Celebrity MasterChef star Craig Doyle was brought to the brink of tears by a four-word critique from MasterChef judge John Torode. The 53-year-old, who is a familiar face on ITV's This Morning , took on the culinary challenge in the latest episode of the BBC hit show. He Competed against four other celebs: influencer Charlotte Crosby, presenter Edith Bowman, Steps member Ian 'H' Watkins and broadcaster Snoochie Shy.
For the first round the stars had five mystery ingredients to choose from, which were hidden under a cloche. They were tasked with creating a dish using the ingredient but they also had to make sure that it was the main focus of the meal. Craig was given sweetbread and despite his inexperience with the delicacy, he managed to wow judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace.
Craig felt the heat, confessing fears of everlasting ribbing if he fell flat: "If I don't do well here I'll get a hard time for years, on air they'll be talking about it," reports Wales Online . Gregg probed, "You've never cooked sweetbread before?" To which Craig admitted: "Never before." Gregg warned, his own fondness for the ingredient raising the stakes saying: "They are one of my favourites so don't mess it up.
" Craig felt the heat as he confessed: "That's a lot of pressure Gregg, that's pressure oh my word." Ultimately, Craig took the risky step to coat his sweetbreads in breadcrumbs and deep-fry them, pairing them with apple and fennel slaw and a punchy garlic and herb creme fraiche. Upon tasting the dish, Gregg couldn't hide his approval, stating, "Those sweetbreads are perfect.
You've got a crunchy inside there, you've got a lovely soft, perfectly cooked sweetbread. There's a little bit of citrus across the top and I think that's good." He continued with high praise: "Honestly sweetbread has got to be one of the scariest things to find under a cloche so really well done.
" John was also thoroughly impressed, declaring: "I love your slaw with fennel and apple in there, your sauce is herby and there is a good amount of garlic in there so it's really well done." He congratulated Craig and added: "No criticism at all." Emotions ran high for Craig, who confessed, "I did not expect that.
I loved what they said and I'm really buzzed about it." His efforts were duly recognised as he sailed into the next round, with Gregg even crowning him as the top chef in the room. MasterChef airs on BBC One and iPlayer at 8pm.
