MasterChef India Season 7 Episode 2 Review: Passion and Simplicity Wins Over the Judges

MasterChef India Season 7 Episode 2 continues the auditions for the cooking reality show, which gives aspiring home cooks a chance to show off their talent on the silver screen and make a name for themselves. Returning as judges Vikas Khanna and Ranveer Brar are joined by Garima Arora, the first-ever female chef to be a judge on the show.

The second episode is titled ‘Home Cooks Ka Passion’ and the synopsis reads as – A nationwide quest to find the best ‘home cook’ draws out some of the most brilliant chefs from across India. The judges sample recipes from various cuisines that the contestants prepare in their search for India’s ‘MasterChef’. The show is produced by Endemol Shine India and it is directed by Neeraj Shetty.

-MasterChef India Season 7 Episode 2 Review and Recap Contains Spoilers-

The episode starts off with Judge chef Vikas Khanna travelling to Tinsukia Assam to meet a social media creator named Nayanjyoti who creates outstanding dishes right from his bedroom. Appealed by the visuals, Chef goes to his home to get him on the show by asking permission from his dad, who is opposed to it.

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Coming to the auditions Nayanjyoti brought Choux au Craquelin, which was made of milk chocolate ganache with lime curd filling and dry chocolate cake. The start of the show with the dessert was indeed a good start when chef Vikas exclaimed – Passion is everything. As the contestant’s passion for cooking brought him to the show.

The second contestant brought Madurai on a plate, Aruna Vijay who is researching Tamil Nadu’s micro cuisine, presented French dessert inspired Jigarthanda panna cotta and kuttu parotta dumplings with empty salna. Judges were impressed with her presentation and wished to bring the Madurai street food to the show by giving her an apron.

The third contestant on the show was Deepa Chauhar from Bangalore who brought traditional Sindhi food for the auditions. It included Sindhi Kadhi Chawal and aaloo (potato) tuk, garnished with lady finger and lotus stem chips. She also shared her family history and the story of immigration, taking along their culture where ever they go.

The judges complimented her dish for the balance of flavours from salt to sour and bitter. Also, how she used textures from soft to crisp chips, added to the overall experience. She went back with a MasterChef apron and a proud heart. After this, the judges commented how they are getting dishes from all cultures here in Hyderabad, yet the famous biryani is to come.

Lo and behold, the next contestant brings in the famous Hyderabadi biryani, made from a recipe that has been passed down from four generations and secret ingredients. Instead of bringing in just a plate full of biryani, Sayed Ajmal Ullah decided to bring the whole pot for the judges and scooped out a plate full, in front of them.

Judges were concerned that what else will he bring apart from biryani but he assured them of his capabilities and thus took away an apron with him. Lastly, the fifth contestant of the episode, Suvarna Vijay Bagul came with the Sunday special Maharashtrian Thali which is a staple menu in her household.

It consisted of at least 10-12 dishes ranging from vegetables to chicken delicacies. She learnt to cook by watching judges and couldn’t hold back her tears when she realised that they are right in front of her. Without wasting much time, the judges also said a big yes to her which brought a smile to her face.

Final Thoughts: MasterChef India Season 7 Episode 2

The episode continued another round of auditioning and showed all the contestants that made it to the show. However, I feel like they need to show the contestants that didn’t make it as well. Also in terms of editing it feels like jumping from one scene to another without a proper flow or transition. I believe there are many awkward moments but that’s the creator’s job to make it look like smooth sailing.

I wish they would elaborate on the dishes and how they are made, what makes them so good etc instead of the emotional backstory that takes half of the time. I would like to learn about food and cooking rather than watch a melodrama.

MasterChef India Season 7 is currently streaming on SonyLIV and a new episode will be released from Monday to Friday at 9 PM.

Also Read: Check Out All of Our MasterChef India Season 7 Reviews