MasterChef judges confess 'THERE ARE A LOT OF TEARS!'

Andy, Melissa and Jock open up about how their lives have changed - and working with Jamie Oliver!

- Tamara Cullen, Lucy Croke

Like the secret ingredient in a family recipe, success often lies in the unknown. In the case of MasterChef Australia, now in its 15th season, it's bringing together total strangers in a kitchen and watching what unfolds that could be the key to the show's longevity.

This doesn't apply only to the contestants in the cooking competition, but to the three judges too. Andy Allen, Melissa Leong and Jock Zonfrillo had never worked together and were relatively new to working in TV when they signed on - "We didn't know what to expect," says Jock - but they're now synonymous with the series.

Andy, 34, who was a contestant himself in 2012, says he's forever indebted to MasterChef for launching his cooking career. However, he admits he "probably shouldn't have applied" for the show in the first place because of his lack of experience.

"I underestimated what it was going to be and how hard it would be," the season four winner confesses. "I cooked for my family and friends, but food wasn't my only passion. As soon as I got there, I was like, 'I really need to learn how to cook now because I'm going to make a fool of myself! For two-thirds of the competition, I was just trying to keep my head above water, but it turned out alright."

Indeed, the former electrician is now a TV presenter, author and chef, but Andy still feels a connection to MasterChef's amateur cooks. He says, "I know what they're going through I've been there, done that."

Subtitled "Secrets & Surprises", it's hard to know what we're in for this season, but that's part of the fun for Scottish-born chef and restaurateur Jock, who says MasterChef has been an unexpected career highlight.

"I never saw this coming," says. "[Former Calombaris, the 46-year-old judges] George Gary Mehigan and Matt Preston were an institution. I thought they'd always be there. When I got asked to do this, I was surprised and I'm just so grateful."