MasterChef Australia contestant Michelle Lukman’s golden chocolate ball delights judges

BOX Hill teenager Michelle Lukman has wowed the MasterChef Australia judges with one of the most audacious dishes ever created on the show.

BOX Hill teenager Michelle Lukman has wowed the MasterChef Australia judges with one of the most audacious dishes ever created on the show.

The 19-year-old went straight to the competition’s Top 24 in tonight’s season premiere with her mysterious Golden Ball dessert.

The milk chocolate ball, coloured with golden dust, hid a mixture of cream cheese and mascarpone, peppered with fresh raspberries, popping candy, mint, biscuit pieces and caramelised white chocolate.

MasterChef Australia producers deemed her dessert so spectacular it has been featured on several promos for the Channel 10 cooking show.

MasterChef contestant Michelle Lukman.

“I’ve made variations of the golden ball before, but for the audition I wanted to try something a little more special,” Ms Lukman said.

“I think the judges were pretty stoked when they cracked it open, and saw how beautiful it was.

“I think they were also surprised that I made it because I’m quite young.”

Ms Lukman, a nutrition and food technology student at RMIT, was born in Badung, Indonesia, and moved to Box Hill with her family when she was 11.

Her love of food came from her family, and she said that shows through in her cooking.

“I began taking a real interest in food when my aunt was living with us and I was about 12 or 13,” Ms Lukman said.

“The golden ball is actually a throwback to when I was little — my grandmother had this really shiny Christmas ball and I was so fascinated by it I actually dropped it and it broke — so the golden ball is actually representative of that,” she said.

Her dream is to one day open a dessert bar and café.

“I love cooking desserts because I can be more creative.”

“Hopefully my time on MasterChef will help me get there,” she said.