The time to be hungry just by watching TV every Wednesday has started again as MasterChef US season 7 kicks off. This time, only Gordon Ramsay and Christina Tosi are the only two judges, with a few guest judges making an appearance in some episodes. Forty home cooks head to Los Angeles in the hopes of getting a spot in the top 20, and get a chance to win the title of MasterChef along with a fat juicy $250,000 cash prize.
Just as usual, the contestants come from all walks of life with one thing in common - a passion for cooking. As the contestants go inside the MasterChef kitchen in groups or pairs, their family and friends patiently wait outside, excitedly hoping their loved one makes it through.
Armed with his cooking skills and perhaps a bit of luck on his side, professional poker player David Williams successfully earned a spot in the top 20 of MasterChef US Season 7.
The 35-year-old Las Vegas poker player David Williams battled against 32-year-old Philadelphia marketing professional Joe Pickens, who both found themselves cooking pork chops in an effort to win an apron and earn the respect of their children.
David prepared a pork chop with blue cheese grits and sautéed escarole. Both Gordon and Christina are not too pleased with the blue cheese component. Joe packed flavor into his brandied cherry pork with cauliflower puree, but sadly the meat is a tad under-cooked.
In the end the judges chose David's pork chop as the winner, which means David makes it into the top 20.
David Williams was formerly a successful player of the card game Magic: The Gathering. He first earned his poker fame when he finished second place to Greg Raymer in the 2004 WSOP Main Event which earned him $3.5 million, and because of this victory, he transitioned from Magic to poker.
David Williams has faced quite a few of the world's toughest poker players, with more than $8.6 million worth of winnings under his belt. But can he deal with the wrath of celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay?
Given that most people in the poker community are not very much aware of David's cooking skills, they suppose that it's highly possible he may not last long in the competition. However, it looks like Ramsay believes in his cooking skills and he may do fairly well after tweeting, "David is a bloody good chef."
Update: The third episode of MasterChef aired last Wednesday night, and it included two eliminations. Fortunately, David Williams makes the cut, and he's one of the 18 home cooks and aspiring Master Chefs who will advance to the next week. He attempted to make one of Gordon Ramsay's three-star Michelin dishes, the Yukon gold potato scaled halibut. Though it wasn't chosen to be the best dish of the night, it was enough to get him through to the next round.
MasterChef US Season 7 airs Wednesdays at 8pm on FOX.
Source: http://www.fox.com/masterchef/article/meet-the-40-masterchef-contestants
