The BEST episodes of Chopped season 38
Every episode of Chopped season 38, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Chopped season 38!
Hosted by Ted Allen, Chopped is a high energy, fast paced cooking competition that challenges four up-and-coming chefs to turn a selection of everyday ingredients into an extraordinary three-course meal. After each course, a contestant gets "chopped" by our panel of esteemed culinary luminaries until the last man or woman left standing claims victory.
#1 - Grill Masters: Texas
Season 38 - Episode 5 - Aired 8/21/2018
Four passionate grill masters compete in a fiery battle to become the lone representative from the Lone Star State to advance to the $50,000 Grill Masters grand finale and face winners from Memphis, Kansas City and North Carolina. A creepy, crawly, crunchy surprise challenges the chefs in the first round, and a state fair treat and an iconic Texas meat meet in the second basket. The final basket holds Texas-inspired ingredients, but can the last two competitors find a good use for them in their desserts?
#2 - Whiz Kid Cooks
Season 38 - Episode 7 - Aired 9/4/2018
Kids who love to cook take over the Chopped Kitchen to prove they are forces to be reckoned with in the culinary world. The young competitors focus on finding creative ways to prepare ground chicken in round one. Both fries and sprouting cauliflower are found in the tricky entree basket. And not everything goes according to plan when the final two kids take on desserts made from a fermented beverage and a sweet novelty item.
#3 - Under the Cuban Sun
Season 38 - Episode 8 - Aired 9/11/2018
Four chefs with personal connections to Cuba are treated to ingredient baskets filled with a variety of Cuban foods. But which competitor will best represent the country's cooking traditions? In the appetizer round, butchering a whole fish gives one chef a whole lot of trouble. The chefs are less than thrilled to find a jarred version of a favorite Cuban sauce in the entree basket, and the two who make it to the dessert round must piece together a culinary puzzle that includes a cocktail and a fruit.
#4 - Grill Masters: Finale Showdown
Season 38 - Episode 6 - Aired 8/28/2018
Four Grill Masters champions representing their regional styles -- Texas, Memphis, North Carolina and Kansas City -- return to compete in this do-or-die grand finale with $50,000 and an enormous amount of pride on the line. A wild, smoky ingredient in the first basket kicks things off, and then the judges expect magnificent meat-and-potatoes entree plates from the three remaining champs. The adrenaline-filled grand finale dessert round featuring sugary, festive ingredients will decide which champion can pull off a sweet victory and walk away with the prize.
#5 - Beach Bites
Season 38 - Episode 1 - Aired 7/24/2018
The competing chefs are told to picture themselves in a lovely coastal town as they prepare a meal of magnificent beach bites for the judges. A variety of seafood and a flotilla of edible boats kick things off in the appetizer basket. When more than one of the competitors don't leave much time to plate, they cut it close and try to beat the clock. A cute, beach-themed surprise makes an appearance in the entree basket, and desserts with a splash of rum and a dose of fun are in store for the judges.
#6 - Tacos and Tequila
Season 38 - Episode 10 - Aired 9/25/2018
It's fiesta time and the chefs are taking on tacos and tequila-themed baskets. Each competitor must make taco-inspired dishes that include a delicious delicacy in the blanco tequila-spiked first round. Two out of the three remaining chefs feel the meat grinder is a must in the second round. Then, a sweet take on taco shells keeps the theme going into the dessert round.
#7 - Wellington Woes
Season 38 - Episode 9 - Aired 9/18/2018
The competitors bring their best to the Chopped kitchen to impress judge Martha Stewart. In the appetizer round, they face a modern take on beef Wellington and an iconic canned meat, and one chef's ambitious plans force him to rush to beat the clock. In the entree round, Martha is excited to see what the chefs create with one of her favorite ingredients. The final two competitors have the same idea about what to make for dessert, but whose dish will be better?
#8 - Halloween Hijinks
Season 38 - Episode 11 - Aired 10/2/2018
Martha Stewart is thrilled to celebrate her favorite holiday, Halloween, as a judge in the Chopped kitchen. All manner of spooky fun is found in the first basket, including a scary sight in a martini glass and macaroni and cheese in a clever package. A witch's cauldron holds a green, savory surprise in the entree basket, and it's demolition day at the haunted gingerbread house as the final two chefs make their desserts.
#9 - Grill Masters: North Carolina
Season 38 - Episode 3 - Aired 8/7/2018
Pride is on the line as four regional rivals all deeply devoted to North Carolina-style barbecue battle it out in a thrilling, grilling heat to see who will represent their region in the $50,000 Grill Masters grand finale against winners from Texas, Memphis and Kansas City. Will fish in the first basket throw the pork-loving pitmasters off their game? The three chefs who move on to the entree round are surprised to have to work with liver. Finally, some Southern favorites in the dessert basket give the last two Tar Heel State competitors a head start in bringing Carolina flavors to their sweet plates.
#10 - Grill Masters: Kansas City
Season 38 - Episode 2 - Aired 7/31/2018
Big flavors meet big personalities as regional rivals from the thriving Kansas City barbecue world compete to see who will advance to the $50,000 Grill Masters grand finale and face winners from Texas, North Carolina and Memphis. A 20-minute appetizer round doesn't seem long enough to deal with the double cut pork chops in the first basket. Then, a bubbly surprise in the second basket prompts the chefs to bring the sweet to their entree dishes. Pineapple and banana are two of the flavors that must be married on the last two competitors' dessert plates.
#11 - Grill Masters: Memphis
Season 38 - Episode 4 - Aired 8/14/2018
Four chefs who live and breathe Memphis-style barbecue compete for a coveted spot in the $50,000 Grill Masters grand finale, facing off against champions from Texas, North Carolina and Kansas City. Tennessee tradition abounds in the first basket, which includes a creative take on a messy, shareable comfort food, and the chefs are stunned to see a gigantic sandwich in the second basket. Peaches in the dessert basket seem like a gift, but will the last two Memphis-style chefs be able to make them shine on their plates?