Kitchen creatives stir it up
Judges and contestants head to Bloemfontein for the next bingeworthy round, writes
AS THE competition heats up, M-Net’s reality food show, My Kitchen Rules SA introduced their Table Two contestants of the competition to viewers yesterday. The judges and Table Two contestants headed to Bloemfontein where Maritsa and Maradine hosted the first Instant Restaurant of the second round.
Last week, the first round of the competition ended with cooking couple, Tarryn and Diego being eliminated. This means Kim and Pashi, Jalal and Adrie, Rox and Spoen, and Minnie and Tee are the four pairs that will be moving into the next round: MKRSA Kitchen HQ, where they face a variety of tough challenges.
Meet the Table 2 contestants who will be putting their cooking skills to the test: Maj and Joleen: Parkview working moms Maj Larsen and Joleen Moulder, have known each other for 15 years. They are not necessarily “besties”, preferring to describe themselves as “friends in food”. Their backgrounds are poles apart. Maj is Danish and the owner of ROOM, a home decor store, while Joleen is Afrikaans and hails from Pretoria, with her professional career playing out in the fast-paced digital innovation space. When they join forces in the kitchen they give Nordic flavours a South African twist. Maj’s highly developed palate and creativity and Joleen’s knowledge of quality produce advanced planning skills. Donald and Luyanda: Food buddies, professional lifestyle and corporate photographer Donald Chipumha and food blogger and YouTuber Luyanda Mafanya exude everything you would expect from trendy millennials. They’re adventurous and curious global citizens, live life in the fun lane and are in tune with what’s hip and happening. They believe that food creates experiences and that one should be aware of the context of the food one consumes. It would be irresponsible to judge a plate without knowing its back story.
Their love for and appreciation of cuisine from a range of cultures has solidified their relationship. Now they want to get even closer in the kitchen, with one goal only – to bag the money! Dirk and Bahia: Afrikaans businessman Dirk Uys from Somerset West met stunning, sophisticated Bahia Karolia in an Indian restaurant in Joburg. They became the best of friends and are now engaged. Even though Bahia is an attorney and soon graduates with a Master’s degree in law, she has always enjoyed learning about the art of cooking and gained some valuable lessons about experimenting with ingredients and creating taste sensations from her mother, who puts an international spin on Indian food. Dirk, who is rather modest about his skills in the kitchen, is the perfect partner. They love adding a modern touch to their respective rich food histories and traditional dishes. Expect some eclectic food experiences! Ash and Chris: Inspiring cousins Ashley William Van Heerden and Christin Daniels better known as Ash and Chris, grew up together in the same small house in Manenberg and made it their life’s task to uplift and care for their disadvantaged community. Go-getter single mom Chris, a risk manager at a major financial institution, and Ash, who served as a youth adviser for the UN Environment Programme, and now as a project manager at a charity, providing services to special needs children and families, are both seasoned travellers.
Now they aspire to bring the world’s flavours to Manenberg’s doorstep and showcase Manenberg’s resilience. Homely and hearty Cape Malay-inspired dishes, infused with global flavours, is how the cousins describe their food style. For them, food brings people together, while sharing meals represents love, comfort and unbreakable family bonds. Their drive to serve has inspired them to start a community development project with a focus on the power of food to bring people together. Maritsa and Maradine: Happily married couple of four years, logical operations expert Maritsa Prinsloo and creative photographer Maradine Whitehorn live in the beautiful city of roses, Bloemfontein, where they love to entertain friends and family in their revamped home.
They are farm girls at heart and attribute their culinary skills to their mothers and grandmothers – and a weight-loss programme that launched their adventurous cooking journey. While Maritsa loves experimenting with lamb, rosemary, thyme and lemon, Maradine is the avid dessert maker. Any excuse to combine sugar, butter, eggs and chocolate for a taste sensation will do.
However, whether it’s sweet or salty, Maritsa or Maradine, there’s one thing they steadfastly insist on: food should look and taste great!
In this Sunday’s episode, Table Two heads to Bloemfontein where Maritsa and Maradine are the lucky pair to host the first Instant Restaurant of the second table. My Kitchen Rules South Africa airs on Sundays on M-Net at 6pm.