Junior MasterChef Australia: Melissa Leong’s hope for COVID lessons
Living in Melbourne and with a painfully close connection to the struggling hospitality industry, Melissa Leong knows only too well the deep impacts of the continuing health crisis that has swept the globe. But she is confident something good will come of it.
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Living in Melbourne and with a painfully close connection to the struggling hospitality industry, Melissa Leong knows only too well the deep impacts of the continuing health crisis that has swept the globe. But the new MasterChef judge is hopeful at least one positive will come out of these unprecedented times.
Leong, who together with chef Jock Zonfrillo and former winner Andy Allen took over the judging duties on the wildly popular cooking competition this year and are preparing to helm Junior MasterChef, is optimistic that with restaurants forced to shut their doors and families returning to basics in the kitchen, we will see a greater appreciation for food and a new generation willing to try new things.
“I think this time in the world has, for better or for worse, forced us all to slow down and especially for us here in Victoria, it’s very sad that hospitality has had to grind to a halt in many way and that’s affected so many people I care a lot about,” Leong tells Insider.
“Take away is one way to support the industry but at the same time going back to basics and relearning — or learning for the first time — how to cook very simple things are all foundational basics all people should learn to be able to do.”
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Leong, who spent the decade before landing the MasterChef gig as a freelance food and travel writer, editor and broadcaster, says people will no doubt make mistakes in the kitchen, but stresses the importance of sticking to it and equipping yourself with food skills.
“Now that we have the time to make it a couple of times and maybe the first few times you don’t really succeed but you can continue to push on through that,” she says.
“I really have the greatest of hopes that at the end of this pandemic situation, a lot more of us will be a lot more accomplished in the kitchen and if nothing more, have a greater appreciation for those in hospitality who take care of us.”
A connection to food and its origins has always been important to Leong who spent two years living at an abattoir and dairy farm in Tasmania to garner a better understanding of the agricultural process.
“We should never, ever, forget how to cook because when you forget how to cook you also lose that connection with where your food comes from,” she says.
“When we grow up in the suburbs or we grow up in the city we already have a setback because we don’t have that tangible connection with agriculture and with primary industry and so we lose that understanding, that respect and that value of how hard it is to rear our food and grow and kill and catch and cure our food and process it.
“I think learning how to cook makes you appreciative of good produce and your access to ingredients in general and I think it’s a connection and a lifecycle that’s really important to pass on to our kids.”
After the shock announcement that long-time MasterChef judges Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris and Matt Preston were leaving the show last year after a decade and Leong, Zonfrillo and Allen were announced as their replacements, all eyes were on how the loyal audience would take to them.
Leong says she wasn’t overwhelmed by taking on a role that had been held by three men who Australian audiences had come to love.
“Weirdly looking back on it there was no fear,” she says. “I was aware and I continue to be incredibly respectful of everything that has happened before me that has allowed me to have this opportunity.”
Of course there were some anxious moments when the show first went to air as they held their collective breath to get the feedback from fans. They had nothing to worry about — ratings remained good and there seemed to be a consensus –—albeit a social media-led one – that the three new judges were a winning combination.
“We feel very fortunate and continue every day to thank our lucky stars that the audience resonated so positively with it,” Leong says.
“In many ways MasterChef Australia belongs to its audience, the audience has been with this show for over a decade, they have loved every moment of it, they have shouted it from the rooftops, they’ve applied to compete and won.”
After their first season wrapped the new judges set their sights on Junior MasterChef, a spinoff that sees 14 young chefs go head-to-head in the kitchen. More than 2000 future cooks applied to be on the show and Leong, who had watched the show but never fully grasped the sheer talent of the kids, was blown away.
“When the subject of the show happening was put on the table, we were all just so excited and enthusiastic for the idea of it but then in practice, meeting these super-talented little juniors and observing their excitement for life and new discovery and for everything the show entails, it was such a beacon of light for us three.”
* Junior MasterChef screens on Ten, 7.30pm, from October 11
Originally published as Junior MasterChef Australia: Melissa Leong’s hope for COVID lessons