Things are heating up in the MasterChef Australia kitchen, as 12 household names and 12 aspiring chefs battle it out for the winning title.
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With the return of icons and past winners like Julie Goodwin, Billie McKay and Tommy Pham, contestants will need to give it all they’ve got to really impress the judges and stay in the competition.
Judges Melissa Leong, Jock Zonfrillo and Andy Allen are the ones who will taste-test each and every dish as it’s plated up to determine who will be the season’s winner.
But in order to get there, viewers will need to say goodbye to their favourite cooks as they’re sent packing throughout the season.
Scroll on to see every eliminated contestant as they are revealed.
Chris Tran
The very first elimination round of the season saw Chris Tran, one of the ‘fans’, leave the MasterChef kitchen after his Mì Xào Giòn failed to impress the judges.
Despite his time being cut short, Chris told 10 play that he still managed to get the most out of the experience after going from the top four competing for immunity down to finding himself battling in the elimination cook.
“It was the feeling of the highest highs down to elimination, which I guess is the lowest low,” Chris said. “I just had a really efficient time on MasterChef. I kind of experienced the whole thing!”
Dulan Hapuarachchi
During a marathon challenge, Dulan Hapuarachchi rushed his way through a Polly Wanna Waffle, the poor result ending his time in the MasterChef kitchen.
“I wanted to show the judges what I can do, I feel like I wasn’t able to because my time was pretty short,” Dulan told 10 play after his exit aired.
“But the worst dish of the day goes home, that’s just how it works in MasterChef. Everything happens for a good reason, so I just have to believe that!”
Max Krapivsky
MasterChef fans know all too well just how difficult it can be to recreate a signature dessert by Reynold Poernomo, and unfortunately for Max Krapivsky, he felt that firsthand.
But, when the judges revealed that Max was going home, no one was more shocked than his co-star Alvin.
“So, when the judgement came down that it was me going home I think Alvin was the most shocked out of everyone, but that’s the way the competition goes,” Max told 10 play.
“We’re not the ones tasting the dish at the end of the day, it’s the judges and it’s their call.”
John Carasig
Coming in as the very first Favourite to be eliminated this season, John Carasig lost out to a challenge involving eggs.
“I was actually confident, when I saw that one egg I thought I’ve got a few dishes I can actually do — it’s something I always cook with anyway, savoury or sweet. I felt quite confident going into that elimination,” John told 10 play.
“I just knew that I still belonged in the competition and I really wanted to stay and make sure I did my best on the day,” he said.
Despite his confidence, John’s lemon tarts simply weren’t up to scratch, and a botched batch of meringue meant that one of his main elements didn’t make it to the plate for the judges.
Christina Batista
Despite the flavours being all there, Christina Batista’s smoked pecan and butterscotch tart was just slightly undercooked, ending her time in the MasterChef kitchen.
“I had a feeling that it was going to be me,” she told 10 play. “Seeing the other boys’ tarts, I noticed mine had sunk in the middle a little bit… once I heard Matt and Dan had done a good job, I don’t know, I just had this gut-feeling that it was going to be me.
“And I had already got all my crying out, so I didn’t have to cry on my way out, I just cried the entire episode,” she added, laughing. “I warned my entire family like, there’s going to be a lot of crying and I am sorry!”
Sashi Cheliah
Season 10 winner, Sashi Cheliah, was the next chef sent home, after a massive two-part all-in elimination.
It was the final moments in the challenge that sealed his fate as he plated up an overnight fish curry, dosa, coconut chutney and peanut and coriander chutney.
“Funny thing was, I was pretty chill about the elimination, I was going around consoling everyone like ‘don’t cry, don’t cry,’” he told 10 play, laughing.
“When you cook, you know whether it’s a good cook or a bad cook. If something happens, I know it’s my fault, nothing else to blame.”
Minoli De Silva
Tasked with recreating Alla Wolf-Tasker’s summer cucumbers with Murray cod – without ever seeing a recipe – Minoli De Silva just couldn’t handle the pressure.
Speaking to 10 play shortly after her elimination, Minoli admitted she was “mortified” that she had to serve Alla Wolf-Tasker her dish.
“It was just a mess at the end and my heart was broken that I was serving one of my favourite chefs food that I wasn’t happy with – especially her food!”
“That completely broke me, at the end I was just shattered,” she said.
Jenn Lee
Jenn Lee made the mistake of choosing to cook one of her signature dishes during a time challenge. She struggled with the simple elements and was sent into the second round, where she was eliminated from the MasterChef kitchen entirely.
Speaking to 10 play after her exit, Jenn, who was born in Taiwan, shared her hopes that her time on the show would bring more awareness to Taiwanese cuisine.
“Having this opportunity to show the rest of Australia what Taiwanese food really is and how amazing it can be has been absolutely amazing and it made me really proud and humbled,” Jenn said.
Melanie Persson
Coming in at a slight disadvantage during the Pressure Test, Melanie Persson had to try and recreate a dish without ever tasting the whole thing.
Melanie, who has celiac disease, had to try and recreate renowned chef Josh Inland’s Tuna Wellington as perfectly as she could.
“I never really thought of it as unfair to be honest… I know they can’t change the entire format of the show for me,” Melanie told 10 play following her elimination.
“I knew what I was getting into, and I was prepared for it mentally. Being prepared for it and then actually doing the challenge are two very different concepts.”
Ali Stoner
Ali Stoner became the tenth contestant to be sent home from the MasterChef kitchen after taking a risk on her deep-fried dish during an all-in elimination.
“Unfortunately [that] didn’t work out for me and, I’m such a perfectionist I think it really got me into a bad state,” Ali told 10 play following her elimination.
“I had been running so well and just really feeling like I was starting to enjoy myself, I was cooking great dishes and had a number of successes,” Ali said. “And then to go and have that go a little bit pear-shaped on me really did affect me.
“It was all the emotions all in one, wasn’t it,” Ali added. “The highs and lows, the full MasterChef experience condensed into one week! It couldn’t be better described than that.”
Matt Landmark
Having missed one detail in the recipe during a Pressure Test by Donato Toce, Matt Landmark’s final dish was off just enough to send him home.
“I think the most frustrating thing was that I felt like I was hitting my stride just as I was eliminated,” Matt told 10 play following his elimination, “which is probably similar to what a lot of people experience in the MasterChef kitchen.”
“I think I had some good dishes to come, probably some dishes I didn’t know I was ready to cook yet or I hadn’t conceived yet, that’s the most frustrating thing.”
Harry Tomlinson
After trying to cook food that she normally wouldn’t, Harry Tomlinson was eliminated in a challenge where they had to use a selection of two ingredients from Marco Pierre White’s pantry favourites.
“It’s this weird phenomenon that happens in the MasterChef kitchen, that you don’t really realise what you’re capable of until you leave,” she told 10 play.
“If I had my time over, I think I definitely would have worked harder to get back to that point of just walking in there and being like, I like this and that means you’ll probably like this!
“Instead of being like, ‘Andy might like a coffee toasted sandwich! That sounds like a great idea!’ Bloody terrible Idea!”
Steph Woon
During what would be her final challenge, Steph Woon had to recreate Andreas Papadaki’s ‘Tipomisu’ without ever seeing a recipe.
“When they told us it was a dessert and we wouldn’t get to taste it and we had to read the review I was slightly terrified,” Steph told 10 play. “When it comes to cooking on the fly and recipes, I tend to just wing it which is not great in a pressure test!”
It was only by the end of her cook did the ‘Cake Queen’ realise she had forgotten to add the vanilla bean to her brownie.
“I didn’t think anyone made mistakes so, to forget something I knew was going to put me in trouble, even if it was a minor thing,” she said.
“I’ve seen people go home when they’ve forgotten a small element, so I wasn’t surprised, especially when everyone else had pretty smooth cooks on the day as well.”
Michael Weldon
Season 3 Favourite Michael Weldon was tasked with cooking his best ‘postcard’ dish, a dish so delicious it could transport the judges to a certain place in the world.
During the challenge, things didn’t go his way, despite attempting to redeem himself from the service challenge earlier in the week.
“It was probably more stressful this time around because I knew what I was doing,” Michael told 10 play following his elimination.
“Last time was a stab in the dark, it worked out. This time I know a bit more about what I’m doing, so that was me putting pressure on myself, to be honest.”
Tommy Pham
In a difficult three-round challenge, Alvin Quah and Tommy Pham found themselves in a final face-off where only one would continue on in the MasterChef kitchen.
And unfortunately, it was fan-favourite Tommy who was eliminated.
“I was feeling pretty good,” Tommy told 10 play, “I had been having some really, really good cooks leading up to this point and I thought wow, I could possibly get to the end of this.
“Going into this day, I didn’t think I was going home for sure. I thought I had a really good chance of being safe but the cards just didn’t fall my way,” he added.
Montana Hughes
As the MasterChef kitchen welcomed back guest chef Khanh Nguyen, he brought with him one of the most difficult pressure tests yet.
And unfortunately for Montana Hughes, a few minor missteps were enough to end her time in the competition.
“I finally started to find my groove and, to go home after just finding that confidence again was tough but… I would rather that than to go home before finding that and having a few good cooks up my sleeve,” she told 10 play.
Aldo Ortado
Fans were devastated to see Aldo and Billie McKay facing off in an elimination change.
He stepped out of his comfort zone with a cucumber salad and spanner crab dish, but couldn’t quite beat Billie in the challenge. However, he insisted he stepped out on a high note.
“It’s actually one of the best ways to go out … competing against a winner, Billie, she’s amazing,” he told 10.
“When she’s under pressure she seriously shines more than a diamond.”
Aldo also took to Instagram to share his gratitude for the experience.
“I had so much fun and I had the chance to meet in person people that made me apply for this show my first time.
“This is not goodbye but just a see you very soon,” he wrote.
Mindy Woods
Mindy headed home after a Kirsten Tibballs Pressure Test, refusing to crumble to the stress but laughing all the way.
“I get excited about this stuff, you know,” she told 10Play after her elimination.
“I love to challenge myself and, to have Kirsten walk in I knew that it was going to be something I had never done before … and probably will never do again,” she laughed.
Prior to the challenge, she promised, along with her competitors Julie Goodwin and Billie McKay, that the kitchen would be a place of celebration rather than panic.
“I just said, if this is going to be our last cook let’s give it our all. Let’s get through it and make sure everyone has a chance to shine,” she said.
Later on Instagram, she thanked them, and the show, for the way her journey ended.
“Thanks for the incredible send off. What a way to finish the competition!”
Alvin Quah
Alvin and his incredible glasses sadly missed out on making it into the top five – which coincidentally happened when he first appeared on the show in 2010.
“When I got eliminated, I was cursing myself, thinking ‘I cannot get past number six! But the more I think about it, the competition has changed and is so steep now,” he told 10Play.
“Even though I finished in the same ranking, I think that it’s so much harder as a competition now, so I feel great. I feel like whatever I needed to do in the show I have done.”
Julie Goodwin
We always knew it would be a hard day when we had to say goodbye to Julie. But for the MasterChef icon, her encore journey on the series couldn’t have gone better.
She told Ten Play, “I didn’t think I’d get to the top five. I knew I was heading into a situation where I’d be up against not only other winners from other seasons, but people who’ve worked in the industry for years; a bunch of talented go getters who have this passion for cooking and MasterChef.”
The cook was eliminated at Tasmania’s Lawrenny Distillery when her Whisky Toffee Pudding with Whisky Chilli Ice Cream came out of the oven burnt.
Keyma Vasquez Montero
This stay at home mum shimmied her way into Australian hearts with her passion for cooking and dancing.
Coming in as a long time fan, Keyma was delighted to be competing against MasterChef royalty. However, in her time on the show she proved she was as skilled as any of them, even beating out her favourite returning competitor Sashi Cheliah.
Keyma told New Idea she plans to keep cooking, but for now is taking some time to regroup.
“I’m in conversations to collaborate with some restaurants, I want to continue sharing the Latin and Caribbean flavours of my heritage, and in the long term probably produce a book,” she said.
