POLOKWANE – It was all cooking systems go on Saturday morning as five nervous finalists made their way to The Ranch Resort for BONUS’s first MasterSoup Challenge Cook-off.
Having been selected by a panel of guest chefs, Erens Rachidi, Wendy Nemukula, Charles Mathabatha, Irene Duvenhage and Princess Martha Chuene-Masopoga were given three hours to show off their cooking skills in an attempt to tantalise the judges’ taste buds. With an air of excitement and nervous contestants scrimmaging for their ingredients, the cook-off began and soon the lapa at The Ranch was filled with an array of delectable smells and aromas.
The menu for the day included Rachidi’s Butternut squash soup with Crème Fraîche, Nemukela’s Butternut Soup, Mathabatha’s Mix Masala Soup, Duvenhage’s Egte Boere Groentesop and Chuene-Masopoga’s Chicken Veggie Soup.
The dishes were judged by The Ranch Resort’s Executive Chef, Dan Gee, Senior Sous Chef, Eugene Ramothawala and Operations Manager, Christo Hildebrand who each had to score the soups out of 10 based on flavour/taste, presentation and texture.
After the three hours, it was time to plate up and present their dishes to the judges.
“Taste is the most important thing, presentation comes second,” is what Chef Dan told BONUS when asked what he was looking for in a winner. In the end, there could only be one winner and with a score of 66 out of 90, Irene Duvenhage was crowned the MasterSoup Champion.
All her combined scores led to her walking away with a Melware induction stove set as well as a Bennett Read blender.
“This is a family recipe and I believe it’s the most delicious soup. I came into this competition confident that I would win and I did,” she said.
Second place was awarded to Charles Mathabatha and third place to Erens Rachidi. Wendy Nemukula walked away as the People’s Choice Winner, having received over 100 reactions on Facebook and 73 shares.
Sheralyn Janse van Rensburg, Marketing Coordinator, said the event was a fantastic community event. “The event showed that anyone from any walk of life and any age, can compete in a cooking competition,” she said.
Nico Myburgh, Sports and Leisure Manager at The Ranch Resort told BONUS he hopes to see more competitions such as the MasterSoup Challenge in the future. “Who knows, maybe we will see a MasterSoup Professional happening soon,” he said.
• BONUS would like to thank The Ranch Resort for their contribution, as well as Makro for sponsoring the prizes.
