Marija Bilić left the MasterChef competition in the episode broadcast on 28 October. Her departure brought a new twist to the ninth season of the culinary contest, with the remaining contestants facing new challenges and a fight for victory.
Five candidates competed in the stress test for survival: Dominik, Nensi, Franka, Jakov and Marija. Dominik and Nensi successfully completed their egg-based tasks, securing their place in the competition, while the remaining three candidates had to replicate a dish by Ivan Temšić, the winner of the fourth season of MasterChef.
They were tasked with recreating his version of ceviche, a raw fish dish, for which they had 70 minutes. Marija did not hide her insecurity about preparing raw fish from the start, and she received support from the gallery from Monika, who at one point could not hold back her tears.
Franka was the most successful in the challenge, with the jury judging her dish to be closest to the original. The final decision came down to Jakov and Marija. Marija's dish tasted better than it looked, but it was missing several key components, leading the jury to conclude that Jakov had prepared the more successful plate.
Marija accepted her elimination calmly. "I am not surprised, I knew I was leaving," she said, adding that she was not sad about her departure because she believed the other candidates had cooked better this time.
