Bath's Ping Coombes has made it through to the semi-finals of BBC MasterChef by impressing judges with her ability to create a fusion of flavours with different cuisines.
The 33-year-old mum from Fairfield Park wiped away tears of joy as she was told she had made it to the semi-finals of MasterChef 2014.
Viewers tuned in last night (Friday) to see Mrs. Coombes winning a place in the final six after cooking duck breast with caramelised plums and red wine jus, and mushroom and ginger spring rolls.
Mrs. Coombes hugged fellow semi-finalists and said: "I'm so pleased" before admitting: "I'm petrified about what's round the corner."
The eight contestants had just one-and-a-half hours to cook a show-stopping meal in the final knockout round of the popular amateur chef TV show.
Judges said they had a really difficult decision to make but they were looking for "the absolute best" and the "perfect plate of food."
Despite the pressure, Mrs. Coombes remained confident and cooked up a storm by bringing together an impressive list of ingredients.
Judge John Torode was full of praise about being able to taste both sweet and sour flavours at the same time. He said: "There is bags and bags of flavour in this dish."
While judge Gregg Wallace said: "I'm tripping from the flavour sensation. You have a clever ability to blend east and west which is very difficult."
Mrs. Coombes, who has a 16-month-old daughter called Alexa and is married to Andrew, got into cooking to try to recreate her mum's dishes when she moved to the UK from Malaysia.
She says she loves to develop East Asian flavours by using European cooking methods to bring out more flavour from the ingredients.
She told viewers last night: "I feel very lucky and privileged to be on this show."
She went on to say that being under pressure in the kitchen for the TV was "surreal and quite terrifying at the same time" but she said she remained determined to "keep on getting through."
MasterChef fans can see how Mrs. Coombes fares in the next round on BBC One on Wednesday, May 7 at 8pm. The semi-finalists will be sent to Albert Square to prepare lunch for 120 EastEnders cast and crew.
