R1m ‘MasterChef SA’ winner not cooking up ideas to leave day job

A self-proclaimed introvert with a contagious giggle and a penchant for meat and potatoes is the latest winner of MasterChef SA and R1m.

Home cook Andrew “Benjie” Benjamin, 40, whose day job is maintaining hazardous high-voltage electricity transmission lines, has been crowned the winner of MasterChef SA Season 6.

The Kimberley cook narrowly beat fellow contestant, Candice Meth, 39, in a tense cook-off in which the top two had two hours to create a three-course meal that reflected their journey on the show.

Judge Justine Drake said his meringues were “a thing of beauty”, while Zola Nene said his pork belly main was something you would see in a fine dining restaurant.

The Daily Dispatch asked him:

What went through your mind when you were announced the winner?

There was a lot of emotion going through my mind, although it was already an achievement to make it to the final.

I loved it but it was a tough competition, and the final was the toughest cook. I was ecstatic to win!

Might you be swapping life as a high-voltage electrical line maintenance specialist for being a chef?

I think I can balance the two. I have huge respect and love for my day job and running a restaurant is tough. I will stick to my day job and cook on weekends.

Who taught you to cook?

I grew up with my granny and in that kitchen she taught me the basics — chopping, peeling and checking the oven. I was in my early teens.

She needed my help, but I also showed an interest in cooking. I had a scrap book and cut and pasted recipes from magazines.

Now it is easiest to screengrab a recipe online.

I actually wanted to pursue the culinary stream after school, but funds were too limited for chef school and I lost my love for cooking for a while.

Do you cook all your family meals?

My wife Solomé, who I married 13 years ago, and I take turns to cook for ourselves and our children, twins Andrew and Alicia, eight, and Allistair, five.

My wife is a good cook. At the beginning of our marriage I actually didn’t cook much. I just assisted her and braaied, but she knew I could cook.

How does it feel to be recognised everywhere?

It feels weird! People I don’t know are calling me by my nickname Benjie. My actual name is Andrew.

I still have to adapt to people asking for selfies. But it is very nice. Although as an introvert it is a bit of a shocker. Everything is just too fast, so I have to adjust.

What was the toughest challenge you faced on the show?

When we did vegetarian stuff I was out of my comfort zone. I don’t cook a lot of vegetarian dishes. Like with the turnip challenge. It needs flavour from meat!

Since the show I have made turnip soup, but it had meat in it.

Was there a moment when you thought you might be eliminated?

It happened during the second episode. It was my darkest moment in the kitchen. I wasn’t yet comfortable in that kitchen. And the pace was very fast.

I thought I would be eliminated that day but I won it! I had to make the judges’ final meal and I made lamb curry and flat breads and two salads.

It is very high-paced and when you make an error you have to move forward very quickly.

What challenge tested you the most and why?

The semifinal episode. It was a pressure test where we had to recreate chef Peter Duncan’s dish of viskop sop (fish head soup) and a fillet of fish.

There were so many flavours and other elements that had to come together. But by that stage in the show I was able to work faster and I won R100,000.

Did you feel a little guilty that you won the R100,000 as well as the R1m?

No, when I was in Kokkedoor (Kyknet cookery show) I won a few prizes and I felt a bit bad taking them all.

But in MasterChef SA, two other contestants won R50,000 along the way and so I was glad they got prizes.

Which fellow contestant impressed you the most right from the start of the show?

Myles Heneke. I was a bit scared of Myles because the levels of his flavour were already amazing at the start.

So when he got eliminated, I was surprised. Time got the worst of him because if he had got all of his elements onto his plate he would have done well.

Which judge did you find most intimidating?

All three of them! They all had their good and bad days. They took turns to grill you! It was equal treatment from all of them.

What ingredients or flavours best represent your cooking style?

I love garlic salt and coriander. I just love cooking with them. I must always have those in the kitchen.

What is your signature dish now?

I love a salt rib beef from the Northern Cape served with tomato relish and pap. I’m a meat and potatoes person.

I cook very simply during the week. Once or twice a month, I make something fancy like cured salmon and sushi rice.

What dish do you make when you want to impress your family or friends?

I like to do a biltong-spiced kudu fillet with grilled vegetables and a potato gratin.

The majority of people don’t know I love to cook and so they have been shocked to see me on the show. Even some family members! They didn’t expect this electrician to be able to cook.

What is the one cooking mistake you will never make again?

To never doubt myself. Sometimes you make a decision that you can’t tackle something but when you do you realise it’s not that bad. You must shake off that fear that you are not good enough or strong enough ...

For instance, I was very afraid of desserts but got more comfortable doing them.

What surprised you most about filming the show?

It takes a whole day to shoot one episode. So it is the amount of time it takes. And filming the diaries and the amount of people in the background that assist in making the show. It’s been a huge eye-opener.

Which contestant became a particularly good friend?

All of them but if I have to say one then it would be Nkululeko [Ngubane]. I bonded al lot with him. We still chat to each other every day!

All of us contestants are in a huge WhatsApp group. So when the show was airing we would chat during the ad breaks. People would say ‘Why did you do that?’ and ‘Why did you say that?’ There would be constant communications.

How intense were the cameras and did you eventually get used to them?

There were days where you felt it was too much, like when the content guys ask you questions while you are cooking. At the beginning it was distracting. And when judges come round to talk to you.

Initially I would stop cooking to speak to them. But they would say proceed. It felt a bit rude not to stop cooking while they spoke to me, but that is the way cooking competitions work.

How has winning changed your life and have you started your home renovations with your prize money?

I haven’t received it yet! I would like to renovate the kitchen. It could have a better flow. Currently we have a small oven so I can’t bake and we need more work space.

Our house is old and was built in the ’60s or ’70s. When we married, we did install a new kitchen, but it is outdated.

If you could cook a meal for any famous person in the world who would it be and what would you cook?

I would love to cook for chef Ruben Riffle. I already did cook for him in the show, so he knows my cooking. He loves bold flavours, so my menu would take some planning!

For someone international I would love to cook for Samuel L Jackson. I would cook a lamb dish. It’s something that we are used to as South Africans.

What is your ultimate comfort food?

Salt rib.

What would your cookbook be called?

From the Sauce! I have seen how some of the MasterChef Australia and America winners started restaurants and cookbooks. It is almost generic.

For me I want to enjoy cooking. Maybe in the future I will do a recipe book. I love to cook on the fire so would love to integrate that.

And your restaurant?

The Hungry Bean. My other surname is Beans — it’s my father’s surname. Some people have called me Mr Beans, but then they expect you to be funny! Benjamin is my mother’s surname.

How difficult was it to keep your win a secret?

I had to keep it secret for nine months! It felt crazy because people would ask me how far I got. I’d just say I don’t remember which episode.

At work people would say: “You were gone for six weeks so you must have got far! But I would always just say ‘watch the show!’