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.
Additionally, their transportation and food expenses are paid for by the show. You're also paid a salary. FOX // Getty... Celebrity MasterChef contestants don't get paid for their appearance on the show, but there are still some perks.
Do the MasterChef contestants have to buy their own ingredients? 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.
Luckily, since all the meals featured on the show are created specifically for the judges, there is little-to-no food waste. After everyone has a chance to enjoy the handiwork of highly competitive chefs, they only have to junk the food that spoils during filming.
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.
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.
Average starting Salary for Master Chef in India is around ₹0.2 Lakh per year (₹1.7k per month). 2 years of minimum experience is required to be a Master Chef. What is the highest salary for a Master Chef in India? Highest salary that a Master Chef can earn is ₹12.9 Lakhs per year (₹1.1L per month).
"What happens is that it gets ground down and cooked into compost, and that goes back into the gardens at Masterchef because that's a huge part of the show, the fact that we grow fruits and vegetables and herbs that the contestants can use," she told The Design Files.
The LA-based "MasterChef" puts competitors in an undisclosed hotel during the duration of their stay. Distractify explains that this is necessary as they can be summoned to the show as early as 3:00 a.m. and can work up to 12 hours per day.
Leftover produce and perishables from MasterChef's ginormous pantry are donated to SecondBite, a not-for-profit food rescue organisation that helps end food waste and food insecurity in Australia.
"They do most of the time [eat the food cold], but after everyone's finished cooking and time is called, the judges come around to the benches and try everything.
You may have noticed that the judges never make any comment on how hot the dishes are when they are served. This is due to the fact that it's nearly always cold by the time it makes its way up to the judging table, so it would be a bit unfair to critique temperatures.
But if you're wondering just how John Torode and Gregg Wallace are able to fairly critique the contestants' dishes without allowing heat or a lack thereof to mar their final judgements, then you'll be pleased to find out that they actually taste the food as it's being cooked.
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.
Production staff takes each cook's phone before they come on set and hold on to them for the duration of filming. When not filming, the contestants are allowed contact with their family but aren't allowed to discuss any details of the filming, or broadcast where they are on social media.
MasterChef contestants are given cooking classes
Those home chefs clearly know what they're doing, but according to the blog of one runner-up (via The Daily Mail), that's not always the case. They say contestants were given cooking classes on challenges where there was a level of technique required.
Yep, reports on the show have revealed that contestants are actually only paid slightly more than the legal minimum wage.
While the show's crazy talented chefs are busy cooking up gourmet dishes, it looks like food isn't the only thing heating up on MasterChef! NW has learned that two All Stars contestants had flings with fellow cooks during their initial seasons on the show.
It's All Engineered Fiction
While the cooking and the judging might be real, a lot of the things in the show are over-dramatized or done in certain ways to keep the series entertaining. A former season 2 contestant, Ben Starr, commented in a blog post that MasterChef is purely entertainment.
And they don't get to keep the aprons they wear on the show. But they are sent nice new ones in the post later. This is so no one is spotted with a MasterChef apron before the series goes out on TV.
We have large commercial refrigerators for use off the kitchen studio so that ingredients can be kept fresher for longer. Anything else, like leftover fruit and veg, we donate to the local food charities or food banks closest to our location.
If you're asking whether they have recipes to follow during challenges, then the answer is no. The time constraints are real, and contestants never get to use a recipe or get to use their phones during a challenge.
Season 3: Christine Hà
She's one of the most successful of the "MasterChef" winners, with around 158,000 followers on her Instagram account and a bestselling cookbook, "Recipes from My Home Kitchen: Asian and American Comfort Food," which came as the result of a publishing deal she inked as part of her win.
His salary per episode is $225,000, and the Johnstoneborn star earns around $45 million from his media and restaurant sales. In mid-July 2019, he sold a 50% stake in his North American holding company to Lion Capital.
Krissi is unarguably the most hated contestant in the history of the show despite her resilience and strong cooking abilities.