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Worst Cooks in America season 18

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Worst Cooks in America
Season 18
Judges
No. of contestants16
WinnerShannon Akins
Runner-upLeo Lech
No. of episodes10
Release
Original networkFood Network
Original releaseJanuary 5 (2020-01-05) –
March 8, 2020 (2020-03-08)
Season chronology
← Previous
Season 17
Next →
Season 19

Worst Cooks in America 18, is the eighteenth season of the American competitive reality television series Worst Cooks in America. It premiered on Food Network on January 5, 2020 and concluded on March 8, 2020. Shannon Akins was the winner of this season, with Leo Lech as the runner-up.[1]

Format

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Worst Cooks in America is an American reality television series in which contestants (referred to as "recruits") with poor cooking skills undergo a culinary boot camp for the chance to win $25,000 and a Food Network cooking set.[2][3] The recruits are trained on the various basic cooking techniques including baking, knife skills, temperature, seasoning and preparation. Each episode features two core challenges: the Skills Drill, which tests their grasp of basic techniques demonstrated by the chef mentors, and the Main Dish Challenge, where they must apply those skills to recreate or invent a more complex dish under specific guidelines. The weakest performer is eliminated at the end of each episode. The final two contestants prepare a restaurant-quality, three-course meal for a panel of food critics, who evaluate the dishes based on taste, presentation, and overall improvement.[4]

Judges

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Alton Brown joins Anne Burrell to host season 18. The season, featuring 16 recruits, premiered on January 5, 2020.[5]

Recruits

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Contestant[6] Age Hometown Occupation Team Status
Shannon Akins 24 Tempe, Arizona Aspiring Cosmetologist Anne Winner
on March 8, 2020
Leo Lech 58 Washington, West Virginia Chemist Alton Runner-up
on March 8, 2020
Leslie Rivera-Silva 35 Washington, D.C. Hairstylist Anne Eliminated
on March 1, 2020
Kelly Ngoc Mac 55 Pasadena, California Fitness Instructor Alton
Michael "Mike" Jones-Better 24 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania EMT Alton Eliminated
on February 23, 2020
Bridget Praytor 41 Colorado Springs, Colorado Volleyball Coach Anne
Monica Colwell 25 Hazard, Kentucky ER Records Coordinator Alton Eliminated
on February 9, 2020
Dr. Lulu Boykin 67 Pittsboro, North Carolina Teaching Artist Anne
Jefferson Goldie 36 Chicago, Illinois Concierge Alton Eliminated
on February 2, 2020
Ryan Grovey 30 Phoenix, Arizona Mortician/Fitness Instructor Anne
Jolynn Singh 52 Allen, Texas Nurse Alton Eliminated
on January 26, 2020
Curtis Long 38 Seneca, South Carolina Plumber Anne
Kevin So 24 Brooklyn, New York Online Marketing Alton Eliminated
on January 12, 2020
Alexandra "Alex" Tiso 23 Eastchester, New York Radio Promotions Assistant Anne
Joe Deese 30 Fultondale, Alabama Inventory Clerk Alton Eliminated
on January 5, 2020
Dakota Klaes 30 New York, New York Account Executive Anne

Elimination Chart

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  Team Anne
  Team Alton
Rank Contestant Episode
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 Shannon IN WIN IN IN WIN WIN BTM WIN WIN WINNER
2 Leo WIN IN IN IN WIN WIN BTM WIN WIN RUNNER-UP
3 Leslie WIN IN IN BTM IN BTM BTM BTM OUT
4 Kelly BTM WIN BTM IN IN BTM WIN BTM OUT
5 Mike IN IN WIN IN IN IN BTM OUT
6 Bridget BTM IN WIN IN IN IN WIN OUT
7 Monica IN IN IN BTM BTM OUT
8 Lulu IN BTM BTM WIN BTM OUT
9 Jefferson IN IN IN IN OUT
10 Ryan IN IN IN IN OUT
11 Jolynn IN BTM BTM OUT
12 Curtis IN IN BTM OUT
13 Kevin IN OUT
14 Alex IN OUT
15 Joe OUT
16 Dakota OUT
Key
  (WINNER) This contestant won the competition and was crowned "Best of the Worst".
  (RUNNER-UP) The contestant was the runner-up in the finals of the competition.
  (WIN) The contestant did the best on their team in the week's Main Dish challenge or Skill Drill and was considered the winner.
  (BTM) The contestant was selected as one of the bottom entries in the Main Dish challenge, but was not eliminated.
  (OUT) The contestant lost that week's Main Dish challenge and was out of the competition.

Episodes

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No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleOriginal release date [7]
1301"Bottom's Up"January 5, 2020 (2020-01-05)
1312"Indulge Me"January 12, 2020 (2020-01-12)
1323"Chinese New Year"January 19, 2020 (2020-01-19)
1334"Simple Yet Sophisticated"January 26, 2020 (2020-01-26)
1345"Let's Get Ready to Tailgate"February 2, 2020 (2020-02-02)
1356"Opposites Attract"February 9, 2020 (2020-02-09)
1367"Amore Sucre"February 16, 2020 (2020-02-16)
1378"Incognito Cuisine"February 23, 2020 (2020-02-23)
1389"High Steaks"March 1, 2020 (2020-03-01)
13910"The Final Countdown"March 8, 2020 (2020-03-08)

References

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  1. ^ "Worst Cooks in America, Season 18: Craziest Moments". Food Network. Retrieved July 27, 2025.
  2. ^ Lynch, Rene (January 2, 2010). "'Worst Cooks in America' isn't just a title: They're horrible". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  3. ^ Tucker, Ken (January 4, 2010). "'Worst Cooks in America': Worst thing I watched most of last night". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  4. ^ Worst Cooks in America (Comedy, Game-Show, Reality-TV), Anne Burrell, Tyler Florence, Bobby Flay, Optomen Productions, January 3, 2010, retrieved July 24, 2025{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  5. ^ "Bottom's Up". Food Network.
  6. ^ "Worst Cooks in America, Season 18: Meet the Recruits". Food Network. Retrieved July 27, 2025.
  7. ^ "Shows A-Z - worst cooks in america on foodnetwork". The Futon Critic. Retrieved July 27, 2025.
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