Judging a chef's dish – what he puts his heart, soul and artistry into – while he's standing right there in front of you is difficult enough, but imagine judging an aspiring chef who just happens to be 8 years old and doing it on national TV! Luckily for judge Graham Elliot, the food he's tasked with sampling on "MasterChef Junior" is created by some of the most talented junior chefs in the world, so it's rare that he gets a foul-tasting bite. Even still, someone has to be sent home.
After FOX's "MasterChef" aired for two successful seasons, producers moved on to making a spinoff that focuses on junior gourmets ages 8 to 13. Now, four seasons later, the show is just as successful as the original adult version. It's also more impressive since these are not only some extremely talented culinary kids, they're also extremely mature – strong enough to take the criticism and the eliminations that have been known to crush adult contenders.
Elliot, 39, has been with the show since the beginning alongside judge Gordon Ramsay. Joe Bastianich was the third judge for the first five seasons of "MasterChef" and the first three seasons of "MasterChef Junior," but cupcake expert Christina Tosi recently took over for him.
While it's never easy to eliminate anyone of any age, the judges make sure to send the kids home two at a time so nobody ever feels like they're at the bottom and alone.
"These kids bring such an innocence to their cooking that they're not looking to be the next millionaire chef or rock star. They really just genuinely enjoy cooking. The hardest part is when you have to send them home," Elliot told Headlines & Global News in an exclusive interview. "They've come so far, so they should always feel super-psyched, and I think it's all positive at the end. And what's funny is that five minutes later they walk to the back, and they're all best friends, they're all buddies."
Still, Elliot keeps an upbeat attitude and often dresses up in funky outfits to go with each epsiode's theme and to make the kids laugh. The point, he says, is to encourage rather than discourage.
"I try to do the compliment sandwich, where it's like, 'Wow this looks great, but here are the things I would have done differently,' " he explained. "Or tell them where they might have gone wrong. But again, I try to encourage them to think out of the box and tell them how to make it better next time. As a dad of three boys, I try to do my best to motivate them, but the last thing I want to do is crush someone's dreams. We want these kids to go home and still love cooking."
The season four finale of "MasterChef Junior" is right around the corner, and from among the 24 junior chefs that began this season, only two chefs, Addison and Avery, remain in the competition to compete for the trophy, the $100,000 prize and the title of first ever female MasterChef Junior. Both contestants are 9-year-old girls who are well-deserving of this final spot. Both have proved time and time again that they are mature beyond their years, can cook delicious meals, and have the personality and leadership skills to be MasterChefs.
"They're amazing," Elliot said of the two finalists. "Addison is one of those natural born leaders, where you see her saying, 'Come on guys, we can do this! We gotta push ourselves!' And you're just like, Where the hell does someone learn that? Is it from her dad or her coach? I mean, that's someone that's really going to be great at whatever she does. She just naturally has that ability, which is huge. And then there's someone like Avery, who cooks from the heart and the soul unlike anyone else that we've seen before."
"Making it to the finale of 'MasterChef Junior' is surreal," Addison said. "I always knew I wanted to go far, but I didn't know it would actually happen. I am so excited and proud of myself. I have learned so much. This experience has definitely been the best thing that has ever happened to me in my whole life!"
"To be in the finale is nothing short of amazing and a dream come true," she added. "The entire experience – from the talented people I've met, the friendships I've made and the beautiful California locations I visited during filming to the opportunity to compete on America's biggest junior culinary stage – all are incredible and experiences of a lifetime. All of the junior chefs are winners! Thank you 'MasterChef Junior' for such an awesome opportunity."
What's impressed Elliot most this season was the variety of talent – from kids who have traveled and dined all over the world to those who eat at Denny's and even hunt alligators.
"It's like, is one any better than the other?" he offered rhetorically. "They're all amazing in their own way. A lot of times you take into consideration creativity and technique, but also, if you were blindfolded and just tried this food, which one would you want to go back and order tonight? What would you take home with you in a doggy bag?"
Perhaps the most amazing element to the show is taking in the level of skill these kids demonstrate. Each episode has people asking themselves how someone so young can be so knowledgeable and have mastered so many techniques in the kitchen. It's enough to make you wonder if the kids are taught behind the scenes on the set. In fact, that's a question that gets asked a lot.
"It's funny, because people ask, 'Did you give them a lesson? Did you give them a class?' " Elliot explains. "And I'm like, 'Every single day in my restaurant I try to give people classes, and they still will mess up a bunch of stuff.' We have these kids for maybe two weeks, and we try to give them all little insights about what we might do or how to work with this or that – but that's it. There's no cooking lessons, really, especially with the kids on 'MasterChef Junior,' " he added.
"You give someone a salmon and ask them to filet it or break it down to cook it, it's really difficult to do unless you do it day in and day out. But you give it to an 8-year-old and watch what they do – I mean, that's gotta be inspiring to everybody. And not just us in the food business."
During the finale, we'll be seeing Addison and Avery go head-to-head and really show off all their skills, those of which they entered the competition with, as well as those they developed through the competition. Typically on the show, the contestants are given a box of ingredients or a dish that they're supposed to interpret, creating a one of a kind dish for judges to sample. But for the finale, they're asked to create a menu of three dishes – each made from scratch – that they would serve at their very own restaurant.
"There's always something where they try something again or scrap it, and then it turns into something else," Elliot said of the finalists trying to perfect their menus. "When you cook with this childlike approach to things, you're much more creative, as opposed to someone who has cooked something for 20 years and can't get it right so they don't know what to do."
Elliot will be judging the menu alongside Tosi and Ramsey, the latter of which is known for being extremely tough on contestants from the adult version of the show. But he shows a much kinder and gentler side of himself when he's around the kids.
"I think everyone brings their own unique style to the judging, and you know, Joe was a part of the show for so long, so it's sad not to have him there, but Christina brings different skills with her baking. It's always fun to stand around people and learn new styles," he said. "We all get along great. There's always a great amount of respect and friendship."
After six years with the "MasterChef" franchise Elliot made the decision to depart following the fourth season of "MasterChef Junior," so the finale will be his last episode as a beloved judge.
"It has been an awesome experience to be a part of the 'MasterChef family," he told Variety back in December. "I learned so much from the people I got to work with, and it has been a true honor to share my love of cooking with the audiences who have allowed me into their homes over the last six years. I remain committed to using my passion for cooking as a way to entertain and teach people of all ages, and will be making some exciting announcements about the next steps of that journey in the new year."
In addition to his Chicago-based restaurant, Graham Elliot Bistro, which he opened by the age of 30, Elliot also recently published his first cookbook, "Cooking Like A Master Chef: 100 Recipes to Make the Everyday Extraordinary," which he showed off on a recent episode of "MasterChef Junior." When asked about the cookbook, he couldn't contain his excitement over this new part of his life.
"It's awesome. After 22 years of cooking, to have something like that and show people where I am on my journey is really fun," Elliot said. "It's exciting to be able to show people some of the food that I do and to get my philosophy of cooking across to everyone so that they can maybe go home and have the same ideas that they make."
So what makes it stand out from thousands of other cookbooks out there?
"The fact that I wrote it," he explained. "Like all 100 recipes. I wrote the description of it, why I made it, where it's from, what the idea is. Just like every photo I've ever posted or every tweet I've ever sent out, those are the things where the authenticity genuinely comes through. When you're reading it, it sounds like I'm sitting there talking to you. I didn't go back and edit it to make it super perfect. I kind of did a snapshot of what I was feeling and wrote it out as I was doing the dish."
Now that the cookbook is published, Elliot also has an awesome new restaurant project up his sleeve that he "thinks will be fun." While he couldn't share too many details, the few that he let slip are enough to excite food lovers of any age.
"Imagine a Chuck E. Cheese 2.0! Let's just say that," he said, adding, "something that can really bring food, kids, cooking, interaction, all of those different kinds of things together in a fun, healthy and educational way."
I guess we'll just have to wait and see!
Tune into the finale of "MasterChef Junior" on Friday, Jan. 29 on FOX at 8 p.m. EST.
