MasterChef Season 8, Episode 19: The Semi-Finals

1

Battle for a White Apron, Pt. 1

In the Season Eight premiere episode, 40 of America's best home cooks travel to Los Angeles to compete in the MASTERCHEF Battle for a White Apron challenge, during which they will face off against each other to try to earn a place in the Top 20. Judging the battle rounds will be Gordon Ramsay, Christina Tosi, and new judge and award-winning chef Aarón Sánchez, who will taste for flavor, creativity and presentation. After each battle, the judges will decide whom they think deserves to make it to the next round and a chance to compete for the coveted title.

2

Battle for a White Apron, Pt. 2

In Part Two of the Battle for a White Apron, the remaining chefs compete for a spot in the Top 20. Only nine aprons remain and it will be up to the judges to decide who makes it and who goes home.

3

America's Grocery Bag

Top 20 will have to take 12 of the most popular ingredients found on any American home cook’s shopping list and make the judges a MASTERCHEF-worthy dish.

4

Feeding the Lifeguards

The top 19 chefs will have to prepare and cook fresh fish for 101 lifeguards who will then vote on their favorite dish.

5

Shell-Shocked & Scrambled

The Top 18 home chefs must cook some of the world's finest shellfish for their mystery box challenge.

6

Silenced by the Lambs

This week on MASTERCHEF, the cooks take part in a challenging skills test, during which they must prepare racks of lamb with fine artistry. Those who fail to impress the judges will face an elimination challenge that includes recreating Gordon Ramsay's signature lamb chop dish. It is then up to the judges to decide who will leave the kitchen.

7

Breakfast, Lunch & Winner

The home cooks travel for The Belvedere restaurant in Beverly Hills, to take over the dining room breakfast service in two teams.

8

Whole-y Cow!

The Top 15 are given a mystery box challenge that tasks them with creating a dish featuring a different body part of a cow.

9

Holy Cannoli

The kitchen is transformed into a full dining room to welcome purveyors of local ingredients, including butchers, vegetable farmers, beekeepers and herb growers, when the contestants split up for a team challenge using their guests' products. Later, the losing team must prepare cannoli as part of a pressure test.

10

The MasterChef Returns

Reigning champion Shaun O'Neale returns and chooses ingredients from his cookbook to be part of the mystery-box challenge. The winner will receive an advantage moving forward, while the other chefs to battle in a coconut-theme elimination challenge.

11

Vegas Deluxe & Oyster Shucks

The Top 12 head to Las Vegas for a team challenge in which they serve 50 VIPs in entertainment and hospitality at Caesars Palace for its 50th Anniversary party. Each guest will taste both teams' dishes and then cast a vote for their favorite dish.

12

In a Pinch

The Top 11 are given a bag of live crawfish and have to cook them in order to extract the most meat possible. The six weakest cooks go head-to-head in an elimination challenge, during which they make a crawfish dish created by Gordon Ramsay. Then, the Top 10 face a chicken-and-potato team challenge.

13

Gordon’s Game of Chicken

The six weakest cooks go head-to-head in an elimination challenge, during which they make a crawfish dish created by Gordon Ramsay. Then, the Top 10 face a chicken-and-potato team challenge.

14

A Mexican Tag Team Challenge

In this week's mystery box challenge, the Top Nine must create a dish that is reminiscent of their favorite family breakfast, using Nutella as the key ingredient. The winner gets a huge advantage moving forward, leaving the rest of the chefs to pair up for a Mexican-themed tag team challenge.

15

The Great Outdoors

The Top Eight head to Big Bear Lake to cook fresh fish.

16

Chopsticks & Pasta

In this week's mystery box challenge, the Top 7 must create an Asian-inspired dish that centers around one of the most prominent utensils in culinary history - chopsticks! The winner gets a huge advantage moving forward, leaving the remaining home cooks to compete in a pasta-themed elimination challenge.

17

Pop-Up Restaurant

The Top 6 split up in teams for a classic MasterChef challenge - to cook for food critics, writers, and chefs at a pop-up restaurant in a Southern California vineyard.

18

Something Fishy

In this week's mystery box challenge, the Top 6 get a special treat as their family members join them in the MasterChef kitchen. The contestants will then have to cook a dish inspired by their families before competing in an elimination test that will send one or more of them home.

19

The Semi-Finals

The remaining home cooks will face a series of skills tests that will determine who will make it to the finale.

20

The Finale (1)

The remaining chefs compete for the trophy and the $250,000 prize with guest judge Joe Bastianich.

21

The Finale (2)

The remaining chefs compete for the trophy and the $250,000 prize with guest judge Joe Bastianich.