John Torode and Gregg Wallace didn’t know where to look during Friday’s Celebrity MasterChef quarter-final when contestant Mutya Buena suffered an unfortunate error.
The Sugababes star joined makeup artist Dominic Skinner and BBC Strictly dancer Vito Coppola in the kitchen to see which of them would bag a spot in next week’s semis.
As is typical in the quarter-finals, the trio were tasked by Wallace and Torode to rustle up two courses for a handful of returning Celebrity MasterChef stars.
“What dishes have you got up your sleeve for the quarter-final?” Wallace quizzed Buena, to which she revealed: “So for my starters, I’ve got garlic prawns with mango salsa.
“My main will be barbecue salmon with coconut rice and salad,” she added, explaining: “I love fish. If I was stuck on an island, I could probably survive just on fish.”
Soon after, it was revealed Buena, Coppola and Skinner would be cooking for former finalists Mica Ven, Danny Jones, and Lisa Faulkner.
And Buena got off to a great start with the famous diners, with her prawn starter receiving plaudits all around.
“Great, (the sauce is) well-balanced, works well with the prawns. It’s a great starter,” Jones said while Ven and Faulkner also praised the dish.
However, there was scepticism from the get-go when Jones, Ven and Faulkner discovered her salmon main would be made with barbecue sauce.
“I don’t know about that,” Ven said before Faulkner echoed: “To have that with salmon which is quite delicate, it has to be a delicate barbecue sauce, doesn’t it?”
As the trio awaited their mains, Buena felt the pressure in the kitchen as she struggled to lift her salmon fillets off their tray in one piece.
“A little piece has come off there,” Buena commentated before she tried to transport it to the plate.
But the nerves got the better of her as the fish slipped from her fish-slice, plopping on the counter beside the plate.
“Oh!” Wallace and Torode bellowed before Buena keeled over and let out a frustrated scream.
However, Torode was keen to encourage Buena to get things back on track, assuring her she could continue given the salmon hadn’t hit the floor.
“You’re okay! You’re okay. We can do this, we can do this,” he implored. “Get that little bit there.”
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“That’s well rescued,” Wallace remarked after Buena finished plating up before she made her way to the dining room with the dishes.
Sadly, the barbecue salmon failed to set taste buds alight as all three celebrity diners admitted they weren’t bowled over by the sauce and texture of the fish.
Torode agreed, telling Wallace the salmon was overcooked and lacked sauce before his co-star slammed Buena’s “dull” side salad.
In the end, Buena’s culinary skills weren’t enough for her to secure a spot in the next stage of the competition.
But the singer remained in good spirits, telling the BBC cameras: “I’ve had such an amazing experience so I am not hurting, I’m not disappointed.
“This is further than I thought I was gonna get! I’m happy to go home and sing,” she signed off with a laugh.
