MasterChef Australia is a Logie Award-winning Australian competitive cooking game show based on the original British MasterChef. MasterChef Australia is produced by Shine and showing on Lifetime Channel in Singapore.
Weekdays, 7pm and 11pm
Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston serve as the show's main judges.
MasterChef Australia Season 5
Lifetime (StarHub Ch 514)
Restaurateur and chef Gary Mehigan, chef George Calombaris and food critic Matt Preston serve as the show's main judges.
Amina, a strong contender on MasterChef Australia Season 4, was one of the crowd favorites. She was born in Saudi Arabia before moving to Australia in the late 1980s.
Amina is blessed with a culinary expertise that originates from two different parts of the world – the Middle East and Asia, all thanks to her Egyptian dad and South Korean Mum. Her parents brought the old family recipes and techniques to the table. At 17, Amina decided to honor her Muslim faith by wearing the hijab. She is proud of her ethnicity and she holds her religion close to her heart, thus her cooking is often inspired by her strong Muslim roots.
Sun Dried Tomato, Mushroom and Cream Cheese Pasta.
Gravy
3tbs olive oil
1 medium size red chilli, sliced into thin diagonals
3 cloves of garlic, sliced thinly 1tbs salted capers, washed
150gms semi sun dried tomatoes, cut in strips
200gms button mushrooms, sliced thinly
500mls passata (tomato purée)
1tbs finely chopped basil
150gms Philadelphia Cream Cheese block
Salt and ground black pepper to season
Fresh parsley leaves coarsely chopped for garnish
Pasta
300gms of dried penne, fusilli or rigatoni pasta
Start by cooking pasta in salted boiling water. Once pasta is approximately half way of cooking start the sauce.
In a large pan heat the olive oil. Once hot, fry chilli, garlic and capers until fragrant. Add sun dried tomatoes and mushrooms and toss until mushrooms have browned slightly.
Add pasta, bring to the boil and add the basil. Allow to boil for a further two minutes. Add the cream cheese and stir through the pasta mix until combined well. Leave sauce on a medium heat.
At this point, the pasta should have cooked and become al dente. Strain the pasta in a colander and once liquid has been drained add the pasta to the sauce. Toss pasta through the sauce quickly and season with salt and pepper. Garnish with chopped parsley leaves and serve immediately.
Walnut, Vanilla Bean and Cream Cheese Wontons with Oranges and Orange Syrup.
Wontons
16 egg wonton pastry wrappers
130gms Philadelphia Cream Cheese block
1 vanilla bean, insides scraped and reserve pod
2tbs finely chopped walnuts
Vegetable oil for deep frying
Fresh baby basil or dill fronds for garnishing
2 oranges segmented
Orange syrup
1/2 cup of fresh orange juice, strained
1/3 cup caster sugar
Reserved vanilla pod
Segment oranges and reserve cut pieces aside. Using the unused oranges, squeeze half a cup of juice and strain. Use the juice for the syrup.
Combine the orange juice and sugar in a saucepan on high heat. Bring to the boil and reduce heat to a gentle simmer for 10 mins until well combined and slightly thickened. Remove vanilla pod and leave aside to cool.
In a bowl combine cream cheese, walnuts and vanilla. Mix together until well combined. Take a wonton wrapper, lightly dampen the edges with water. Place a small ball of the cream cheese filling in the centre and fold the edges into however shape you prefer. Repeat process until all 16 wontons are made.
Heat vegetable oil to 180C. Carefully drop wontons in the hot oil, few at a time and cook until golden. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.
Assemble warm wontons on a plate with segmented oranges and drizzle the cooled orange syrup. Garnish with baby basil or dill fronds. Serve warm.
