Food Fighters is an American reality based cooking television series hosted by Adam Richman that pits a home chef against five professional chefs in a series of cooking competitions for a chance to win up to $100,000. The series premiered July 22, 2014, and concluded its first season September 9, 2014. New episodes aired every Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.[1]
On January 21, 2015, NBC renewed the show for a second season to premiere Summer 2015.[2] Food Fighters will return Thursday July, 2 at 8/7c on NBC.
Format
Food Fighters bills itself as "one part cooking competition, one part game show."[3] In each episode, a contestant who is a home-based amateur cook comes to the show with a list of five of their best recipes to prepare on the show. The show is divided into five rounds, one round for each recipe. In each round, a mystery professional chef comes in to challenge the contestant. The chefs are represented as black silhouettes of themselves on a large video screen and on a graphic to the home viewer before being shown. Once the chef is introduced, the contestant chooses one of their recipes to cook against the professional, and they cannot prepare a recipe more than once. The contestant generally attempts to select a recipe that is not in the known style of the chef, as the chef does not know in advance what dish they will be cooking. After a 25-minute cooking time, the contestant's and the chef's respective recipes are judged by a group of five ordinary people known as "the dinner party" in a blind taste test. A majority vote of the dinner party determines the winner of the round. Each round that the contestant wins earns them a cash prize. The first round is worth $5,000, the second round is worth $10,000, the third round is worth $15,000, the fourth round is worth $20,000, and the fifth round is worth double the amount of the contestant's previous winnings, making a top possible prize of $100,000. If the chef wins a round, the contestant does not win any money for that round but continues through the entire show.[4][5]
Some of the professional chefs that have competed on the show include chefs that have frequently appeared on other cooking shows, especially those on Food Network, including Cat Cora, Elizabeth Falkner, Duff Goldman, Lorena Garcia, Jet Tila, and Gerry Garvin.[3] The set of the show is unique from other cooking shows in that it is a two-story set, with the contestant cooking in a kitchen upstairs on an upper level while the chef cooks in a similar kitchen on the lower level.[6] The show also publishes the contestant recipes on their website.
Episode results
Season 1 (2014)
Episode 1: Elisha Joyce
Professional Chefs
Chad Ward
Jonny Giordani
Michele Ragussis
Marcel Vigneron
Lorena Garcia
Total Winnings
Contestant Dishes
Egg Rolls
Fish Tacos
Mango Tart
Stewed Chicken & Rice
Salmon & Quinoa
$60,000
Episode 2: Kena Peay
Professional Chefs
Kevin Belton
Daniel Shemtob
Deborah Benaim
Stefan Richter
Cat Cora
Total Winnings
Contestant Dishes
Tomato Soup & Grilled Cheese
Milk & Cookies
Spring Rolls
Shrimp Po'boy
Pan-seared Pork
$100,000
Episode 3: Annie Smith
Professional Chefs
Kent Rollins
Manouschka Guerrier
Sharone Hakman
Antonia Lofaso
Gerry "G" Garvin
Total Winnings
Contestant Dishes
Raspberry Soufflé
Chicken Pot Pie
Chicken Fettucine Alfredo
Sweet & Spicy Shrimp
Seared Ahi Tuna
$90,000
NOTE: In addition to the cash, Annie Smith was given a Tobiieye tracking speech recognition device for her disabled daughter.
