MasterChef Australia 2025 returned with 24 former contestants battling it out on Back to Win for another chance at the winner’s trophy.
The stakes are high, as the returning contestants include former competitors who’ve built successful food businesses. Some are making multiple attempts at the title, though none of the cast has secured a win… yet.
Ahead of the new season, judge Andy Allen told Chattr that he was impressed by the calibre of the contestants, saying, “The standard is the highest I’ve ever seen it.”
Join us as we recap each episode to update you on everything that’s happened so far on MasterChef Australia Back to Win 2025.
Episode 27 recap
It’s a Dough-Fest in the MasterChef Australia garden! Twelve contestants were given a Service Challenge, which saw them tasked with cooking a dough-based savoury dish and sweet dish in teams within four hours.
The teams were:
- The Orange Team: Theo, Andre and Beau.
- The Turquoise Team: Declan, Laura and Sarah.
- The Pink Team: Samira, Alana and Ben.
- The Yellow Team: Jamie, Audra and Snez.
The Orange Team served Gnocchi with Porcini Bolognese Ragu for savoury, and Sourdough Lemon Meringue Doughnuts for sweet. The Turquoise Team, a dish of Choux Buns with Craquelin, Fried Pizza with Stracciatella, Sugo and Salumi XO sauce. The Pink Team opted for a Slow-Cooked Lamb Pita dish and Chinese Doughnuts and The Yellow Team went with an Asian Cold Noodle dish with [rawns and a Cream-Filled Brioche Bun for their sweet.
When it came to judging, Poh, Andy, Sofia and Jean-Christophe said that the Yellow Team’s rush to finish was evident in their noodle dish, with the sauce tasting bitter. However, they were wowed by the Turquoise Team’s creation and Declan, Laura and Sarah scored immunity from the next elimination.
Episode 26 recap
Episode 26 was another Pressure Test, but this time no one would be eliminated. Instead, the cooks behind the best two dishes would score Immunity.
Depinder, Callum, Theo, Audra, Andre, Beau, and Alana battled it out for the prize. Unlike normal Pressure Tests, which are set by esteemed chefs, the contestants were asked to create their own Pressure-Test-Worthy dish.
The standout dishes were Depinder’s Matcha Cake and Callum’s Cafe Grande dessert that left Poh, Andy, Sofia and Jean-Christophe in shock.
“I don’t even know what to say,” Poh told Callum.
Upon tasting it, all four judges agreed that his dish was highly technical and perfectly executed.
It was Depinder and Callum who scored Immunity from the next elimination challenge.
Episode 25 recap
Today’s Mystery Box was also an epic head-to-head challenge as each pair of contestants was matched with the same Lee Kum Kee sauce. The winner in every pair would earn a spot in this week’s immunity challenge.
Stand out pair Laura and Depinder battled it out with Chiu Chow Style Chilli Oil, and both opted for desserts. Depinder creates a chilli oil ice cream with a coconut sago pudding and a lychee and lime granita. Meanwhile, Laura makes a chilli caramel with pineapple, coconut and lime sorbet and
Koreon chilli crisps. The judges gobble up both, but ultimately Depinder takes the win.
Audra and Ben battle it out with Hoisin sauce as their weapon of choice. Playing to her strengths Audra whips up duck pancakes, while Ben opts for a creative rice pudding dessert with coconut, blackberries, dark chocolate and a hoisin caramel. But Audra’s duck pancakes took the win.
Depinder, Callum, Theo, Audra, Andre, Beau and Alana are the seven who will go on to battle it out for this week’s Immunity Cook.
Episode 24 recap
Viral week was still in full swing on this week’s MasterChef, with viral food influencer chef Andy Cooks setting the challenges. Round one challenged our cooks to pull off an epic cheese-pull, while second round pushed chefs to create a ‘satisfying slice’.
Round one is a tight 45-minute turnaround. At the final tasting, Depinder’s samosas are off the charts, and Jamie’s Korean cheese corn with bulgogi beef super impresses the judges.
Sadly, Andre’s 4-cheese Zeppole with anchovy and onion isn’t fully cooked, as was Sofia’s bread. Darrsh’s blue cheese fails to yield an epic cheese-pull, placing them at the bottom for round two.
Round two offers the contestants 75 minutes to create the ‘perfect slice’. Callum tops the cohort with a strawberries and cream dessert with a chocolate disk. Meanwhile, Samira claws her way from the bottom in round one to judge favourite in round two with Lamb maqluba.
With his blue-cheese being an epic-pull fail and his choux pastry totally burned in round two, Darrsh bids farewell to the MasterChef kitchen.
Episode 23 recap
It’s viral week on MasterChef and our cooks are dealing with deli meats and fast fusions. Who will be granted immunity?
Before round one, the chefs are greeted with a smorgasbord of deli meats. The challenge? Serve up the ultimate deli sandwich featuring at least one of the meats on the counter.
Jamie, Declan and Andre top the class for this round. Jamie plates up a Croque Madame sandwich with béchamel, ham and gooey hot honey. After frying his taste buds and mistaking capsicum for scotch bonnet pepper, Declan powered through with a classic ham and cheese combo with homemade crisps and pickles. Andre also opted for classic deli delish with a Sicilian caponata and ricotta cream sandwich.
Inspired by the viral cronut, the challenge of creating one perfect mash-up dish stood between one of our chefs and immunity. Jamie opted for Korean fried chicken tacos, Declan created a ‘lobby-lair’ lobster eclaire, and Andre concocted a caprese salad with ravioli and a sweet custard filling, which he called a ‘caprese dolce’.
Ultimately, the judges awarded Declan immunity.
Episode 22 recap
Dessert Masters winner John Demetrios returned to the MasterChef Australia kitchen to set a Pressure Test for Snez, Andre, Ben and Laura. They were tasked with recreating his Chocolate Meteor.
Andre faced some troubles when he overheated his chocolate, which put him behind. Then, he overcooked his biscuit. To make matters work, the balloon remained stuck inside his dish. Unsurprisingly, the judges had some pretty harsh criticism for his dessert.
Ben had a similar problem; while he was happy with his dish, he too was unable to remove a piece of balloon from the chocolate shell at the end, which meant the judges were unable to flambe his chocolate egg. However, they were impressed with the other elements.
On the other side of things, the judges were blown away by Laura’s creation, with John calling it “absolutely delicious”. Snez also produced a near-perfect-looking replication, and the inside was just as good.
In the end, the judges deemed Snez’s dish the best, and she won Immunity for the next challenge.
Episode 21 recap
Social media sensation Mango Sooshi joined the MasterChef judges for an Italian-themed Mystery Box challenge.
However, the home cooks weren’t told who had set the challenge, and Joe, Carlo and Andrew watched them make their creations from a private room with a TV screen.
During the cook, Sooshi Mango weighed in on the happenings in their typical “Italian nonna” characters, which they broadcast online. Once the dishes were ready, they entered the MasterChef kitchen and gave feedback to the contestants.
The trio and MasterChef Australia 2025 judges loved Laura, Snez, Ben, and Andre’s dishes. Laura made Chestnut Garganelli with Osso Bucco and Peas, Snez served a Fregola Soup with Baccala and Pipis , Ben whipped up Salt Cod Croquettes with Sugo and Basil Mayonnaise while Andre presented the judges with Buttermilk Ricotta Gnocchi with Charred Cucumber Consommé and Borage Oil.
Those four contestants were sent through to the next Pressure Test, which will be another Viral Week challenge.
Episode 20 recap
The teams that didn’t win Episode 19’s Team Relay were sent through to an Elimination Challenge set by Jean-Christophe Novelli and were tasked with creating a dish that celebrated butter.
The judges loved Samira’s Fateh Jaj with Andy raving about it and saying that it’s likely the best thing he will eat all month. The judges also loved Alana’s dessert, which Sofia called a “love letter to butter”, and Audra’s Frangipane Tart impressed Jean-Christophe to no end.
On the other side of things, Ben’s dish of Lamb Filet in Beurre Noisette, with Freekeh Tabbouleh, Anchovy Butter and Parsnip Purée is not all he hoped it would be, and the judges agreed. It looked like there was a chance Ben would be sent home wearing his Immunity Pin. Tim was also in trouble – his duck dish was undercooked and the fat hadn’t rendered down.
The judges said that Beau, Jamie, and Samira had the best dishes of the day, and Ben and Tim were the bottom two. Ultimately, Tim was sent home.
“Obviously, getting eliminated is never fun, and as I’m watching it, I’m coming up with, like, 10 other dishes I could have cooked instead of the damn attempt at doing a confit duck in 75 minutes,” Tim told Chattr in a post-elimination interview.
Episode 19 recap
The contestants geared up for a high-stakes Team Relay challenge, where they were split into four teams.
Each member is responsible for one part of the dish, then passes the baton to the next, with just thirty seconds to communicate before the handoff. They were asked to include potatoes in more than one component on their plate.
The teams were:
- Purple Team – Depinder, Laura, Andre and Callum
- Yellow Team – Darrsh, Audra, Theo and Beau
- Red Team – Sarah, Samira, Jamie and Alana
- Green team – Snez, Declan, Tim and Ben
The judges loved the Yellow Team’s dish, with Poh Ling Yeow calling the pork “perfect” and Sofia adding that it was a “solid dish”. The Purple Team also got rave reviews from the judges.
The Green Team were given positive feedback about their cooking of their pan-fried whiting. However, they failed to include more than one variation of the potatoes and were disqualified. The Red Team also struggled with communication, and Jean-Christophe Novelli wasn’t impressed with the dish.
It was the Purple Team who took out the win, with Sofia saying she could have “devoured the whole thing” on her own.
Episode 18 recap
Episode 18 saw Tim, Audra, Sarah, and Rue compete against one another for another Pressure Test—which, unsurprisingly, was a dessert again. They were asked to recreate five plates of guest chef Blayne Bertoncello’s Sourdough and Strawberry with Elderflower and Balsamic.
The judges were impressed with Audra and Sarah’s creations, but thought Rue and Tim’s were lacking. Ultimately, Rue was sent home, with the judges saying that her pastry cream was overcooked and her strawberry gum emulsion was almost entirely lacking.
“I knew I was gonna go home. I didn’t think I I deserved to stay more than [Tim],” Rue told Chattr in a post elimination interview.
“He also worked really hard in that Pressure Test, and he did have a few flaws, but I feel like a bad pastry cream is, like, you know, you’re gonna go home, because that was pretty much the base of the dessert.”
Episode 17 recap
In Episode 17, the MasterChef Australia contestants geared up for a Mystery Box challenge with Ixta Belfrage. The box contained prawns, bonito, masa flour, coconut milk, mango, basil, okra, pineapple, limes, dried hibiscus, and cinnamon sticks.
Of course, there was a twist — there was an extra small Mystery Box and contestants wouldn’t know the ingredient inside it until 30 minutes into the challenge. The contestants were required to use at least one item from the main Mystery Box, as well as whatever was in the second box, and the bottom four dishes would be sent through to the next Pressure Test.
There were chillies inside the second box, which most of the contestants integrated well into their dishes. However, Tim, Audra, Sarah, and Rue struggled with their cook, and they will compete against each other in the elimination round.
Episode 16 recap
The two teams that failed to impress the judges the most in episode 15 headed into the elimination round, which meant that Alana, Darrsh, Jamie, Laura, Rhiannon, Audra, Rue, Samira, Sarah, Snez and Tim were all cooking for their lives in the competition.
They were set a task by Josh Niland to create a dish with a spin on the classic Surf and Turf.
The judges were unsure about Rhiannon’s dish — Lobster Wontons in Beef Broth — and Darrsh’s creation of Beef Bone Marrow Sticky Date Pudding with Fish Sauce Butterscotch. However, Darrsh scraped through and Rhiannon was sent home because the judges weren’t impressed with the skin on her dumplings.
“I was actually really upset because this was not how I wanted to go out,” she told Chattr in a post-elimination interview.
“But I also know that I did push myself beyond my limits. So, I was just really proud of what I did this season. I definitely didn’t want to go at that particular time, and I would have fought as long as I could. But, it just wasn’t my day.”
Episode 15 recap
The scene was set for an impressive challenge, with Episode 15 taking place underneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge with the iconic Opera House as a backdrop. The contestants were divided into teams, and asked to elevate a classic pub feed.
- Blue: Alana, Darrsh, Jamie, Laura and Rhiannon
- Orange: Andre, Beau, Ben, Callum, Depinder
- Green: Audra, Rue, Samira, Sarah, Snez and Tim
Like most MasterChef challenges, this one had a twist. Three of the contestants started the meal, and the other three teammates stepped in halfway through to finish it.
The green team was sent straight through to the Immunity Challenge as their starter contained scales, and the main was overcooked.
While the judges were impressed by both the Orange and Blue teams, the Orange team took the win, meaning that Andre, Beau, Ben, Callum, and Depinder were safe from the upcoming elimination round.
Episode 14 recap
After Monday’s creative Mystery Box challenge, the four contestants facing the Pressure Test were Tim, Rue, Ben and Jimmy. Ben had an immunity pin, but decided not to use it this time.
For this pressure test the challenge is set by two-time World Pastry Champion Steven He. The challenge? Oh, just create a literal balloon puppy out of chocolate sponge, shortbread, sour cherry compote and a white chocolate black tea ganache. Can’t be too hard right?
Unfortunately, Tim and Jimmy had never tempered white chocolate — so creating a balloon animal out of it wasn’t an easy feat.
After a long and grueling three hours, the balloon puppy closest to Steven’s was from Ben. While it resembled more of a rabbit than a puppy, it was pretty spectacular.
Sadly, it was Jimmy’s puppy that was the furthest from Steven’s. Andy even called it a “potato ready to sprout”. Jimmy was then eliminated from the competition.
Episode 13 recap
Episode 13 saw another Mystery Box challenge, with a twist. Unlike the normal mystery box where you open the lid to see what’s inside, this mystery box needed to be unwrapped.
Made from paperbark, vine leaf, lotus lead, pandan, corn husk, cabbage, betel leaf, banana leaf and parchment paper — the challenge this week was to cook a dish wrapped in one these ingredients. The catch? They will only know if their dish is properly cooked once the judges unwrap it.
Highlights from this week’s mystery box challenges were Laura’s “incredible” paper bark and lemon myrtle wrapped coral trout with arrigal greens, Snez’ melt-in-your-mouth cabbage rolls, and Jamie’s tamales with banana leaf.
Unfortunately, the bottom four for this challenge were Rue, Ben, Jimmy and Tim. So who will be going home?
Episode 12 recap
Episode 12 kicked off with Showstoppers Week. This week contestants were cooking to save themselves, with a pesky challenge all about “tableside theatre”. What does that mean, you might ask? Well, it’s all about adding flair to a dish, it’s that va va voom dining experience. Think: fire and liquid nitrogen.
Facing off this challenge were Rue, Theo, Andre, Depinder, Beau, Snez, Tim, Matt and Jamie. Stand out dishes this week were Depinder’s flavour explosion with dish ‘Raj Kachori’, Beau’s theatrical ‘Home among the Gumtrees’ dessert with black tea ice cream and Anzac biscuit, and Jamie’s “well-executed” comte custard, macadamia and pear sorbet with flavoured cloud.
This left Matt, Rue and Snez’ heads on the chopping block. Ultimately, it was Matt’s “wet” Bombe Alaska that sent him home.
Episode 11 recap
In Episode 11, the MasterChef Australia contestants were divided up into four teams for a Service Challenge run by judge Jean Christophe Novelli.
The teams were as follows:
- Brown: Andre, Depinder, Rue, Theo and Ben.
- Green: Laura, Jimmy, Samira, Alana and Rhiannon.
- Blue: Darrsh, Declan, Audra, Callum and Sarah.
- Grey: Snez, Matt, Tim, Beau and Jamie.
They were asked to cook a dessert and a main. One dish had to be a classic French dish, and the other should have a French twist.
Two teams were awarded Immunity — the green team and the blue team. Meaning that Andre, Depinder, Rue, Theo, Ben, Snez, Matt, Tim, Beau and Jamie were sent through to the upcoming Elimination Challenge.
Episode 10 recap
Episode 10 of MasterChef Australia Back to Win 2025 saw celebrity chef Curtis Stone return to the show as a guest judge for the Immunity Challenge.
Up for the cook were Snez, Ben, Andre and Jimmy, who were tasked with recreating Curtis’ Pork Loin with Beurre Monté, Braised Fennel, Pistachio Dukkah, and Carrot Puree. However, they’d had to use their initiative as they weren’t given a recipe.
Ben and Snez impressed the judges the most. Snez for her perfectly cooked pork, and Ben for practically making a carbon copy of Curtis’ creation. But it was Ben who scored the win, giving him Immunity (again!) for the next elimination round.
Episode 9 recap
During Episode 9, the cast was set the task of cooking with kitchen leftovers provided by the judges.
Andy’s group consisted of Jamie, Beau, Callum, Rhiannon, and Tim and was given Herb stalks. Jean-Christophe’s team consisted of Snezana, Laura, Samira, Andre, Rue, Alana, Ben, and Matt, and they got rinds.
Meanwhile, Poh Ling Yeow‘s group of Audra, Darrsh, and Depinder had pastry offcuts and Sofia Levin‘s group of Declan, Jimmy, Sarah, and Theo were given leftover pickle juice.
It was Andre, Jimmy, Snez, and Ben who impressed the judges the most, and they were sent through to the Episode 10 Pressure Test, where they will face off in the hope of winning Immunity.
However, the fun didn’t end there; the judges crowned Andre’s dish the winner, and he scored a $5000 LG voucher to help stock his dream kitchen.
Episode 8 recap
Episode 8 saw the return of the Cube Taste Challenge, which involves blindfolded contestants tasting small cubes of food that they had to correctly identify to avoid elimination.
However, the challenge had a twist this year: contestants were divided into three teams of six, and only one person per team participated in the challenge. The first contestant to guess wrong in the Cube Taste Test would send their entire team to the Elimination Challenge.
Jamie made the first blunder by incorrectly identifying a strawberry cube, and he, Steph, Andre, Snezana, Tim, and Matt were sent through to round two. They were told that they could cook anything they liked, but only the ingredients from the Cube Taste Challenge would be available.
Jamie struggled after overcooking his duck but managed to get a fresh piece cooked and served right before the time ran out.
Meanwhile, Steph was happy with her Pork Belly dish. However, the judges said the fat on the pork hadn’t rendered, and the bechamel in her sauce was too strong, and she was eliminated from the competition.
Episode 7 recap
Guest judge Shannon Bennett handed the MasterChef 2025 contestants a 20-minute Challenge. It was pretty self-explanatory—they could cook whatever they wanted as long as it was done within 20 minutes.
The judges were impressed by most of the dishes served to them, though there were some criticisms. Poh told Rhiannon her prawns were undercooked, and Andy said Audra should have used more acid in her seafood dish.
“It was so tough to choose a winner,” Sofia told the group. “But there was one dish that had us fighting over the last morsel.”
That person was Theo for his Loukoumades with Mandarin, Lemon, Thyme and Honey Syrup and Mahlab Glaze. As a result, he was granted immunity from the next Elimination Challenge, the Cube Taste Test, which will air on Sunday.
Episode 6 recap
Episode 6 of MasterChef Australia was the first Pressure Test of the season, and Sarah, Darrsh, Ben, and Sav battled it out to remain in the competition.
The queen of Chocolate and Dessert Masters alumni, Kirsten Tibballs, set the task, which involved recreating a chocolate tin filled with ‘caviar’ — made of coffee on chocolate mousse and cake.
Kristin was impressed with Ben and Sarah’s final dish, but thought Darrsh’s chocolate tin was too thick.
However, the judges deemed Sav’s dish to look the most different from Kristen’s, and she was eliminated from the competition.
Episode 5 recap
Episode 5 was the first Mystery Box Challenge of the season.
The episode saw guest judge Peter Gilmore reveal a box of ingredients including chicken, baby squid, lemon, eggplant, cherries, spring onion, vanilla, oloroso cherry, prunes, dark chocolate, leeks, kombu, and gochujang.
The contestants had 75 minutes to make their dish, and were required to use at least one of the ingredients from the box. The three dishes that impressed the judges the least were sent to the next Elimination Cook, where they’d be joined by Sarah, who was still off sick. Those chefs were Darrsh, Sav and Ben.
Episode 4 recap
In Episode 4 of MasterChef Australia the contestants were asked to cook dishes that represented how far they have come since their first appearance on the show.
Audra was safe after winning the challenge in Episode 3 and watched on from the galley. Sarah, who was unwell and missed the challenge, was automatically sent through to the next Elimination Cook.
It was Tim, Samira and Cath who landed in the bottom three. Samira for dulling the flavour on her Shakirya, Tim for choosing to cook a sub-par Toastie and Cath for burning the mushrooms on her hibachi grilled Japanese dish.
However, Cath’s dish ultimately impressed the judges the least, and she was the first person eliminated from the competition.
In a post-elimination interview, Cath told Chattr that she was “devastated”, but tried to stay positive by reminding herself how lucky she was to be invited onto the show in the first place.
“Someone has to go first, you know, and that’s me. Reflecting afterwards, I’m just so proud and just really grateful,” she said.
“I did have a little bit of a laugh about myself thinking, ‘Well, you know what, someone has to go out first’. I remember saying to Rue, ‘I’m a sacrificial lamb’. But I tell you what, I’m a beautiful, slow-cooked lamb, that is so delicious,” Cath added.
Episode 3 recap
MasterChef Australia Episode 3 kicked off on a sombre note, after judge Andy informed the contestants that Pete Campbell had withdrawn from the competition.
A Network 10 spokesperson told Chattr that Pete left the show due to a medical diagnosis.
“During production of MasterChef Australia: Back To Win, Pete Campbell received a diagnosis that required him to step away from the competition to focus on his health,” they began.
“The MasterChef family supports Pete in his recovery and hopes to see him back doing what he loves in the kitchen very soon.”
The contestant later revealed it was due to his cancer diagnosis, and thanked fans for the support.
After receiving the news from Andy, the cooks pulled themselves together and battled it out to serve up a delicious late-night snack. There was a lot at steak, because not only did the winner win immunity, their creation would be a new menu addition in one of Gordon Ramsay‘s London restaurants.
In the end, Audra’s fusion dish of Indian Spiced Prawn Takoyaki took out the top spot.
“I call this The Magic to a Happy Marriage,” Audra told the judges. “It’s when a half-Indian woman, a very clever one, marries a half-Japanese man… and it looks so much like a takoyaki, but it’s fully South Indian on the inside.”
Andy declared it was “perfection”, before Audra started to tear up from the judges’ feedback. She’s definitely one to watch!
Episode 2 recap
MasterChef Australia Episode 2 saw Celebrity Chef Gordon Ramsay put eight contestants to the test in a Keep Up Challenge, which involved recreating two of his dishes, with an Immunity Pin on the line.
Ahead of the episode, MasterChef Australia 2025 judge Poh told Chattr that Gordon “takes no prisoners”, which was clearly demonstrated in the episode.
The Hell’s Kitchen star dished out his instructions at a speedy pace as Rue, Cath, Darrsh, Callum, Ben, Rhiannon, Audra and Matt barely managed to keep up.
In the end, it was Ben who impressed the five judges the most and was awarded the only Immunity Pin of the season.
Episode 1 recap
The MasterChef Australia 2025 premiere kicked off with an appearance from Gordon as a Celebrity Judge, who told the contestants they’d be split into three teams and competing in a Service Challenge.
The Blue Team consisted of Samira, Depinder, Theo, Jamie, Alana, Jimmy, Laura. The Red Team had Steph, Andrew, Sav, Pete, Declan, Beau, Tim, while the Green team was made up of Rue, Rhiannon, Matt, Audra, Darrsh, Ben, Cath.
The judges announced that three more contestants who’ve competed on MasterChef multiple times would return: Sarah for the Blue Team, Laura for the Red Team, and Callum for the Green Team.
“You’ve got people like Laura, Callum and Sarah who are obviously there for a third time. And I feel like that goes to show how much this competition means to people,” judge Andy told Chattr of the veterans’ return.
But the Green Team impressed Gordon and the judges Poh, Andy, Sofia, and Jean-Christophe the most, and they were sent through to the Immunity Pin challenge in the next episode.
MasterChef Australia airs on Sunday at 7pm and Monday – Wednesday at 7:30pm on Channel 10 and 10Play.
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