MasterChef sees our chef’s take on “Gas Station Gourmet” in episode 14

MasterChef has hit the ultimate point in the Back to Win season where we are in the top 10 of the chefs. And what better way to challenge our top 10 cheftestants than with a “Gas Station Gourmet” challenge?

For this MasterChef challenge, our cheftestants will have to take classic road trip snacks that we can find at gas stations across the country and turn them into a truly gourmet dish. It sounds like this is one of those interesting challenges that will truly test our chefs to see how creative they can be and also how they look at food that we would never consider to be fine dining material.

The idea is to think about what is trending, as well as what is nostalgic, and making magic happen. And we even got an epic demonstration from Gordon Ramsay showing the chefs how he would transform pretzels and salt and vinegar chips into a Crusted Dover Sole meal. On top of those two gas station treats, he also snagged a Dill Pickle in a Bag to help him make a sauce for his dish.

Considering the stunning dish he created in just a few minutes, the chefs having 45 minutes seems like a gift, even if they do have to use three of those gas station snacks in their dish.

MasterChef challenges the chefs to make gourmet dishes with treats from a gas station

While some of the chefs seemed a bit nervous heading into this challenge, it also looked like there were a few who knew exactly what they wanted to make and how they were going to make it happen.  Then again, as soon as Christian explained that he was making a sauce with gummy bears and beer for his Corn Chip Crusted Snapper dish, we were a little worried about how some of these creations would turn out.

And even Michael is taking a huge risk with his dish – a Chocolate Lava Cake. Not only is he using chocolate bars from the “gas station,” but he also has pretzels and potato chips as part of his creation. With this being a baked dish, it is all about the timing for his idea. Pretty quickly, it looks like he is in trouble too, because there are so many things that could go wrong with a dessert that needs to have a liquid center and be baked for a set amount of time (when they only have 45 minutes for the entire round).

But Michael is not the only one making a dessert, as Dara is also going that route with her gas station finds. It may end up being a cake battle between Michael and Dara, but of course, it does come down to timing for both of them. And when Michael realizes his oven is off and his cakes haven’t baked, it doesn’t look like he will end up being in the top three this time around (and he may even be in danger of getting sent home).

With a number of fascinating dishes being created by our cheftestants, it truly does seem like it is anyone’s game here – both for earning that immunity pin and going home. And of course, it is down to the wire for many of our chefs once again.

Following the judges walk through of the MasterChef kitchen, who will end up in the top three and who will be in the bottom?

For the top dishes, the first chef called up is Bowen with his Pork Katsu Cordon-Bleu. Then we had Christian with his Crusted Corn Chip Snapper (and his gummy bear and beer sauce was a winner). Finally we have Shanika with her Ranch Tortilla Crusted Snapper. Overall, all three chefs got great feedback from the judges.

So which dish comes out on top and leads to an immunity pin? The winner of the “Gas Station Gourmet” challenge is Christian (which he pointed out makes this his second win), but they surprised us all with a second immunity pin going to Shanika.

Of course, now it is time for the bottom three. Up first we have Willie with his Beer-Infused Chicken Pot Pie. Next up is Brandi with her Spicy Cheese Puff Arepa (there is also a skirt steak in this dish, but it doesn’t seem to be the star at all). Finally, they called up Michael (with the judges calling him out on his overconfidence) and his Chocolate Bar Fondant Cake.

After some less than stellar reviews all around, the judges deliberated to determine who would go home. And ultimately, the MasterChef contestant heading home this time is Brandi.