Masterchef UK Professionals
Baker:
Season:
Week:
Challenge Type:
Red Mullet and Sauce Maltese
Caroline, originally from Brazil and working as a private chef in London for five years, delivered an exemplary performance that closely mirrored the textbook demonstration. She immediately set all four pans going: a hollandaise reduction (shallots, white wine vinegar, white wine) and a separate blood orange reduction started simultaneously, fennel braised with vegetable stock and vermouth, and butter going on early. She used fish tweezers to pin-bone the red mullet precisely, constructed the hollandaise correctly by whisking egg yolks with the cooled reduction on a bain marie before adding butter, and incorporated both reductions at the appropriate stage. Under extreme time pressure in the final seconds, she still paused to add a touch of colour to the braised fennel. Her citrus salad included mint.
Matthew Ryle noted she executed the dish 'from a textbook.'
Monica Galetti called it possibly one of the best skills tests she had watched.
Matt Tebbutt: 'Beautiful filleting, pin-boning beautifully - you used tweezers. Your hollandaise making: great. Your reductions for your hollandaise: brilliant. Even just taking the braised fennel under the pressure of seconds to finish, you still just dropped it in there - just that little bit of colour.'
Monica Galetti: 'I love that. Citrus salad - I like the mint, and I like the way the fish is cooked. Possibly one of the best skills tests I have watched a chef do.'
Matthew Ryle: 'All I can say is wow. Honestly, I wish every chef in my kitchen worked exactly like you.'
Marcus Wareing: 'You absolutely smashed it. Please keep that going.'
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.
