MasterChef — Season 2

After conducting a nationwide search, 100 of the best amateur cooks in America - including a police officer, an oil rig engineer, an interior designer, a forklift operator, a professional poker player, a classical pianist and a tattoo shop owner - were flown to Los Angeles in the hopes of becoming the next MASTERCHEF and walking away with the life-changing grand prize. The hopefuls will prepare their signature dishes and present them to judges Gordon Ramsay, Joe Bastianich and Graham Elliot. The amateur cooks will be put through the paces, and only the most deserving among them will win the coveted white apron and move on to the next round of the competition.

Nerves are tested as the judges continue to winnow down the Top 100 in their search for the America's best amateur cook.

Nerves are tested as the judges continue to winnow down the Top 100 in their search for the America's best amateur cook.

After impressing the judges with their signature dishes, the hopefuls will have to prove that they have mastered basic kitchen techniques, including chopping apples and cooking a chicken to perfection. Find out whose skills are sharp enough to advance to the next round and who cracks under pressure.

The competition continues to sizzle as the Top 18 contestants vie for a coveted spot in the next round of competition. In the next intense culinary challenge, the judges raise the stakes to find out who can handle the heat and who will crack under pressure. Find out which contestants have skills sharp enough to advance to the next round.

The Top 16 contestants battle it out in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill to be America's Best Amateur Cook. Find out which contestants wow the judges with their culinary chops and who may wind up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

The Top 15 home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

The Top 14 home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

The Top 13 home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

The Top 12 home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

The Top 11 home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

The Top 10 home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

The Top 9 home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

The Top 8 home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

After the judges spared the home cooks from elimination last night, the Top 8 flex their culinary muscles once again in another grueling challenge to prove they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out who wows the judges and which two contestants wind up on the chopping block.

The six chefs go to the Patina restaurant at the Walt Disney Concert Hall where team captains Suzy and Tracy select their teams to cook two of Patina's appetizers and two of their entrees for a fully booked diner service. The teams will be judged by their customers and by the restaurants owner and the head chef of Patina restaurant. The winning and losing team meet at the masterchef restaurant to hear the results and the losing team is left as usual in the kitchen downstairs to the take the pressure test. This time around the three chefs must skin, fillet, debone and, portion a salmon. There must be at least ten equal portions and the chefs must cook one portion. There is a clear winner and loser in this pressure test and one chef is asked to retire their apron. This episode though has an interesting result for the loser that is completly unexpected but deserved.

The Top 5 home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to advance to the next round. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block in the next elimination round.

The four remaining home cooks flex their culinary muscles in another grueling challenge to prove to the judges they have the passion and skill it takes to carry them through to the season finale. Find out which contestants wow the judges and who winds up on the chopping block.

After enduring a season's worth of intense pressure tests and grueling challenges, the determining moment has finally arrived. In the season finale, judges Gordon Ramsay, Joe Bastianich and Graham Elliot determine which amateur cook truly has the potential to transform his/her culinary dreams into reality. The contestants who have made it this far in the competition have earned the judges' respect, but only one will walk away with the grand prize of $250,000.

The Top 3 chefs face off in a grueling final challenge, and the judges determine the winner in the Season 2 finale. At stake is $250,000 and the coveted title of MasterChef.