The Biggest Scandals To Ever Hit MasterChef

"MasterChef" first arrived on screens in the United Kingdom in 1990, and what started as a humble cooking show has now blossomed into a worldwide phenomenon. With 58 territories airing their version of the show, "MasterChef" is one of, if not the, most popular cooking competition out there. Now with 14 seasons in the United States, "MasterChef" has become a staple of many households.

Viewers gather around the television weekly to marvel and fret as amateur and professional chefs battle it out to see who is the best, who can sous vide, who can make a soufflé from scratch, and who is just the master of the chefs. Oh, and the $250,000 prize at the end isn't a bad motivator either.

However, with all the shows on television, especially when it comes to reality TV, there is bound to be drama. Whether it's from the contestants themselves, the judges, or perhaps an ingredient or dish itself, "MasterChef" has had its handful of scandals around the world. If you're looking for some juicy gossip or wondering how certain scandals turned out, well, look no further and keep reading. We're dishing up some of the biggest "MasterChef" scandals yet.

In 2013, "MasterChef" judges and producers were accused of sexual, mental, and physical harassment by former contestants. Many accusations came from a blog post by former contestant Marie Porter, where she describes how friends she met on the show were allegedly sexually and physically harassed by judges and producers. She claimed such actions cause contestants to become depressed and suicidal, and said one contestant was harassed so much that she asked to be edited out of the show altogether. Her claims were backed up by another contestant, Playboy model Carrie Stevens, who posted a comment on an article covering the news. 

While some contestants, like Ben Starr, refused to get involved, there was widespread media attention regarding Porter's claims. Shine America, the production company behind "MasterChef," released a statement refuting all claims of harassment, and that seems to have been the end of it. The statement read: "Contestants on MasterChef are treated with the utmost respect and professionalism and we care tremendously about their well-being. The recent comments posted about the treatment of contestants are completely without merit." 

Whether anything was done behind the scenes or settlements were made, we may never know, as NDAs prevent contestants from saying much more than they already have.

Imagine messing up so bad that you get your coworkers of 11 years fired alongside you. That was the reality for restaurateur and "MasterChef Australia" judge George Calombaris. What did he do? Oh, just underpaying employees of his restaurant by $7.8 million AUS, or nearly USD 5.4 million. When the news broke in July 2019, viewers immediately petitioned for Calombaris' removal from the show, yielding over 25,000 signatures.

Network Ten, which airs "MasterChef Australia," soon announced it was letting all three judges go, and while it didn't outright name the scandal, it didn't deny it either. Citing "commercial reasons," Network Ten said it had been unable to agree on a deal with Calombaris and his co-judges Matt Preston and Gary Mehigan. The fact that the announcement was made just one week after Calombaris was fined and the scandal well and truly exploded, well, we think you can see the correlation.

Calombaris did eventually come out and say there was no excuse for the underpayment, citing issues with the classification of workers and just not being on top of things. Considering he had first been informed in 2015, some say he took too long to address the problem. He might still have a judging job today if he had.

During an immunity challenge on a 2017 episode of "MasterChef Australia," two contestants had to use prawns and shrimp paste in a dish. Sarah Tiong decided to grill her prawns over an open flame. Great idea, right? Well, that's what Tiong's competitor Ben Devlin thought as well. So much so that he told her it was a great idea... and then went and did the same thing. 

That alone was enough to rile up viewers, who were aghast Devlin wasn't being called out for it, but then Devlin went on to win the challenge by one point. To rub salt in the wound, Judge George Calombaris said that Devlin was clever for cooking the prawns that way.

"MasterChef Australia's" official Twitter even called Devlin out for stealing the idea, making it even more shocking that "MasterChef" did nothing to address the situation.

No matter what kind of chef you are, chances are good the "MasterChef" kitchen will cook up something you've never had to deal with before. This was painfully true for Sheetal Bhagat. A devout Hindu, Bhagat had the misfortune to be on a 2010 episode of "MasterChef" that asked her to kill a live crab. In Hinduism, it's believed that every living thing has a soul, so killing it was something she felt she couldn't do.

Host Gordon Ramsay offered to kill the crab for Bhagat, but ultimately the chef decided she needed to do it. It at least earned her a top three dish. Her emotional trial was referenced by chef Joe Bastianich, who proclaimed that the crab was probably happy to have given up its life for her dish. 

However, many felt this wasn't something Bhagat should have been tasked with in the first place, while others chastised her for not sticking to her morals.

There are a lot of different cuisines in the world. We hardly need to tell you that, but someone should have informed the "MasterChef UK" judges of this phenomenon in 2018. Viewers blasted judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace for their criticism that Malaysian-born contestant Zaleha Kadir Olpin's chicken rendang wasn't crispy and that there was sauce on the skin. In case you were wondering, chicken rendang isn't supposed to be crispy. It is supposed to have sauce on the skin. This traditional Malaysian dish is more stew-like, with creamy coconut sauce that's flavorful and delicious.

This scandal caused quite a social media furor from international viewers and journalists who complained that the judges didn't have any idea about cuisine outside of their wheelhouse. They claimed it showed ignorance of international cuisine and a single-minded idea of what makes good chicken. 

What made this all worse was the fact that Olpin was eliminated that round. She defended herself, saying she stood by her traditional dish and wouldn't have changed a thing. Maybe "MasterChef UK" needs a bit more of a diverse judging panel.

Josh Marks was the runner-up on the third season of "MasterChef," making an impression as a gentle giant with a passion for cooking. Despite having no formal training, he was immediately likable, with his big heart and smile. Even though he didn't win his season in 2012, he was lavished with praise and everyone expected amazing things from him. Marks himself told the camera that he would never give up on his dream.

However, his world fell apart shortly after the show ended. He began having panic attacks, hearing voices, and eventually received a bipolar diagnosis. An unfortunate incident with police culminated with Marks claiming Gordon Ramsay had possessed him and turned him into God. Marks spent weeks in jail with his mouth wired shut due to a broken jaw received during the altercation. Meanwhile, the media had a field day reporting on the affair, not knowing the mental anguish the former contestant was suffering.

Marks was released and given medical care, but spiraled further when he was also diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. It wasn't long after that he was found dead by his mother from a self-inflicted gunshot. His family refuses to blame "MasterChef" for his death, despite the fact that filming was stressful and may have triggered his mental illness. 

If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline​ by dialing 988 or by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255)​.

If you know anything about reality television or cooking competitions in general, this may not come as a surprise. Many reality shows are fake or at least heavily scripted. When it comes to cooking shows, it's relatively common, as producers don't actually want contestants to be scrambling around the kitchen and failing miserably. A few failures are good for drama, but everyone messing up? Not great television. 

Still, it does take a bit of the luster off of the show as a whole. All those screams and shocked faces when the task is revealed? All fake — at least on "MasterChef Junior." A father of one contestant said the kids know about challenges for weeks. And while they may not have every single detail, they know enough to be able to practice their dishes at home. Combine this with accusations that some junior chefs have taken professional cooking and acting lessons ahead of filming, and it does all come off as quite staged.

Still, things can go wrong in the kitchen under pressure, and they often do. While no one will deny that the child cooks on "MasterChef Junior" are skilled, they aren't pulling that decadent filet with butter-braised green beans out of their hat in 30 seconds. It just goes to show, don't trust everything you see on television.

Television audiences have grown accustomed to meanness in reality television, so perhaps it's harder for someone who is both a chef and TV judge to successfully implement a verbal filter. Still, that's no excuse for racism. To that end, "MasterChef Australia" judge Jock Zonfrillo should have kept his thoughts about Asian food to himself.

On a June 14, 2020 episode of "MasterChef Australia," Zonfrillo gushed over the fine-dining appropriateness of "hundreds of French recipes." Yet, in the next breath, he claimed that "many Asian cuisines don't automatically lend themselves to a fine dining dish." It's even worse than that, though, because the other judges seemed unfazed by his comment. Guest judge Charlie Carrington even followed up with an enthusiastic "absolutely," though he remained hopeful that contestant Khanh Ong's Vietnamese dish might be saved by the colonial "French influence" that's part of Vietnamese cuisine. So much to unpack, so few paragraphs.

Viewers were unimpressed, but perhaps none so much as "MasterChef" Season 2 winner Adam Liaw, who tweeted, "Asian cuisines are full of fine dining [...] It's just that the Eurocentric conceptualisation of Michelin, World's 50 Best etc. constantly ignores it."

Embracing diversity doesn't just mean inviting chefs from diverse ethnic backgrounds onto a program; it also means embracing diverse and authentic dishes from around the world, not just those westernized by European "fine dining" standards.

There's nothing like a little Staphylococcus aureus to humble the most pompous chef, but what could be worse than spreading some bacterial love around with a live television audience? An episode of "MasterChef Spain" shot in January 2022 had contestants prepare food for 120 employees of the Oceanogràfic de València aquarium. The episode aired in April — even though 44 of the aquarium's employees became ill shortly after filming. And this wasn't a mere stomach bug. Instead, they suffered the camp out by your toilet and pray for death kind of illness. The diner who reported the outbreak even said she was sick enough that she lost 11 pounds and wound up in the emergency room.

It's unclear exactly what microbe infected the diners. Moreover, since the Valencian Health Department wasn't able to obtain any samples of the food, it's also not obvious which dish was the culprit.

The diner who spoke out said she was going public because "MasterChef" had failed to even offer an apology to those affected. "MasterChef's" response: "From MasterChef we are very sorry for the indisposition expressed by some of the diners." Thanks for that heartfelt apology, "MasterChef."

You don't have to win "MasterChef" to benefit from the publicity. Take Elizabeth Haigh, who appeared on the show in 2011. Though she wasn't the last chef standing, she did go on to win a Michelin star. In 2019, Haigh opened a Singaporean restaurant in London, Mei Mei, making it clear that the Singaporean chef's career was progressing quite nicely. Then, she decided to write a cookbook.

When "Makan" was published in 2021, it was praised for its diverse selection of recipes from Singapore. Many were old family recipes, as Haigh told Mob just before the book's release. Not all of them, though. Shortly after the book's release, American chef Sharon Wee accused Haigh of plagiarizing recipes from her book, "Growing Up in a Nonya Kitchen." Wee claimed that Haigh also copied some of her personal anecdotes.

"Makan" was soon pulled from shelves. It didn't end there, though — at least one food blogger, Bee Yinn Low, says Haigh also used a blog contributor's recipe in the book, which leaves some wondering how many other recipes Haigh might have pilfered en route from Michelin star chef to dubious cookbook author.

Arguably the biggest scandal to hit "MasterChef" started to unfold in November 2024. According to BBC News, 13 people came forward with allegations of "inappropriate sexual comments" against the show's co-presenter, Gregg Wallace. The accusations reportedly happened over the course of 17 years (Wallace had been hosting "MasterChef" for nearly 20 years). By July 2025, 50 more sexual harassment reports surfaced, including groping and pulling his pants down in front of employees. "MasterChef" and Banijay UK, the show's production company, officially fired Wallace. Investigations upheld 45 of 83 allegations.

Wallace's co-presenter, John Torode, was also subjected to an inquiry in July 2025 after he allegedly made racist remarks on set. The incident reportedly happened sometime between 2018 and 2019. Torode claimed it hadn't even happened. In a statement reported by BBC News, Torode said, "I've always had the view that any racial language is wholly unacceptable in any environment. I'm shocked and saddened by the allegation as I would never wish to cause anyone any offence." Nevertheless, the BBC decided to fire him along with Wallace.

The scandal didn't end there, however. Come August 2025, the BBC aired the last pre-taped season that Wallace and Torode had co-hosted. Many protested this decision, including two contestants who asked to be edited out of the show. The network explained that the season was aired for the chefs who joined and worked so hard to be there.

There's a lot that the cameras don't show you on "MasterChef." Filming can take all day, and the footage of contestants whipping up their dishes and getting interviewed by the hosts and judges can easily reach hundreds of minutes per episode. Condensing the footage of 22 contestants, four judges, and guest judges in under one hour most certainly means some people will receive very limited screen time. Some might not appear at all.

Viewers of "MasterChef Australia" have long criticized the show's penchant for highlighting only a handful of chefs and sidelining the rest to a few seconds of screen time per episode. This became especially obvious in Season 16 when it took fans far too long to learn there were two chefs named Josh. Viewers went online to complain about the unfairness of the editing, especially since contestant Josh Perry went from zero screen time in the earlier weeks to suddenly being up for elimination.

Another Season 5 contender, Sue Bazely, received the minimal screentime treatment. She also didn't appear much in the early episodes, and just when the show finally started revealing more of her backstory and personality, she got eliminated. Fans went online to share their frustration with the editing. Yahoo Lifestyle reported on several fan comments, one of which read, "Sue had the toughest edit in MC history. Bye Sue."

"MasterChef" airs on British television, and the shows are syndicated to networks worldwide. Naturally, contestants would want to look their best and express themselves through fashion and accessories. This is likely the best explanation why you don't see them wearing hairnets or mouth masks while cooking. Unfortunately, some contestants forget to observe basic kitchen hygiene, especially when it's crunch time.

Many fans started calling out contestants for cooking with their hair loose and beards uncovered, kneading dough while wearing rings, handling food with bracelets or long sleeves, using the same cutting board for raw chicken and vegetables, and other hygiene blunders.

Contestants were also caught double dipping, or putting the spoons they used to taste a sauce or component back into the cooking pot. Worse, some dipped their fingers into saucepans or whatever concoction they were planning to present for judging.

Speaking of judging, former "MasterChef Australia" judge Gary Mehigan drew flak back in 2018 when he double dipped his spoon in a contestant's dish. Some might forgive these mistakes considering the show's high-pressure environment; however, many of the contestants and judges are longtime professionals in the kitchen. As a premier cooking show, "MasterChef" is expected to uphold professional-level standards in cleanliness and hygiene.

In April 2025, "MasterChef Australia" aired Season 17: a "Back To Win" edition that had previous non-winning contestants vying once again for the "MasterChef" title. Third time's the charm for the season's winner, Laura Sharrad, who was a runner-up in Seasons 6 and 12. Unfortunately, many fans thought her win was rigged. Some even left comments on her celebratory post on Facebook. One comment read, "The judges fave from the moment she returned this season. Absolutely rigged/scripted from the very beginning."

Fans who opposed her win pointed out she enjoyed more screen time than some contestants, and that the show probably felt it couldn't make her a runner-up yet again. Others felt she played it safe all season, focusing on pasta dishes instead of creating something exciting.

But what drew the most ire from fans were the results of the second-to-the-last challenge. Runner-up Callum Hann made an impressive dish of potatoes and rosemary oysters, while Sharrad made potato and samphire risotto. Both scored 38 points, but many thought Hann's more complex dish — one-bite oysters that looked so real, except the shells were shaped using potato skins and flour — deserved a higher score. Sharrad finally broke the tie in the final challenge when she successfully recreated pastry chef Miko Aspiras' Botanical Garden, an all-edible masterpiece with a whopping 149-step recipe.

"MasterChef" is no stranger to accusations of favoritism. But the allegations involving Season 5 winner Courtney Lapresi were more intense, so much so that fans still talk about it a decade later.

Lapresi stood out among the other contestants with her feminine dresses and eye-catching stilettos. In her interviews, she talked about working five jobs while in college, and later becoming a dancer in an adult club. She had no notable culinary background, but successfully won challenges even when given handicaps like a shorter cooking time.

Lapresi was allegedly a favorite from the start of her season. She was shown a lot in all episodes. Even fellow contestant Ahran Cho said on the show that the judges seemed biased towards Lapresi, something fans agreed with especially after the donut debacle of Episode 4.

Lapresi forgot to add eggs to her first dough, ran around to the other contestants asking for yeast, and mistakenly sprinkled salt instead of sugar on her donuts. Other contestants had been eliminated for less, and yet she was chosen to stay. To make matters worse, Leslie Gilliams, another strong contender that season, allegedly added salt instead of sugar to his cake in a later episode (Gilliams says he still doesn't know if he made this mistake, further conflating the controversy) and he was eliminated.

One of the more controversial eliminations in "MasterChef" happened in Season 7 of the U.S. series. Andrea Galan, the youngest contender and an early favorite during her season, was disqualified after she failed to bring her dish up to the judges' table within the allotted time. The incident was even more heartbreaking because she was late by a mere three seconds.

It was during the pressure test on Episode 10, when Galan and four other contestants were tasked to make sausage in a bun. The catch was they had to make their sausage from scratch and present a gourmet-style version of the American classic. Chef Gordon Ramsay also stressed an important rule: all sausages should be presented in front before the time is up.

Everything started off well for Galan, who confidently chatted about the components of her bratwurst with guest chef Edward Lee. But as the allotted 60 minutes dwindled down and the other four contestants brought their plates to the front, Galan was still not finished plating at her station. With 10 seconds to go, the judges and other contestants started yelling out for Galan to hurry forward. Unfortunately, she placed her sausage in a bun on the table three seconds too late.

The judges were impressed with Galan's sausage, but they ultimately upheld the rules and disqualified her. She was the second ever contestant to be disqualified in the show's history.

Reynold Poernomo is arguably one of the most popular alums of "MasterChef Australia." His creations in the show often went viral because of their intricacy and gorgeous presentation. He was a 20-year-old amateur cook when he first joined, yet he whipped up restaurant-level dishes and desserts that often had the judges giddy with excitement.

Some of Poernomo's viral creations were the Pair of Desserts (a single pear on top of an edible gray plate), Forbidden Fruit (chocolate mousse with raspberry coulis coated in red ganache), and Chocolate Log (a yule-log themed chocolate dessert with raspberry filling).

Poernomo was clean-cut with a cheeky aura, and he wasn't aggressive or confrontational in "MasterChef." So it was a big surprise when, in May 2020, the Daily Mail reported he left some disturbing homophobic remarks in a bodybuilding forum back in 2014.

The chef was apologetic and immediately released a statement via HuffPost Australia. "At the time these comments were made, I was a very immature, close-minded, and insular 20-year-old," Poernomo said. "I have grown and matured a lot in the last six years. I am not the person I was back then."