David Jorge was all smiles on CTV's Canada AM the morning after he became the season two winner of MasterChef Canada, taking home the show's coveted trophy and a $100,000 prize which he plans to put towards opening a restaurant.
The Surrey, B.C., native broke down how he made his way to the top, despite a major stumble in the last few moments of the finale that aired Sunday night.
The 40-year-old father of two stuck to his roots, serving up tomatoes five ways with sweetbreads, boar and geoduck clams, before finishing with a twist on his wife Tannis' lemon curd dessert. His win wasn't just for himself, but for their dream as a couple.
"Me and Tannis have always wanted to open up a restaurant," he said. "She really believes in my talents."
The dessert is tricky to make, but Jorge's biggest problem was forgetting to cook it. The mistake could have cost him the win, but the chef moved on and came out on top.
Jorge's competitor, Line Pelletier, served a surf'n'turf with foie gras, elk tenderloin and cheese plate to chef-judges Alvin Leung, Michael Bonacini and Claudio Aprile. Jorge said he didn’t regret keeping it simple, even against Pelletier’s luxurious dish.
"The chefs I admire the most make beautiful things out of simple things, so I wanted to do that and that’s gutsy," he said.
The concrete contractor beat out 49 other MasterChef Canada contestants.
Pelletier didn’t do too badly in second place. The mother of two worked on fundraisers and entered a bikini fitness competition since taping wrapped.
After six months of keeping the win quiet, Jorge and his family can now start making their culinary dreams come true.
"We finally get to celebrate," he said.
With casting underway, future MasterChef hopefuls can now apply for season three.
