The sole reason why we got a Disney Hotstar subscription and started watching programs on OTT is back ! Every year Masterchef Australia would be telecast in India sometime in August a full two months after it was telecast in Australia. We didn’t want to watch it that late so got ourselves onto the OTT world and well, it has been both good and bad. Binge watching several web series has cost us “time” but some of them have also helped widen our perspectives.
Masterchef Australia
Of all the Masterchef series that happen around the world, our favourite is the Australia edition. Earlier when it was Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris and Matt Preston, the show achieved an almost cult like status. Krishnan and I liked all the three judges and were apprehensive when Andy, (Late) Jock and Melissa took on the mantle of judging.
They were nice as well… I like Andy and I did like Jock, but could never understand why Melissa was given the role of a judge when she wasn’t a chef !! It seemed a little strange to be judged by a food critic who couldn’t teach you how to fix the mistakes. No doubt a food critic is knowledgeable but I come to Masterchef to become a chef not a food critic or food writer.
Anyway, with Jock passing away suddenly last year (RIP Jock Zonfrillo), everyone was wondering about who would replace him. This year, we have four judges instead of three and Melissa also seems to have left the program. The judges are Andy Allen, Poh (Season 1’s runner up), Sofia Levin and the four Michelin star Chef Jean-Christoffe Novelli.
Week #1 – Immunity Pin, Service Challenge, Immunity cook
Some changes have been made to the format. The entire season has just one immunity pin. Jamie Oliver is the celebrity chef who is staying for two weeks. In the very first episode, Nat won the immunity pin and the chance to work for a week at Jamie Oliver’s kitchen.
The plating is fantastic !! Can’t imagine a home cook plating like a seasoned chef…. but that’s the other change we have noticed in the last two seasons. Everyone seems to be an expert in plating.
The other change in this season is having to do a service challenge on the very second day of the competition. The two teams had to cook for 40 former Masterchef participants. The Sri Lankan young woman Savindri was the captain for the winning team and what an amazing cook she is. She reminds us of Sashi, the 2018 winner, who never got a dish wrong and was probably part of one elimination cook.
Episode 2 also showed how a leader makes a difference. Sav’s team was calm, collected and worked together like a well-oiled machine. Savindri seems to be a serious contender for the title this season.
Episode 3, saw our wonderful Pani Puri stealing the show. Making Finger food was the challenge and Pani Puri is right up there ! Sumeet is the Indian origin contestant who made the dish and besides her, Snezana, Lourdes, Stephen and Savindri’s dishes got them the chance to try for immunity from the first elimination.
Episode 4 – Sav made the winning dish and she was safe from the first elimination round. Here is a picture of the dish she made –
Will write about the first elimination in the next post… a good start to the competition. I have a couple of people that I am betting on. Hopefully they stay the course and we get to see some amazing dishes.
#MasterchefAustralia #MasterchefAUSeason16
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