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American version of the culinary competition series that gives talented kids between the ages of 8 and 13 the chance to showcase their culinary abilities and passion for food through a series of delicious challenges. Celebrated food experts coach and encourage the promising hopefuls to cook like pros and teach them the tricks of the trade along the way.
2015
Season 3 begins with the introduction of 19 new cooks, who tackle their first mystery box challenge by making a dish with only the ingredients they are given. The winner gets to pick the pasta the other contestants prepare for the judges.
Three of the junior cooks race to be the first to top their pies with whipped meringue; the cooks pair up to create sausage dishes.
Twelve cooks remain for a mystery box challenge using ingredients that get better with age. Later, the contestants work with the most dangerous protein in the show's history.
A pantry hunt pits the winners from the previous challenge against one another to match the most ingredients in the time allotted. Later, the 10 remaining contestants team up in pairs to complete an elaborate sushi dish.
In the next mystery box challenge, the eight remaining junior home cooks create unique banana dishes. The junior home cook who most impresses the judges wins a significant advantage in the next elimination challenge. Later, special guest and Gordon Ramsay's daughter, Matilda Ramsay, introduces the home cooks to their next elimination challenge dish, a Ramsay family favorite, Salmon en Croute.
In one of the toughest challenges of the season, the six remaining junior home cooks face the restaurant takeover challenge. The contestants split into two teams and take over a real Los Angeles restaurant. Find out which team is victorious and who advances to the Top 4.
The competition heats up as the 4 remaining junior home cooks must prepare 20 crème brulees. The home cook who successfully brulees the most cremes in the allotted time earns a significant advantage in the next elimination challenge. Next, the junior home cooks has to each make a complex raspberry dessert dish. The two contestants who impress the judges the most earns their spot in the finale and be one step closer to the title.
In the exciting season finale, the two finalists competes head-to-head and prepare the most important menu of their young lives. Find out which talented junior home cook earns the MasterChef trophy and a $100,000 prize.
2013
Twenty-four cooks between the ages of eight and 13 prepare dishes for the judges.
The cooks participate in a mystery box challenge; the contestants have an hour to create a restaurant-quality burger.
The cooks test the stiffness of their hand-whipped cream by holding the bowls upside down over the judges' heads; beef Wellington challenge.
The cooks create dishes using foods kids don't usually like; the kids must create layer cakes in 90 minutes.
The kids split into two teams and take over a fine dining restaurant in Los Angeles where feedback from the diners and the head chef will decide the winning team.
The top four cooks create dishes featuring chicken, with the cooks of two best dishes moving to the final round.
The two remaining cooks prepare three-course menus; the winner is chosen.
2014
Sixteen young home cooks arrive and find themselves preparing dishes using Alexander Weiss's favorite ingredients, including pork chops, pork tenderloin and green apples. The winner chooses which protein is used in the elimination round before 12 contestants are chosen to advance in the competition.
A pancake-flipping contest precedes a challenge to create the best citrus cream pie.
A three-legged challenge is held to make a dozen cupcakes. Later, Gordon's mom visits the kitchen as a guest judge when the remaining contestants prepare one of the host's favorite dishes from his childhood.
The contestants fry eggs sunny-side up in a 10-minute challenge, and later prepare their signature dishes that will anchor their menus at a future restaurant.
The last six cooks split up into teams to compete in the inaugural restaurant challenge, with the winning group advancing to the semifinals.
The final four cooks must break down an Alaskan king salmon and produce as many perfect filets possible; contestants must create a restaurant-quality salmon dish with a limited number of ingredients.
The top 2 junior chefs prepare a three-course menu in their last challenge; the winner is crowned, receiving a trophy and a $100,000 prize.
2015
America's top 24 junior home cooks enter the kitchen for the first time and jump right into their first mystery box challenge. Each junior home cook is tasked with preparing a signature burger and one side. The winner of the challenge has a significant advantage and selects the main ingredient that the remaining contestants must use in the season's first elimination round. The junior home cooks with the best dishes advance in the competition.
Season Two winner Logan returns to offer some advice to the remaining contestants. The top three contestants from the previous elimination challenge competes in a cupcake-frosting contest, during which only the winner can keep the judges safe from a sticky situation. Then, in the next challenge, the contestants is tasked with making a scallop dish in order to move onto the next round in the competition.
The Top 20 junior home cooks face an out-of-this-world Mystery Box challenge with special guest astronaut Tracy Dyson, during which they must prepare a unique dish that highlights a stellar ingredient. The one who rockets to the top has a significant advantage in the elimination challenge, when the contestants is tasked with creating a stunning and delicious fish dish in order to move onto the next round.
The remaining 18 junior home cooks face their first team challenge of the season and the first-ever MasterChef Junior team relay race. Each team must create a large serving of seven-layer dip. The team that completes the dip first is safe from the next elimination challenge, and choose the smelly, wrinkly, or spicy ingredients for that challenge. Find out who smells their way to victory and who dips lower in the competition.
The remaining junior home cooks party their way into the next team challenge when they leave the MasterChef Junior kitchen for the first time to cook at a birthday party for kids ages 8-13, as well as special guests, the Ramsay and Elliot children. The team that receives the most votes from the birthday party attendees is safe from elimination, while the losing team competes in the next pressure test and create the French dessert croquembouche.
The remaining junior home cooks squeeze in a seven-minute team challenge, in which they must make a batch of raspberry mint lemonade for judge Christina Tosi to blind taste test. Tosi decides which team has the best lemonade and is safe from elimination, while the losing team competes in the next challenge, during which they must create a rad dish from a decade in which one of the judges was born.
After a tough elimination challenge, the Top 12 junior home cooks face their next task when the judges test their senses in a blind taste challenge. Each contestant blindly tastes a dish prepared by Gordon Ramsay and then must recreate the dish. The contestant with the dish that best reflects Gordon's dish receives a significant advantage. In the next team challenge, the junior home cooks prepare VIP dishes for a dining room of all grandmothers for their first restaurant challenge. Each team creates a unique dish of “new” ingredients and the team with the most votes is safe from elimination. Find out who moves on to the Top 10 and who leaves the kitchen.
In the next team challenge, the junior home cooks will face an egg-cellent challenge and compete in pairs to see who can complete the most deviled eggs in 12 minutes. The team that perfects the most deviled eggs will be safe from the next elimination challenge, in which contestants must create their future cookbook's signature dish.
Christina Tosi brings a special guest into the MasterChef kitchen — her mom — to present the next mystery box challenge, which will feature all of Christina's favorite childhood foods. Then, contestants will compete in a tag team platter challenge using international street food ingredients.
The remaining 6 junior home cooks receive a special invitation to Gordon's home for their next team challenge. Each team will prepare a two-course menu for a VIP lunch, including a seared red snapper appetizer and a roasted venison loin entrée. Later in the MasterChef kitchen, the judges will reveal which team received the best overall feedback on their dishes and had the most successful lunch service and which contestants will be in jeopardy of elimination. Then, it's up to the judges to decide who will go home and who will continue in the competition and compete in the semi-finals.
The remaining 4 junior home cooks compete in the semi-finals and are challenged to make the ultimate dessert - a soufflé! The winner receives a huge advantage in the elimination challenge. Later, the contestants must prepare a unique dish with a select cut of pork. Then, it's up to the judges to decide who will go home and who will continue in the competition and compete in the finals.
In the highly anticipated season finale, the two finalists will compete head-to-head and prepare the most important menu of their lives. Find out which talented junior home cook will earn the MasterChef trophy and a $100,000 prize.
2018
The 40 junior home cooks are split up into two groups – girls and boys. All 20 girls are tasked with making a flawless medium-rare filet mignon dish. Only 12 winners earn an apron and a chance to move on.
The 40 junior home cooks are split up into two groups – girls and boys. All 20 boys must prepare the perfect chicken breast dish. Only 12 winners earn an apron and a chance to move on.
The Top 20 face a team challenge to prepare a lunch service for a wedding party of 75 guests, which will consist of racks of lamb and pan-seared halibut.
The Top 22 split up into teams and must prepare as many perfect-looking milkshakes as they can in just 10 minutes. The winning teams will be safe from elimination and one unlucky judge will get a sweet surprise! Then, the rest of the junior cooks will each have to put their own personal twist on a classic chicken-and-waffles dish.
The Top 20 face their toughest team challenge yet: preparing lunch service for a wedding of 75 guests. Both sides will be cooking racks of lamb and pan-seared halibut, and it will be up to the judges to decide which team wins and who from the losing team will head home.
The junior home cooks face a mystery box challenge that tasks them with making desserts using natural sweeteners other than sugar.
The junior chefs split up into pairs and have to decorate and frost as many specialty donuts as they can in just 10 minutes, all while being tied by the ankle to their partner! Later in the kitchen, Gordon Ramsay's daughter, Matilda, gives the contestants a masterclass on how to make her version of a hamburger and French fries. Then, the junior chefs must do their best to replicate it before the judges determine who will be sent home.
The junior home cooks split into two teams and take over the kitchen at an upscale hotel in Los Angeles, where they will be in charge of running room service during breakfast for guests at the hotel.
The remaining junior chef-testants have 45 minutes to create dishes inspired by their families using farm fresh ingredients.
The Top 12 have just 15 minutes to make as many eggs benedict dishes as they can. Later, they must prepare one of the most difficult egg dishes of all time.
Then, the remaining home cooks create their own unique dishes but must use one common ingredient: chocolate.
The junior chefs cook for 30 MASTERCHEF JUNIOR alumni at a pop-up restaurant. The losing team will head back to the MASTERCHEF kitchen for a pressure test designed by Season Five winner Jasmine Stewart.
The remaining junior home cooks prepare dishes inspired by their grandmothers.
After a season's worth of challenges that tested the cooking abilities of young contestants from across the nation, only three junior home cooks remain.
The final three contestants carry on cooking their 3-course meal. In the end, only one will be crowned the winner and receive a check for $100,000.
2019
Twenty-four junior home cooks from across the United States visit the MasterChef kitchen and immediately face difficult lunch and breakfast challenges that include mystery box challenges.
Twenty-four junior home cooks from across the United States visit the MasterChef kitchen and immediately face difficult lunch and breakfast challenges that include mystery box challenges and creating as many perfect banana splits as they can.
The 20 junior home cooks face a carnival-themed challenge that will test their leadership and communication abilities as they prepare meals for Circus Vargas performers.
The 18 remaining junior home cooks must prepare a worthy dish with a fish that they must debone entirely on their own in the hopes of winning a special advantage; the cooks reflect their cultural heritages through their cooking styles.
The Top 16 junior home cooks are split into three teams before they are given only 20 minutes to create as many delicious English trifles as possible; the team that fails to impress the judges are challenged to recreate three identical sliders.
The top 14 junior home cooks face a difficult mystery box challenge where they must learn to butcher an entire duck and make a dish from it; The cooks are paired up and challenged to create a dozen of the tastiest cupcakes they can make.
The Top 14 young home cooks visit the great outdoors to feed hungry campers with delicious recipes that may be featured in a magazine; the losing team faces a pressure test to make a coconut cream pie with a special twist.
The Top 12 are visited by the children from Kidz Bop, who introduces a special twist on the young cook's next mystery box challenge; the winning cook secures a needed advantage in a "blast from the past" elimination challenge.
The Top 10 junior home cooks are put into teams and compete against one another to roll out the longest pasta sheet that they can make as quickly as they can; The losing team faces an elimination challenge that tests their ability to make Éclairs.
The Top 10 face a difficult team challenge in which they prepare dishes for a group of important female role models, who will determine who make it to the Top 8; the losing team must replicate a 3-Michelin-star dish after a Gordon masterclass.
The Top Eight are put into pairs and must overcome a mystery box challenge that tests their creativity as they must use corn to create a delectable dish, after which they get ready for a tag-team challenge with they will make tapas.
The Top Six cooks are given full control over the kitchen at Mélisse, a Michelin Star-rated restaurant in Los Angeles, where they must appease hungry and expectant guests who will determine who will progress to the semifinals.
The junior home cooks face their final mystery box challenge, which tests their ability to create a dish that draws inspiration from their loved ones; those who risk elimination elevate a secret ingredient to its highest flavorful peaks to remain.
Twenty-four junior home cooks have been whittled down to just the final three, who give their last-ditch efforts to impress the judges with the best three-course meal that they have ever prepared in their young lives.
The final three junior home cooks continue to try to impress the judges by creating the best three-course meal to win the $100,000 grand prize.
2022
Sixteen pint-sized chefs from all around the country earn their white aprons and are tasked with their first challenge: a secret item they must use as the star of their dish. The cooks must impress judges Gordon Ramsay, Aarón Sánchez, and Daphne Oz.
Fifteen chefs join together and collaborate in their groups to create the most show-stopping pizzas in only 20 minutes. The group that impresses the judges the least faces the elimination round, where they compete blindfolded.
The remaining 14 junior chefs split into 2 teams to prepare a medieval-themed dish for a crowd of lords and ladies, who vote for the winning team.
Gordon Ramsay's daughter, Matilda "Tilly" Ramsay, joins as a guest judge, as the panel challenges the remaining 13 young home cooks to make one of their favorite treats: donuts. The chefs have 60 minutes to prepare two types of donut holes and display them. Those in the elimination challenge transform ugly, stinky ingredients into a delicious dish.
To celebrate the approaching birth of her baby, judge Daphne Oz challenges the remaining 12 young chefs to divide into 2 teams and create the ultimate savory and sweet balanced meal. The teams must satisfy the cravings of a restaurant full of mothers-to-be or face elimination.
After facing a nutty Mystery Box challenge, 11 junior chefs compete in a fiery elimination challenge. They also welcome back Season 7 winner Che Spiotta.
The Top 10 chefs start their engines for the ultimate race of the season, as they head over to a secret destination for their challenge. The strongest communicators are picked as team captains, as they compete to create the best American-style comfort dish for a team of very hungry motorsport racers. Find out who will take home the checkered flag.
The nine remaining junior chefs create one of the most popular fried, feisty and spicy finger foods
The eight remaining junior chefs split into teams for a bake sale challenge. Gordon, Daphne and Aaron judge four different types of tasty treats on flavor and presentation. Ultimately, one member of the losing team will be going home.
This week, the seven remaining junior chefs test their culinary knowledge of different types of eggs and cuts of steak. In 45 minutes, the chefs must create a dish with an egg of their choice, ranging from a tiny quail egg to a giant ostrich egg. The winning chef earns immunity and decides the order in which the other contestants will choose a cut of steak in an Operation-style game. The winner of the steak challenge will get his or her recipe published and win a trip to a cattle ranch.
The top six junior chefs put their professional skills to the test during a restaurant takeover at the luxury hotel NoMad in downtown Los Angeles. Executive Chef Rudy Lopez lends his kitchen to the chefs after teaching them how to prepare some of the restaurant's signature dishes. The junior chefs must work together under the pressure and intensity of the kitchen to deliver the usual quality of the restaurant to a packed dining room of guests who have no idea the chefs are kids. The judges decide whose performance lands them in the top five.
MASTERCHEF JUNIOR Season One winner Alexander Weiss makes a surprise return, as the chefs are challenged to filet as many fish as they can in 15 minutes. The three chefs who filet the least number of fish will need to create a show-stopping salmon dish to make it to the final four.
The four remaining junior chefs pair up with WWE Superstars, who are much more comfortable in the ring. The winning junior receives tickets to a WWE match! In the elimination challenge, the chefs prepare one of Gordon Ramsay's signature dishes. Find out whose dish can live up to the great Gordon Ramsay's.
The top three contestants are visited by their loved ones, and they have one hour to cook a dish for each of the judges that is inspired by their families. The contestant with the worst dish will be eliminated.
On the road to the finals, Gordon Ramsay recaps the biggest moments of Season 8; bloopers, clips and outtakes of the season.
Two finalists compete for the $100,000 prize; the chefs must create an entrée and dessert that best represents themselves.
2017
Sixteen of the country's finest junior home cooks compete for eight of the Top 20 spots of the season. After being split into four groups, each with a distinct signature dish, the kids get started. Only two contestants from each group will find out if they will succeed in moving on to the next round of challenges.
The remaining junior chefs compete for the final 12 spots in the Top 20. Making dishes ranging from cupcakes, to steak and lobster, the young chefs are tested to their limits and will find out if they will move on to the next round.
The Top 20 face the season's first mystery box challenge, during which they must cook dishes using both sweet and savory ingredients. Later, the contestants must replicate Chef Ramsay's signature hand-roasted sea bass. Then, it's up to the judges to decide who stays and who goes home. Chef Aarón Sanchez is the guest judge.
The Top 18 return to the kitchen to face off in 2 challenges. In the first, the young cooks are split into teams and have 10 minutes to make a classic American dish: the corn dog. The winning team gets to turn the judges into a yummy treat. Later, the contestants have to make a juicy burger, but there's a tough catch! Then, it's up to the judges to decide who stays and who goes home.
The Top 16 face off in their first team challenge, during which they cook lunch for first responders. Each team will have to create a dish featuring a delicious filet mignon and the guests will vote on which is better - the team with the most votes will win the challenge. Then, it's up to the judges to determine which two cooks from the losing team will head home.
The Top 14 junior home cooks receive a mystery box challenge inspired by the White House garden from former First Lady Michelle Obama. The young cooks must come up with an original recipe that is both healthy and presidential worthy, and the winner will receive a special once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! For the next challenge, Julie Bowen steps into the MasterChef kitchen to watch the kids make a dish in honor of their moms. Then, it's up to the judges to decide which contestant will go home.
Guest judge Richard Blais enters the kitchen to see what the kids can cook up. In the first challenge, the Top 12 junior home cooks team up into groups of three and have 10 minutes to make as many pies as possible. The winning team will be safe from elimination and will get to give the judges a sweet surprise! For the next challenge, the young chefs must use a blow torch to make either an appetizer, entrée, or dessert using ingredients from the MasterChef pantry. Then, it's up to the judges to decide who stays and who goes home.
Guest judge Richard Blais enters the kitchen once again, but not to judge the remaining 10 junior home cooks. There's a big surprise in the MasterChef kitchen, as the judges bring back the six kids who have gone home, to give them another shot at reentering the competition! The six junior home cooks will participate in two challenges that involve breaking apart a chicken and then using the parts to make unique dishes. Then, it's up to the judges to decide which two kids will be able to reenter the competition.
The Top 12 junior home cooks take their talents to the great outdoors, where they will cook for America's Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts. For the first challenge, the kids are split into two teams and have to prepare and serve all scouts and troop leaders a dish that includes a pork chop entrée and two sides. The winning team moves on and the losing team heads back to the kitchen for a pressure test, during which they each must make a box of macaroons. Then, it's up to the judges to decide which two kids will go home.
In the first challenge, the young chefs are split into teams of two and must replicate a gingerbread house. Then, in the next challenge, Aarón Sánchez joins the kitchen as a guest judge, and the kids must cook up a Gordon Ramsay holiday classic. Finally, it's up to the judges to decide which two kids will go home.
MasterChef welcomes guest judge Chef Edward Lee...and the contestants' families! In the season's first mystery box challenge, the junior home cooks must prepare a delicious dish of their choice, inspired by their families. Then, in the next challenge, the young cooks team up in pairs to replicate a sushi platter and the judges will decide which two kids will go home.
The Top 6 are split up into two teams, and have 75 minutes to create an entrée for VIP guests who range from firefighters to professional softball players, and construction workers to pilots. The guests will then vote on which dish they prefer and the winning team will receive a huge advantage later on in the competition. Next, the young cooks face an elimination challenge and welcome two surprise guests who will join in the fun – Miss Piggy and Swedish Chef! Then it’s up to the judges to decide who will go home.
The remaining young cooks face a high-pressure team challenge, during which they must cook for food critics, chefs and journalists at a pop-up restaurant on the beautiful California coast. The young cooks will have one hour to serve delicious scallop appetizers and another hour to dish out red snapper entrees to the guests. The winning team will go straight to the semifinals, but two young chefs from the losing team will have to leave the kitchen.
The Top 4 are in for a sweet challenge, as they recreate a chocolate molten lava cake to perfection. The winner will receive a huge advantage and could win a spot in the final round. Next up is the elimination challenge, during which each contestant will have to create a dish using one of the world’s most popular meats. Two of the young chefs will be sent home, leaving only two to battle it out for the grand prize.
In the last cook-off of the season, guest judges Wolfgang Puck and Martha Stewart join, as the two finalists prepare a three-course meal from scratch. In the end, only one will be crowned the winner and receive a check for $100,000.
2024
Twelve young home chefs enter the kitchen to battle it out for the title of the next MasterChef Junior champion, taking home a trophy and $100,000 grand prize. For their first challenge, the junior chefs are each given an emoji cookie and have one hour to prepare a dish that represents the emotion behind it. The chef with the best dish will not only be safe from elimination but will also win a trip to Las Vegas.
The remaining eleven contestants are back in the kitchen for a mystery treasure chest challenge.
The chefs are tasked with preparing hearty meals for the Harlem Globetrotters. Each team must whip up a meal that satisfies the players' big appetites while meeting their dietary restrictions.
The top eight young chefs journey to the famous Magic Castle to celebrate its 60th anniversary; the chefs split into teams to perform magic on the grill and feed the magicians and staff of the Academy of Magical Arts.
The top seven young chefs are faced with a mystery box challenge made from their nightmares! The judges task the contestants with facing their fears and turning ingredients they hate into delicious, restaurant-quality dishes. The winning chef will advance in the competition and take home e-bikes for their entire family.
The remaining six chefs compete for the top spot in a team-based pancake challenge.
The five remaining young chefs travel back in time to one week one to earn a spot in the semi-finals; the chefs are tasked with recreating the first dish they made into an elegant and electrifying version.
The remaining four chefs must cook alongside Gordon Ramsey himself; tasked with replicating one of Gordon's iconic duck dishes, each contestant must match Gordon's pace, precision and passion.
The three finalists battle against each other in the ultimate showdown; the pint-sized chefs are tasked with creating an appetizer using the popular - and feared - flambe technique; the chefs must create an exquisite main course dish.
The three finalists are one step away from winning the competition as they complete their main courses and whip up a stunning dessert; the chefs have one final hour to showcase their culinary abilities and impress the judges; the winner is crowned.
Aarón Sánchez
Self - Judge
Gordon Ramsay
Self - Judge
Daphne Oz
Self - Judge
Matilda Ramsay
Self - Judge
