A Dream Come True
Inderpal Singh, a 33-year-old home-based F&B business owner, has been crowned the winner of MasterChef Singapore Season 4. He beat two other finalists, business manager Mandy Kee and administrative officer Tina Amin, in a nail-biting finale that aired on Sunday (Oct 15).
Singh, who has been dreaming of becoming a culinary personality, said he was proud and ecstatic to hold the trophy in his hands. He thanked his family, friends and fellow contestants for their support and encouragement throughout the competition.
He also expressed his hope that his daughter would one day read his story as an inspiration for their future restaurant chain.
A Three-Course Challenge
The final challenge of the season required the contestants to create a three-course menu for the judges, Chefs Audra Morrice, Damian D’Silva and Bjorn Shen. Each course would receive a maximum score of 30 points.
The contestants were free to create their own dishes for the first two courses, but they had to face a surprise pressure test for the dessert round. Pastry chef Janice Wong, aka Singapore’s Queen of Desserts, appeared unannounced and made them replicate her original creation: The Super Tree Growth.
The dessert, inspired by Singapore’s gardens, consisted of ten distinct layers of chocolate, mousse and a lava core assembled together through repeated dipping in liquid nitrogen.
A Flavourful Victory
Singh impressed the judges with his outstanding flavour profile across his dishes that delivered surprises in taste and texture with every bite. His appetiser was a smoked salmon tartare with caviar and pickled cucumber. His main dish was a lamb shank curry with saffron rice and mint chutney. His dessert was a faithful rendition of the Super Tree Growth.
He scored 76.6 out of 90 points, beating runner-up Amin by 3.6 points and second runner-up Kee by 8.1 points. Amin’s menu featured a scallop carpaccio, a beef rendang and a chocolate cake with salted caramel sauce. Kee’s menu included a prawn salad, a chicken rice and a mango sticky rice.
A Rewarding Prize
As the newest MasterChef Singapore, Singh walked away with S$10,000 in cash, a collection of Luzerne tableware, a staycation package at Resorts World Sentosa (RWS)’s Hotel Ora and a three-month internship at one of RWS’ speciality restaurants.
Singh and Amin also shared homewares and appliances from Kraton, KitchenAid and Global Knives. All three finalists also each took home a Thermomix.
In a previous interview with CNA Lifestyle, Singh said he dreams of making Punjabi food popular in Singapore and fusing it with local flavours and regional ideas. He also planned to use some of the prize money for R&D to set up a restaurant.
