Superfan Melanie Persson is eliminated from MasterChef Australia after failing to impress with her tuna wellington
An ambitious tuna wellington brought an end to superfan Melanie Persson’s journey on MasterChef Australia.
The 27-year-old Perth native was eliminated on Tuesday’s episode after failing to replicate chef Josh Niland’s intricate fish recipe during a pressure test.
The contestants had to work with a blush tuna loin, wrap it in a sour cream pastry, and top it off with mushrooms, crepe and mashed potato.
End of a dream: An ambitious tuna wellington brought an end to superfan Melanie Persson’s (pictured) journey on MasterChef Australia
Melanie, who never thought she would make it to MasterChef after being diagnosed as gluten intolerant, struggled bravely with the glutenous pastry.
Concerned that she couldn’t get the pastry the right thickness, the PhD student battled on.
When she plated up her dish for the judges, Melanie’s effort failed to impress.
Not impressed: The 27-year-old Perth native was eliminated on Tuesday’s episode after failing to replicate chef Josh Niland’s intricate fish recipe during a pressure test
The judges deemed the pastry too thick and undercooked, and they weren’t keen on the mashed potato either.
Melanie later said that if she had the chance to do things differently, she would have read the recipe more carefully.
‘More importantly, I’d make sure I wouldn’t mess up a mashed potato!’ the self-taught cook added.
Meanwhile, it was Matt Landmark who blew away the judges on Tuesday night.
Below par: The judges deemed the pastry too thick and undercooked, and they weren’t keen on Melanie’s mashed potato either
They adored the high school teacher’s tuna wellington.
Chef Josh Niland said it was ‘fantastic’.
‘Speaking about the pastry alone, just how crunchy it is, almost glassy, it’s wonderful to see he has paid attention to that,’ he noted.
Still an achievement: The 27-year-old Perth native never thought she would make it on to MasterChef because she is gluten intolerant