A former contestant has shared an insight into the show’s strict hygiene rules.

MasterChef fans called out an odd detail in Tuesday night’s episode. Photos: Channel 10

MasterChef fans spotted an odd detail in Tuesday night’s episode as four contestants took part in a service immunity challenge at acclaimed Melbourne restaurant Vue De Monde. Callum Hann, Ben Macdonald, Laura Sharrad, and Depinder Chhibber were each assigned a course with a special ingredient for 15 VIP guests, under the guidance of Executive Chef Hugh Allen.

While viewers were impressed by how the contestants used their ingredients, which included wasabi leaf, giant kelp, golden beetroot, and green ants, many took to social media to complain about a contestant’s “unhygienic” act. At multiple points in the episode, both Laura and Hugh were shown blowing flames off her wagyu steaks as they cooked on the hibachi.

“What’s with Laura blowing all over the steak?” one person commented, while another added, “Agree. Thought it odd no one said not to, then along comes Hugh and does the same”.

“Laura stop blowing on food,” a third urged, followed by someone else who said, “Hugh did same thing. Just wrong”.

“All that saliva Laura is blowing over those Wagyu cubes,” a different user replied, with another writing, “I was thinking that too!”.

“I’m not eating anything that the chef has continually blown over. That’s a no-no, and I’m surprised nothing was said to Laura. But then Hugh blew over it too. Yuck,” a viewer remarked. “No way would I order a $150 steak that someone just spat all over.”

Laura Sharrad and Hugh Allen were both shown blowing flames off her wagyu steaks. Photos: Channel 10

Surprising hygiene rules during filming

2024 contestant Sumeet Saigal tells Yahoo Lifestyle that despite what viewers might think, there are some “pretty specific rules” on MasterChef regarding hygiene.

“You’re always briefed about hygiene and you’re always reminded, ‘No double dipping, no using spoons again, make sure anything that falls on the ground goes in the bin’,” she details. “Yes, you may have a slip-up now and again. But the thing is, when you compare what happens on the show versus what people don’t see happen in commercial kitchens, you’re looking at a pretty safe environment.”

Food safety team working behind the scenes

Sumeet, who is currently working on her own line of sauces to be released at the end of the year, adds that the show employs a large team of people to monitor food safety behind the scenes.

“We actually have very active food teams that stand along the side. So you don’t see them, but every bench has got a representative of the food team that stands watching this stuff,” she continues. “So they’re constantly watching to see that you’re not double dipping and anything that falls on the floor is picked up and thrown in the bin, because food hygiene is a very big part of it.

“Even things like meat temperatures when you’re doing service challenges, after the clock goes off, people come around and check the meat temperature. It’s very deeply and very seriously considered in the MasterChef kitchen, including washing hands before we start the cook.”

Theo Loizou tasted his purée and then put the same spoon back into the pot. Photo: Channel 10

Contestant caught breaking major rule

This comes shortly after Theo Loizou was caught licking a spoon and continued using it during a Mystery Box Challenge earlier this season. Fans took to social media to call out the cook, who finished fourth in season 15, and describe it as “the biggest ick”.

“Totally fine if you’re only cooking for yourself, but not if you’re going to serve the food to others. I really don’t want someone else’s saliva in the food I’m going to eat, that’s disgusting and unhygienic and a potential health risk,” one person wrote.

“This is one of the things I notice every year that I assume is just due to not many of them having ever worked in a real restaurant,” another added. “Chefs usually have a jar of spoons at their work station for testing, each spoon gets used once and then goes in a container of water and over to the dishwashing station when full.”