‘You don’t understand’: MasterChef judge Melissa Leong snaps at a viewer who questioned the show’s focus on curry
Melissa Leong is often seen as the ‘nicer’ judge on MasterChef – but if you speak negatively about the show and its cuisine, then you can expect a sharp response.
The food critic, 39, snapped at a viewer on Facebook on Tuesday night, after they said they were ‘sick’ of seeing certain contestants making curries ‘all the time’.
Without naming names, the fan wrote: ‘A little sick of seeing one or two cooks cooking curry all the time, their specialty, to stay in the comp.’
Angry: MasterChef judge Melissa Leong (pictured) has slammed a fan on Tuesday night who questioned the show’s focus on curry
Melissa, who an expert on international cuisine and food, offered a no-nonsense reply and then tweeted a screenshot of the exchange.
She clarified that curry isn’t a one-dimensional dish and actually spans many cuisines, meaning a chef can make curry every week and still offer plenty of variety.
‘Curry is a style of dish that encompasses thousands of dishes across all parts of Asia, the Middle East, Africa and beyond,’ she said.
‘I’m just going to put this here’: Melissa screenshot the fiery exchange on Facebook and tweeted it. In her response to the viewer she elaborated on the diverse nature of curry dishes
Melissa then wondered if anyone would make a similar criticism about a MasterChef contestant cooking European-style stews.
‘What you’re saying is that a European-oriented competitor should only cook one stew in the competition, even if they had dozens of really great ones of different kinds?’ she wrote.
Finishing her rebuttal, Melissa said it’s logical that the chefs ‘play to their strengths’ and it’s not their fault that some viewers ‘don’t see or understand the nuance, variation and technique’ of different types of curry.
Melissa’s exchange with the narrow-minded viewer drew praise on Twitter.
Shots fired: Melissa (pictured centre) continued with her explanation by questioning the viewer’s expectations, saying, ‘you want someone to vye to win a competition, but not play to their strengths because you don’t see or understand the nuance, variation and technique in what they do?’ Pictured here with fellow judges Andy (left) and Jock (right)
It comes after Tuesday night’s episode of MasterChef saw contestant Maja Veit eliminated after a pressure test.
Maja faced off against former teammates Tommy, Depinder and Pete after they lost Monday’s Deliveroo challenge.
She struggled during the challenge and, after the judges deduced that the thickness of her beef wellington pastry impeded the inside from cooking, she was sent packing her bags.
Sent home: Tuesday night’s episode saw Maja (pictured) packing her bags after failing the pressure test against former teammates Tommy, Depinder and Pete. She struggled during the challenge after the thickness of her beef wellington pastry impeded the inside from cooking