MasterChef returns for 16th series of TV’s biggest cooking competition on BBC One

MasterChef returns Monday 24, Wednesday 26 and Friday 28 February at 9pm, BBC One
Over eight exciting weeks, judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace are once again primed to discover the UK’s best amateur cook.

The 60 contestants starting the competition range from a cattle farmer and hairdresser to a music festival producer and an architect - all with the common goal - to prove their worth in the MasterChef kitchen and take home the prized trophy.

Kicking off the competition, the cooks this year face two brand-new challenges in the heat rounds. Success will earn them the right to wear a MasterChef apron. Their first test is the Signature Dish round - in which the six contestants bring from home the ingredients they need to put their best culinary foot forward. They have an hour and 15 mins minutes to deliver an impressive plate of food. The best two cooks, who wow John and Gregg from the start, earn themselves a MasterChef apron and go straight through to the third round cooking for past MasterChef winners and finalists. The remaining four get a second chance to prove themselves in another new test - the Three Ingredients Challenge. They must think on their feet and create a dish that includes all three of the ingredients included in the mystery box in front of them. It’s crucial they make an impression because at the end of this challenge, two more cooks earn themselves a MasterChef apron and two are sent home.

The remaining four contestants must now produce their own two-course menu to impress not only John and Gregg, but three exceptional MasterChef finalists and winners, who have all gone on to work professionally in food and vividly remember their own experiences, having walked in the shoes of this year’s aspiring chefs. With three quarter final places up for grabs, nobody wants to be sent home.

The six best cooks from the heats return for the quarter final - where they come face to face with a one of the UK’s top food critics - (in order of appearance) Jay Rayner, Grace Dent, William Sitwell, Tom Parker Bowles and Jimi Famurewa. Each critic sets the home cooks a challenging brief that they have 90 minutes to deliver. Only the best contestants will be judged worthy by the critic and the MasterChef judges of continuing in the competition.

After the five heat weeks, it’s knockout week, where the strongest 16 cooks from the competition return. Split into two groups of eight, over two episodes, the cooks are tasked with creating a dish that they would put on their own restaurant menu or feature in their own cookbook, to keep their place. It’s a high stakes cook off - three go home and the remaining five survivors of each round go on to experience working in a professional kitchen for the first time. They will be cooking in a restaurant service delivering dishes to paying diners. The first group will cook at Da Terra, in East London, which was awarded a Michelin star just eight months after opening, and the second at Wood in Manchester under the watchful gaze of MasterChef Champion 2015, Simon Wood. Simon knows full well the pressure of the competition and what it takes to succeed in the professional world.

Rounding off knockout week, the remaining 10 contestants come together for a gruelling cook-off, aiming to secure a place in the semi finals, and one cook’s journey ends.

The pressure is ramped up for the nine semi finalists. Any small mistake could cost them their competition. First, they are split into three teams cooking for special Trafalgar Night dinner. Each team must cook a fine-dining course in the galley of HMS Diamond for over 100 of the ship’s company. Then it’s back to the MasterChef kitchen for a cook-off centred around John and Gregg’s favourite ingredients, after which, two contestants must go home.

In the second semi final, the seven remaining hopefuls are challenged with cooking at an entirely new level - recreating the exquisite dishes of a Michelin-starred guest chef, Tom Kitchin. For two cooks, their MasterChef journey will come to an end.

The finals are in sight, but not before one last nail-biting semi final test - the infamous Critic’s Table. The five cooks must produce a fine-dining dish for the judges and exacting critics, William Sitwell, Grace Dent, Jay Rayner and Jimi Famurewa. Holding their nerve or cracking under the pressure decides their fate - only four can make the finals.

After seven demanding weeks, the four MasterChef finalists must give their all for the ultimate drive to culinary glory.

The finalists’ first daunting culinary challenge is on the island of Mauritius - a gastronomic melting pot that fuses the cuisines of Africa, Europe, China and India to create a style of cooking that is truly unique. The finalists have to keep their culinary wits together as they are challenged to recreate both high-end Mauritian fine-dining dishes and traditional street food tutored by the islands leading chefs. Cooking with ingredients and techniques they have never seen takes them totally out of their comfort zone.

Back in the UK, the second finals programme stretches the contenders to their limit as they are given an extraordinary opportunity to learn from one of the world’s greatest living chefs - Albert Adria. Widely recognised as the world’s best pastry chef, Albert - the former creative director and pastry chef at El Bulli, has won Michelin accolades for restaurants in his native Barcelona. In the last 18 months he has opened in Cakes and Bubbles in London’s Café Royal - a restaurant dedicated to his extraordinary pastry creations. The four MasterChef finalists must learn and recreate his extraordinary sweet creations for a chef’s table of the country’s leading pastry chefs. It’s their chance to learn from a master and put it into practice because back in the MasterChef kitchen, they then have to cook their interpretation of a classic dessert. Only three can go to through to the MasterChef final.

At the end of this relentless and exhilarating journey, the mother of MasterChef cook-offs awaits the final three. The hopefuls must bring everything to the table - from their honed techniques and stamina developed through weeks of challenges, to inspiration from locations and chefs they have worked with. These amateur cooks must pour their hearts into delivering the best three-course menu of their lives for John and Gregg, in the final bid to claim the prestigious title of MasterChef Champion 2020.

Irini Tzortzoglou Crowned MasterChef 2019 Champion after first ever all-female final

After competing in the first ever all-female MasterChef final, retiree Irini Tzortzoglou (61) has been crowned MasterChef 2019 Champion becoming the fifteenth amateur cook to claim the title.
Facing competition from 54 other determined contestants, through seven gruelling weeks of culinary challenges and a close final cook-off, Irini was awarded the MasterChef 2019 trophy by judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace.

On winning, and after asking if she could share the trophy with her fellow finalists, an emotional Irini said: “I’m trembling, I’m floating on air, I don’t think my feet are touching the ground right now. What an experience, I just don’t have the words to say how thrilled and grateful I am.

She added: “I can finally say I believe in me; I believe it takes something tough at times, but that strength can surface, and when it does it can achieve wonders.”

John Torode said: “Taking the food that she knows from the island of Crete and putting it into a modern context – that’s what Irini does and it’s stunning. She has a magic in her finger tips and a fire in her belly. She wanted to make her grandchildren proud – she’s done that!”

Gregg Wallace said: “Irini’s little touches of Greek flavours and Greek ingredients are nothing short of inspired. You can learn cooking technique, what you can’t put into somebody is absolute love and passion, and Irini is just bursting with it. It’s from the heart every time she cooks.”

On Irini’s winning menu Gregg said: “Every little morsel of Irini’s three courses was beautiful.”

John added: “She’s introduced us to things we’ve never seen before, flavours we’ve never tasted before. She is able to take these flavours she loves so much and take them to a completely different food. It’s magical.”

Ahead of John announcing the winner, a tearful Gregg said to the finalists: “Watching you grow, watching you achieve your personal goals, I’ve found uplifting. I think today was a proper celebration of culinary art done by people who are obviously completely in love with what they do. It’s joyous.”

Speaking about this year’s competition, Gregg said: “I have loved loved loved this year’s competition. We’ve had lawyers, engineers, digger drivers, estate agents, flight attendants, sculptors, nurses – people from all walks of life.”

John added: “Some of the food has been mind-blowing, some daring food, experimental food... there’s been drama, there’s been tears, there’s been laughter.”

Irini fought her way from 54 amateur cooks through to the final week and, along with the other incredibly talented finalists, teacher, Jilly McCord (42) and police officer, Delia Maria Asser (28), was pushed to show the judges the skills, creative flair and perseverance needed to succeed at the highest level in the intense final challenges.

In an extremely demanding final week, MasterChef fans have seen Irini cook a fine dining tasting menu for some of the team who took part in the Transglobe Expedition - the first and only longitude circumnavigation of the world. The event celebrated the 40th anniversary, and diners included expedition leader, and the world’s greatest living explorer, Sir Ranulph Fiennes. Irini has travelled on a trip of a lifetime to Hong Kong to learn from dim sum master Chef Tak, at Lung King Heen at the Four Seasons - the first Chinese restaurant in the world to be awarded three Michelin stars. She has also cooked at Tate Dining Rooms under one-Michelin star chef patron Vicky Lau, before heading back to London to be mentored by and cooking for two-Michelin star chef, Raymond Blanc, one classic dish from the menu at his famed restaurant Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons.

The final task was to prepare a three-course meal for judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace. Irini’s winning menu, inspired by her childhood and Greek heritage, started with Red mullet with a squid risotto, confit tomatoes, a rosemary and garlic sauce, with bottarga (grey mullet roe) and an aged balsamic foam. Irini’s main course was Griddled rosemary lamb chops with trahanas puree (cracked wheat cooked in soured milk), peas, confit herb tomatoes, pearl onions, crumbled feta and a lamb and tomato jus. She finished the meal with a Fig and hazelnut baklava with roasted honeyed fig topped with Chantilly cream and candied fig, a fig leaf ice-cream and syrup, on a hazelnut crumble.

When her father passed away unexpectedly at age 48 her life took a different route, which brought her to London and to a career in banking.

On her reasons for entering the competition, Irini said: “I decided to enter because I was driven by what felt like a higher force, which was telling me that my life had yet to start and that I still had work to do. Over the years, I felt I was not here to work in banking, and having discovered my passion for food and all it signifies I knew that this was my calling.”

On her future plans she said: “My biggest ambition is to continue learning, researching, experimenting and show casing Greek food and ingredients. I would love to get published a lifestyle book with memories and recipes which I have been writing for the past year, and would love to film a programme all around Greece which combines cookery, travel, diet, health, environmental and historical topics. With its diverse land and climate Greece provides for a variety of produce and food.”

Looking back on her time in the competition, Irini said: “I feel a totally different person from only three months ago; I feel I have grown massively. What MasterChef has given me is deep seated confidence. It’s been a long road but I have enjoyed every second.”

Irini grew up in Crete in Greece, and now lives in Cartmel, Cumbria with her husband, John. She has three step-children and three step-grandchildren.

BBC Two’s Masterchef: The Professionals 2018 winner revealed

Laurence Henry, 26, has become MasterChef: The Professionals Champion 2018, it has been announced.
The youngest of this year’s finalists, Laurence is the twelfth winner to be awarded the prestigious title, and become part of Professional MasterChef history, along with outstanding past champions: Gary Maclean; Derek Johnstone; Steve Groves; Claire Lara; Ash Mair, joint winners Keri Moss and Anton Piotrowski; Steven Edwards; Jamie Scott; Mark Stinchcombe and last year’s winner, Craig Johnston.

Taking on 47 fellow professional chefs in the pursuit of culinary perfection, Laurence battled through seven weeks of fierce competition and extraordinary cooking in the demanding challenges. As well as impressing Michelin-starred chef Marcus Wareing, renowned chef Monica Galetti and MasterChef’s seasoned judge Gregg Wallace, Laurence also received critical acclaim throughout the series. Bringing food critic Jay Rayner to a stunned halt when he said, “I have absolutely nothing critical to say” whilst critiquing his lamb dish during The Critic’s round. Further acclaim came from Paul Ainsworth in Knockout Week, who titled Laurence 'man of the match' when the contestants cooked at his restaurant in Cornwall. Whilst during The Chefs’ Table, after Laurence’s lobster and dumpling dish was served, Lisa Goodwin-Allen said, “It puts a smile on your face…it is beautiful”, Michael Wignall called the dish “stunning” and Glynn Purnell was reduced to just one word, “wow”.

Reacting to his win, Laurence says: “It has been a really long journey, I have certainly learnt a lot about myself and found my feet. With this kind of ending who knows what the future holds; it is just so exciting. Hopefully though this is the first step in the long road to the chef I want to be one day.”

Monica Galetti says: “Laurence is a chef who cooks from the heart. He is such a talented chef and the world is his to conquer. He has confidence and a true understanding of flavour. What a future this young chef has.”

Marcus Wareing says: “The food Laurence has cooked for us during the competition has been outstanding. He is inventive, creative and he leaves nothing behind in the kitchen. He gave it his all and his work ethic and professionalism is fantastic, as a chef you couldn’t ask for more in the kitchen. In my opinion he is the next generation.”

Gregg Wallace says: “For a chef so young he is an immense talent. He has a hunger for knowledge and he is willing to push himself until he accomplishes greatness.”

The gruelling Final Week saw Laurence up against exceptionally tough competition in fellow finalists Dean Banks, 30, and Oli Martin, 30. Laurence fought to prove his passion, grit, imagination and technical ability beyond that of his competitors throughout increasingly demanding tasks, which pushed all their culinary skills to their upmost limits.

The challenges included: designing and preparing a menu for the heavyweights of modern gastronomy from around the world with 24 Michelin-stars between them; travelling to Valence, in France, to cook at one of the world’s most exciting and innovative restaurants and learn from Anne Sophie Pic, one of the world’s leading chefs with three Michelin-stars and the fourth generation of one of the greatest cooking dynasties the world has ever seen.

The ultimate, final task was to create an exceptional three-course meal for judges Marcus Wareing, Monica Galetti and Gregg Wallace in three hours. Laurence, who pushed himself to the max with his winning menu, which he said reflected “the most accurate representation of the food he wants to be cooking”, started with a Hand-dived scallop, marinated cherry tomatoes (inspired by his time with Anne Sophie Pic), roast tomato dashi, strawberries and coriander oil seasoned with sansho pepper. His main was Loin and belly of suckling pig, kimchi glaze, braised fermented hispi cabbage hearts, Nashi pear puree and sliced pears. Dessert was Aerated mint white chocolate, lemongrass and coconut ice cream, passion fruit ripple and caramelised white chocolate crumb.

Marcus Wareing, commenting on Laurence’s main pork course said: “Every now and again in a competition we all eat a dish that we will never forget. That is absolutely outstanding.”

Laurence, who grew up in Nottingham, has always been interested in food from a young age. His love for cooking led him to train as a chef at the Ashburton Chefs Academy in Devon.

On his MasterChef experience, Laurence says: “I had thought about entering the competition for a few years but this year I felt my knowledge, skills and confidence were finally at a level that could see me through. The Chefs’ Table was my most challenging moment of the competition. I have always pushed myself and given myself a lot of work to do, but during this challenge I pushed too hard, and almost didn’t make it!

“Winning the show is a dream come true. It has been the goal from day one and I’m ecstatic I’ve managed to get all the way to the end.”

Speaking about his plans for the future, Laurence says: “I still have a lot to learn in my current role so I don’t plan on moving on any time soon. I am exploring the possibility of opening my own restaurant in the future, however before all this I plan on having a bit of time off and travelling.”

Please note that applications for MasterChef: The Professionals, 2019 are now open.

MasterChef Junior Uncensored

Brilliant!