MasterChef contestant Larissa Takchi denies sabotage claims
MasterChef favourite Larissa Takchi has hit back at claims of sabotage on the hit reality show, saying the group of contestants is closely bonded despite the competition heating up.
Confidential
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Masterchef favourite Larissa Takchi has laughed off suggestions of sabotage and game playing as the reality cooking show heads into the pointy end of the competition.
The 22-year-old, who will be the youngest ever Masterchef victor if she wins the series, was last week accused of hoodwinking fellow contestants.
“I guess towards the end of the competition things get more intense and very much more competitive,” she told Confidential. “In this environment, we are not really here to make friends but as a bonus we have bonded so well and even towards the very end, we’ve been helping each other out and giving each other advice. It is intense but at the same time, we only have each other to help get through this (final) week.”
Online betting agency Sportsbet has Takchi favourite to win the series with odds of $1.45, ahead of Tim Bone at $3 and Tessa Boersma at $4.
Takchi was criticised online after a group challenge because she already had an immunity pin and didn’t do well in the kitchen for the team effort.
“We are not a conniving group of people,” she said. “That is not what Masterchef is about; it is very supportive and positive show. It is not like MKR (My Kitchen Rules on Channel 7) where it is very dramatic and there’s tension happening and a lot of plotting going on.”
After 12 weeks, Masterchef season 11 will have its grand final on Tuesday night (July 23).
“Being this young is not exactly easy, I am competing with contestants that are older than me but also they have been exposed to food for a lot longer than I have,” she explained. “I feel like everyone very early on in the competition already had their forte down pat while for me, my food journey was just starting. I think people like to doubt me because they think I don’t know what I am doing. There’s a bit of criticism out there, which is normal I guess.”
Takchi has already got big plans after the show regardless of how she fares in the final episode.
Currently a restaurant manager at her mum’s Dural cafe, Wild Pear, her dream is to one day start her own paddock to plate venture.
“The idea is that whatever I grow will be on my menu,” she said. “I want to do as much as I can now so that I can achieve that long term goal for me.
Shorter term though she is looking to extend to dinner hours at her mother’s restaurant.
“Who knows what is going to happen, that is the best part of this journey,” she said. “I am hopeful but lets see how it all goes.”
Originally published as MasterChef contestant Larissa Takchi denies sabotage claims
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