MasterChef Singapore Season Two – Ten Exciting Dishes Whipped Up In Episode One
February 28, 2021
Who doesn’t love watching anything food-related? Mukbangs, recipe videos, Hell’s Kitchen – you name it, I’ll binge it. And that includes the MasterChef series. I’ve seen MasterChef Australia, USA, Korea, MasterChef Junior and of course, I couldn’t miss out on Singapore’s. The first season had been a treat of local flavours spun into delicious twists and surprising fusions with a side of tension that kept even me on my toes.
While the pandemic has no doubt been a downer, it has also given rise to a number of aspiring home-cooks. When Singapore announced the nationwide call for this internationally-acclaimed series, hundreds flocked down to jostle for a spot to showcase their talent. This year sees more contestants to battle it out over ten exciting episodes for the coveted title of Singapore’s next MasterChef.
Season two began with 24 hopefuls gathered at Jewel Changi Airport, where only half will make it through. Just like its predecessor, this season sees talent from all walks of life donning their chef whites to compete for a coveted MasterChef apron. Present were an athlete, flight attendant, dentist and a well-known singer-songwriter (Inch Chua!), to name a few.
Returning to the judging panel are familiar faces from the first season: Audra Morrice, MasterChef Australia 2012’s finalist and a judge in MasterChef Asia, Bjorn Shen, chef-owner of Middle Eastern place Artichoke and Damian D’Silva, chef-owner of Restaurant Kin.
Unlike season one which saw everyone on an even playing field where they were tasked to cook up sambal chilli and fried rice, the judges decided to take things up a notch. These talented home-cooks would either compete head-to-head with each other or in a culinary showdown of four, based on their signature ingredients.
Kicking things off is a four-way fight for two MasterChef aprons, using seafood as their weapon of choice. Emerging victorious in a burst of colour was flight attendant Mitchelle Chua’s La Paella Morisco Tom Yum, who summed up her travels into a dish that combines the best of Bangkok and Spain using rice, sauce and cooked-to-perfection seafood.
Coming in hot at her heels is Inch Chua with another mouth-watering paella dish. Her passion for music can almost be rivalled with her passion for cooking through a Yuzu Kosho Paella topped with golden prawns, clams and mussels that was bursting with flavours and creativity.
Not everyone’s journey was as smooth-sailing; sales director Trish Yee met a few bumps along the road on her quest to deliver a stellar Belly Siok Char Siew with Apple Ginger Sauce, Plum Orange Spicy Gel and Asian Pickles. And deliver she did — the pork, while it could have been glazed more — landed a flavour bomb that impressed Audra.
The battle of the desserts had me on edge because I had no way of predicting who would come out on top. You wouldn’t expect dentist Tan Oon Yong’s treat to look so sweet. The Red Velvet Eclair with Vanilla Mascarpone Cream Cheese, Chocolate Ganache, Freeze-Dried Strawberries and Mint Sugar is a beautiful work of art that even brought Damian, who was not a dessert-lover, completely on-board.
I was so intrigued by university student Derek Cheong’s Spiced Poached Apples with Honey Camembert Ice Cream, Lemon Curd, Lemon Foam, Honey Caviar and Toasted Walnuts. Having studied engineering, he had brought his precision, techniques and knowledge into the kitchen as well. Don’t be fooled by its mild appearance; the judges had nothing but high praise for this, and I quote — “Michelin-quality” dessert.
While the episode whizzed past a few of the other contestants, I couldn’t help pausing at Jai Ganesh’s Mysore Chicken with Indian Flatbread and Curry Leaf Cream. The army-officer-turned-embroidery designer really cooked up a beauty that made my stomach rumble. Seeing that he’s a lover of all things spicy (and being a spice fan myself) with an online biryani delivery business ‘The Biryani Brothers’, I can’t wait to see what other dishes he has up his sleeve.
We also got to see one of our beloved hawker staples in operations manager Danial Khalis Aziz’s Prawn Noodles. Fun fact: his mum, Diana Ismail was one of the top ten contestants in the first season!
Painting an appetising picture was real estate broker Zephyr Eng’s Nasi Ulang and Putu Tegair Chempedak that also left the judges absolutely delighted. With a slew of cooking styles (local, Asian, Mediterranean, European and North African!) under her belt, Zephyr is definitely a cook that’ll leave us eagerly wondering what’s the next creation she’ll cook up.
In the final group showdown, we saw four chefs baking their way to victory, with a certain gentleman grabbing attention with a curious combination of ingredients. But the ones who got their hands on the remaining aprons were homemaker Nor Hadayah Mohamad and her witty ‘Shakes-Pear In Love’ Deconstructed Pear Tart and private Chinese tutor Leon Lim’s Lemon Cheesecake with Matcha Meringue.
With so much finesse and heart going into each jaw-dropping dish, the competition will only continue heating up and we’re already waiting with bated breath to see what else the 12 contestants have in store for us in the next episode. Catch the brand-new season of MasterChef Singapore every Sunday at 9.30pm on Channel 5 and meWATCH to see who will be crowned Singapore’s second MasterChef!
This post was brought to you by MasterChef Singapore
