From Newburg to MasterChef, this Kentuckian is lighting up the kitchen

It's not easy transforming a $2 frozen dinner of Salisbury steak, potatoes and green beans into a dish that evokes a response like this from world-famous chef Gordon Ramsay.

"It's delicious. I love the cheese and bacon elements you added and the pate is so light, I just want to dive in for more," Ramsay said on FOX's "MasterChef."

That high praise was directed at Louisville native and 12th-grade school teacher Gerron Hurt after he successfully created a seemingly impossible mouth-watering dish from a box of frozen ingredients meant for a microwave.

Each week on FOX's popular "MasterChef" cooking show, amateur home cooks are presented with a culinary challenge and eliminated from competition if they can't deliver the goods.

Background: Louisville native barely makes it to the next round of 'MasterChef'

"This is absolutely awful," Ramsay scolded a trial attorney from Massachusetts in the same episode. Within minutes, she was told to remove her apron and exit the MasterChef kitchen.

The elimination process can seem brutal, but it makes for good television and it has taught the home chef from Louisville to listen to constructive criticism.

"I've gotten plenty while I have been on the show but I listen and do my best to learn from it and do better," Hurt said.

Ramsay and the other two judges, chef Aarón Sánchez and restaurateur Joe Bastianich, have continued to find Hurt's Southern-inspired dishes more delectable than distasteful, although a recent seafood challenge nearly kept Hurt from advancing to the next round of top 15 competitors.

The judges, who are not fooling around when it comes to taste and presentation, said his red fish was too tough and shrimp and potatoes "didn't work well together."

Hurt was one of three contestants whose food "missed the mark" that episode, according to Ramsay.

Fortunately an optometrist from Iowas City, Iowa, was further from the mark than Hurt. Matt Houck left the show and Hurt got to stay and cook another day on the next episode.

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Taking the near miss in stride, Hurt, who teaches at a charter school in Tennessee, says a piece of advice from Ramsay early in the competition has helped him rise to the top of his game, even when things don't go as planned.

"He said 'never continue working with a mistake.' If there is a mistake on the table and you continue on with that mistake you will do nothing but run yourself down, you will fail," remembers Hurt.

But he said, "if you catch that mistake right when it happens and you come up with a plan to change it then you can be successful. "

Nine weeks into the high pressure and high stakes competition — the winner gets $250,000 — Hurt is carrying that advice into every area of his life, even when he's not wearing the MasterChef apron.

"I grew up in the Newburg neighborhood," Hurt said. "It was a tough place to be, but every day I could spend time with my mom in the kitchen. She taught me how to cook and how to stretch the money we spent on food."

He said the family rarely kept processed food in the house.

"We never had things like Hot Pockets or pizza rolls," he said. "My mom taught me to cook with fresh ingredients — vegetables, meat, fruit — and we'd stretch those into a couple of days."

Background: Watch this Louisville native on the new season of 'MasterChef'

His mother, Michelle Hurt, passed away in 2013 but by then her son had picked up so many of her cooking skills that he took over the family kitchen and still cooks for his seven brothers and sisters when he's back in town.

And as you might have guessed, as Hurt's celebrity has grown, so have his sibling's culinary queries.

"I have been getting a lot of crazy requests from my brothers and sisters," joked Hurt. "My older brother Chris tagged me on Instagram the other day with a request for a seafood boil he saw that he wants and his birthday isn't until October. "

When you've got a celebrity in the house, a simple backyard birthday barbeque just won't do.

In fact, Hurt cooked for an elaborate party on the show just a few weeks ago for an episode that featured a wedding party for Sean O'Neal, the winner of Season 7 of MasterChef.

"I knew it was a very big deal to be cooking not only for a MasterChef winner but for his wedding," said Hurt. "I am getting married soon and I know how important the food is — but when you are cooking for someone else's big day, it adds a level of stress."

Hurt was commended for his skills on the wedding episode and returned to Louisville last weekend to search for his own wedding venue with his bride-to-be, Brandi Beckham.

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It was Beckham's idea that Hurt audition for MasterChef in the first place.

"My mom always said I should learn to cook so that I was never reliant on anyone else to cook for me," Hurt said. "But Brandi has been working with me in the kitchen and she's really picking up some skills. She's getting good."

Improving the culinary skills of the students he teaches is also on his "to-do list." If he wins the $250,000 MasterChef prize, Hurt wants to start a culinary program at the charter school where he teaches in Tennessee.

"I was fortunate I had a wonderful mom who taught me how to cook but not every kid has that," said Hurt. "I would like to start a program to pass on what I learned about cooking from my mom and from my time on MasterChef."

The next time we can see Hurt in FOX's MasterChef kitchen is at 8 p.m. Wednesday.

With only 15 of the original 24 contestants remaining in the competition, the stakes and intensity of the challenges are heating up — but Hurt isn't stressed.

He's got a secret weapon.

"My mom may have passed but she's with me every step of the way in the MasterChef kitchen," he said. "I got these great abilities to cook from her and I know she's somewhere smiling as big as can be, knowing I am on a TV show that we watched together while she was living."

Reach Kirby Adams at kadams@courier-journal.com Twitter @kirbylouisville. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/kirbya.

Momma’s Chicken Pot Pie

This is a recipe Michelle Hurt passed down to Gerron Hurt

Pie Crust

*A frozen pie crust can also work

3/4 cup cold butter, cubed

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 cup cold water

Pie Filling

2-1/2 cups halved baby carrots

3 celery sticks, sliced

6 tablespoons butter, cubed

7 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper

2-1/2 cups chicken broth

1 cup heavy whipping cream

4 cups cubed cooked chicken

1 cup diced yellow sweet onion

1 cup frozen peas, thawed

3 tablespoons minced chives

3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon of fresh or dried thyme

1 large egg, lightly beaten

In a large bowl, cut butter into flour until crumbly. Stir in cheese. Gradually add water, tossing with a fork until dough forms a ball. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

In a large saucepan, cook carrots and celery in butter until sweated. Season with salt and pepper; drain oil and set aside.

In another saucepan, melt butter. Whisk in the flour, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually whisk in broth and cream. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in the carrot mixture, chicken, onions, peas, chives, parsley and thyme; heat through. Transfer to a greased 13x9-inch baking dish.

On a floured surface, roll out dough to fit top of dish; cut out vents. Place dough over filling; trim and flute edges. Brush with egg.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly and crust is golden brown. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.