Gregg Wallace hosts the first week of the culinary contest, which sees the first six professional chefs competing for a place in this week's quarter final. Half of the competitors are challenged by Marcus Wareing to prepare poached guinea fowl breast with a Sauce Robert, while Monica Galetti sets the rest the challenge of making hand-cut tagliatelle with a lamb ragu. Finally, they must prepare a signature dish to decide who will stay on and who will be eliminated.

In the first quarter-final, the six strongest chefs from the first two heats are challenged to an invention test centred around a staple from every kitchen around the world - rice.