in a fryer.
Very similar to making a donut.
Of course I made donuts before.
In my dad's restaurant that's all we did was make the donuts.
Do they have a banana? ( whispers ) Oh, come on, guys.
You got this.
Right, 30 minutes, churros.
What is the A to Z of churros? It is one of the most challenging things to make.
I don't put 'em on my restaurant menus unless I have the right talent to be able to execute them properly.
The original dough, it's like a pâte à choux.
It's a choux pastry dough.
Aarón: You have to mix in that water, add your flour, continue to work it, and at the end, add your eggs.
Right.
Crack eggs into it, which actually makes it spin it, aerates it, and it just creates a little bit of that even distribution of the eggs.
So, crisp on the outside, light and spongy in the middle.
Tell me about the chocolate sauce.
Well, it's essentially just chocolate, Mexican cinnamon, put it in a double boiler, and add heavy cream and make a quick little sauce.
Gordon: 23 minutes remaining.
We have to speed up.
Double boiler on, get your chocolate melting as you're making your pâte à choux.
Whip it, Alecia.
I see you, girl.
I'm coming up there, y'all.
Supposed to be up there with team Aarón.
We haven't lost an apron yet.
We ain't gonna lose an apron today.
- Come on, Tay.
- Making sure I get my chocolate going, 'cause it started a little late.
Taylor, this is 'cause I know you're gonna pass.
You can build confidence.
Shoot.
Oh, my gosh.
It's just broken.
- Her sauce looks terrible.
- It's way too thick.
Any tips to thin it out, Chef? - Do you have any more chocolate? - No.
I think she's really falling apart.
- I don't know what to do.
- Gordon: Quick.
- Oh, my God.
- Oh, my God.
Shoot! She's got me worried.
Taylor: I don't know what to do.
Gordon: Quick.
Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Shoot! It is a treat to watch other contestants struggle with a dish that has followed me since my childhood.
- Chelsea: Come on, Taylor! - Let's go.
Get some more melted chocolate on there.
- Can I borrow some chocolate? - Oh, yeah.
Here.
- Hazelnut? You want dark chocolate? - Thank you so much.
Nice team player, Julia.
That's awesome.
Here's more milk chocolate.
- Thank you.
- It's okay, Taylor.
You're doing good.
Taylor: It's a chocolate sauce.
Why is this so difficult? I started over and now what matters is making a perfect churro for these judges, and that's what I have to keep focused on.
Right.
Samantha.
Churros.
Have you made them before? - No, Chef.
No, I haven't.
No.
- You've never made 'em before? - You are adding the eggs in by hand.
- Yep.
Why are you doing this the hard way? This is the way I've done pâte à choux in the past, so I'm confident that I can do it again.
Is this the last time cooking inside the MasterChef kitchen? - No, Chef, it is not.
- Don't let me down.
I do not want you going home tonight.
- Nail it.
Good luck.
- Thank you.
Thank you, Chef.
- Bowen! - Hi.
Now, Cesar is your friend, right? Kind of is my friend.
- Yes.
- Kind of? Why are you down here? He want me to go home.
He's scared of me! He want me to lose.
He want me to go home.
- So he can win the competition.
No way.
- Okay.
So, China, a big culture of frying food.
What's the closest thing you have in China to a churro? - Fried salty dough.
Yes.
- Salty dough? We eat breakfast with fried salty dough every morning.
So, I think I will knock this out.
- Bowen, best of luck.
Okay? - Okay.
Come on, Matt dog.
You got this.
- Matt, how we doing? - Chef Ramsay.
Good.
- I think we're on time here.
- Have you made churros before? I never made churros before.
I made pâte à choux before.
So, I made, you know, éclairs and things like that.
- Good.
Have you got this? - I got this.
A hundred percent.
- Good luck.
- Thanks.
Guys, 15 minutes gone, 15 minutes to go.
- Okay, Alecia.
- Como estas? - Muy bien.
So have you made churros before? You have? - Yes.
I have.
I made churros right before I came here for my daycare kids.
Why did Cesar leave you down here? Everybody has seen me in the first elimination.
So, I'm labeled as the underdog of the group.
One of you eight is gonna be eliminated.
- Yes, not me.
It's not me, Joe.
Not today.
- At least one of you.
- All right.
- All right.
- Good luck.
- Thank you.
Everybody thinks I'm going home tonight.
You're not, Bowen.
You gotta have the faith.
- You got this, Bowen.
You're not.
- You got it.
She was way late to start on that dough.
Oil's nice and hot.
I gotta make this for Joe.
I need him to know that I am here to stay.
Juni, those look perfect! I better execute these churros to perfection, otherwise my Mexican card is gonna be revoked.
Wow! Tough one, this one.
I'm really worried about Samantha, 'cause she made the pâte à choux by hand.
- Oh.
- And so her mix is very pale, very thick.
So, Shanika is in the back and she's actually adding peanut butter - to her chocolate sauce - Joe: Yeah.
- Gordon: Wow! - which I think could be spectacular - if done in the right ratio.
- Joe: Risky.
All right, guys, two minutes left.
- I'm coming up there.
- I know you'll be up here.
- I think Alecia's showboating.
- Yes.
We don't need to do that.
Aarón: All you're doing is beating those things out.
60 seconds remaining.
Come on.
Focus, please.
- Bowen's churros look like churro nuggets.
- Mm-hmm.
- Coming out hot.
- Looks good, Matt.
Looks good.
Come on, guys.
Ten, nine Judges: Eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, and stop.
- Well done.
- Nice! - Yes! - ( applause ) Right, it's time to find out who has made their last dish.
Let's start with Taylor, please.
- Come on, Taylor.
- Gerron: Come on, Tay.
I am so disappointed.
I know churros are the star of the dish, but the dish is churros and a chocolate sauce.
I just really wanted to serve a beautiful, perfect dish to make Gordon Ramsay proud of me that I am wearing his pin.
Taylor, how did those 30 minutes feel for you? I felt different at every moment.
These are not easy to master.
- There's a lot of intricacy involved.
- Mm-hmm.
- There's a lot of skill, timing.
- Yes.
- How do you feel you did? - I think I did well on the churros.
I've made them once and they really weren't that great, but I think that I did a good job.
So, when I crack this open, what are you hoping to see? I'm hoping it stays crispy on the outside, and it's nice and soft on the inside.
- Mm-mm! Beautiful! - Thank you, Chef.
Mmm.
It's brown on the outside, but soft to melt in your mouth.
You didn't go overboard with the cinnamon coating and the sugar.
I know that you were stressing a little bit with the chocolate sauce.
I think the actual flavor of the sauce is delicious.
I think you were melting that chocolate with too much high heat.
- Absolutely.
- Okay, but overall, I think the importance lies in the churro.
Great color, flavor's there, well-balanced.
You didn't go crazy with the sugar and the cinnamon.
- I like that.
- Thank you, Chef.
- Hi, Taylor.
- Hey, Joe.
Okay, so these look nice and light on the inside.
They seem to be well fried.
- Very, very good.
- Thank you.
- And your chocolate broke.
- Yes.
What's on top? Is that little chocolate chips? Yep, I put some hazelnut chocolate chips, some orange zest as well.
Well, pretty good together.
Thank you, Joe.
Your churros are really good.
Crispy, soft.
- It's a good effort.
- Thank you.
- Good job, Taylor.
- Yeah, Taylor.
Gerron: Way to go, Tay.
Gordon: Bowen.
( applause ) Bowen: In China the churro is not really common, but I'm not scared, because my cooking skill and my passion, can overcome everything.
I want to show Cesar what I got.
Okay, young man.
Bowen, I was excited when I tasted your food to begin with and I gave you that apron, but what happened? I double fried it.
In China we eat salty, fried dough, and we have to double fry it to make it actually crispy, but I don't think that's the right way to fry this.
We never cook churros twice.
Never.
- Cesar.
- Chef.
Your number one target tonight was who? - Bowen.
- Why? I was positive he's a surefire to top three.
Are you telling me now, young man, that this is the most talented individual in this competition that you're worried about? - Yes.
- And you are minutes away from sending him home.
Cesar, you are minutes away from sending him home.
( sighs ) The churros actually don't taste as bad as they look.
They are crispy.
The inside tastes nice.
I'm amazed.
You've got an even distribution of the sugar.
The sauce is delicious, but this is your worst performance.
- Thank you.
- Head up, Bowen.
The next home cook has Joe's apron.
- Please step forward, Shanika.
- ( cheers and applause ) How do you feel you did with the churros? I feel I did pretty good.
I coated them with cinnamon and sugar, and the chocolate sauce has peanut butter.
There is some issues.
Had you fried them a little bit more, and allowed that pâte à choux to cook, maybe we could've got away with some of that raw flavor of the actual inside, but because of the lack of the eggs being incorporated well, it's almost stunting that process from happening.
I don't know if you're gonna stay in this competition, - till I taste everybody else's.
- Gotcha, Chef.
- Next up, Julia.
- Lindsay: Yeah, Julia! ( cheers and applause ) Julia, describe your churros.
I made a traditional churro, and then I have a chocolate espresso, vanilla, chocolate sauce, and raspberry whipped cream.
I love the size, 'cause you feel like you got a decent portion.
I just wish they had a little bit more color on there.
- Wow! Churros taste delicious.
- Thank you.
Nice crunch on the outside, sauce is delicious.
Good job.
Joe: The next home cook, - Juni! - ( cheers and applause ) So, let's talk about these churros.
So, you have a vanilla churro, and an Ancho chili, Abuelita chocolate inspired sauce.
So, small.
It's a whole other take on 'em, but the color I think is pretty textbook.
That's good.
Being so small I thought they'd be hard and crunchy.
They're not.
They're perfectly crispy and soft on the inside as well.
You can tell your Mexican compadres - sometimes good things come in small packages.
- Good job, Juni.
- All right, Juni.
- Aarón: The next churros that we wanna taste, - Matt, please come down.
- Come on, Matt.
I made a simple cinnamon and sugar churro - with a chocolate ganache.
- Are you happy with the cook? Do you feel like it's consistent? I think the cook is consistent.
Here's what I love.
The color, spot-on.
You did a great job evenly disbursing the cinnamon and the sugar.
The chocolate sauce is good.
I think you need more heavy cream in that.
It settled, but the churros, good job.
Thank you, Chef.
I appreciate it.
- Way to go, Matt.
- Dude! Next up, please, mentored by Aarón, Alecia.
Let's go.
Alecia: I got to make churros for my daycare kids before I left, so I'm definitely feeling confident, and then I also wanna do really well for Chef Aarón.
I just wanna make him proud that he gave me this apron.
Alecia, how many times you made churros? - This is my second time.
- Wow! Visually, they are absolutely clogged with sugar.
I'm talking clump after clump after clump.
You shot yourself in the foot there.
How'd you mix in the eggs? I beat them with my hands.
And the hard thing is, I'm caked in sugar.
I don't want the third or the fourth bite.
It's dry, it's crumbly.
- And like I said, taste everything you serve us.
- Yes, Chef.
You're a smart girl.
You would've realize it's too much sugar, and you could've dusted them down.
Thank you.
Alecia, one of my favorite foods is churros.
When I saw you at the end kind of showboating, tossing those churros.
You see how they're breaking apart? It's 'cause of that.
Mistreating this really beautiful, heartwarming dish for me, that's just like super disrespectful and I'm just disappointed that you did that.
The actual churro itself needs a lot of work.
The sauce, no problems there, but they still have too much sugar.
- Thank you.
- Thank you, Chef.
Right.
Next up, a home cook that I gave an apron to.
Samantha.
Let's go, please.
Thank you.
I'm looking at my churros.
They needed longer in the fryer.
The chocolate could've used more cream.
All I can think about is my family.
I don't wanna disappoint them by coming home this early.
Samantha, you've sacrificed a lot to be in this competition.
Leaving tonight, how devastated would you be? Um yeah, that'd be really devastating.
Um just like putting everything on hold to be here, and leaving all my friends and family behind, especially when my family needs me the most right now, you know.
It hasn't even been a year since we lost my dad.
And I know we're gonna hit that year mark soon, in a couple weeks here, and I know my sister's gonna have a hard time.
And just the fact that I can't be there for her is just it's really hard.
Will you take a look up onto the balcony, and you will see the talent up there.
Are you as good as them? I, unfortunately, don't think I showed that tonight.
Are you done? ( sighs ) Samantha, will you take a look up onto the balcony, and you see the talent up there.
Are you as good as them? I, unfortunately, don't think I showed that tonight.
Are you done? I gave up everything, you know.
I don't wanna go home now, because it's just too soon for me to go home.
I'm here to stay and fight till the end.
Okay, visually, they're a little bit all over the place.
- Right? This one.
- Yeah.
Why's it so flat in the middle? Just the pressure of the piping bag, and uneven with the egg in the batter.
Let's see how they taste.
What's the chocolate sauce? What's the flavoring? The flavoring is a little bit of orange.
They actually taste better than they look.
That's my saving grace.
I love your determination.
If there's one thing that's started to show in this competition, it's your lack of experience.
Yeah.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
Go, Sam! As embarrassing as it is to cry in front of my mentor, I hope it showed that even though there's other people with years of experience on me, I have so much more passion and heart to show the judges.
- ( Aarón sighs ) - I expected more.
- Joe: Tough cook.
- I mean, that idea of mixing the eggs, - that's key to a great batter.
- Yeah.
Joe: You will be losing an apron, my friend.
All right.
We got it? I think it's safe to say that that was a very tough challenge.
But one of you did all the right things to be safe from elimination this evening.
Matt.
- Well done.
- ( cheers and applause ) Now, if I say your name, please come down to the front.
Shanika, Bowen, Alecia, and Samantha.
Everyone else can head straight up to the balcony.
This competition gets tougher and tougher.
Only one home cook is leaving tonight.
Shanika and Samantha please head up to the balcony.
( whispers ) I can't.
( exhales ) This is tough.
Bowen, Alecia, one home cook has real potential, and so much more to give this competition.
The other has seen the end of the road, and is leaving this competition tonight.
Now, we judges have made our decision.
I'm curious to see what the balcony thinks.
Cesar, who's leaving? Alecia? Mark, who's leaving? Bowen.
Emily, who's leaving? Alecia, Chef.
- Gerron, who's leaving? - Alecia, Chef.
Gerron you are right.
Alecia, I'm sorry.
Bowen, head up to the balcony.
Thank you.
( crying ) Gordon: Oh, dear.
- ( Bowen crying ) - You're still here.
Alecia, tonight you produced a churro that that was so sugary, it was virtually inedible.
I'm sorry.
You're time is done here in the MasterChef kitchen.
Aarón: Alecia, I gave you my apron for a reason, 'cause you showed you have what it takes.
And I think you're well on your way.
Remember that.
Please, place your apron on your bench.
- Good night.
- Never give up, girl! - Love you, Alecia.
- Keep pushing, Alecia.
I feel like I let Chef Aarón down, but there's many positive things along my journey, like I met some kickass people, and definitely some people that I know that I've learned a lot from.
No matter what, you keep reaching for it.
I'm gonna tell my son Alex, I'm gonna tell the same thing.
Just because I didn't win, I'm still a winner.
- Narrator: Next week - Please welcome Shaun O'Neale.
a champion returns for a MasterChef wedding.
It is my honor to declare you husband and wife.
( cheers and applause ) - But - Imagine if it was your wedding day.
- That's how we gotta work.
- when the top 18 join together - for better or worse - Beautiful.
You wanna serve this ( bleep ).
the celebration MasterChef mashed potatoes.
ends in heartbreak.
You are not gonna captain this team any longer, I'm gonna run it!
the top 19 face a mystery box Oh, my God! that's tough to crack.
I do not know how to cook with them.
And then Please welcome one of America's greatest soccer players.
Alexi Lalas? Are we playing soccer or are we cooking over here? Narrator: A world-class challenge - My God.
- with an end - What happened? - no one will see coming.
- Are you done? - ( sighs ) Come on, everyone.
( cheers and applause ) Yes! Top 19! Yes! It feels so good to have my apron still.
Back home in Michigan, I grew up in a family of four brothers.
( sing-song ) A mystery box! So, I'm a fighter.
Everyone sees a pretty face and the hair, but I've got some big guns underneath here.
I'm ready to pull 'em out and I'm giving 'em my all.
You are the 19 most talented, amateur cooks from all walks of life.
One of us gave each of you an apron.
It's on you to prove which judge identified America's next MasterChef.
So let's get started with the iconic mystery box challenge.
Are you ready to find out what's under your mystery boxes? All: Yes, Chef.
The side bits, keep your fingers out of there for now.
They move quickly.
- You good? - All: Yes, Chef.
Aarón: Let's do this on the count of three.
One, two, three.
( screaming, clamoring ) Oh! - I told you they move.
- Oh, my God.
Stunning California walnuts.
It's a million walnuts! It's a million of 'em! Oh, my God! Walnuts everywhere! I do not know how to cook with them.
The Chinese believe walnuts can make you smarter.
So I hope the walnut can make me smarter to get through the competition.
They are packed with amazing flavor whether you're roasting them, candy them, or even puréeing them.
There are endless roads to go down.
- It's amazing.
- Joe: You will have 45 minutes to make us one incredible dish featuring walnuts.
And the entire MasterChef pantry is at your disposal for you to use.
The person with the best dish in this mystery box challenge will get the biggest advantage in the entire competition so far.
Your 45 minutes starts now.
Let's go.
- Oh! Uh - Careful, careful, careful.
- Cauliflower, cauliflower.
- Excuse me, excuse me.
Oh, my goodness.
Spinach, spinach, spinach, spinach, spinach.
Walnuts? Give me a pecan.
I'm a Southern guy.
But hey, I know I can put something together that'll impress the judges.
So I'm thinking walnuts with blue cheese stuffed inside a bacon wrapped pork chop with a bourbon and walnut butter glaze.
Gordon: Let's go.
- So many nuts.
- Hey, Ralph, how's it cracking? Back home in Michigan I make this for my husband.
I make brownies for him all the time.
So, right now I'm making a dark fudgy brownie with walnut inside and walnuts on top.
I'm gonna do this for my family.
I am making a vanilla and walnut cupcake with a chocolate and walnut buttercream.
Hopefully I can pull it off in 45 minutes.
Mmm! Ain't nothing wrong with that.
How do you turn those humble walnuts into the star of the dish? And how do you incorporate it into your dish in a way that makes sense? ( sighs ) There's so many nuts.
I don't wanna see dishes that are just carrying walnuts for the sake of it, right? - They need to be integrated.
- Aarón: Absolutely.
The skin on that walnut.
They're very bitter.
You need to counteract that.
I think that all that bitterness, you wanna have some fat contrast.
Aarón: And they can get a little bit mealy if you over-marinate them.
Milk's down.
Don't cry over spilled milk.
Well, it's a great challenge because you could either go sweet or savory.
It's gonna be really interesting to see what they put on the plate with this very, very difficult challenge.
I'm super happy that we decided to use walnuts today.
I really wanna impress Joe today because Joe gave me this apron.
I am making a parmesan Alfredo with a red wine reduction, that has grape and roasted walnuts.
I'm gonna do a crispy pancetta bacon on top.
I'm not gonna crack under pressure.
Not today.
35 minutes to go, guys.
- I can do it.
- Bowen! How are you, buddy? What do you got going on? So I'm gonna make a pork shrimp dumpling with candied walnut, served with miso stock.
Is it normal to put candied walnuts in pork dumplings? No, but I think this will be good.
So, today I'm gonna represent myself.
So, I want to make my country people proud.
- Good luck, Bowen.
- Thank you.
Ashley, a professional grocery shopper from Florida, a home cook that I gave an apron to.
Tell me about the dish.
I'm doing a walnut herb-crusted cauliflower steak with a walnut pesto.
- Why no protein? - They are protein they have protein in them.
It's just not a meat protein.
Hold on.
You've gone vegetarian.
I have gone vegetarian.
I am making this dish because I actually got my boyfriend excited about cauliflower with this dish.
So I really wanted to highlight the nut and vegetables, 'cause I think they go hand in hand.
How are those cauliflower steaks? - They are tender, Chef.
- They're tender.
I'd like mine mid-rare, please.
Yes, Chef.
Gordon: 23 minutes remaining.
- Cesar.
- Yes, Joe.
How are you? What's the dish? What are you making? I am making pan dulce, which is Spanish for "sweet bread," but I'm using banana walnut as my flavoring for the bread, then I'm gonna make a walnut cinnamon caramel sauce to go with it.
This is what's great and what I appreciate about Cesar and why he has one of my aprons, 'cause he's not gonna go for something savory.
He's gonna go big with a pan dulce, and show off his baking skills.
But here's the deal, Cesar.
Did you bite off more than you can chew? I don't think so, Chef.
I'll be ready.
- Joe: Good luck.
- Thank you.
- Samantha.
- Yes.
- Pesto? - Yes.
I'm gonna be making a potato gnocchi with a walnut pesto.
You're gonna make gnocchi for Joe Bastianich? Yes.
If you have the confidence at 20 years old to whip out gnocchi in a 45 minute mystery box then - Good luck.
Thank you.
- Thank you, guys.
12 minutes remaining.
Use your time wisely.
An amazing mix of incredible dishes.
Aarón: Guys, if I could boast a little bit, all of the people that I have given my aprons are still here, - battling it out - Here we go.
showing that they can be America's next MasterChef.
I don't mean to toot my own horn, but I'm ecstatic - that I still have all my eight aprons intact.
- It's delicious.
Okay.
I've got five left, but at least those five, I can concentrate on my strongest cooks.
You know it's not how you start, it's how you finish.
- Aarón: It's true.
- I happen to have six.
I don't know who's gonna win or lose, but I know that among those are three finalists.
So, Aarón, the fact that you have all your mentees left is completely circumstantial.
One minute 45 seconds to go.
- We need to start plating.
- Come on, come on, come on! Love it.
I love it.
Come on, Cesar.
Gordon: One minute to go.
Come on! Come on, Taylor.
Show some finesse.
- Aarón: Let's push, Ralph.
- Oh, my God, it's coming down to the wire.
Judges: Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, - two, one.
- Gordon: And stop.
Hands in the air.
Well done.
Now, tonight, you were each given a single ingredient, the humble California walnut.
Joe: And now we've watched you all cook, and we've tasted elements of every single dish.
And there are three dishes that we are so excited, we cannot wait to try.
The first home cook utilized two proteins, and candied walnuts as well, and being mentored by myself.
Please step forward Bowen.
Let's go.
Bowen: Oh, my God! That feeling is so great.
You just fly into the heaven.
I truly have faith in myself, because I am the strongest man in the competition.
Okay, young man, describe the dish, please.
Bowen: I made pork shrimp candied walnut dumplings with miso chicken stock.
In China, dumplings symbol good luck, but walnuts symbol long life.
This plate is lucky.
The miso broth, yeah, we could smell it from here, smelling incredibly delicious.
I saw the way you were making the pasta by hand, and it was beautiful to watch.
In China we're always using by hand, so I think makes it more tasty.
You can taste the texture.
You're quite a technician, aren't you? You got the dumpling, you got the shrimp, the apple.
They've got that crunch running through.
Of course that's the candied walnuts.
And then you made pasta as well.
That's what this competition is all about.
- There's no stopping you, is there? - No.
The broth needs to be a little bit less thick, 'cause it's quite strong.
But it's a really good dish.
- Well done.
- Thank you, Chef.
I'm a little bit confused, Bowen.
Is this an Italian pasta dish or a Chinese dumpling dish? A Chinese pasta dish.
There's no pasta in China.
Okay, it's dumpling wrapper.
- Joe: Dumpling wrapper.
- Bowen: How about this? So this is like a fusion.
Yes.
The filling, I love it.
I love the crunchy bits.
I love the miso soup.
The only thing I would say, is this thing is completely not relevant.
I love the use of the walnut inside the ravioli.
- Your dish is very, very good.
Thank you, Bowen.
- Thank you.
Good job.
Aarón: The next dish that we want to examine further featured no meat in the dish.
This person took a lot of risk considering the 45 minute time limit.
Please step forward Samantha.
I'm ecstatic right now.
My love for Italian food comes from my dad and this is just reassuring that what I do, and, like, the risks I take are worth it.
Today I have for you a potato gnocchi with a walnut pesto sauce.
I love pesto.
I grew a bunch of basil this summer, and just made a ton of pesto sauce.
So you substituted the walnut in lieu of the pine nuts traditionally.
- Right? - Correct.
Pine nuts are usually a bit creamy.
I got the same effect from the walnuts, so that's why I went with that route.
The flavor's there.
Those walnuts work beautifully with the floral basil, and then the gnocchi are just light, puffy, and airy.
You didn't fall into the trap of adding too many other ingredients.
If you go to Italy, the pastas don't have all that frilly stuff.
So I think you stayed true to the essence of true Italian pasta by doing it this way.
You just need more.
- All right.
Thank you.
- Great job.
Dish is delicious.
Your gnocchi's got an amazing flavor.
Crisp on the outside, light and fluffy in the center.
That walnut pesto just makes it elevated.
- Yeah.
Yeah.
- Visually, it didn't have that wow factor.
But you're only 20 years of age, and you've nailed the gnocchi.
- Great job.
Well done.
- Thank you, Chef.
Joe: Those gnocchi were perfect.
The last choice was very, very difficult.
But this cook took a big risk making a sweet treat.
Please step forward, Cesar.
( whispers ) Yes! I'm doing a secret fist bump in the air because this dish symbolizes both my Mexican heritage with my American upbringing.
So, I'm a mixture of many things and produces one amazing thing.
Okay, Cesar, tell me about it.
I tried recreating pan dulce.
It's banana, it's walnut.
In the bottom I did crème fraîche with citrus and basil to balance the walnut.
But instead of using sour cream for my moisture, I grated an ear of corn, and all that milk that comes from grating the corn - I folded that in to my batter so it'll give it moisture.
- Wow! That's an interesting technique.
Where did you learn that? I had a recipe that included sour cream, and one day I said, "What if I take away the sour cream and use corn milk?" And that's where that came from.
You taste the banana, taste the walnuts.
Sour cream sauce is delicious.
Gives it a tang.
Your caramel sauce is complex.
And all three kind of work together, and almost give me a sense of eating a real restaurant dessert.
If I had to maybe suggest one thing, maybe a little sprig of something green - Right.
- just to make it pop a little bit more aesthetically, but really delicious.
- Good job.
- Okay.
Thank you.
Cesar, como estas? - Bien bien.
- Que bueno.
What I'm most impressed about is your finesse with your presentation.
Do you cook with this much finesse at home every day like this? I'm a high school teacher, but when I have breaks I like to do taco tastings out of my apartment, and I apply the same finesse that I do here.
- This dish right here has it all.
- Thank you.
Creaminess.
It has richness 'cause of the caramel sauce.
The cake is moist.
That's really spectacular.
- Thank you.
- What would I do different? Citrus salsa on top, just to break down some of that richness.
But I'm proud I gave you that pin.
- Thank you.
- Sigues adelante.
- Will do.
- All right, you'll do me proud.
- ( indistinct chatter ) - Yeah.
You're right.
But it's very good.
Wow! What a night.
Bowen, Samantha, Cesar, well done.
Each one of those dishes highlighted your culinary styles in a beautiful way, but there only could be one winner.
and you know that.
And that winner is Aarón: Three amazing dishes, each showcasing the mystery box ingredient, which are walnuts.
But there only could be one winner, that home cook that will get an unreal advantage in the upcoming elimination challenge.
And that winner is Cesar.
Yes! Cesar, congratulations.
Yeah, Cesar! Extremely proud of you 'cause you have one of my aprons.
And with that, why don't you join us in the pantry? I can't believe that something I do as a hobby in my one-bedroom apartment was just validated by the judges.
It's the greatest culinary moment of my life.
- Cesar.
- Hey! How's it going, Joe? - Hola! - Ah, nice! Forza Azzurri.
Huh? - What do you think? - ( laughs ) - Numero uno.
- Bastianich.
I love it.
- Look at that.
- Come on.
- Viva Méjico! Whoo! - Oh, Sanchez.
- Nice.
Loving it.
- It's all about Méjico.
This is what a real soccer kit looks like.
Bonnie Scotland.
There you go.
Come on.
Ramsay.
There you go.
- Love it.
- All right.
Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, and this year is a special one.
It's a World Cup year and FOX is bringing America all the World Cup coverage.
But unlike these two poor lads, my team is actually in the World Cup.
That's right.
Méjico.
Now, your first big advantage tonight for winning that mystery box challenge is you are safe.
Joe: Here's your second advantage.
You get to choose what everyone else will be cooking - in this elimination test.
- All right.
And when you go to a soccer game, no matter what country you're in, there's always amazing street food.
Roma, Milano, Naples are full with amazing Italian street food.
And one of my favorites is pizza fritta.
Okay.
Fried pizza filled with tomato, ricotta, salame piccante.
Gooey cheese on the inside, crispy on the outside.
It's quite difficult to do, because everyone knows pizza, but pizza fritta not many people in this country know about.
In Mexico on match day, one of my favorite things to eat on the way to the game, churros con chocolate.
- Yes! - They're beautiful.
They're dusted with a wonderful canela sugar on the outside.
You gotta make pâte à choux.
You have to put it in the piping bag, then as you're frying them you cut 'em with the scissors.
There's a lot of technique involved, that señoras all over Méjico take years to master.
When I'm walking through the streets of Glasgow on the way to the game, there's only one thing that I grab.
A big, juicy burger.
The intricacy of a beef patty.
Hot, seasoned, and more importantly, layered with caramelized onions, cheese, ketchup, and that bun.
So, as a competitor, you want to eliminate the competition, putting the best cooks in difficulty.
And this is a decision that can help you achieve that goal.
Gordon: Which dish do you want those talented cooks to make for us this evening? Um I I'm gonna go with - What is this? - Off you go, Cesar.
Aarón: This year it's a World Cup year, and come on, guys, how do you like these kits? - Awesome! - Super fly! For winning the mystery box challenge, Cesar got to decide what everyone else here has to cook.
- Sorry, guys.
- Now, the next challenge is an elimination challenge.
At least one home cook will be leaving the MasterChef kitchen after this next challenge.
Gordon: Right.
The dish you'll all have to cook tonight is being delivered by a very special guest.
- Oh, my gosh.
- Oh.
He has been to two World Cups.
He played for the U.
S.
Olympic team, and he is in the U.
S.
Soccer Hall of Fame.
Ooh! One of America's most incredible soccer players ever.
Please welcome Alexi Lalas! - Ooh, no way! - ( cheers and applause ) - Hello there.
- Good to see you.
Please.
Alexi Lalas is here? How exciting is this? Why is he here? Are we playing soccer or are we cooking over here? - Good to see you.
- Look at you guys.
Damn sexy! Look at those legs! - Huh? - Whoo! Whoo! - Good to see you, sir.
- Thank you! Thank you for having me.
Now you've got a very, very busy summer.
Big summer for soccer, big summer for FOX.
- We're going to bring you the World Cup.
- Yes! All of the players, all of the teams, all of the storylines, and bringing everybody together in celebration of the greatest game in the world.
Amazing, amazing.
Right, Alexi.
Would you please let these talented home cooks know what they're gonna have to nail this evening - to stay in this competition.
- You got it.
Your dish tonight is churros with chocolate sauce.
- Oh, God.
- ( exhales ) Gordon: Cesar, give us an insight to why you picked churros this evening.
Cesar: Because they seem like a simple dish, and people might have a false sense of confidence by seeing the churros there, 'cause not all of them are gonna come out the way they should come out.
Are you targeting anyone in particular? I kind of picked this for Bowen.
He's the strongest, plating is beautiful.
I know he has an excellent Asian palate, but I wanna know if he can step out of that zone - and cook other cuisines.
- Wow! Bowen: I'm really mad at Cesar, because he wants to use his advantage to send me home.
But I'm not chicken.
I'm ready for it.
Let's compete.
- All right, Cesar, - Yes, Alexi.
There are 11 players on a soccer team, right? - True.
- So for your next advantage, I am making you captain of your own soccer team.
As a team captain, you'll get to pick ten contestants to join you in safety up on the balcony.
Ten? Wow! Another advantage? For my first choice I decided to pick cooks who excel in baking.
Chelsea, Ashley, Emily.
I'm thinking, "What's the point of making them go through this if I know they have the ability to cook their way out of it?" Interesting.
Then I choose to save people that are excellent team players.
- S.
J.
- Gordon: S.
J.
- Ralph.
- Gordon: Ralph.
Farhan, Gerron.
And earning the respect of some of the stronger cooks will also be an advantage for myself.
- Ryan, Lindsay.
- Gordon: Wow! - Last but not least.
- Young Mark.
Joe: Come on up, Mark.
All right, Cesar, very interesting picks.
And Alexi, that completes your time here in the MasterChef kitchen.
And I know we'll see lots of you across the summer.
Alexi: I can't wait for this summer.
I hope you guys join us on FOX for what is going to be a spectacular World Cup.
And I can't wait to bring it all to you.
It's been an absolute pleasure having you here in the MasterChef kitchen.
Thank you so much.
Good luck to everybody here.
- Thank you! - Thank you, guys.
( cheers and applause ) Thank you! Thank you.
All right, so back to business now, guys.
You eight are about to cook for your lives.
Now, you will have just 30 minutes to cook us some delicious churros with chocolate sauce.
- Is everybody ready? - All: Yes.
Your time starts now.
- Come on, guys! - Come on.
- Run! - Run, run, run! Hurry! ( whispers ) Gosh, I'm shaking.
I'm not sure what this is.
I don't have a ton of experience in making churros, but honestly, I'm not nervous because I'm just sticking it in a fryer.
Very similar to making a donut.
Of course I made donuts before.
In my dad's restaurant that's all we did was make the donuts.
Do they have a banana? ( whispers ) Oh, come on, guys.
You got this.
Right, 30 minutes, churros.
What is the A to Z of churros? It is one of the most challenging things to make.
I don't put 'em on my restaurant menus unless I have the right talent to be able to execute them properly.
The original dough, it's like a pâte à choux.
It's a choux pastry dough.
Aarón: You have to mix in that water, add your flour, continue to work it, and at the end, add your eggs.
Right.
Crack eggs into it, which actually makes it spin it, aerates it, and it just creates a little bit of that even distribution of the eggs.
So, crisp on the outside, light and spongy in the middle.
Tell me about the chocolate sauce.
Well, it's essentially just chocolate, Mexican cinnamon, put it in a double boiler, and add heavy cream and make a quick little sauce.
Gordon: 23 minutes remaining.
We have to speed up.
Double boiler on, get your chocolate melting as you're making your pâte à choux.
Whip it, Alecia.
I see you, girl.
I'm coming up there, y'all.
Supposed to be up there with team Aarón.
We haven't lost an apron yet.
We ain't gonna lose an apron today.
- Come on, Tay.
- Making sure I get my chocolate going, 'cause it started a little late.
Taylor, this is 'cause I know you're gonna pass.
You can build confidence.
Shoot.
Oh, my gosh.
It's just broken.
- Her sauce looks terrible.
- It's way too thick.
Any tips to thin it out, Chef? - Do you have any more chocolate? - No.
I think she's really falling apart.
- I don't know what to do.
- Gordon: Quick.
- Oh, my God.
- Oh, my God.
Shoot! She's got me worried.
Taylor: I don't know what to do.
Gordon: Quick.
Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Shoot! It is a treat to watch other contestants struggle with a dish that has followed me since my childhood.
- Chelsea: Come on, Taylor! - Let's go.
Get some more melted chocolate on there.
- Can I borrow some chocolate? - Oh, yeah.
Here.
- Hazelnut? You want dark chocolate? - Thank you so much.
Nice team player, Julia.
That's awesome.
Here's more milk chocolate.
- Thank you.
- It's okay, Taylor.
You're doing good.
Taylor: It's a chocolate sauce.
Why is this so difficult? I started over and now what matters is making a perfect churro for these judges, and that's what I have to keep focused on.
Right.
Samantha.
Churros.
Have you made them before? - No, Chef.
No, I haven't.
No.
- You've never made 'em before? - You are adding the eggs in by hand.
- Yep.
Why are you doing this the hard way? This is the way I've done pâte à choux in the past, so I'm confident that I can do it again.
Is this the last time cooking inside the MasterChef kitchen? - No, Chef, it is not.
- Don't let me down.
I do not want you going home tonight.
- Nail it.
Good luck.
- Thank you.
Thank you, Chef.
- Bowen! - Hi.
Now, Cesar is your friend, right? Kind of is my friend.
- Yes.
- Kind of? Why are you down here? He want me to go home.
He's scared of me! He want me to lose.
He want me to go home.
- So he can win the competition.
No way.
- Okay.
So, China, a big culture of frying food.
What's the closest thing you have in China to a churro? - Fried salty dough.
Yes.
- Salty dough? We eat breakfast with fried salty dough every morning.
So, I think I will knock this out.
- Bowen, best of luck.
Okay? - Okay.
Come on, Matt dog.
You got this.
- Matt, how we doing? - Chef Ramsay.
Good.
- I think we're on time here.
- Have you made churros before? I never made churros before.
I made pâte à choux before.
So, I made, you know, éclairs and things like that.
- Good.
Have you got this? - I got this.
A hundred percent.
- Good luck.
- Thanks.
Guys, 15 minutes gone, 15 minutes to go.
- Okay, Alecia.
- Como estas? - Muy bien.
So have you made churros before? You have? - Yes.
I have.
I made churros right before I came here for my daycare kids.
Why did Cesar leave you down here? Everybody has seen me in the first elimination.
So, I'm labeled as the underdog of the group.
One of you eight is gonna be eliminated.
- Yes, not me.
It's not me, Joe.
Not today.
- At least one of you.
- All right.
- All right.
- Good luck.
- Thank you.
Everybody thinks I'm going home tonight.
You're not, Bowen.
You gotta have the faith.
- You got this, Bowen.
You're not.
- You got it.
She was way late to start on that dough.
Oil's nice and hot.
I gotta make this for Joe.
I need him to know that I am here to stay.
Juni, those look perfect! I better execute these churros to perfection, otherwise my Mexican card is gonna be revoked.
Wow! Tough one, this one.
I'm really worried about Samantha, 'cause she made the pâte à choux by hand.
- Oh.
- And so her mix is very pale, very thick.
So, Shanika is in the back and she's actually adding peanut butter - to her chocolate sauce - Joe: Yeah.
- Gordon: Wow! - which I think could be spectacular - if done in the right ratio.
- Joe: Risky.
All right, guys, two minutes left.
- I'm coming up there.
- I know you'll be up here.
- I think Alecia's showboating.
- Yes.
We don't need to do that.
Aarón: All you're doing is beating those things out.
60 seconds remaining.
Come on.
Focus, please.
- Bowen's churros look like churro nuggets.
- Mm-hmm.
- Coming out hot.
- Looks good, Matt.
Looks good.
Come on, guys.
Ten, nine Judges: Eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, and stop.
- Well done.
- Nice! - Yes! - ( applause ) Right, it's time to find out who has made their last dish.
Let's start with Taylor, please.
- Come on, Taylor.
- Gerron: Come on, Tay.
I am so disappointed.
I know churros are the star of the dish, but the dish is churros and a chocolate sauce.
I just really wanted to serve a beautiful, perfect dish to make Gordon Ramsay proud of me that I am wearing his pin.
Taylor, how did those 30 minutes feel for you? I felt different at every moment.
These are not easy to master.
- There's a lot of intricacy involved.
- Mm-hmm.
- There's a lot of skill, timing.
- Yes.
- How do you feel you did? - I think I did well on the churros.
I've made them once and they really weren't that great, but I think that I did a good job.
So, when I crack this open, what are you hoping to see? I'm hoping it stays crispy on the outside, and it's nice and soft on the inside.
- Mm-mm! Beautiful! - Thank you, Chef.
Mmm.
It's brown on the outside, but soft to melt in your mouth.
You didn't go overboard with the cinnamon coating and the sugar.
I know that you were stressing a little bit with the chocolate sauce.
I think the actual flavor of the sauce is delicious.
I think you were melting that chocolate with too much high heat.
- Absolutely.
- Okay, but overall, I think the importance lies in the churro.
Great color, flavor's there, well-balanced.
You didn't go crazy with the sugar and the cinnamon.
- I like that.
- Thank you, Chef.
- Hi, Taylor.
- Hey, Joe.
Okay, so these look nice and light on the inside.
They seem to be well fried.
- Very, very good.
- Thank you.
- And your chocolate broke.
- Yes.
What's on top? Is that little chocolate chips? Yep, I put some hazelnut chocolate chips, some orange zest as well.
Well, pretty good together.
Thank you, Joe.
Your churros are really good.
Crispy, soft.
- It's a good effort.
- Thank you.
- Good job, Taylor.
- Yeah, Taylor.
Gerron: Way to go, Tay.
Gordon: Bowen.
( applause ) Bowen: In China the churro is not really common, but I'm not scared, because my cooking skill and my passion, can overcome everything.
I want to show Cesar what I got.
Okay, young man.
Bowen, I was excited when I tasted your food to begin with and I gave you that apron, but what happened? I double fried it.
In China we eat salty, fried dough, and we have to double fry it to make it actually crispy, but I don't think that's the right way to fry this.
We never cook churros twice.
Never.
- Cesar.
- Chef.
Your number one target tonight was who? - Bowen.
- Why? I was positive he's a surefire to top three.
Are you telling me now, young man, that this is the most talented individual in this competition that you're worried about? - Yes.
- And you are minutes away from sending him home.
Cesar, you are minutes away from sending him home.
( sighs ) The churros actually don't taste as bad as they look.
They are crispy.
The inside tastes nice.
I'm amazed.
You've got an even distribution of the sugar.
The sauce is delicious, but this is your worst performance.
- Thank you.
- Head up, Bowen.
The next home cook has Joe's apron.
- Please step forward, Shanika.
- ( cheers and applause ) How do you feel you did with the churros? I feel I did pretty good.
I coated them with cinnamon and sugar, and the chocolate sauce has peanut butter.
There is some issues.
Had you fried them a little bit more, and allowed that pâte à choux to cook, maybe we could've got away with some of that raw flavor of the actual inside, but because of the lack of the eggs being incorporated well, it's almost stunting that process from happening.
I don't know if you're gonna stay in this competition, - till I taste everybody else's.
- Gotcha, Chef.
- Next up, Julia.
- Lindsay: Yeah, Julia! ( cheers and applause ) Julia, describe your churros.
I made a traditional churro, and then I have a chocolate espresso, vanilla, chocolate sauce, and raspberry whipped cream.
I love the size, 'cause you feel like you got a decent portion.
I just wish they had a little bit more color on there.
- Wow! Churros taste delicious.
- Thank you.
Nice crunch on the outside, sauce is delicious.
Good job.
Joe: The next home cook, - Juni! - ( cheers and applause ) So, let's talk about these churros.
So, you have a vanilla churro, and an Ancho chili, Abuelita chocolate inspired sauce.
So, small.
It's a whole other take on 'em, but the color I think is pretty textbook.
That's good.
Being so small I thought they'd be hard and crunchy.
They're not.
They're perfectly crispy and soft on the inside as well.
You can tell your Mexican compadres - sometimes good things come in small packages.
- Good job, Juni.
- All right, Juni.
- Aarón: The next churros that we wanna taste, - Matt, please come down.
- Come on, Matt.
I made a simple cinnamon and sugar churro - with a chocolate ganache.
- Are you happy with the cook? Do you feel like it's consistent? I think the cook is consistent.
Here's what I love.
The color, spot-on.
You did a great job evenly disbursing the cinnamon and the sugar.
The chocolate sauce is good.
I think you need more heavy cream in that.
It settled, but the churros, good job.
Thank you, Chef.
I appreciate it.
- Way to go, Matt.
- Dude! Next up, please, mentored by Aarón, Alecia.
Let's go.
Alecia: I got to make churros for my daycare kids before I left, so I'm definitely feeling confident, and then I also wanna do really well for Chef Aarón.
I just wanna make him proud that he gave me this apron.
Alecia, how many times you made churros? - This is my second time.
- Wow! Visually, they are absolutely clogged with sugar.
I'm talking clump after clump after clump.
You shot yourself in the foot there.
How'd you mix in the eggs? I beat them with my hands.
And the hard thing is, I'm caked in sugar.
I don't want the third or the fourth bite.
It's dry, it's crumbly.
- And like I said, taste everything you serve us.
- Yes, Chef.
You're a smart girl.
You would've realize it's too much sugar, and you could've dusted them down.
Thank you.
Alecia, one of my favorite foods is churros.
When I saw you at the end kind of showboating, tossing those churros.
You see how they're breaking apart? It's 'cause of that.
Mistreating this really beautiful, heartwarming dish for me, that's just like super disrespectful and I'm just disappointed that you did that.
The actual churro itself needs a lot of work.
The sauce, no problems there, but they still have too much sugar.
- Thank you.
- Thank you, Chef.
Right.
Next up, a home cook that I gave an apron to.
Samantha.
Let's go, please.
Thank you.
I'm looking at my churros.
They needed longer in the fryer.
The chocolate could've used more cream.
All I can think about is my family.
I don't wanna disappoint them by coming home this early.
Samantha, you've sacrificed a lot to be in this competition.
Leaving tonight, how devastated would you be? Um yeah, that'd be really devastating.
Um just like putting everything on hold to be here, and leaving all my friends and family behind, especially when my family needs me the most right now, you know.
It hasn't even been a year since we lost my dad.
And I know we're gonna hit that year mark soon, in a couple weeks here, and I know my sister's gonna have a hard time.
And just the fact that I can't be there for her is just it's really hard.
Will you take a look up onto the balcony, and you will see the talent up there.
Are you as good as them? I, unfortunately, don't think I showed that tonight.
Are you done? ( sighs ) Samantha, will you take a look up onto the balcony, and you see the talent up there.
Are you as good as them? I, unfortunately, don't think I showed that tonight.
Are you done? I gave up everything, you know.
I don't wanna go home now, because it's just too soon for me to go home.
I'm here to stay and fight till the end.
Okay, visually, they're a little bit all over the place.
- Right? This one.
- Yeah.
Why's it so flat in the middle? Just the pressure of the piping bag, and uneven with the egg in the batter.
Let's see how they taste.
What's the chocolate sauce? What's the flavoring? The flavoring is a little bit of orange.
They actually taste better than they look.
That's my saving grace.
I love your determination.
If there's one thing that's started to show in this competition, it's your lack of experience.
Yeah.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
Go, Sam! As embarrassing as it is to cry in front of my mentor, I hope it showed that even though there's other people with years of experience on me, I have so much more passion and heart to show the judges.
- ( Aarón sighs ) - I expected more.
- Joe: Tough cook.
- I mean, that idea of mixing the eggs, - that's key to a great batter.
- Yeah.
Joe: You will be losing an apron, my friend.
All right.
We got it? I think it's safe to say that that was a very tough challenge.
But one of you did all the right things to be safe from elimination this evening.
Matt.
- Well done.
- ( cheers and applause ) Now, if I say your name, please come down to the front.
Shanika, Bowen, Alecia, and Samantha.
Everyone else can head straight up to the balcony.
This competition gets tougher and tougher.
Only one home cook is leaving tonight.
Shanika and Samantha please head up to the balcony.
( whispers ) I can't.
( exhales ) This is tough.
Bowen, Alecia, one home cook has real potential, and so much more to give this competition.
The other has seen the end of the road, and is leaving this competition tonight.
Now, we judges have made our decision.
I'm curious to see what the balcony thinks.
Cesar, who's leaving? Alecia? Mark, who's leaving? Bowen.
Emily, who's leaving? Alecia, Chef.
- Gerron, who's leaving? - Alecia, Chef.
Gerron you are right.
Alecia, I'm sorry.
Bowen, head up to the balcony.
Thank you.
( crying ) Gordon: Oh, dear.
- ( Bowen crying ) - You're still here.
Alecia, tonight you produced a churro that that was so sugary, it was virtually inedible.
I'm sorry.
You're time is done here in the MasterChef kitchen.
Aarón: Alecia, I gave you my apron for a reason, 'cause you showed you have what it takes.
And I think you're well on your way.
Remember that.
Please, place your apron on your bench.
- Good night.
- Never give up, girl! - Love you, Alecia.
- Keep pushing, Alecia.
I feel like I let Chef Aarón down, but there's many positive things along my journey, like I met some kickass people, and definitely some people that I know that I've learned a lot from.
No matter what, you keep reaching for it.
I'm gonna tell my son Alex, I'm gonna tell the same thing.
Just because I didn't win, I'm still a winner.
- Narrator: Next week - Please welcome Shaun O'Neale.
a champion returns for a MasterChef wedding.
It is my honor to declare you husband and wife.
( cheers and applause ) - But - Imagine if it was your wedding day.
- That's how we gotta work.
- when the top 18 join together - for better or worse - Beautiful.
You wanna serve this ( bleep ).
the celebration MasterChef mashed potatoes.
ends in heartbreak.
You are not gonna captain this team any longer, I'm gonna run it!