America’s worst cooks is a long-running Food Network show that has been around for over a decade now and is still going strong after 24 seasons. The show features two chefs, Anne Burrell and a guest chef who usually changes each season. They both have a team of competitors with weak cooking skills, and they must teach them how to cook in hopes of winning the competition against each other. The Constants have a chance to win $25,000 and a Food Network cooking set, while their mentor chef simply earns bragging rights.
Any TV show that revolves around the same or similar competition from episode to episode or season to season will always have good times and dull times. Not every competition can be perfect, or even completely entertaining, no matter how the editors end up putting it all together. Sometimes, however, a season is unforgettable, making it a season all fans remember and still talk about. Here are some of the best seasons for you to relive your favorite moments or watch the show yourself for the first time.
8 Season 7
Season seven sees Rachel Ray as the co-host of this special part of America’s worst cooks. This is actually the first time the show has brought together real celebrities to compete for a chance to win $50,000 for a charity of their choice. With an unusually small cast compared to normal, having only seven contestants compared to the usual 12-16, the season played out differently, with an elimination challenge among the whole group instead of removing one competitor of each team each week. It’s fun to see people you can actually recognize among the first-time contestants, and audiences were certainly thrilled to see how bad some of these celebrities were in the kitchen.
seven Season 1
On most competitive shows, you’ll find that the first season is almost always on the top lists. This is partly because of the novelty of a new concept that they can watch, but also because if the first season wasn’t something people really enjoyed, the show would never have continued. It was the only season that Beau MacMillan co-hosted, testing his technical and teaching skills. It’s fun to see where the show started and how everyone really leaned into these new roles in the TV series. A highlight of this season is seeing the contestants try to make their own pasta, which even the average household couldn’t do, let alone those who can’t cook.
6 Season 17
Season seventeen sees Bobby Flay join us, one of the show’s most popular and recurring co-hosts. From some of the worst competitors that even make these seasoned chefs worry about future competition with their cooking, to interesting and sometimes crazy challenges, there’s a lot going on this season. Some of them involve breaking piñatas in the kitchen to get various ingredients needed to make tostadas, or requiring contestants to shop at a supermarket on a shoestring budget to find everything they need for their dishes. It’s a crazy but entertaining ride from start to finish.
5 Season 14
Co-hosted by Robert Irvine, Season 14 brings an interesting obstacle to the table. Although there were seven episodes as you would expect to be able to eliminate everyone, there were actually four contestants left in the last episode. In the previous episode, there were no winners or losers, meaning the finale was unlike any previous season as four contestants entered the kitchen for the finale, also requiring some interesting competition to help overcome this change. The highlight of this season, however, must be when the chefs have left the kitchen, leaving the contestants to recreate a dish from taste alone. However, the chefs secretly watched them through the cameras, providing interesting commentary out of earshot of the contestant.
4 Season 6
Season six has Tyler Florence as a co-host, one of the chefs who appears the most on the show. This season of the cooking show has a lot of ups and downs. From kitchen diversions that even someone with cooking skills might find appalling, to a contestant’s unfortunate withdrawal due to illness, it seems this season has it all. And yet there’s even more, like cooking meals for a guest star, testing the contestants’ lack of skill by having them create their own inspired dishes multiple times, and there was even a round where the contestants’ dishes were so good everyone won. It’s a great season all around, and is only boosted by the spirit and experience of Florence.
3 Season 4
Another one of Bobby Flay’s seasons, there are plenty of moments that make this season unforgettable. From high-stakes one-on-one competitions to plenty of mistakes in the kitchen, there are too many good times to count. The fact that the contestants are addressing a group of bikers is probably some of the best times, alongside the thrill of watching the contestants attempt to make their own gelato with very limited success for their skills. There are also plenty of special guests this season, who help judge the contestants’ food in special tests.
2 Season 3
Season three marks the only time Anne Burnell has won against Bobby Flay. Maybe she had the advantage because she already had two seasons of experience under her belt, or maybe she just got lucky with her competitors. Either way, the season is full of fun and difficult challenges, including asking contestants to make their own pizzas or trying to recreate the chef’s favorite dishes with limited success. They also attract some of the toughest critics in the world: elementary school children looking for their lunch. There are certainly a lot of great moments in this season.
1 Season 13
Another celebrity edit, season 13 sees Tyler Florence co-host. As with any celebrity season, there’s a lot more comedy, as most of them are trained actors ready to improvise jokes as the chefs try to entertain the audience with jokes. This is one of the highest celebrity editing seasons yet, bringing with it plenty of fun challenges to watch. One of the highlights is when the contestants have to show off what they’ve learned so far and try to teach the mentors how to cook a dish. With victories at all levels, this season is one of the best.
