POH LING YEOW Why I went back to Master Chef

THE POPULAR CHEF ON TV FAME, RELIGION AND COOKING FOR THE MASSES

Poh Ling Yeow landed in the middle of the cyclone that is MasterChef way back in 2009, and her life has never been the same since. Now, after being a mentor to cooks on the reality TV show last year, Yeow is once again in the eye of the storm as a contestant on Season 12, filming for a draining 12-hour days, five days a week for the upcoming Network Ten show. “It’s a bit nuts at the moment,” Yeow, 47, says of filming. “But I’m loving it.”

Much has changed since Yeow became a household name when she came runner-up to Julie Goodwin in the inaugural season of MasterChef. She’s had her own series on both the ABC and SBS. She’s written books. She opened a cafe, Jamface by Poh, in Adelaide in 2016, which closed last year, and continues to bake for her weekend stall at Adelaide Farmers’ Market. And she even tied the knot with partner Jono Bennett in 2014.