Celebrity chef Shannon Bennett made his long-awaited return to MasterChef Australia on Wednesday night and it was an emotional experience for viewers.

The Melbourne-born culinary expert, 49, appeared on the popular Channel Ten cooking series for the first time since 2023 to help contestants prepare a pea purée.

‘Just a little bit of cooking. Show you a couple of things!’ Shannon said as he took them through the steps to prepare the dish.

His top-notch culinary skills left the contestants in awe, with Callum Hann remarking: ‘I’m loving watching Shannon cook! Every time you watch one of these guru chefs, you always learn something’.

Emotional fans took to social media to share their excitement at seeing Shannon in the kitchen.

‘I was so teary seeing him back in the studio. He is a hero and in my mind should have been one of the new judges last year,’ one person wrote.

Celebrity chef Shannon Bennett made his long-awaited return to MasterChef Australia on Wednesday night

The Melbourne-born culinary expert appeared on the popular Channel Ten cooking series for the first time since 2023 to help contestants prepare a pea purée

‘He has all the skills and is empathetic. Hopefully he will be a judge one day if that is what he wants.’

‘You learn from the legend,’ a second person added and a third wrote.

‘He made it look easy.’

Last month, Shannon’s ex-partner Madeleine West welcomed her seventh child – her first that he is not the father to.

The 47-year-old shared a glimpse at her newborn in an Instagram post, revealing the child was in excellent health.

Alongside a truncated image of the child, the Neighbours star wrote: ‘Earthside at last… and utterly perfect’.

The Australian actress did not reveal the sex or name of her new arrival at the time, nor has she revealed the father’s identity.

Madeleine recently opened up about her seventh pregnancy at the age of 47.

The star already shares five daughters and one son with Shannon, who she was in a relationship with from 2005 to 2018.

Emotional fans took to social media to share their excitement at seeing him in the kitchen, after his ex-partner Madeleine West recently welcomed her seventh child. Pictured together in 2016

Last month, Shannon’s ex-partner Madeleine West welcomed her seventh child – her first that he is not the father to

In an interview with 60 Minutes, she said she was not letting naysayers get to her and is determined to keep ‘dancing to the beat of my own drum’.

She said many people were shocked to learn she was pregnant with yet another child at her age, but she was also ‘surprised’ by the sheer amount of support she received.

‘There was a lot of shock, naturally. And then, “Are you sure? You’re at this point in your life. Your career is blossoming. You’ve got all these kids”,’ she told host Tara Brown.

‘But I am surprised by so many people who have reached out saying, “I’ve done what you’re doing and I felt so alone. I felt like everyone would see me at the playground and they would think I’m grandma”.’

When asked if she had ever been called a ‘grandma at the playground’, the actress responded: ‘Oh yeah, naturally. But my argument has always been I’ve always danced to the beat of my own drum.’

The TV star – who shares Phoenix, 19, Hendrix, 16, Xascha, 14, Xanthe, 12, and twins Xalia and Margaux, 10, with Shannon.