The Greatest Ever MasterChef Dishes, Ranked
Catch MasterChef Australia: Fans & Favourites Sunday to Thursday at 7.30pm on 10 and 10 Play on demand.
The nation’s nearest and dearest cooking show MasterChef Australia has kicked off a whopping 14th season and we can guarantee you that you are not prepared! This year our judges Jock Zonfrillo, Melissa Leong and Andy Allen are judging 12 MasterChef superfans and 12 returning favourites including three previous winners.
To get us all back up to speed and moisten our appetites, we’ve ranked the most iconic dishes to ever grace the MasterChef kitchen.
5. Baked Lemon Meringue Tart, by Vincent Gadan in Season 4
The Michelin star and hatted pastry chef Vincent Gadan is known for making Australia’s most expensive dessert featuring 24 carats gold leaf, 60 Kimberly diamonds and a $500,000 price tag.
But it’s Vincent’s (much more affordable) baked lemon meringue tart with candied lemon and orange zest that we wanted to reach through the screens and eat. Sure, Vincent may have returned with a 3D printed Lemon Meringue Pie in season 10 but this early version is proof the classics never die.
4. Pistachio Financier with Raspberry and Davidson Plum Sorbet, Emelia Jackson, Season 12
In the first season to feature an entire cast of returning players, the winner of MasterChef Back To Win was season 6 dessert queen Emelia Jackson. Before launching her own line of financiers (aka. heavenly little almond cakes), Emelia served the judges the one that would make her famous.
The financier was baked with pistachio and served with a white chocolate snow, a raspberry and Davidson plum sorbet and what Melissa dubbed “a fascinator of meringue”. Melissa was also on the money calling it a “high fashion dessert” and yeah, just look at it. Doesn’t it just look like it’s ready for a day at the races?
3. Blue Cheese Tortellini with Figs and Rosemary Oil, Matthew Hopcraft, Season 7
Although dentist Matthew Hopcraft’s first competitive cooking success was first prize for a sponge cake at a country show at age 11, it was his pasta that won him the season 7 pasta challenge that sticks in our memories.
More specifically, his handmade blue cheese, apple and walnut tortellini which was ingeniously served with caramelised figs, crumbed kaiserfleisch (aka. smoked pork belly) and a drizzle of rosemary oil. An inventive presentation featuring simple ingredients was enough for Matthew to win the challenge and for our remote controls to be destroyed by saliva.
2. Pistachio and Coffee, Cardamom and Chocolate Croquembouche, Red Team, Season 5
If you love MasterChef you love a croquembouche. It’s that simple. And what’s not to love about choux pastry puffs piled high and bound together with tasty threads of caramel? Probably the worst thing you could say about a croquembouche is that they spend too much time on reality TV and not enough time in our collective mouths.
The most memorable croquembouche comes undoubtedly from season 5 heroes Kristen Sheffield and Chloe Carroll who were inspired by Mediterranean flavours. The trio of choux features a pistachio variety, cardamom choux with chocolate filling and coffee choux with cardamom cream. It’s also connected with caramel and dusted with edible glitter so yeah, it’s basically iconic.
1. Blackmore Wagyu Beef with Apple and Ox Tongue, Brent Owens, Season 6
Aaaah Brent. Our season 6 winner and the first millennial to ever win MasterChef Australia stole the show back in 2014 during a challenge at top end Melbourne eaterie Vue De Monde.
His skewer of precisely seared wagyu beef threaded with delicate shavings of apple and seared crumbs of tender ox tongue, wowed the hoighty-toighty crowd and was dubbed as ‘perfect’ by the judges. Even though he struggled early in the challenge, Brent kept his cool and earned himself the awe of the judges and praise of Vue De Monde owner Shannon Bennett who told him “Superb job, there is something in you that shows talent…that’s why you win tonight.”
Disagree with our list? That’s fine! It is completely OK for you to be objectively wrong.
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Catch MasterChef Australia: Fans & Favourites Sunday to Thursday at 7.30pm on 10 and 10 Play on demand.