MasterChef Canada (season 1) facts for kids

The 50 cooks selected from across Canada had one hour to prepare their signature dishes for judges Michael Bonacini, Alvin Leung and Claudio Aprile. 26 contestants were presented with MasterChef aprons and advanced to the next round.

The Top 26 home cooks had 60 minutes to make a dish using any part of a chicken and only one pan and burner, as well as a limited pantry of produce, and only 16 kept their aprons. The first group, consisting of Mike, Marida, Julie, Meghan and Josh, was called forward and advanced into the Top 16. Two more groups were then called forward, where the group consisting of Tammara, Eric, Pino, Ben, Danielle, Carly and Brooke advanced, while the other group, consisting of Rob, Sarah, JP, Alison, Natalia and Jordan was eliminated. This left 8 home cooks: Bubba, Dale, Danny, Dora, Evan, John, Kaila and Sparkle, whose dishes were tasted by the judges to decide which of them would move forward. The first pair called forward was Dale and John. Dale advanced, while John was sent home. The next pair was Bubba and Sparkle, who were both eliminated. The third pair was Kaila and Evan. Evan was sent home, while Kaila advanced. The final pair was Danny and Dora, who both advanced.

Mystery Box 1: In their first mystery box challenge, the Top 16 had 60 minutes to make a dish using a mystery box containing a pork loin, crunchy and smooth peanut butter, bananas, semisweet chocolate, honey, and chorizo. Carly, Eric, and Marida made the three best dishes, and Marida won the challenge and immunity with her pork and noodle stir-fry with peanut vinaigrette.

Elimination Test 1: In the elimination challenge, the other home cooks had 60 minutes to make a dish using one of three ingredients from the Canadian land, air, and sea, and Marida picked the smelt (over the venison and duck). The judges also allowed her to save one other home cook from elimination and she saved Brooke. Pino and Dale made the two best dishes, and they became team captains in their first team challenge. Meghan, Danny and Ben were called forward for having the worst three dishes. In a surprise double elimination, Ben and Meghan were sent home.

Team Challenge 1: For their first team challenge, the home cooks were taken to the Air Canada Centre, where they were split into two teams and given two and a half hours to prepare and serve a two-course meal, consisting of a pasta and fish dish, for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Pino and Dale were the captains of the Blue and White Teams, respectively. Pino chose Marida, Julie, Carly, Tammara, Dora, and Danielle, while Dale chose Eric, Brooke, Mike, Josh, and was left with Kaila. Danny could not compete because he was sick with the flu. The Blue Team won, 26 votes to 11, sending the White Team to the pressure test

Pressure Test 1: Tensions arose as Dale was accused of poor leadership, which led him to spare himself and Danny from elimination, despite the fact that he didn't take part in the previous challenge. The other five cooks were then given 45 minutes to make a Raviolo al Uovo, a ravioli with a liquid egg yolk inside and a fried sage leaf at the top. Kalia made the best dish and she, along with Josh, was sent to safety. Eric was also sent to safety. Finally, Mike was saved and Brooke was eliminated.

Mystery Box 2: In the mystery box challenge, the home cooks had one hour to make a burger with a meat grinder using many different meats. Near the end of the cook, Eric severely cut his hand and was forced to sit out, leaving him with no dish to present. Dale, Kaila, Josh, and Mike made the four best dishes, and Kaila won.

Elimination Test 2: Kaila was safe from elimination and able to choose a Canadian ingredient which was paired with a bottle of Alexander Keith's Hop Ale, and she chose apples. She was also given the advantage of forcing two home cooks to make a dessert, and she chose Eric and Josh as her targets for elimination. Dora's dish was deemed the best, followed by Danielle, making them team captains in the next challenge. The bottom three were Eric, Pino and Danny. The judges liked the flavors of Eric's apple pie, but the pastry was raw. Danny's dish was deemed the worst and he was eliminated from the competition.

Team Challenge 2: For their next team challenge, the home cooks were taken to Toronto's distillery district, where they had to serve many famous artists. The judges were allowed to decide the winning team. Dora chose Carly, Mike, Marida, Julie, and Tammara for the Red Team, while Danielle chose Dale, Josh, Eric, Kaila, and Pino for the Blue Team. The cooks had to prepare three canapés. The Red Team came out on top, and the Blue Team had to face a pressure test.

Pressure Test 2: The Red Team was given the power to choose two home cooks to give immunity from the pressure test, and they chose Pino and Eric. Dale, Josh, Kaila, and Danielle were then given 90 minutes to prepare a cheesecake, with the best cheesecake being placed in a magazine. Danielle was praised for her limoncello Key lime cheesecake and she was safe. Claudio liked Kaila's chocolate caramel pecan cheesecake, but criticized her for not honoring cheese, the main ingredient. Ultimately, she was saved, and Josh and Dale were the bottom two. Josh's cheesecake was deemed the worst, and he left the competition.

Mystery Box 3: The Top 11 home cooks faced a mystery box challenge that took them back to their roots. The top three were Pino, Marida, and Eric. Eric won the challenge, granting him immunity.

Elimination Test 3: The judges presented Eric with ten different cuts of beef from an Alberta cow, ranging from premium steaks to offal. For his advantage, Eric got to decide which home cook would cook which cut of meat. Targeting Kaila, he assigned the brain to her, liver to Mike, oxtail to Pino, sweetbread to Carly, kidney to Marida, cheek to Dora, tongue to Danielle, tomahawk steak to Dale, bone marrow to Tammara, and flank steak to Julie. Kaila and Pino made the two best dishes. The bottom three were Mike, Dora, and Dale. Dora's dish was deemed the worst, and she was eliminated.

Team Challenge 3: The 10 remaining home cooks went to CFB Trenton for their next team challenge, in which they had to prepare and serve a rib-eye steak with two sides for 151 members of the Canadian Forces. Kaila was the captain of the Red Team and she chose Danielle, Dale, Julie, and Marida. Pino was the captain of the Blue Team and he chose Eric, Mike, Tammara, and was left with Carly. The Blue Team won with an overwhelming 107 out of 151 votes.

Pressure Test 3: The Red Team was allowed to save one member from elimination, and they saved Marida. In the pressure test, the other four members of the Red Team were challenged to make salmon wellington. Danielle made the best salmon wellington and she was safe, while Kaila and Dale were the bottom two. Dale's dish was deemed the worst, and he was sent home.

Mystery Box 4: The Top 9 home cooks were given a mystery box that contained ingredients that the judges enjoyed working with. Tammara, Danielle, Marida, and Kaila were the top four, and Danielle won the challenge and immunity.

Elimination Test 4: Danielle was presented with three classic regional Canadian desserts, one of which the other eight home cooks had to use as a base to create a new one. Targeting Marida and Kaila, Danielle selected the Nanaimo bar (over the butter tart and blueberry grunt). Tammara and Eric made the two best desserts and they became team captains in the following challenge. The bottom three were Pino, Marida, and Carly. Carly's dessert was deemed the worst and she was eliminated.

Team Challenge 4: For their next team challenge, the eight remaining home cooks were taken to Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto, where they were tasked with running food trucks, Mexicana and Italiano. Tammara chose the Mexicana food truck, leaving Eric with the Italiano truck. At first Tammara, Marida, Mike and Julie formed the Blue team, while Eric, Pino, Danielle, and Kaila formed the Red team, but the judges gave Tammara the advantage of trading a member. She traded Pino for Julie. They had two hours to cook and serve a dish with the assigned style, and the Blue Team won by a narrow margin of 15 dollars, sending the Red Team to the pressure test.

Pressure Test 4: The four members of the Red Team faced the pressure test, in which they had 80 minutes to recreate a Baked Alaska. Eric was praised for his dessert, while Julie was criticized for having raw flour in her sponge cake, and they were both saved. Danielle and Kaila were the bottom two, and Danielle was eliminated.

Mystery Box 5: In the mystery box challenge, the home cooks had 45 minutes to make a dish featuring lobster. Mike, Tammara and Eric made the three best dishes, and Mike won the challenge and immunity with his lobster roll.

Elimination Test 5: The other home cooks had to recreate a Chinese Dim sum platter identical to a modeled platter. Mike chose the teams, and paired Tammara and Pino, Julie and Marida, and Kaila and Eric. This was a tag team challenge: one chef at a time could cook while one gave orders with each member switching in a while. Tammara and Pino produced the best platter and won the challenge. Julie and Marida's platter was deemed the worst, and Julie was eliminated.

Team Challenge 5: For their next team challenge, the home cooks were taken to Claudio's restaurant, Origin North. Tammara and Pino were the team captains, and Claudio chose the teams. The Red Team consisted of Tammara, Kaila, and Mike, while the Blue Team consisted of Pino, Marida, and Eric. The judges determined the Blue Team to have the worst performance and subjected them to the pressure test.

Pressure Test 5: In the pressure test, Pino, Marida and Eric had one hour to make one dozen donuts with at least three different types. Marida's donuts were deemed the best. Eric made eight different flavors with varying degree of success. The judges liked Pino's donuts, but they were inconsistent in size and some of the dough did not rise properly. In the end, Pino was judged to have made the worst box of donuts and was sent home.

Team Challenge 6: The five remaining home cooks were reunited with their families. For their final team challenge, they were then given 90 minutes to create a family style meal, consisting of an entrée and two sides, for a combined table of family members and judges. Marida was allowed to select one or two members for her team, Marida chose only Tammara, forming the Red Team, leaving Eric, Kaila, and Mike to form the Blue Team. Marida and Tammara were judged to have done the best in the challenge and they won, sending the Blue Team to the pressure test.

Pressure Test 6: Eric, Kaila, and Mike faced off in the pressure test, in which they had 45 minutes to make a Steak frites dish, consisting of a medium-rare New York strip steak, crispy French fries, and Béarnaise sauce. Kaila had the worst fries, but her steak was well-cooked and her Béarnaise was sent to safety first. It came down to Eric, whose Béarnaise was overly thick, and Mike, whose steak was undercooked, and the latter was sent home.

Mystery Box 6: Guest judge Joe Bastianich from MasterChef U.S. assembled the mystery box with his favorite Italian ingredients, which included a white wine from his vineyard. The judges revealed that the person with the worst dish would be sent home, in addition to the winner receiving an advantage in the elimination challenge. Kaila won with her stuffed veal loin, while Eric and Tammara were in the bottom two. The judges liked Eric's fettucine, but they felt it was underwhelming. Tammara's veal medallion was nicely cooked, but the dish did not have enough acidity, and the judges felt that Tammara offered two dishes instead of one. As a result, Tammara was sent home.

Elimination Test 6: In their last elimination challenge, Eric, Marida and Kaila had one hour to make a dish using one of three seafoods. Kaila chose first and selected the scallops, and Marida chose the razor clams, leaving Eric with the Dungeness crab. Eric stood out with his dish. Marida's clams were perfectly cooked, but Michael felt that the dish had too much garnish. The judges liked the various components of Kaila's dish, but her scallops were slightly overcooked, and she was eliminated, setting up a final between Marida and Eric.

Eric and Marida competed for the title. They were instructed to make a three-course meal, and the best meal won $100,000 and the title of MasterChef Canada. They were given one hour to make each course. For the appetizer, Marida made a pumpkin callaloo soup with a coconut lime crème fraîche, crispy pig tail, and lime pepper sauce, while Eric served a crispy pork belly with vegetable dumplings and wasabi mayonnaise. For the entrée, Eric made egg noodles with lobster, and Marida presented a taro-leaf steamed black cod with a pigeon pea purée, mango chutney, and cucumber. For dessert, Marida served an apple crumble with a coconut ice cream and rum sauce, while Eric presented an Asian take on a banana split, composed of tempura-fried bananas with red bean and green tea ice cream. Eric was declared the winner of the first MasterChef Canada.