Ingredients to achieve

A Baulkham Hills teacher is proving she has what it takes to become a MasterChef.

Elena Duggan, of Baulkham Hills, preparing her dish of fish and chips on MasterChef Australia. Picture: Network Ten

Galston High School will be cheering on their head of creative and performing arts from their lounge rooms as she battles to become the next MasterChef.

Elena Duggan secured a place in the top 24 of Network Ten’s MasterChef Australia in the season premiere on Sunday night.

It was second time lucky for Ms Duggan, 32, who applied for MasterChef’s seventh season but was unsuccessful.

Elena Duggan received an apron in the season premiere of MasterChef Australia on Sunday night. Picture: Network Ten

“I think at the time I possibly wasn’t quite ready enough,” she said.

“And I realised when I didn’t get in (I realised) I actually really wanted it, so I worked a lot harder on practising and researching and reading.”

The hard work paid off and Ms Duggan immediately impressed judges Matt Preston, George Colombaris and Gary Mehigan with her classic dish of fish and chips.

“My audition was quite towards the end so there was a lot of nervous waiting,” she said.

“But as soon as I started cooking I just powered through it.”

Ms Duggan, who grew up in Queensland, said her passion for cooking began at a young age.

“My earliest memories combined two of my greatest passions, art and cooking,” she said.

“And when my mum would get home from work … she would sit me on the kitchen benchtop and give me little jobs.

“… So I always took a great interest and ... the more knowledge I had, the more I wanted to learn.”

Ms Duggan “loves cooking with seafood” and local produce and hopes to turn her passions for cooking and education into a new venture one day.

“I’d love to run a farm cafe that would eventually grow all the produce that we use to create the dishes,” she said.

“And I’d love for it to be community oriented so I can support, train and employ young people.”

Whatever happens on MasterChef, it is clear Ms Duggan’s cooking career is just beginning.

“I’m sort of on this learning high,” she said.

“I’m hungry for more knowledge, being in education I’m sure helps, but I love to learn and the learning curve has been huge.

“And I want to keep on absorbing as much as I can.”

MasterChef airs on Network Ten from Sundays-Thursdays at 7.30pm.