Last night, the first My Kitchen Rules semi-final Cook Off of the season stormed our screens and thrilled, stressed and inspired, all at the same time.

With Kim & Pashi and Maj & Joleen watching from the sidelines, Donald & Luyanda and Rox & Spoen picked up their pots and pans and went to war over a spot in the MKRSA final and the chance to win a cool R1 million.

Before the dicing could even begin, J’Something and David Higgs introduced our teams to a stellar ensemble of world-renowned chefs, who would be joining the judging panel. The pressure!

Great expectations

With introductions done and dusted, it was time to get cooking. Menu choices for the three course showdown were made – and from the start, everything looked hectic, but promising.

Then the starters came out...

Our judging panel minced no words with their critique of the starters and the general consensus was the starters were a bit overconfident and leaned on the heavy-ish side.

The drama goes into overdrive

The drama that characterized the mains preps almost made all our hearts stop. Rox and Spoen forgot to sear their lamb and then to compound matters, with only 10 minutes to go, the country sisters realised they were about to serve raw meat. A quick plan to pan-fry was made, but by then, we were all almost in cardiac arrest.

Dessert preps proved to be equally as disastrous, this time for Luyanda and Donald.

Then when the time came for our judges to reveal the overall scores, the TL broke into raucous celebration.

We obviously cried and cried when Donald and Luyanda were Eliminated

No matter the result, we’re all super proud of our teams for giving it their all!

Next Sunday, Maj & Joleen and Kim & Pashi go head-to-head for a spot in the #MKRSA Season 2 final. Don't miss it!

Watch exclusive interviews with our judges and contestants here. Follow all the breaking news and conversations around the show on Twitter @MNet / #MKRSA or on the official M-Net Facebook page.