Announcer: After a nationwide search,
for the greatest home cooks in America...
( crowd chanting ) MasterChef! MasterChef!
Announcer: ...just 20 earned the right
to wear the coveted white apron.
( buzzing )
Some have risen to new culinary heights.
- Gordon: Red team! - ( group screams )
- Announcer: ...while others... - Nathan, don't freeze up on me now.
- Oh! - Oh, my God.
Announcer: ...buckled under the pressure.
- Oh ( bleep ). - Gordon: Rules are rules.
You have to leave the competition.
Bye.
Announcer: Now, just five remain--
- David... - Gordon: It's got that spiciness to it.
It's like, "Yes!" ( claps )
- ...Tanorria... - Christina: It's beautiful.
- You've arrived. - Thank you, Chef.
- ...Brandi... - Gordon: I just wish everybody could taste this,
because if they could they'd start sharpening their knives.
- ...Shaun... - This is MasterChef finale cooking.
- ...and Dan. - Christina: You gotta be proud of this dish.
- I'm not goin' anywhere. - ( clapping )
Announcer: Only one home cook can claim the title
of MasterChef.
Ooh.
Welcome back, guys.
Dan: I'm in the top five,
killin' it in the MasterChef kitchen.
- Gordon: Let's go. - I am just a surfer from North Carolina.
but now I see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Only four people in my way
to get that quarter of a million dollars
and the MasterChef trophy--
tryin' to make my dream happen.
Now, throughout this competition,
you have worked with chefs,
that are the absolute top of their craft.
But we've saved a very special guest judge
for our final five.
This chef is a culinary all-star.
He's perfected his training
with some of the world's greatest restaurateurs.
He has since built and runs multiple restaurants across America.
Please welcome...
- Chef Richard Blais. - Shaun: Yeah!
What's up?
Welcome. Good to see you, my man.
Shaun: Yes!
Wow.
Shaun: Richard Blais is in the building.
Like, I am excited.
This is one of my favorite chefs on the planet.
He inspires me to be the best.
Now, your success has been phenomenal.
What's been the key to that?
Well, I mean, I think it's respecting tradition,
buy great ingredients, and then make it beautiful.
Is there a sense of authorship?
Now tonight, you need to make us
some incredible dishes
to make us all feel incredibly proud.
And make some other very important people
proud of you.
Please welcome those very important people.
( chuckles )
Shaun, your mum, Karen.
( sobs )
- Shaun: I love you. - Oh, my gosh, I love you too. Oh, my gosh.
Brandi, your son, Mikey.
Dan, it's your mother, Kim.
( laughing )
- Hey, Mama. - Hey, baby girl.
Gordon: Tanorria, your mother, Frankie.
- ( sobs ) - And David, your daughter, Liliana.
- Daddy. Daddy. - Gordon: Welcome, my darling.
Bless.
David: I've missed you.
Wow.
Shaun: I'm emotional, I'm overjoyed.
I came into this not just for me but for my mom.
I just hope I can bring it home and make her proud.
( whispering )
Having Mikey so young, you know,
I could've put life on hold,
but I wanted him to see me as a strong person
who goes after my dreams,
'cause I want him to be able to do that too.
Now, I hate to tear you apart,
but please, family members, up on the balcony
and grab a bird's-eye view.
Richard: Now let's get your heads back in the game.
Head to your stations.
Christina: It's now time
for your next Mystery Box challenge.
Gordon: One of the count of three,
very carefully lift those boxes.
One, two, three, lift.
Tanorria: Ooh!
Oh, mystery box inside a mystery box.
Christina: Now underneath your mystery boxes,
you each have a mini mystery box.
Those mini mystery boxes contain a very special
handpicked ingredient.
On my count, you'll all open
those mini mystery boxes.
In three, two, one.
Open.
( laughs )
Gordon: You all have a different single ingredient,
handpicked by the people who love you
and know you better than anyone.
Richard: Brandi, you have corn on the cob.
Shaun, you have Parmigiano-Reggiano.
Dan, you have blackberries.
David, you have cherries,
and Tanorria, you have peaches.
That is so exciting.
In Tennessee, we cook with peaches a lot.
There's so many things I can do with peaches.
Mama knows what's she's doin'.
She's givin' her baby girl an advantage.
Gordon: You'll have 60 minutes
to transform your single ingredient
into a stunning MasterChef-worthy dish.
Christina: Obviously, with one ingredient,
that staple pantry box is more vital than ever,
'cause that's all you're gonna get
to work with tonight.
The winner will receive a humongous advantage.
Now, you may have noticed
that the front station is a little empty.
Richard, it would be nice if you could show them
what you're capable of doing with one single ingredient.
- Yeah, I'd be happy to. Of course, yeah. - Thank you.
- Gordon: Are you all ready? - Cooks: Yes, Chef.
- Lili, are you ready? - Yes, Chef.
- Your 60 minutes starts... now. - ( ticks )
Corn, Mikey, corn.
- Happy, Richard? - Yes.
- Great. - Christina: What did you grab?
- I grabbed carrots. A lot of carrots. - I like that.
Top five, now all the family members came
with one stunning ingredient
so we know that that is so difficult
to make restaurant quality, MasterChef worthy.
Now we have Chef Richard Blais cooking
in the kitchen tonight.
He's gonna be a huge inspiration.
I'm really curious to see what he'll do with these carrots.
- Richard, how's it going? - Richard: Yes, Chef.
Pretty good, I have six different elements of carrots working.
Braised horse carrots,
yellow carrot and shallot soubise,
carrot top chimichurri,
pickled carrots, some charred carrots
and raw carrot top salad.
Trying to get a dish elevated with one ingredient,
that's hard to pull off, right?
It is. I mean, this is a challenging task.
This is the real deal right here.
- Liliana: Hi, Dada. - Hi, babe.
I'm feeling good, happy that my daughter's here.
I'm gonna make a cherry tart with essence of cherry,
and it's gonna have a cherry whipped cream.
The reason I came here was 'cause of my daughter.
She really said-- She thought I was MasterChef and she believed in me.
- So I want to win it for her. - ( taps )
- Right, Shaun. - Chef.
Why do you think Mum chose Parmesan cheese?
Shaun: She knows my obsession with Italy.
Karen, do you think it's more about ingredients or Italian women?
( laughing )
Ingredients, now.
Gordon: Tell me about the dish, what you're doing.
I'm gonna attempt an egg yolk ravioli,
with a homemade-fresh ricotta on the inside,
topped with a Parmesan-sage cream sauce.
Shaun, good luck.
- Tanorria. - Yes, Chef.
How is your dish coming along?
It's coming along really well.
I'm working on a grilled peach shortcake.
Peach and basil caramel sauce.
A vanilla whipped cream and a peach and basil salsa.
So I'm really comfortable with peaches
but I wanted to get out of my comfort zone, bake a little bit.
- Tanorria, I can't wait to see what you come up with. - Thank you.
- Good luck. - Thank you, Chef.
Christina: Just over 15 minutes to go.
Gordon: All right, Dan, blackberries-- tough one to pull off.
- What are you doing? - Three blackberry turnovers
with blackberry whipped cream
and then a blackberry-mint salad.
You've cooked some brilliant dishes here.
Why do you think you haven't won
a Mystery Box challenge yet?
I don't know, I feel like since my mom is here cheering me on,
I'm gonna do a better job.
- All right, Dan. Good luck. - All right, thank you, Chef.
Whoo!
- All right, Miss Brandi. - Yes.
- Now what are you making? - I'm making a corn gnocchi
with a cream corn brown butter sauce
and a grilled corn salsa.
Is corn an easy ingredient for you to innovate?
Brandi: Absolutely not.
My kids love corn on the cob and that's the extent of it.
And I've got to elevate it
and make a MasterChef-worthy dish tonight.
- All right, Brandi. Good luck. - Thank you.
Five minutes to go.
Wow, exciting. I mean, really exciting, indeed.
Look at Richard.
Look at that. He's gonna smoke his dish of carrots.
So amazing.
- Daddy, 30 seconds remaining. - David: Thank you, babe.
Gordon: Your last mystery box.
And for one of you, an amazing advantage
for the best dish of the night.
Let's go.
Gordon, Christina, Liliana: Ten, nine,
eight, seven, six,
five, four, three, two, one.
- And stop. Hands in the air. Well done. - Christina: Hands in the air.
- ( applauding ) - Whoo!
Richard, that looks incredible.
Please, bring that beauty up here.
Look at that.
Amazing. Wow.
Gordon: So what's under there?
All right, so we have a pot roast of horse carrots
with many textures of carrot.
- Carrots, how many ways? - Six.
So we have the braised horse carrots,
a yellow carrot soubise, charred purple carrots,
a carrot top salsa verde, pickled carrots
and a little raw carrot top salad.
Amazing. That looks great, right?
Chef Richard's dish is definitely inspirational.
It looks beautiful. The carrots in there are just gorgeous.
He used them six ways in one dish.
That's insane.
Wow. That smoke as well just lifts it.
So complex, even though the ingredient is so simple.
Gordon: Let's see if anyone came close to the bar
that Richard set tonight.
Announcer: Throughout the Mystery Box challenge,
the judges taste elements of all the home cooks' dishes as they come together.
- Think those yolks are still in there? - Shaun: I know they are.
Announcer: They now take one final look
to choose the top three standouts
and the winner of this challenge
will receive a major advantage in the next round.
All right, so the first dish we want to look at even closer.
I suspect a very special lady
must have given him the extra edge
to come out of his comfort zone.
Please, step forward...
All right, so the first dish we want to look at even closer.
Please, step forward...
- Dan. - ( cooks applauding )
- Gordon: Let's go. - Dan: I'm pumped right now.
I'm definitely makin' my mom proud,
I'm makin' my friends proud.
I'm makin' my fraternity brothers proud--
I'm makin' all of North Carolina proud right now.
You know? I'm a happy guy.
Describe the dish, please, Dan.
I have a blackberry and mint turnover
with a blackberry-mint fresh salad,
blackberry gastrique, topped off with a blackberry - vanilla whipped cream.
Visually, it looks good.
Love the color on that pastry.
What did you brush on the top, what's the glaze?
Uh, that was an egg wash made of one egg
and a little bit of heavy cream.
What did you marinate the blackberries in?
Lemon juice and sugar.
The pastry is delicious. You know, it's crisp,
it's buttery. Cream, delicious.
I think you've done the blackberries proud.
I think you've done your mother proud.
- How's that look from up there? - Yummy.
Yeah. I mean, the boy's done good.
- Great job. Well done. - Thank you, Chef.
Visually, it looks like you have
a really nice seal on the turnover.
A good ratio of filling to the bread.
Again, it's really nice and brown.
This is quite delicious. I love the dough.
The texture serves you well,
because you so many things on top of it.
The berries, and the blackberry cream taste delicious.
I don't wanna stop eating.
- Good job. - Thank you, Chef.
- Shaun: Good job, Dan. - ( cooks applauding )
The second dish we want to examine further tonight
is a pretty impressive display
of many culinary techniques.
Step forward, Tanorria.
( applauding )
Yes!
This is my opportunity to win my second mystery box
and my mom is watching from the balcony.
That is like icing on the cake.
All right, Miss Tanorria. What did you make?
Tanorria: Today, I made for you a grilled peach shortcake,
with a peach caramel sauce,
a vanilla bean whipped cream,
and peach basil salsa.
That caramel sauce looks pretty darn delicious.
- Is there peach purée in it as well? - Yes.
I made the peach basil sauce
and then I folded that into the caramel sauce.
The sort of brightness and acidity
from the fresh peaches and the basil
really help compliment that caramel sauce.
The biscuit was nice and buttery, they're flaky.
I think the whipped cream was smart.
Really nice effort. And I'm glad
your mom, Frankie, chose peaches for you,
'cause I feel like we get even more personality
- from you out of this dish. - Absolutely. Thank you.
Tanorria, I love the fact that you're grilling the peaches tonight,
that's quite ambitious.
And what did you marinate the peaches in?
Balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, sugar and basil.
Mm.
Delicious. Really delicious.
Shortcake needs a touch more cooking,
a bit more color on there.
Cream, delicious. Love what you've done with the peaches.
- Well done. - Thank you, Chef.
Thank you.
- David: Good job, Tanorria. - ( applauding )
Good job.
So the third dish that we wanna take a closer look at...
it's an elevated, stunning, MasterChef-worthy dish.
I believe he's become the king of plating in this competition.
Please step forward...
Shaun.
- Whew. - ( cooks applauding )
Shaun: I'm on cloud nine right now.
The first time I ever made homemade ricotta
was from a recipe from Richard Blais's book.
And right now, on Chef Blais's first night with us,
I'm gonna impress him with this one.
All right, so Shaun, what is this dish?
Shaun: An egg yolk and fresh ricotta ravioli,
with a sage cream sauce, balsamic reduction,
crispy sage leaf, and a crispy parmesan chip.
What should it look like when I cut into that ravioli?
Well, it's gonna ooze 'cause of that egg yolk.
Richard: You guarantee that I'm gonna cut into this ravioli...
- I guarantee it. - ...and it's gonna ooze this egg, ricotta mixture?
I guarantee it.
- I guess we're gonna find out. - Yes, Chef.
Whew, big moment.
- Beautiful. - ( claps )
- Well, you're an honest man, huh? - Yes, Chef.
Let's see if the taste is as good as the texture.
I love the texture of the yolk
and then the silkiness of the pasta itself.
I'm not a big fan of, you know, the fried herbs,
except when it comes to sage.
- Awesome. - I think this is just an absolute lovely dish.
Thank you very much, Chef.
- Gordon: Shaun, why raviolis? - I love raviolis,
but I've never made an egg yolk ravioli.
How long do you poach them for?
Shaun: Just about 90 seconds.
I know with egg yolk raviolis,
you're just cooking the pasta dough.
Um, you're not cooking the internal.
Yeah. Um, Shaun, it's delicious.
The ricotta is adventurous. The egg yolk, sumptuous, rich.
- It doesn't need the vinegar. - Okay.
But here's the thing,
you're just getting stronger and stronger.
If you continue cooking like this, Shaun,
- it's gonna be tough to stop you. - Thank you, Chef.
- ( applauding ) - Shaun: Whoo!
Gordon: Well done, Dan, Tanorria, Shaun.
The three of you really showed us
that you belong in the top five.
Richard: The person who made the best dish tonight,
the home cook who's going to get a huge advantage...
Congratulations...
The person who made the best dish tonight,
and the home cook who's going to get a huge advantage.
That person is...
- Shaun. - ( grunts ) Yes! Yes!
Third time's a charm. I won three mystery boxes.
Not only did I impress the judges,
including one of my culinary idols, Chef Richard Blais,
my mom got to see what I am actually made of.
Karen, you must be beaming with joy.
- I am. - Gordon: Well done.
Uh, right, we have to say goodbye
to our very special VIP guests this evening. It's been an honor.
Please come downstairs and say goodbye.
Having Mikey in the kitchen with me
gave me extra motivation
to push myself through to the finale.
Not just for me, but for my kids.
- Bye. - Bye, gorgeous. Amazing.
Shaun, head on up to the balcony.
My favorite spot in the kitchen.
Gordon: You are officially in the top four.
So Shaun is safe and sound up there on the balcony.
But the four of you
will have to cook in the next challenge
which is an elimination challenge.
That means one of you will be going home tonight.
Now, tonight, you're gonna show us what you can do
with the wealth of food at your fingertips.
Hmm.
The MasterChef pantry is packed with anything
that a chef could dream of working with.
Grab up to 20 ingredients to make anything you want.
Nice.
Richard: This competition is close to the finish line,
and I wanna see what you can do
with no constraints.
Christina: We're giving you full creative freedom tonight.
You guys need to think big.
Richard: You'll now have 60 minutes
to make us a MasterChef-worthy dish.
- Is everybody ready? - Cooks: Yes, Chef.
Your one hour...
- starts now. - ( ticks )
Gordon: 20 ingredients, not 21.
Oh, Lord. Lord, Lord, Lord, Lord.
David: To have my daughter see me lose the mystery box,
I'm really fired up.
So right now, I'm bringin' the heat.
We gotta make somethin' beautiful.
Shaun made ravioli in a previous challenge,
I just wanna show the judges that he's not the only one
that can make great handmade pasta.
- Dan: Anything we want? - This is an awesome opportunity right now.
- We can cook anything. - ( ticks )
I really wanna make an Asian-inspired dish.
There's no salmon? I need some fish.
So I just grab the first fish I see-- it's trout.
Not sure how I'm gonna make this work
but I'm gonna give it a shot.
- Gordon: David, you good? - I'm so good.
Gordon: 55 minutes remaining.
- Now, stop the clock. - ( ticks )
All of you, stop there.
Come on, we're never gonna make
an elimination challenge that easy.
- David: Oh, God. - Gordon: Come on, please.
Christina: Now, you each got to grab up to 20
of your dream ingredients,
but technically, we never said
who would be cooking with which basket.
( chuckles )
Tonight, you will each be cooking
with someone else's dream basket.
And those ingredients you just picked out
could soon be someone else's nightmare.
I'm distraught because my basket is so amazing.
It's not just gettin' a bad basket,
I'm mad that someone's gonna get mine.
And the decision of who will get which basket
is up to...
- Shaun. - ( chuckles )
- Oh. - Thank you.
- Right, Shaun, head on down, please. - Yes, Chef.
Gordon: Inspect every one of these baskets,
- then move them around. - I am pumped right now.
I am in complete control.
I get to throw everybody off their game.
This is my chance to fire some shots.
- Hi, Tanorria. - Hello, love.
What is in that basket, Tanorria?
I have some crab and shrimp
to make deconstructed jambalaya.
- Deconstructed jambalaya? Oh, my. Gettin' fancy. - Christina: Ooh.
There's some crab in there, there's shrimp in there.
- Who's got the skill? - Shaun: It's definitely gonna take some work.
I'm gonna give this one to Dan,
and see how he can finesse it.
Gordon: Right, Brandi, that basket looks exciting.
- What's in there? - A rack of lamb,
oranges, thyme, beef stock.
Wow. Beautiful basket.
This is kind of a tiny rack of lamb.
I'm wondering how they're gonna handle that.
Shaun has picked up Brandi's basket.
Where's he going?
- Shaun: There you go, Tanorria. - Tanorria, rack of lamb.
Shaun: I think that she might overcook it.
Gordon: Wow. Okay.
David. What's up, Vegas?
Got some shrimp, crab, flour,
got some parm in here? Hmm.
- This one is actually a good basket. - Obviously.
( chuckles )
Shaun: He's got the high-end stuff in here.
I'm wonderin' how this person's
gonna work out of her comfort zone.
Here you go, Brandi.
Gordon: You're in control.
- Dan, Dan, Dan... - Dan, what's in there?
Kohlrabies, I got some rice, I got some ginger,
- and a lot of other surprises. - Gordon: Right.
Is this some packaged smoked trout, Dan?
( chuckles ) This your only protein?
- Yep. - Oh, you made my job easy.
This is a pretty weak basket,
there's not a lot in there.
This one's goin' to David.
- All right. - I'm trying to figure out
why you wouldn't give it to Brandi.
I know David gets easily frustrated.
My main goal today is to throw David off his game.
Get him so flustered
that he cannot come back from it.
( chuckles )
- Christina: Shaun, what's your thinking? - I wanna win Vegas first.
That's why I gave David the toughest basket.
You don't make a lotta sense, brother.
I'm just sayin' you don't make sense.
Dude, it's a competition.
You've been playing your strategies the whole time.
You're an idiot. You're a ( bleep ) idiot.
- Oh... - Shaun: Personal attacks, David?
You're gonna get mad like that?
- I am. - That's all right.
( chuckles )
Ooh...
Rattled some cages.
No, I mean this idiot doesn't even get a ( bleep ) protein
and I get this that he ( bleep ) up? No, it's bull ( bleep ).
- David, you okay? - Not at all.
- Come on. - He's like, "Oh, smoked trout and some Asian stuff."
It's just bull ( bleep ). It's a joke.
Wow. David-- tonight,
prove that you're good enough
to cook with whatever you've got in that basket.
- Right, Shaun, head up to the balcony. - Thank you, Chef.
Shaun: I think one of the reasons David is pissed off
is 'cause I beat him at his own game.
He's a poker player, he's a strategist.
And I just beat him with strategy.
I got him frustrated, so what's gonna happen
with this smoked trout is anybody's guess.
Right, so is everybody ready?
All: Yes, Chef.
Gordon: 55 minutes remaining, guys.
Your time starts now.
- Continue. - Christina: Clock starts again, guys.
Gordon: Come on, David. You can do this.
- ( groans ) - Gordon: It's a tough one tonight.
They're shopping in the pantry
and they're picking their best sought-after ingredients
and then bang, they had to swap baskets.
- That's devastating. - David: You're so lucky he didn't give you that basket.
Christina: This is top five of MasterChef.
And part of being in this kitchen
is being up against it.
We have thrown curve balls at them
- since they started cooking in this competition. - Gordon: Yep. Yes.
What I'm looking for tonight is to see them experimenting.
Start putting together ingredients
that they've never ever put together so far in this competition.
It's just not fair. All this time I spend away from my daughter
I have this happen to me.
What is going on with David?
I mean, he is upset.
Can't function with this.
Cooking angry is not a way
- to go into this challenge here. - Christina: No.
Richard: He's in his own head.
( sighs ) Forget it.
Richard: He's takin' his apron off.
Christina: David's walking out.
Gordon: David? David?
David?
David, stay here. Come here.
- David? - Wow.
- It worked. - Bye, David. Peace out.
That is not the attitude of America's next MasterChef.
Gordon: Wait, wait, wait, wait.
- David? David? - David: It's too late now.
( sighs ) Forget it.
Where's-- where's David?
Uh, David's walkin' off.
- Gordon: David? David? - Oh...
David, come here.
David?
Wait, wait, wait, wait.
- It worked. - David: It's fine.
- David. Come here. - It's too late now.
In six years of working on this competition,
nobody has ever quit.
And I've seen it all. I've never seen anyone get the shaft like this.
- This is ( bleep ) crazy. - Okay, listen to me.
Ahem.
You are there up against one, two, three individuals.
And you are good enough to do this.
I am not gonna let you walk out of this competition like that.
You are better than that.
I've got too much respect for you,
and what you've done, where you've come from in this competition
to see you walk through that door now.
I don't have egg, I don't have any crumb--
I've got nothing, man. No idea what to do.
Stop that. Yes, it's bad.
Yes, you're down.
But you can pull this back.
And if you think you've been on your ass before,
I've been there many times.
Forget everything else now.
There's definitely something you can salvage
out of those ingredients.
Come on, you are not gonna quit.
Okay? You can do this.
Gordon: Hey, are you with me? Come on.
I have no idea. I really don't.
Shaun: I want David gone.
He has no respect for anybody except himself.
Be here to compete with integrity,
or get the hell outta the kitchen.
I would approach this, I would just start fresh and cook from instinct.
( whispers ) Yeah.
Dan: David, man, the basket's not that bad.
And honestly, throwing a temper tantrum's
not gonna help anything, dude.
I'm like, 10 years younger than you, bro.
Get your ( bleep ) together.
Just imagine this is for Liliana and you
and you had to make something for your daughter for the weekend.
I'm gonna try to make a curry-style rice
with the baby kohlrabi greens.
And the flaked trout inside the rice.
- Look at me. Come on, don't give up. - Thank you, Chef.
Come on, let's go.
We are just under halfway, guys.
That's some paper-thin pasta, Brandi. Good job.
Thank you. Last roll.
- Miss Brandi. - Yes, Chef.
You are cooking with David's basket.
Are you confident with your dish tonight?
I would have been more confident with my basket, obviously.
But it's looking pretty good.
I've got my ravioli rolled out and filled.
That's my crab ricotta filling
and I'm making a crab Alfredo sauce for it.
So I'm really tryin' to highlight the crab in this dish.
Have you made ravioli before?
It's not something that I do all the time,
but my kids love Alfredo sauce
and my son loves the stuff.
- Brandi, good luck. - Thank you, Chef.
Mm. Oh, that's good.
- Tanorria? - Yes, Chef.
- Tell me about the dish. - I got Brandi's basket.
I'm going to do a crusted rack of lamb pesto,
with the celery root tops, some rainbow carrots,
and I'm getting ready to make a celery root purée.
- Looks beautiful. - Thank you, Chef.
- You got 18 minutes to go. Good luck. - Yes, Chef.
( sizzling )
All right, Dan. You're cooking with Tanorria's basket.
You've got crab, you've got shrimp, slab bacon.
Are these flavors that you're familiar with?
- I never really cook with shrimp. - Okay.
But I'm gonna go the jambalaya route--
try and make a deconstructed jambalaya.
You're gonna just take Tanorria's idea?
Uh, I don't wanna copy Tanorria exactly.
- This'll definitely be my own version of shrimp. - Okay.
Keep in mind, we want to see all of your culinary skills
and technique across this dish.
So push your mind a lot further
than I think you're probably pushing it right now.
- All right. Thank you, Chef. - Good luck.
( chuckles ) Oh, Dan...
Brandi: What's our time, Shaun?
Little over five minutes left, guys.
Now, what do you guys see out there?
Well, I mean, in Shaun's private world, he's targeted David.
Gordon: But this guy can cook. And he can bring it back.
- We haven't seen a pasta from Brandi yet. - Gordon: Yeah.
I'm curious how she will infuse her personality.
Gordon: Last minute, guys.
Shaun: Go guys, finish strong.
- What's at stake is a place in the top four. - Christina: Focus.
Tidy up, finesse.
Gordon: Last little touches. Come on.
- ( ticks ) - Judges: Ten, nine, eight,
seven, six, five,
four, three, two, one...
Gordon: And stop.
- ( cooks applauding ) - Well done.
Right. First up, David.
Tanorria: David had a temper tantrum and lost precious time.
Getting upset is absolutely gonna hurt him.
You put your emotions on the plate.
And right now, David's emotions are ugly.
Let's get straight to the point.
You were dealt a dysfunctional card.
Then you turn your back on this competition.
All those challenges, all those competitions,
and endless hours in this kitchen,
to give it up 'cause he ( bleep ) you off.
How many times have you dealt dysfunctional cards and got rid of them?
- Millions. - You do it for a living!
So to watch that take place there,
David, I'm gonna be brutally honest--
depending on what you did to that plate,
this could be the last time you cook
inside the MasterChef kitchen.
Sounds like my fate is sealed.
Let's get straight to the point.
Depending on what you did to that plate,
this could be the last time you cook
inside the MasterChef kitchen.
Whew.
Sounds like my fate is sealed.
- Describe the dish. - I have a smoked trout in endive,
with bean sprouts, and curry sauce.
sautéed kohlrabi greens,
curried rice with blood orange segments and trout skin.
Gordon: Here's the thing-- it needs a bit more acidity.
Don't be scared of using that ginger in there.
I love what you've done with the greens.
Rice, seasoned delicious, cooked properly.
But I don't know what the dish is.
It's just a bad plate from a dysfunctional basket.
I'm glad you didn't leave this competition.
And whatever the result is,
cut the crap and get in the game.
Yes, Chef.
Hmm.
There's a lot of flavor in here.
Uh, the salt from the trout is helping season the dish.
It's a little mashed up, it's a little confusing.
You wasted some time with the sort of personal meltdown
that you had over there.
I'm a little shocked, to be honest, at first impression.
Especially seeing your daughter in here earlier
which was an incredibly touching moment for me--
I got goosebumps, I was crying.
With her watching, I really wanted to impress her.
And even though she was impressed,
I didn't feel like it was enough.
I wanted to be up here and her to be proud.
So with that happening and then coming into this,
it was just like I was beaten down.
You know what? Now we're gettin' to it.
That makes sense. Now you're bein' honest.
Listen, I think you got a challenging basket.
A sign of a great chef is taking that challenge
and running with it and creating some great delicious food.
But all in all, it tastes better than it looks.
Thank you, Chef.
( cooks applauding )
David does not deserve to be here.
He has not earned my respect.
And whether he leaves or not,
which it looks like he's on his way out the door,
I definitely accomplished my mission.
He's not gonna be the same after this.
Next up, Tanorria, please. Let's go.
( cooks applauding )
Tanorria: I hope I cooked the lamb the way it needs to be cooked.
There's only four of us left right now.
And the judges are paying attention
to the smallest details.
I cannot mess this up today.
- Tanorria, describe the dish, please. - I have for you
a celery root and parsley marinated lamb chop,
brown butter celery root purée,
some roasted carrots,
and a carrot and parsley salad.
Visually, it looks beautiful. Let's get that right.
You got the Rolls-Royce cut there.
It's got that finesse.
Yep, it's cooked beautifully.
- What's in that marinade? - I did some celery root tops,
parsley, thyme, olive oil, salt and pepper.
Listen, the dish is good. The lamb tastes delicious.
And the flavor is incredible.
Your purée is smooth.
Love what you did with the celery root top.
- Really strong. Thank you. - Thank you.
Lamb is delicious. That rub that you put on the chop is great.
I love the sweetness and the earthiness
from the carrots in the salad.
I get you on this dish for sure.
- Nice job. - Thank you.
- ( cooks applauding ) - Good job, Tanorria.
So the next home cook's dish we want to try... Brandi.
Brandi: I think I've made a really good dish,
but this is the MasterChef kitchen,
and these judges might not feel the way I feel.
So on the one hand I'm confident,
but on the other hand, I'm scared to death.
Brandi: I made a ravioli stuffed with crab,
ricotta, basil,
in the Alfredo I have the parmesan cheese and cream
and then on top I made a fresh salad.
Where is this inspiration coming from?
My ten-year-old son loves crab legs
so I wanted the crab to be the star.
I wanted pasta to take the back seat,
and you to really taste the filling.
Technically, the dough should be so thin
that you could read a newspaper through that dough.
Let me see if I can see that.
Look-- uh, I can see right through the newspaper.
You know what the headline is? "Great Pasta."
Yes.
The sauce is like Morgan Freeman's voice.
- Yay! - I mean, it is rich and decadent.
I just want a jar of that sauce to take back to my room.
- Well done. - Thank you, Chef.
Visually, the dish looks stunning.
- Is there cheese in that sauce? - There is.
There's also the seafood stock,
heavy cream, butter, salt and pepper.
Wow, such delicate flavors. Brandi, it's delicious.
It's the kind of dish that you want the second,
the third, the fourth mouthful.
- Bloody good job. Well done. - Thank you, Chef.
- ( cooks applauding ) - Good job, Brandi.
Christina: Last up, Dan.
( cooks applauding )
Tanorria: Oh, my gosh. Dan's deconstructed jambalaya.
Gee, I wonder where he heard that from?
Yeah, from me. Come on, Dan.
All right, Dan.
- Now, you had the basket from Tanorria. - Dan: Yes.
Christina: What did you end up making tonight?
I did a deconstructed jambalaya,
with cilantro rice, jalapeño creamed corn,
a crab, bacon, pepper jambalaya,
and Creole-seasoned shrimp, with a gremolata.
And what do you like about jambalaya?
Um, honestly, Chef, I haven't really eaten it that many times.
Okay. Why make jambalaya,
if you don't have too strong of a connection?
Is it because you heard Tanorria just say it
when she was describing her basket
and it got locked in your head?
No, honestly, this dish
I created by following my palate.
- Huh. Tanorria? - Yes, Chef.
What do you think of Dan's interpretation
of the ingredients in your basket?
That's the direction I was going in.
Um...
my dish has a lot of similarities
to what she was going for.
Okay. Let's see how it tastes.
The shrimp is pretty nice--
not overcooked, not undercooked.
The creamed corn is fine.
But overall, the flavor's just kinda "eh."
I wanted more "Dan identity" on a plate.
You know, my big concern is that
to get into the top four,
it's just not good enough.
Overall, I wanted more "Dan identity" on a plate.
And my big concern is that
to get into the top four
it's just not good enough.
Shrimp tastes good, but rice is overcooked.
It's mush, it's bland.
And gremolata doesn't go with this dish.
It just doesn't make sense. And here's the thing.
I've seen you cook dishes with less time
better than that.
Now that's what disappoints me.
I'm so frustrated. I did everything I could with these ingredients
and it was definitely not my wheelhouse.
I put my own spin on it
and I'm just hopin' it doesn't send me home.
Christina: It's an extraordinarily tough challenge.
But tonight, there was one particular home cook
that we feel really grabbed the challenge.
Congratulations...
Brandi.
- That was a stunning dish. - ( applauding )
- Nice job. - Thank you, Chef.
Well, home cooks, this is an elimination challenge
and someone is going home.
David, Dan, please come down to the front.
Gordon: Gentlemen, one of you will enter into the top four,
the other one will see their dreams end tonight.
Dan, you are one talented young man.
Unfortunately, that basket got the better of you
and the dish ended up looking confused.
David, you've done brilliantly in this competition.
But tonight, your attitude got the better of you.
David, please step forward.
David,
you are not...
going home tonight. You're into the top four.
Get back to your station.
Hey man, good job.
( sighs )
Gordon: Dan, you've done well. Keep your head up high.
- How do you feel? - Chef, it's just an honor
to learn from the greatest.
I am so much better at cooking than when I arrived here.
- You would not believe it. - Gordon: Well done.
Thank you.
Come and say goodbye, please.
It's been an honor.
Pleasure to meet you.
- Get in here. - Christina.
- You keep that sunny disposition. - I will.
- It's infectious. - I will, I will.
Stand here. One, two, three, four.
You know them. All final four.
Dan, in your mind,
who's gonna become America's next MasterChef?
If I have to choose, I gotta say Brandi.
She's come so far and she's killin' it.
But, please, take your apron off
and put it on that bench.
- Thank you. Good luck. - Dan: Thank you, guys.
- Christina: Bye, Dan. - ( cooks applauding )
Dan: I know I'm supposed to feel sad right now...
See ya.
...but dude, this has been awesome.
- Whoo-hoo! - ( cheering )
I came in here as "Dan, the frat guy."
The best way to turn your lady on
- is to turn your stove on. - ( chuckles )
Then, I was "Dan, the testicle man."
- Didn't like that one. - Dan, how do you feel?
I just got balls, Chef. It's pretty self-explanatory.
And now, I'm "Dan, the chef."
I love the color, the impact was lovely.
- It's delicious. Well done. - Thank you, Chef.
- Cream cheese crust. Yes. - Yes.
I learned so much
and I made it into the top five.
I'm like a totally different Dan.
And I'm just excited to go out in the world,
get a new girlfriend,
and cook her a three-Michelin-star dish.
It's gonna be awesome.
Announcer: Coming up...
the four best home cooks in America...
Red team, blue team. Our food critics are arriving.
Announcer: ...take on the season's most intimidating challenge.
- Holy ( bleep ). - They can fill your restaurant up for six years,
and they can shut your restaurant down in six months.
These critics are gonna tear us apart.
- Underseasoned. - Stringy.
- Sloppy. - No.
- This is crazy. - Announcer: And it all ends...
- Your reviews. - Announcer: ...with a bombshell
that changes the whole competition.
For the first time in MasterChef history...
- ( gasps ) - Oh, my God.
( exhales ) Whew, God.
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