There will be a number of changes in TV4's "Sweden's Master Chef" going forward. Now the program will be broadcast both in the fall and in the spring, which in turn means changes in the jury.
The fall season is led by a completely new jury, consisting of chefs Niklas Ekstedt and Thomas Sjögren together with "Master Chef" veteran Mischa Billing, who makes a comeback in the program.
Who will lead the spring season is not yet publicly known.
Dream
For Niklas Ekstedt, the "Master Chef" assignment is a dream that has come true.
They have wanted to get me in "Cooks' Battle" for ten years. But I want to have a vacation in the summer, not stand in a barn and chop onions, so I have said no. But every time they have asked, I have countered that I want to be in "Sweden's Master Chef", and that's what I really meant, says he.
What attracted you to this particular program?
Partly because it is a well-established format that everyone knows. You don't have to reinvent the wheel. And I've watched many seasons myself. But above all, it's very developing to see people make a journey in the program.
What kind of jury style will you have?
I'm just myself. I come in as a chef and as the person I am – a fairly calm and nice person who takes food very seriously. And who gets very provoked when other people don't do that.
Emotional
Niklas Ekstedt broke through in SVT's "Niklas' Food" in 2007, and has since led and participated in several food programs, such as "Wild Chefs" and British "Masterchef". But what distinguishes "Sweden's Master Chef" is the participants, he means:
Those who move on in the program have often followed it in a way their whole lives. Many of the younger ones have had it in the periphery, maybe they have introduced them, he says and continues:
The advantage is that people take it incredibly seriously and it becomes enormously emotional. Sometimes it can be negative – that they get so nervous they shake and can barely hold the knife. But you don't have to sell anything, since everyone understands what's at stake and what it's about.
Corrected: In an earlier version, there was an incorrect statement that Mischa Billing also participates in the spring season's jury.
Sara Haldert/TT
Facts: "Sweden's Master Chef"
(TT)
In the fall season of the program, Mischa Billing, Niklas Ekstedt, and Thomas Sjögren (who won "Cooks' Battle" in 2018) are part of the jury. The premiere will be on TV4 on August 24.
