MasterChef UK Claims Judge Didn't Suggest That Chicken Rendang Should Have Crispy Skin
The BBC show has released a statement to defend its judges.
By John Lim — 04 Apr 2018, 12:53 PM
MasterChef UK has released a statement denying that judge Gregg Wallace suggested there should be crispy skin in Zaleha Kadir Olpin's chicken rendang dish
Wallace and fellow judge John Torode came under heavy fire and scrutiny on social media after their controversial comments on Zaleha's dish at the quarterfinals stage, which eventually diminished the Kuantan-born contestant's chances of progressing any further in the competition.
"Gregg wasn’t suggesting that the dish should traditionally have crispy skin"
A representative from the show told the Telegraph that Wallace's comment has been misunderstood and he didn't at any point suggested that Zaleha's chicken rendang should have crispy skin.
"Gregg wasn’t suggesting that the dish should traditionally have crispy skin - he was saying that he couldn’t experience the flavours of the dish as it was presented.
MasterChef has always celebrated international cuisine and on this occasion, our judges’ comments were relevant to the dish that had been cooked on the show," the statement reads.
MasterChef UK's response comes days after Zaleha’s chicken rendang was brought into the national spotlight, even drawing a response from Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Tun Dr Mahathir
The silver lining here – seeing two bitter political rivals on the same page. It's true that food unites us all.