Now it’s time for the chefs on “Next Level Chef” 2026 to celebrate the FIFA World Cup coming to FOX this summer. To do so, the final six chefs on “Next Level Chef” season 5 will be fusing the worlds of soccer and food. The mentors — Chef Gordon Ramsay, Nyesha Arrington, andRichard Blais — will be in place, as they will help the chefs meet the ultimate goal. The pressure is on, as one chef will be sent home. Who gets eliminated on “Next Level Chef” tonight? Find out with us during our “Next Level Chef” 2026 live recap below.
The Ultimate Goal on ‘Next Level Chef’
Last time on “Next Level Chef” 2026, the chefs were celebrating America’s 250th birthday. It was a star-spangled cocktail party, so the chefs had to create apps and cocktails. They had 30 minutes to create these next-level appetizers. Christian continued his cockiness from the week before, as he was cooking in the Basement with Andy. Just the two of them, but he still felt the need to race her to get his cooking station. He ended up in the bottom two for the night and cooked off against Gabrielle. She was victorious, as Christian was sent home.
For tonight, the chefs will be joined by USA Soccer legend Alexi Lalas. Each chef will be tasked with creating a world-class fusion dish with ingredients tied to two different countries. The fight to be named the winner of “Next Level Chef” season 5 continues tonight, so follow along with our Live Recap below!
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD: THIS LIVE RECAP WILL BE UPDATED THROUGHOUT THE EPISODE, SO DO NOT KEEP READING IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO READ SPOILERS.
May 7 Live Recap – Week 14
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Week 14 Begins
The Great Room is set up as a soccer field, which is Darian’s favorite sport. He and Gordon talked about it last week! The judges and chefs are in place. They will be celebrating the FIFA World Cup on FOX this summer. They then have USA Soccer legend Alexi Lalas join them!
The World Cup brings countries together, so for tonight’s challenge, they will be fusing two culinary traditions into one dish. They will be fusing two World Cup country cuisines together. Connor has the Time Token, which he chooses to keep for himself, so he gets 10 additional seconds to grab ingredients. They have 30 minutes top create their dishes.
For the levels, Connor and Cole are on Top Level, Andy and Darian are on Middle Level, and Gabrielle is all alone in the Basement.
Cooking Time
The platform comes down. The chefs will grab one country at a time. Here are the countries the chefs grabbed:
- Connor – USA and Italy
- Cole – Spain and South Korea
- Darian – Argentina and Germany
- Andy – Mexico and Canada
- Gabrielle – England and Brazil
The chefs have their first basket of ingredients, so they are getting started on their dishes. How do you start a dish without knowing what you have to fuse it with? The second batch of baskets now arrives. Darian has a challenging fusion, and Andy thinks she made the wrong call grabbing Canada instead of Brazil.
Alexi Lalas comes to visit the chefs and check out how they are doing. Darian wants Alexi to throw on an apron for a sous chef. Darian is struggling to come up with a way to fuse together Argentina and Germany dish.
Alexi hits the Top Level, and they are feeling confident up on this floor. Richard starts chanting, “I believe that we will win,” which is a chant from the World Cup. Gabrielle is loving being in the Basement with Gordon. That alone time could be key for her, as he is focused on her dish and her dish only.
The time is running down, as Cole’s rice isn’t cooked properly. The time runs out, and everyone gets their dishes on the platform, so time to taste them.
Tasting & Results
The dishes are in
- Top Level – For Connor, Alexi said it’s good. Nyesha said it’s an incredible way to fuse the dish. Gordon said the chicken is cooked beautifully. Richard said he wanted more brightness out of the tomatoes, but he did great at fusing the countries. For Cole, Nyesha said great presentation, but searching for the Korean element. Gordon said the rice needs to cook a little longer.
- Middle Level – For Andy, Richard said he is struggling to pick out what the countries are. Pork is chewy. Gordon said the sauce is exceptional, but this was a tough grab. For Darian, Alexi said this is fusion, and it’s good. Gordon said the ribeye is cooked beautifully. Nyesha said this is a great composition of blending the countries.
- Basement – For Gabrielle, they loved the crunchiness of the fish. Richard said visually it’s hard to find Brazil in the dish, but when tasting it, you get it. Nyesha said the alcohol was smart and added to the crispiness of the fish.
Results – The judges discuss the dishes to determine tonight’s winner, and yet again, they are struggling to pick a winner. The winning dish goes to Darian, who earned a spot in the semifinals and the Time Token for next week. Cole and Andy will cook in the Elimination Cook-Off, which means Connor and Gabrielle are also heading to next week’s semifinals.
Elimination Cook-Off
Cooking in the Elimination Cook-Off tonight will be Cole and Andy. For this challenge, they will be paying homage to Alexi’s parents’ roots, which are in Greece. They have 25 minutes to create a next-level Greek dish.
The chefs are cooking their dishes. Time has been going by when Andy notices that she never turned the burner on for her potatoes, so they haven’t been cooking this entire time! She gets it worked out, and the time runs out, as both chefs have their dishes in place. Time to taste the dishes:
- Andy – Gordon said the lamb is seasoned beautifully. He said the lamb is running to medium, but it’s still juicy. Nyesha said great flavors. It’s a really nice dish.
- Cole – Nyesha said the lamb is cooked beautifully, and it’s rested. It’s cooked perfectly. Gordon said the lamb is perfect. The fat is a little excessive.
Results – Gordon and Nyesha both vote to eliminate Andy’s dish, so she has been eliminated tonight on “Next Level Chef” season 5.
FOXWhat do you think of tonight’s results?
