This year's MasterChef champion, Saliha Mahmood-Ahmed moved celebrity chef John Torode to tears with her Kashmiri-inspired three-course meal, becoming the thirteenth amateur cook to win the title. A doctor by profession, Saliha intents to use her medical knowledge and draw up a strategy to challenge the problem of obesity among primary school pupils.
“I think that as a doctor, I have lots to offer. I would love to work in a national campaign to tackle obesity and develop recipes for people with Coeliac disease and IBS,” she said. With a doctor husband and a two-year old, Saliha said she regularly had “no sleep” during the competition as she juggled her full-time job at Watford General Hospital and looking after her son. About her win, she said, “I was absolutely not expecting this, it feels weird to say it even now. I'm so happy that my cheekbones are hurting and I'm probably going to have a paracetamol for smile-induced fatigue.”
Judge Torode said, “Saliha is a class act. She's walked in here and has taken her food culture apart and put it back together in a modern and very exciting way. She always does something a little bit extra, something which always surprises us.” About her winning menu, he said, “Those dishes sparkled. They were clean, crisp, refined and beautiful.” A junior doctor training to specialise in Gastroenterology, Saliha grew up in Ickenham, Middlesex and began cooking at a young age. “I'm from a big Pakistani family and we use food as a way of bringing everyone together. I had very passionate grandmothers who cooked traditional Pakistani food and my mum is also an excellent cook. We love to feed people, it runs in our genes,” she said.
“I discovered my love for cooking in food technology lessons in year seven at school. Then when I was 15, my Food Tech teacher entered me into the 'School Chef of the Year' competition and I won it.” About MasterChef, the 29 year old said, “I've always seen food as a serious hobby but being a doctor means I don't have the time to fully engage in it. I entered the competition to challenge myself, and see what I was capable of.”
