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10-year-old Liya Chu impressed the judges tonight with her clear-cut salmon dish and became the first semi-finalist on the Masterchef Junior. She reached the top four by beating Eva Kozar, Grayson Price, Ivy Childs, and Molly Leighninger.
After the elimination of four junior chefs last week, tonight the contestants were asked to fillet as many fish as they could in 15 minutes. The episode saw the return of Season 1 winner of the show, Alexander Weiss.
While everyone tried their best to clean-cut the salmon, Liya's was the best with extremely clean cuts.
Ivy tried to cut as many fillets as she could but her speediness cost her immunity as she failed to provide the judges with the clean cuts they were looking for. Grayson himself felt that his cutting angle was wrong and Molly struggled with the carcass of the fish.
MasterChef fans react as Liya Chu reaches top four
Tonight, MasterChef fans were amazed with Liya Chu, a 10-year-old cook from Scarsdale, New York, as she filleted many fish, extremely clean cut. Fans congratulated her on the feat and felt that she deserved the win.
Liya Chu's journey on MasterChef Season 8
Liya was challenged in the first episode of the show as she was asked to prepare a dish from a slimy eel. She passed the challenge with flying colors as her dish was selected as one of the three chef's favourite dishes. She had prepared 'Soy & Honey Glazed Eel with Rice Vermicelli and Ginger Vinaigrette'.
In the second episode of the show, Liya escaped from the elimination round by preapring 'Pan-Seared Salmon, Mayonnaise Couscous, Zucchini, Carrots and Apples'. Her dish, along with Ivy’s, was announced to be the best dish of the night. In Episode three, Liya failed to impress the judges with her gravy.
Liya re-established herself as a good cook and a good leader in the very next episode. She was in the top three in Episode 6 by preparing her infamous creative dish 'Walnut Shrimp with Pineapple Fried Rice'. Liya initially struggled in her group task of breading the popper in Episode 8 but made it to the top 3, again by preparing 'Crabmeat Dumplings with Soy Broth and Braised Daikon'.
Liya was announced as the winner of a challenge in Episode 10 and her recipe was published on a website. She had prepared Soy Glazed 'Skirt Steak with Charred Corn and Vegetable Tempura'.
What happened on MasterChef Junior tonight?
Tonight on MasterChef Junior, Gordon Ramsay and Alexander Weiss taught the kids how to filet a fish. The five finalists were challenged to perfectly fillet as many salmon as they could to get immunity.
Gordon Ramsay advised Ivy to take it slow. Molly struggled to get the carcass of the fish off, but the judges praised her clean cutting. Grayson felt that his angle of cutting was wrong but Liya’s salmon cuts were clean.
Liya became the first candidate to reach the top four. Judges also announced that Eva missed the mark just by a bit.
Ivy prepared 'Salmon Seafood Bouillabaisse' and impressed the judges with her "risky dish." Molly added brocolli to the salmon. Eva's 'Salmon en Croute' was undercooked. The judges felt Grayson's 'Olive Oil Poached Salmon' was unfinished.
Liya, Molly, Ivy and Grayson reached the MasterChef Season 8 finale. Eva became the first contestant to be eliminated from the show tonight.
