Junior MasterChef Australia

I’ve been watching the Junior MasterChef Australia at TVB Pearl the past few weeks. The show is a cooking contest among young kids aged 8-12 who will compete as Australia’s top young chef by undergoing through cooking various recipes depending on certain criteria.

The show takes me back when I was a kid myself. Growing up in a family fond of cooking (we used to have a carinderia), I prepare various dishes for different occasions. When going to school, I prepared lunch boxes for my younger sisters. By watching my grandma cook (she’s the best) I got to learn the noble art of cooking. So when I was tending to our small eatery, I would prepare some of the ‘signature’ dishes sought after by workers in a nearby pineapple plantation.

Unlike other reality shows where elimination takes place every week, the kids at Junior MasterChef Australia are given most chances to prove their worth and encouraged by popular hosts gifted with versatile cooking skills.

By the time I started watching the show, there were 12 remaining contestants left in the running. I was amazed by the type of dishes these kids are preparing. Among them are

Among the 12 remaining participants is my favorite, Siena, the youngest among the group at 8 (she turned 9 by the time only four contestants were left — she’s one of them).

Two weeks after closely watching the show, the Philippine version of the show went on air via TFC. The show is hosted by Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo and also follows the same format as the Australian. While it’s unfair to make a judgment between Pinoy Junior MasterChef and Junior MasterChef Australia based on the skill and type of dishes they cook, the Australian show got me more excited, probably because it’s already at the crucial stage, while its Philippine counterpart is still on its early stages.