Death by quail for nerds Kieran and Nastassia in My Kitchen Rules cook-off

IT WAS cook or be culled on MKR last night when cousins Sam and Chris were put to the test against self-confessed food nerds Kieran and Nastassia.

IT WAS cook or be culled on MKR last night when cousins Sam and Chris were put to the test against self-confessed food nerds Kieran and Nastassia.

In the first elimination cook-off in My Kitchen Rules HQ, the likeable boys from Victoria faced sudden death after failing to impress last night with a series of rookie errors that all began with a fairly innocent herb blunder.

Originals versus gatecrashers, the pairs went head-to-head with their best three course meals to save them from the chopping block and tension was at an all-time high.

"I'm so bloody nervous", Sam admitted, while "petrified" Nastassia revealed she would be taking the reins in the kitchen for the pair from WA.

The twist was revealed when Manu announced that the guest judges - chefs Guy Grossi, Karen Martini, Liz Egan and Colin Fassnidge - would be rating the dishes blind.

At hearing this, Sam was particularly concerned that he wouldn't get to take advantage of that killer smile, while a confident-looking Kieran and Nastassia geared up for the "revenge of the nerds".

With an hour-and-a-half to deliver the entree, the jocks served up a wild mushroom gnocchi, while the nerds delivered scallops on black pudding.

Safe to say Kieran should have spent less time quoting Star Wars and more time putting the force behind their first dish, as the judges admitted they were less than impressed with the "lazy" result.

The Melbourne men had more success, yet Manu said he didn't quite get the "knockout gnocchi" he was looking for.

Next, the geeky gatecrashers prepared quail with wild mushrooms and juniper sauce. Confidence was high for the pair until Manu made an impromptu visit to their kitchen and made Kieran doubt his dainty birds.

Meanwhile, Smiley Sam became Swearing Sam as the boys tried to bite off more than they could chew with their lamb and carrot purée main.

Bleeps were being thrown around left, right and centre and Chris admitted it was "all madness and no method" trying to plate up what Colin Fassnidge referred to as a "car crash" dish.

But, woeful presentation aside, this was nothing compared to the epic quail fail that was Kieran and Nastassia's main that was so undercooked it "looked like it was about to take off".

In the end, not even the nerds' faultless berry mini cake dessert could save them, with the judges delivering a final score of just 27 out of 60.

The boys' choc tart and cinnamon ice cream got them over the line, nabbing a total of 40 out of 60.

Being do or die for the main, death by quail meant that it was time for Kieran and Nastassia to fly the MKR coop and Manu and Pete sent them packing their Star Wars-themed suitcases.