2 min read- Food Network is launching Chopped Castaways, a new island-set spinoff of Chopped.
- The series premieres May 12 at 9 p.m. and features 12 chefs competing for $100,000.
- Chefs will have to complete survival-style physical challenges to secure ingredients before cooking.
I am a Survivor person, always have been. It’s one of those shows I watched with my parents and never really let go of, and food competition shows have long been part of my comfort-TV-before-bed rotation too. Back in the earlier competition-show days, Chopped was always in there for me. These days I’m more of a Tournament of Champions guy, but a new spinoff that basically smashes together two of my interests? Yeah, that has my attention.
According to Variety, Food Network is taking Chopped out of the kitchen and dropping it onto a remote island for a new series called Chopped Castaways. The show is set to premiere May 12 at 9 p.m., and instead of just sprinting around a pantry and glaring at a mystery basket, chefs will also have to prove they can handle a much less air-conditioned kind of pressure.
Hosted by Ted Allen, the new spinoff will feature judges including Gabe Bertaccini, Maneet Chauhan, and Marcus Samuelsson. The eight-episode season kicks off with 12 high-level chefs stranded on an island, where they’ll have to earn ingredients through physical survival-style challenges before they ever get to the cooking part.
Per the show’s format, each episode opens with challenges involving things like “archery, spearfishing, diving in the ocean and digging in the sand) that will help chefs to secure ingredients for round one.” The competition starts out as a team game before shifting into an individual format, with the eventual winner taking home $100,000.
“’Chopped’ is a series beloved by fans because it consistently delivers the high-stakes competition they crave,” Food Network president Betsy Ayala said to Variety. “With ‘Chopped Castaways,’ we take that familiar formula of ingenuity and creativity and push it to the next level, challenging some of the most talented and resourceful chefs to battle the elements and approach the baskets in ways we’ve never seen before—all for an epic $100,000 prize.”
Episodes will air first on Food Network and stream the next day on HBO Max, so if you’re the kind of person who already loves watching chefs panic in front of a clock, now you’ll also get to watch them do it after some light island struggle.