On-set naps, MAFS viewings and bandaged hands: What really goes on at MasterChef HQ

So much of what goes on in the MasterChef kitchen never makes it to air. We lift the cloche on the stuff you don’t normally get to see.

SA food icon Maggie Beer on MasterChef Australia 2025. Picture: Channel 10.

Being back on MasterChef Australia for a second whip around the kitchen is intense, unpredictable and every second counts.

Since the Back to Win series hit your screens, my DMs have been full, actually overflowing, with questions. Do the judges eat the food hot? How long does filming take? Who’s the most competitive? Short answer: we all are, some a little more than others, but let me lift the cloche on the stuff you don’t see.

Like the contestant who brought a hammock to set for midday naps between tastings. Or the one who had the late-night obsession with Chinese takeaway and Married At First Sight, because nothing bonds people together like dumplings and questionable television choices!

So let’s cut right to it with the number one question I always get asked – Is the food hot when the judges taste it … well yes, but not always.

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I’ll break it down for you. There’s the challenge to be filmed, some contestants might finish a few minutes before time is up, others are panic-throwing crispy salt bush leaves like it’s confetti on the plate as the judges yell “10 seconds to go”.

There are also post-challenge interviews at the bench, food close-up shots, resetting the kitchen and cameras for tasting and well, by the time the plated dishes land in front of the judges, they’ve cooled significantly, but this doesn’t mean the judges are flying completely blind.

Jean-Christophe, Poh, Andy and Sofia actually come around while we’re still cooking. Yes, mid-stir, mid-saute, they’re there, sticking a spoon in and tasting, giving those questionable “have you made the right decision?” looks and making little mental notes.

Then, once the chaos is done and we’ve somehow managed to plate up a beautiful dish, when the cameramen have a break there’s a chance for the judges to visit our benches, spoons at the ready again and taste all the elements, still hot, exactly as things stand at the end of the cook.

Now let’s talk about the actual challenge shoot days. You’d think one episode equals a 75 minute challenge and 75 minutes of filming. Cute. Minimum 10-hour days for an episode are the norm, with a lot of “hurry up and wait” energy.

As contestants, we’re on set as the sun rises, doing walk-ups to the MasterChef kitchen doors – yes, those little scenes where we arrive fresh for the day, are shot from different angles, sometimes with different moods, some talking, some not talking … although thanks to the chatterboxes among us – looking at you Depinder and Snez – we sometimes need to do a lap or two more to satisfy producers!

MasterChef contestant Alana Lowes

Let’s turn to what happens outside the MasterChef kitchen. The stuff that never makes it to air. The weird, wonderful, funny side of things that somehow keeps us sane.

Well, we all live together, in separate apartments. This is where the magic happens. Some of the best cooking you’ll never see happens in those tiny kitchens and on the outdoor communal BBQ. We also have Theo to thank for bringing in a hibachi, where he and Jamie proceeded to cook seafood so well I’m still thinking about it. Marron, prawns, smoke in the air. Very boujee, very MasterChef.

We cook for each other. We practise dishes, swap techniques, play out challenge scenarios.

Except for Andre, who, every single night without fail, ordered Chinese takeaway and watched Married At First Sight like it was his religion … the secret is revealed, sorry Andre!

We also study. I mean really study! I’ve never read so many cookbooks, articles, and saved so many Instagram recipes in my life as over the past few months.

There’s a lot of downtime on set. Ben, our Kiwi expat, brought his hammock from across the ditch to the MasterChef set in Melbourne, strung it up and napped between tastings like it was a luxury retreat.

Oh, and I cut my fingers more times
than I care to admit in the first three challenges alone.

So yes, MasterChef Australia is a cooking competition. But it’s also a part-time cooking school, bootcamp, therapy and full-blown flavour party.

I’ve loved every single second of it.