‘MasterChef Canada’ cooks face the ultimate Japanese culinary skills challenge

Was anyone else seriously craving a giant plate of sushi after tuning in to the second episode of MasterChef Canada: Back to Win (Sundays, 9 pET on CTV)? Between that thinly sliced sashimi and those giant maki rolls, it was hard not to order up some glorious sushi takeout for a midnight snack after the episode wrapped. Perhaps for lunch today?

Anyhow, rice-and-fish cravings aside, the remaining competitors cautiously entered the kitchen on Sunday night after the judges set one heck of a precedent with last week’s past-mistake Mystery Box return. This season is going to be tougher than ever, and judges Claudio Aprile, Michael Bonacini and Alvin Leung have been clear that they have high expectations. This is an all-star season, after all.

And so, to prove that they deserve to stay and cook another week, the competitors had to put their knife, sushi-rolling, and re-creation skills on the line in a Japanese-themed episode. No pressure or anything though. 

Taking a slice out of the competition

To serve up the night’s first challenge, the judges had the masterful and renowned Chef Kimura—one of the very first sushi chefs to popularize the food in Toronto in the 1980s—come show the competitors how to perfectly slice thin snapper sashimi from a fresh fish. 

Andre was exempt, having won last week’s Mystery Box challenge (the judges weren’t kidding when they said he would have a major advantage). As he watched from the gallery, the rest of the cooks had only 15 minutes to impress Chef Kimura and the rest of the judges. In the end, it was Jeremy who proved to be a cut above the rest, and he got a pass for the next round. Shaking hands aside, Mai joined him, along with Andrew and Thea. 

A maki to die for 

As for the rest of the cooks? The night only got tougher from there. The judges bid farewell to Chef Kimura and then presented the competitors with an amaaazing looking maki roll packed full of fresh salmon, avocado and tempura. The cooks didn’t have to make that exact offering and were instead told to make maki that reflects their personality. 

Their roll needed to have a rice-on-the-outside wrap, incorporate one tempura item, and have a thinly-sliced topping that further showcases those aforementioned knife skills. Oh, and they had a mere 25 minutes to make it. In the words of one Chandler Bing, could this season BE any harder? And in the words of one Michael Bonacini, “That was borderline cruel.”

Despite his potential residual guilt for their maki demands, Bonacini was certainly wearing his tough-judge hat when he told Barrie that his roll didn’t “meet the brief” as it had nori on the outside (Barrie believed it would be accepted since it was a double wrap). But Alvin was also pretty honest when he told Marissa that her surf-and-turf roll tasted better than it looked. In the end, it was Christopher’s vegetarian maki that impressed the most though, proving that he really is more than just the baked goods guy. He, Jen and Marissa wound up being safe, leaving April Lee, Barrie and Andy to duke it out in the last round. 

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Flipping out over a pancake

You’d think the final round would have been some kind of dessert, given that the episode had already covered appies and mains. Instead, the judges threw everyone for a twist when they told the competitors that they were re-creating okonomiyaki, (a.k.a. a savoury Japanese pancake) in a replication challenge. 

In this particular case, there were about a zillion elements to remember, including grilled squid, special sauces and a homemade broth. Oh, and they had to pull off such pancake feats in a mere 20 minutes. Hands up if you can’t even make a regular pancake for Sunday brunch in 20 minutes!

But this is Back to Win, and these cooks were up for the challenge. April Lee said she’s made okonomiyaki lots for her family in the past, but her version was a little less refined than the judges’. Andy had never heard of it, but he obviously paid close attention during the demo, because he knocked it out of the park. 

That left Barrie, with his slightly undercooked rendition, and April Lee, with her topsy turvy plate (the pancake broke when she flipped it), in the bottom two. And while it’s clear that April Lee is off to a bit of a rocky start on this show, the notion that flavour trumps presentation won again because it was Barrie who was sent home. Even the tiniest of details count, y’all, and Barrie flipping that pancake 30 seconds too early wound up flipping him out of the competition. 

“The world doesn’t give you very many second chances, lightning doesn’t strike twice in the same spot,” Barrie said upon his emotional elimination. “It was such an amazing experience to get invited back to this kitchen. I love this place; I love these people. It’s that powerful.”

Here’s hoping the love continues on the next new episode in two weeks, as the chefs launch an experimental food delivery app while getting their cook on. Anyone else hoping sushi is on the menu?

MasterChef Canada airs Sundays at 9 pET on CTV. Next week, the series is pre-empted for the Golden Globe Awards, live on CTV. 

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