While Sarah is a familiar face in the MasterChef kitchen, originally appearing in Season 6 and Season 14, this year we saw a completely new side to her. The fan favourite returned to the competition to push herself beyond her creative limits, using the French techniques and foundations, and her global palate to surprise each and every time she brought a plate of food up to the judges.
“Walking through the doors, all the same nerves were there,” Sarah told 10, “but I quite quickly got to the point where I thought I’m back here for a third time, what do I want out of this?
“I just wanted to be myself and to cook dishes that are really unique, and get to show the world what madness is going on up there,” she continued.
“I just went for it this season, and I think, as soon as that started to happen, I felt so free. I was focusing on what I wanted to cook and to execute it as well as I could.”
Likening her food to a painting, Sarah said she’s always struggled with the idea of the raw and intense criticism you open yourself up to when putting your heart and soul into a plate of food. “I got to the point where I was like, I am ready to do this, and I’m not going to just cook dishes that my grandparents have made and I know are perfect because they’re 50 years old and everybody loves them.
“I’m going to cook dishes that are mine, and if people hate them, love them, understand them, don’t understand them, I’m at the point where I’m ready to do that,” Sarah said. “I’m ready to open up and allow myself to feel all of that criticism.”
Throughout the season, Sarah became known for taking big risks, crafting dishes that displayed her technical skill while also highlighting her natural ability to think way outside of the box. While she admitted that the creative process was thrilling, she also still had to face the judges each time her big swings may not have paid off.
‘I was totally losing my stomach walking up with my dish, but the days when they absolutely loved it, oh gosh, the feeling is like no other. It’s like jumping out of an aeroplane, you can’t get that kind of feeling when you’re just cooking for your family,” she laughed.
“Every time I go back into the kitchen I think, ‘Why the hell am I doing this?’ but after I finish I realise just how much I have grown in my cooking style,” Sarah continued.
The combination of adrenaline and pressure, as well as her natural affinity to push herself to be better each and every time she steps into the kitchen, saw Sarah produce some incredible and memorable dishes while also evolving her culinary perspective for the judges and audience at home.
“I’m not a person who says so much with my words in most situations, and I think, in MasterChef, I really do get to say that with my food, and I really managed to do that this season in a really big way.
“Every time I walk in, I have no expectations, but I always walk out going, wow, I really did achieve a lot during that time,” Sarah continued. “This was definitely the biggest growth in the way that I was cooking in the kitchen for sure.”
Admittedly not a competitive person, Sarah laughed at this being her third time in the country’s biggest cooking competition. “I just love self-improvement and I’m always trying to better myself, whether it’s emotionally, mentally or in my career.
“I think, being back in this season, it wasn’t so much about winning, but it was definitely about cooking incredible food every time I walked in,” she added. This is partly why, even on a black apron day where the chefs were fighting for their spot in the competition, she would still take massive risks.
“I wasn’t thinking, oh, today’s a black apron day, I better cook something safe. I was thinking, it might be my last day in the kitchen, so I’ll cook an amazing dish and, whether I’m safe or not, I’ll make a dish that I know I’m so proud of.
“Those days, I pushed myself even harder. It was just about cooking as well as I possibly could every single day,” Sarah said.
During Sunday night’s two-round elimination, Sarah once again displayed her unrestrained creativity, but time constraints meant that her dish just wasn’t up to scratch, and sadly, her time in the competition came to an end.
“Obviously, I was so disappointed to be leaving because I just love the way my mind was working and the dishes that I was creating,” Sarah admitted. “I feel like I’ve got this repertoire of a huge menu that I could just walk in, open a restaurant and have a menu ready to go. I loved that I was doing that and creating that.
“On the other hand, it was a relief in a sense because I just went home and slept,” Sarah laughed. “And I’m a glass-half-full person, I think that it was my time to go, and I truly believe what is meant to be is meant to be. I knew this was my time, and I’m happy with everything I cooked and how I was through the competition.”
While the win slipped through her fingers again, Sarah said the outpouring of love and support from fans across the globe has been overwhelmingly positive. “I really saw the magnitude of people getting behind me and the dishes, and I just can’t even believe it, to be honest.”
At her recent pop-up, a 12-year-old fan had travelled in for the chance to meet the celebrity chef. “She was my biggest fan, and I was just like, wow, to get to influence the next generation of young girls, seeing that follow through and that it’s impacting them, is really rewarding and makes it feel like it’s bigger than just me in that moment. I think that’s really powerful.”
MasterChef Australia: Back to Win. Watch + Stream Free On 10. Sundays at 7pm and Monday - Tuesday at 7.30pm.
