Episode 12 of MasterChef South Africa aired last week and of course I have to share my views. Having been part of the fourth season of MasterChef, I can’t help but compare while watching the show. Read my episode summary below.

Fun fact - my lighting company LLSA supplied all the lights in the pantry and around the studio, and we are mentioned as a sponsor in the credits. 

Spoiler Alert

If you are behind, I recommend you stop reading now!
Click here read up more about the MasterChef season 5 contestants, or read the summaries from the previous MasterChef episodes if you’re trying to catch up.

Want to Watch MasterChef South Africa?

MasterChef South Africa Season premiered on Saturday July 13 at 7:30 pm on S3, and new episodes are aired every Saturday.
If you miss it an episode, it will be rebroadcast every Sunday on S2 at 6:30 pm and on Wednesdays on S3 at 6:00 pm.

Looking back - What happened on the previous MasterChef episodes?

Click here to jump straight to episode 12 and skip the summaries of the previous episodes.

In the first episode, contestants had to make a chicken dish with a sauce or a broth, but for it to be at MasterChef-worthy standard. They were given 90 minutes and their dish needed to include a mirepoix (a mixture of diced vegetables cooked on a low heat in oil or butter) and it needed to include a Bouquet Garni, which is a bundle of herbs. In traditional French cuisine this includes parsley, bay leaves and thyme but other herbs can be added too. 

What was most shocking about this first episode, is that the contestants went down from 20 to 15 in one go. The contestants who were eliminated in the first episode were Lucas, Lesego, Robyn, Andrew and Ella. 

In the second episode, contestants had to use the single humble ingredient of an apple, and think of the apple of their eye in their life when cooking. The contestants were allowed to make something sweet or savoury.  No contestants were eliminated and Naledi won the mystery box challenge.

In the third episode, Naledi was up in the gantry as a reward for winning the mystery box challenge in the previous episode. The remaining contestants were challenged by guest judge Chef Nokx Majozi in a pressure test to recreate her signature Pepper Steak Pie. Tina, Bridget and Amo had made the best pepper steak pies, and Tina won the elimination challenge. Nash, Lona and Melanie found themselves in the bottom three and Melanie was eliminated. 

In the fourth episode, the contestants were asked to pay tribute to and draw inspiration from the judges’ star signs when creating their dishes in this challenge. They couldn’t choose which judge’s star sign they were going to base their dish on, but it was an elimination based on chance as they had to choose a card in order to determine which protein they would be cooking. Chanel, Shreya and Zak found themselves in the bottom three. Zakariyya Ibrahim (Zak) went home as his curry failed to deliver. According to Judge Katlego, the lack of seasoning was his downfall and both the rice and carrots were overcooked, and the dish was not balanced.

In the fifth episode, guest judge Jackie Burger challenged the contestants to use fashion models and their incredible outfits to make their own creative interpretation of the outfits. Nabela, Ketsia and Tebogo were in the top 3 and Amogelang Maluleke (Amo), Tzu Ting Long (Tina) and Penny in the bottom, with Tina from Home Bao going home in the end.

In the sixth episode, MasterChef contestants competed in their first team challenge. The episode took place at Durbanville Hills wine estate. Contestants were welcomed to the award-winning Tangram restaurant by cellar master Pieter-Niel Rossouw and Head Chef Tamzyn Ehlers. Tebogo was Team Captain for the Blue Team (made up of Naledi, Chanel, Amo, Shreya and Nabila) and Nash headed up the Red Team which also included Penny, Ketsia, Nash, Bridget, Lona and Refe. Contestants needed to create a ‘Buffet of New Beginnings’ which was basically an interactive buffet table re-inventing old-style buffet combinations and pairing creations with wine from the Durbanville Hills Collectors Reserve range. Ultimately, the blue team took home the victory.

The seventh episode saw Penny, Ketsia, Nash, Bridget, Lona, Refe and Nash battling it out against each other in a elimination challenge. They were given an hour to showcase their creativity by whipping up a gourmet meal from the judges’ typical month-end leftovers and were only allowed to use 20 classic frugal South African staples. Ultimately Ketsia’s flatbread and tuna salad dish did not meet the mark and she was eliminated from the competition.

In the eight episode contestants were asked to embrace the air fryer revolution and use it as their main cooking method to reinvent a classic potato dish to a modern bistro-worthy delight. Nash, Chanel and Lona cooked the top 3 dishes and Bridget, Tebogo and Naledi found themselves in the bottom three. Chanel won the challenge with her potato dauphinoise with chorizo caramelised crisp and a little bit of lemon and she was given the opportunity to win an Immunity Pin. She did need to beat Herman Lensing at his game - Herman has published several cookbooks and three with air fryer recipes specifically so he is South Africa’s leading expert on cooking with air fryers. This is when mysterious guest rode in on a Pick ‘n Pay asap! scooter… me!

I took two paper bags out my Pick ‘n Pay asap! scooter, one with a “Land” and one with a “Sky” sticker on them. With that, the judges left to the back and I was left to be the referee for the challenge. Chanel chose “Sky” and needed to cook with duck, whilst Herman Lensing was given lamb.

With the ninth episode we reached the halfway mark of the competition. The top 10 walked in in white aprons and were challenged with making a plant-based dish using the humble cabbage as the hero ingredient. Amo, Nabila and Shreya found themselves in the bottom three, but were safe from elimination due to it being a non-elimination challenge. Refe, Chanel and Lona were in the Top 3 and Lona won 50,000 rand to the best dish.

In the tenth episode, Shreya announced that she would be leaving the MasterChef kitchen without participating in the next challenge. She had been struggling with anxiety throughout the competition, and after receiving “some unfortunate news” from her family, she left, calling it “an act of self-love and an act of self-care.”

After Shreya walked out, the the MasterChef contestants welcomed celebrity chef Alessandro Khojane, “Sotho Italian” (owner of Gemelli in Bryanston). Contestants are given two hours to create an Italian-South African dish. Naledi won the challenge with her chicken roulade.

In the eleventh episode, Naledi spent the challenge on the gantry after winning the challenge in the previous episode. As the contestants soon found out, it was a A Mystery Box Team Challenge. They were divided up in teams of two, with Chanel alone in the yellow team after Shreya had pulled out of the competition in the last episode. To even things out, the judges brought back Refe, who was only just eliminated one episode prior. Each team is provided a different meat parcel and they are each tasked to making 1.5 kgs of wors, cooking it on the hibachi, and serving their with modern side dish of a heritage starch and a tasty sauce or gravy. Last but not least, they are required to make a true South African delicacy: skilpadjies. All of this, needed to be done within the 2.5 hour time frame. The wors needs to be made the old fashioned way: using a manual meat grinder found in their mystery boxes. In the end, the Green Team made up of Nabila and Lona took home the victory. This means that they will be safe from the next challenge, spending it on the gantry, and can’t be eliminated from the competition during the next episode.

MasterChef South Africa Episode 12

In episode 12, Nabila and Lona spend the challenges up on the challenge from the gantry, after they are the winning team in the Heritage Trinity challenge, making the best wors and skilpaadjies on the Hibachi.

To give the remaining seven contestants (Penny, Chanel, Refe, Amo, Bridget, Nash and Naledi) could see a hint of what was to come in the tiny plates showcased with fine-dining-style dishes.

A Taste Challenge

Katlego introduces the challenge, in saying “when it comes to fine dining it’s all about pure bliss and a flavour sensation in just one bite. Tasting menus with course after course with tantalising flavours and amusing the pallet. The ability to recognise distinctive flavours in a specific ingredients is a really hall mark of a MasterChef.” Zola continues: “Today we are kicking things off with a taste challenge. For this challenge a variety of ingredients have been cut into identically sized cubes. You will each need to taste and correctly identify the ingredients while blind-folded. the first six of you who incorrectly identifies the cubes will be cooking for your cubes in the competition. If you are the last man or woman standing, you will sit out this elimination challenge and join Nola and Nabila in the gantry.”

The competitors are lined up with blindfolds on and Katlego stands in front of them with a small plate with a cube of an unidentified ingredient. One by one, the contestants smell and taste their mystery ingredient, and guess what they have been given. The first few guesses are correct: Penny is given a cube of pineapple, Nash a chunk of mango, Chanel some orange and Bridget cucumber. Amo also correctly identifies the ginger he is given and Refe really enjoys her watermelon (which she eats with all the salivating sounds, making Katlego and the other judges laugh). The last one in line, Naledi, also correctly guesses hers: a tomato.

Katlego starts back at the front of the line with Penny again, who thinks she’s given radish, when it’s actually an onion. She is the first one out and needs to cook in the next challenge. Coincidentally, Nash is given a radish next and guesses it in an instant. Did Penny inadvertently help him on his way? There is no way to tell. Chanel is up next and also goes out when she guesses cabbage when she’s actually given cauliflower. Bridget is given the worst one so far - garlic. Amo is thrown when he’s given cheddar cheese when he doesn’t really eat cheese and doesn’t know his parmesans (his guess) from his cheddars. Refe pulls a face when she eats her mushroom, as she doesn’t like them “mushroom has a weird texture”. Naledi is then given parmesan cheese and guesses correctly.

Back to the front of the queue, starting with Nash this time as Penny was “totally and utterly floored by an onion.” Nash can’t come up with the name and says passion fruit even though he knows he’s eating a strawberry, and he joins Nash and Amo. Bridget is really surprised when she guesses lemon and is told it’s incorrect, as it is a lime. This is big blow for her, as she previously called her tastebuds “exceptional”. Refe also goes out - guessing broccoli when she’s given a courgette / baby marrow. This leaves Naledi as the last woman standing, and she’s the lucky one to join Nabila and Lona in the gantry upstairs.

I say lucky - but from my experience on MasterChef I know that this is not entirely true - as much as it is nerve wracking to compete in the challenges, doing so keeps you both humble and keeps your muscles flexed. In my experience, cooking in more challenges gives you the skills and the right amount confidence to cook in future challenges.

The Elimination Challenge

Now that the contestants who need to cook in the Elimination Challenge have been selected: Penny, Chanel, Bridget, Amo and Refe. The judges explain, starting off with Katlego: “Drawing inspiration from fine dinging and the social media trend inspired by doll house cooking we are looking for tiny luxurious offerings - petite pleasures and gem-like culinary wonders.” Zola continues: “you must create two tiny dishes from the classic world of fine dining. The first: an amuse bouche. Something to awaken the pallet. Usually served at the beginning of the meal, it’s like a gift from the chef. The second dish - a bonbon or a friandise, or mignardise, usually served at the end of a meal. Your sweet dish must contain chocolate. Oh, and you must make six of each.” Justine: “Surprise, delight and wow us and you will live to cook another day in the MasterChef kitchen. Fail to do so, and this will be your last day in the MasterChef kitchen.”

Having heard that, the contestants are definitely intimidated by the challenge. Refe is not confident about creating a meal in one bite. Chanel is proud of herself “for even knowing what an amuse bouche is”. Penny is worried about having to make as many plates of dainty food as the judges have requested, in just two hours.

The MasterChef Judges’ Commentary

Whilst the contestants get started on conceptualising their dishes, the judges discuss what they’d like to see. Zola: “To me an amuse bouche - of course it is about exciting the pallet. It has got to hit certain flavour points. It can be acidic, to get you salivating, it can be a touch on the salty side. It’s got to be a bit that is quite exciting.”

Justine": “I think I would do something quite simple for my a mouse because you I think you have got to be a bit big for the bonbon. So I think starting there and getting it out of the way and then spending some time and focus on the dessert element would be the route to travel I think.”

This statement is cleverly cut to Nash, who says: “I haven’t figured out what my desert is going to be just yet but it’ll be a play on fruit.“

When the judges walk around to see what the contestants are working on, they end up at Chanel’s work bench, who has already said from the diary room that “fine dining doesn’t feature anywhere in her life”. She has started on her amuse, trying to make a crispy wonton cone, using a wooden spoon handle, which Zola calls “an interesting technique… doing one at a time.” Her critical question, whether this is the best way, considering she’s only got two hours, is answered well by Chanel, who says that she wants “to make them perfect so I’ve got to take my time.to make sure that I get the structure correct.” When Justine asks Chanel if she’s made them before though, and Chanel answers that she hasn’t, Justine remarks “I can see that.” It is these judges’ comments and questions that forever make you guess whether what you are doing is the right thing, and makes you try read between the lines to redirect your plan of action in a direction that will help you do well in the challenge.

The MasterChef Contestants’ Dishes

Chanel is up first, but she is not confident at all: “I look at my amuse and my bonbon and I’m so disappointed, because the vision that I had is not what I see in front of me. She presents her wonton cone with tuna, cream cheese with chilli & chives. Katlego agrees with her flavour combination, saying “I think we all know that tuna and acidity work quite well. liked a bit of heat , the cream cheese rounds everything together.” Zola criticises her wonton, calling them “wonky,” but also says that “the filling was good whilst the tuna was underseasoned. Her Rose jam mascarpone in a dark chocolate shell with fig pearls was called a “good effort” by Justine who complimented the “lovely delicate spring-like rose petal flavour in the mousse,” but also comments on the size: “mine was essentially a bonbon for a giant.” Katlego also said that the chocolate was “a tad on the thick side.”

Penny’s take on a ‘fish and chips’ with her fishbone tuille with smoked trout mousse, friend vermicelle, crispy skin & caper berrier looks great on the eye, but the taste wasn’t there unfortunately, according to the judges. Her raspberry & chocolate brownie with toasted almonds was deemed okay, but the judges did not rave about it.

Refe made a Veggie delight tartlet with roasted feta & garlic and shortcrust pastry with blueberry jelly, vanilla and white chocolate crème.

Amo presented a savoury tart with caramelised onion purée and quail breast, and the judges had seen that he was having difficulties when making the pastry, and “we can’t taste it”. It was criticised for being “very crumbly”. 

Up next, the judges commented on his bonbon with pistachio paste caramel. His paste was “a bit overcooked” and Zola didn’t taste the pistachio: “I think that you do so many things at once that sometimes you forget to focus on what was necessary. “ Whilst the chocolate was tempered well, it “could be cleaner,” with particularly Zola commenting on the fingerprints he left behind, as well as the thickness of the chocolate.

Bridget served a Salmon Meuniére with filo pastry. She thought her amuse bouche was “not as pretty as it could be,” but Justine enjoys the stories Bridget tells with her dishes: “I wait every week to hear what didn’t make it but how it’s now something else. It’s very exciting.” Her tempered chocolate with almond and salted caramel was her take on Ferrero Rocher with almonds instead of hazelnut. 

Nash’ “burst prawn chorizo pear” was not what he’d envisioned, and said that the irony that creating such a small dish was creating such a big problem was not lost on him. His self-proclaimed ‘naughty dessert’ consisted of a pancake with dragonfruit, grilled pineapple and an Amarula chocolate sauce, with the not-quite cooked-down alcohol being the naughty element of this dish.

The Top Dish and the Bottom Three

Chanel has cooked the best dish of the day. Amo, Penny, and Nash ended up in the bottom three. Penny was visibly emotional after the judges’ critical comments and for Nash, landing up in the bottom three also knocked his self-confidence.

Amo’s Elimination

Unfortunately, Amo is eliminated from MasterChef, for his crumbly and overcooked pastry. It’s sad to see him go, considering he’s a very talented chef. Considering that, I’m sure he will make it far even outside of the MasterChef kitchen and I am keen to see what he does next!

What is most unique and special about Amo though, is his kindness and generous spirit. Both Zola and Justine were tearful when saying their goodbyes to him, and speaking about his character:

Zola: “You’ll be sorely missed. Your energy, running around…giving us more and more and more will be missed in this MasterChef kitchen. But we know that this is not the end of the journey for you. You are an amazing cook. You have an incredible talent and you are so kind to your fellow contestants. Oh now I’m getting emotional.”

Justine: “Helping Penny today, when time was pressurised was one of the most lovely things I have seen anyone do.”

Penny comments on Amo’s kindness in supporting her too: “For somebody to have that much care and understanding and ‘I’ve got this, don’t you worry’ was amazing.”

Justine: “You really must keep cooking and put those biceps into everything as you do and that love and that passion and that real generosity. It speaks volumes of the man that you are.”

After being eliminated from MasterChef, he was interviewed on ‘Weekend Breakfast with Gugu Mhlungu.’ You can listen to the radio interview below:

Click here if you want to hear Gugs’ interview with me (or read the transcript).

MasterChef South Africa episode 13

Looking ahead, the preview of the thirteenth episode of MasterChef South Africa gave us a hint of what the next episode will be about… the studio looks like an enchanted forest with mushrooms, ferns and moss.

Who will win MasterChef South Africa season 5? Time will tell…

MasterChef Season 5 Episode Summaries

Click here read up more about the MasterChef season 5 contestants, or read the summary from the previous MasterChef episodes if you’re trying to catch up:

• Episode 1 - Twenty MasterChef contestants cook a chicken dish, but only 15 remain

• Episode 2 - The MasterChef contestants cook for the the Apple of their Eye in a mystery box challenge

• Episode 3 - Chef Nokx Majozi Signature Pepper Steak Pie

• Episode 4 - Paying tribute to the Judges’ Star Signs

• Episode 5 - Translating Fashion into Food with guest judge Jackie Burger

• Episode 6 - Buffet of New Beginnings at Durbanville Hills wine estate

• Episode 7 - Leftovers and South African staples

• Episode 8 - Potatoes, Air Fryers, an Immunity Pin and two Special Guests

• Episode 9 - Cabbage, cabbage, cabbage!

• Episode 10 - A fusion of South African and Italian

• Episode 11 - Heritage Trinity: Wors, Skilpaadjies on the Hibachi and a Starch

• Episode 12 - Life’s Tiny Pleasures - a Taste Challenge and Micro Fine Dining (this page)

• Episode 13 - A Pressure Test cooking Chef Moses Moloi’s “Enchanted Forest Elegance”

More MasterChef Episode Summaries:

Want to Watch MasterChef South Africa?

MasterChef South Africa Season premiered on Saturday July 13 at 7:30 pm on S3, and new episodes are aired every Saturday.
If you miss it an episode, it will be rebroadcast every Sunday on S2 at 6:30 pm and on Wednesdays on S3 at 6:00 pm.

Or click here read up more about the MasterChef season 5 contestants.

About Shawn Godfrey

Shawn Godfrey is an entrepreneur based in Cape Town, South Africa. After the Covid-19 lockdown saw his business in financial distress, cooking was the creative outlet that helped to keep him sane. To keep track of his recipes, and encourage friends and families to join him, he starts his instagram account The Roasted Dad.

Fast-forward to late 2021 - on a whim Shawn (encouraged by his wife Lianne) enters MasterChef South Africa. It is a crazy time of life: running a 200 people business and struggling to keep it profitable, two small children with a third on the way, and about to move into a new house. But when Shawn gets selected to be one of the 20 contestants participating in the fourth season of MasterChef South Africa, he decides to go all in. Leaving his 7-month-pregnant wife to look after their then three and one-year-old children, he battles it out and comes back home five weeks later with the trophy and a million rand prize money in his pocket.

It all started with an Instagram account, but The Roasted Dad is so much more now. Shawn has stayed his entrepreneurial self and whilst he hosts Private Dinner Parties and Cook-with-Me Demos, does Restaurant Take-Overs, he still runs the lighting company and several other businesses.

On his blog, Shawn shares Restaurant Reviews and Accommodation Reviews, and gives an insight into the wild and wonderful life he leads together with his wife Lianne, and their three children Aiden (6), Olivia (4) and Harvey (2).

Sign up to the newsletter to be kept up to date with events, new recipes and reviews, or contact Shawn to chat about recipe creation, restaurant takeovers and public speaking events.