Chefs Andy Allen and Jock Zonfrillo, and food writer Melissa Leong, have been announced as the new judges on MasterChef Australia.

The new trio is set to take the helm of the popular reality TV cooking show after Channel 10 cut ties with George Calombaris, Gary Mehigan and Matt Preston.

Allen, a former electrician, won Masterchef in 2012.

He is now the head chef at Three Blue Ducks in Sydney.

Allen recently let a few Masterchef secrets slip on the Duck’s website.

He said contestants are only allowed two standard drinks of alcohol per week.

But Allen added: “Myself and a couple of other legends took matters into our own hands, made a hectic batch of homemade ginger beer, and got everyone totally sideways,” he revealed.

“We were then banned from drinking.”

Zonfrillo runs the world-renowned Orana in Adelaide and has just successfully finished a month-long stint a Sydney pop-up of his famed restaurant.

The Scottish-born chef is best known for his work with native Australian ingredients which feature prominently in his 20-course tasting menu.

Leong, a food scribe, delicious. contributor, broadcaster and author, is wonderfully blunt about the industry, especially the age of the food blogger.

“Just because you have a stomach and a laptop doesn’t make you a writer, publisher or editor,” she told SBS-TV.

“I think in an age where we do things all by ourselves, it’s very easy to claim status that isn’t earned.

Leong added: “There are a lot of people out there who think that because they’ve done a season of a reality show, that makes them an editor, or because they have a blog that makes them a publisher.

“It’s a wonderful start, but in order to really be a writer, you need to pull that thread and you need to earn it.”

The new judges are expected to appear in the new season next year.

This article originally appeared on heraldsun.com.au and has been reproduced here with permission.