Why Marc Murphy Loves Being A Chopped Judge

When Food Network fans logged onto Instagram after Russia launched an invasion into Ukraine, they found that chef Marc Murphy was nowhere near the "Chopped" kitchen where he serves as a judge. Instead, he was in Poland, helping Ukrainian refugees with chef José Andres's organization World Central Kitchen. With assistance from Murphy and other chefs and volunteers, the organization is serving more than 100,000 meals per day (via Spectrum News).

If anyone understands the power of food to help people, it's Murphy. Growing up all over the world, he told Mashed in an exclusive interview that he struggled in school with dyslexia, which ultimately drove him to attend a cooking school and become a chef. Murphy recently became an ambassador and advocate with Braintrust, a tutoring organization for kids with learning differences (via Cision), and also serves as a Food Council member at City Harvest, which aims to reduce food waste and hunger in New York City (via City Harvest).

Murphy's passion for helping those in need also informs his favorite part of appearing as a judge on the hit Food Network show "Chopped."

For Marc Murphy, the most redeeming part of serving as one of the "Chopped" judges happens after the cameras stop rolling and the chefs leave the set. His role as an acclaimed chef and Food Network star allows him to raise money and awareness for causes that are important to him, he explained to Food Network.

"All of us on 'Chopped,' all the judges, you know, we do a lot of philanthropic work. We're always raising money," he shared. "Right now ... we're trying to help kids out in this country, and I think ... probably the most-important part of our job right now is we have that platform to be able to do that." In particular, he mentioned the foundation Share Our Strength and its No Kid Hungry campaign, which aims to eliminate childhood hunger in the U.S. — an effort Food Network has supported since 2007 (via Scripps). Per No Kid Hungry, the campaign raised nearly $160 million in 2020.

Murphy is not the only Food Network chef to use their platform for good. On a 2021 episode of Alton Brown's YouTube show, "Quarantine Quitchen," the host cheekily made a charity swear jar for himself, with every slip of the tongue earning a dollar for The Humane Society of the United States.