Masterchef UK Professionals
Baker:
Season:
Week:
Challenge Type:
Pea and Egg Yolk Raviolo, Cacio e Pepe Sauce
Anthony drew on his Italian heritage and demonstrated clear confidence handling pasta dough. His filling used ricotta, lemon zest and seasoning, but he left the peas whole rather than breaking them down as in the demo.
{Matthew Ryle} observed this made the filling lumpy and more difficult to seal cleanly, as the whole peas created uneven bumps in the parcel. Anthony chose to use a duck egg yolk rather than a hen's egg, a confident variation. His first raviolo attempt burst when being assembled: the disc had been cut too small, leaving insufficient pasta to seal around the filling without squeezing the yolk. He recovered by rolling a larger piece and successfully sealing a second raviolo, but the setback cost him significant time.
Positively, Anthony did toast his peppercorns, commended by {Matthew Ryle} as the correct technique to intensify flavour. However for the sauce he used butter alone to emulsify the cheese rather than pasta water, which carries the natural starch essential to binding the sauce properly. The resulting sauce was thin and under-cheesed. He ran to the final seconds. The egg yolk itself was beautiful and soft on tasting. Overall a nervy but competent performance with some strong instincts undermined by time pressure and sauce technique.
Matt Tebbutt: 'I think the filling could have had more seasoning, more flavour. Break down the peas just for more body, but overall skills on show. You got a ravioli up. The egg yolk was beautiful and soft.'
Marcus Wareing: 'The sauce making, adding the water from the top, you just were not really thinking because you had the water from the pasta there. Cheese and pepper, you knew exactly what the sauce was. More cheese, pasta water. Shame that was not used, but all in all I think it was a good plate of food.'
Matthew Ryle: 'Anthony, you got off to a really promising start. I just think that first ravioli bursting set you back a little bit.'
Monica Galetti: 'There are obviously mistakes and obviously nerves there. You could have blended up the filling, but not a bad start. You are coming back the next round. Looking forward to seeing what you have got.'
Would you like us to create a recipe to match this dish?
We try to create several recipes every day, and we'd love to prioritize a recipe for you. Just fill out the form and watch your inbox - no cost, no catch.
