Alton Brown hosts “Cutthroat Kitchen”

Some new shows take a while to build up momentum with audiences, a season or two to become palatable; others just go down smooth with the first taste.

"Cutthroat Kitchen" on the Food Network definitely falls into that second category. Amazingly, the show was already greenlit and casting for fourth and fifth seasons way back in February, despite the fact that it only premiered last year.

That's a clear sign that this backstabbing competition is resonating with audiences at home. But just what is it that makes this show such a hit with Sunday night TV watchers?

Well, the format is definitely a riff on a tried-and-true formula. "Chopped" has been a flagship show for the Food Network since 2009, and "Cutthroat Kitchen" is definitely cut from the same cloth. Both shows feature four chefs charged with cooking gourmet-quality dishes with a tight time limit, and the judges gradually whittle down their numbers until only one remains standing.

While "Chopped" features unusual ingredients, "Cutthroat Kitchen" instead turns the chefs on each other. With $25,000 in hand, the contestants are given the opportunity each round to bid on big advantages for themselves -- or even bigger handicaps for their opponents. With the winner of the competition keeping the cash he or she has left over, the temptation to bid big could definitely backfire in the end.

Sound sinister? That's because it is. Only a talented host could preside over such an underhanded contest without coming across as overly sinister (or, even worse, farcical), and that's where Alton Brown steps in -- the second piece in the puzzle of "Cutthroat Kitchen's" success.

These days, Brown's most often seen on the Food Network as the host of both "Iron Chef America" and "Next Iron Chef" and a mentor in "Food Network Star," but it was "Good Eats" that first thrust him into the spotlight and made him a welcome presence in countless homes. He's definitely a quirky personality, and even when he's playing up the cutthroat nature of the program, you can almost imagine him turning to the camera and tossing us viewers a good-natured wink.

"Cutthroat Kitchen" just keeps on coming, and it's carved out a sizeable niche for itself outside of "Chopped's" shadow. With the seasons coming almost as fast as audiences can watch them, it really looks like the Food Network has found itself a new Sunday night hit.