A MERIDEN beauty salon owner is set is hoping to wow the judges in the Masterchef semi-final.
Pookie claimed her spot in the final 10 of the competition after wowing former winners and the judges with her beef fillet with oriental sauce and spicy salad and a creme brulee.
The 45-year-old grew up in Bangkok before moving to the UK after earning her degree and while she has Thai-Chinese heritage she said she does not limit herself to Thai-Chinese food.
Pookie said: “I am Thai with Chinese heritage and although this has a huge influence on my cooking, I don’t limit myself to Thai-Chinese food.
“I like cooking international foods but love introducing my own style with all the foods I’ve cooked.
“Most of all I want my food to be flavoursome, delicious, fun and put a smile on people’s faces.”
On April 26 her skills will be tested once again as she heads back into the kitchen.
In the first part of the semi-finals the Pookie will be given her first taste of what it’s like to work in a restaurant setting as the Masterchef kitchen turns professional for the day with judge John Torode running the pass.
The contestants will be split into groups and will need to create a three-course meal for 20 past MasterChef quarter finalists, semi finalists and finalists.
At the end of Tuesday’s show two contestants will leave the competition and the remaining eight will go on to the next show where they will complete an invention test before two more are asked to leave.
The final six will then cook at a special dinner to celebrate the Royal British Legion’s 100th anniversary in London and return to the third round of the semi final where they will be asked to create a dish inspired by the song Buttery Biscuit Bass.
The final five will then battle it out in the show’s Finals Week.
