I like to pause when they show the basket ingredients and see what I would do. About half the time I have no idea what the ingredients are!

I've learned a lot about plating and creativity from this show.

I love Chopped, but it would be my nightmare to be on it!

I often make random stuff with what needs using. The difference is that I don't have to incorporate Bulgarian birthday cake rolls into my dinners. I like Chopped for the outlandish ingredients and ideas on repurposing. Some stick and are useful. I find cooking races absurd. Even in high paced restaurants, if the plate isn't finished in the allotted time, it gets finished, not sent defective. At home, I aim for “dinner time” but if that's not happening I just announce when the projected time is and they can just wait. Of course ski racing is also absurd, when only high tech and hundredths of seconds can tell one from the next, and the difference can be wax or shadows rather than skill. The mountains should be the contestants. OTOH, as a family party game, Chopped sounds kind of fun. Do you have time restrictions? Do they compete on sight? Do you have two kitchens?

Not for me. I had an opportunity to sign up to try to be on one of those competition shows, and just nope. The packet of info alone they wanted was just- like dang, what do you need to know what my partner does for a living and things like that. A lot of personal info to profile you. It not just about the cooking, it's about creating food drama.

I'd play if one of the ingredients was wine. A little splash in the pan and a big gulp for the chef. I doubt the results would be anything someone would want to eat though.

Beesneeds, they need to know about jobs in the family if there are significant prizes because of past bad-doers cheating. Nobody even tangentially associated wIth the production, or their families, can participate in the contest. They also are trying to weed out looneys. But you're right, of course, about the drama. They also want to know anything interesting about you that they can make into a story, or something that pulls at the heartstrings to make viewers root for you. Most people see themselves as average, and their struggles as similar to the next person's. Production assistants dig for any little thing that makes you stand out. And if the questionnaire is enough invasion of your privacy to turn you off, you'd probably like the rigamarole of being on a TV show and "packaged" for couch potato fodder even less, so it cuts down on contestants quitting during production,

Dave's home/family version sounds way more fun to actually do, though I get why pros go on these shows to advance their careers.

We did it a couple times at family reunions when the show was fresh. Niece and nephews young. Fun times. Desserts were the main entertainment. Easier for kids.

In front of a camera?, no way. I would cut myself asap. So many bad YouTube channels make it clear we have three personalities.....those that need to entertain, those that need 'to be' entertained, and those that are self-entertained.

We fall into the self-entertained category. Lock-down was/has been a dream for us. BIL and family are deeply missing concerts, etc. We would rather eat glass than stand in lines shoved into crowds for a concert venue. Ot stuffed into a seat at any theatre. ick

Like the American Idol fails that really think they can sing.

That's just it- it wasn't asking who his employer was, I would have understood that for reasons of association with production.... it was asking what he did for a living- like was he a mechanic, architect, delivery driver, ect. There were a lot of personality questions about the significant other if there was one that were kind of just unnecessary too. Or other family members too. There were a few others who were encouraged to sign up that said nope to the questionnaire too. All us top students declined the opportunity. It's OK, we all had other plans anyway that weren't worth putting off for the sake of dealing with the show drama.

The prize was big- big money and a dream job. And bragging rights of course :). Very high drama show, lots of shouting, lol.

Ah! HK, I take it? Other than making sure that if the SO’s job is portable enough that the contestant could accept the job, I can’t see the point of it either. Maybe trying to weed out the wealthy, connected and lawyers! If I'm right about the show, there has been a lot of nattering about the way it's made, more like a “reality” show, with PA's stirring up trouble, judged rounds artificially made into ties for drama, and progress shown out of sequence to make up stories that didn't actually happen. I think Chopped is pretty straight forward. It's the extended format elimination programs that get sketchy.

Not me.

I can't even watch Chopped anymore. I just lost patience with all the "extra." Not to sound heartless, but I found all the tears because your granny who taught you how to scramble an egg 30 years ago has passed away irritating. I don't watch to hear your story of addiction or incarceration or battling cancer or abuse. I watch to see what you make with all these ingredients. I wish they would at LEAST wait until the end or until the individuals got chopped to show that stuff. It would seem less likely that they were playing for the judges sympathy to avoid getting chopped. I do not think I am alone in that opinion either.......

I do good to make a meal with what I have on hand. I prefer to shop for food daily but with everything going on I have tried to avoid that as much as possible. Luckily,no one dares chop me in this house.....

I don't watch it (after seeing it a couple of times), but I think it might be good for children. The concept does not interest me, as it seems too contrived and silly.

I tend to dream more about furniture designs and hair styles than recipes.

Amy, I am sure much of what is said is scripted and prompted, who wants to hear, I'm going to use the 10k to pay debt? lol but I while I'm bored with the melodrama I also wish they would stop giving such weird food so much. I love seeing what the chefs can do with regular ingredients.

And would it freaking kill them to have more fryers and ice cream makers!!!

LOL! Bumblebeez, that would be a wholly different game! The whole point is to have no time to ponder, and just create something good with weird ingredients you've never heard of, much less tasted or handled before. The one ice cream machine and one fryer is to keep them on their toes, strategizing to get there first or hope for the best and have their food fresh out for service, and to make them rethink if they can't get access. Even when they all have things they want to fry, they usually work it out in turns, and the judges don't complain about the fryer temperature, so it must have a good recovery system,

That's what makes it interesting. I only watch if I'm looking for something innocuous at a random moment, but have seen quite a lot of it over the years. These things are part of the show. If you want to see fairly normal ingredients made into masterful food, in a contest format, maybe try Top Chef.

My big bugaboo with most TV contests is the time. On Chopped, the ridiculous time constraints play an important role in the game, but the judges also care most that the required ingredients make it to the plate, and while they'll remark if a plate isn't attractive or hasn't had the drips wiped off, those are marginal issues if the food is good, and seem only to play a part in a dead heat. I.e., they're understanding about the clock.

Many other food contests on TV are very different. They expect perfection in a time that would normally be suitable for making a known, standard recipe with pre-prepped ingredients, and have the contestants running around the kitchen like maniacs—which is bad form, and dangerous. They are severe on unfinished plates. The point seems to be about managing your ambitions, but really it's just that they think the audience would rather watch Roadrunner and Coyote than real cooking.

Food Network used to show those French championships which weren't conceived for TV, but for food. There were exceedingly generous time constraints, marked in many hours for a whole presentation rather than minutes in rounds adding up to an hour or so in total, and the contestants knew what they'd be cooking and under what conditions, and practiced at home. They were expected to present very formal trays of perfection. The only ones who ran out of time were those who were both overly ambitious and underprepared, or who didn't take into account the ambient temperature and other variables of the venue in their planning. I found those much more interesting than most of the American game show kinds of contests.