MasterChef Israel
MasterChef Israel (Hebrew: מאסטר שף) is an Israeli reality cooking competition show that debuted on 14 October 2010 on Channel 2 (as of 2017, on Keshet 12). It is based on the British reality cooking competition show of the same name. The show was very well received and highly acclaimed, achieving excellent reviews and high ratings.
| MasterChef | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Cooking |
| Presented by |
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| Country of origin | Israel |
| Original language | Hebrew |
| No. of series | 9 (7 regular seasons, Junior season and VIP season) |
| No. of episodes | 106 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Gil Productions |
| Running time | 90–120 minutes |
| Release | |
| Original network | |
| Original release | 14 October 2010 – present |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Format
The premise of the show is a cooking competition between amateur cooks, competing for the title of "MasterChef" and a kitchen renovation. the first few episodes of every series are audition episodes where contestants cook to a panel of judges who decide based on a dish cooked in front of them whether or not to pass the contestant to the next level, where a large number of the contestants chosen in the auditions are eliminated through a series of tests, until 12–14 are chosen as the show's final cast, and the members of the series' "Nivheret" (Selected Team).
The members of the "Nivheret" compete in different challenges every episodes, such as the mystery Box Challenge, the Invention Test, Dish Recreation Challenges and Taste Challenges.
Mystery Box Challenge
In the Mystery Box Challenge contestants receive a number of ingredients of which they are to make a dish of their choice. The contestants are allowed to use any number of the ingredients they are given they wish, and are free to leave out any ingredients. Once the dishes are finished, the judges choose three of the dishes to taste.
The Invention Test
The Invention Test requires of the contestants to make a dish, usually with a certain requirement, such as that the dish should cost no more than a certain price, the dish should contain a certain ingredient or be an adaption of other dishes. The Invention Test is usually the challenge that leads to eliminations.
Dish Recreation Test
In the Dish Recreation Test contestants are asked to recreate a complex dish made by a guest chef, usually with a recipe at hand.
Taste Challenges
In Taste Challenges the contestants are given a dish to taste, and are asked to name ingredients in the dish, for every ingredient they name correctly they score a point, until their first mistake. The contestant with the lowest score is usually eliminated.
Judges
The first season judges were Haim Cohen, Eyal Shani, Michal Ansky, and Rafi Adar, all successful restaurateurs in Israel. During the first season, judge Rafi Adar was accused of sexual harassment by a production worker and was fired by the production company, the other three judges went on judging the season as a team of three judges.
After the first season was concluded, Eyal Shani became famous, due to his eccentric treatment of food as poetry in the show, though Haim Cohen was the most famous of the judges, Shani became the symbol of the show and became a cultural icon in Israel.
In the second season, Haim Cohen, Eyal Shani and Michal Ansky continued as judges with Yonatan Roshfeld, chef of the Herbert Samuel restaurant, brought in to replace Rafi Adar.
In the seventh season, Haim Cohen, Eyal Shani and Michal Ansky continued as judges with Israel Aharoni, a famous Israeli chef, brought in to replace Yonatan Roshfeld.
Season 1 (2010)
First aired on 14 October 2010, the first season of MasterChef received very high ratings and resulted in a large cook book that held all of the recipes shown on the first season.
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Ina Kravetsky | Winner |
| Elkana Bitton | 2nd |
| Smadar Vaknin | 3rd |
| Aviva Fibko | 4th |
| Itzik Harel | 5th |
| Musa Abu Sris | 6th |
| Ran Vasiliver | 7th |
| Morria Ka'atavi | 8th |
| Adi Mizrahi | 9th |
| Gal Leibowitz | 10th |
| Galit Bonfeld | 11th |
| Aviv Ezer Fischler | 12th |
Season 2 (2011)
The show was picked up for a second season on November 2010, a month after the first season first aired. the show began airing on June 2011, with the new judge, Yonatan Roshfeld.
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Avi Levy | Winner |
| Eliav Sasson | 2nd |
| Emmanuel Rosenzweig | 3rd |
| Shai Sarmani | 4th |
| Gili Halfteck | 5th |
| Iris Kaspi | 6th |
| Yossi Azulay | 7th |
| Sima Ifargen | 8th |
| Elisa Hammer | 9th |
| Ilan Weissbrod | 10th |
| Zohar Arnon | 11th |
| Jennifer Sunny | 12th |
| Moshe Sassoon | 13th |
| Rachel Kadosh Mashan | 14th |
Junior MasterChef (2012)
- Junior MasterChef Israel premiered on 20 April 2012 the judges will be the same as MasterChef Israel.
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Daniel Tirosh | Winner |
| Dana Sharon | 2nd |
| Stav Choen | 3rd |
| Radi Halvi | 4th |
| Shaked Snerch | 5th |
| Roy Vresano | 6th |
| Rean Vice | 7th |
| Amit Shabu | 8th |
| Oded Ovadia | 9th |
| Sivan Klika | 10th |
| Nil Shatraunber | 11th |
| Lihi Naim | 12th |
| Yarden Hamo | 13th |
| Dana Kozinitzki | 14th |
| Itay Choen | 15th |
| Avia Dozali | 16th |
Season 3 (2012–13)
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Tom Franz | Winner |
| Salma Fyumi | 2nd |
| Jackie Azulay | 3rd |
| Paulin Shoval | 4th |
| Dalia Alchadf | 5th |
| Mia Ben Tzvi | 6th |
| Eti Levi | 7th |
| Beni Ben Israel | 8th |
| Shai Brandas | 9th |
| Shelly Harman | 10th |
| Vicky Jan | 11th |
| Itay Elimelech | 12th |
| Elinor Rachamim | 13th |
| Snir Nekar | 14th |
Season 4 (2014)
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Nof Ethamna Ismail | Winner |
| Ido Kronenberg | 2nd |
| Masrat Woldmichael | 3rd |
| Shlomo Ezran | 4th |
| Ricky Soysa | 5th |
| Tzila Ofer | 6th |
| Serenada Dilvski | 7th |
| Shai Tobol | 8th |
| Eitan Slomon | 9th |
| Asher Levi | 10th |
| Josh Steel | 11th |
| Lior Slomon | 12th |
| Moran Sasa | 13th |
| Lary Suesman | 14th |
MasterChef VIP (2015)
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Shai Avivi | Winner |
| Pnina Tornai | 2nd |
| Aya Kramreman | 3rd |
| Betty Rockawy | 4th |
| Shlomo Scharf | 5th |
| Norman Issa | 6th |
| Eden Harel | 7th |
| Avi Nosbaum | 8th |
| Noam Tur | 9th |
| Shlomi Eldar | 10th |
| Dorit Rabinyan | 11th |
| Eti Levi | 12th |
Season 5 (2015)
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Masimilano de Matteo | Winner |
| Rachel Ben Elul | 2nd |
| Lama Shchada | 3rd |
| Michal Epstein | 4th |
| Ron Soriano | 5th |
| Iv Anan | 6th |
| Eyal Geresh | 7th |
| Racheli Kadosh | 8th |
| Rut Ruzovski | 9th |
| Misha Lederman | 10th |
| Natali Finkelstein | 11th |
| Ben Aviad | 12th |
Season 6 (2016)
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Tom Aviv | Winner |
| Yehonatan Biton | 2nd |
| Sofi Porat | 3rd |
| Shira Betzalel | 4th |
| Liron Asulin | 5th |
| Diana Rachmani | 6th |
| Matan Chaliva | 7th |
| Amit Haya Twito | 8th |
| Eli Mitzri | 9th |
| Yacky Algranti | 10th |
| Gal Ofir | 11th |
| Neria Cohen | 12th |
Season 7 (2017–18)
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Yehuda Amar | Winner |
| Amichai Shrapstein | 2nd |
| Yehoyada Nizri | 3rd |
| Edi Babaeib | 4th |
| Victoria Goberman | 5th |
| Bar Pines | 6th |
| Muzna Bishara | 7th |
| Sivan Amar | 8th |
| Nadia Awid | 9th |
| Bar Eilon | 10th |
| Itzik Batashvili | 11th |
| Liron Partosh | 12th |
| Larisa Slapian Ashed | 13th |
| Yochay Golan | 14th |
Season 8 (2019)
Contestants
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Vanessa Vidal | Winner |
| Shahar Levi | 2nd |
| Gal Kaspers | 3rd |
| Lior Ohayon | 4th |
| Farrah Raslan | 5th |
| Yotam Aranovich | 6th |
| Jana Khein | 7th |
| Costa Osadchy | 8th |
| Albert Ifraimov | 9th |
| Nimrod Zioni | 10th |
| Ruhama Hershdorfer | 11th |
| Dana Elharar | 12th |
| Adi Sivan | 13th |
| Arnon Naim | 14th |
| Tahel Kedem | 15th |
| Sagi Keren | 16th |
VIP Special
| Contestant | Place Finished |
|---|---|
| Itay Levi | Winner |
| Dana Grotsky | Competitior |
| Eitan Cabel | Competitior |
| Ely Ildis | Competitior |
| Itzik Cohen | Competitior |
| Nesli Barda | Competitior |
| Ofira Asayag | Competitior |
| Tahounia Rubel | Competitior |
External links
- MasterChef's page on Keshet's website (Hebrew)