Sixteen world-class chefs are entering the Chopped kitchen, bringing with them their greatest culinary skill, for an all-new tournament, Chopped: Gold Medal Games. Starting Tuesday, Jan. 2 at 10|9c, the five-part tournament will challenge these elite culinary competitors to create gold medal-worthy dishes, focusing on a specific cooking technique

Each week, four new chefs compete utilizing their greatest culinary skill — frying, grilling, baking or speed. The winner of each episode will gain a spot in the finale and a chance to take home the coveted gold medal and $50,000!

In the frying heat, four fry masters open their appetizer basket to see it packed with a fun fair treat, and a gamey meat. For the entrée round in the grilling heat, the chefs battle to prove why grilling is a winter “sport” worth cheering for, as they encounter a guilty-pleasure snack and a Korean side dish in the mystery basket. In the baking heat four fierce competitors must get creative with a grocery store breakfast dough and a lovely cut of lamb for the appetizer basket. And in a Chopped first, in the “racing the clock” heat, speed demons in the kitchen will have five minutes less than usual each round to create a phenomenal meal, despite being burdened with some extremely tedious prep work with such ingredients as wild watermelon and an expensive fish in the entrée round.

Go behind the scenes of Chopped Gold Medal Games at FoodNetwork.com/Chopped.  Discover photo and video highlights, relive top moments from the tournament, and get inspired by mystery basket ingredients. Join in on the conversation using #Chopped.