Monica and Marcus send the three semi-finalists to Edinburgh to spend two days working under Tom Kitchin at his restaurant, the Kitchin. Opened ten years ago, it received its first Michelin star within six months and has gone on to win global acclaim. A chef fanatical about food and Scottish ingredients, the contestants must quickly pick up Tom's 'nature to the plate' philosophy if they are to impress. To begin, the chefs are thrown in at the deep end as Tom puts each one in charge of a dish during lunchtime service. The chefs must remain calm and alert if they are to meet Tom's demands for consistency, finesse and attention to detail and avoid any of their dishes being sent back from the pass.
The chefs then have one more opportunity to showcase their talent to Tom when they return the next day to cook him his own signature dish of crispy sweetbreads, potato risotto, ox tongue and girolles. Not only is the dish technically challenging, but it holds huge importance to Tom as it represents exactly where his cooking is at today. It's up to the chefs to hold their nerve and show Tom what they have understood from their time in his kitchen.
Finally, the chefs return to cook a two-course menu for Marcus and Monica. A main course and a dessert stand between them and a place in finals week. The judges expect confident, flawless cooking at this stage, and with the competition so ferocious, the three chefs must aim at perfection and try to hit it. With the finals in their grasp, it's their toughest battle so far.
Only the strongest chefs will go through to finals week and move one step closer to the title of Professional MasterChef 2015.
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