2x30 - Pizza Over Challenge

May 23, 2010

"Modern Australia" theme. There was no Mystery Box challenge this week, instead the contestants faced a pizza making challenge. Fiona was the victor and picked tropical fruit as the Invention Test's core ingredient. Many struggled with this sweet choice, while Marion's risky recipe paid off and she was declared the winner.

2x31 - Duck Two Ways Pressure Test

May 24, 2010

Their task was to recreate a dish by Australian food icon, Stephanie Alexander, a confit duck-neck sausage with grilled duck breast in sour cherry sauce, potato crisps and buttered spinach. Peter, being from Melbourne, was able to source ingredients from Queen Victoria Market quickly and make his way to the Langham Hotel first, followed by Carrie and then Jimmy. In the end, each dish had its problems: Peter's sauce was too floury, Carrie's sauce was too thin, her sausage grainy and she failed to plate up the spinach, and Jimmy's spinach was gritty and his duck breast overcooked.

2x32 - Chef Challenge - Frank Camorra

May 25, 2010

2x33 - The Press Club Team Challenge

May 26, 2010

The two teams were faced with their toughest challenge yet: to take over the running of George Calombaris' own restaurant The Press Club on its relaunch, serving a variety of Australian food royalty and celebrities. Each team struggled early with the stresses of running a restaurant.

2x34 - Mystery Box Elimination Challenge

May 27, 2010

In a mystery box Elimination Challenge, the Blue Team members were tasked with creating a dish to complement a specific bottle of wine.

2x35 - Masterclass 6

May 28, 2010

Gary and George showed the contestants how to make the perfect pizza, while Gary also served up an English rice pudding, and George cooked up some chicken oysters with homous and fatoush.

2x36 - Mystery Box & Invention Test

May 30, 2010

Pasta theme. After a trying Mystery Box challenge featuring lambs' brains, Marion emerged as winner and picked seafood as the core ingredient for the Invention Test. Most contestants thrived in making their own pasta, leading the judges to award a Top 6, with Aaron wowing with his remarkable invention.

2x37 - Seafood Platter Pressure Test

May 31, 2010

Jake, Jimmy and Matthew faced off in the Pressure Test; to recreate a Rick Stein seafood platter worth .

2x38 - Chef Challenge - Maggie Beer

June 1, 2010

Aaron cooked off against Maggie Beer, making her pheasant pie.

2x39 - Pacific Jewel Team Challenge

June 2, 2010

In the biggest Off Site Challenge ever, contestants were faced with preparing 8000 canapés for 2000 guests on the P&O Pacific Jewel, who would vote for their favourite team's menu. Under the guidance of a P&O sous chef (plus an extra helper for the Red Team to make up the numbers), each team prepared 1000 of four different canapés. The Blue Team struggled early and opted to buy the help of another chef for 100 votes.

2x40 - Taste Test Elimination Challenge

June 3, 2010

Marion, Jake and Joanne face an elimination taste test. They must identify 23 ingredients to stay in the competition. Will this be Marion's one and only chance to use her immunity? The red team goes to Red Lantern for lunch and a impromptu master class. They learn to make a quail entree. The 3 up for elimination have to taste a Thai green curry, naming ingredients that are contained within.

2x41 - Masterclass 7

June 4, 2010

George cooked up ravioli with potato and leek as well as a quail dolmatha with tahini and yoghurt dressing. Meanwhile guest chef Matt Moran had quesadillias on the menu and a berry and frangipane tart.

2x42 - Mystery Box & Invention Test

June 6, 2010

Vegetarian theme. In a meaty Mystery Box challenge, it was Claire who managed to impress the most and was given a significant advantage in the Invention Test, which would be contested in pairs. As well as picking the core ingredient, Claire was given the power to choose the pairs for the challenge. In a further twist, they would be cooking to impress six staunch meat-eaters, and the two judges, with their vegetarian meals. Aaron and Adam emerged as winners with their curry, and won the chance to face off in a mystery challenge for immunity.

2x43 - Oyster Terrine Pressure Test

June 7, 2010

Callum, Joanne, Peter and Skye faced off in the Pressure Test; to recreate George Calombaris' oyster terrine. Callum's terrine was described as a dog's breakfast but was closest to George's dish in flavour.

2x44 - Chef Challenge - Aaron vs Adam

June 8, 2010

In a twist on the traditional format, Aaron and Adam competed against each other to win immunity. They had 1hr 45min to complete three dishes with three core ingredients for three Celebrity Chefs, Matt Moran, Kylie Kwong and Ian Curley. The Chefs would then pick their favourite of the two dishes, and the contestant with the most votes would win immunity.

2x45 - Molecular Gastronomy Team Challenge

June 9, 2010

Teams were tasked with creating a dining experience using principles of molecular gastronomy. With the help of two leaders in innovative cooking, each team was tasked with a specific theme to shape their dining experience.

2x46 - Chicken Korma & Name Spices Elimination

June 10, 2010

In a two-round Elimination Challenge testing basic skills, members of the Blue Team were first asked to cook Chicken Korma. They were provided with all the ingredients but were left to choose which spices to use. Out of the six contestants, only Alvin's attempt was of an acceptable quality with Jonathan and Skye the worst of the rest. They were sent into a sudden death challenge to name spices.

2x47 - Masterclass 8

June 11, 2010

Callum and Sharnee were treated to a masterclass on Cheese by Australian cheese expert Will Studd, while the remaining contestants were treated to a steak and kidney sandwich by Gary Mehigan and stir-fried Aubergines in Chili sauce by Kylie Kwong. Chef Darren Purchese also demonstrated his 'fruit carnival'.

2x48 - Mystery Box & Invention Test

June 13, 2010

"Australian Food Icon" theme. The winner of Masterchef Australia 2009, Julie Goodwin, returned as a guest judge for the Mystery Box Challenge, the ingredients of which were also chosen by her. Marion won the challenge and she chose Chiko Rolls as the food icon contestants had to "re-invent". Jonathan's dish was the most impressive while Callum, Matthew and Sharnee were chosen as the Bottom 3 contestants.

2x49 - Beef Stroganoff Pressure Test

June 14, 2010

Callum, Matthew and Sharnee faced off in the Pressure Test, where they had to recreate a Beef Stroganoff with Parsley Fettuccine without a recipe to follow. Each of the contestants identified the correct meat, but each contestant's dish had flaws; Callum's Stroganoff lacked enough sauce and his pasta was overcooked, Matthew put too much tomato paste in his Stroganoff and Sharnee incorrectly used nutmeg instead of paprika.

2x50 - Chef Challenge - Josh Emett

June 15, 2010

2x51 - Qantas Business Team Challenge

June 16, 2010

Teams were tasked with creating a 3 course menu suitable for Qantas business class passengers. They were required to prepare the food at the MasterChef Kitchen and reheat it in the galley of a Qantas Airbus A380. The judging panel in addition to Gary and Matt included chef Neil Perry and Qantas CEO Alan Joyce.

2x52 - Carrot Cake Elimination Challenge

June 17, 2010

In a taste test Elimination Challenge, all members of the Blue Team were asked to name the ingredients to a carrot cake.

2x53 - Masterclass 9

June 18, 2010

Aaron and Marion are treated to a masterclass in artisan baking by Michael Klausen, while Gary and George cook up a dish of lamb backstrap fillet cooked in a Barramundi skin with flesh from the fish, along with a shiitake mushroom sauce and hash browns. Julie Goodwin then returns to the MasterChef kitchen and conjures up a dish of scallops with bacon crunch and cauliflower puree, and Gary and George round it off with an extravagant dessert of bitter chocolate ganache with peanut ice cream, peanut toffee caramel and a honeycomb.

2x54 - London Week Day 1: Invention Test

June 20, 2010

"Afternoon Tea" theme. It was revealed to the contestants that this Invention Test would take place in London. After settling in at the Langham Hotel, the contestants first challenge for the week was to invent a pastry, drawing inspiration from one of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. Callum won the challenge and was rewarded with a private MasterClass with Jamie Oliver as well as attending the announcement of the World's 50 Best Restaurants with Matt Preston. Jonathan was chosen by Callum to share the reward.

2x55 - London Week Day 2: Heston Pressure Test

June 21, 2010

Contestants competed in pairs to recreate Heston Blumenthal's elaborate signature dishes. Heston praised the contestants' attempts at dishes he'd taken years to perfect with Alvin and Marion's recreation of "Sound of the Sea" deemed the most impressive.

2x56 - London Week Day 2: Chef Challenge - Martin Blunos

June 22, 2010

2x57 - London Week Day 3: Super Off Site Challenge

June 23, 2010

In the first ever Super Challenge, contestants raced from London to Paris, France with the task to create a two-course meal based around the French favourite, the truffle. For the first time, the judges picked the teams: Callum and Marion (Yellow), Adam and Alvin (Red), Jonathan and Joanne (Green), and Aaron and Claire (Blue). Teams had to travel to Paris by the Eurostar, find the truffle shop, buy their ingredients from the market travelling via the Eiffel Tower, and prepare their meals on the banks of the Seine, all in 5 hours. Teams struggled with the language barrier, navigating a foreign city and finding necessary ingredients. In the end, each team faced criticism for their dishes.

2x58 - London Week Day 4:Elimination Challenge

June 24, 2010

In the Elimination Challenge, Joanne and Jonathan both recreated one of Brett Graham's dishes. Although both dishes had positives and negatives.

2x59 - Masterclass 10

June 25, 2010

Back in Australia, George cooks up a seafood dish of Char Sui salmon with stir-fried winter melon and wood ear mushrooms, while Gary cooks a rhubarb and blackberry crumble souffle. Joanne returns for that masterclass. Later, the remaining seven contestants, without Joanne, visit Donna Hay for some styling tips.

2x60 - Return Elimination Challenge 1

June 27, 2010

Eleven of the 17 eliminated contestants returned to the MasterChef kitchen to compete for three second-chance spots. Devon, Kate, Courtney, Daniel, Philip, Jimmy, Jake, Peter, Skye, Sharnee and Matthew competed in four rounds testing basic skills. In the first round, the eleven contestants had to correctly peel 400 grams of prawns. Sharnee was slowest and was eliminated. The second round saw contestants making the perfect potato mash. Kate was slowest and was eliminated. In the third round, the remaining nine contestants had to make 10 French-style pancakes as quickly as possible. Matthew was eliminated. The final round saw the contestants making Eggs Benedict and Hollandaise sauce with a twenty-minute time limit.

2x61 - Return Elimination Challenge 2

June 28, 2010

Devon, Courtney, Philip, Jimmy, Jake and Peter competed in the final round for one of 3 spots back in the competition. They were faced with an Invention Test, with the freedom to choose from an extensive range of ingredients. In a twist, it was the Top 7 contestants who were unknowingly deciding their fate; judging the six dishes under the pretence of learning how to critique a dish. The seven plus Matt Preston were unanimous in their decision.

2x62 - Chef Challenge - Mitchell Orr

June 29, 2010

Unlike other Celebrity Chef Challenges, Orr was cooking against all of the remaining 10, with the amateur winner (should there have been one) to receive immunity.

2x63 - CWA Team Challenge

June 30, 2010

Teams were faced with a seemingly simple challenge; to bake five traditional Australian afternoon tea staples made famous by the Country Women's Association. They had to impress a crowd of 100 CWA members as well as the judging panel which included CWA veteran Allison Mutton. Each team member was responsible for one dish with the judges picking which team made the best of each separate dish. The contestants struggled with this challenge, to the point where the judges granted them extra time to finish so as to not lose face. When it came to scoring the teams, Claire and Jonathan's Fruit Cakes and Peter and Marion's Neopolitan Cakes were judged to be of such poor standard as to not warrant scoring at all.

2x64 - Taste Test Elimination Challenge

July 1, 2010

While the Red Team enjoyed their lunch at Bilson's, Aaron and Jimmy were required to "fix that dish", an unappetising coq au vin. George favoured Jimmy's finished dish but Gary preferred Aaron's.

2x65 - Masterclass 11

July 2, 2010

While the Red Team enjoyed their lunch at Bilson's, Aaron and Jimmy were required to "fix that dish", an unappetising coq au vin. George favoured Jimmy's finished dish but Gary preferred Aaron's.

2x66 - Mystery Box & Invention Test

July 4, 2010

"Home-style cooking" theme. Contestants were faced with snails under the Mystery Box, and it was Alvin who impressed the judges with his dish, creating a unique balance of complex flavours. He gained the power to pick the pairs for the Invention Test, and the core ingredient of chicken and oranges. Contestants had to impress renowned Australian cook Margaret Fulton with their home-style inventions and many struggled under the pressure. In the end, it was Adam and Claire who really impressed and Claire was nominated to take part in the Celebrity Chef Challenge

2x67 - Macaron Tower Pressure Test

July 5, 2010

Alvin, Aaron, Marion and Peter faced off in the Pressure Test, where they had to recreate Adriano Zumbo's Macaroon Tower. Each contestants had to build their own tower consisting of 120 macaroons. Such a monumental challenge saw the contestants really struggle, each of them forced to cut corners. Half of Aaron's macaroons were "like cake batter" while half of Marion's were "hard as a rock".

2x68 - Chef Challenge - Adam Melona

July 6, 2010

2x69 - Army Base Team Challenge

July 7, 2010

Teams were faced with preparing a hearty buffet lunch for 100 Australian soldiers. Starting at Holsworthy army base, contestants trekked to the field kitchen where they tackled creating a suitable menu. Teams came up with a few similar dishes and were forced to negotiate compromise in their menus. The Red Team struggled with their dessert, and Callum was chastised by the judges for his poor handling of the situation.

2x70 - Thai Satay Sauce Elimination Challenge

July 8, 2010

Marion, Jonathan and Aaron were required to name a variety of nuts to progress to the next round. Jonathan won the first round and was safe. Marion and Aaron progressed to the second round where they had to recreate a Thai satay sauce. Although both dishes impressed the judges, Aaron's had better flavour and presentation, and Marion's was thicker and considered to be "gluggy" by the judges.

2x71 - Masterclass 12

July 9, 2010

2x72 - Mystery Box & Invention Test

July 11, 2010

"Seven Deadly Sins" theme. Contestants struggled to produce stand-out dishes from a simple Mystery Box, with the two women left in the competition emerging as the strongest performers. Claire was declared the winner and won two big advantages: the power to skip the Invention Test, which would only have a Bottom 3, and the chance to face off in the Celebrity Chef Challenge. The Invention Test was based around the "seven deadly sins," with each contestant creating a dish based on one of the sins.

2x73 - Pressure Test - Christine Manfield

July 12, 2010

Guest chef Christine Manfield set the most technically difficult dish seen so far in a pressure test: spice roasted squab with a turnip cake, with a recipe including 55 ingredients. In a close elimination.

2x74 - Chef Challenge - Shaun Presland

July 13, 2010

2x75 - Signature Dish Challenge

July 14, 2010

Contestants were tasked with creating a dish that represented themselves and their cooking philosophy. After planning overnight and shopping with a budget, each contestant had two hours to cook their signature dishes on five plates for Matt Preston and four other guests: Alla Wolf-Tasker, Mark Best, Kylie Kwong and Jacques Reymond. Each contestant was determined to impress such an illustrious panel, and the intense pressure lead to some potentially fatal mistakes. Overall, the judges were very impressed with the calibre of the dishes put forward, but only four contestants would automatically win their spot in the final week and a reward at Marque restaurant.

2x76 - Guess that Fish Elimination Challenge

July 15, 2010

Aaron, Alvin and Jimmy faced a Basic Skills Test in a two-round Elimination Challenge. The first round saw contestants identifying different types of fish, with the two lowest scoring contestants moving into the second round. Jimmy named the most fish correctly, leaving Aaron and Alvin to face off in the second round; to cook the perfect fish and chips.

2x77 - Masterclass 13

July 16, 2010

2x78 - Finals Week - Day 1 - Invention Test

July 18, 2010

Iron Chef Hiroyuki Sakai was a guest judge for the invention test. The core ingredient was crustaceans and the contestants, working in two teams, had to cook a banquet.

2x79 - Finals Week - Day 2 - Pressure Test

July 19, 2010

The contestants have four hours to recreate Adriano Zumbo’s V8 cake, which features eight different textures of vanilla and tempered white chocolate on the outside. The winner's prize is choosing the ingredients for tomorrow’s mystery box challenge.

2x81 - Finals Week - Day 4 - Signature Dish Challenge

July 21, 2010

The final four cooked three dishes that would appear in their cookbook if they became Australia’s next MasterChef. Maggie Beer was a guest judge. Each contestant explained the concept of their cookbook to the judges.

2x82 - Finals Week - Day 5 - Off Site Challenge

July 22, 2010

Cooking dinner for the Governor-General and 30 guests, the contestants were judged on their dishes and their performance in the kitchen.

2x83 - Finals Week - Day 6 - Final Masterclass

July 23, 2010

Callum and Adam each spent time with a chef, from the markets to service, with Justin North and Peter Kuruvita. The top 24 contestants returned to the MasterChef kitchen for the last MasterClass. Alvin showed how to make his Drunken Chicken with Bruised Cucumber Salad and Fiona demonstrated her Chocolate Ganache Tart with Lavender Cream and Fresh Raspberries. Gary and George then felt the pressure in their own mystery box challenge.

2x84 - Grand Final - Welcome Masterchef 2010

July 25, 2010

Adam and Callum faced three rounds in the finale, worth 100 points in total. The first round involves basic skills tests. The second round is an invention test. The final round is a pressure test, cooking a Peter Gilmore dessert.