The country’s favourite cooking show is back on screens for its 13th season and the MasterChef winner is almost ready to be announced.
Jock Zonfrillo, Melissa Leong and Andy Allen have returned as judges but as for the 24 contestants, we’ve seen so much talent and a healthy serving of heartwarming personal stories.
From Tommy calling his mum and speaking to her in Vietnamese after making her chicken congee to Elise making her nonna proud with her trout dish, we were instantly hooked.
“I think it’s going to be the best food. Even with Back To Win,” Andy admitted to WHO on the red carpet at the 2020 AACTA Awards.
He wasn’t wrong – from the first audition episodes we saw incredible dishes and things only got better as the series continued.
However, there is one contestant’s name that has risen to the top and emerged as a potential winner – at least, according to the bookies that is.
Both TAB and Sportsbet have tipped Justin Narayan, 27, to take the 2021 MasterChef crown with odds at 1.08 and 1.28, respectively.
Although, the odds differed for second place, with Sportsbet placing Kishwar Chowdhury in the position at 5.50, and TAB placing Pete Campbell in second place at 7.00.
Sportsbet had Pete in third place at 7.00, and TAB placing Kishwar in the spot at 15.00.
Perth-based church relationship manager Justin started cooking at the age of 13 and grew up watching cooking shows and cooking with his parti (grandmother) and tata (grandfather).
As the first generation born in Australia, Justin has always valued his Fijian and Indian heritage and after a 2017 trip to India fell even more in love with food.
The 27-year-old wowed the judges with his first dish when he whipped up his mum’s chicken curry and from there has been a force in the MasterChef kitchen.
“MasterChef means for me the chance to chase a dream…it has the ability to drastically change your life,” he told Ten.
Justin, who is engaged to his fiancée Esther, dreams of having a food truck or restaurant featuring the Indian flavours he grew up eating, and wants some profits to go towards feeding and educating children living in the slums of India.
In a previous chat with WHO, judge Jock Zonfrillo reflected on the incredible talents of this year’s contestants.
“They serve up some of the best dishes that we’ve ever seen on any season of MasterChef,” he revealed.
“The show’s tagline ‘ordinary people, extraordinary food’ couldn’t be more true this year. We look at one another sometimes and can’t believe what we’re seeing and getting to eat. It’s a privilege to share this crazy experience with these guys.”
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