FOXA cook has left the kitchen.
Joe Bastianich made headlines in November when he announced he was leaving MasterChef and its spinoff MasterChef Junior after starring in both as a judge since the original Fox series' debuted in 2010.
"After several gratifying years as a judge on MasterChef and MasterChef Junior, I have decided not to return for a sixth season," Bastianich said on his Facebook page.
And now, Bastianich is once again speaking out on leaving Gordon Ramsay and Graham Elliot behind.
At the panel for Restaurant Startup, which just returned to record-high ratings in its second season, at the 2015 Winter TCA Press Tour on Friday, Bastianich said, "I had a great experience. It was a show that changed my life. I stepped away."
And Bastianich pointed out that he hasn't totally left the franchise, saying, "I continue to do MasterChef Italy."
For now, the Italian restaurateur's focus is on the hit CNBC series he serves as a producer and investor on, saying he's "currently very involved in Restaurant Startup," but added he is, "looking for more opportunity to do television."
But it doesn't sound like that includes a return to MasterChef and MasterChef Junior, as he said his time on the series "will always be a fond memory."
Fox recently renewed MasterChef Junior for a fourth season, adding a new judge to replace Bastianich on it, as well as the original MasterChef: Christina Tosi, the owner of New York City's Milk Bar, will join Ramsay and Elliot, first appearing on the sixth season of MasterChef when it premieres this summer.
"MasterChef has been one of my favorite shows since it began, and like so many others, I fell in love with MasterChef Junior," Tosi said in a statement. "I'm incredibly humbled by the opportunity and excited to pay forward all that I owe to learning what you're made of in the home kitchen, and putting your neck on the line to show what you've got to the rest of the world!"
Restaurant Startup airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on CNBC.
(E! and CNBC are both bart of the NBCUniversal family.)