By Stephen Ur
In the first episode of Hell’s Kitchen: Battle of the States of 2026, the chefs were greeted by WWE superstars Big E, Liv Morgan and Braun Strowman, who told the chefs what it took to be a champion like them.
This was also the day that five chefs would be earning their black jackets. There were seven chefs remaining, which meant two chefs would not be receiving black jackets.
Their first challenge towards earning a black jacket was to create a dish that represented their state. First up, North Carolina chef Cyndi presented a herb and pine nut-crusted venison dish, which chef Gordon Ramsay told her was just a tad overcooked.
Next up, Iowa chef Anthony made a pork belly dish that Ramsay described as being “a touch away from tough”. Delaware chef Anaiya presented pan-seared salmon, Nevada chef Ellie made a maple-glazed bone-in pork chop, and Texas chef Henry made a ribeye dish that wound up being a bit overcooked.
After tasting the first five dishes, the first chef to earn a black jacket was Ellie. The next dishes Ramsay tasted were Florida chef Jada’s red snapper and California chef Lisa’s almond-crusted scallops. After that, Jada was given the second of five black jackets.
The remaining five chefs would engage in a second challenge where they had to create a pizza dish, which Ramsay said represented the state of the home of Hell’s Kitchen, Connecticut. Lisa made a pizza with avacado and cilantro along with a spicy marinara.
Henry prepared a priscutto pizza with whipped ricotta that came out soggy, Anthony made a clam pizza, Cyndi made a shrimp and avacado-topped pizza, and Anayia made a traditional mushroom pizza.
The third black jacket was presented to Cyndi, and the fourth was given to Lisa, leaving three chefs and just two jackets left. The third challenge had the chefs cooking with same seven ingredients, all which spelled out AMERICA.
In the end, the final black jacket was presented to Anaiya, meaning it was time for Henry and Anthony to say goodbye to their dream of becoming the head chef at Foxwoods Casino and Resort in Mashantucket, CT.
This marked the first time in Hell’s Kitchen history that the entire black jacket team was women.
The first episode featuring the black jacket team will air Thursday, Jan. 8 at 8 p.m. ET on FOX. The episode will air the next day on Hulu.