TV series review: Getting hooked and hungry with ‘MasterChef US’

MANILA, Philippines - “MasterChef US,” now on the end of its fourth season, continues to be a hit among foodies and chef-wannabes. It starts of with the auditions of home cooks from all over America. Thousands come hoping to impress with their signature dishes which ranged from wild bear to ostrich egg frittata to caramel popcorn mixed with lobster.

Alas, not everyone is lucky enough to receive the coveted white apron. The ones that did get chosen are soon quickly weeded out through a tough sudden-death lamb dish cook-off. Whoever survives then goes through a rigorous series of team challenges, mystery box challenges and pressure tests.

The mystery box, for those of you who do not know, is just that—a mystery. Until the cover is lifted. Then it reveals ingredients that the contestants have to cook with or guest celebrities that they have to cook for.

One of season four’s celebrity guests was the sexy Eva Longoria, who tasked the contestants to make her a Mexican-inspired dish. Funnily enough, the vegetarian Bri won that challenge with a shrimp dish, which she of course did not taste herself.

Other cast of characters that make up the standouts of the latest season includes Luca (the Italian comeback kid from last season), Natasha (the fiercely competitive beauty), Jessie (the tall southern princess), Eddie (the ex-ball player who can score touchdowns with his meat dishes), James (the Jesus look-alike who occasionally cooks like a god), and controversial Krissi (the somewhat abrasive and opinionated home cook that everybody loves to hate). But then what is a show without an archenemy to spice things up, right? You can just imagine the drama that just sizzles and heats up the kitchen.

The team challenges involve cooking under the direction of team leaders who happen to be whoever the winners of the most recent mystery box challenge are. The leaders have to guide their teams through whatever challenge they face — whether it be making steaks for a hundred firefighters, or taking over one of New York’s finest restaurants for a night. Team challenges mean chaos of leading or being led and a frenzy of cooking.

The losing team then competes against each other in a pressure test and whoever produces the worst dish has to give up his apron.

The main ingredient to this feast of a show is, of course, the three judges. There’s the teddy bear of a judge Graham Elliot who always has a kind word for everyone, so you’ll know a dish really stunk when even Graham can’t find anything nice to say about it. There’s the Italian Joe Bastianich with his piercing stare and razor-sharp tongue. When he doesn’t like a dish, you’ll know it. How can you not? When he either spits it out or just throws it directly into the trash bin, plate and all. Of course, who could forget Gordon Ramsay? The most vocal, scare-you-out-of-your-wits judge in the competition. If we had him expediting for our restaurants in Cebu, we’d all have an excellent dining experience. Either that or we’d have half the staff of the restaurant suffering from nervous breakdowns.

These three judges can have the contestants glowing from effusive praise for a well thought-out dish or cowering in fear from harsh reviews of their masterpiece-turned-nightmare. Even frying an egg can become a challenge with these three looking on as the contestants learned. You really don’t want to know how many plates they broke during that particular challenge.

More than just throwing plates, the judges also throw around helpful tips on how to perfect certain dishes as well. So you’re not just treated to a feast for the eyes, you can actually try your hand at some of the dishes the contestants make, from delicate French macarons to the perfect fried chicken.

Just be sure to watch MasterChef on a full stomach. Otherwise, you’re gonna find yourself rummaging through your fridge in the middle of the night because whether you watch it for the amazing food, the mean but hilarious judges, or the quest to get one particular contestant kicked out, you’ll find yourself hooked and hungry before you know it. (FREEMAN)