Meghan Markle's 'Awkward' MasterChef Preview Mercilessly Mocked by Critics As She Tells Contestants to Cook with 'Fun and Humor': 'Not An Ounce Of Authenticity Detected'
Meghan Markle's 'MasterChef Australia' episode airs on April 26.
July 22 2026, Published 6:00 p.m. ET
The first extended look at Meghan Markle's controversial appearance on MasterChef Australia has landed, and the "Diva Duchess" is already being mercilessly mocked by critics, who branded her "awkward" and "fake," RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Markle, 44, filmed the episode in April while on a faux-royal tour of Australia with Prince Harry. Now, 10 News Australia, which airs the hit cooking competition, has released the first substantial footage of the former actress stepping into the role of guest judge.
Meghan Markle Advises Contestants to 'Have Fun'
Markle put on a big grin while giving contestants advice.
"There is a lot of pressure in the kitchen," Markle noted in a confessional with producers, while wearing a black blouse and her brunette locks long and wavy.
"I don't like to cook that way. I like to cook in a really relaxed fashion. So all I can say to the competitors is to just remember to have fun, to keep a sense of humor about it, and to cook from the heart," she continued about the advice to the home cooks competing for the title.
Meghan Markle's 'Signature Item' Offered Up to Contestants
Markle added dried flower sprinkles to a rainbow fruit platter, as well as many other dishes on 'With Love, Meghan.'
The episode harkened back to Markle's since-canceled Netflix lifestyle series, With Love, Meghan, as she took on a tour of the pantry where one of what they called her "signature items" was available for the contestants to use.
"Edible flowers. Love that!" the Los Angeles native noted as she saw a pile of fresh flowers on a plate instead of the dried flower sprinkles she put on nearly every dish she made on the Netflix show. Markle also sells jars of her beloved dried petals on her As Ever website.
"A wise contestant might include them, as Meghan often did on her show," a woman said in a voice-over as a scene of Markle sprinkling dried flower petals over various foods in clips from With Love, Meghan flashed on screen.
In one snippet from the Netflix show, the ex-royal crowed, "It doesn't need to be big for a party. It's how you incorporate these practices every day," as she tossed the sprinkles over a fruit platter in the shape of a rainbow.
'Food and Cooking' Is Meghan Markle's 'Love Language'
Markle failed to convince many Netflix viewers that she truly had a passion for cooking on her lifestyle show.
In yet another confessional, Markle brought out the treacly language she's become so famous for.
"Food and cooking to me is really a love language. I think it's such a great way to connect," she gushed, using the same familiar term also used in With Love, Meghan.
"It's something that can feel sentimental and meaningful, and it's how I show my nurturing for my friends, family, my kids, Markle added about her home cooking.
'Trying Hard to Act Relatable'
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Some critics claimed Markle lacked 'authenticity' about her passion for cooking.
After the video was posted on Reddit, critics roasted Markle's "inauthentic" appearance on the show.
"She is so awkward. Every facial expression is so cringey it's hard to stomach," one user complained.
"Not even an ounce of authenticity detected," a second person sneered.
A third Redditor asked, "Sense of humor? Love language? Nurturing? When have any of these things ever been associated with Meghan?"
"Phony, smug, smarmy, and trying hard to act – badly – relatable," a user critiqued.
