MasterChef Wiki

Season 6 of MasterChef aired on FOX between May 20 and September 16, 2015. Events manager Claudia Sandoval, from La Mesa, California, was the winner of the season was awarded with the MasterChef trophy, the right to publish her own cookbook, and a salary of $250,000.

Top 22[]

This season is tied with Season 5 for having 22 contestants to compete on the show. The contestants were (relative to their placement):

Contestant Age Hometown Occupation Status
Claudia Sandoval 31 La Mesa, CA Events Manager Winner September 16
Derrick Peltz 28 Fort Myers, FL Drummer Runner-Up September 16
Stephen Lee 47 Palm Springs, CA Urban Gardner Eliminated September 16
Nick Nappi 31 San Diego, CA Dishwasher Sales Rep Eliminated September 9
Katrina Kozar 34 Milwaukee, WI Administrative Assistant Eliminated September 2
Hetal Vasavada 27 Bloomfield, NJ Startup Developer Eliminated August 26
Tommy Walton 53 Chicago, IL Fashion Designer Eliminated August 19
Olivia Crouppen 25 Thousand Oaks, CA Fashion Stylist Eliminated August 12
Shelly Flash 32 Brooklyn, NY Kitchen Assistant Eliminated August 5
Christopher Lu 30 Los Angeles, CA Restaurant Manager Eliminated July 29
Sara Zacek 32 Baileys Harbor, WI Mobile Home Park Manager Eliminated July 15
Kerry Prince 37 Greensboro, NC Human Resources Rep Eliminated July 8
Amanda Saab 25 Seattle, WA Social Worker Eliminated July 1
Charlie Chapman New Orleans, LA HVAC Technician
Jesse Romero 29 Baton Rouge, LA Petroleum Landman Eliminated June 24
Veronica Cili 58 Key West, FL Beauty Consultant
Ailsa Von Dobeneck 27 Norfolk, VA Assistant Railroad Manager Eliminated June 17
Dan Collado 29 Chicago, IL Engineer and Model Withdrew June 17
Justin Banister 18 New Caney, TX High School Student Eliminated June 10
Darah Carattini 29 Irvine, CA Amusment Park Guide Eliminated June 3
Brianna Watson 24 Worcester, MA Hairstylist Eliminated May 27
Mateo McConnell 38 Atlanta, GA Teacher

Competition table[]

Place Contestant Episode
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
1 Claudia IN IMM NPT IN IN PT IN IN WPT WIN IMM HIGH IN WIN WIN IN LOW PT IN IN WIN WIN IMM WPT WPT WINNER
2 Derrick IN IN NPT IN IN WPT WIN IMM WIN LOW LOW IN IN WIN NPT IN IN LOW HIGH WIN PT HIGH LOW WIN WIN RUNNER-UP
3 Stephen IN IN WIN IN WIN WIN IN IN NPT WIN IMM IN IN PT WIN WIN IMM WIN IN WIN WIN HIGH HIGH WIN ELIM
4 Nick IN IMM WIN IN IN WIN HIGH WIN PT LOW WPT IN IMM WIN PT IN IN WIN WIN IMM WIN IN WIN ELIM
5 Katrina HIGH IMM PT IN IN NPT HIGH IN WIN LOW LOW IN WIN WIN WIN HIGH IN WIN IN LOW PT IN ELIM
6 Hetal HIGH IMM WPT IN IN NPT IN LOW WIN WIN IMM HIGH WIN WPT WIN IN WIN LOW HIGH IN ELIM
7 Tommy IN IMM LOW IN IN WIN IN IN WIN WIN IMM WIN IMM WIN LOW HIGH WIN WIN IN ELIM
8 Olivia IN LOW PT HIGH IN WIN IN WIN WIN IN IMM IN IN NPT WPT IN IN ELIM
9 Shelly IN IMM WIN IN WIN NPT IN IN LOW IN IMM IN LOW WPT WIN IN ELIM
10 Christopher IN WIN WIN IN IN LOW IN IN WIN WIN IMM IN IN PT ELIM
11 Sara IN IN NPT IN IN WIN IN IN PT WIN IMM IN ELIM
12 Kerry IN IMM WIN IN IN WIN IN IN WIN LOW ELIM
13 Amanda IN IMM WIN HIGH IN WIN IN IN ELIM
14 Charlie IN IN WIN IN LOW WIN IN IN ELIM
15 Jesse IN IMM WIN WIN IMM WIN IN ELIM
16 Veronica IN IN WIN IN LOW NPT IN ELIM
17 Ailsa IN IMM NPT IN IN ELIM
18 Dan WIN IMM NPT IN IN WDR
19 Justin IN IMM WIN IN ELIM
20 Darah IN IMM ELIM
21 Brianna IN ELIM
22 Mateo IN ELIM

NOTE: Although two contestants are technically eliminated on the same challenge, the lower ranking contestant is determined by who is announced as eliminated first.

Episodes[]

# Image Title Airdate
01 Episode 601 (U.S.) - Let the Battle Commence May 20, 2015
  • Auditions Round 1: The Top 20 contestants were given a surprise once they arrived at the MasterChef kitchen that they would be facing another 20 contestants in head-to-head battles to decide who would be receiving a white apron. Contestants with similar signature dishes were put together against each other to decide which was the best home cook among them. The first battle was between Claudia and Andrew in shrimp, and Claudia emerged as the winner and received the first MasterChef white apron. The next battle was between Stephen and Tommy in pork tenderloin. Tommy won the battle and received a white apron. The next battle was between four contestants - Amanda, Derrick, Nate and Moniza in lamb. Derrick was the first to receive a white apron, after some consideration from the judges, Amanda was the next to receive a white apron. In the following battles, Ailsa, Dan, Kerry, Mateo, Veronica and Nick all received a white apron. The final battle in this episode was between Katrina and Taylor, hometown rivals, in salmon. Katrina was the winner and received the final white apron of the episode.
02 Episode 602 (U.S.) - The Battle Continues May 20, 2015
  • Auditions Round 2: As the head-to-head battles continued, the next battle was between Hetal and Jill in fruit desserts. Hetal was the winner and received a white apron. In the following battles, Darah, Olivia, Sara, Charlie, Justin, Jesse and Brianna all received a white apron. The final head-to-head battle was between Christopher and Shelly in chicken. Christopher was declared as the winner of the battle and received the final white apron.
  • Auditions Round 3: The defeated home cooks were called back into the MasterChef kitchen and the judges announced that they would be distributing two more white aprons for a spot in the competition. Six of the defeated home cooks were chosen by the judges for the final challenge. Graham chose Taylor and Stephen, Christina chose Andrew and Demetria, and lastly Gordon chose Jill and Shelly. The challenge consisted of every day ingredients and the contestants were given one hour to create a dish for the last two spots. At the end of the challenge, Stephen and Shelly advanced.
03 Episode 603 (U.S.) - You're the Apple of My Eye May 27, 2015
  • Mystery Box Challenge: The contestants were given ingredients that the contestants had themselves left behind in their own kitchen when they left to travel to the competition. The cooks had 60 minutes to prepare their dishes. The top three dishes were Katrina's, Dan's, and Hetal's. Dan was the winner.
  • Challenge Winner/Immune: Dan Collado
  • Elimination Test: The contestants were required to make an apple pie in 90 minutes. Dan was immune from the challenge. He also got to choose as many contestants to receive immunity as he wanted. He chose to save Hetal, Amanda, Claudia, Justin, Shelly, Nick, Jesse, Kerry, Tommy, Ailsa, Katrina and Darah. The judges also announced that two cooks would be sent home at the end of this challenge. Christopher was declared winner of the elimination challenge. Veronica, Derrick, Stephan, Charlie, and Sara also had good enough pies to keep themselves in the competition.
  • Immune: Ailsa von Dobeneck, Amanda Saab, Claudia Sandoval, Darah Carattini, Hetal Vasavada, Jesse Romero, Justin Bannister, Katrina Kozar, Kerry Prince, Nick Nappi, Shelly Flash and Tommy Walton
  • Winner: Christopher Lu
  • Bottom three: Brianna Watson, Mateo McConnell and Olivia Crouppen
  • Mateo was the first to be eliminated. Brianna was the next home cook to be eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Brianna Watson and Mateo McConnell
04 Episode 604 (U.S.) - Cinnamon Roll-er Coaster June 3, 2015
  • Team Challenge: The contestants must serve a hamburger with onion rings and coleslaw, and a fish and chips dish for the thousands of visitors of Knott's Berry Farm. The cooks were split into teams of ten. The Red Team consisted of Amanda, Charlie, Christopher, Jesse, Justin, Kerry, Nick, Shelly, Stephen and Veronica, while the Blue Team consisted of Ailsa, Claudia, Dan, Darah, Derrick, Hetal, Katrina, Olivia, Sara and Tommy. The judges selected Kerry as the Red Team captain and Darah as the Blue Team captain. The Red Team received 59% of the votes while the Blue Team received 41% of the votes sending the Blue Team to the pressure test.
  • Team Challenge Winners/Immune: Amanda Saab, Charlie Chapman, Christopher Lu, Jesse Romero, Justin Bannister, Kerry Prince, Nick Nappi, Shelly Flash, Stephen Lee and Veronica Cili
  • Pressure Test: The Blue Team were told that only five of them would have to participate in the pressure test. Darah would be deciding which five cooks including herself will be saved. She decided to save Ailsa, Claudia, Sara, Dan and Hetal; however, Hetal declined the immunity and offered Derrick to be sent to safety in her place. The remaining home cooks will make 12 cinnamon rolls for the three judges in 45 minutes. Hetal was the first to be sent to safety; Katrina and Olivia were also sent to safety, leaving Darah and Tommy as the bottom two.
  • Immune: Ailsa von Dobeneck, Claudia Sandoval, Dan Collado, Derrick Peltz and Sara Zacek
  • Bottom two: Tommy Walton and Darah Carattini
  • Darah was eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Darah Carattini
05 Episode 605 (U.S.) - Clawing to Victory June 10, 2015
  • Mystery Box Challenge: The home cooks will have to make a dish with three types of live crabs in 60 minutes. The top three dishes were Amanda's, Olivia's, and Jesse's. Jesse was declared winner of the Mystery Box Challenge.
  • Challenge Winner/Immune: Jesse Romero
  • Elimination Test: The remaining cooks must create dishes in 60 minutes using a surprise ingredient. Jesse was immune from the challenge. He was then allowed to choose if the contestants will be making a sweet dish or a savory dish with the ingredient. Jesse chose Veronica, Tommy, Katrina, Kerry, Olivia, Amanda, Christopher, Claudia and Justin to make a sweet dish, while Derrick, Dan, Shelly, Nick, Ailsa, Hetal, Sara, Charlie and Stephen would be making a savory dish. The mystery ingredient was revealed to be corn. Stephen and Shelly are deemed to have the best dishes and are made team captains in the next episode. Claudia and Tommy's dishes are deemed good enough to move on leaving Charlie, Veronica, and Justin as the bottom three.
  • Winners: Shelly Flash and Stephen Lee
  • Bottom three: Charlie Chapman, Justin Bannister and Veronica Cili
  • Charlie was the first to be sent to safety leaving Veronica and Justin to face elimination. Justin was eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Justin Bannister
06 Episode 606 (U.S.) - What Happens in Vegas Steaks in Vegas June 17, 2015
  • Team Challenge: Before the challenge began, the judges announced that Dan had withdrawn from the competition for personal reasons. The home cooks would be serving 101 Las Vegas performers using lobsters or chicken tenders as the main ingredient of their entrée dish. Stephen and Shelly were the team captains for this challenge. Stephen was allowed to either choose the ingredient or pick his team first; he decided that he will be picking his team first, and Shelly opted for chicken for her team. Stephen chose Amanda, Charlie, Jesse, Sara, Olivia, Tommy, Kerry and Nick to form the Red Team, leaving Shelly with Ailsa, Claudia, Christopher, Derrick, Hetal, Katrina and Veronica to form the Blue Team. The Red Team received 52 votes while the Blue Team received 49 votes, sending the Blue Team to the pressure test.
  • Withdrew: Dan Collado
  • Team Challenge Winners/Immune: Amanda Saab, Charlie Chapman, Jesse Romero, Kerry Prince, Nick Nappi, Olivia Crouppen, Sara Zacek, Stephen Lee and Tommy Walton
  • Pressure Test: The Pressure Test would be in two parts involving steaks and would be blind-tasted by Gordon Ramsay himself. Shelly was granted immunity and was allowed to select which three members of the Blue Team would be sent to safety along with her. She chose Hetal, Veronica and Katrina, the remainder must serve Gordon Ramsay a medium rare New York strip steak in 20 minutes. The best two home cooks would be sent to safety, leaving the other two to battle it out in the final pressure test. Derrick was the first to be sent to safety, followed by Claudia.
  • Immune: Hetal Vasavada, Katrina Kozar, Shelly Flash and Veronica Cili
  • Bottom two: Ailsa von Dobeneck and Christopher Lu
  • In the final pressure test, Ailsa and Christopher had to serve Gordon a rare filet mignon in 15 minutes. Gordon opted for Christopher's steak, sending him to safety and Ailsa was eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Ailsa von Dobeneck
07 Episode 607 (U.S.) - Bring Home the Bacon June 24, 2015
  • Mystery Box Challenge: The contestants had half an hour to prepare a breakfast dish and also would be cooking alongside Graham Elliot. The top three dishes were Nick's, Katrina's, and Derrick's. Derrick was declared winner of the Mystery Box challenge.
  • Challenge Winner/Immune: Derrick Peltz
  • Elimination Test: The contestants were required to recreate and elevate TV dinners. Derrick was safe from elimination. The judges then showed him their favorite TV dinners to which Derrick had to select one for the other contestants to cook in an hour. He chose the Salisbury steak meal. The judges allowed Derrick to choose which contestant would be unable to cook in the first 15 minutes of the challenge; Derrick chose Christopher. The two best TV dinner dishes of the night belong to Nick and Olivia, making them team captains for the next team challenge. Christopher and Shelly are deemed good enough to move on, leaving Hetal, Veronica, and Jesse as the bottom three.
  • Winners: Nick Nappi and Olivia Crouppen
  • Bottom three: Hetal Vasavada, Jesse Romero and Veronica Cili
  • Veronica was eliminated, but the judges announced that there would be another contestant leaving the competition immediately. Jesse was then eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Jesse Romero and Veronica Cili
08 Episode 608 (U.S.) - Happy Birthday MasterChef July 1, 2015
  • Team Challenge: The remaining home cooks were tasked to help celebrate the 100th episode of MasterChef. Each team would prepare a two-course menu, during which VIP guests would dine on an oyster and caviar appetizer and a duck breast entrée, followed by a birthday cake for MasterChef by judge Christina Tosi. Nick and Olivia were the captains for this team challenge, with Nick getting first pick. Nick chose Amanda, Stephen, Sara, Charlie, Shelly and Claudia, forming the Blue Team, while Olivia chose Derrick, Katrina, Christopher, Hetal, Kerry and Tommy, forming the Red Team. The Red Team were declared to be the winners of the Team Challenge, and sending the Blue Team into the pressure test.
  • Team Challenge Winners/Immune: Christopher Lu, Derrick Peltz, Hetal Vasavada, Katrina Kozar, Kerry Prince, Olivia Crouppen and Tommy Walton
  • Pressure Test: The judges announced that one member of the Blue Team would be exempt from the test and the team would be choosing that person. Stephen was chosen to be safe. The contestants had to create a three-layer birthday cake in 90 minutes and the judges also announced that two contestants would be sent home. Claudia was the first to be sent to safety, while Nick and Sara's cakes are deemed good enough to move on leaving Shelly, Charlie, and Amanda as the bottom three.
  • Immune: Stephen Lee
  • Bottom three: Amanda Saab, Charlie Chapman and Shelly Flash
  • Charlie was the first to be eliminated. Amanda was the second contestant to be sent home.
  • Eliminated: Amanda Saab and Charlie Chapman
09 Episode 609 (U.S.) - Gordon's Greatest Hits July 8, 2015
  • Team Challenge: The home cooks had to recreate Gordon Ramsay's signature Beef Wellington dish. The home cooks were split into pairs to taste it first. The pairs of home cooks were Christopher and Hetal, Claudia and Tommy, Derrick and Katrina, Kerry and Nick, Olivia and Shelly, Sara and Stephen. Each would be cooking alongside the other home cook they were paired up with, and were given 60 minutes to recreate the dish. Sara, Stephen, Christopher, Hetal, Claudia and Tommy were all sent to safety. Olivia and Shelly were judged to had just done enough to be also sent to safely, thereby leaving Derrick, Katrina, Kerry and Nick to face the pressure test.
  • Immune: Christopher Lu, Claudia Sandoval, Hetal Vasavada, Olivia Crouppen, Sara Zacek, Shelly Flash, Stephen Lee and Tommy Walton
  • Pressure Test: Derrick, Katrina, Kerry and Nick were given 30 minutes to recreate one of Ramsay's most well-known appetizers. Nick's dish was the best leaving Derrick, Katrina, and Kerry as the bottom three.
  • Bottom three: Derrick Peltz, Katrina Kozar and Kerry Prince
  • Kerry was eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Kerry Prince
10 Episode 610 (U.S.) - Rice Rice Baby July 15, 2015
  • Mystery Box Challenge: Each contestant had to create a rice dish and the best dish would also be featured in the September issue of Family Circle magazine. The top three dishes were Hetal's, Tommy's, and Claudia's. Tommy was the winner of the Mystery Box Challenge.
  • Challenge Winner/Immune: Tommy Walton
  • Elimination Test: Tommy received immunity from this challenge. He was shown the judges' favorite culinary combos for which he had to select one pair for the other contestants to create a dish out of. He chose peanut butter and jelly. Tommy was also allowed to choose two home cooks to be safe from elimination, one before cooking started and one after cooking ended. He chose Claudia to be saved first, but she turned it down. After cooking ended, Tommy decided to save Nick from elimination. The two best dishes belonged to Hetal and Katrina, who will be made team captains of the upcoming team challenge. Claudia and Christopher's dishes are also good enough to move on.
  • Immune: Nick Nappi
  • Winners: Hetal Vasavada and Katrina Kozar
  • Bottom two: Sara Zacek and Shelly Flash
  • Sara was eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Sara Zacek
11 Episode 611 (U.S.) - Moo-vers and Bakers July 22, 2015
  • Team Challenge: The home cooks were split into two teams of five and must prep and serve steak dishes to 101 hungry cowboys, cowgirls and country ranchers. The steak dish would require two sides and one sauce. These guests would cast the votes to decide which team had the best performance and whichever team received 50 votes first would win. Hetal and Katrina were selected as team captains for this challenge. However, this time the two selected the members for the opposing captain's team, with Hetal getting first pick. Hetal chose Claudia, Tommy, Nick and Derrick for Katrina, forming the Blue Team, while Katrina chose Shelly, Olivia, Christopher and Stephen for Hetal, forming the Red Team. Hetal also was allowed to choose which type of steak both teams would be cooking. Hetal opted for the hanger steak, leaving the New York strip for Katrina's team. The Blue Team won sending the Red Team to the pressure test.
  • Team Challenge Winners/Immune: Claudia Sandoval, Derrick Peltz, Katrina Kozar, Nick Nappi and Tommy Walton
  • Pressure Test: The judges announced that one person would be safe from elimination, and this decision was left to the Blue Team. They decided to save Olivia. The remaining contestants must bake a fruit tart in 90 minutes. Hetal and Shelly were the first to be sent to safety, leaving Christopher and Stephen to face elimination. Gordon sent both Christopher and Stephen to safety.
  • Immune: Olivia Crouppen
  • Bottom two: Christopher Lu and Stephen Lee
  • Eliminated: None
12 Episode_612_(U.S.)_-_Family_Reunion July 29, 2015
  • Team Challenge: The contestants were told that they would be cooking a family-style meal to be blind-tasted for a group of special diners that Gordon had invited. Each team had to create a family dinner consisting of an entrée, two sides and a dessert. The judges selected Derrick and Claudia as team captains, with Derrick getting first pick. Derrick chose Nick, Olivia, Christopher and Tommy, forming the Blue Team, while Claudia chose Katrina, Hetal, Stephen and Shelly, forming the Red Team. When the dishes were served to the guests, it was revealed that the ten guest judges were actually the contestants' family members. The Red Team was declared as winner with six votes against the Blue Team's four votes.
  • Team Challenge Winners/Immune: Claudia Sandoval, Hetal Vasavada, Katrina Kozar, Shelly Flash and Stephen Lee
  • Pressure Test: The judges announced that Derrick was exempt from participating in the pressure test. The remaining had to create a gnocchi dish finished in brown sage butter sauce in 25 minutes. Olivia's dish was deemed the best and was saved. Nick's dish was also good enough to move on, leaving Christopher and Tommy as the bottom two.
  • Immune: Derrick Peltz
  • Bottom two: Christopher Lu and Tommy Walton
  • Christopher was eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Christopher Lu
13 Episode_613_(U.S.)_-_A_Little_Southern_Flare August 5, 2015
  • Mystery Box Challenge: The home cooks were tasked to create a flambéed dish using any of five different spirits in 45 minutes. The three judges also demonstrated how to flambé. The top three dishes were Tommy's, Katrina's, and Stephen's. The judges declared Stephen as the winner.
  • Challenge Winner/Immune: Stephen Lee
  • Elimination Test: Stephen was immune from the elimination test and was allowed to decide which Southern dish the remaining home cooks would be cooking. He was shown three different Southern foods. He selected chicken and waffles for the remaining contestants to cook in 60 minutes. Stephen was also allowed to single out one contestant who would only have 30 minutes to create the dish. Stephen chose Derrick to be singled out. Tommy and Hetal were deemed to have the best two dishes in this elimination challenge, making them team captains for the next team challenge. Derrick, Nick, Katrina, and Olivia's dishes are deemed good enough to move on. The bottom two dishes tonight belonged to Shelly and Claudia.
  • Winners: Hetal Vasavada and Tommy Walton
  • Bottom two: Claudia Sandoval and Shelly Flash
  • Shelly was eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Shelly Flash
14 Episode 614 (U.S.) - Getting A-Head in the Competition August 12, 2015
  • Team Challenge: This challenge would take place in the MasterChef restaurant for 50 VIP guests. Tommy and Hetal were selected as team captains for this team challenge, with Tommy getting first pick. Tommy chose Stephen, Katrina and Nick, forming the Red Team, while Hetal chose Derrick, Olivia and Claudia, forming the Blue Team. The judges announced that this would be the first ever vegetarian challenge. The Red Team was declared as the winner, sending the Blue Team into the pressure test.
  • Team Challenge Winners/Immune: Katrina Kozar, Nick Nappi, Stephen Lee and Tommy Walton
  • Pressure Test: The judges announced that the featured item of their dish was underneath mystery boxes of different sizes, to which the home cooks would be selecting one randomly. It was revealed that the cooks must create a dish made from the head meats of various animals in 60 minutes with a limited pantry. Claudia's dish was deemed the best and she was saved first, leaving Olivia, Derrick, and Hetal as the bottom three.
  • Bottom three: Derrick Peltz, Hetal Vasavada and Olivia Crouppen
  • Olivia's dish fell short of the mark.
  • Eliminated: Olivia Crouppen
15 Episode 615 (U.S.) - A Storm's a Brewing August 19, 2015
  • Mystery Box Challenge: The home cooks will create a restaurant quality dish using coffee. The best three dishes were Derrick's, Hetal's, and Nick's. The judges declared Nick as the winner.
  • Challenge Winner/Immune: Nick Nappi
  • Team Challenge: The home cooks will require to re-create a summer party platter various foods. This challenge will be a tag team challenge. Nick was immune from the challenge and formed the tag teams. He paired up Stephen with Derrick, Katrina with Tommy, leaving Claudia and Hetal as the last team by default. Derrick and Stephen's party platter was deemed the best and they were made team captains in the next episode. Claudia and Hetal were sent to safety next, leaving Katrina and Tommy facing elimination.
  • Team Challenge Winners: Derrick Peltz and Stephen Lee
  • Bottom two: Katrina Kozar and Tommy Walton
  • Tommy was eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Tommy Walton
16 Episode 616 (U.S.) - The Restaurant Takeover August 26, 2015
  • Team Challenge: The top six chefs will split into two teams of three for the MasterChef restaurant takeover in a Japanese restaurant. Stephen and Derrick were selected as team captains for this challenge, with Stephen getting first pick. Stephen chose Nick and Claudia, forming the Red Team, while Derrick chose Katrina and Hetal, forming the Blue Team. They must complete two appetizer dishes and two entrée dishes. The Red Team was declared as the winner of the restaurant takeover, sending the Blue Team to face the pressure test.
  • Team Challenge Winners/Immune: Claudia Sandoval, Nick Nappi and Stephen Lee
  • Pressure Test: Derrick, Hetal and Katrina were needed to serve three of the judge's favorite pasta dishes. The home cooks had only one hour to perfect their pasta dishes. Hetal was sent home.
  • Eliminated: Hetal Vasavada
17 Episode 617 (U.S.) - Return of the Champions September 2, 2015
  • Mystery Box Challenge: The contestants will have to impress the judges with a single ingredient they selected at random, with only a standard staple pantry box to their aid. The top three dishes were Stephen's, Derrick's, and Claudia's. Claudia was the winner of the Mystery Box.
  • Challenge Winner/Immune: Claudia Sandoval
  • Elimination Test: Claudia would be safe from elimination. Claudia was allowed to select 20 of her favorite ingredients that she could see being included in her cookbook and placed them inside a basket, to which she would then select one of the remaining four home cooks to use in the upcoming elimination challenge. The remaining three baskets of ingredients were hand-picked by three past MasterChef champions: Christine Ha (season 3), Luca Manfé (season 4) and Courtney Lapresi (season 5). Claudia was allowed to select a basket for each of the remaining four contestants to cook. She gave her Mexican basket to Nick, Christine's Southeast Asian basket to Stephen, Luca's Italian basket to Katrina, and Courtney's baking basket to Derrick. Nick had the best dish of the night and Stephen also did good enough to be sent to safety leaving Derrick and Katrina to face elimination.
  • Winner: Nick Nappi
  • Bottom two: Derrick Peltz and Katrina Kozar
  • The judges eliminated Katrina.
  • Eliminated: Katrina Kozar
18 Episode 618 (U.S.) - Think Inside the Box September 9, 2015
  • Team Challenge: The top four will create a unique appetizer and entrée three times using special ingredients in Gordon and Graham's mystery boxes. As Nick won the previous Elimination Challenge, the teams would be chosen by him. Nick selected Claudia to form the Red Team, leaving Stephen and Derrick to form the Blue Team. The boxes were selected randomly. The judges decided that Stephen and Derrick were the winners of this challenge, securing their spots in the semifinals and sending Nick and Claudia into the penultimate pressure test of the season.
  • Team Challenge Winners/Immune: Derrick Peltz and Stephen Lee
  • Pressure Test: Claudia and Nick were shown an array of desserts. Christina chose her signature chocolate malted layer cake to which Nick and Claudia would need to recreate in 90 minutes.
  • Nick was eliminated and Claudia advanced to the semifinals to join Derrick and Stephen.
  • Eliminated: Nick Nappi
19 Episode 619 (U.S.) - Team Gordon Ramsay September 16, 2015
  • Individual Challenge: The three semifinalists will be required to each create a unique dish for 30 guests in the restaurant in 75 minutes. The guests were all chefs and co-workers led by Gordon, Graham and Christina in their culinary businesses. The judges also announced that each of the semifinalists will also by receiving help from an eliminated contestant. Stephen got the help of Tommy, Claudia had Katrina, leaving Derrick with Hetal. With 15 out of the 30 votes, Derrick was announced as the winner of the challenge, securing his spot into the finale, while sending Stephen and Claudia into the final pressure test.
  • Team Challenge Winner/Immune: Derrick Peltz
  • Pressure Test: Stephen and Claudia will have to recreate three classic dishes in only one hour with the winner of this pressure test joining Derrick in the finale. The judges decided that Claudia had performed better in all three dishes, thereby advancing her to the finale with Derrick, and Stephen was eliminated.
  • Eliminated: Stephen Lee
20 Episode 620 (U.S.) - The Finale September 16, 2015
  • Season finale: Derrick and Claudia had to each create a beautiful appetizer, a stunning entrée and a magnificent dessert.
  • Appetizer: Derrick served spiced pork belly with watermelon three ways, while Claudia had a huitlacoche tamale with cactus salsa, avocado crema and pork skin chicharron.
  • Entrée: Derrick served pan seared venison with root vegetables and puff pastry cage, while Claudia served grilled swordfish with chickpeas, Mexican squash, and salsa verde.
  • Dessert: Derrick served lemon mousse in a chocolate shell with green tea cake and raspberry sauce, while Claudia served hibiscus-poached pear with key lime flan and cinnamon brittle.
  • Final Two: Claudia Sandoval and Derrick Peltz
  • Winner Revealed: The title of MasterChef US 2015, a $250,000 cash prize, and a cookbook deal went to Claudia.
  • MasterChef Winner: Claudia Sandoval


Trivia[]

  • This season was the first to feature a Hispanic-American winner.
  • This is the only season where all the contestants from the Top 10 has been a Team Captain at least once.
  • This is the last season where the grand finale had featured two finalists in a head-to-head, two-way battle.
  • Along with Season 5, this season has a number of contestants of 22.
  • This is the last season where Graham Elliot co-hosted and co-starred as a main judge.
  • This is the first season where Christina Tosi co-hosted and co-starred as a judge, replacing Joe Bastianich, who would eventually return in Season 9.
  • This season has the most amount of double eliminations, with 3.
    • Season 10 would go on to match this record.
  • Future Appearances:
    • Amanda, Shelly, Tommy, Stephen, & Derrick returned in Season 12: Back To Win to compete, Olivia also returned but failed to get an apron.

References[]