MasterChef favourite hits back after fan backlash

The new season of MasterChef has been called ‘The Poh Show’ with viewers left on the edge of their seats with how the fan favourite appears to be struggling to get her dishes finished on time.

Fans took to social media on Monday night to vent their frustrations, with one person saying Poh had stressed them “TF out” and another said the South Australian “frustrated” them by playing with fire when it came to the cooking deadlines.

But now the season one runner-up has hit back at the criticism on her Instagram account, putting angry viewers back in their place.

The 47-year-old uploaded a snap of her pressure test challenge dish, a stout beef pie with blue cheese crust, to her page.

Alongside the snap she wrote: “To answer those who ask why I keep pushing it with my time limits? Simple - it’s why I came back on the show - to see what’s possible.”

The fan backlash over Poh’s ‘stressed out’ cooking methods came just after others slammed the preferential treatment some of the contestants have been receiving from the judges.

Many were quick to clarify it was the judges’ treatment and not the returning star, they had an issue with.

“Are the judges contractually obligated to heap high praises on Poh’s every dish?” one woman wondered. “She’s alright as a person, but it’s starting to get old, and it’s only been a few weeks!”

Others worried the show was becoming the ‘Poh show’ and that other contestants are unfairly missing out on screen time.

“Too much of the show focussed on her,” one fan wrote. “So many other more interesting contestants.”

Poh isn’t the only contestant to have spoken out after coming up against fan backlash.

Hayden Quinn took to his Twitter account to hit back after he was slammed for using chips straight out of the cupboard and avoiding elimination on Sunday.

Ben was eliminated on Sunday night and Harry was shown the door last night, with many fans left scratching their heads at how Hayden had dodged the judges wrath for another night.

“Harry got screwed! Hayden first used chips out of a bag last week, and now a chocolate bar as a 'Pressure Test' / 'Wow us!' Dish? That was not even close to Wow! And is definitely not MasterChef material,” one person wrote on Twitter.

“Hayden safe with a packet of chips and a bar of chocolate. That’s the epitome of safe,” another person wrote.

“Hayden does the bare minimum and is somehow still there. Nachos with store chips, now one violet crumble in 2 hours,” a fan of the show wrote.

Hayden didn’t take the criticism lying down, taking to his Twitter to say: “You don't want chips out of a packet, don't put them in the pantry

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