Guest chef Luke Nguyen arrived to set a MasterChef classic for the all-in elimination, each chef was randomly assigned a station that featured an ingredient they could see, and one under a cloche.
One by one, the chefs could decide if they wanted to cook with the ingredient they could see, or gamble on the one under the cloche. They would then have 75 minutes to cook any dish featuring that ingredient. The five dishes that failed to impress the judges would head into round two, where they’d have no choice but to use the ingredient they did not pick in the first round.
For Juan, whose visible ingredient was salted soybeans, it was an easy decision to gamble and use whatever was under the cloche and, with luck on his side, the judges revealed his hidden ingredient to be limes.
But with so much going on, Juan revealed that he was so focused on what ingredient he’d be cooking with in the first round, that he misunderstood the brief and assumed the goal was to also cook something inspired by Luke and his love of Vietnamese cuisine.
“I couldn’t get out of my head of how am I going to bring Vietnamese flavours to my dish,” Juan told 10 Play. “I never paid attention to the actual challenge, that it wasn’t Vietnamese, it was ingredients. So, in the end, [I was] trying to fit Vietnamese into Latin cooking and I got really stressed with all that in my head.
“My head went straight to, okay I’m going to have to bring my Vietnamese flavours, but I don’t have Vietnamese flavours,” Juan said, laughing. “It played against me. I probably stopped listening when I started thinking about what am I going to do, how can I adapt what I normally do into a Vietnamese dish?
“It ended up being not what I wanted to do in the end,” he added.
Drawing limes in the first round, Juan was thrilled and hoped to do a fusion dish of tuna ceviche served in mini tacos. But the dough for the shells didn’t come together, and his ceviche didn’t highlight the key ingredient enough.
“It wasn’t until the end of my execution [that] I thought a few elements weren’t totally right,” Juan said. It was only then that he began to brainstorm ways he may have to use the salted soybeans, an ingredient he was a lot less familiar with.
“When I jumped into the second round I was stressed. I went to my happy place and cooked something that was comfortable for me — in this case, empanadas.”
In the first round, Juan attempted to wow Luke and the judges with his take on Vietnamese flavours, but falling short his next plan was to showcase his Argentinian heritage.
“Trying to incorporate an ingredient I never use, and trying to balance it out, I got comments from Andy and Poh telling me to be careful because the balance of the beans is really hard to sustain,” he said. “I was happy with the idea and the execution, I think the flavours were there but I never got to try all the elements together.”
His empanadas looked perfect, as always, but the flavours of the filling were sadly lacking, and in an attempt to balance out the salted soybeans, Juan had made his filling overly sweet, sadly ending his time in the competition.
“In my head I was prepared for it,” he said of the moment the judges eliminated him. “I was kind of at peace with leaving. Steve is one of my best friends and I didn’t want him to go, at the same time I felt this magical bubble exploding.
“The second they said my name, I got emotional because I was loving it. I just loved this journey so much. It’s been nothing but beautiful times, beautiful memories, experiences, road trips, and meeting insanely beautiful people.”
Throughout the whole competition, Juan was a ray of sunshine, his smile radiating throughout the kitchen regardless of what the judges threw at him.
“I’m a positive person,” he laughed. “I see the good in every situation! I try to, at least. And I like to smile because I think that when you smile to someone, that person is more likely to smile back and you’re going to have an excellent energy happening in that moment in time.
“I learned, since I was a kid, smile at people and they give me back a smile, and it’s lovely. It’s lovely to bring happiness.”
One of nine children, growing up Juan had serious asthma which meant he wasn’t able to play outside as much as his siblings. So, he found himself in the kitchen alongside his mum, becoming her official kitchenhand and taste-tester. Now, having settled in Australia, cooking is one way Juan can connect to his home and family.
“Any opportunity we have with Argentinian friends we cook a BBQ with empanadas and all the sweets we can get a hold of from Argentina,” he said.
“That’s one of the highlights of my whole time in the kitchen, to be able to show my culture to the whole of Australia and get so much love from Argentinians, saying thank you for representing us.
“It’s been an honour and a pleasure and it has been so satisfying to see the faces of the judges, even Jamie Oliver, when they try my food,” Juan continued. “It’s been one of the best times in my life, one of the best moments.”
Juan said he had a long list of all his favourite moments from the competition, but ultimately it came down to the times he was standing behind his bench, doing what he loves. “In my head it’s all music, I’m dancing and I’m feeling the ingredients, smelling and everything is coming together.
“That moment is called happiness. For me, that second in time when I’m looking around and I cannot believe I’m in the MasterChef kitchen, that’s really the moment. I enjoyed it every time I was in that kitchen.
“MasterChef was the perfect combination of everything that I like, plus the opportunity to showcase the food that I love, and the food I want to bring into people’s homes,” he continued.
Since wrapping up his time in the kitchen, Juan has committed to his plans to release recipes inspired not only by his Argentinian roots, but also his travels all across the world.
“Two years ago I found out my girlfriend is celiac, so I had to change my whole kitchen to create a totally gluten-free environment,” Juan explained. “Since then, gluten has not touched my house and I’ve been cooking non-stop recipes, creating new dishes with gluten-free alternatives.
“My whole plan now is to share all those recipes through my Instagram channel, promoting Argentinian, Latin and worldwide food — but gluten free versions,” he said.
“I’m so happy with all the love I got from people, it’s insane the amount of messages I get from Australians and Argentinians,” Juan said. “Bringing Argentina to Australia is a dream come true. Joining y two countries, my two loves in one, has been a pleasure.”
MasterChef Australia continues Sunday - Thursday at 7.30 on 10 and 10 Play
