Gabriella wins Taste Bud Battle cook-off
Trezar, Gabriella and Yusri each received prizes worth over R30 000.
The newly crowned Junior Chef of the Year 2019, Gabriella Shalekoff from King David Primary Linksfield, won the Taste Bud Battle on September 14.
The cook-off took place at the Capsicum Culinary Studio in Rosebank.
Gabriella, who is 11 years old won, with her buttermilk crumbed chicken breasts, bay buns with homemade chunky chips and homemade mayonnaise dish.
She also scored well on her culinary kitchen skills and plating design.
Gabriella said she started baking when she was little.
“I always wanted to bake with my mom.”
The young chef said the competition was fun and exciting.
Other winners Trezar Bhana and Yusri Zunaid both took the top chef honours in the senior chef and mini chef categories.
Competition director and COO of Contact Media and Communications Donna Verrydt said the dishes produced in the final cook-off would make even Gordon Ramsay proud.
“The cook-off was highly competitive with challenging time constraints.”
To manage the pressure, Gabriella tried to calm herself down.
“I had to take lots of deep breaths.”
Contestants came from all over South Africa and made it into the finals by battling it out in the initial first plate round against more than 100 contestants.
“It was really fun to watch these children in action and we managed to unearth some unbelievable talent,” said Donna.
The Taste Bud Battle sponsors were Capsicum Culinary Studio, Kenwood South Africa, Snowflake, o2 Kitchen Equipment & Storage, Thrupps Illovo Centre, Ferreira Fresh and Nicolway Bryanston.
Trezar, Gabriella and Yusri each received prizes worth over R30 000.
Gabriella said she is going to buy Harry Potter books and save the rest of the money for something exciting.
“I want to carry on baking in future and maybe one day become a pastry chef.”
Mary Berry is Gabriella’s inspiration in the baking world.
The baking princess also said she feels happy in the kitchen.
“It makes me happy to see everyone eating my food.”
Her favourite Israeli food from her heritage is shawarmas and hummus.
Gabriella’s advice to other children who want to win the competition was to try their best.
“Never give up. It’s not about winning or prizes, it’s about having fun.”
For more information on the competition visit www.tastebudbattle.co.za
