My Kitchen Rules 2022: The touching story behind ‘knockout’ dish

A touching story left the cast of My Kitchen Rules in tears on Wednesday night’s episode of the Channel Seven hit series.

Contestants Janelle and Monzir had just plated up an entrée of Sudanese lamb cutlets that impressed judges Nigella Lawson and Manu Feildel.

The couple used a special family recipe that was a creation of Monzir’s father, who had survived a serious heart attack.

The 26-year-old, originally from the Sudan, began to tear up as he told the story behind the delicious dish, which Nigella described as ‘a knockout.’

‘You got so much flavour,’ Nigella gushed over the cutlets, which were served with peanut sauce and cucumber salad. 

‘And the texture was so luscious,’ she added with a smile. 

‘That means a lot to me,’ Monzir responded, adding that he was ‘over the moon’ about the feedback.

Janelle and Monzir had just plated up an entrée of Sudanese lamb cutlets that impressed judges Nigella Lawson (pictured) and Manu Feildel

He explained that his dad was the only person in Australia who could make the dish, since it was a secret family recipe.

Manu was just as impressed with Monzir and Janelle’s effort, saying it exceeded his already high expectations.

Unfortunately, the couple could not match the success of their entrée with their main dish, Imam Bayild, which is aubergines stuffed with onion, garlic and tomatoes.

Monzir had used a special family recipe that was a creation of his father, who had survived a serious heart attack

The teams agreed with the judges who said that the dish was lacking in flavour. 

Nigella found time to lavish some praise on the couple’s rice, describing it as a ‘dream’.  

‘It was soft; the grains were wonderfully separate. The pine nuts are wonderful and that light taste of stock,’ the celebrity cook said.

Manu was impressed with Monzir and Janelle’s effort, saying it exceeded his already high expectations

Meanwhile, the MKR reboot has so far been a modest success in the ratings.

The heavily rejigged series, which promised audiences ‘real food and real people’, was unable to compete with the two other reality series debuting on Sunday: Nine’s The Block and 10’s The Masked Singer.

Just over 500,000 viewers across metro cities tuned into MKR.

Sunday was the first time MKR had aired since 2020, when it was rested due to a combination of declining ratings and controversy caused by its outspoken judge Pete Evans.

Meanwhile, the MKR reboot has so far been a modest success in the ratings