It is MasterChef: The Professionals semi-finals week and the competitors are feeling the heat. MasterChef presenter Gregg Wallace teams up with chef Monica Galetti and Michelin-starred Marcus Wareing to continue their search for this year’s MasterChef: The Professionals champion.

The remaining eight chefs brace themselves to cook up a storm as they face a double beast of a challenge in the MasterChef Kitchen. Only six chefs can retain their place in the competition and, with it, the opportunity to cook in some of the most influential and unique restaurants in the UK.

The first challenge is cooking against each other to create a dish inspired by the people or place that really triggered a love of food and a desire to make it their world. This plate must evoke this special food memory for the judges. From mum’s chocolate cake, street food or the first great boss, the professionals need to cook with passion and pride and create something truly magical. If they inspire the judges, they are sent straight through to the next round.

The remaining chefs must return to fight again in the MasterChef kitchen. They face an invention test where they are tasked with creating one unique and flawless dish. The contestants won’t have any meat, fish or dairy in the larder in this round – their future in the competition relies on one outstanding plant-based dish. The judges want delicious, skilful, ingenious food, and their expectations are high. If the chefs fail to seize the moment to shine, they forfeit their place in the next semi-final challenge and leave the competition.

The six chefs still in the running continue on their path in pursuit of the MasterChef: The Professionals title 2019. Show less