Tag Archives: Dylan Benoit

Food Network Canada’s Fire Masters returns April 16

From a media release:

Food Network Canada heats up spring with the sizzling return of Corus Studios’ original series, Fire Masters (15x60min). Professional chef Dylan Benoit returns as host, joined by a rotating panel of expert judges and notable culinary personalities. Each episode will challenge three chefs to show off their grilling talents and creativity in two culinary challenges, cooking up mouth-watering dishes that will be assessed by the judges. Two chefs will be eliminated, and the last one standing will go head-to-head with a renowned judge in the third and final round, vying for a $10,000 cash prize and the title of Fire Masters Champion. Fire Masters returns Thursday, April 16 at 11 p.m. ET/PT on Food Network Canada.

Hailing from across North America including Toronto, Ont. to Miami, Fla., Kelowna, B.C. to New York City, NY. and beyond, Fire Masters’ competitors represent the continent’s most talented grill masters and chefs. In the premiere episode “Let the Flames Begin,” the “Wildfire” round heats up fast with three executive chefs, each looking to smoke out the competition with their signature dishes that are judged on presentation, creativity and taste. In the “Crossfire” round, the chefs bring the heat, competing for a spot in the final round. Finally, in the “Feast of Fire” round, the final competitor remaining goes head-to-head against a Fire Masters judge and must showcase their culinary skills across a whole menu. Both chefs have a sous-chef to help them grill up a ‘Breakfast for Dinner’ feast that will determine the winner. For the full list of competitors, please visit foodnetwork.ca.

Host and chef Dylan Benoit returns to oversee the fiery battles and brings with him some serious credentials: extensive culinary experience working in prestigious restaurants and vast world travel and culinary tourism. Dylan is joined by a rotating panel of renowned, flame-fanatic judges, who will determine which competitors have what it takes to earn the title of Fire Masters Champion.

A roster of new and returning sponsors enter the Fire Masters arena this season. In every episode the competitors will have top-of-the-line grilling stations provided by returning sponsor, Napoleon. As the series’ exclusive provider of grilling appliances and equipment, the fully outfitted Fire Masters arena boasts the latest, cutting-edge tools from Napoleon. Additionally, as the competition heats up, the winner of each second round is awarded a Napoleon Travel portable grill. Certified Angus Beef ® brand returns as the exclusive beef provider for the series, stocking the fridge with their premium high-quality beef. The Certified Angus Beef ® brand is also showcased a “Crossfire” challenge, where competitors feature a dry-aged bone-in ribeye or short ribs as the star ingredient in their dish, as well as during a “Feast of Fire” challenge, where the chefs must elevate the tried-and-true meat and potatoes dinner. Tourism PEI comes on board for an integrated “Feast of Fire” challenge, where the chefs will create a “Down East Feast”, celebrating the beauty and bounty of Prince Edward Island and using ingredients sourced from the area. Miller Lite joins for an integrated “Feast of Fire” challenge, tasking the chefs to create a family-style spread of flame-kissed dishes perfect for game day. Host Dylan Benoit will also appear in Miller Lite’s digital calendar, sharing his favourite Campfire Queso Fundito recipe.

Fire Masters is produced by Architect Films in association with Corus Studios for Food Network Canada. For Architect Films, Tanya Linton and Mike Sheerin are Executive Producers and Jennifer Pratt is Series Producer.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail

Preview: Fire Masters grills up tasty vittles on the road to $10,000

I like to fancy myself a bit of an expert on grilling. Thanks to Ted Reader, I’ve mastered cedar plank salmon, grilled vegetables and to-die-for burgers. But I simply don’t have the skill needed to compete in Food Network Canada’s latest culinary competition.

Fire Masters—bowing Thursday at 10 p.m. ET/PT on the specialty network—pits three chefs against one another in a sweaty, hot and smoky test to see who can tame the fire and walk away with $10,000.

At the helm of this spark-filled challenge is professional chef, writer, restaurateur, world traveller and—currently running a private chef service and consulting company in the Cayman Islands—Barrie, Ont., native Dylan Benoit. The bearded, pony-tailed chef introduces the three chefs ready to do battle in three rounds and, as done on Chopped, one is eliminated until a sole chef is left standing. Unlike Chopped, however, the final competitor goes head-to-head with one of the episode’s judges. In the case of Thursday’s debut, that means Connie DeSousa, Ray Lampe or Hugh Mangum.

The first challenge tasks the trio with creating a dish that reflects who they are. This is a tactic used to great effect on Top Chef Canada because it not only shows off a chef’s skills but their influences as well. With just 30 minutes on the clock, Fire Masters becomes an orgy of flashing stainless steel, glowing embers and egos. After a visit and taste by the judges, one chef is cut from the competition.

In the second challenge, the remaining two are asked to prepare fish, with the Round 1 winner getting an advantage. If this all sounds a little of Top Chef Canada, I wholeheartedly agree. In fact, I zipped to the end of the screener to see if it was made by the same production company. It’s from Architect Films (Home to Win, Great Canadian Cottages), but Fire Masters sure has a lot of Top Chef Canada‘s DNA. And, since it’s a proven formula, why not go for it?

The departure of that formula is, of course, having the Round 2 winner face off against one of the judges. And, in Thursday’s first episode, the battle is fun as heck to watch. I won’t give away the results, but you like cooking over flames and the competition of Top Chef Canada, you’re going to like these budding Fire Masters.

Fire Masters airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Food Network Canada.

Image courtesy of Food Network Canada.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail