‘MasterChef US’ Season 7 spoilers: Gordon and Christina argue over a contestant’s dish; Wolfgang Puck comes back as finale judge [VIDEOS]

RTX27LI2 — Master chef Wolfgang Puck cooks some donuts during a preview of the food and decor for the 88th Academy Awards' Governors Ball at the Ray Dolby ballroom in Hollywood, California February 18, 2016. Reuters/Mario Anzuoni

After 20 hopefuls and numerous mystery boxes, team challenges and pressure tests, “MasterChef US” Season 7 is now down to only three contestants, who will battle it out for this year’s title, a cookbook deal and the grand prize of US$250,000 (AU$327,000).

Home cooks Shaun O’Neale, Brandi Mudd and David Williams will be pushed to their culinary limits as they try to serve up dishes that will win the votes of judges Gordon Ramsay and Christina Tosi, as well as guest chef Wolfgang Puck.

Spoiler Alert! This article contains "MasterChef US" 2016 spoilers. Read only if you want to know more about it.

Fox posted a sneak peek of Wednesday’s episode [watch below], wherein the three finalists cook up a storm in their respective stations while the other eliminated contestants cheer on them from the balcony. In the trailer, Gordon and Christina don’t seem to meet eye to eye on one “MasterChef” finalist’s dish. “It’s not a strong visual presentation at all,” Christina comments. Gordon, on the other hand, says that she needs to get her eyes tested quickly.

Source: YouTube/Fox

Fans are eagerly anticipating whose “MasterChef” dream would come true among the three. Shaun has proved himself as a serious threat early in the competition. The 33-year-old DJ from Las Vegas, who was named by his contenders as their biggest competitor, stood out from the pack with his high-end take on various dishes. He was, however, criticised during the tag team challenge, wherein he didn’t take responsibility for a disastrous picnic spread.

Kentucky-based Brandi, 27, has slowly but surely emerged as a serious threat with her hearty and tasteful plates. She was also a great team player, knowing when to quietly work behind the scenes and when to step up to the plate. As a result, she has the most team wins throughout the competition compared to the two. However, individually, she only shone in the latter part of the season.

Meanwhile, David has consistently been a front-runner this year. The 36-year-old professional poker player appears to be neck and neck with Shaun when it comes to having a sophisticated palette. However, his quick temper constantly overshadows his skills as a budding chef, which may get in the way of his bid to win the competition.

“MasterChef US” Season 7 recap

The cooking competition showcased another two-hour special prior to this week’s finale, titled “Family Drama” and “Critics’ Choice.” In the first episode, the three finalists, along with Tanorria and Dan Paustisan were surprised to see their loved ones, who chose the ingredients they had to cook with [watch below]. Shaun won the challenge, earning immunity for the next round.

Source: YouTube/Fox

For the elimination challenge, the remaining contestants were given the opportunity to pick 20 ingredients to make any dish of their choice. For Shaun’s other advantage, he switched the baskets of ingredients among the four: David, Brandi, Dan and Tanorria. In the end, Dan was sent home for his lack of originality, as well as an overcooked and bland dish.

The second episode featured a team challenge, wherein they had to cook an entrée for 17 restaurant critics [watch below]. Brandi chose Shaun as her teammate, leaving Tanorria and David to pair off. Their halibut dish was deemed the winner, sending Tanorria and David to the pressure test. Between the two’s versions of three pork dishes, the judges preferred David’s, ending Tanorria’s “MasterChef US” journey.