Last night, MasterChef brought back the old cook-along challenge, which is not nearly as fun as it sounds – at least not for the contestants, anyway.

To escape elimination, Callum, Sarah and Lynton must keep the pace with Gordon Ramsay as he prepares a rather fiddly potato-crusted Murray cod with vegetable minestrone and macadamia puree.

The cook kicks off with Gordon Ramsay attempting a Guinness World Record for the fastest filleted fish. After vowing that she wouldn’t fall behind, Sarah quickly falls behind. Somehow, Lynton is able to stay cool, calm and collected, while Callum tries a different approach entirely, and goes all-out-headless-chook.

By the end, Sarah’s sculling warm cooking wine from a measuring cup – and us too, Sarah, us too.

The three judges give Sarah, Lynton and Callum a hearty congratulation for their efforts before exiting to a side room to reveal what they really think.

Turns out, Lynton’s minestrone was undercooked while Sarah’s fish was overdone. Meanwhile, poor Callum’s cod had a bone in it – a crime so heinous they cut to an ad break.

Despite his somewhat fishy presentation, Callum takes out the win for his beautifully executed elements, and we’re glad to see all that flapping about paid off.

The episode ends with a parting gift from Gordon – and no, it’s not the finger. He entrusts Melissa with a little wrapped present, a Mystery Box if you will, to open on Sunday. Or, you could just wait until the next ad break when they give the contents away.

Relevant food stories: MasterChef recap episode 2: Screamy, sweary Gordon returns

MasterChef recap episode 3: Finally, the warm tuck in we all needed