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Written by Samantha Nolan cleans up with a Dutch Croquettes recipe in episode four of MasterChef South Africa.
There was no doubt in Samantha Nolan’s mind as to what she was going to present to the judges for the childhood memory challenge on MasterChef. This was fortunate as she had to get straight down to business if she was going to not only finish her ambitious recipe in time but also have it taste good enough for the judges.
Pete Goffe-Wood looked concerned when he heard what Samantha was making and did not believe that she would have enough time to finish the dish. He later raised his concerns with fellow judges Andrew Atkinson and Benny Masekwameng saying that even while using the pressure cooker Samantha would not have enough time to thicken, cool down and crumb her dish. He resigned himself to chomping on some chewy beef later in the day.
Samantha however was having none of it as she expertly moved from stage to stage of her family Dutch Croquettes Recipe. With her parents being Dutch, croquettes were a regular ‘special occasion’ meal and one that Samantha had mastered over the years. She showed little time concerns as she displayed the critical culinary skills required of a MasterChef with a Hollandaise Sauce and her ability at controlling heat. She had previously demonstrated her skills at emulsification with a mayonnaise in episode one.
When it came to the moment of truth Pete Goffe-Wood could not resist double dipping, first into the Hollandaise and then into the Tomato Sauce which Samantha had made with vine tomatoes.
He stood back and said, “I’m a huge fan of croquettes generally. I didn’t think you had enough time to get that meal cooked properly, get it rolled into croquettes and deep fry it but you made fantastic croquettes and hollandaise and tomato sauce and chips”. He finished off by congratulating Samantha on a remarkable achievement and a fantastic job.
Andrew Atkinson also showered praise on Samantha saying, “these croquets were done perfectly, it was beautifully crisp, the meat inside was done perfectly, your relish and your chips all came together in one dish. Well done Samantha, really well done”.
By winning this stage along with Manisha Nadiu, Samantha Nolan will be a team captain in episode five of MasterChef South Africa, something which seems to make Samantha a little nervous, “I’ve never been a captain of anything so lets hope it works out well”.
We have no concerns about Samantha’s ability to lead a team, she knows what’s cooking in a kitchen.
