MASTERCHEF CANADA Judges Mix It Up: ‘We’re Kind of Like an Emulsified Sauce’

By BILL HARRIS Special to The Lede   The new season of culinary competition series MASTERCHEF CANADA won’t be a piece of cake for the 15 wide-eyed home cooks trying to impress three experienced judges. And who are those judges? None other than Canadian Screen Award-winning host, cookbook author, and Season 3 winner Mary Berg, internationally acclaimed chef and cookbook author Hugh Acheson, and chef and restaurateur Craig Wong. Prior to the Season 8 special premiere – Thursday, Oct. 2 at 9 p.m. ET on CTV, CTV.ca, and the CTV app, and streaming next day on Crave – Berg, Acheson, and Wong shared their hot takes on what’s cooking: Q: How is the chemistry between the three of you? Maybe it’s better on a show such as this to have a bit of bad chemistry? CRAIG WONG: “I think all three of us have such unique personalities, but there’s one thing that unites us, and it’s a passion and drive for food.” HUGH ACHESON: “Not me.”   Q: You see, that’s exactly what I was talking about. MARY BERG: “I think the dynamic between us is really fun to play with. Like Craig was saying, we all obviously want to mentor, and see these home cooks do as well as they possibly can in really tight, wild circumstances. But we all have something different to offer, which I think is fun. It would be a boring judging panel if we were all the exact same person.” HUGH ACHESON: “Speak for yourself, I would love to be with three of me.” MARY BERG: “I love that comment.” HUGH ACHESON: “We’re kind of like an emulsified sauce.” MARY BERG: “We’re a vinaigrette. Can I be the mustard? You’re the oil (pointing to Wong), you’re the vinegar (pointing to Acheson).” HUGH ACHESON: “Craig is more like the egg yolk. But, you know, these things can break at any time.”   Q: Obviously Mary has plenty of experience with MASTERCHEF CANADA, but how familiar were Craig and Hugh with the franchise CRAIG WONG: “I was always a huge fan of the show, so for me, it’s more about the next stage in my career, where not only do I get to bring up cooks in my own kitchen, but I get to influence on a national scale. I hope that home cooks watching at home really are going to have that experience, and that connection, to these home cooks that are on their drive towards making their dreams come true.” HUGH ACHESON: “It’s a huge franchise around the world, and it has always been interesting to watch. I’ve known people who have hosted the show in other countries, so you see how the franchise works, and it’s an amazingly powerful thing to then get on there, and see it from a Canadian perspective. The home cooks are such a diverse lot of people that it becomes really identifiably Canadian, which is great. It’s just an honour to do it. And I mean, I hope Craig is influencing people, but I don’t think anybody should follow my advice.” MARY BERG: “Oh, absolutely, they should. These two, I’ve learned so much from them, just listening to their critiques of the home cooks. We all agreed that we really wanted to not instruct, per se, but build. As opposed to just saying, ‘this was bad,’ we’re going to get into why it might not have worked properly. It’s similar to MASTERCHEF AUSTRALIA in that way. There’s more of a rapport between the home cooks and judges. I know from my season on MASTERCHEF CANADA, the judges were, like, deities (laughs). You talked to them only when you gave them food, and then not at all. Not off camera, not afterwards. Obviously, I know now that they’re a bunch of teddy bears, which I’m sure they wouldn’t love to hear, but they are. But what’s different about this season is we really want to encourage, and also give takeaway, even for viewers at home. The culinary vernacular and knowledge that people have now, thanks to the internet, thanks to social media, is so much bigger than it was, even when I was in that kitchen.”   Q: So you’re saying the overall proficiency has improved? MARY BERG: “I was shocked. It was incredibly high to begin with, but I was blown away. The talent that Canada has to offer is pretty much, I would say, unmatched. And as Hugh was saying, there is so much diversity in the food we got. There are so many different types of cuisines, and it’s showcased so well in this season of MASTERCHEF CANADA.” HUGH ACHESON: “But don’t be fooled, there was still some horrible food.” MARY BERG: “There are some swings and misses. You know, shoot for the stars.”   Q: What’s the one piece of advice you have for the home cooks? HUGH ACHESON: “If you’re saying things like, ‘I’m the best chef in the world,’ you probably are going to get your comeuppance very, very quickly. So I think you want to start on a pretty even keel, understand the basics of what you’re doing, and have some good dishes ready that people have really loved when you’ve cooked them before.” CRAIG WONG: “Be strategic and watch the clock. That’s a key factor to getting all the components onto the plate, and making sure that it’s on time.” MARY BERG: “That’s the thing, it needs to taste good, but you have to be quick. That’s what trips a lot of people up, because when you’re making these beautiful plates for a picture on Instagram, or a video on TikTok, you have all the time in the world. On MASTERCHEF CANADA, you have 30 minutes, maybe an hour, and we are watching you … and yelling the whole time.”   Following the Oct. 2 special premiere, MASTERCHEF CANADA moves to Tuesdays, with a second helping of the Season 8 premiere, Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. ET, and new episodes beginning Oct. 14 on CTV, CTV.ca, and the CTV app, and streaming next day on Crave.   billharristv@gmail.com @billharris_tv