Marco Pierre White has never been afraid to stir the pot – and just days before the MasterChef Australia grand finale, the celebrity chef has delivered a blunt assessment of one of television’s most popular cooking competitions.

The Michelin-starred chef and former MasterChef judge has described the hit series as “fantasy” and “food porn”, with the Daily Mirror reporting he said viewers shouldn’t take it too seriously because the dishes are often judged hours after they’re cooked.

“It is a TV show, don’t take it seriously. It is not real. It is fantasy,” White told the Daily Mirror.

Labelling the program a “reality show”, White said contestants were effectively cooking for television rather than for diners, arguing the delays between plating and judging meant the dishes could no longer be assessed as they would be in a professional kitchen.

“When it comes to the tasting, the food is three, four hours old. It’s cold food.”

Despite turning up the heat, White said he believed the program had value because it encouraged people to cook.

“If it makes you want to cook then that is all that matters. It’s food porn,” he said.

Regarded as one of the world’s most influential chefs, White has longstanding ties to the Australian MasterChef franchise. He co-hosted MasterChef Australia: The Professionals in 2013, became a regular guest mentor on the amateur series during its popular “Marco Week” challenges, and has returned for several high-profile guest appearances in recent years.

White’s relationship with MasterChef Australia has occasionally come to the boil. In 2017, he vowed never to return following a public spat with then-judge Matt Preston after accusing Preston of making “disgraceful” comments about his son.

White later fronted rival cooking competition Hell’s Kitchen Australia for the Seven Network before eventually returning to MasterChef Australia as a guest mentor after the original judging panel, including Preston, departed.

Food porn or not, MasterChef Australia has helped launch some of Australia’s biggest culinary personalities.

Season one winner Julie Goodwin and runner-up Poh Ling Yeow have gone on to become two of the country’s best-known food personalities, each forging successful careers in food and television.

Season four winner Andy Allen (2012) went from contestant to restaurateur and remains a judge on MasterChef Australia, while season seven favourite Reynold Poernomo has built a successful dessert empire with Sydney’s Koi Dessert Bar. Season two winner Adam Liaw (2010) has become one of Australia’s most recognisable food writers, cookbook authors and television presenters.

The MasterChef Australia 2026 grand finale airs on Sunday on Channel 10 and 10 Play, with Petro Papathomas and Vinnie Gibaldi battling for the title.