MasterChef – Worst episode of the season

Being this airing hit the airwaves on July 3rd, the pre-fireworks displays on MasterChef came in the form of the Mystery Box Challenge containing rabbit, purple Brussel’s sprouts and ramps among other items. Because they certainly didn’t come in the main challenge.

There weren’t too many sub-standard dishes made from rabbit — two of the three top preparations coming in the form of rabbit legs, one of the more difficult cuts of the animal to use because it can be a challenge to keep it moist. Comments of “one of your best dishes,” “restaurant quality” and “you guys are amateurs … and you cook like pros” came out of the mouths of Gordon, Graham and Joe as a result of the contestants’ efforts.

But that’s where the fireworks ended. Because the main challenge, with each of the hopefuls having to use a pizza stone (except Becky), was a collection of duds overall with the worst “achievements” coming out of Tanya and her lamb cutlets, David’s smoked lobster and Cowboy Mike’s oven-roasted lobster. (Really? These dishes were the results of utilizing a pizza stone … ?!? It was rather a comedy of errors to require its use, because none of the contestants — save Tali — used the stone to its potential.) I mean … what was the point? Deductions, or something, should have been taken away for the manner in which those stones were used because it was a joke. Honestly. Monti used hers to “roast” carrots. Mike used his with his lobster to disastrous effect. (The fact he didn’t remember a simple dough recipe in order to pump out a pizza contributed to his downfall just as much as he ruined his lobster creation on the equipment.) In the end, Mike came down from his high in the Mystery Box challenge right down to the ground at being sent home.

But wait! There was a double elimination. Tanya was sent packing as well for her total fail on her lamb cutlets. I didn’t have a problem with this. She whimpered and cried about her dishes too much anyway.

For me? This was the saddest MasterChef episode I’ve seen in the history of the show. And by “saddest” I mean it was a filler episode, pretty much a throwaway chapter of the series, regardless of the fact there were two contestants tossed out. That didn’t even trip my trigger … and it should have. Nothing stood out. Not even Monti’s challenge-winning carrot soup. Think about it: Outside Joe’s hissy fit at David’s creation (a downer in and of itself), what was there that was exciting about this hour of MasterChef … ???

Notes:

• I was impressed with Gordon calling out Tali on his incredibly messy and disheveled work station. How the hell do you use so much equipment to turn out a freakin’ pizza? There is zero reason for a cooking area to look like that. Period.
• Loved, loved, loved the fact Joe was so pissed at David’s smoked lobster with oven-roasted potatoes that he dramatically tossed in the garbage.
• I’ve never heard of purple Brussel’s sprouts before. I need to seek them out, just for the heck of it. (Side Note: I’m a huge Brussel’s sprout lover.)

Quote:

“Holy freak out, Batman! This is my main dish. I can’t just give them soup!” — Monti after burning her soda bread that was to accompany her carrot soup

Clacked by Michael Noble
on Jul 04, 2012 @ 00:46 EST5EDT