Adele Elliott

The amateur cooks have one hour to recreate their signature dishes for the judges' first auditions, as the judges and nine past winners offer their support.

Chefs are teamed-up to cook at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, creating nutritious three-course meals for guests. But there are stumbles and struggles along the way.

The top 24 try to stand the heat in the kitchen, with 90 minutes and an open pantry to cook their dishes and impress the judges, focusing on hospitality.

Nigella's pressure test for the chefs is a chocolate feast, with 75 minutes to recreate four of her chocolate desserts, including a ruby chocolate cheesecake.

The chefs have only 45 minutes to cook a prawn dish with their assigned cuisine: French, Greek, Mexican, Spanish, Thai and Vietnamese.

The kitchen battle continues as the losing chefs from the team challenge have to cook dishes that first influenced their passion for food.