Matthew Astorga’s quest to become the country’s best home cook started very young.
As a kid, he would make omelettes for his sisters, even lying to the babysitter to be allowed to use the stove.
Then came the cookbooks. As he embarked on a career in digital design at age 18, he amassed a sizable collection, and poured through them on his days off in a bid to hone his culinary chops.
A big fan of shows like MasterChef in the U.S. and Australia, the Pitt Meadows resident wasn’t deterred by being turned down for the first two seasons of MasterChef Canada.
After beating thousands of home cooks to get onto season 3, he secured a spot in the final 14 to get onto the show – and is now the sole British Columbian in the Top 5.
“It feels amazing. We are the cream of the crop,” the 25-year-old says about the upcoming finals, which gives him the chance to win $100,000 and the title of Canada’s MasterChef.
“I’m really excited to be the remaining home cook in B.C. – I’m flying the flag for us.”
The bounty of fresh, local ingredients available in B.C. has inspired his MasterChef dishes, including the one that clinched his spot in the show: Jasmine-smoked salmon in a miso dashi broth with grilled green onion and shiitake mushrooms.
“We’re spoiled by the amount of produce that we have in B.C. We’re surrounded by farms, so on my days off we just go for a drive,” he said.
The self-taught cook says the level of competition in the show has been “fierce,” but he’s also found himself growing calmer with every mystery box and pressure test thrown his way.
“My mind went to a place where I was like, you don’t even have time to freak out. You just have to think about what you’re doing right now,” he said.
That thinking may be part of his success on the show. During the downtime between filming, Astorga used the time to learn recipes for cakes, doughs and sauces he may quickly need to whip up during a challenge.
“I bought four different pastry cookbooks so I could study them. You really have to think on your feet,” he said.
He cites the season’s biggest challenge was creating a complicated charlotte cake – complete with ladyfingers, sponge cake, mousse, glaze and toppings – in just 60 minutes.
“All of that in one hour was pretty intense,” he said.
The moment of truth! #MasterChefCanada cc: @matthewastorga @claudioaprile pic.twitter.com/j1Noqtv4rQ
— MasterChef Canada (@MasterChefCDA) May 8, 2016
Although the home cook believes he will beat out the final four to clinch the title in the finals, no matter what happens he says he has made “friends for life” on the show, including fellow finalists April Lee Baker, Jeremy Senaris and Veronica Cham.
And just like every Sunday the show has aired, he will watch the remaining weeks of finals with family and friends at S+L Kitchen & Bar in Langley.
It’s hoped the venue will bring him a little made-in-B.C. luck: The restaurant is run by David Jorge, the winner of last season’s MasterChef Canada.
Astorga has big dreams – he wants “an empire just like Gordon Ramsay” – but at the end of the day he just wants to follow his passion: food.
“I’d love to make food my life’s work,” he said. “Winning the title would help me do that.”
New episodes of MasterChef Canada air on CTV Sundays at 7 p.m. PT.
