Episode 11: Chef Miraj stuns the kitchen

Chef Miraj's entry as the special guest judge to the Rupchanda-The Daily Star Super Chef kitchen brought out an electrifying atmosphere which hung thick in the air. The veteran chef with 5-star fame would present a cooking demonstration after which the participants would have to recreate the dish prepared. By now, the participants fully understood what a cooking demonstration would entail. However, this demonstration would be very different and completely unexpected.

Chef Miraj strode to his place in the centre of the kitchen, the participants applauding his arrival while anxiously glancing at his table, trying to figure out what they would be making. They knew that even a one minute heads-up would prove to be extremely valuable. According to the Super Chef judges, the key to being a Super Chef is developing the right state of mind, and being ready for absolutely anything. Those who had taken this advice to heart the night before would understand its significance tonight. Chef Miraj had no intention of showing them how to make the dish. He was going to be telling them and verbal instructions of such complexity would only be understood by those with ample experience in the kitchen. The rest could only hope for the best.

The challenge was to recreate Chef Miraj's stuffed chicken breast with herb's crust blanket. Chef Miraj dove into the explanation of this intricate dish while the participants desperately took notes. Chef Miraj did not even provide the usage of the ingredients but the participants had to go by taste only. A 45-minute time was then set and off they went. Ayesha Ershad Bipasha, a housewife from Dhaka, took to the task like fish to water. She deftly negotiated the many twists without skipping a beat. It was evident that this something she was really good at. 

“I have been catering on a small scale so I could adapt. I had never made this dish before but I tasted it and then among 40 or so ingredients, I chose the best 30 to make the dish,” Ayesha remembers with a fondness nurtured from her days in the Super Chef kitchen. So how good was Ayesha's dish? Chef Miraj famously described it as being just like the one he had prepared and this was indeed shocking. Imagine tasting a spoon of something and just hearing a little about the process of making it and then recreating it, in its entirety. Yesterday, Ayesha Ershad shone and for that she was rewarded. 23-year old Farhana Bithi, however, was not successful. The MBA student from Chittagong bid farewell but vowed to return someday again.

The participants, however, get no time to rest. Tonight, they return to ntv sharp at 9pm, this time taking on the traditional dessert of preference, pitha. Sounds easy enough but if there's one thing we have learned from the last episode, nothing in the Super Chef kitchen comes easy. To find out what happens, tune it tonight!