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- Narrator: Tonight... - Lift!
The top five face a final mystery box...
Tonight, a little taste of home.
- ...that's full of emotion. - Oh, Daddy, don't cry.
You all have to make a delicious dish
inspired by your loved ones.
- I love you, baby! - Make something good.
- And an elimination challenge... - Oh, my--
Oh, this is a big boy right here.
- May leave one home cook... - What do I do with that?
...brokenhearted.
Looks like that beef was ( bleep ) all over my plate.
Wow.
Welcome back, guys.
- Ah! - Top five, baby!
Cesar: Top five. I am ecstatic,
but having been away from my parents
and from my sisters for so long
is one of the most trying things for me personally.
Head to your stations, please.
Cesar: But they're also my source of motivation
to keep moving forward in this competition.
Wait till you see what's under there.
It's getting to be a very tight competition.
So close to the finale.
Aarón only has one apron with Cesar,
Joe only has Gerron left,
and Gordon still has three mentees left in this competition.
So I'm gonna do whatever I can
to make sure I'm the last one standing for Gordon.
Now, it's time for your last mystery box challenge.
On the count of three, we're gonna lift those boxes.
One, two, three.
( Gasps )
Oh. Mommy.
( Crying ) I know that handwriting.
Joe: Tonight, there are no ingredients under your mystery box,
but there is a little taste of home.
- Wow! - Please, open your letters.
"Hi, Ashley. Your mom and I miss you very much.
We are so very proud of you for following your passion.
Now is the time to dig down deep inside yourself
so that you can achieve your ultimate goal
and make your dreams come true. Love, Mom and Dad."
"Future hus-bae, I miss you beyond words.
I especially miss your cooking.
I know your mom is in heaven smiling from ear to ear,
because she created an incredible human being.
Everything you're doing is making her proud.
I love you, Gerron Hurt. Sincerely, your future wife."
So tonight, Joe, Aarón, and myself want to see you make a dish inspired
by the person who placed that letter under your mystery box.
All of you will have five minutes in the most amazing pantry
to help you make the best possible dish.
The winner is going to receive a huge advantage
in the upcoming elimination challenge.
Gordon: Right, everybody ready?
Home cooks: Yes, Chef.
Your five minutes start...
...now. Let's go.
There are no other sweet potatoes.
Let's grab crushed tomatoes just in case.
This mystery box challenge has me so excited,
because we really can make anything we want.
So I'm gonna take inspiration from my mom's letter.
I'm gonna make something she made for me every year on my birthday,
but I'm gonna amp it up and make it MasterChef-style.
Gosh, it's so quiet in here, guys.
Right, you guys ready? They're coming.
Big smiles.
- Where's vinegar? - Chicken stock in there.
Come on, here we go.
Gordon: Let's go, guys.
( Gasps )
Gerron, you have your gorgeous fiancée, Brandi, here.
- ( Brandi laughs ) - ( sighs )
Hi!
I told you I'm always gonna be here for you no matter what.
Gordon: Ashley, your dad, Henry.
( Squeals )
Daddy!
Oh, Daddy, don't cry.
( Crying ) Don't cry.
( Crying ) Daddy, don't cry.
Aarón: Cesar, your mom, Maria.
What is happening?
Joe: Bowen, look who came to see you.
Your husband, David.
Oh, my God!
Gordon: Samantha, look who's here.
( Crying ) Mom!
- ( Both crying ) - I love you, baby.
( Crying ) Oh, Mom!
My mom, she's given up a lot.
She was a teacher in Mexico,
but she gave up her career to move all of us to Houston
to give my sisters and I a better opportunity.
That is the greatest sacrifice anybody can give for somebody else.
So tonight, I'm cooking for her.
Now, there's not a dry eye in the kitchen,
but you all have to get cooking.
So, families, please head up to the balcony
so you can watch your loved ones doing what they do so well.
You get the best seat in the house at that balcony.
I know. It's saved.
I'm gonna kill it for you, baby.
Joe: To the balcony.
Gordon: Wow, what a night!
Now I hope you're motivated.
You'll all have 45 minutes
to make us a delicious dish
inspired by your loved ones
that have traveled to be here with us today.
Your 45 minutes starts--
- David. - Now.
Guys, it doesn't get any more exciting than this.
The top five and supported by their loved ones, big time.
- Brandi: You got this, babe. - Thank you, baby.
You know, when you cook for your family
you give that extra bit more,
extra bit of flavor, extra bit of intensity.
- You put a bit of your own heart in that plate. - Sure.
- I love you. - I love you, too.
The one thing I'm gonna hold them accountable for--
I don't wanna have a dish that we would've had
before they came into the MasterChef kitchen.
- No. - So we wanna see the sense of home,
tradition, love,
but with all the knowledge and technique
they've gained here in the MasterChef kitchen.
Aarón: Less than 35 minutes.
Come on, let's move it.
Ay, mijito.
My mom, as kids she would always make us potato
and some sort of pork product.
So I'm gonna be making potato and pork tacos
with homemade flour tortillas.
I've won two mystery boxes before
and I'm really aiming to win my third one tonight,
and not just for me but for my mom as well.
- Bowen. Give us an insight to the dish. - Yes, Chef.
My husband is my big supporter in my life.
Pork is his favorite food.
So I'm cooking Asian style sweet and spicy pork chop
with cauliflower puree.
- And how did you meet David? - Through a friend.
Tell me, how did you propose to him or did he propose to you?
We both proposed to each other in Las Vegas in your restaurant.
- You were in my restaurant? - Yes.
Why didn't you tell me?
I didn't get a chance to see you.
Text me next time and I'll get you to the front of the queue.
I'm VIP, right? ( Laughs )
- Good luck. - Thank you.
Gerron, what is the dish?
What I'm making today, it is a homemade potato soup.
I have fresh croutons that I've made from scratch.
I have bacon.
First dish I made for that woman and that's why I got that woman.
Brandi, what's it been like being without Gerron?
It's been extremely hard.
I'm just waiting for him to return and just cook for me.
( laughs )
You know, he's my last mentee.
We've been shaping him here. We've been molding him.
He's like a block of marble, and I'm gonna sculpt him.
- Good luck, Gerron. - Thank you, Joe.
Aarón: All right, so just over 15 minutes, guys.
- Samantha. - Chef Aarón.
Talk to me a little bit about this dish.
So something that my mom makes me every year for my birthday
is a bow tie or farfalle pasta in a mushroom cream sauce,
but today I'm amping it up MasterChef-style
and doing a vodka cream sauce.
All right, Samantha, between you and I,
whose farfalle dish is better, yours or your mom's?
- Definitely mine. - All right. Mom!
She says her farfalle is better than yours.
You said that was between us!
- Of course hers is better. - Aarón: I love it.
- Don't let Mom down. - I won't.
All right, home cooks, five minutes to go.
Let's go.
- Right, young lady, come on. - Yes, Chef.
How excited are you?
Super excited to show off for my daddy.
I'm 28, but I'm still a daddy's girl.
I'm making his favorite dish-- A spiced, grilled pork chop,
a sweet potato puree and homemade biscuits.
- My daddy used to make this for me with less spices. - Right.
He's the one that really, really believed in me,
- and this is all for him. - Good luck.
90 seconds to go.
I will make you proud.
These five talented home cooks are cooking from the heart.
Y'all hustling? Y'all hustling, guys?
Gordon: 60 seconds to go!
- Joe: Come on. - Gordon: Do your families proud.
- Let's go, guys! Come on! - Ten, nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four,
three, two, one.
- Gordon: Stop. - ( cheering )
All of you, well done.
Now, you know, every time you cook
in this incredible kitchen, we miss nothing.
We watch and we study everything you do.
And there's a couple of dishes that we'd like to take a much deeper look at.
The first dish-- this individual plated impeccably,
and it was so nice to see that level of finesse yet again.
Please, step forward...
Gordon: Incredible mystery box challenge tonight.
Now, there's a couple of dishes
that we'd like to take a much deeper look at.
The first dish-- this individual plated impeccably,
and it was so nice to see that level of finesse yet again.
Please, step forward...
Gerron.
Thank you.
My dish is a hundred percent inspired by my family.
It is my mom's recipe.
And with Brandi up on that balcony cheering me on,
I know it is the best dish
that I have ever made in this MasterChef kitchen.
Wow, young man!
Describe that beautiful looking dish, please.
It is a homemade potato soup
with herb-infused oil, crispy bacon, sour cream,
homemade croutons, and chives.
- What's on top? - Bacon pieces,
chives, and then croutons.
Wow!
Delicious!
It's rich, great seasoning.
The bacon, fragrant. Nice and crispy.
You've shown it finesse. You've nailed it.
What would I change? You know, maybe just let it down
with a touch of stock,
so it's not so thick, so you can eat more of it.
Okay, Chef.
But you cook from here and that's very rare.
If you cook like this with that future wife up on the balcony,
please, come back next week.
'Cause you put that heart and soul into this man's cooking.
I love you.
I love you, too, babe.
- Me? - I love you, too, Chef.
I do. I love you, Chef.
- Great job, young man. - Thank you.
The second dish that we would like to look at...
is a pork dish.
Please, bring your dish up here, Bowen.
Bowen: I'm feeling great.
With David here, I cooked with love.
I never winning the mystery box before,
but tonight I think is my night.
Aarón: Bowen, describe your dish.
The dish is pan-seared pork chop,
sweet and sour pepper with a pepper sauce,
caramelized beets with cauliflower puree for garnish.
This looks gorgeous,
just the color palette.
I think you got every color imaginable represented.
All right, so I'm gonna slice this.
I'm sure it's gonna be beautiful.
Oh, my Lord. Look at that.
- David, do you see that? - Yeah.
Is that not a thing of beauty?
- Man! - My husband David,
he is my big supporter in my life.
So, 100% of the ingredient is love.
Perfect.
That pork is moist, it's rich.
The sear on the outside is beautiful,
and all this beautiful array of peppers,
they soaked in all the wonderful seasoning that you put in there.
And the sauce-- Well-balanced, herbaceous.
This is a home run.
Your heart, your soul, your love for your partner--
All of that, I can taste that story.
- Really special stuff, Bowen. - Thank you, Chef.
Bowen!
The third dish we wanna see more closely
is a dish that features an incredible sauce.
Wearing a Gordon Ramsay apron, bring your dish up here...
- Samantha. - Whoo-hoo!
I'm in the top three of this mystery box challenge!
And my mom is here.
I'm so excited that I made a dish that she always made,
because she has always supported my culinary dreams.
Wow!
Samantha, tell me about the dish.
So today I have a farfalle
with a vodka cream sauce and some mushrooms,
and then topped with fried basil.
It looks fantastic. I know a thing or two about pasta, Janet.
- Do you know that? - I do.
- I just wanted to make that clear. - Okay.
So, you have a beautiful technique with your farfalle.
The pasta has a nice yellow color to it.
And the sauce is tomatoes?
Garlic, oregano,
a little bit of lemon juice, vodka, cream.
The texture of the pasta is perfect.
Literally perfection.
The vodka, it adds like a heat and a spiciness,
that really makes the tomato sauce more interesting,
especially when you put a little bit of cream in it like you did.
She created perfect pasta, Mom.
Way to go, bug.
A really excellent dish of pasta, Samantha.
Thank you.
Whoo-hoo!
All of you, well done.
Traditionally, we only call up three dishes.
But we've been so blown away,
that we wanna taste all five of your dishes.
- Yes! - Please, bring your dish down to the front, Cesar.
Top three is top five and I'm smiling from ear to ear.
Nothing feels better than having my mom in the balcony,
watching me carry this symbol
of who I am as a person and where I come from to the judges.
Wow!
Cesar, describe the dish, please.
So I have pork and potato tacos,
homemade flour tortillas,
a pineapple and habanero salsa to balance it out,
and my pork seasoned with Serrano and chipotle peppers.
Visually, they look appetizing.
Tell me about that salsa.
So I threw in tomatoes, onions, and garlic
in a piping hot cast iron in the oven,
and then I sautéed pineapple with habanero peppers
and pureed it all together.
Delicious.
It's got the heat.
You got the spice, got the sweetness, the acidity,
but it's the pork elevated to that kind of magical taste.
And then you go to that extent of making your own tortillas.
- Yes, Chef. - I think you've got your eye on the prize.
I can feel it.
I can definitely taste it. You should be very proud.
- Great job. - Thank you.
( Grunts )
And last, but by no means least,
get on up here, Ashley.
Hey, turn up!
I made a dish that my dad used to make for me all the time.
So I put my soul on this plate.
I know I made my dad proud tonight.
We have a brined and grilled pork chop
with sweet potato puree and orange cinnamon butter,
and some rosemary sage buttermilk biscuits.
What kind of a cook are we looking for in this pork chop?
We're going for a medium, medium well.
I wanted to really show off that, you know, I can grill.
My grandmother made my daddy a better griller.
He made me a better griller.
I just really wanted to show off that skill set to him tonight.
Yes, and it's perfection.
Oh, yeah.
It's full of flavor.
You can taste a great char on the pork chop.
It's super juicy and moist.
The puree is salted nicely, and the biscuits are good.
The one thing I would change, I would throw like a little bit more acidity in there.
But it's a really fantastic dish,
- and I can really taste home in it. - Yes.
Thank you. Good job.
I mean, undeniably five amazing dishes.
( Judges whispering indistinctly )
- I gotta agree. Yeah. - Yeah.
Tonight, all of you showed us that you really do belong here.
Joe: But, as always, we have to pick one winner.
The home cook who will receive a huge advantage...
That person is...
There were five incredible, personal dishes
inspired by your loved ones.
But we have to pick one winner.
That person is...
- Bowen. - ( cheers, applause )
Bowen: I feel amazing to win my first mystery box
in front of my darling David.
- Hey, don't cry. Come on. - Thank you, Chef.
Having David here,
he give me extra motivation.
Means so much to me.
Aarón: Congratulations, Bowen.
Before you find out your advantage,
we have to say goodbye to our special guests.
Come down and say goodbye to your loved ones, please.
It means everything to have my mom here.
Aarón: Thank you so much, all of you, for coming.
After so many weeks of not seeing her,
this visit is exactly what I needed to really keep me going.
I'm gonna keep her in my heart and in my mind the rest of the way.
Bye!
Joe: Bowen, you have a huge advantage coming your way.
- Come with us to the pantry. - I feel like today I'm the star.
I have the power in my hand.
So, I'm gonna use this advantage wisely
to shake things up.
Gordon: Bowen, welcome to the amazing MasterChef pantry.
The decisions that you make in here
will affect the course of this entire competition.
Now, Bowen, for the first challenge
you all got to see someone who means the world to you,
someone who loves you, Bowen.
So, this next challenge is all about...
heart.
And since you won tonight's mystery box,
you will be deciding the ingredient
that each of your competitors will be working with.
So, the first option is about the size of a softball.
A lamb heart.
It's gonna be a little bit more irony, a little bit tougher,
but it's not so different than actual lamb meat.
There's a lot of things you can do with it.
Next up, more of a cold-blooded heart.
That, my friend, is a tuna heart.
Oh, no.
It's certainly gonna have a lot of minerality to it,
a super amount of bitterness.
Interpreting this into a dish can be very difficult.
So, your next option might leave one home cook spitting feathers.
Talking about the one and only duck heart.
It's extremely creamy in flavor.
Treat it gently, cook it lightly,
and you'll have something that's just magical.
Next up, we have the mother of all hearts.
Beef heart.
Oh, my God, that's big!
That is a chef's dream.
Packed with nutrients, more importantly, flavorsome.
Now, this fifth ingredient is one of my favorites.
The amazing...
artichoke heart.
That's the whole artichoke,
and this is the heart.
So diverse, it's absolutely delicious.
Bowen, tonight, you also will be cooking in this challenge.
So, before you decide on the other home cooks,
we need to know what you will be cooking with.
Bowen, it's the moment of truth.
Please step up and put your heart on this plate.
He looks so happy.
Thank you, and please take a seat.
Tonight, Bowen got a key advantage.
He got to choose the ingredient
that each of you will be cooking with.
We asked Bowen to choose between five hearts.
- Wow! - Lamb heart,
tuna heart, duck heart, beef heart, and artichoke hearts.
( Murmurs ) You're kidding me.
Tonight, Bowen is cooking again,
but he got to choose his own ingredient first.
Bowen chose...
the artichoke heart.
Oh!
When you four run into the pantry,
you will know which is yours when you see the plate.
Sorry. I'm not your friend.
You will have just 45 minutes
to cook us a restaurant-quality dish
with whichever heart Bowen has given to you this evening.
Your 45 minutes starts...
...now.
Run! Run! Run! Run! Run! Run!
Oh, gosh!
Yup, this is definitely the beef heart.
Oh, this is a big boy right here.
Every heart is hard to make.
Lamb?
This is definitely the duck heart.
Bowen: But the tuna heart is most difficult.
Oh, he gave me the tuna heart. What a jerk!
What do I do with that?
Bowen: Cesar always think he is perfect.
He think he know everything.
- I hate you, Bowen! - Bowen: I love you, Cesar.
So, if he think he is really great chef,
he need to prove it.
Dang it! What is this?
Cesar: What goes with heart?
I've never heard of anybody who eats tuna heart.
I've never eaten tuna heart.
All right, all right, organize yourself.
Organize yourself. This is major.
So, I'm drawing a blank when it comes to ideas
on how to prepare this.
First-- damn it!
- Let's go, guys. - Cesar: Time is ticking,
and if I don't come up with something with this heart immediately,
my heart is gonna stay here in the MasterChef kitchen
and my body's gonna be heading back to Houston.
Dang it! What goes with heart?
All right, all right, organize yourself.
Organize yourself. This is major.
I'm frazzled, because I'm drawing a blank
when it comes to ideas on how to prepare the tuna heart.
First-- damn it!
Let's go, guys.
Slowly the idea of Asian cuisine starts coming to mind.
Let's see, we got the rice.
We got the mushrooms.
I'm gonna step out of my comfort zone,
and I'm gonna make an Asian dish.
Gordon: Let's go, guys.
So, Bowen won that mystery box challenge earlier,
which gave him a huge advantage,
designating these hearts to his fellow contestants.
Five hearts, five young talented home cooks.
Gordon: Let's start with the beef heart, the easiest heart.
He should render that fat down and slice that,
- almost like it's a liver. It's delicious. - Absolutely.
Beef heart is a true gem.
Okay, I like it with mustard.
So, Bowen gave Ashley a lamb heart.
Now, lamb heart's a little bit more difficult than beef heart.
It has a great similarity to the taste of lamb meat.
- Gamy, wants to be spiced. - It's a nice piece.
Gordon: Samantha, wearing my pin. She's got those duck hearts.
They are so rich,
so delicious done with peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes,
and beautifully grilled.
That's the perfect way to do a duck's heart.
Guys, let's talk about the elephant in the room.
- The tuna heart. - Joe: This is a hardworking heart
because tunas swim at top, top speed and go huge distances.
It's gonna be very intense, very minerally.
Gordon: Yeah. I think Bowen's trying to get Cesar out.
- Yeah. - Cesar could be going home tonight.
- Okay. - The heart to die for tonight
was the artichoke heart, because the diversity's incredible.
- Yup. - You can serve it with any protein.
- You cannot go wrong with artichoke. - Yes,
except unless you're from China,
where they don't really eat artichokes.
Bowen could trip over that artichoke heart,
because it is such a Mediterranean ingredient.
Maybe he doesn't really understand the essence
of cooking a cruciferous vegetable.
- Okay, young man. - What's up, Chef? How you doing?
So you lucked out. The beef heart, come on.
That's a dream. Tell us about the dish what are you doing?
I don't really know how to cook hearts,
but growing up my mom always made beef liver and onions.
And so, you know, I know that the heart has that same organ taste to it,
and so I wanna do a fried beef heart tonight.
Liver and onions, it's a delicious dish,
but traditionally one of the most ugly dishes.
We want restaurant-quality plating tonight.
So I'm really hoping to cut my beef livers into, like, just a nice shape.
I got some red cabbage and some green cabbage.
I'm gonna sauté it, just to add some color to it.
Now, you're the last hope I have here tonight.
You're very, very close to the finale.
This is not the time to leave, Gerron.
- Good luck. - Thank you.
Guys, just less than 30 minutes to go.
Mushrooms just need aromatics.
- All right, Cesar, how's it going, buddy? - Yes, Chef.
Pretty good, Chef. I got most of my components.
- Talk to me about your dish. - Bowen gave me the tuna heart.
Tuna I associate with Asian flavors,
so I'm gonna go with grilled tuna kebabs.
Little bit of asparagus tips on there.
Here I have some sesame steamed rice.
I'm gonna throw some chives in at the last second.
All right, so, Cesar, you have my pin.
I'm counting on you for big things.
If you can pull this off,
it might propel you to the top of this competition.
- Okay? - That's what I'm hoping for, Chef.
- Good luck. - Thank you.
Joe: All right, Samantha.
Duck hearts.
- Have you tasted them yet? - No.
- Oh, come on. - What are you waiting for? Come on!
I've never tasted them before.
- This is your big moment. - Oh, gosh, here we go.
- How delicious are they? - Delicious.
That was really surprisingly very, very delicious.
- I haven't had duck heart in a while. - You need more heart.
No, I do. I'm heartless. I'm heartless.
- Tell me about the dish. What are you doing? - Kinda taking a citrus route.
I've got this cranberries, apples, some plums in here.
You know, coming to kind of like a coulis cranberry sauce
to really enhance the sweetness of it.
Finale is around the corner. Remember, focus,
get that presentation working beautifully.
Okay, heard. Thank you.
All right, so, Ashley, lamb heart,
- one of my all-time favorites. - Oh!
- Talk to me about your dish. - I'm going for a Moroccan
spiced lamb based off of my time in Morocco.
So, I'm gonna go with those Moroccan spices tonight,
and pray that it gets me up to that balcony.
All right, what else is on the dish?
So I have my, like, tomato ragu going.
There's apricots in there,
and then my couscous is steaming right now.
I have some roasted vegetables.
I'm ready to rock and roll. I'm about to do this.
All right. Good luck.
Gordon: Three minutes remaining.
Okay, gotta hurry up.
All right, Bowen, what's going on here?
I'm doing a sauté artichoke salad
with quail egg, and also cabbage shrimp rolls.
- What's inside the rolls? - The mushroom.
- No artichoke? - No artichoke.
Because, um, I don't-- I never had artichoke before.
It's-- it's supposed to be a heart dish.
You've got the easiest heart, artichoke hearts.
- Yes, Chef. - You had this competition in your hand. Hey.
45 minutes ago.
- Joe: Right. - Okay, so you're in charge.
- So, young man-- - I'm not going home.
Yeah, we'll be the judge of that.
Dear, oh, dear.
Gordon: 60 seconds remaining.
Come on, girl. That's it.
- Gerron, make it shine. - Yes, Chef.
Plate with finesse.
Joe: I wanna see beautiful dishes.
Gordon: Come on, guys.
Judges: Ten, nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four, three,
- two, one. - And stop.
Hands in the air.
Joe: Okay, home cooks.
Bowen had five hearts
to distribute amongst you home cooks.
We're going to start with Bowen.
I never cook artichoke before,
but I feel like the flavor is there.
The only concern is I don't think I put enough artichoke heart on my dish.
Okay, Bowen, what's the dish?
Here I have artichoke salad
with quail egg,
and stuffed cabbage roll with shrimp on top.
These artichokes, how were they cooked?
Salt and pepper, garlic, onion, and Asian wine.
And what are these cabbage rolls filled with?
Just mushroom.
It's quite frankly delicious.
It's very light and flavorful.
The cabbage is perfectly steamed, it's crunchy.
The mushrooms inside are seasoned well.
The shrimp, are cooked really well.
This is a delicious dish.
I only wish, that there was more artichokes.
- Okay. - But a good dish.
Thank you.
Visually, it looks beautiful.
It's got wonderful contrast and colors that pop.
Artichokes are delicious.
So, this is a good dish,
but you chose the easy route out tonight.
I was hoping that you chose a difficult heart,
'cause that'd send a strong message to all of us
that you're here to get to the finale.
- Thank you. - Thank you, Chef.
Next, the home cook that got the tuna heart, Cesar.
I was nervous getting the most difficult of the hearts,
but that really pushed me
to draw from somewhere else in my culinary skills,
and I'm very proud of what I created.
So I think this will show Chef Aarón
that I'm the strongest competitor here.
Cesar, my last surviving apron.
Describe the dish.
So I have grilled tuna heart kabobs
with sesame and chive steamed rice,
and roasted mushrooms with a spicy citrus glaze.
Did this tuna heart give you any kind of confusion?
Yeah, I was definitely nervous.
I drew a blank.
So I had to try a piece just to see what it was about,
then I started thinking, "Okay. Where have I seen tuna?"
And it's always with Asian flavors.
Here's what I love.
You were able to tamper down
that very intense, assertive flavor of tuna.
You chose flavors that complement it, but don't obscure it.
So the idea of sweet, spicy, I think makes a lot of sense.
And then you chose the rice to be the perfect vehicle
to soak up all that wonderful flavor from the marinade.
- Mm-hmm. - You really took
what could be argued the most challenging of these hearts,
made it look like child's play.
- Great job. - Thank you, Chef.
Wow! The tuna heart's delicious.
Love the glaze.
Possibly a touch too sweet.
- Okay. - But here's what I love about you.
You cook, sound, and move like a chef.
- Thank you. - And who knows?
Potentially America's next MasterChef.
- Thank you very much, Chef. Appreciate it. - Great job.
- Good job, Cesar. - Thanks.
Next up, a home cook wearing Gordon's apron
that was given duck heart, Samantha.
Samantha: I'm not happy.
It looks like I was walking through a buffet
with a plate and I just kinda put this one here,
put that one there.
This is not how I should be plating at top five.
I really just hope my flavors are there to keep me in this competition.
Samantha. So what's the dish?
Today I have for you grilled duck heart
on a bed of brown rice
with a cranberry compote and a cabbage slaw.
I love the idea of this dish. Let's talk about the plating.
- Yeah, I'm not happy. - No one's happy with this plating.
Tell me about the cranberries.
I did cranberries, apples,
and plums, and then some zest of a blood orange.
This is a smart dish,
because the cranberry compote is super tangy.
The duck heart is cooked properly.
The cabbage is acidic.
So together you have sweet, acid, rich.
You got it all going on. It's just that as a plate
it just looks so like yesterday's news.
Yeah.
- Mmm. That's delicious. - Thank you.
The bite of the duck with the cranberry is magical.
I think duck screams for something sweet and viscous,
and so I'm happy that you went that route.
- Thank you. - It's just missing one or two things in the presentation.
- Good job. - Thank you, Chef.
Next up, wearing a Gordon Ramsay apron,
she had to cook with lamb heart, Ashley.
Ashley: Even though this is my first time cooking with lamb heart,
I put my heart and soul into this dish,
and I really want those Moroccan flavors to sing,
because of my travel experiences there.
And I hope the judges see that tonight and taste it.
Ashley, describe the dish, please.
I made a Moroccan-spiced fried lamb heart
with couscous, roasted vegetables, with a tomato rag...
Why slice the heart?
I wanted to show off that it was rare on the inside
and also add another note of color to the dish.
- It's seasoned beautifully. - Mm.
Couscous is fluffy and light, delicious.
You got that irony flavor from that lamb's heart,
which tastes slightly gamy.
What would I change? Slice a bit thinner,
'cause it's so fibrous.
But your stock is rising and you're just getting stronger.
- Great job. - Thank you, Chef.
Incredible.
- Oh, thank you. - Incredible.
The tomato sauce does a really great job
of lifting up those beautiful lamb hearts.
And the couscous is a great source of texture.
And then there's some freshness with those vegetables.
The flavors are dynamite.
- Fantastic job. - Thank you.
Next up, the young man that got dealt the beef heart, Gerron.
I don't have much experience cooking beef hearts,
but growing up I cooked beef livers with my mom all the time.
And so tonight, I put a lot of heart into my dish.
- My mom would be so impressed. - Describe the dish, please.
You have beef heart and onions
with a herb and potato mash,
and sautéed cabbage with stewed tomatoes.
Gerron, let's make something really clear.
That looks like that beef
was ( bleep ) all over my plate.
I've seen the way you have plated so beautifully,
and I look at that, and I think, "That's not Gerron."
What happened to the plating?
I waited till the last minute
just trying to make sure
that all of my flavors were gonna come together.
Trying to make it look nice,
but just lost a lot of time toward the end.
The actual cook is perfect.
So, it tastes way better than it looks.
- Thank you, Chef. - Flavor's there.
Cabbage delicious, but your presentation, we've hit rock bottom,
and that's what it's coming down to.
- Mm-hmm. - Your flavor profile is a dream for me,
and to see you go home now based on presentation--
I'm not mentoring you, but I'd be pissed.
- Yes, Chef. - Thank you.
The beef heart's cooked perfectly.
- It's a perfect medium rare to rare. - Thank you.
It's got nice seasoning on the outside.
I love this gravy.
The mashed potatoes are top.
You are the number one mashed potato maker
at "MasterChef" for sure.
- Thank you. - It's a nice dish.
Problem is, Gerron,
the plating, eh, could've been better.
And you're my last apron here,
so I say this with a bit of a heavy heart.
Everyone is firing on all cylinders tonight.
This is not up to snuff.
Definitely, Joe.
I'm so disappointed in my plating tonight.
At this point in the competition,
everything needs to be on point.
Samantha's plating was off just like mine,
so I'm hoping that my flavors are enough
to keep me here tonight.
Looked like a cafeteria.
That was a very, very tough challenge featuring hearts.
All three of us were blown away with the quality of the dishes.
Please, head down to the front.
I feel everybody that is top five deserves to be top five.
Flavor wise, very few negative things said
about anybody's dish tonight.
That was the top five, Joe.
- Every time it comes down to tiny detail. - I know.
I know. At this level, top five, come on.
It's a shame that someone might have to go home on plating,
but at this point, that can cost you your spot in the MasterChef kitchen.
All of you have grown throughout this journey,
and we are extremely proud of all of you.
Joe: So, with that said, if we say your name,
you're safe.
- Okay. - You simply head up to the balcony.
Ashley.
Cesar.
Thank you.
Bowen.
So that just leaves two of you.
Samantha: I feel so defeated.
I know I can do better,
I hope the judges see enough in me
to give me the opportunity to continue in this competition.
I want to show Gordon
that his investment in me is gonna pay off.
- ( Whispers ) Good luck. - ( whispers ) Thanks. You, too.
If I say your name, you are safe.
Samantha.
- ( Whispers ) Whoa! - ( whispers ) Oh, my gosh.
Gerron: Congratulations.
Gerron.
What are you waiting for? I said your name.
- ( laughter ) - Shut up!
- Shut up. - Gerron.
Gerron: Oh, my goodness, man!
I thought for sure I was going home.
This is so exciting!
- Oh, my God. - Come here, big guy.
I get another chance to prove myself
in the MasterChef kitchen.
From now on, my plates will be on point.
- Oh, my God! - Wow!
Wow!
I need to make sure that I get to that finale
so I can make Joe proud.
( Sighs )
Tonight, there was nothing separating the flavor profile
of each and every one of your hearts.
But next time I promise you this,
we are putting you through a bulletproof way
to eliminate someone.
Get some rest. Good night.
Home cooks: Good night, Chef.
Narrator: Next time on "MasterChef"...
the five best home cooks in the country
face the most daunting challenge of the season.
- Gordon: Beef. - Damn, that's big.
Joe: Tonight, you'll face a series of tests.
The home cooks are just one...
- ( bleep ) - No.
- Two... - What have you done?
- Whoo hoo! - Oh, my lord.
- Three dishes away... - What is Bowen doing?
I never grilled meat before.
From the semifinals,
and a chance to become the next MasterChef.