MasterChef 2014: Cooking competition returns to BBC One with a few twists

Twenty two past winners and finalists will return as guest judges

MasterChef judges Gregg Wallace and John Torode (Shine TV )

MasterChef returns tonight in a bid to find the best amateur chef in the country.

Back for its tenth series, the show will see a few changes to keep ardent fans sated.

This year, contestants will be given a choice of one sweet or one savoury sealed box to cook from, in a twist on the invention test.

Without knowing what is inside the box, the amateur cooks will have an hour to create a dish to satisfy judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace.

While Gregg will be trying to get his hands on the Big Boozy Flavours, this year John Torode will also take on the sealed box challenge, showing viewers what dish he would cook.

To mark the show’s tenth anniversary, winners and finalists from the past ten years will also be returning to sample the contestants’ food and give their verdict, giving viewers a chance to catch up on what the MasterChef graduates are doing now.

This week will see first winner Thomasina Miers serve as a guest judge, along with 2011 winner and Japanese food fanatic Tim Anderson, and last year's champion Natalie Coleman.

Sixty amateur cooks will compete for the MasterChef title in 10 heat shows before the quarter finalists are chosen.

MasterChef series one winner Thomasina Miers (right), series six finalist Alex Rushmer (centre) and series four champion James Nathan (BBC)

After five weeks of heats, the 60 hopefuls will then be whittled down to just a handful of stand-out amateur chefs.

They will then face the knockout week, where the remaining cooks are thrown together for the first time and sent out to work in a professional kitchen.

Last year's winner Natalie Coleman, joined by 2011 winner Tim Anderson and series six finalist Tim Kinnaird (BBC)

Those who make it through to the semi-final will face the daunting challenge of catering for the cast and crew of EastEnders, before serving up a banquet in Hever Castle to historians Mary Beard, Lucy Worsley and Horrible Histories author Terry Deary.

Cooking doesn’t get tougher than this.

MasterChef returns tonight at 9pm on BBC One