‘Mind-bending’ challenge ahead in new series of MasterChef

MasterChef: The Professionals will return with a “mind-bending” new task that will challenge the contestants to make ordinary ingredients – including the humble potato – into something extraordinary.

The new series will air later this autumn with Michelinstarred chef Marcus Wareing, acclaimed chef Monica Galetti and MasterChef judge Gregg Wallace presiding over the 48 chefs battling it out to win the title of Professional MasterChef Champion 2018.

Along with the programme’s established challenges those strong enough to make the quarter-finals will also face the new task.

The contestants will have to invent a special dish based around a special key ingredient chosen by Wareing and Galetti.

Galetti said: “They’re given a range of beautiful ingredients to work with, but the skill is to take an ordinary ingredient, like a potato, or eggs, and make an extraordinary dish that elevates the key ingredient to centre stage.”

Wareing said: “It was fascinating because we chose one ingredient such as vanilla and it’s got to be centre point of the dish, so it’s working everything out around that and it being the stand out flavour. I think they were all quite surprised at how simple it sounded but how complicated it could be.”

Wareing chose potato and vanilla, while Galetti put the professional chefs to the test with coconut and eggs.

Wareing said some of the contestants found the task “mind-bending”, adding: “It was unusually different, and it was one I wanted to do as I always felt chefs put things on menus, so you can put vanilla in the title of a dish but you may never see it