Grossman Days Are Gone (Masterchef)

Member Name: NikkiH

Product:	Masterchef
Date:	21/01/08 (559 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good viewing, the food always looks delicious

Disadvantages: Torode slopping his food turns my stomach

Masterchef has come a long way from the Lloyd Grossman days when the studio was dark, and the contestants were judged by scowling chefs, and I have to say it is for the better. The result of the revamp is a vibrant and modern programme which is extremely watchable. Even the theme tune is modern upbeat dance tune. It is clear that the producers are going all out to get a new kind of audience rather than the post Sunday lunch barely conscious viewers of the Grossman days.

The show is now presented by chef John Torode and food writer Gregg Wallace. Both are passionate about good food, and they acknowledge on every programme that "it doesn't get much tougher than this". They are quite amusing to watch, because I think in everyday life they are a pair of pussycats, but for the purpose of entertainment they really butch it up for Masterchef.

The revamped show returned to our screens in 2005, but was titled "Masterchef Goes Large", although they have now reverted to the original title. The basics of the show are still evident. Aspiring chefs are put under the pressure of time and expectations to cook the best food they can manage.

Generally, the opening round has 5 contestants who are all given the same selection of ingredients and asked to come up with their best dish in 30 minutes. During the cooking time, the gruesome twosome walk around the light and airy kitchen asking questions of the contestants, normally at a critical time during their prep or cooking. Once the time is up, the contestants have to walk over to the judging area and wait for the pair to judge their creations. Generally, there is much sucking of air through the teeth before the smile is quickly wiped off any over confident contestant's faces. If John manages to get the food in his mouth (how he misses such a vortex is a source of much amusement), they give their critique. Gregg is a self confessed dessert fiend, so he can become nearly orgasmic with a well cooked tart! At the end of this round, 2 of the wannabees are sent home with their tails between their legs.

Next up, is "The Pressure Test", where the remaining trio sample life in a real working kitchen, generally an upmarket London "fusion" restaurant, where they cook things such as Barramundi, pheasant and swordish. All run of the mill you see! They are all given individual dishes from the menu, and thrown in at the deep end, generally with a very bolshy head chef who seems to forget they only walked into the kitchen a matter of hours before. They don't have time to recover though, onto the next round, it is like The Commonwealth Games of cooking.

Finally, the threesome return to the studio to cook the best 2 course meal that they can manage. The amount of sweating some of these contestants do makes me wonder how they do not collapse from dehydration, but with the heat of the cookers and the studio lights you can visibly see them wilting as the round comes to a close.

The heat winners, progress through the stages until eventually there are a set of finalists. At this point they have the added round of a food test, where they have to blind taste or name generally obscure ingredients to prove their worth as a chef, and if that is not enough, they then have to sell themselves in a quick interview with John and Gregg. It is at this point where we predictably hear how "food is my life", "I have a passion for cooking" and "It is my dream to own my own restuarant". This is the part I hate, because I don't know about you, I want a chef who can cook, not one who can tell me how fab they are.

This is reality TV, but not as we know it. The contestants are, with the odd exception not acting up to the cameras. There is also an annual Celebrity version of the programme, and the most recent one featured Craig Revel Horwood with the worst case of the nervous shakes I have ever witnessed. The latest series is on BBC2 weeknights at 8.30pm. Give it a try, and you might just be surprised. I like it, and I have even stolen a few hints.

Summary: Competitive chefs put their cooking skills to the test