13-Year-Old Evansville Chef Haley Mattes Competing in Chopped Junior Championship Tonight

Evansville native, Haley Mattes returns to Food Network's Chopped kitchen tonight (June 20th) to test her cooking skills against other top junior chefs from around the country in a tournament battle to determine the ultimate Chopped Junior champion.

Haley's first appearance on the show took place back on April 26th, 2016, where she beat out three other talented young chefs to claim her first Chopped Junior Champion title. Shortly before the episode aired, Haley and her mom, Amy, stopped by the studio to discuss her love of cooking at a very early age, and how that love grew into a legitimate talent as time went on. You can hear that interview in its entirety below.

Much like the adult version of Chopped Champions, the junior edition features 16 previous champions competing in against one another for the opportunity to compete in the grand finale. Tonight's episode featuring Haley is for the final spot in that finale set for next Tuesday (June 27th) at 7:00 p.m. Evansville time.

According to the Food Network website, the challenge won't be easy for Haley and her competitors as they try to impress judges Maneet Chauhan, Marc Murphy, and Dale Talde.

Four outstanding junior chefs compete to see who will earn the last spot in the grand finale. Some slender peppers and scrumptious rolls are part of the puzzle in the appetizer round. The junior chefs must figure out a way to make a guilty pleasure snack work in their venison entrees. And some serious mistakes in the dessert round leave the judges with much to consider.

That last line sounds ominous.

Tune into Food Network tonight at 7:00 p.m. to see if Haley makes it to next week's grand finale.