WEBVTT - OUR DESSERT QUEEN STEPH TALKS MASTERCHEF 0:00:00.160 --> 0:00:01.720 It's in the news today, but it was actually on 0:00:01.800 --> 0:00:03.960 TV Reload the podcast last week ay Light. 0:00:04.400 --> 0:00:05.920 Welcome back to TV Reload. 0:00:06.160 --> 0:00:08.960 My name's Benjamin Norris and on this podcast I go 0:00:09.039 --> 0:00:12.920 behind the scenes with the biggest players in television. Each 0:00:12.960 --> 0:00:15.840 episode you will get a front row seat with content 0:00:15.920 --> 0:00:21.160 makers like executive producers, writers, editors and casting agents, plus 0:00:21.200 --> 0:00:24.760 the talent that we see on our screens. TV Reload 0:00:24.840 --> 0:00:28.200 reloads the shows that you are currently watching and gives 0:00:28.240 --> 0:00:33.160 you a better insight at our television industry and streaming services. Today. 0:00:33.159 --> 0:00:35.800 On the podcast, I have the latest eliminated Master Chef 0:00:35.880 --> 0:00:40.000 Australia contestant, Steph. She has been well and truly deserving 0:00:40.120 --> 0:00:43.160 of her Dessert Queen's status and while she was out 0:00:43.200 --> 0:00:46.320 on a tiramasue, I think that won't stop us from 0:00:46.360 --> 0:00:50.280 craving some of her signature sweet dishes. Steph was a 0:00:50.320 --> 0:00:54.000 fantastic addition to the Master Chef Fans Versus Favorites competition 0:00:54.440 --> 0:00:57.040 and her exit from the show is proof that this 0:00:57.360 --> 0:00:59.600 is getting down to the pointy end of the show. 0:01:00.360 --> 0:01:03.280 Imagine not being able to see or taste what you've 0:01:03.280 --> 0:01:05.800 been challenged to cook in a pressure test. We will 0:01:05.840 --> 0:01:08.680 talk about what's next for her, who she thinks will win, 0:01:09.040 --> 0:01:12.240 and if that huge Master Chef clock is the root 0:01:12.240 --> 0:01:15.720 of all evil when it comes to cooking with time constraints. However, 0:01:15.800 --> 0:01:18.440 let's get started with today's guest. I'd like to welcome 0:01:18.480 --> 0:01:20.040 Steph to TV Reload. 0:01:20.800 --> 0:01:24.520 There are so many good cooks in this competition. 0:01:24.760 --> 0:01:27.880 Musta Sheriff has produced some of the biggest names in food. 0:01:28.200 --> 0:01:30.639 Oh my god, that is such a tough question. 0:01:31.040 --> 0:01:35.120 The first time ever it's funds versus favorites. 0:01:35.600 --> 0:01:38.200 It's really sweet that people would recognize me. 0:01:38.520 --> 0:01:41.080 This pressure test was unlike the others. You had to 0:01:41.120 --> 0:01:42.640 rely on your instincts. 0:01:43.240 --> 0:01:47.080 I reckon He's the dark force in this competition. He 0:01:47.200 --> 0:01:47.720 brought so. 0:01:47.840 --> 0:01:51.600 Much into this kitchen, and we've loved watching you explore 0:01:51.640 --> 0:01:52.680 your food identity. 0:01:53.160 --> 0:01:55.040 I was like, you know what, let's put my own 0:01:55.080 --> 0:01:55.640 flare on this. 0:01:56.400 --> 0:01:57.800 Hi, Steph, how are you? 0:01:58.040 --> 0:01:59.040 Hi? I'm really good. 0:01:59.280 --> 0:02:03.640 Well, congratulations on your time in Master Chef. If you 0:02:03.720 --> 0:02:07.000 will be remembered for your time in the series, what 0:02:07.080 --> 0:02:08.560 do you think audiences will think? 0:02:08.800 --> 0:02:10.600 Ah, that's a Steph moment. 0:02:10.840 --> 0:02:15.840 Oh I'm hoping cakes, I'm hoping they'll remember all my desserts. 0:02:15.919 --> 0:02:20.880 And you know, weird and wonderful combinations like Reggiemi and 0:02:21.000 --> 0:02:27.080 Misa going together, or making a Japanese sponge cake with 0:02:27.120 --> 0:02:31.000 three layers in the first kind of elimination round. You know, 0:02:31.120 --> 0:02:34.560 those were the highlights for me. But I suspect they'll 0:02:34.560 --> 0:02:39.160 also remember things like my moth's slide, which was actually 0:02:39.400 --> 0:02:42.440 pretty funny when I look back at it, as well 0:02:42.480 --> 0:02:46.760 as forgetting vanilla in a brownie, which it's gonna haunt 0:02:46.800 --> 0:02:47.440 me for days. 0:02:48.160 --> 0:02:50.639 You can't even look at people wearing vanilla clothing. 0:02:51.200 --> 0:02:53.600 No, no, I think vanilla is going to be dead 0:02:53.639 --> 0:02:53.920 to me. 0:02:55.440 --> 0:02:56.240 You know what's funny? 0:02:56.320 --> 0:02:59.919 I feel like in Australia, no matter who you are, 0:03:00.400 --> 0:03:03.800 we use veggimite and really bizarre things. I put veggimite 0:03:03.800 --> 0:03:05.720 and spaghetti by spaghetti bolinnaise. 0:03:05.880 --> 0:03:07.359 Is that weird? Is that a faux pat? 0:03:07.560 --> 0:03:07.640 No? 0:03:08.080 --> 0:03:10.480 That would totally work because I put soy sauce in 0:03:10.520 --> 0:03:12.239 my my bolinnaise. 0:03:13.440 --> 0:03:15.880 Making you feel a lot better about it because everyone 0:03:15.919 --> 0:03:17.920 looks at me like you know, when friends come around 0:03:17.919 --> 0:03:20.120 and you're still cooking their dinner while they're standing in 0:03:20.160 --> 0:03:22.359 the kitchen and they're talking to and then you get 0:03:22.360 --> 0:03:24.400 out veggiemite and smear it into the bolonnes. 0:03:24.639 --> 0:03:27.160 You just see this look of complete discuss. 0:03:28.320 --> 0:03:31.480 But it would add like a depth of mammy that 0:03:31.520 --> 0:03:34.920 you just can't get any other way. Like I actually 0:03:35.000 --> 0:03:38.920 understand the veggimite in Bolines. We actually have a dish 0:03:39.280 --> 0:03:42.560 in my house where we actually get marmites, which is 0:03:42.600 --> 0:03:45.360 quite similar to veggiemite, and we put it in a 0:03:45.600 --> 0:03:47.640 soup and you just mix it in. Have you done that? 0:03:48.240 --> 0:03:50.480 No, but I'm going to. That's why we're talking about 0:03:50.480 --> 0:03:53.000 this vegimite. I feel like it's got other places in 0:03:53.040 --> 0:03:55.560 my kitchen, you know, And it totally. 0:03:55.200 --> 0:03:57.760 Works in a crampat can I tell you about like 0:03:57.800 --> 0:04:01.200 it works in the custard? It's really say and yeah, 0:04:01.320 --> 0:04:04.360 just drizzles from some caramel on top, and it's epic. 0:04:04.960 --> 0:04:07.480 What people kind hear? Is me adding you on Instagram 0:04:07.560 --> 0:04:10.280 right now? So we can can take this conversation offline 0:04:10.520 --> 0:04:13.680 and continue the world of veggimi and where we can 0:04:13.680 --> 0:04:14.000 put it. 0:04:15.880 --> 0:04:19.640 No, I definitely started eploring that, so I never had 0:04:19.680 --> 0:04:24.159 it before before. The shares don't so don't follow me now. 0:04:25.080 --> 0:04:28.800 But no, my friend, my roomy Ali found out, and 0:04:28.920 --> 0:04:32.440 so she got me veggimi and then the first thing 0:04:32.480 --> 0:04:34.920 I did was put it in an ice cream and 0:04:35.560 --> 0:04:39.919 it's great, Like, honestly, savory desserts are the way to go. 0:04:40.240 --> 0:04:41.520 Okay, I'll take your word for it. 0:04:41.640 --> 0:04:43.719 I thought I was outrageous with my spaghetti and now 0:04:43.760 --> 0:04:45.440 you're telling me to put it in my ice cream? 0:04:47.560 --> 0:04:50.920 You know? Is the pressure even harder now that you'd 0:04:51.000 --> 0:04:53.919 branded yourself, you know, something like the cake Queen. Do 0:04:53.960 --> 0:04:56.440 you wish that you know, you hadn't had that title 0:04:56.480 --> 0:04:57.240 being given. 0:04:56.960 --> 0:05:00.520 To you, you know, I think it was it was 0:05:00.600 --> 0:05:02.559 kind of that moment where you're like, oh, that's really 0:05:02.640 --> 0:05:06.320 sweet that people would recognize me as that, Like it's 0:05:06.400 --> 0:05:09.560 a lovely kind of guest. Yeah, it's a cute nickname. 0:05:09.880 --> 0:05:12.280 I definitely didn't want it to get to my head 0:05:12.320 --> 0:05:14.440 there because they never have a lot of cakes. I 0:05:14.480 --> 0:05:16.640 still don't know, so I still feel like a novice. 0:05:17.279 --> 0:05:20.719 But yeah, definitely, Yeah, I love that they called me that. 0:05:21.839 --> 0:05:24.600 But it's something I'm working towards, So that's the goal, right. 0:05:25.400 --> 0:05:28.760 I was thinking Kristen Wig and Bridesmaids. I was picturing 0:05:28.760 --> 0:05:31.960 a little logo of you, like cake baby, you know 0:05:32.040 --> 0:05:34.640 the have you seen the movie Bride'smaids or am I 0:05:34.680 --> 0:05:35.680 going on a weird tangent. 0:05:36.440 --> 0:05:39.080 I have not seen it in a very long time. 0:05:40.320 --> 0:05:44.440 Yeah, she has Kristin Wiggs character in the movie. She 0:05:44.640 --> 0:05:47.719 has opened a cake store during a recession, but it's 0:05:47.720 --> 0:05:50.800 this really cute cake store, which obviously she'd taken a 0:05:50.839 --> 0:05:53.760 lot of pride in. Anyway, we're talking Master Chef, not movies. 0:05:53.800 --> 0:05:55.080 I've taken on a weird. 0:05:55.640 --> 0:05:58.320 No, but like I can imagine myself doing that. I 0:05:58.360 --> 0:06:01.000 mean during COVID it was so thing to do, right 0:06:01.880 --> 0:06:04.159 to open the cake shop or to like sell cakes 0:06:04.160 --> 0:06:07.159 in the middle of like a pandemic. So I kind 0:06:07.200 --> 0:06:07.960 of get the vide. 0:06:08.160 --> 0:06:11.760 Had you actually eaten at Melbourne's Tippo Restaurant and do 0:06:11.839 --> 0:06:15.400 you think having eaten there was an advantage for people 0:06:15.440 --> 0:06:17.000 cooking in last night's pressure test? 0:06:17.160 --> 0:06:19.760 Oh my goodness. So Tipo has been on my list 0:06:19.760 --> 0:06:22.760 for forever. I just never been able to get a 0:06:22.760 --> 0:06:25.719 booking and I can't seem to ever manage to walk 0:06:25.760 --> 0:06:29.120 in to get a seat as well. So yeah, I mean, 0:06:29.120 --> 0:06:31.480 it would have been great if I had eaten there, 0:06:31.720 --> 0:06:34.520 but I think everyone goes there for the pasta. I 0:06:34.520 --> 0:06:37.960 didn't even realize they had it to miss until Andreas 0:06:38.120 --> 0:06:41.560 showed it or talked about it. So yeah, I was 0:06:41.600 --> 0:06:46.240 actually expecting a pasta pressure test when they said Andreas 0:06:46.320 --> 0:06:48.760 was coming in, and I was like, what what do 0:06:48.839 --> 0:06:51.360 you mean when not doing past. 0:06:50.920 --> 0:06:51.800 It's the curve ball. 0:06:51.880 --> 0:06:55.440 It's the curveball and reality television don't ever expect anything, 0:06:55.640 --> 0:06:57.120 you know, expecting unexpected. 0:06:57.360 --> 0:07:00.240 That's pretty much it. I was just like, ah, doing 0:07:00.279 --> 0:07:02.680 a pasta today, and then all of a sudden, mel 0:07:02.880 --> 0:07:08.160 kind of starts wafting on about about cream and like chocolate, 0:07:08.200 --> 0:07:10.160 and I'm like, wait a minute, this does not sound 0:07:10.240 --> 0:07:10.840 like a pasta. 0:07:11.480 --> 0:07:14.600 Well, Tiramasu has had so many iterations, you know, all 0:07:14.600 --> 0:07:17.720 around the world. It has taken on different forms. What 0:07:17.760 --> 0:07:20.360 do you think is like a variant to last night's 0:07:20.360 --> 0:07:22.680 cook that you would do differently because you're trying to 0:07:22.760 --> 0:07:25.960 match a dessert someone else's review of a dish, which 0:07:26.000 --> 0:07:28.160 is impossible, But like, if you were to try and 0:07:28.200 --> 0:07:31.040 make a signature Steph Tiramissou, how would you make it, 0:07:31.080 --> 0:07:33.520 Like what would be the change to the format? 0:07:33.680 --> 0:07:36.000 Well that was what I did, and that was actually 0:07:36.080 --> 0:07:40.720 my downfall because you know, I didn't put the I 0:07:40.720 --> 0:07:43.320 didn't put vanilla in the brownie, but I really don't. 0:07:43.360 --> 0:07:46.920 I don't necessarily think a dark chocolate brownie needs vanilla 0:07:46.920 --> 0:07:49.280 because it's a bit of a waste. 0:07:50.400 --> 0:07:57.480 Yeah, BRONI was missing that crucial ingredient vanilla, and as 0:07:57.480 --> 0:08:05.800 a result, it tested all overwhelmingly eggy because the brownie 0:08:05.880 --> 0:08:13.200 was the foundation of Andres's dish. Unfortunately, that's the reason 0:08:13.200 --> 0:08:14.160 why you got home today. 0:08:17.000 --> 0:08:21.160 And then I actually I made the tempered disk really 0:08:21.240 --> 0:08:24.880 thin because I thought and what I wanted was that 0:08:24.960 --> 0:08:29.239 when you poured that hot caramel on top of the dessert, 0:08:29.600 --> 0:08:32.080 I wanted it to melt the center so that it 0:08:32.120 --> 0:08:35.560 would pull in the center. And that's why I also 0:08:35.679 --> 0:08:38.200 didn't fill the cream in the center to the top, 0:08:38.240 --> 0:08:40.480 because I wanted it to kind of have that wow 0:08:40.640 --> 0:08:44.559 moment where it would just kind of break open and 0:08:44.600 --> 0:08:48.120 melt through, so that that would have been a stepf version, 0:08:48.679 --> 0:08:52.720 and that was what I was aiming for in that cook. 0:08:53.080 --> 0:08:56.000 Well, as it all started, you know they had you 0:08:56.040 --> 0:08:59.080 can't see it, you can't taste it. Is that one 0:08:59.080 --> 0:09:02.280 of the hardest pressure tests when you have your senses 0:09:02.440 --> 0:09:04.640 being impaired like that. I mean, you can't say it, 0:09:04.640 --> 0:09:06.600 you can't taste it, so it sounds like a horror 0:09:06.679 --> 0:09:08.720 movie version of Master Chef if you ask me. 0:09:09.240 --> 0:09:11.360 Yeah, I mean like one of the best things about 0:09:11.400 --> 0:09:13.400 pressure tests as well is that you actually get to 0:09:13.440 --> 0:09:17.560 eat a dish you didn't make and you get free food. 0:09:18.800 --> 0:09:22.040 But we didn't get that, and I think what has 0:09:22.080 --> 0:09:27.520 happened is I took creative liberties instead of taking the 0:09:27.679 --> 0:09:31.360 review a little bit more literally, I took some creative 0:09:31.600 --> 0:09:34.040 I took a yeah, I took a creative brush to it, 0:09:34.120 --> 0:09:35.760 and I was like, you know what, let's let's put 0:09:35.800 --> 0:09:38.920 my own flair on this because things are vague anyway. 0:09:39.520 --> 0:09:43.520 So yeah, my own spin on a dish. Instead of 0:09:43.559 --> 0:09:47.560 replicating it, I kind of reinterpreted it, which, yeah, oh 0:09:47.559 --> 0:09:50.880 well it is what it is. Now regrets with what 0:09:50.920 --> 0:09:53.000 I played it, Yeah, it was what it was. I've 0:09:53.000 --> 0:09:54.800 never regret to what I played it because I still 0:09:54.840 --> 0:09:58.280 think it's a really cool idea. But obviously it isn't 0:09:58.320 --> 0:09:59.840 what the dish was supposed to be. 0:10:00.640 --> 0:10:02.800 This is making me all very hungry stuff. I'm like, 0:10:03.120 --> 0:10:05.439 I need to eat a Tira missu. It's gonna need 0:10:05.440 --> 0:10:07.960 to happen in my life very soon. You're probably never 0:10:07.960 --> 0:10:09.160 gonna look at them ever again. 0:10:09.679 --> 0:10:14.120 But I love Tira Missus. I actually make a turium 0:10:14.200 --> 0:10:18.079 missuit cake and it's just like the layers of vanilla 0:10:18.200 --> 0:10:22.280 sponge and then you put like mister black coffee liqueur 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:25.880 onto it, and then you know, like a like a 0:10:25.960 --> 0:10:31.160 salted caramel and in between all the layers with coffee cream. 0:10:31.480 --> 0:10:35.240 I'm like, I love Tira Missu. So yeah, I was 0:10:35.360 --> 0:10:36.600 kind of bummed about that. 0:10:37.040 --> 0:10:38.199 Were you freaking out? 0:10:38.320 --> 0:10:40.240 Because I mean, at this point of the competition, when 0:10:40.240 --> 0:10:43.360 you're in a pressure test and it's Alvin, it's yourself, 0:10:43.400 --> 0:10:48.120 it's Montana and Billy, was that a lineup of people 0:10:48.120 --> 0:10:49.640 that made you particularly nervous. 0:10:50.320 --> 0:10:52.719 I think anyone in the top twelve would have made 0:10:52.760 --> 0:10:56.000 me nervous, if I'm to be honest. There are so 0:10:56.120 --> 0:11:00.679 many good cooks in this competition, and even like some 0:11:00.720 --> 0:11:04.280 of the people that I loved and respected had left 0:11:04.280 --> 0:11:07.000 before me, so I knew it was anyone's game, and 0:11:07.040 --> 0:11:11.600 I knew that the smallest mistake would potentially send me home. Yeah, 0:11:11.679 --> 0:11:14.840 and that's what has just happened. You know. I love 0:11:15.240 --> 0:11:18.760 people like Sashi, Ali and Matt and even Harry who 0:11:18.920 --> 0:11:21.959 just who was eliminated just before me. Yeah, I love 0:11:22.000 --> 0:11:24.880 their food, I love their style, and so I knew 0:11:24.960 --> 0:11:28.600 it was a possibility no matter where I was and 0:11:28.640 --> 0:11:31.640 who was who I was up against that, yeah, any 0:11:31.760 --> 0:11:32.800 cook could send me home. 0:11:33.320 --> 0:11:35.840 You know what's interesting is that you've had people like 0:11:35.880 --> 0:11:39.080 Andreas last night, You've had many. 0:11:38.880 --> 0:11:42.240 Chefs who are some of the top chefs in our country. 0:11:42.840 --> 0:11:44.880 Have you learned more from the chefs that have come 0:11:44.920 --> 0:11:48.679 in for these sorts of challenges and for the themes, 0:11:49.040 --> 0:11:51.480 or have you learned more from the people you're cooking 0:11:51.559 --> 0:11:52.080 up against. 0:11:52.360 --> 0:11:55.240 It's a bit of both, because you know, the people 0:11:55.280 --> 0:11:58.520 that I'm cooking up against, they've taught me how to 0:11:58.640 --> 0:12:02.360 do the base it's really fast and really quick and 0:12:02.600 --> 0:12:08.000 home techniques really and what the guest chefs have kind 0:12:08.040 --> 0:12:11.280 of taught me is inspiration. They've inspired me to be 0:12:11.280 --> 0:12:14.480 better and to strive for more. So there's a bit 0:12:14.520 --> 0:12:17.880 of both. I mean, the guidance that we got from 0:12:18.120 --> 0:12:20.960 people like Marco Pierre White and the inspiration and even 0:12:21.000 --> 0:12:24.160 Shannon Bennett where he kind of guided us through the 0:12:24.280 --> 0:12:29.960 cooks really inspiring, lots of neat tricks and tips, and yeah, 0:12:30.000 --> 0:12:32.320 I think I've just I'm grateful for the whole experience 0:12:32.320 --> 0:12:35.319 and to learn from everyone and anyone who was willing 0:12:35.360 --> 0:12:39.439 to teach me. I am a banking analyst at the 0:12:39.440 --> 0:12:42.760 Reserve Bank of Australia. But you know, I've realized that 0:12:42.920 --> 0:12:46.360 I don't have to be this financial analyst. There's another 0:12:46.360 --> 0:12:49.440 part of me who loves cooking and he loves feeding people. 0:12:49.760 --> 0:12:53.280 I love making cakes. I love making desserts. I love 0:12:53.400 --> 0:12:56.960 how it brings joy to people. You know, life is 0:12:57.040 --> 0:12:59.520 so hard as it is, and when there's a check 0:13:00.120 --> 0:13:02.600 ends of the day, you know your day is going 0:13:02.640 --> 0:13:06.760 to be better and it's not cake. It's chocolate. So like, 0:13:07.320 --> 0:13:08.880 what's better than chocolate and cake? 0:13:11.960 --> 0:13:12.160 Yeah? 0:13:12.360 --> 0:13:16.599 Cakes? Pretty much? That's me. What's what's not to like? 0:13:20.320 --> 0:13:22.680 Well, all the contestants talk about the amount of cooking 0:13:22.720 --> 0:13:26.040 and sharing of experience that's happened between filming each day. 0:13:26.640 --> 0:13:28.680 Are you a better competitor at this stage of the 0:13:28.679 --> 0:13:32.839 competition simply because you know how much time you've spent 0:13:33.160 --> 0:13:33.920 cooking together. 0:13:34.280 --> 0:13:36.679 I think I am because you do learn a lot 0:13:36.720 --> 0:13:39.920 from each other, and you learn because we're all under 0:13:39.960 --> 0:13:42.360 the same kind of pressure. You see what works and 0:13:42.480 --> 0:13:45.520 what doesn't, and you learn off each other in that 0:13:45.600 --> 0:13:50.360 way as well. But even outside of the Master Chef kitchen, 0:13:50.480 --> 0:13:53.840 just having the conversations that we had with each other, 0:13:54.080 --> 0:13:57.640 talking about food and bouncing ideas off each other as well. 0:13:57.960 --> 0:14:00.600 You know, we might someone might come up with an 0:14:00.640 --> 0:14:03.640 idea and they might just want some clvity or someone 0:14:03.640 --> 0:14:06.720 else's opinion on it, and you find that that refinement 0:14:06.880 --> 0:14:09.880 really helps. And it definitely helped with some of my 0:14:10.080 --> 0:14:13.240 cooks trying to figure out how to balance flavor and 0:14:13.280 --> 0:14:16.720 then just asking people what their opinion is. And yeah, 0:14:17.160 --> 0:14:20.800 just by sharing that knowledge and having those conversations, I 0:14:20.920 --> 0:14:26.520 found them really useful and definitely refined myself throughout the 0:14:26.560 --> 0:14:28.080 weeks I was in the Mastership kitchen. 0:14:28.400 --> 0:14:31.480 I keep saying to people that like yourself, the competitors 0:14:31.520 --> 0:14:34.120 that I've spoken to so far, isn't it amazing that 0:14:34.440 --> 0:14:36.840 you've met these people like you know, you could ring 0:14:36.960 --> 0:14:39.240 Julie Goodwin and ask her for some tips in the kitchen, 0:14:39.360 --> 0:14:41.720 or you'd be able to email Shannon Bennett. You know, 0:14:41.800 --> 0:14:44.280 some of these amazing contexts that you've been able to 0:14:44.400 --> 0:14:46.760 establish and they will be able to help you forever. 0:14:46.800 --> 0:14:49.560 It's almost like being a part of the Avengers now. 0:14:49.920 --> 0:14:54.080 Yeah, No, it really has been, Like I can't believe 0:14:54.400 --> 0:14:58.480 I have a direct line to Julie Goodwin. Honestly, she's 0:14:58.560 --> 0:15:01.920 such a lovely person. Everyone is just willing to share 0:15:01.960 --> 0:15:05.880 their knowledge and their experience as well. I actually messaged 0:15:06.080 --> 0:15:08.360 Dave Pint the other day because I was I just 0:15:08.400 --> 0:15:11.600 wanted some I just needed some help with a technique 0:15:11.600 --> 0:15:14.600 in terms of smoking. So he's the guy from burnt 0:15:14.720 --> 0:15:17.960 In and he responded so quickly and he gave so 0:15:18.000 --> 0:15:21.960 many tips. This industry is just people like love to 0:15:22.000 --> 0:15:24.840 share their knowledge and you just have to ask. Really, 0:15:25.080 --> 0:15:27.680 and that was one thing I definitely learned was to 0:15:27.680 --> 0:15:31.720 not be afraid to ask for help or for advice 0:15:31.840 --> 0:15:35.200 because everyone is just so willing to give it. You know, 0:15:35.360 --> 0:15:38.480 they might be the head chef of some famous place 0:15:38.480 --> 0:15:41.440 of a Michelin Star restaurant. You know. Claire Smith was 0:15:41.680 --> 0:15:46.680 so really generous with advice as well. So yeah, everyone 0:15:46.800 --> 0:15:49.960 is lovely in this industry. Everyone's really willing to share 0:15:50.000 --> 0:15:53.640 that knowledge and help out if you just have to ask. 0:15:53.840 --> 0:15:56.800 What I really appreciate is the community of master chef. 0:15:56.840 --> 0:15:59.520 I think that's why Australian audiences like it so much. 0:16:00.160 --> 0:16:02.720 That we get to tap into your community and we 0:16:02.760 --> 0:16:04.720 get to sort of feel like we're a part of it. 0:16:05.000 --> 0:16:07.080 Do you think that that's a part of the reason 0:16:07.080 --> 0:16:09.400 why Master Chef has been on television in Australia for 0:16:09.400 --> 0:16:09.840 so long. 0:16:09.960 --> 0:16:14.680 I definitely think it is. You definitely see that on 0:16:14.760 --> 0:16:19.040 TV that people have obviously bonded. That will quite a 0:16:19.120 --> 0:16:23.000 close bunch, because when anyone gets eliminated, you can see 0:16:23.040 --> 0:16:26.040 the devastation in everyone else's face. I know I cried 0:16:26.280 --> 0:16:32.920 in everyone's elimination except my own, but yeah, I was 0:16:33.000 --> 0:16:36.400 just so gutted to see people go because we got 0:16:36.520 --> 0:16:40.480 so close so quickly because of the nature of the 0:16:40.520 --> 0:16:42.440 show and you know, all the pressure that you have, 0:16:42.840 --> 0:16:45.240 it is to an extent. I think I used to 0:16:45.400 --> 0:16:47.520 I laughed when I was an audition that we kind 0:16:47.520 --> 0:16:51.480 of went through this trauma bonding together. It doesn't sound great, 0:16:51.600 --> 0:16:55.040 but it was just that joint experience of going through 0:16:55.080 --> 0:16:59.120 something hard together. I think it really connects people and 0:16:59.200 --> 0:17:01.800 it brings it brings people close, and you can see 0:17:01.800 --> 0:17:04.520 that on TV in how we interact and how we 0:17:04.640 --> 0:17:07.720 cheer people on, and I think that's what people see 0:17:07.760 --> 0:17:08.560 when they see the show. 0:17:08.880 --> 0:17:11.360 Steph, I can't imagine in my life ever laughing at 0:17:11.400 --> 0:17:16.159 someone saying trauma experience brings people together. But I was 0:17:16.200 --> 0:17:18.760 giggling then. I'm sure people listening to the podcast are like, 0:17:18.920 --> 0:17:22.720 he's mad, but all right. And I think that the 0:17:22.880 --> 0:17:27.119 experience of Master Chef unlike any other competition based reality show. 0:17:27.520 --> 0:17:29.119 It is absolutely about the food. 0:17:29.160 --> 0:17:32.520 It's not about throwing anyone under a bus, and I 0:17:32.560 --> 0:17:35.080 think interesting for me, I'm talking to people from other 0:17:35.160 --> 0:17:38.639 competition based reality shows at the moment and it's just 0:17:38.680 --> 0:17:41.359 the complete opposite. So I guess that's why Master Chef's 0:17:41.359 --> 0:17:42.320 at the top of the ratings. 0:17:42.840 --> 0:17:46.919 Yeah. No, it's definitely more of a community thing. You know, 0:17:47.000 --> 0:17:49.560 you're kind of all in this together. It's a shared 0:17:49.640 --> 0:17:52.959 experience and so you get really close with everyone. It's 0:17:53.080 --> 0:17:57.640 a celebration of food and different food aspects, like whether 0:17:57.640 --> 0:18:01.159 you're savory suite, whether it's curry, or whether it's something 0:18:01.960 --> 0:18:05.000 more modern as well. There's just so many dimensions to 0:18:05.119 --> 0:18:08.639 food and so we celebrate all aspects of it, and 0:18:08.680 --> 0:18:10.720 I think that's what I really love about the show 0:18:11.080 --> 0:18:12.800 and getting to talk to everyone about it too. 0:18:13.000 --> 0:18:14.920 I need to ask you about this clock though I've 0:18:14.960 --> 0:18:16.920 not asked anyone else yet, but I feel like you're 0:18:16.960 --> 0:18:20.639 the right person that clock that's in the Master Chef kitchen. 0:18:20.680 --> 0:18:23.359 How loud is it and how much? How annoying is it? 0:18:23.400 --> 0:18:26.000 Because I see it ticking as a viewer and it 0:18:26.040 --> 0:18:28.360 stresses me out. So I just want to know how 0:18:28.400 --> 0:18:29.880 loud is it, how annoying is it? 0:18:30.920 --> 0:18:34.640 You can't hear it. I wish you could, but you can't. 0:18:34.720 --> 0:18:38.240 And so I also feel like that clock is sporadic 0:18:38.400 --> 0:18:40.760 because you know, sometimes you're like, oh, I've got time, 0:18:40.880 --> 0:18:42.720 and then the next minute you know you've only got 0:18:42.720 --> 0:18:47.320 five minutes to go. So yeah, no, it's huge, and 0:18:47.640 --> 0:18:50.920 thank god it's that big because as a like half blind, 0:18:51.720 --> 0:18:55.360 but yeah, no, it's that clock is scary. And as 0:18:55.400 --> 0:18:57.679 soon as you walk into the kitchen, the first thing 0:18:57.720 --> 0:19:00.439 you look at is the clock because you want to 0:19:00.480 --> 0:19:02.600 know how much time you have left, and you want 0:19:02.640 --> 0:19:05.400 to know that it's working because and that it's not 0:19:05.480 --> 0:19:08.640 rigged in some way, because it's, like god, time flies 0:19:09.160 --> 0:19:11.560 so fast in that kitchen. It's actually not funny. 0:19:11.680 --> 0:19:13.880 Imagine if all of you were cooking and looking down 0:19:13.960 --> 0:19:17.320 at your food, you don't realize that you know, Andy's 0:19:17.440 --> 0:19:19.679 just got up on a ladder and spun the. 0:19:20.119 --> 0:19:23.359 Yeah no, and you wouldn't really you wouldn't notice that 0:19:23.400 --> 0:19:26.080 as well, because you're so concentrating. You're concentrating on what 0:19:26.119 --> 0:19:30.920 you're doing. I like, someone might have their food on fire, 0:19:30.960 --> 0:19:33.439 and I really wouldn't know because I'm just like, I 0:19:33.480 --> 0:19:37.320 have my own thing to deal with. I block everything out, 0:19:37.560 --> 0:19:41.320 Like I think there was one time where yeah, something 0:19:41.400 --> 0:19:44.600 caught on fire and I didn't know and I was like, 0:19:44.680 --> 0:19:47.960 what what do you mean that happened? Yeah, So it's 0:19:48.080 --> 0:19:51.160 been lots of fun watching it as well, because I'm like, oh, 0:19:51.200 --> 0:19:55.040 I did not realize someone else was having that much issues, 0:19:55.160 --> 0:19:56.000 that many issues. 0:19:56.280 --> 0:19:58.320 Good to know there's no smoke detectors in there going 0:19:58.359 --> 0:19:59.359 off good tonight? 0:19:59.480 --> 0:20:03.320 Well, if there was, that burnt ends one would have 0:20:03.400 --> 0:20:07.800 just been the constant fire alarm. I think luckily I 0:20:07.880 --> 0:20:11.399 was next to Dan with no little firefighter. 0:20:11.640 --> 0:20:13.240 I'm sure one of those boys would pick you up 0:20:13.240 --> 0:20:15.159 and carry you out out of the kitchen. 0:20:15.320 --> 0:20:16.680 I'm sure you would have been there, and I hope. 0:20:16.720 --> 0:20:20.720 So can you tell me? Can you tell by now? 0:20:20.960 --> 0:20:23.040 Because you've obviously been in the competition for so long 0:20:23.080 --> 0:20:25.240 and so many people have gone home, and so many 0:20:25.240 --> 0:20:27.280 pressure tests have happened. You've either been up on the 0:20:27.880 --> 0:20:30.800 gantry but can you tell by now who the person 0:20:30.920 --> 0:20:34.280 is going home? Because there's some telltale signs, you know. 0:20:34.280 --> 0:20:36.639 I don't know whether there's more whispering amongst the chefs 0:20:36.640 --> 0:20:40.119 and pointing, or there's sweating a lot or swearing. You know, 0:20:40.200 --> 0:20:42.000 is there any way for you to be able to 0:20:42.040 --> 0:20:45.040 tell or is there telltale signs in the kitchen to 0:20:45.080 --> 0:20:45.840 who's going home? 0:20:46.160 --> 0:20:50.919 No, there aren't. And it's probably why pressure tests are 0:20:50.960 --> 0:20:53.760 like the great leveler, because you can never tell what's 0:20:53.800 --> 0:20:56.600