(WINNER) The chef won the season and was crowned Top Chef: Master.

(RUNNER-UP) The chef was a runner-up for the season.

(WIN) The chef won that episode's Elimination Challenge.

(HIGH) The chef was selected as one of the top entries in the Elimination Challenge, but did not win.

(IN) The chef neither won nor lost that week's Elimination Challenge. They also were not up to be eliminated.

[IN (+)] The chef won a pair or team challenge but was not chosen as one of the judges' favorites.

[IN (-)] The chef lost a pair or team challenge but was not selected as one of the judges' least favorites.

(LOW) The chef was selected as one of the bottom entries in the Elimination Challenge, but was not eliminated.

(WD) The chef withdrew from the competition.

(OUT) The chef lost that week's Elimination Challenge and was eliminated.

Episodes

Episode 1: Restaurant Wars

• Quickfire Challenge: The chefs are split into pairs, and both select a box containing a secret ingredient off of a shelf. Each chef must make a dish with both of the ingredients. A top and a bottom is chosen from each pair, and one overall winner is chosen. The overall winner receives immunity from elimination.
  • Top: Floyd, George, Hugh, Mary Sue, Suvir, Traci
  • Bottom: Alex, Celina, John C., John S., Naomi, Sue
    • WINNER: Traci (Celery Salad with Peanut Butter Vinaigrette; Licorice and Orange Salad)
• Elimination Challenge: Following the standard Top Chef Restaurant Wars format, the 12 chefs split into two teams; the chefs on the top for the Quickfire Challenge forms one team (Team "Mosaic"), while the chefs on the bottom forms the other (Team "Leela"). Each team must create a restaurant name, concept, and menu. The best restaurant is selected by the diners.
• WINNING TEAM: Leela

• WINNER: Alex (Celery Root, Potato and Spinach Fricassée)
• ELIMINATED: Hugh (Scallops with Grits, Leeks, Scallions, Peppers and Pancetta)
  • Guest Judge: Danyelle Freeman (Elimination Challenge)
  • Original Airdate: April 6, 2011

Episode 2: Everything Old is New Again

• Quickfire Challenge: The chefs must create a meatball dish using a meat grinder
  Meat grinder
  A meat grinder or meat mincer is a kitchen appliance for grinding, fine mincing or mixing raw or cooked meat, fish, vegetables or similar food. It replaces tools like the mincing knife, for example, which has been used to produce minced meat, filling etc. The producer puts the minced food into a...
  
  . The winner receives immunity from elimination.
  • Top: John C., Sue, Suvir
  • Bottom: Floyd, George, Hugh
    • WINNER: John C. (Vietnamese Chicken Meatball)
• Elimination Challenge: The chefs are tasked with putting a modern spin on a classic '60s dish.
  • WINNER: Mary Sue (Deviled Eggs - Japanese Style Poached Egg with Umeboshi and Mustard Miso Mayonnaise)
  • ELIMINATED: Sue (Duck á l'Orange - Crispy Duck Breast, Spicy Blood Orange Gastrique and Pineapple Mango Salad)
  • WITHDREW: John S.
• Guest Judges: Kelis
  Kelis
  Kelis Rogers Kelis Rogers Kelis Rogers (born August 21, 1971 is an American musical artist. She is a BRIT Award, Q Award and NME Award winner and has been nominated for two Grammy Awards. She has had nine top 10 singles on the UK Singles Chart...
  
   (Quickfire Challenge), Christina Hendricks
  Christina Hendricks
  Christina Rene Hendricks is an actress known for her role as Joan Holloway in the AMC cable television series Mad Men, and as Saffron in Fox's short-lived series Firefly. Hendricks was named "the sexiest woman in the world" in 2010 in a poll of female readers taken by Esquire magazine.-Personal...
  
  , Geoffrey Arend
  Geoffrey Arend
  -Life and career:Arend was born in the Manhattan borough of New York City, to a Caucasian father and a Pakistani mother. He graduated from New York City's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in 1996. In 2000, he began providing voices for video games such as Daria's...
  
   (Elimination Challenge)
• Original Airdate: April 13, 2011

Episode 3: Diners to Donors

• Quickfire Challenge: The chefs must create an appetizing dish using various bugs and critters. The overall winner receives immunity from elimination.
  • Top: Hugh, Mary Sue
  • Bottom: George, Suvir
    • WINNER: Hugh (Tempura Fried Crickets, Sunchoke and Carrot Purée, Blood Orange Vinaigrette)
• Elimination Challenge: Working as one group, the chefs must cook a 10-course dinner to raise money for their charities.
  • WINNER: Naomi (Celery Velouté with Salsa Verde and Lemon Oil)
  • ELIMINATED: John C. (Roasted Shiitake and Prosciutto Risotto with Pine Nuts and Paprika)
• Guest Judges: Ruth England
  Ruth England
  Ruth England is a British television presenter and actress. Currently, she stars in the Discovery Channel show Man, Woman, Wild with her husband Mykel Hawke, a former Army Special Forces officer...
  
  , Mykel Hawke
  Mykel Hawke
  Mykel "Myke" Hawke is a retired U.S. Army Special Forces officer. He is best known for his role in the Discovery Channel series Man, Woman, Wild, where he co-stars with his wife, Ruth England, a British television presenter and actress. He is the author of several books, most recently Hawke's...
  
   (Quickfire Challenge), Alan Sytsma (Elimination Challenge)
• Original Airdate: April 20, 2011

Episode 4: Biggest Loser

• Quickfire Challenge: The chefs are must create a great cheese dish in only 12 minutes. The overall winner receives immunity from elimination.
  • Top: Naomi, Traci
  • Bottom: Floyd, George
    • WINNER: Traci (Colombier and Prosciutto Carpaccio, Arugula and Croutons)
• Elimination Challenge: The chefs must create a breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert that does not exceed 1500 calories for the trainers and contestants of The Biggest Loser
  The Biggest Loser: Couples 4
  The Biggest Loser: Couples 4 is the eleventh season of the NBC reality television series entitled The Biggest Loser. The contestants competed to win a $250,000 prize, which was awarded to Olivia Ward, the contestant with the highest percentage of weight loss. It premiered on January 4, 2011...
  
  .
  • WINNER: Floyd (Buffalo Meatball, Farro, Spinach, Cheese, Tomato Sauce and Asparagus)
  • ELIMINATED: Suvir (Veggie Burger and Asian Slaw)
• Guest Judges: Norbert Wabnig (Quickfire Challenge), Alan Sytsma, Danyelle Freeman (Elimination Challenge)
• Original Airdate: April 27, 2011

Episode 5: Would You Like Fries with That?

• Quickfire Challenge: The chefs must create an appetizer that costs less than a dollar.
  • Top: Alex, Celina, Naomi
  • Bottom: George, Mary Sue
    • WINNER: Naomi
• Elimination Challenge: In two shifts, run the fast food restaurant, Farmer Boys
  Farmer Boys
  Farmer Boys is a quick service restaurant chain in the Southern California area. It is based in Riverside, California.Farmer Boys describes itself as a quick service restaurant serving freshly prepared foods with casual dining style service, combined with drive-through service...
  
  .
  • WINNER: Mary Sue
  • ELIMINATED: George (Pork and Chorizo Skewer with Clam, Cucumber and Olive Side)
• Guest Judges: Rico Gagliano, Brendan Francis Newnam (Quickfire), Alan Sytsma (Elimination)
• Original Airdate: May 4, 2011

Episode 6: I'm With the Band

• Quickfire Challenge: The chefs must create a dish in under seven minutes.
  • WINNER: Traci (Tenderloin Beef Carpaccio, Truffle, Maitake Mushroom and Balsamic)
• Elimination Challenge: The chefs must cook an entire family style meal for Maroon 5
  Maroon 5
  Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. While they were in high school, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Levine, keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, bass guitarist Mickey Madden, and drummer Ryan Dusick formed a garage band called Kara's Flowers and released one album...
  
   in an RV.
  • WINNING TEAM: Black Team
    • WINNER: Traci (Japanese Style Steak, Miso Braised Daikon, Cucumber and Pea Shoot Salad)
    • ELIMINATED: Alex (Penne with Broccolini, Tomato and Garlic; Enchiladas with Onion and Seitan; Coconut-Almond Tapioca with Grapes; Breaded Turkey Cutlets)
• Guest Judges: Gail Simmons
  Gail Simmons
  Gail Simmons is a trained culinary expert, food writer and television personality, and is the Special Projects Director with Food & Wine magazine...
  
   (Elimination Challenge)
• Original Airdate: May 11, 2011

Episode 7: Date Night

• Quickfire Challenge: In an updated version of the blindfolded taste challenge, the chefs compete in a four-round competition using their senses. First, the chefs must identify five ingredients through taste while wearing a blindfold, nose clip, and headphones. The next rounds involve identification through smell, touch, and hearing.
  • WINNER: Hugh
• Elimination Challenge: The chefs must create a six-course meal that corresponds to moments in a couple's relationship as the man prepares to propose.
  • WINNER: Naomi (Porcini-Braised Chicken Thigh with Sweet Potatoes Two Ways)
  • ELIMINATED: Celina (Soft Pretzel with Pale Ale Cheese Sauce, Frisée Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette)
• Guest Judges: Gail Simmons
  Gail Simmons
  Gail Simmons is a trained culinary expert, food writer and television personality, and is the Special Projects Director with Food & Wine magazine...
  
  , Gael Greene
  Gael Greene
  Gael Greene is an American restaurant critic, author and novelist. She became New York magazine's restaurant critic in fall, 1968 at a time when most New Yorkers were unsophisticated about food and there were few chefs anyone knew by name. She was a passionate early "foodie" before that word was...
  
   (Elimination Challenge)
• Original Airdate: May 18, 2011

Episode 8: Blinded Me with Science

• Quickfire Challenge: The chefs were required to use a microwave oven
  Microwave oven
  A microwave oven is a kitchen appliance that heats food by dielectric heating, using microwave radiation to heat polarized molecules within the food...
  
   to create a breakfast dish.
  • Top: Floyd, Hugh
  • Bottom: Mary Sue, Traci
    • WINNER: Hugh (Baked Egg, Chanterelles, Bacon and Tomato)
• Elimination Challenge: The chefs must prepare a dish that demonstrates a scientific principle (e.g. elasticity, acidity) and present their creations at an edible science fair. The chefs' cooking utensils were replaced with traditional lab equipment, such as Bunsen burners, test tubes, and laboratory flasks.
  • WINNER: Mary Sue (Viscosity - Dulce de Leche Churros, Chocolate Mousse and Spiced Café de Olla)
  • ELIMINATED: Hugh (Emulsion - Fried Okra Salad with Tomato, Fennel, Bacon and Green Goddess Dressing)
• Guest Judges: Frances Callier
  Frances Callier
  Eleanor Frances Callier , better known as Frances Callier, is an American actress and comedian. Her television credits include According to Jim, My Name Is Earl, Frasier, and Curb Your Enthusiasm...
  
  , Angela V. Shelton
  Angela V. Shelton
  Angela V. Shelton is an American comedian and actress. Her television credits include Mr. Show with Bob and David, Grounded for Life, and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. She is also the voice of the bonus villain Calypso in the Spider-Man 3 video game. She is also one half of the duo Frangela, the...
  
   (Quickfire Challenge), Padma Lakshmi
  Padma Lakshmi
  Padma Parvati Lakshmi also Padma, Lady Rushdie is an American cookbook author, actress, model and television host. She has been the host of the US reality television program Top Chef since season two in 2006, for which she received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Host for...
  
   (Elimination Challenge)
• Original Airdate: June 1, 2011

Episode 9: A Soldier's Story

• Quickfire Challenge: The chefs were challenged to cook a dish alongside a "stranger" while separated by a screen; not knowing that the stranger was a relative. The dishes were judged on how similar the dishes looked and tasted.
  • Top: Naomi, Traci
  • Bottom: Floyd, Mary Sue
    • WINNER: Traci (Halibut with Asparagus in Brown Butter Balsamic Vinaigrette)
• Elimination Challenge: The chefs must create a homecoming meal for military servicemen returning from overseas.
  • WINNER: Mary Sue (Tomatillo Barbecue Ribs and Avocado Corn Relish with Potato and Rajas; Apple and Cream Cheese Bread Pudding with Crema)
  • ELIMINATED: Naomi (Barbecue Pork, Prawn and Cucumber Rice Salad, Iceberg Wedge with Tuna Poke; Panna Cotta with Caramelized Pineapple and Ginger Tuile)
• Guest Judges: Danyelle Freeman (Elimination Challenge)
• Original Airdate: June 8, 2011

Episode 10: Finale - My Life as a Chef

• Final Challenge:
  • Floyd:
    • Wild Mushroom Upma Polenta with Kokum and Coconut Milk
    • Rice Flaked Snapper and Tomato-Fennel Broth with Carrots
    • Rendang
      Rendang
      Rendang is a dish which originated from the Minangkabau ethnic group of Indonesia, and is now commonly served across the country. One of the characteristic foods of Minangkabau culture, it is served at ceremonial occasions and to honour guests...
      
       2 Ways: Oxtail and Short Ribs, Tapioca Pilaf with Diced Potato and Peanuts
  • Mary Sue:
    • Asian Steak Tartare
    • Shrimp and Chervil Mousse Stuffed Rigatoni, Crab and Shrimp Salpicon
    • Lemon Soufflé with Rhubarb Compote, Lemon Hazelnut Meringue and Ice Cream
  • Traci:
    • Shrimp Creole
    • Roasted Quail Salad with Sweetbreads, Mushrooms and Pancetta
    • Duo of Duck: Crisp Duck Béarnaise and Braised Duck Leg Salad
      • WINNER: Floyd
      • RUNNERS-UP: Mary Sue and Traci
• Guest Judges: Gael Greene
  Gael Greene
  Gael Greene is an American restaurant critic, author and novelist. She became New York magazine's restaurant critic in fall, 1968 at a time when most New Yorkers were unsophisticated about food and there were few chefs anyone knew by name. She was a passionate early "foodie" before that word was...
  
  
• Original Airdate: June 15, 2011