When contestants' names are called, they walk up to the judges, who “put a fork in, eat a mouthful of the cold gloop”. Former judge George Colombaris shed some light in 2015, saying the judges “go around the room” eating “everything hot” straight out of the pot. “It looks sexy on TV but it takes time to film,” he said.
Are MasterChef dishes still warm by the time the judges try them? This really depends on the challenge and what the contestants have decided to cook. Our source says that in the instance of last year's toasted jaffle episode, all toasties were eaten by the judges almost immediately (no one wants cold cheese).
MasterChef US and UK
Of course, we're all curious where that veritable smorgasbord of delights ends up after filming is over. As it turns out, the crew gets first dibs, Marketplace reported. All leftovers and unused pantry items are then donated to MEND – a support service charity based in LA.
"The judges would walk around and taste the food as soon as the challenge was over, while everything was still hot. If you were smart, you'd make a second plate of everything, so they get a complete sense of what you've cooked," writes Alice Zaslavsky of MasterChef Australia, season Four.
Yes, the food is cold when the judges get to try it
All the contestants cook, then stand at their benches and wait to be called one by one to go to the judges' table so they can eat what they have made.
Contestants have to buy any ingredients they require to practice dishes to make at home and aren't given any money towards it - but ingredients and a full pantry are provided in the MasterChef kitchens.
When contestants' names are called, they walk up to the judges, who “put a fork in, eat a mouthful of the cold gloop”. Former judge George Colombaris shed some light in 2015, saying the judges “go around the room” eating “everything hot” straight out of the pot.
ONE MAN IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CLEAN-UP
Dishwasher Leigh Dowling is one of over 200 crew that make the MasterChef dream a reality. "Leigh washes everything you see," executive producer Margaret Bashfield reveals. "He's the happiest bloke on the team, even when he gets pots that are horribly burnt on the bottom."
The contestants put their lives on hold, but that doesn't mean their responsibilities freeze and bills don't have to be paid. The contestants on MasterChef do get some money, but it's probably nowhere near what you think and in some aspects, contestants actually pay the show.
Personality. Krissi is unarguably the most hated contestant in the history of the show despite her resilience and strong cooking abilities.
In 2013, "MasterChef" judges and producers were accused of sexual, mental, and physical harassment by former contestants. Many accusations came from a blog post by former contestant Marie Porter, where she describes how friends she met on the show were allegedly sexually and physically harassed by judges and producers.
Masterchef host Gregg Wallace revealed in an interview with The Sun that the food on the show isn't thrown away and is put to good use. Usually, after the filming process is done, the leftover food is shared between all the crew members, who get to enjoy some amazing meals prepared by the contestants on the show.
He was a decent cook, but was infamous for serving food from another home cook that wasn't cooked by himself. Despite the understanding that the incident was an accident, he made history for being the first contestant ever to be disqualified from MasterChef, although he took his elimination gracefully.
We did some digging, and according to reports, Network Ten generally pays contestants a little more than the legal minimum wage to appear on the competition reality series.
So it seems that all the MasterChef contestants stay in a hotel together (in separate rooms, of course). What makes setting accommodations easier for a show like MasterChef is that for the most part, contestants are visiting the same location for the duration of filming.
If the contestants wish to practice cooking up their food masterpieces at home, then they are expected to foot the bill for the ingredients, and they aren't reimbursed. However, during filming the MasterChef kitchens and pantries are stocked up, free of charge.
All of your living expenses are paid for by production.
Contestants on the show are put up in a hotel for the duration of filming. Additionally, their transportation and food expenses are paid for by the show.
When it comes to contestants who've owned the most restaurants, Thomasina Miers sits in first place. After her win in the MasterChef kitchen back in 2005, she opened her first Wahaca restaurant in London in 2007.
As far as I know, there is no prize for runner up. If the judges like them, they'll probably offer them something on the side (usually, Gordon.
Food is central to MasterChef, yet it's essentially impossible for Gregg and John and the guest judges to taste everything while it's still hot – even warm. Usually, contestants' dishes are room temperature. The flavours remain and judges always know whether dishes are pleasing or not.
The only catch? "They are not allowed to stop and read a recipe from a cookbook while we are filming. Anything they pull from the cookbooks must be memorized," says the producer. And that's not all: "Masterchef" contestants are, indeed, as clueless about challenges as they appear to be on-screen.
It's up to each contestant to memorise any recipes they hope to use on the show, as well as spend any spare time practising new techniques and dishes as the competition progresses. "We can't take recipes," Mupedzi tells Refinery29 Australia. "I did a lot of studying and a lot of practising."
With the judges rumoured to be taking home around $500,000 a year with Ten, the show's rampant popularity and critical acclaim could see bigger fees negotiated for future seasons.
“It's a huge process to go from uncooked produce, to cooked produce, to then be tasted,” he explained on the Podcast. “If you're tasting 24 dishes, they've got to cool it, get it in the fridge and store it and then they have to shoot it,” Hayden continued. “It's cold food basically.”
Refinery29 Australia reported last year that contestants have previously been put up in a serviced apartment, with two people in an apartment with their own bedrooms. In 2020, news.com.au revealed that contestants usually live in "a multimillion-dollar mansion".