Viewers have questioned how one participant was allowed to take part in this year’s competition.

MKR viewers were shocked by one contestant’s bold announcement in Monday night’s premiere. Photos: Channel 7

The new season of My Kitchen Rules kicked off with a bang on Monday night, with two contestants going head-to-head at the dinner table. Michael, a self-proclaimed ‘meat master’, appeared to be personally offended when Jacinta, who has a background in nutritional medicine, announced that she doesn’t eat meat.

Jacinta confessed that she wouldn’t be eating the main component of Justin and Will’s red duck curry, and her cousin Mel would instead taste the meat. While Manu Feildel and Colin Fassnidge seemed baffled by Jacinta’s decision to only taste the curry sauce, Michael argued that she shouldn’t be on the show.

“Are you kidding me? Why is she here?” he remarked in his piece-to-camera interview. “You can’t eat it, you can’t taste it, she’s not able to judge the dish.”

Jacinta then said that she didn’t plan on telling Justin and Will that she wouldn’t be eating their duck because it’s “not relevant”; however, Michael decided to call her out because “the boys deserve to know” that they just served a meal that wouldn’t be eaten.

“I feel mortified,” Jacinta said in her piece-to-camera interview after being ‘exposed’ as a non-meat eater. “How dare you? That is not okay. Michael is an idiot.”

Michael was baffled by Jacinta’s decision not to eat meat. Photos: Channel 7

Fans divided over Jacinta’s decision

Michael and Jacinta’s awkward confrontation divided viewers on social media, with many people expressing surprise that she was allowed to take part in the competition if she doesn’t eat meat.

“How can you judge food without tasting it?!” one person wrote, while another added, “Why would you go on a show like that if you don’t eat meat?”.

“I agree with what the meat man is saying about the other team. How can you be in a food competition when you don’t eat what is served?” a third remarked, followed by someone else who declared, “Should have to eat everything or not be allowed on the show”.

“She can’t judge what she doesn’t try. Her teammate will have different taste buds to her, making it unfair when she votes. Other teams will lose points because she won’t be judging the whole meal,” a different user pointed out.

‘More cooking, less drama’

Meanwhile, others admitted that they also don’t eat duck and said that the show should focus on the cooking rather than the drama.

“The judges have agreed to it, so who cares what he thinks?” a fan commented, with another writing, “I would imagine it would be on the application if you don’t eat something or [have] an allergy”.

“Give us more cooking, less drama!” someone else shared, followed by a different user who said, “Being turned off by the drama, let’s focus on the food – so over the fighting”.

“There is enough bickering and drama in the world, let’s get back to the recipes and the cooking, that’s what the show is supposed to be about. l really don’t care who eats what or who lives where, just get on with the show and its cuisine,” another remarked.