"MasterChef Junior" is back for its fourth season, with 24 new kids to compete with each other. The victor will be hailed "MasterChef Junior" and will bring home a trophy and $100,000. The home cooks, ages 8 to 13, will be under the scrutiny of three judges: Gordon Ramsay, Graham Elliot and Christina Tosi.
"MasterChef Junior" had a solid return when it premiered on Friday. Preliminary national estimates from Nielsen showed that the show averaged a 1.3/5 rating share in adults 18 to 49 and an overall 4.1 million viewers, Variety reported.
For the premiere episode, the mystery box challenge tasked the young chefs to make a burger. It's not just a regular burger though. They had to make a signature burger with sides that reflected their interest and styles.
The judges picked top three chefs - Avery, 9, Zac, 12, and Kya, 8.
Avery came up with Southern Style Pork and Venison burger with coleslaw, a creole spread and sweet potato chips. Her buns could have been toasted for a little longer though. Zac, who's been cooking for about one and a half years only, made a Chuck and Sirloin Cheeseburger with onion rings. It was good dish although it needed a little more seasoning. Kya's dish was a Wagyu burger with apple fries and two kinds of cheese.
Kya won the first mystery box challenge of the season and was exempted from the elimination. She also got to choose a friend to be exempted. She picked Vivian and they ate cake while the rest cook.
For the elimination challenge, the contestants had to cook a dessert dish with marshmallow in 60 minutes. When the judgment came, Alexander, 10, and Kade, 9, were eliminated. Alexander made a chocolate marshmallow pie with banana and graham cracker crust, but his plating wasn't good. Kade made a banana split with sweet potato biscuits and a marshmallow sauce. His marshmallow was burnt though.
"MasterChef Junior" airs every Friday at 8 p.m. on FOX.
