MasterChef comes to March Air Reserve Base

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Michelle J. Ulber
  • Team March Public Affairs
March Air Reserve Base, Calif. --  

Since the taping of the Fox television show MasterChef on March 14th, 100 Airmen from March Air Reserve Base have been keeping a delicious secret: They were the audience selected by the producers to experience the culinary delights at their home station. The episode that was shot at one of the base’s capacious hangars airs tonight, Aug. 22nd.

MasterChef, an American competitive cooking show, features a search for the best home cooks across the nation. Based on an original British TV series of the same name, this season’s cooking is judged by chefs Gordon Ramsay, Joe Bastianich, and Aarón Sanchez.

In the high-pressure cook-off, wherein contestants are gradually eliminated until a winner is crowned, the show’s would-be MasterChef’s cooked and served hangar steak and pork chops to hungry Airmen. As more and more Airmen lined up to be served, contestants quickly became overwhelmed trying to get the food prepared and out on time.

“It was entertaining, organized chaos,” said Tech. Sgt. Megan Lombard, the Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge of outdoor recreation with the 163d Attack Wing’s Force Support Squadron. Airmen were encouraged to send back dishes if something was wrong with them.  In fact, several plates were sent back for being undercooked, prompting a classic Gordon Ramsay reaction: He began to get angry at the contestants while giving them tips on how to get the food out more quickly and cooked correctly.

Other Airmen were quite satisfied with the resulting dishes: “It was the best food that I’ve had in a longtime, if not ever,” said Master Sgt. Joan Nguyen, a human resource advisor with the 163d Attack Wing. “My food was cooked perfectly.”

Many Airmen said they felt more than well-fed, noting an air of support from the whole cast and crew.

“You could tell that Chef Ramsay and all of the contestants are big supporters of the troops,” said Nguyen. “They were so excited to be there. You could just feel the overall support for the military.”

“There was this moment when the actual chefs walked by and you were a little star struck but it almost seemed like they were star struck by you back,” said Staff Sgt. Jordan Madrid, a production recruiter with the 163d Attack Wing. “They were just so happy to serve their food to us. It was an amazing experience.”