Worst Cooks in America season 30
| Worst Cooks in America | |
|---|---|
| Season 30 | |
| Judges | |
| No. of contestants | 10 |
| Winner | Reza Farahan |
| Winning mentor | Tiffany Derry |
| Runner-up | Beverley Mitchell |
| No. of episodes | 7 |
| Release | |
| Original network | Food Network |
| Original release | January 4 – February 1, 2026 |
| Season chronology | |
Worst Cooks in America 30, also known as Worst Cooks: Reality Check, is the thirtieth season of the American competitive reality television series Worst Cooks in America. The season features celebrities and reality TV stars. It premiered on Food Network on January 4, 2026 and concluded on February 1, 2026. Reza Farahan was the winner of this season, with Beverley Mitchell as the runner-up.
Format
Worst Cooks in America is an American reality television series in which celebrities (referred to as "recruits") with poor cooking skills undergo a culinary boot camp for the chance to win a $50,000 prize to donate to the charity of their choice.[1][2] The recruits are trained on the various basic cooking techniques including baking, knife skills, temperature, seasoning and preparation. Each episode features two core challenges: the Skills Drill, which tests their grasp of basic techniques demonstrated by the chef mentors, and the Main Dish Challenge, where they must apply those skills to recreate or invent a more complex dish under specific guidelines. The weakest performer is eliminated at the end of each episode. The final two contestants prepare a restaurant-quality, three-course meal for a panel of food critics, who evaluate the dishes based on taste, presentation, and overall improvement.[3]
Judges
Tiffany Derry and Jeff Mauro are the leaders for Worst Cooks: Reality Check, which consists of celebrities and reality TV stars. This is the first season to be filmed following the suicide of long term judge Anne Burrell, while it is also the second season not to feature her (the first one was Season 28, also hosted by Mauro). The season premiered on January 4, 2026.[4][5]
Recruits
| Contestant | Age | Occupation | Team | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reza Farahan | 52 | Shahs of Sunset star | Tiffany | Winner on February 1, 2026 |
| Beverley Mitchell | 44 | Actress | Jeff | Runner-up on February 1, 2026 |
| CT Tamburello | 45 | The Challenge star | Jeff | Eliminated on February 1, 2026 |
| Manila Luzon | 44 | RuPaul's Drag Race star | Tiffany | Eliminated on February 1, 2026 |
| Val Chmerkovskiy | 39 | Dancing with the Stars dancer | Tiffany | Eliminated on February 1, 2026 |
| Downtown Julie Brown | 62 | Former MTV VJ | Jeff | Eliminated on January 25, 2026 |
| Ryan Lochte | 41 | Former Olympic swimmer | Jeff | Withdrew[a] on January 25, 2026 |
| Amara La Negra | 35 | Love & Hip Hop: Miami star | Tiffany | Eliminated on January 18, 2026 |
| Lisa Barlow | 50 | The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star | Jeff | Eliminated on January 11, 2026 |
| Romeo Miller | 36 | Rapper and singer | Tiffany | Eliminated on January 4, 2026 |
- Notes
- ^ Lochte chose to leave due to health reasons.
Elimination Chart
| Rank | Contestant | Episode | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | |||
| 1 | Reza | WIN | IN | WIN | WIN | BTM | WIN | WINNER | |
| 2 | Beverley | WIN | IN | IN | WIN | IN | WIN | RUNNER UP | |
| 3/4 | CT | IN | IN | BTM | IN | WIN | IN | OUT | |
| 3/4 | Manila | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | BTM | OUT | |
| 5 | Val | IN | WIN | IN | BTM | WIN | OUT | ||
| 6 | Julie | IN | IN | IN | BTM | OUT | |||
| 7 | Ryan | BTM | WIN | WIN | WDR | ||||
| 8 | Amara | IN | BTM | OUT | |||||
| 9 | Lisa | IN | OUT | ||||||
| 10 | Romeo | OUT | |||||||
- Key
- (WINNER) This contestant won the competition and was crowned "Best of the Worst".
- (RUNNER-UP) The contestant was the runner-up in the finals of the competition.
- (WIN) The contestant did the best on their team in the week's Main Dish Challenge and was considered the winner.
- (BTM) The contestant was selected as one of the bottom entries in the Main Dish challenge but was not eliminated.
- (OUT) The contestant lost that week's Main Dish challenge and was out of the competition.
- (WDR) The contestant withdrew from the competition due to illness.
Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Original release date [6] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 220 | 1 | "Reality Check: Lights, Camera, Boot Camp" | January 4, 2026 |
| 221 | 2 | "Reality Check: Hollywood's Next Culinary Star" | January 11, 2025 |
| 222 | 3 | "Reality Check: The Worst Lotus" | January 18, 2026 |
| 223 | 4 | "Reality Check: Culinary Outlaws" | January 25, 2026 |
| 224 | 5 | "Reality Check: Glitz, Glam and Gourmet" | January 25, 2026 |
| 225 | 6 | "Reality Check: Agents of Flavor" | February 1, 2026 |
| 226 | 7 | "Reality Check: Bite Club" | February 1, 2026 |
References
- ^ Lynch, Rene (January 2, 2010). "'Worst Cooks in America' isn't just a title: They're horrible". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
- ^ Tucker, Ken (January 4, 2010). "'Worst Cooks in America': Worst thing I watched most of last night". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
- ^ Worst Cooks in America (Comedy, Game-Show, Reality-TV), Anne Burrell, Tyler Florence, Bobby Flay, Optomen Productions, January 3, 2010, retrieved July 24, 2025
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Fishman, Scott (January 2, 2026). "'Worst Cooks in America': Jeff Mauro Talks 'Reality Check' & Life After Anne Burrell". TvInsider. Retrieved January 4, 2026.
- ^ "Meet the Competitors of 'Worst Cooks in America' Season 30". Food Network. Retrieved January 4, 2026.
- ^ "Shows A-Z - worst cooks in america on foodnetwork". The Futon Critic. Retrieved January 4, 2026.