December means Christmas, but also (and especially for fans of the genre) the return of Masterchef! THE'eighth edition of the culinary talent show is about to start. But first, the production made a Christmas "gift" to all the fans of the program. The December 20th in fact it will start Masterchef All Stars which will see some protagonists competitors of previous editions. Some people have missed the victory by a whisker (see Maurizio Rosazza Prin, defeated at the end on a panna cotta), there are the most beloved characters from the public (like the Sicilian Ivan Iurato), there are those, after the TV experience, opened a restaurant, who became a chef (like Danny D'Annibale), who started a career on the small screen and who brought his dishes on social networks becoming an influencer.

Four episodes, 16 competitors, 2 judges, 4 special guests

Appointment therefore for four Thursday, at 9.15 pm, on Sky One: between mutual estimates and old rusts, 16 veterans they will come back to the kitchen of Masterchef, grown up and more aware, to challenge each other and overcome the judgment of Bruno Barbieri is Antonino Cannavacciuolo, the two judges who in each episode will be joined by special guests: Joe Bastianich, Antonia Klugmann, Iginio Massari and Giorgio Locatelli (the new judge of Masterchef Italia 8).

Find out who are the 16 competitors and their stories: browse the gallery!

Browse the gallery

"The dishes we tasted in this edition tell the growth of the competitors and what they managed to make out of the program, demonstrating the fact that we judges we had seen well in selecting them", commented Barbieri. «The best thing was to see that these guys made it, taste some dishes and say" Why did not I think about it? ", He confirmed Cannavacciuolo, followed by a wheel from Bastianich"Their skills confirm our commitment to selection and judgments: they are chefs, they write books, they went to the world and they did something important". Baptism of fire for Locatelli: "It was difficult at the beginning to have to judge the dishes of other people, but our job as judges is this: to recognize talent and make it grow".

The first episode

In the first challenge of the first episode, the participants will cook their warhorse, but the judges will taste the dishes in the dark, without knowing who prepared them, a way to judge them putting aside the path that the competitors have behind. The opening – or not – of a large door will decide the fate of the 16: only those who will be able to prepare a dish worthy of a starred restaurant will have access to the Masterclass.

The prize for charity

The prize to be won for the winner of MasterChef All Stars will be of 100 thousand euros and will be entirely donated to Liberamensa, the association that, since 2008, deals with offering opportunities to reintegrate to inmates of the Turin prison through training and work, both in prison and outside, with activities that include, among others, catering services, gastronomy and a bakery.

Plastic free and zero waste

All consumer products related to food and used in talent (plates, glasses, cutlery, trays, napkins) are of a nature compostable and environmentally friendly. The approach of Masterchef is consistent with that of the Sky Group, which in all the countries in which it operates launched the awareness campaign in January 2017 Sky – A Sea To Save for the progressive elimination of the disposable plastic, engaging in the first person to do the same.
Moreover, as in the past seasons, against the waste of food, most of the food not used for the tests was donated toOpera Cardinal Ferrari Onlus of Milan. The program has availed itself of the precious collaboration of Last Minute Market, the spin-off company of the University of Bologna, committed to reducing waste and preventing waste for over 10 years.