MasterChef runner-up at Canterbury A & P Show

7 November 2011

MasterChef runner-up at Show

She may have been runner-up in the second season of MasterChef New Zealand but Jax Hamilton is sure to be a favorite with Show visitors, cooking up a storm with twice daily demonstrations in the Electrolux Kitchen in the Food & Wine NZ Pavilion at this year’s Canterbury A&P Show.

The Christchurch mother of two cooked her way to the semi-final of the 2011 series, narrowly missing out to 25-year-old Nadia Lim in a final challenge where they had to make 340 macaroons and assemble into a tower for judging.

One thousand people entered MasterChef and it was Jax’s personality that made her popular with television audiences. “Where food is concerned, I think of myself as an inspirational cook. I love to blend a little cockney with a little Caribbean all served up on a kiwi plate” commented Hamilton.

Known particularly for preparing food that is easy to emulate, sourcing locally produced, fresh seasonal ingredients and creating dishes that maintain the integrity of the produce, Jax always allows for a bucket load of creativity in her cooking.

Another face that will be known to television audiences, demonstrating in the Food & Wine NZ Pavilion, is Lana Garland, presenter of Food in a Minute.

Garland worked in restaurants while waiting for that big break. She has worked as a waitress, barista, cook and manager all the way through an acting career – and loves all foods from Turkish to Pacific, fusion to fish and chips. Lana believes that presenting Food in a Minute is a dream job. “I feel like I have been training for it for years. My first job was cooking in, and later running, a busy kitchen and over the last 15 years I’ve worked in restaurants. The best preparation though, probably comes from having to cook great food on a budget for my family!’ added Garland.

The Food & Wine NZ Pavilion will also host cooking demonstrations from Di Swann, Home Economist at Watties and Bevan Smith from Riverstone Kitchen. Smith opened Riverstone Kitchen in November 2006. In 2010 it was awarded Supreme Winner in Cuisine Magazine’s Restaurant of the Year Awards, the first time both a casual restaurant and a South Island restaurant have claimed the top honour.

The 2011 Canterbury A&P Show will be held Wednesday 9 to Friday 11 November at Canterbury Agricultural Park in Christchurch. It is the largest A&P Show in the country attracting over 100,000 people, over 6000 livestock and feature competition entries and 500 trade exhibitors.

ENDS

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