In the last heat of the competition, the final six chefs enter the MasterChef kitchen to face the skills test, the first vital step to becoming the MasterChef: The Professionals Champion 2018. Under the judges' steely gaze, the chefs have to show they have the true grit and pure talent to mark them out as a future star. The contestants will be hoping to sweeten the judges with their take on Marcus's dish of caramelised pineapple with a caramel nut garnish. Monica, Gregg and Marcus scrutinise the chefs' skills as they pare down the pineapple and aim for the perfect flavour in their fruit caramel dessert. Temperatures, timings and impeccable prep are all on show in this test.

When the last three chefs step in for Monica's test, they are faced with chicken carcasses, which form the basis of the dish they have 15 minutes to cook, glazed chicken oysters with pomme puree. The chefs need to butcher the carcasses down further to locate the 'oysters', before they can cook and glaze the meat, whilst also whipping up a perfect smooth buttery pomme puree to the judges delight or distaste.

Next, all six chefs must complete the signature dish round, in which they showcase their cooking style and creativity using their very own recipes. Everything rides on how they perform under the intense pressure of this round. The surviving three chefs move on to battle it out for another day in the last of the quarter-finals.

It is knockout week on MasterChef: The Professionals. MasterChef presenter Gregg Wallace teams up with two of Britain's leading chefs - Michelin-starred Marcus Wareing and Monica Galetti. The kitchen is heating up as the judges' hunt for the country's next culinary superstar. After four weeks of intense competition, the 12 most talented chefs remain from the initial 48. Tonight, for the first time they all come together in the MasterChef kitchen, where their fate rests in an almighty cook-off.

The first challenge for the 12 chefs is to cook against each other in the most intense invention test of the competition. They need to impress the three judges with one spectacular plate of food created from a heaving table of fresh sweet and savoury ingredients. But Monica and Marcus have raised the bar a little higher and challenge the chefs to the max by removing all the modern kitchen gadgets from the MasterChef kitchen. In the absence of a sous-vide or water bath, the emphasis is on classic cooking skills - plain and simple. With two hours and 15 minutes to create an innovative plate of exquisite food, they must seize this opportunity to make an impact on the judges. Only eight chefs will be guaranteed to move onto the next round.

The weakest four need to dust themselves off and cook-off again against each other. In the cook-off round, the four remaining chefs have their final chance to showcase their talents to Marcus, Monica and Gregg and save themselves from being sent home. With one hour to create one perfect dish, it is time for the chefs to dig deep and muster their culinary magic and convince the judges they deserve to continue in the competition. For two chefs, it is the end of the road and they are sent home. The best two chefs from this round join the other eight and continue their quest to raise the MasterChef: The Professionals 2018 trophy.