Adelaide My Kitchen Rules winner Jennifer Evans engaged to beau Ratish Sachathamakul

A former Adelaide reality TV favourite has found love after a spur-of-the-moment decision, announcing her engagement.

My Kitchen Rules champion Jennifer Evans has become engaged following a whirlwind romance.

The former Adelaide reality TV star – who won the 2012 series with her then close friend, Leigh Sexton – said she was shocked when beau Ratish Sachathamakul popped the big question with an oval-shaped diamond in Laos last weekend.

“I was really surprised ... I knew it might be coming but I didn’t know it was going to happen that night,” said Evans, who’s now based in Thailand.

The happy couple met in July last year after matching on dating app, Bumble.

Evans, 37, who split with husband Wayne Ormond in 2018 after ten years together, said the connection came out of the blue.

Adelaide’s 2012 My Kitchen Rules winner Jennifer Evans with her engagement ring. Picture: Supplied

“I was just sitting on the couch one night, and I needed some entertainment so I downloaded the app ... I had no intention of meeting anyone but Ratish was the first one I matched with,” she said.

“He’s very nice, very kind and sweet, and very patient with me. Anyone who knows me knows I can be emotional and tricky.”

Dubbed ‘Princess Jennifer’ on Seven’s reality show, Evans said Sachathamakul also gets along very well with her two boys with ex-husband Ormond, Hudson and Harlow.

Adelaide's 2012 My Kitchen Rules winner Jennifer Evans with new fiance Ratish Sachathamakul. Picture: Supplied

The couple recently opened their first restaurant together in Thailand, Birdies Hot Chicken.

Focused on family-style fried chicken, the eatery combines modern Australian cuisine with Vietnamese and Mediterranean influences.

“It was really hard at first but now we’re full every night of the week,” Evans said.

Crowned MKR champions in 2012, Evans became a polarising figure thanks to her bitchy remarks about other contestants’ dishes.

In 2019, Evans told of the “emotional toll” inflicted by the internet bullying she suffered following her appearance on MKR.

Adelaide's 2012 My Kitchen Rules winner Jennifer Evans with new fiance Ratish Sachathamakul. Picture: Supplied

“The emotional damage was brutal. People attacked me on social media, they called me dumb and stupid,” she said.

“I think it was fun for them (producers) to make me the villain. If I had my time again, if I knew people were going to write those things about me, I wouldn’t have gone on the show.”

Evans said it took years for her to recover, and soon after the show aired, she and then husband Ormond moved to Thailand.

She returned to Australia to run a cafe in Sydney before heading back to Thailand about three years ago.