Everything you need to know about MasterChef: The Professionals 2023, when is it on, which chefs made it through to the semi-finals and what are the challenges ahead

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Everything you need to know about Masterchef: The Professionals 2023 including when it starts, where to watch and which chefs are taking part.

We'll update this page as the competition progresses but for now, this is what we know.....

When does MasterChef: The Professionals 2023 start?

MasterChef: The Professionals 2023 starts on Monday 23 October, for its 16th series.  

Where can I watch MasterChef: The Professionals 2023?

Returning to BBC One, 32 ambitious chefs from across the country battle to become the 2023 Champion.

Who are the new MasterChef: The Professionals 2023 contestants?

Below are all the chefs who are on this year's show:

Tom Hamblet, Sous Chef, South Lodge Hotel, Horsham

Tristan Esse, Private Chef, London

Lindsay Rushton, Chef Patron, Rebel Restaurant

I-Lin, Chef de Partie, Holborn Dining Room

Cecily Rae, Private Chef, London

Casrick, Junior Sous Chef, Kitchen W8

Ayesha Kalaji, Chef Patron, The Queen of Cups

Simon Braz, Head Chef, FJB Hotel group

Philippe Sonou, Private Chef

Verity Hurding, Chef Owner, Eòlach

Dmytro 'Dimi' Penziev, Sous Chef, Kricket

Dan Herbert, Senoir Sous Chef, The Harper Hotel

Gabrielle Masefield, Private chef

Kasae Fraser, Head Chef at Roburn

Giovann Attard, Executive Head Chef at Norma

Kyle Greenwood, Sous Chef at Seaham Hall at the Dining Room

Jeany Fox, Senior Sous at A Peculiar Tea

Ola, Head Chef at Compass Group UK

Ieuan Davies, Sous Chef at the Castle Inn

James Sharp, Chef CEO of Hash Hut

Molly Payne, Chef Owner of byMolly

Lauren, an Event Caterer at Harry's Kitchen

Joaquin Fernando Aguilar, Sous Chef at Club Garcon

Evelina Stripeikyte, Chef de Partie at Glenturret Lalique Restaurant

Cameron MacBeth, Head Chef at Cornerstone Restaurant

Catrin Rehnström, Head Chef Bartlett Mitchell caterers

Himanshu Verma, Chef de Partie, at a private member’s club

Dara Ryan, Sous Chef, 36 on the Quay

Cristina Maia, Group Head Chef at Camm & Hooper

Tommy Thorn, Head Chef at The Ethicurean

Charlie Walters, Head Chef at The Sardine Factory

Rosie Patenall, Chef Patron at Rye,

Which chefs made it to the Finals


Charlie Walters, Head Chef at The Sardine Factory


Kasae Fraser, Head Chef, Bath

 


Tom Hamblet, Sous Chef, South Lodge Hotel, Horsham


Tommy Thorn, Head Chef at The Ethicurean

 

Which chefs made it to the Semi Finals


Kyle Greenwood, Sous Chef at Seaham Hall at the Dining Room


Philippe Sonou, Private Chef


James Sharp, Chef CEO of Hash Hut, North London


Lauren, an Event Caterer at Harry's Kitchen

Which chefs made it to the Quarter finals?

 

Rosie Patenall, Chef Patron at Rye

Cecily Rae, Private Chef, London


Tristan Esse, Private Chef, London

Verity Hurding, Chef Owner, Eòlach

 

Dara Ryan, Sous Chef, 36 on the Quay

Cameron MacBeth, Head Chef at Cornerstone Restaurant

Ieuan Davies, Sous Chef at the Castle Inn

Evelina Stripeikyte, Chef de Partie at Glenturret Lalique Restaurant

Ayesha Kalaji, Chef Patron, The Queen of Cups, Glastonbury

The judges

Presiding over the UK’s most revered cooking competition, will be new judge, the acclaimed chef and restaurateur Monica Galleti, Michelin-starred chef Marcus Wareing and celebrated MasterChef judge, Gregg Wallace.

The expert team are eager to discover outstanding new cooking talent and will be setting exacting standards from the moment the kitchen doors open.

As only the most skilled, passionate and creative of chefs can come close to the prestigious MasterChef: The Professionals title.

What to expect on This year's Masterchef: the Professionals? 

Over six intense weeks, the chefs, drawn from kitchens up and down the UK, are put through their paces - first competing in the Heats with the aim of making it to that week’s Quarter Final.

In each heat, four chefs cook against one another for two Quarter Final places.

The debut challenge is the nerve-wracking Skills Test - set by Monica and Marcus.

The judges demonstrate their dish for the viewers at home, such as Oysters Poached and Smoked in a Beurre Blanc or Summer Fruit Tart, with a Jam, Crème Patissière and Italian Meringue, then task the professionals with preparing their take on the dish.

There is nowhere to hide in this nail-biting and unpredictable challenge, as the judges watch them either prove their skills or make a shaky start.

The contestants must then produce a Signature Menu of a main course and dessert within an hour and 25 minutes – a chance to make an impression on the judges with their own cooking.

The two top chefs from each Heat take their place in the Quarter Finals.

Forcing them to think on their feet, the judges first set the professionals an Invention Test – with a twist.

Marcus and Monica task them with creating a dish based around a theme such as brunch, textures, orange and ginger or savoury to sweet.

The chefs have a range of ingredients to work with but must stay calm and focused to quickly interpret the judges’ brief and devise a mouth-watering – and MasterChef level – plate of food.

The contenders then must pull out all the stops to win over the UK’s most discerning and revered food critics, who, this year, include: Grace Dent, Jay Rayner, Jimi Famurewa, Leyla Kazim, Tom Parker Bowles, Tracey MacLeod, and William Sitwell.

For those who have proven they are cooking at the next level, the Semi Finals and Finals await - where they take on culinary obstacles unlike anything their career to date.

The challenges include running their own pop-up restaurant and showcasing their own fine-dining style at a Chef’s Table for a critical audience of the country’s leading chefs including Sat Bains, Jason Atherton, Matt Abé along with some new Michelin-starred talent - at the Lanesborough Hotel in London.

At the end of six exhilarating and gruelling weeks, battling their way towards the coveted MasterChef trophy, the Final Three have one last opportunity to bring together everything they have learned over the course of the competition, and hope that all their hard work in the kitchen has paid off.

They must produce the best three-course menu of their lives for the judges, who will accept nothing less than spectacular in order to crown one contender - the MasterChef: The Professionals 2023 Champion.

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The Staff Canteen

Editor 8th December 2023

Everything you need to know about MasterChef: The Professionals 2023, when is it on, which chefs made it through to the semi-finals and what are the challenges ahead