Chef John Torode served burnt macaroni and cheese to presenters Dermot O'Leary and Sian Welby on the British television programme This Morning.
The Australian-born celebrity chef was demonstrating how to prepare the popular pasta dish during a live cooking segment on the ITV daytime show. British newspaper The Sun highlighted the broadcast after Torode left the food inside the oven for too long, causing the pasta bake to blacken and scorch on top.
Despite the visibly overcooked crust, Torode proceeded to serve portions of the meal to O'Leary and Welby so they could sample it live on camera.
Viewer reaction on social media
The culinary failure quickly caught the attention of viewers, who took to the social media platform X to poke fun at the blackened dish.
Audience members shared lighthearted remarks about the appearance of the food. A viewer posting under the name Sue remarked that she did not think macaroni and cheese was supposed to be that colour. Another social media user, writing under the handle Asterism MS, commented sarcastically that burnt food was simply delicious. A third viewer named Jane teased the chef by asking whether he had intended to caramelise the pasta.
Torode is one of the most recognisable culinary figures on British television, best known as a co-host and judge on the BBC competition MasterChef alongside presenter Gregg Wallace. In addition to his work on prime-time cooking programmes and his restaurant career, Torode regularly appears as a guest chef on daytime television to guide viewers through everyday home recipes and classic comfort dishes.
Previous kitchen fire scare
This Morning is ITV's flagship daytime magazine show, broadcast live on weekday mornings with a mixture of current affairs, celebrity interviews, lifestyle advice, and studio demonstrations. Presenter Dermot O'Leary, known for hosting major television entertainment shows, co-hosts regular editions of the programme alongside television and radio presenter Sian Welby.
The burnt pasta is not the first time Torode has run into trouble while cooking live on the set of This Morning. During an earlier live broadcast of the daytime show, the chef narrowly avoided causing a serious fire in the studio kitchen when he accidentally rested a tea towel on top of an active, lit hob while preparing a breakfast recipe.
