A Marion County firefighter’s son has advanced to the final four contestants of MasterChef Junior after winning an all-expenses-paid vacation to Mexico for his family and immunity from elimination during this week’s episode.
Michael Seegobin continues to shine on the show, which airs on Fox on Mondays. During the April 29 broadcast of the show, the five remaining chefs were challenged to “time travel” back to the first week of the competition and recreate their first dishes.
Seegobin crafted an upscale version of his signature dish from week one, a blackened shrimp and pesto linguine. This time around, the young chef made shrimp tortellini, crafting the pasta by hand. The dish featured tortellini filled with shrimp, garlic, and ricotta cheese, as well as a white wine cream sauce, blanched tomatoes, and a basil oil.
During the judges’ review of his dish, chef Gordon Ramsay called Seegobin’s dish “visually stunning.” He commented on the care the young chef took to put together the dish, suggesting it was as though Seegobin was “performing surgery on a plate.”
Tilly Ramsay,head chef Gordon Ramsay’s daughter and fellow judge on the show, said Seegobin’s dish looked better than “half the dishes that come out of my dad’s restaurant.”
After tasting the dish, Gordon said it was “so good” and that he loved all its various elements. Tilly indicated that it bore the same flavor profiles as Michael’s first dish, but in a more “inventive” way.
“In this dish, I can taste everything that I tasted seven weeks ago in a very creative and more inventive way,” said Tilly. “Seven weeks ago you were using store-bought pasta and now here you are making it yourself.”
After the judges tasted all of the other dishes, Seegobin was declared the winner of the challenge. In addition to earning immunity from elimination and a guaranteed spot in the final four, Seegobin also claimed an all-expenses-paid trip for he and his family to Paradisus Playa del Carmen in Mexico.
“I’m moving on to the semifinals, I’m feeling really good about that,” said Michael after claiming victory and immunity from elimination. “I definitely feel like I got this and I can definitely win MasterChef Junior.”
With yet another victory in one of the weekly challenges, Michael now moves one step closer to winning the show and claiming the $100,000 grand prize.
Although he was among 12 contestants who were selected from hundreds of applicants for the competition, each week, Seegobin has excelled above his competition, crafting dishes that are incredibly complex, aesthetically beautiful, and delicious.
Seegobin is the son of Deen Seegobin, a 21-year Marion County Fire Rescue veteran. In recent weeks, the young chef has stopped off at MCFR Station 27 in Weirsdale where his dad works to make meals for the crew.
To watch Michael Seegobin and support him on his journey to win the show, tune into the next episode of MasterChef Junior on Fox on Monday at 8 p.m.