The BEST episodes of MasterChef

#1 - Episode 20

Season 1 - Episode 20 - Aired 3/18/2005

#2 - Episode 19

Season 1 - Episode 19 - Aired 3/17/2005

#3 - Episode 20

Season 2 - Episode 20 - Aired 2/17/2006

#4 - Episode 16

Season 1 - Episode 16 - Aired 3/14/2005

#5 - Episode 17

Season 1 - Episode 17 - Aired 3/15/2005

#6 - Episode 23

Season 14 - Episode 23 - Aired 4/11/2018

Finals Week continues, and just four cooks remain. Now they embark on a culinary adventure of a lifetime to Peru. Over the last decade, Lima, the capital, has led a food revolution that has popularised Peruvian cuisine around the world. Here the finalists face three challenges, guided by two of Peru's most acclaimed chefs. The first challenge takes place in Lima's major fish market Chorillos, where, in teams of two, they are tasked with recreating four popular iconic Peruvian dishes to serve to a group of local fishermen. To help the finalists make sense of this unfamiliar cuisine, they are mentored by one of Peru's most prolific and celebrated chefs, Gaston Acurio. Next, the amateurs have the honour of working with chef Virgilio Martinez. His world-renowned restaurant Central is known for its unique menu which offers diners a taste of the incredible biodiversity found at different Peruvian altitudes. The four contestants work during a busy lunch service at Central and are given three hours to each cook a dish from Virgilio's 17-course tasting menu. Virgilio's cooking is precise and his standards exacting, so there is no room for error. Finally, the finalists face the daunting challenge of creating a special dinner at the Lima Country Club Hotel for Gaston, Virgilio and three other leading industry figures from the Peruvian food scene - Roberto Grau, Pia Leon and Malena Martinez. The amateur cooks must draw on their experiences of Lima to create their own Peruvian-inspired dish and impress their high-profile guests.

#7 - Episode 9

Season 9 - Episode 9 - Aired 4/3/2013

The penultimate heat week begins, as five more amateur cooks battle against each other. First, they must hold their nerve in the infamous Invention Test, where they have just one hour to cook an exceptional dish from scratch. They must then survive the extremely tricky Palate Test, a brand new MasterChef challenge which sees John demonstrate a chicken pot pie with coleslaw. Without seeing the demo, the amateurs are given just a few minutes to taste this dish before being asked to write down exactly what is in it, using their sense of smell and palate. Then they are asked to recreate John's dish in just one hour - without a recipe. At the end of these two challenges, for two contestants it is the end of the road. The remaining three are then thrown into a busy lunchtime service in London's Bistro 51 and, after just an hour of learning the ropes, the home-cooks are set loose to prepare dishes for paying customers. Finally, it's back to the MasterChef kitchen for the final test of tonight's Heat show - cooking their own two brilliant courses to impress John and Gregg. The contestants must draw on all their skills and influences as they prepare this food, because it is their last chance to win a place in the quarter-finals. Only the best will survive, taking their first step towards being crowned MasterChef Champion 2013.

#8 - Episode 20

Season 9 - Episode 20 - Aired 4/26/2013

In this last semi-final, the four remaining contestants have two and a half hours to produce their best three-course menu. for a restaurant full of the country's most revered food critics.

#9 - Episode 3

Season 13 - Episode 3 - Aired 3/31/2017

It is the first quarter-final of the series, and the six cooks face a seriously daunting test set by one of the country's toughest food critics. This episode's brief has been set by journalist and broadcaster Amol Rajan, and the contestants must cook either a savoury dish using Indian spices or a chocolate dessert with a playful twist. After cooking their dish, the contestants must stand before Amol Rajan, John and Gregg to hear what they think of their dish and how well they have kept to the brief. At the end of the quarter-final, the best cooks are put through to Knockout Week, taking another step closer to being crowned MasterChef Champion 2017.

#10 - Episode 22

Season 13 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/8/2017

It is the final week of MasterChef 2017, and the remaining five amateur cooks travel to Winfield House, the official residence of the American ambassador to the United Kingdom. They have the immense task of cooking for him and his five guests, who include author and journalist Rachel Johnson, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales and Jeremy King, creator of iconic restaurants The Ivy and The Wolseley. The dinner is overseen by Paul Ainsworth. He has designed a five-course menu for the guests with an American theme, and with just four hours to replicate his complex dishes, the amateurs are challenged like never before. Back at the MasterChef kitchen, the finalists are then challenged to demonstrate everything they've learnt and create a dish inspired by something personal in their lives that shows imagination, flair and creativity. Who can make it through to the final four and keep their dream alive of winning MasterChef 2017?

#11 - Episode 25

Season 14 - Episode 25 - Aired 4/13/2018

It's the MasterChef final. After an arduous seven-week journey, the search for the country's best amateur cook reaches its climax. The finalists have to push themselves to the limit for one last time before judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace crown one of the three talented cooks the champion. This is their final chance to pull out all the stops and show everything they have learned along the way, and in three hours demonstrate the kind of cook they have become. They must produce the best three dishes of their lives, push their culinary boundaries and produce jaw-droppingly good food for the judges. It's now or never for these exceptional amateur cooks as only one of them can lift the trophy and become the fourteenth MasterChef champion.

#12 - Episode 25

Season 4 - Episode 25 - Aired 2/18/2008

It’s the first semi final and six hopefuls are back. Two will be sent home. The contestants are challenged to create a dish using chicken.

#13 - Episode 5

Season 13 - Episode 5 - Aired 4/6/2017

Today, eight more amateurs try to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be the 2017 MasterChef Champion. This year sees the introduction of the all-new MasterChef market - which is stocked full of produce from all around the world as well as a selection of meat and fish. The first challenge for the eight contestants is to invent and cook one dish using what's available to them in the market. On offer today are duck legs, ox tail, lamb mince, langoustine, cod and scallops. They have one hour and twenty minutes to dazzle the judges and prove they are good enough to stay in the competition. The stakes are high in this round and it's important to choose wisely because after tasting all eight dishes John and Gregg decide which five cooks are good enough to stay, while three of the cooks will be sent home. The five remaining cooks now have one more challenge standing between them and a quarter-final place. They have to cook two courses that will excite not just John and Gregg, but also some very special guests. Some of MasterChef's most inspiring winners and finalists return to judge the food of this year's new contenders to the throne. In tonight's heat, the contestants must attempt to impress 2006 Finalist Dean Edwards as well as Champions Ping Coombes (2014) and Thomasina Miers (2005). After the five hopefuls have cooked, John and Gregg will decide which three contestants deserve to take the next step in the competition and go through to Friday's quarter-final. In a competition where only the food matters, these amateurs will need to be good to survive - taking their first step towards being crowned MasterChef Champion 2017.

#14 - Episode 5

Season 14 - Episode 5 - Aired 3/8/2018

Seven more hopefuls try to impress judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace. This year sees the return of the MasterChef Market, stocked full of the best-quality produce from across the world. The challenge is to invent and then cook one dish using anything from the market. The featured ingredients include lamb rump, pork chops, pigeon, sea bass, turbot and langoustine, and the contestants have an hour and ten minutes to dazzle the judges. After tasting all seven dishes, John and Gregg decide which four cooks are good enough to stay, while three are sent home. The four remaining cooks must cook two courses that will excite not just John and Gregg but also the MasterChef champions from 2005, Thomasina Miers, and 2006, Steven Wallis, and finalist from 2006 Daksha Mistry. After the four hopefuls have cooked, John and Gregg decide which three contestants deserve to take the next step in the competition and go through to Friday's quarter-final.

#15 - Episode 19

Season 6 - Episode 19 - Aired 4/1/2010

#16 - Episode 16

Season 14 - Episode 16 - Aired 3/29/2018

The second group of amateurs get their first taste of professional cooking. They are heading to Sartoria in London's Mayfair, run by renowned Italian chef patron Francesco Mazzei. The six contestants are responsible for serving up every dish on the menu to paying customers during a packed lunch service. Then it is back to MasterChef HQ for an invention test for John and Gregg. In a last-chance bid to stay in the competition, each cook has to show they have learned from their experience and can create a unique and outstanding dish worthy of gracing the table of a restaurant. Guest judge two Michelin-starred Nathan Outlaw returns to help John and Gregg evaluate the six amateur cooks' dishes After this challenge, one of the contestants is sent home.

#17 - Episode 18

Season 5 - Episode 18 - Aired 2/3/2009

John Torode and Gregg Wallace are looking for the country's next star chef. In this heat, six contestants face three tests: inventing a dish from scratch in just 50 minutes, cooking at the La Porte Des Indes restaurant and making a two-course meal for the judges. Only one of them will make it through to become a quarter-finalist.

#18 - Episode 5

Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 2/25/2005

#19 - Episode 14

Season 6 - Episode 14 - Aired 3/22/2010

#20 - Episode 19

Season 9 - Episode 19 - Aired 4/25/2013

The four remaining contestants must cook in an invention test for the demanding Michelin-starred chefs, Marcus Wareing. They are then taken to the world-famous Savoy hotel to produce a first-class fine dining menu for 12 Bond movie girls.

#21 - Episode 24

Season 11 - Episode 24 - Aired 4/24/2015

It's the MasterChef final. After a formidable seven-week competition, the search for the country's best amateur cook reaches its climax. The finalists have to push themselves to the limit for one last time before Judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace crown one of the three highly talented amateur cooks the champion. This is their final chance to pull out all the stops, show everything they have learned, and in three hours demonstrate what sort of cook they have become. They must produce three exceptional courses, push their culinary boundaries and give the judges an awe-inspiring tasting like never before. It's a night packed with culinary highlights, as one of these three exceptional amateur cooks lifts the trophy and becomes the 11th MasterChef Champion.

#22 - Episode 4

Season 14 - Episode 4 - Aired 3/5/2018

It's the second week of heats, and seven more hopefuls need to pull out all the stops to impress judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace. This year sees the return of the MasterChef Market, stocked full of the best-quality produce from across the world. The challenge is to invent and then cook one dish using anything from the market. The featured ingredients include venison, chicken, parma ham, sea bream and pollock, and the contestants have an hour and ten minutes to dazzle the judges. After tasting all seven dishes, John and Gregg decide which four cooks are good enough to stay, while three are sent home. The four remaining cooks must cook two courses that will excite not just John and Gregg but also some very special guests - 2015's MasterChef finalists Tony Rodd and Emma Spitzer and champion Simon Wood. After the four hopefuls have cooked, John and Gregg decide which three contestants deserve to take the next step in the competition and go through to Friday's quarter-final.

#23 - Episode 7

Season 14 - Episode 7 - Aired 3/12/2018

It's the third week of heats and seven more hopefuls need to pull out all the stops to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to rise above the rest. This year sees the return of the MasterChef Market, full of quality produce from across the world including meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, nuts, pulses, grains and dairy. The challenge is to invent and cook one dish using anything from the Market. This time, the featured ingredients include chicken thighs, chorizo, crab, sea trout and prawns. They have an hour and 10 minutes to dazzle the judges and prove they are good enough to stay. The stakes are high and it's important to choose wisely because after tasting all seven dishes, John and Gregg will decide which four cooks will stay, while three cooks will be sent home. The four remaining cooks will have one more challenge standing between them and a quarter-final place.

#24 - Episode 2

Season 13 - Episode 2 - Aired 3/30/2017

Eight more amateurs try to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be the 2017 MasterChef Champion. This year sees the introduction of the all new MasterChef market, which is stocked full of amazing produce from all around the world as well as a selection of meat and fish. The first challenge is to invent and cook one dish using what is available in the market. On offer today are poussin, lamb rack and duck breast as well as mussels, prawns and crab. They have one hour and twenty minutes to dazzle the judges and prove they are good enough to stay in the competition. The stakes are high in this round and it's important to choose wisely as, after tasting all eight dishes, John and Gregg must decide which five cooks are good enough to stay, while three of the cooks will be sent home. The five remaining cooks now have one more challenge standing between them and a quarter-final place. They have to cook an impressive menu that will excite not just John and Gregg but also some very special guests. Some of MasterChef's most inspiring winners and finalists return to judge the food of this year's new contenders. In this heat the contestants must attempt to impress the finalists from 2015 - Emma Spitzer, Tony Rodd and champion Simon Wood. After the five hopefuls have cooked, John and Gregg will choose which contestants have what it takes to go through to the quarter-final.

#25 - Episode 10

Season 2 - Episode 10 - Aired 2/3/2006