OCALA, FL (352today.com) – An 11-year-old from Central Florida is going to need his Marion County firefighting dad to douse the flames from his performance on MASTERCHEF JUNIOR.
Michael Seegobin is “on fire” in the reality cooking competition. He won the challenge again this week.
“Being in the top five feels amazing but this puts a little bit of pressure on me because I’m a little bit nervous that the judges are going to be a little bit harder, but I think I’ve got this,” said Michael.
This week’s challenge
This week’s episode challenged the kid cooks to reimagine the very first dishes they made in the competition.
“The challenge tonight is to take the dishes from your past and turn them into dishes from your future,” said celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay.
The judges instructed them to make the dishes fine-dining restaurant quality – elevated and elegant.
“I can see five amazing home cooks here who might become five Michelin star-winning chefs when they grow up,” said judge Daphne Oz. “So tonight think about your future self and how you would elevate your signature dish at your restaurant.”
The goal was to test how much the aspiring chefs have learned, absorbed and could apply under the deadline pressure of one hour.
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Seven episodes ago, Michael made a shrimp pasta pesto with store-bought pasta.
“You’re always in the zone man,” said judge Aarón Sánchez. “How do you take that to the next level?”
“By making a shrimp tortellini from scratch which I’ve never made before with a white cream sauce and basil oil,” responded Michael.
And if that isn’t hard enough, Michael’s recipe called for stuffing the shrimp in the tortellini which the judges said was risky because it’s tough to make sure the stuffing doesn’t come out.
Chef Ramsay asked Michael how he intended to plate the pasta.
“I’m going to do five in the middle of a plate and then my white cream sauce. Always plate with an odd number,” said Michael who received an affirming high five from Ramsay.
When it came time to serve it up, Michael delivered.
“Look at the finesse Michael is showing right now with those tortellinis… the tweezers as well,” Ramsay remarked comparing Michael’s talent to surgery on a plate.
The judges told Michael it was visually stunning and equally delectable.
“The tortellinis are beautiful. They’re just bursting with flavor. I love the sauce. I love the basil oil,” said Ramsay.
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The TV chef who is known for being brutally hard on adult competitors is noticeably tame with the kid cooks. His only critique was to be careful to not overdo the garlic.
“What you did was transformative. You have all the attributes of a great chef,” praised Sánchez.
Once the deliberations were over, the four judges declared Michael the winner again which earned him an all-expenses-paid trip to Mexico for his family, a spot in the semi-finals and one step closer to the grand prize of $100,000.
“I’m moving on to the semi-finals. I’m feeling really good about that,” said Michael. “I definitely feel like I’ve got this and I can definitely win Masterchef Junior.”
There are three episodes left in the season with the finale scheduled to air on Monday, May 20, at 8 p.m. on FOX stations.