Real Hustle star Alexis serves up MasterChef win
ALEXIS Conran served up a treat to claim the Celebrity MasterChef title last night.
The 44-year-old hit heights that judges “didn’t think were possible” on the show.
The actor and writer – best known for appearing in the BBC Three show The Real Hustle – beat Louise Minchin and Jimmy Osmond in the final.
He won praise from judges Gregg Wallace and John Torode with an “exquisite” chicken dish, leaving them to hail the London-based actor as a “very, very worthy winner”.
Wallace said: “It was one of the best dishes I have tasted in a long, long time. I was blown away by the skill he showed. Alexis hit heights that I didn’t think were possible in Celebrity MasterChef. I think the guy is incredible.”
Champion
Conran’s dishes in the final were inspired by his Greek background. He was brought up in the Mediterranean country until the age of 16.
Wallace added: “He is a very, very worthy Celebrity MasterChef winner. Aligning that wonderful presentation with his Greek heritage has resulted in some of the best food I have ever seen in this competition.”
The actor said: “I can’t believe it. I have been working up to this for so long, for this one moment. I am so very happy and relieved. My family are going to be so proud.
“I was very happy with ‘finalist’ but I’ll take ‘champion’. ‘Champion’ sounds great.”
The final task was to cook and present a three-course meal for the judges in two-and-a-half hours.
Conran made a starter of octopus stifado with fava beans. While Wallace and Torode were divided over the taste of the dish, they agreed on the technical skills used to make it.
His main course was stuffed chicken leg with feta curd, baby globe artichokes, peas and beetroot.
He finished the round with nut filo pastry pinwheels and yoghurt mixed with condensed milk and fig.
Speaking during the final, Torode said: “Regardless of whether Gregg and I agreed on them, Alexis’s dishes looked amazing. His food has become sophisticated, exciting – it is just fantastic to eat. I loved it.”
Throughout the competition, contestants faced numerous tough challenges, including preparing a Michelin-standard three-course meal hosted by Michelin-starred chef Atul Kochhar.