The Most-Dramatic Wins and Losses on Chopped

Chef Luisa Fernandes moved from Portugal to the Unites States with no friends, no money, and no English. Now Luisa is out to prove that regardless of the hardships she may have encountered earlier in life, she has the culinary prowess to win Chopped. When she succeeds, she couldn’t be happier.

After competing in a tournament of 16 phenomenal chefs, Madison Cowan and Jason Zukas battle it out in the dessert round for the title of Chopped Champion and a prize of $50,000. Both chefs, and the judges, are understandably emotional at the final chopping, and the moment becomes even more emotional when the winning competitor’s daughter makes a surprise appearance.

Chef Yoanne Magris has a specific use in mind for her Chopped winnings, if she winds this redemption episode of Chopped. She wants to fly home to France to visit her ill grandmother. After already losing Chopped once, this may be her last chance to earn the money, and Yoanne powers through severe burns in order to win. Sadly, Yoanne is chopped in the final round, but winner Lance Nitahara is so moved by her story that he offers to use his own winnings to buy her plane ticket home.

Shania Thomas enters the first-ever teen edition of Chopped to honor her late brother, who always encouraged her to follow her dreams of becoming a chef; she wants to prove that she has what it takes to stand on her own two feet. After battling three other talented teenagers, she does just that, taking home the win.

Chef Chris Burke is confident in his dessert and ready to beat out his competitor to take home the $10,000. When the judges aren’t as pleased as he expects, however, Chris gets chopped, and doesn’t react well. His response? He throws his apron in a dumpster on his way out.

As all Chopped chefs know, hearing harsh criticism from the judges is hard — and being chopped is even harder. While most competitors take it in stride, Chef Malik Fall doesn’t take his chopping lying down. He’s angry when the judges tell him to be more humble,  and he curses and storms off the set.

Chefs Ernest Servantes and Kent Rollins both come from humble beginnings, so the possibility of winning $50,000 in the Chopped Grill Masters Tournament makes this finale a pressure-filled fight to the finish. As the judges have grown close to both competitors, the final chopping comes with a tear-jerking goodbye for one chef, and an equally emotional win for the other.

Keith Young’s late wife always encouraged him to cook, so when he competes against three dads on this amateur-chef episode of Chopped, he wants to win for her and to show his kids that he’s getting his footing back after her passing. When he finally makes it to the final round and wins the title of Chopped Champion, Keith is understandably emotional and expresses how lucky he is to be a dad.