Home cooks across the country compete for grand prize and title as 'America's Best Cook'

Hosted by Ted Allen, with Cat Cora, Alex Guarnaschelli, Tyler Florence and Michael Symon serving as mentors and coaches, 16 home cooks compete for coveted crown

Home cooks from across the country compete, with the guidance and determination from Food Network chefs, for a $50,000 cash prize in the new culinary competition series "America's Best Cook," premiering Sunday, April 13, at 9 p.m.

Hosted by Ted Allen, the cooks are divided into teams, which are mentored by Cat Cora, Tyler Florence, Alex Guarnaschelli and Michael Symon - representing the south, west, east and north, respectively.

The series kicks off with a timed culinary challenge where 16 cooks divided into groups of four compete for coveted positions on the mentors' teams. Following the challenge, each mentor tastes the dishes of four hopeful cooks and chooses the two for their team that they believe will lead them to victory. Emotions run high as each mentor puts their reputation on the line for one of their cooks to be named "America's Best Cook."

In each episode, the handpicked cooks compete in a group challenge to prove they have what it takes to compete another day and to make their Food Network chef mentors proud. With direction and counsel from their mentors, the cooks must raise the bar in every facet of their cooking. From elevating every-day, tired dishes to restaurant-quality cuisine, to transforming savory ingredients into amazingly sweet desserts, these cooks must give it their all to impress the rotating guest judge and avoid the elimination round.

The bottom four cooks dig deep for redemption as they face-off in the intense "Pressure Cooker" round, where their final dishes are judged again by the guest judge who then determines who is safe for another week and who goes home. The finale puts the four remaining home cooks through three grueling, single elimination rounds until one cook, along with their chef mentor, is left standing as "America's Best Cook."

Special guests include Anne Burrell, Bobby Flay, Ron Ben-Israel, Marcel Vigneron and Geoffrey Zakarian. Viewers wanting more can visit FoodNetwork.com/BestCook for behind-the-scenes photos, interviews and more insider coverage.