On May 25, 2022, at 8 p.m. ET, Alejandro Valdivia, a contestant from Season 11, will return to the MasterChef Season 12 kitchen.
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Twenty MasterChef alumni will compete on the Primetime Emmy-winning program for the title and $250,000 in prize money. The native of Atlanta and the licensed animal trainer was the first contestant from season 11 to be saved, despite finishing last more than twice. In the program’s prior season, he came in fourth place.
Javier Valdivia from Season 12 of MasterChef
Alejandro Valdivia left his impoverished Cuban upbringing and moved to the United States. In 1994, Valdivia and his family left Cuba for the United States when his mother won a visa lottery held by the American government. After finishing all of the paperwork, which took about a year and a half, the family departed for the new country.
When Valdivia moved to Miami and started experimenting with various dishes, his obsession with food officially started. He stated to the newspapers Atlanta Intown and Reporter:
“I watched cooking programs alone at home for a large portion of my free time.” And I made an effort to prepare dinners with what was in the fridge.
About 11 years ago, he decided to move to Sandy Springs after competing in the AJC Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta. He simply “fell in love with the cuisine and the people,” so he decided to move his own business, AV Dog Training, along with him.
The journey Alejandro Valdivia took on MasterChef
Because of his passion for cooking, Valdivia decided to compete in the show’s 11th season, where he dazzled the judges with his culinary skills.
For the judges Aaron Sanchez, Emeril Lagasse, Gordon Ramsay, and Joe Bastianich, Valdivia cooked fresh herb-crusted lamb chops in the preliminary round. The judges were astounded by his tasty dinner and gave him the apron right immediately. He was the first contestant in the season to receive an apron. He declared:
I’m from Cuba, and I’ve never in my life seen so much food. The colors and smells. It’s amazing. Like you only have one chance, you want to make the most of it.
The chef is a “big meat man” who likes to prepare wild games like deer, duck, and octopus. After his MasterChef stint, he went back to his job as a professional animal trainer and resumed his culinary journey. On his Instagram account, which has 8,737 followers as of this writing, he frequently posts pictures of delicious foods. Additionally, the chef appeared in the movies Ultimate Beastmaster (2017) and Power (2017). (2014).
Watch Fox on Wednesday to see Valdivia and the other competitors return to the MasterChef kitchen. The episode will be accessible on the network’s website after it airs on the channel. Several live streaming services, including Sling, DirecTV Stream, FuboTV, Philo, and YouTube TV, also offer Season 12.
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