John Torode took matters into his own hands during Thursday’s episode of Celebrity MasterChef when one contestant decided to leave their bench.
The moment occurred during the second episode of the series after Crosby and co-star Edith Bowman had been tasked with producing two identical lemon meringue pies with accompanying limoncello sauce.
“This next challenge is called the pair’s challenge and it’s gonna be a challenge of your ability to work as a team,” judge Gregg Wallace told the contestants. “Teamwork and communication!”
Crosby and Bowman were paired up while Ian ‘H’ Watkins and Craig Doyle formed another duo.
However, within moments of being paired together, it became clear there may be problems as Bowman admitted she’d never rustled up the dish before while Crosby chipped in: “Never had it, never tasted it, never made it – this could be a problem.”
The catch was that only Bowman had access to the recipe which meant Crosby would only be able to create the lemon meringue pie under her partner’s tutelage.
BBC Celebrity Masterchef: John Torode gave Charlotte Crosby a helping hand after she left the kitchen for the loo
BBC
But this was easier said than done as in one instance, Crosby yelled back: “I’ve accidentally done something bad… I’ve separated all the eggs.”
Torode and Wallace aired their concerns to BBC viewers, with the former telling the cameras: “Charlotte is being quite relaxed about the whole thing.”
And nothing quite exemplified just how laid back Crosby appeared about the task than when she decided to exit the kitchen altogether, telling the surrounding crew: “I might have to go to the toilet quick!”
“Take your thing off the heat!” Bowman ordered before Crosby harped back before making her exit: “I just put it on the non-heated pan.”
BBC Celebrity Masterchef: Edith Bowman struggled to communicate with Charlotte
BBC
With Crosby out of the room, Wallace edged towards Bowman to see how she was coping with the “responsibility” of having the recipe.
“It’s like being mum,” Bowman remarked to Wallace while his co-star Torode decided to intervene and give Crosby’s curd a stir back over the heat while she was AWOL.
In the MasterChef kitchen, it’s incredibly rare and even frowned upon by fans for judges to get involved with contestants’ dishes.
In this instance, Torode taking over Crosby’s creation could’ve put her and Bowman at an unfair advantage in comparison to Watkins and Doyle.
Eventually, Crosby returned and took over the stirring, prompting Torode to quip: “All yours.”
However, despite Torode bending the rules, Bowman and Crosby’s sweet treats failed to impress the judging duo.
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BBC Celebrity Masterchef: Charlotte Crosby soon took over after John intervened
BBC
“As you can see you have got two completely different meringues. Edith, your meringue has risen and it’s in peaks. And yours, Charlotte, is flat,” Torode analysed.
Tasting the tart, Torode praised: “Charlotte, you’ve got a lovely sharpness from your lemon curd.
“The pastry itself is nice and crisp and really nicely thin,” he added before dishing out his criticism: “Your syrup is not really a syrup. It’s warmed up limoncello.”
And the complaints kept coming, as Wallace pointed out: “The meringue, although you’ve got a crisp on the outside of it, it’s too soft in the middle. It’s raw egg white!”