A FLAVOUR OF "MASTERCHEF ITALIA"

MasterChef Italia logo - Wikipedia

I have always preferred radio to television but one TV programme I used to enjoy in the UK was MasterChef - until, that is, it went the way of all flesh and got "dumbed down".  But for the past month I've been enjoying the first MasterChef Italia series immensely and thought I would try to give you a flavour of it tonight.

The programme goes out on Wednesday evenings at 21.00 and finishes at approximately 23.00.  Like most Italian TV series, its episodes are long and rarely finish on schedule, partly because the commercial breaks  are also longer than they would be in the UK.  

As you would expect, the Italians have brought their own unique touches to the show, making it a cookery programme with a touch of the human weakness that is often present in series like Big Brother [still going strong in Italy] or The Weakest Link.   Contestants are encouraged to talk about each other throughout the show and, although they are usually mutually supportive, cracks in their relationships become evident as the cookery challenges get harder and "elimination time" draws nearer, for two contestants are eliminated each week.

Let me talk you through the show's stages:  all the hopeful cooks begin the programme in one enormous kitchen, where their first challenge is to produce a dish from up to ten ingredients in identical "mistery boxes". [That is not a typo.]  At the end of the allotted time, they submit their dishes to the harsh judgement of chefs Bruno Barbiere and Carlo Cracco who are joined by restaurateur Joe Bastianich.  [If you read Italian, you can find out more about the judges here.]

The person who, in the judges' opinion, has produced the best "mistery box" dish is allowed to choose the type of ingredients to be used for the next task, the "invention test":  in tonight's programme, for example, the contestants had to produce, in one hour and using a selection of mountain herbs and root vegetables plus a limited number of ingredients of their choice, a dish that would evoke the flavours of the Italian mountains.

Image:  Wikipedia

And then things get tense:  at the end of this hour, the cooks again submit their dishes for judgement and the chefs choose not only the best, but the three worst dishes prepared.  They do not mince their words, either and among tonight's comments were, "Not even the dog would eat that" and, "This dish is a disaster".  The three cooks destined to be shamed stand at the front of the kitchen, shed tears and sweat blood until finally judge Carlo Cracco reveals the name of the cook who is eliminated.  That contestant then has to take off his or her MasterChef apron and leave the kitchen.   At this point there are hugs and commiserations, grown men cry openly in each others' arms and there are a few recriminations via interview.

For the next, and most interesting, stage of the programme, the remaining contestants board a coach and head for an unknown destination where they will, in two teams, cook for an important "real" occasion and the diners will decide on the winning team.  In tonight's programme the contestants had to cook a gala dinner at the Australian Embassy in Rome using Australian ingredients and recipes - all in only four hours.  The cooking of a perfect Pavlova was the undoing of both teams but the other dishes were mostly successful and the diners had a difficult job in choosing the winners.  The Ambassador's wife, I thought, was splendid and proved herself a better diplomat than her husband in her comments on the dishes.  [Will someone send that woman to sort out the Middle East, please?]

Finally, the losing team has to take a "pressure test" and, on the result of this, one more person will be eliminated.  Last week they had to cook perfect mashed potato - which, as every cook knows, should be simple but can be temperamental - and I watched with great empathy as one poor woman resorted to mashing the stubborn vegetables with her hands. [Presumably the judges would curl up and die if the contestants did as I do and used a hand mixer.]  Tonight only two team members had to take the test and there was much bad feeling and bleeped-out swearing as their "captain" chose the unlucky pair.  The challenge was to cook fillet steak in three ways - rare, medium and well done ["well done" not meaning to an Italian what it would to a Brit or an American] and at the end there was a graceful exit as another pinny was dropped onto the counter.

All in all, it is a thoroughly absorbing programme but I have one suggestion, judges:  don't you think it's a bit mean to take the pinny back?

MasterChef Italia Series 1, Episode 4 - 12.10.11