Chopped: Volume 1

Things get prickly when the competitors open up the appetizer baskets to discover a spiny surprise. In the entree round, the judges sympathize when one chef faces a serious snapper snafu after everything literally falls apart.

An unusually salty vegetable presents the chefs with a quandary in the appetizer round. And when two finalists with very different cooking methods take on Mexican-inspired desserts, the judges face a difficult decision.

The judges have high hopes for these up-and-coming chefs, but there's some sloppy work in the appetizer round when they must work with whole calamari. The two finalists have ambitious for difficult ancho chile desserts.

A challenging cut of meat in the mystery basket ups the level of difficulty in the appetizer round. For the entree course, the chefs must devise big plans for some miniature produce and a whole flounder.

Pride is on the plate as the chefs seek to represent their cultural heritage through distinctive duck appetizers. In the entree round, one chef invents a creative use for Serrano ham.

For the appetizer course, the judges get an earful of philosophy and a mouthful of piquillo peppers. In the entree round two of the three remaining chefs make an amateur mistake with snap peas.

In the appetizer round, the chefs are challenged by edamame, shrimp and time management. Then, when the three remaining chefs put their signature styles into flank steak entrees, the judges have a difficult choice to make.

With liquor in the entree basket, the flames fly high, but when the adrenaline rush is over, it's the artful presentations that garner attention.

After unpacking a challenging appetizer basket, the chefs get creative using buckwheat flour in crepes and fritters. The two final chefs tackle black olives in dessert with no fear.

Don't miss this ultimate face-off! In this first installment in a special four-part series, previous Chopped champions return to compete again, cooking with Japanese noodles and a pricey spice.

Four winners return to battle for superiority in the kitchen. When the chefs present their cockles appetizers, the judges must do some investigating; one of the chefs may not have gotten every mystery ingredient into the dish.

In this third installment in a special four-part series, the reigning Chopped champion and three other previous winners return to compete.

In the final competition in the all-stars series, four Chopped champions face off for a chance to reclaim the title and bank another $10,000.