'I can't stop talking about this Netflix show that’s a cross between MasterChef and Squid Game.'

I have not watched a cooking reality show in four years. Why? In all honesty, it's just not a genre that does anything for me personally.

With so many shows on that market, from My Kitchen Rules and Top Chef, to the Great British Bake Off and Iron Chef, it fills me with nothing but love to see so many people finding solace in this wholesome little (or not so little) corner of television. But alas, not for me. 

That was until last week. 

I was mindlessly scrolling Netflix, as you do on a Friday night, when I came across a show that a couple of friends had been nagging me to watch. In a fit of boredom, I clicked… and it has single handedly changed my life. Or at least, my mind when it comes to cooking shows. 

Imagine the standard cooking competition show. Maybe you've seen it before, with the same all-or-nothing challenges, talented chefs, and impressive dishes. Imagine all that, but add to the already high-stakes by including social hierarchy tension, pitting chefs of all different societal standings in the culinary world against each other. Then, top it off with incredibly high production value and dramatic narration that can only be described as chilling.

And that's Netflix's Culinary Class Wars. 

It's Masterchef meets Squid Game and it has completely shaken up the genre. 

Watch the trailer for Netflix's Culinary Class Wars season 1. Article continues after video.

Culinary Class Wars is a Korean reality cooking show that features 100 chefs, all in competition for the grand prize of more than $300,000. But here's the catch — and what makes the show so compelling — not all chefs are made equal.

Twenty of the chefs are called 'white spoons' and the other 80 are called 'black spoons'. 'White spoons' are already famous and prestigious chefs. Think Michelin-star restaurant head chefs and celebrity cooks. 'Black spoons' are lesser-known professionals in the industry, ranging anywhere from an elementary school cook to a small restaurant owner.

From the get-go, the show separates the two teams both physically and mentally, by placing the 'white spoons' on a literal pedestal above the 'black spoons' in episode one. It's giving The Menu.

To make things even more contentious, while the 'white spoons' are referred to by their real names, the 'black spoons' are given nicknames, and are not permitted to reveal their real names until the final round. 

Tensions escalate quickly and the divide between the spoons could not be more apparent, an interesting and seemingly deliberate reflection of what often happens in the real culinary world. 

Once the challenges begin, it becomes clear as day what the show is trying to achieve.

Image: Netflix

With a blindfolded judging challenge to maintain equal treatment and 'white spoon' vs 'black spoon' one-on-one competition, Culinary Class Wars prioritises talent over prestige. Skill over notoriety.

Some interesting matchups see certain 'white spoons' prevail, a nod to their years of hard work and earned culinary experience, while other rounds prove that a self-taught cook can be just as successful. 

But social commentary aside, what I cannot and will not shut up about is the production design of this show.

Set in a giant warehouse, Culinary Class Wars features hidden rooms, secret doors, and kitchen setups that look like they belong on a Hollywood set.

Playing with suspenseful lighting and dramatic storytelling, the show successfully tricks you into thinking the stakes are so high, you might as well be watching Squid Game. Except thankfully, no one has to die. 

Image: Netflix

The show is suspenseful, yes. But it is equally heartwarming, because anything can happen. You see an elementary school cook fight her way to a victory, or a Michelin-star chef prove why he is still at the top of his game.

And perhaps, the most wholesome is the meeting of two sides of the same coin.

Watching up-and-coming cooks interact with their heroes, seasoned chefs taking cues and paying respects to lesser-known participants, and 100 talented individuals proving that ultimately truly good cooking does not discriminate. You can feel the passion radiating off the screen, from both spoons and judges alike. 

I am obsessed.

And given the show has been renewed for a second season, I have a sneaking suspicion I'm not the only one.

Culinary Class Wars is streaming now on Netflix.