It was a battle for the ages, two of the competition's greatest chefs standing side-by-side, both representing South Australia, both placing 2nd in their original seasons, and both back to win the title that had eluded them in previous seasons.
Callum Hann and Laura Sharrad have both literally grown up in the MasterChef kitchen, first appearing in their original seasons when they were 19 and 18 respectively, and now they would be facing off in a showdown that felt like a full circle moment for the duo, as well as an homage to the sheer talent that the series has produced throughout the years.
"I think on the very first day of the competition we said to each other, how cool would it be if it was you and me right at the end?" Callum told 10, adding "and here we are!"
But it was a bittersweet moment, as Callum also knew that this would likely be the final time both he and Laura would be competing in the kitchen in this way.
"There's an element of sadness to it just because it's been a really big part of my life," he explained. "I really enjoyed how much the competition has got the best out of me, how much it has pushed me and there's that little sense of knowing that I might not cook there again.
"At the same time, I'm really proud and excited to have gotten all the way to the end of the competition when there have been so many other good cooks I competed against."
Tuesday night's grand finale was made up of two rounds, the first saw the chefs cook using a classic flavour pairing where they could create a dish of their choosing so long as it featured potato and rosemary. Taking a risk, Callum served the judges a one-bite oyster dish, with edible oyster shells.
In a nail-biting twist, the pair received the same scores from the judges, and with both of them on 38 out of 40 points, it all came down to the final pressure test.
"I was super happy with my dish in round one, purely from a competition sense," Callum said. "Laura did such an incredible dish with her dish so it felt right going neck-and-neck into the final challenge.
"I think, throughout the whole competition, she and I had been so evenly matched that it felt the finale tiebreaker should be something that feels like it could be anyone's game," he continued.
"We said to each other, let's push each other. Let's make sure that we make this the best damn final that's ever been in this competition, and I feel like that's what we did."
Welcoming pastry chef Miko Aspiras to the kitchen, the judges revealed that Laura and Callum would have four and a half hours to recreate his Botanical Garden, a floral arrangement of petits fours. With a whopping 149 steps to the recipe, the chefs would need to have laser focus and precision when it came to serving up an identical version of Miko's dish.
"I don't know anything about flowers if I'm honest so I was very intimidated because I was like, I hope I don't need to know things about foliage and flowers, it's not a strength," Callum laughed.
"It felt like a dish that was fitting for the finale because it was so complex and there were so many different components and elements," he added.
"To have to really concentrate on grams, reading every word in the method to make sure you're not stuffing something up, getting your hands right and not cracking the game of Jenga that is the flower pot. It was definitely a marathon, not a sprint."
Hoping to work slowly, steadily, and methodically, Callum wanted to make sure every element was perfect so it would only need to be executed once. But as time began to tick down, he had to rush some of his final elements to make sure they all made it onto the dish. When the time finally ran out and the challenge was officially over, he was overwhelmed with emotion.
"I think it was 15 years of being in the kitchen, growing up in that kitchen and knowing that I'm probably never going to cook in there again. Having my wife and kids watching me. Doing it alongside Laura who's a mate and... I just think there were so many emotions it all just came pouring out," Callum said.
"I guess I had been holding it in the whole competition, for months as we went through all these different challenges, and right at the end I had done all I could, and given my best show. Now it was just over to the judges."
As the judges tallied up the final scores, Callum scored a total of 73 overall, just missing out on the top spot by Laura who scored a total of 80.
"I always knew Laura was going to be an incredibly tough contestant to beat, she was the only one from day one that I was 'worried about', she was the one that I was like, how am I going to beat her?
"Like any competition, if you want to be the best you gotta beat the best, and I do feel like the different challenges, how gruelling it is and all the different ways that the judges test you, I do think that the right handful of people got right to the pointy end of the competition so it sort of felt right.
"Obviously I would have loved to have gone one step further but I feel very proud of how it all transpired," he added.
Callum laughed when asked if he thought he could ever see himself as a contestant again in future seasons of MasterChef.
"I said no last time someone asked me that question a few years ago and look where we are now!
"I hope that the judges call me back sometime to maybe set a challenge or be a guest judge or something like that but I think one of the great things about MasterChef is getting to know new contestants, watching their stories flourish and evolve and seeing what they get up to after the competition.
"I think I've had a really wonderful run with MasterChef, but I think it's probably time for some other contestants to give it a go."
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