Food Network’s Cutthroat Kitchen is a weekly show that features a cooking competition between four chefs who are vying for the number one spot. There are three rounds and at the end of each round, one chef is eliminated. Each is given $25,000 at the beginning of the show. They must use the money wisely to purchase necessary ingredients and equipment at auctions to create their dishes. The last chef standing gets to keep whatever money is left. The series has been on the Network since 2013 and has grown in popularity among culinary enthusiasts, but what goes on behind the scenes? Here are five things you didn’t know about Cutthroat Kitchen.
1. The application process is grueling
Chefs who appear on the show have proved their mettle by completing the application process.They are first assessed to make sure that they can handle the pressures of competition on television. They share several recipes with photographs of the dishes along with a resume and their Chef’s Roll profile headshot. It can take up to four months find out if the chef meets with the approval of the committee.
2. Chefs for the show are found on social media
Candidates for the program are located by the information that they have posted on social media. YouTube clips, Twitter and Chef’s Roll are venues which are used to choose those most likely to be suitable for the show. This means that if a chef does not have a social media presence of some type, they are probably not going to be selected. This is an issue for busy chefs who have not made the time to develop at least a website, or to promote themselves on social media. Often, those who do have not had the time to devote to developing a site that adequately represents their true culinary abilities.
3. Contestants are not paid for appearing on the show
Three out of the four chefs who compete on the program will receive no monetary compensation for their time. The chef who wins the show is given $10,000. The show does, however, pay for travel expenses to and from the event which is in Burbank, California.
4. No cooking audition is required
The execs of Cutthroat Kitchen require a lot of information about each candidate, but they do not require an actual cooking competition. Chefs are judged by how they present themselves on Skype. This sounds a bit odd for a cooking show, but it appears that the casting staff are more concerned with how the chefs will conduct themselves throughout the competition. It is assumed that they are relying upon the resume, social media information and the Chef’s Roll data to make their selection.
5. No sponsorships are offered for contestants
One would think that there would be some type of benefit other than appearing on this popular cooking show, but there is not. The show doesn’t offer any photo shoots or sponsorships of any type. The benefits are that simply being on the show gives each contestant media exposure for follow up interviews by interested parties.
Follow Us
