This season of MasterChef Australia is arguably one of the toughest seasons yet. For the 12 hopeful home cooks who are pursuing their MasterChef dreams for the very first time, they’re going up against some of the biggest names in the Australian hospitality industry, like past MasterChef Australia winners Julie Goodwin, Billie McKay and Sashi Cheliah.
Keyma Vasquez Montero, one of the fans competing on MasterChef Australia: Fans and Favourites this year, believes she’s up to the challenge.
In a Q&A with The Latch, Vasquez Montero said that her favourite judge is former MasterChef Australia winner Andy Allen, because he’s “an inspiration” and “someone that gives us the example of how far and successful you can go with this experience”.
Describing herself as “a joyful, caring person, with upbeat and happy personality,” Vasquez Montero says she’s “always trying to see the positive and bright side of things”.
Vasquez Montero was born in Ciudad Guayana, a small town in Venezuela, and says her fondest food memory is “watching [her] family make seafood soup over hot coals in front of the seashore, after giving us buckets to pick up pipies in the sand”.
Now, she dreams of representing the Latin and Spanish community with her cooking, and her MasterChef journey may be the first step in doing just that.
In her ideal world, Vasquez Montero would own her own restaurant, which would feature a rotating menu with Latin, Caribbean and Australian flavours and influences.
Listing her food inspirations as Heston Blumenthal, Clare Smyth and Gordon Ramsay, it’s clear Vasquez Montero wants to follow in the footsteps of some of the food industry’s greatest, but will she be able to beat out all the Favourites? Only time will tell.
MasterChef Australia airs at 7.30pm Sunday-Thursdays, only on 10 and 10 Play on Demand.
Want more MasterChef Australia? Read here.
Read more stories from The Latch and subscribe to our email newsletter.