Almost 2,000 young cooks aged 9-14 from around Australia applied to become part of Junior MasterChef Australia, which will return for the first time since 2011 on October 11 at 7:30 pm on 10 and 10 Play.
The show will air each week on Sunday, Monday and Tuesdays at 7:30 pm, with the winner being crowned Australia’s Junior MasterChef and taking home $25,000 in prize money.
Before they were chosen to be on the show the final crop of hopefuls auditioned in Melbourne in front of judges Jock Zonfrillo, Melissa Leong and Andy Allen before the top 14 tiny chefs were selected and handed their aprons.
The mini contestants will face MasterChef staples such as Mystery Boxes, Immunity Challenges and Eliminations, while also facing new elements including the Immunity Gong, where two cooks will win the chance to bang the gong and save themselves from elimination during the competition.
See More: Junior MasterChef: Melissa Leong on another serve of kids in the kitchen
The junior pack of cooks will have to collect their own honey from a beehive, make their way through a snowy MasterChef kitchen, taste a whole lot of ice cream and see if they recognise some familiar, but very old, faces along the way. They’ll meet some of the best chefs and cooks in the land, with challenges set by Curtis Stone, Darren Purchese and Kirsten Tibballs, Morgan Hipworth and none other than MasterChef Australia Back To Win winner, Emelia Jackson.
Junior MasterChef Australia judge Melissa Leong said that she had high expectations but was still surprised by the quality of cooking that was presented.
“The calibre of cooking and their interpretation of the creative challenges really surprised me in terms of their maturity, their artistic conception, and their execution. I really hope that the audience can appreciate just how special these kids are.”
“The greatest joy with Junior MasterChef is how bright our future is with kids like this wanting to cook from such a young age. These are kids who have grown up with MasterChef for most of their lifetime and this is really a testament to how much our food IQ as a nation has progressed. I think that fascination with food helps us connect and learn about each other’s cultures because a lot of the time the easiest way to learn about each other’s cultures is through food.”
From home-style favourite foods, a celebration of cultural cuisines and recreations of dazzling dishes, it will be hard to believe what these young culinary students can do.
The 14 contestants on Junior MasterChef Australia:
Ben, 10, VIC
Ben is from Bendigo in country Victoria. His hobbies include making military models, playing the cornet and going to cub scouts. When he grows up, Ben dreams of being a website developer, an architect or a chef who specialises in telling a story with food.
Carter, 12, NSW
Carter holds aspirations to be a chef and own a hatted restaurant. He is also into sports including soccer, touch footy, swimming, little athletics and hip-hop dancing
Dev, 13, VIC
Born in Australia to Indian parents, Dev’s first love is making curries, but he also loves cooking Italian cuisine and making technical desserts inspired by Heston Blumenthal. Dev plays competitive tennis and classical guitar and enjoys hanging out with younger brother Sydh, 11.
Etka, 13, VIC
Etka has a passion for Indian and Thai cuisine, having lived in Thailand for a year. His interests are varied, with fishing, art and restoring and repairing old items amongst his favourite hobbies.
Filo, 12, VIC
Georgia, 11, Vic
Georgia’s idols include Poh Ling Yeow, Emelia Jackson and Laura Sharrad. Outside the kitchen, Georgia loves tennis and martial arts and is big sister to little brother Noah, eight.
Laura, 13, QLD
From Gold Coast Hinterland, Laura loves all types of cuisines, with Japanese, Italian, Thai, Indian and French amongst her favourites. Outside of the kitchen, Laura enjoys netball, Girl Guides, dancing and art.
Phenix, 11, NSW
Phenix’s dad is a trained chef and her mum owns a Vietnamese café. The proud owner of a pet turtle, Phenix has a host of hobbies alongside cooking, spending her time dancing, doing arts and craft, singing and playing basketball.
Porsha, 11, QLD
Porsha’s career goal is inspired by judge Melissa Leong, Porsha would love to be a food critic who travels the world when she grows up. She loves playing with her five-year-old brother, Leo, as well as doing dance, acrobatics and crochet.
Ruby, 11, WA
Ruby loves to cook with local produce and connecting with the cuisines of other cultures, enjoying eating Italian and Mexican in particular. She also loves surfing, playing flute and crafty projects.
Ryan, 11, SA
Ryan’s Dad, Sashi, actually won MasterChef Australia Season 10 in 2018. Ryan can often be found whipping up desserts, brownies, ice cream and cakes. Ryan also enjoys playing soccer, skating and playing video games with his brother, Marcus 14.
Salvo, 13, WA
Born in Italy and moving to Australia at age five, Salvo is here to make his family proud and showcase his Italian heritage through his cooking. Listing his all-time favourite chef as Gordon Ramsay, Salvo thinks Jock will be the toughest judge to impress. Adventures, art, and customising shoes are all Salvo’s hobbies outside of the kitchen.
Tiffany, 14, QLD
Having battled juvenile arthritis, Tiffany is now feeling ready to throw herself into the Junior MasterChef competition. Tiffany has travelled a lot and in the last 18 months has been to Dubai, Egypt, Japan, Poland and England. Outside of the kitchen, Tiffany enjoys spending time with family and friends and shopping
Vienna, 13, VIC
First taught to bake at age five, these days Vienna usually bakes 2-4 times a week and often cooks dinner for her family. Vienna has overcome lymphoma in the past couple of years and has a very special relationship with her brother, Luca 9, who donated bone marrow to assist in her treatment. Known for her sweet creations, Vienna loves to eat Japanese, Vietnamese, and Italian cuisine and enjoys painting, dancing and netball.