Beloved MasterChef Australia veteran Snezana ‘Snez’ Calic had to hang up her apron on Sunday.

The 40-year-old from Victoria, who first appeared on season 16 of the cooking competition, faced a 90-minute cooking challenge alongside the six other survivors of the Back to Win season.

But after a disastrous first round when her aioli failed to come together, Snez suffered from a lack of time.

After serving up a mushroom ragu with polenta, the judges were left unimpressed.

Judge Andy Allen complained that the pine mushrooms were dry.

Beloved MasterChef Australia veteran Snezana ‘Snez’ Calic (pictured) had to hang up her apron on Sunday

After serving up a mushroom ragu with polenta, the judges were left unimpressed

‘That impacted the taste and the textures,’ he said as he announced that it was Snez the judges had decided to send home.

He continued, ‘And in the end, the lack of time showed on the plate.’

‘I just wanted to survive day one,’ an emotional Snez said, adding, ‘how did Imake it to the final six.’

She later reflected on her experience and said she was happy with how it went, despite being eliminated before reaching the top five.

‘I felt so good, even though I was eliminated, I felt good,’ the chef told Ten. 

‘I achieved a lot, I cooked with these legends, and I really, genuinely appreciate the judges. It was such an emotional moment and I’m so, so happy about it.’

Last Sunday night, season three’s Alana Lowes cooked her final dish in the Doha kitchen as she went head-to-head with Snezana, Laura Cassai and Sarah Todd in a ‘dual duel’.

The cook-off paired contestants together to battle it out against their opponent, cooking with the same main ingredient in a heated elimination challenge.

Judge Andy Allen (pictured) complained that the pine mushrooms were dry

‘I felt so good, even though I was eliminated, I felt good,’ the chef told Ten

The least impressive dish in each duo sent its chef onto the second round, fighting it out again for a place in next week’s lineup.

The challenge placed the contestants literally in a face-off showdown behind benches that were set up opposite each other, upping the tension in the kitchen.

Speaking to Ten of her elimination, Alana said that her second time around in the MasterChef kitchen was filled with food, fun and, above all, fierce friendships, especially with fellow participant Snezana.

‘I felt like this was a second opportunity to get into this kitchen and just really have fun with it, enjoy every moment,’ she said.

‘I would have loved to have gone further, but I just feel so satisfied with what I achieved and the dishes that the judges absolutely raved about,’ she added.