For 20 keen braaiers it was not only their first team challenge, but for two hopeful participants it was also the end of the road.
Natalie and Rodney had to hang up their aprons after the first team challenge.
In the latest episode of Kokkedoor Fire & Flame, 10 teams had to imagine their origin in a pot. These teams each consisted of a memory and twist fryer and were named by Lara and Gert, the winners of the previous challenge.
Martelize Brink, radio announcer, television personality and cookbook author, joined Bertus Basson and Kobus Botha this week to have her body judged. Her latest recipe book, Over the coalsis precisely modeled on barbecue recipes.
“It is a great privilege to be here, but I am glad that I am not you,” she joked with the participants.
The day in the kitchen began on an uncertain note: it was the braaiers’ first opportunity to get to know each other better as a team.
“The teams have been chosen, and we just look out for each other. One constantly wonders ‘are those teams going to work? Are there going to be sparks?’” Karen wondered.
While some teams worked together like old friends in the kitchen, there were others who were not only at odds with each other, but also clearly showed that there was a lack of trust between the two team members.
Borries and Joubert started off on a good note, but towards the end of the challenge rubbed each other the wrong way. Joubert even developed a premonition that he was the one who would go home this week, although they were not named as one of the worst three teams.
A similar relationship was cultivated between Nicole and Lara, the twister, although they were very close to packing their own bags. This cooking couple’s pot contained sheep’s tails and tongues, but in the end did not impress the judges.
Nicole regretted changing her family recipe and leaving Lara in charge of the curry mixture, while Lara was disappointed in her naivety and complete trust in Nicole.
The team that proved to be uncooperative was that of Rodney and Natalie. The pair decided on an ostrich neck pot, something Rodney, from Oudtshoorn, later kicked himself about.
“I should have known it wouldn’t cook,” he said later.
Natalie said throughout the challenge that Rodney was distracted and that she took it upon herself to do everything. She felt overwhelmed, and Rodney stood watching her work.
The other participants also noticed that after the challenge these two did not sit next to each other at the long table and wait for judges to taste all the dishes.
Lara, the memory roaster, and Ashley, along with Rodney and Natalie, and Nicole and Lara, the twister roaster, were named the worst three teams.
Tjaart and Nataan, who prepared a pot of dahl and goat meat, were initially scared, but over time developed more trust in each other. This dish held a lot of meaning for both participants, something that the judges were able to experience in the end during the tasting process.
For Tjaart, the pot was important because it represented his close relationship with his father. These two farm together with goats, and Tjaart wanted to honor this bond with a delicious dish.
Nate excitedly told that one can plow love into few ingredients. He remembers that the question “what are we eating tonight?” caused a lot of tension, because there was not always food in the house to make.
This team then finished in the top 3 with their meaningful and tasty dish. The other two teams that finished in the top 3 were Anel and Gert and Karen and Mandré.
Karen and Mandré emerged as the overall winners of the day, which had Karen in tears. She dedicated this pot to her late father.
Although Rodney and Natalie had to say goodbye, both contestants describe their time together Kokkedoor Fire & Flame as a learning process of inestimable value.
“My flame may be out,” Rodney said, “but I will burn forever.”
- Kokkedoor Fire & Flame is broadcast Thursdays at 20:00 on kykNET, DStv channel 144.
