Apl.de.Ap advances in ‘Celebrity MasterChef,’ but fans aren’t having it

Fil-Am rapper Apl.de.Ap’s baked potato with goat’s cheese on “Celebrity Masterchef” has fans and viewers divided | Photo from Stuart/Twitter

Every potato has a story, and for Filipino-American rapper Apl.de.Ap (whose real name is Allan Pineda Lindo), his starchy tuber came with an interesting plot twist.

Challenged to come up with a dish using goat’s cheese, he initially mistook the key ingredient as a block of butter—before stuffing it into the potato with bacon and mushroom, baking it, and serving it to the judges.

Which then drew the ire of televiewers.

“A baked potato? He’s cooked a baked potato?” one viewer vented. Someone even ranted that he “didn’t even make a side of beans with his baked potato.”

And another didn’t hold back: “It’s a baked potato… they are talking like he grew it himself and then cooked it.”

Apl de Ap’s baked potato for MasterChef UK | Photo from BBC

All of that didn’t matter though as the 48-year-old Black Eyed Peas member advanced to the next round in ‘spud-tucular’ fashion after the judges fawned over his jacket potato.

Potato power and praise galore

“Your choice of the ingredients is absolutely sound. That sticky goats’ cheese is tangy, it’s sour, and then with salty bacon, it’s a marriage made in heaven,” said MasterChef judge Greg Wallace. John Torode also praised his baked potato for its “great textures as well as really good flavor.”

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Amid the aforementioned criticisms and social media backlash after the judges sent “Strictly Come Dancing” star Dianne Buswell home, there were a select few who saw this moment differently.

“There is hope for me and my culinary skills yet,” said one, while another was “wondering if we’re ready for MasterChef’” after having “baked potatoes for dinner.”

This might have energized Apl.de.Ap in the next stage as he whipped up the famous (and dare we say, favorite) chicken and potato adobo with rice and zesty spring onions, and then finished it off with churros and a chocolate and coffee dip.

While his cooking stints may have had us clapping in both awe and surprise, we can’t wait for his next dish. By then, we’ll be ready to spill the beans—or in this case, the potatoes.