Worst Cooks in America season 21

Last updated

Contents

Worst Cooks in America
Season 21
Judges
No. of contestants14
WinnerAmber Leverette
Runner-upCameron Bartlett
No. of episodes8
Release
Original network Food Network
Original releaseJanuary 3 (2021-01-03) –
February 28, 2021 (2021-02-28)
Season chronology
← Previous
Season 20
Next →
Season 22

Worst Cooks in America 21, is the twenty-first season of the American competitive reality television series Worst Cooks in America . It premiered on Food Network on January 3, 2021 and concluded on February 28, 2021. Amber Leverette was the winner of this season, with Cameron Bartlett as the runner-up.

Format

Worst Cooks in America is an American reality television series in which contestants (referred to as "recruits") with poor cooking skills undergo a culinary boot camp for the chance to win $25,000 and a Food Network cooking set. [1] [2] The recruits are trained on the various basic cooking techniques including baking, knife skills, temperature, seasoning and preparation. Each episode features two core challenges: the Skills Drill, which tests their grasp of basic techniques demonstrated by the chef mentors, and the Main Dish Challenge, where they must apply those skills to recreate or invent a more complex dish under specific guidelines. The weakest performer is eliminated at the end of each episode. The final two contestants prepare a restaurant-quality, three-course meal for a panel of food critics, who evaluate the dishes based on taste, presentation, and overall improvement. [3]

Judges

Carla Hall joins Anne Burrell to host season 21. The season debut on January 3, 2021, with a 90-minute premiere. Immediately following, spin-off companion series Worst Cooks in America: Dirty Dishes begins its first-ever run. [4] The show sees former boot camp contestants and comedians commenting on past episodes. [5]

An additional twist added this season is the "Danger Zone," in which the worst recruit on each team in the Skill Drill must cook their Main Dish at the stations used by Burrell and Hall in demonstrating the recipe, giving the mentors the ability to keep a close eye on them as they cook.

Recruits

Contestant [6] AgeHometownOccupationTeamStatus
Amber Leverette37Banner Elk, North CarolinaBartenderCarlaWinner
on February 28, 2021
Cameron Bartlett20Norman, OklahomaStudentAnneRunner-up
on February 28, 2021
Jonathan "JJ" Hurt [7] 35Atlanta, GeorgiaTech Support SupervisorAnneFinalist
on February 28, 2021
Chandali Gullick29Wichita, KansasCustomer ServiceCarla
McKayla Carter21Blackshear, GeorgiaModelAnneEliminated
on February 14, 2021
Tiffany Billingsly35Greenwood, IndianaMusic TeacherCarla
Ayesha Dwyer43Wadsworth, IllinoisChildren's Book AuthorCarlaEliminated
on January 31
Laura Marie Moore23Los Angeles, California NHL CheerleaderAnne
Joey Kinsley26Rocky River, OhioDigital Marketing SpecialistCarlaEliminated
on January 17, 2021
Mo NooreldinKirkland, WashingtonDental AssistantAnne
Stephanie James40Chicago, IllinoisPostal ClerkAnneEliminated
on January 10, 2021
Watik AleemAurora, ColoradoArmy VeteranCarla
Jonathan HannaNew York, New YorkHand ModelCarlaEliminated
on January 3, 2021
Joy Blessing65Jacksonville, FloridaWedding OfficiantAnne

Elimination Chart

  Team Anne
  Team Carla
* Initially a member of the other team
RankContestantEpisode
12345678
1AmberWININWININBTMIMMINWINNER
2CameronBTMBTMINBTMWINWININRUNNER-UP
3JJWINININWINBTMBTMINFINALIST
4Chandali*ININBTMSWAPINWININ
5McKayla*BTMWINBTMSWAPINOUT
6TiffanyINBTMINBTMWINOUT
7AyeshaINININWINOUT
8LauraININWININOUT
9JoeyININOUT
10MoINWINOUT
11StephanieINOUT
12WatikINOUT
13JonathanOUT
14JoyOUT
Key
  (WINNER) This contestant won the competition and was crowned "Best of the Worst".
  (RUNNER-UP) The contestant was the runner-up in the finals of the competition.
  (FINALIST) The contestant was a finalist in the finals of the competition.
  (WIN) The contestant did the best on their team in the week's Main Dish challenge or Skill Drill and was considered the winner.
  (IMM) The contestant won immunity and was safe from elimination in the week's Main Dish Challenge.
  (BTM) The contestant was selected as one of the bottom entries in the Main Dish challenge, but was not eliminated.
  (SWAP) The contestant get switched by a mentor to the other team.
  (OUT) The contestant lost that week's Main Dish challenge and was out of the competition.

Episodes

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleOriginal release date  [8]
1531"Home Cooking and Date Night"January 3, 2021 (2021-01-03)
1542"Farm-to-Table"January 10, 2021 (2021-01-10)
1553"Sauce Boss"January 17, 2021 (2021-01-17)
1564"Between Two Buns"January 24, 2021 (2021-01-24)
1575"Hook, Line and Sink 'Em"January 31, 2021 (2021-01-31)
1586"Bonkers for Baked Goods"February 14, 2021 (2021-02-14)
1597"This Ain't No Yolk"February 21, 2021 (2021-02-21)
1608"Fight for Finale"February 28, 2021 (2021-02-28)

References

  1. ↑ Lynch, Rene (January 2, 2010). "'Worst Cooks in America' isn't just a title: They're horrible". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  2. ↑ Tucker, Ken (January 4, 2010). "'Worst Cooks in America': Worst thing I watched most of last night". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  3. ↑ Worst Cooks in America (Comedy, Game-Show, Reality-TV), Anne Burrell, Tyler Florence, Bobby Flay, Optomen Productions, January 3, 2010, retrieved July 24, 2025{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  4. ↑ "Worst Cooks in America" – via www.foodnetwork.com.
  5. ↑ "Worst Cooks in America, Dirty Dishes: Food Network Reveals Premiere Dates". canceled + renewed my TV shows - TV Series Finale. November 30, 2020. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
  6. ↑ "Worst Cooks in America, Season 16: Meet the Celebrity Recruits". Food Network. Retrieved July 26, 2025.
  7. ↑ "Instagram" . Retrieved June 24, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Shows A-Z - worst cooks in america on foodnetwork". The Futon Critic . Retrieved July 27, 2025.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.