by Melissa Bean Sterzick
Amputee celebrity chefs are rare, but they’re out there. Emmy nominee Eduardo Garcia once graced Amplitude’s cover; Briony May Williams and Marc Elliott made it deep into recent seasons of The Great British Bakeoff; war photographer Giles Duley has a hugely successful side hustle as The One-Armed Chef; and Christine Yi has built a huge online following as a street-food connoisseur.
But Miles Platt occupies a special place among limb-different culinary artists, for one reason: He’s 11 years old.
A right below-elbow congenital amputee from Texas, Platt was one of 12 youngsters who competed on Season 9 of MasterChef Junior earlier this year. The 10-episode series aired from March through May 2024, with $100,000 in prize money at stake.
“I have been cooking since I was five,” says Platt. “I just like good food, so I learned how to cook. I started making videos and then got an Instagram account. The people from MasterChef saw some of the videos and asked if I wanted to try out.”
Platt earned a place on the show after his second audition. During the competition, he wowed the judges (including foodie superstar Gordon Ramsay) with his clam and mussel linguine with lemon-garlic-caper sauce. He also got to make fried chicken for the Harlem Globetrotters and steaks for the magicians at the Magic Castle Hollywood.
Although he was eliminated after four episodes (good for eighth place), Platt improved his cooking abilities during his MasterChef stint and made a loyal group of new friends. “We’ve got a group text, and we all talk,” he says. “They are all really nice kids. It’s good to know there are other kids in this world who like to cook. I think the thing that really pushes me to cook more is creativity. You can invent new dishes and try new techniques. You can make anything.”
He’s not on TV anymore—for now, anyway—but Platt still has an appreciative audience online (find him on Instagram at @miles_platt). He regularly treats his family to specialties such as smoked salmon, ratatouille, and grilled whole red snapper. He’s taking cooking classes this summer, along with the usual slate summer camps and family trips. And Platt is keeping up with his other hobbies, which include surfing, rock climbing, painting, playing cards, basketball, fishing, and camping.
“When he was born, it was a surprise for us,” says Platt’s mother, Angela. “But we understood immediately that he’s not ‘broken.’ He doesn’t say ‘I can’t.’ He says, ‘I haven’t figured it out yet.’ There’s a lot of trial and error.”
Platt, who recently taught himself to crochet (an Instagram video of him crocheting attracted several million views), adds: “When I’m learning to do something new, first I think ‘OK, what is the thing I want to do? How do other people do it? What is a different way to do it, and what is something that I can do to get over that challenge?’ If you set your mind to it and believe you can do it, it will probably happen. As long as you try and tell yourself you can do it, you’ll figure it out.”
Platt’s parents are the jumping off point for any new adventure. “They help a lot,” he says. “They encourage me and get supplies [or send me to camps that are rather expensive]. They help with everything.” That includes a cooking camp for kids, which Platt launched with his mom and his eight-year-old brother, Ryder. “It’s good to get kids cooking and into the kitchen,” he says. ”The junior class will do chicken noodle soup with homemade noodles. The older kids will make something like steak.”
The family has already wrapped up this year’s edition of their annual benefit, the Platt Birthday Fundraiser, first carried out in 2018. This year, the family raised more than $12,000 to create and fill duffel bags for children in foster care in honor of a friend who was adopted through the foster care system. In previous years the Platts have raised money for endangered species, premature babies, inclusive playground equipment for nearby schools, and many other causes. The funds are raised via sales of original drawings, T-shirts, tote bags, and cookbooks.
That type of activity means more to Platt than any recognition he receives for being on a cooking show or adapting successfully to limb difference. Platt understands that his purpose in life is to carry out his family’s overarching mission: to be a good person.
“Our goal as parents is we want our kids to be kind to people at school and at the grocery store—to be good humans,” Angela says. “Social media makes you think you have to change the world, but you can also go through life and make an impact where you are. You’re never too young to make a difference.”
Melissa Bean Sterzick is a freelance writer and writing tutor. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two daughters.