Hell’s Kitchen winner Alex Belew says ‘it’s easier for people to remark that chefs can’t cook risotto but…..’

Alex Belew was the winner of Hell’s Kitchen season 21. On February 9th, 2023, Alex became the winner of Hell’s Kitchen, a reality show where contestants aged in their 40s and 20s compete for the opportunity to become Gordon Ramsay’s executive chef at Hell’s Kitchen Caesar’s Atlantic City. Despite tough competition from 29-year-old, Dafne Mejia and 28-year-old, Alejandro Najar, 41-year-old Alex Belew won the grand prize of $250,000. In a new interview, Alex talked about much ‘pressure’ the chefs go through while they cook to impress judges. He said it’s easy for people to pass comments and criticise fellow contestants while sitting at home. (Also read: Masterchef Australia’s Sarah Todd on her dish leading to desis go crazy: Hope Indians are proud that their humble Bhel Puri is getting the recognition)

In a conversation with Mashed, Alex told he was ready to face criticisms but did not anticipate how things can get ugly on the show, and said, “When you’re sitting at home watching it on TV with your hand in a bag of Doritos, it’s easy to be like, ‘Why can’t these people cook scallops? They can’t cook risotto.” He continued further and said, “But there’s so much pressure. The best chef can crack, and you’re only as good as your last moment. If your last moment sank the whole ship, that’s it. You could have had a stellar performance three or four or five days in a row, but one bad dinner service, you’re gone. It’s crazy.” He was also surprised by the portions that the cameras did not present to the audience.

He also mentioned by saying that people get to see only 1 % of our day on the show, “You sit at home, and there’s so much that you don’t see on TV. You only get about 1% of our day. There’s so much that goes on in the dorms and in the punishments.”

Hell’s Kitchen’s latest season premiered from September 29, 2022 and the finale episode aired on February 9, 2023 on FOX. Gordon Ramsay came back as the host and the main chef, with Christina Wilson, the winner of season ten, served as the sous-chef for the red team, and Jason Santos, the runner-up of season seven, was the sous-chef for the blue team. There were 18 contestants who participated such as Cheyenne Nichols, Mindy Livengood, Ileana D’Silva among others.