The competition takes place under the sign of technicality this Wednesday, April 17 in the evening, with a program overseen by Meilleurs Ouvriers de France (MOF). Gilles Goujon, tricolor collar and three stars, and Tom Meyer, youngest MOF, a Michelin macaroon, orchestrate for the six Oranges and four Grays remaining a sort of appetizer which will designate the two candidates who will rub shoulders with the black box.
Fearsome and legendary, the event has two innovations. She relocated, settling in the large stables of Chantilly (Oise). And it is eliminatory. Saving your skin is already tough, so doing it like this is tough... But first, tests on MOF techniques: the soufflé omelette for the Grays and the Italian meringue for the Oranges. “We're going to pray to the god of the egg, little egg, little chicken…” whispers Marie, who admits to not being very technical.
MOFs prove to have formidable precision
Bryan shines with his reflection: “If it's flat, it's not blown, and if it's not blown… It's not blown. » So to ensure that his omelette turns out well, he relies on tradition by going with the force of his wrist when his comrades opt for the robot. At the tasting, here it is in front. The egg god could do nothing for Marie, henceforth in an ejection seat.
On the Italian meringue, Arnaud stands out among the Oranges, and Shirley misses, a syrup too hot that she had to start again, and in the end an undercooked meringue. With MOF, it’s not forgiving.
To the eye, then by tasting, they reveal themselves to be of formidable precision, detecting if the preparation has grained, if the sugar was too hot, or not enough, if the meringue has tightened... Even if it is not surprising , such mastery remains astonishing.
Chic teams for a shock test
The MOF is the best. So double MOF! This is the case of Guy Krenzer, tricolor collar in delicatessen catering and cooking, who concocted the black box plate. Five elements, three MOF techniques to find and reproduce, a fine veal foie gras stuffing, a glaze and sautéed apples, a spherification again... He didn't spare them.
With Marie, Clotaire, Bryan, Paul Pairet and Glenn Viel with her. Shirley can count on Jorick, Valentin, Dominique Crenn and Stéphanie Le Quellec. Chic teams for a shock test.
The goal, therefore, is to determine the contents of a plate in complete darkness. And reproduce it. They have three visits: a first at the launch, a second in the middle of the test with one of the brigade leaders. And a last one, shortly before the end, with light this time... What will remain, then, is to try to correct the orientations taken on the visual. Behind the scenes, Etchebest, Goujon and Meyer form a kop of MOF supporters, applauding and commenting as if in front of a match.
A tasting in the dark
During her passage in the dark, Stéphanie Le Quellec detects the icing… “She’s going to give us a beating,” fears Etchebest. On the other hand, she did not spot a coconut as Jorick had thought. “Did you take your shower with a Tahiti coconut?” » she winnows her candidate. “It looks like a kind of nocturnal animal that tastes something,” Etchebest still laughs when he sees Glenn Viel rummaging and tasting in the darkness.
Among the Oranges, Dominique Crenn struggles with the soufflé apples, leaves the hand to Jorick who will trick by putting two slices together. “Glenn, is it blowing?” asks Le Quellec from his camp. Do you want a small bike pump...? » Like a booster shot. “Who’s on the soufflé apples,” asks the latter. No answer. Person. Clotaire sticks to it. Quickly struggling too. Especially since Pairet, then Viel, give him two different techniques... “Clotaire has been on the fence for three hours! », tenses Etchebest.
Shirley is eliminated
Last passage in the illuminated black box. “Oh shit, it’s orange!” », blurted Marie. They have 15 minutes left to rectify. Neither she nor Shirley are allowed to touch anything anymore. “I feel like I'm the most useless person in the world,” laments Marie, who supervises Paul Pairet's icing. “On the other hand, it’s settled here,” she notes, noticing for herself the incongruity of finding herself criticizing a three-star chef out loud…
The last minutes are unbreathable. “I'm as tense as they are,” whispers Gilles Goujon. But what a test, by God! » Final whistle, great team play, great solidarity, we could comment from the sidelines. But now the verdict.
In visual and taste, ex aequo. “It’s stunning, all the elements are there,” congratulates Krenzer. On the technical part, on the other hand, all points go to the Grays. Shirley is eliminated. Disappointed, she displays her determination: “It’s not a failure, to be here, it’s already incredible. It’s not the end, it’s the beginning.”