MasterChef Australia judges chefs George Calombaris and Gary Mehigan and food critic Matt Preston

I love watching MasterChef Australia and have followed the show (now in its sixth season) since the very first season. The contestants share an unrivaled passion for food, delivering some of the finest dishes in the program’s history. These are ordinary Australians who can do extraordinary things for the love of food, inspiring so many foodies like me and you to love food even more. So, when I heard that Sarah Todd, one of my favorite contestants from Season 6, was visiting Mumbai, naturally we had no second thoughts about her team’s invitation to come and spend a fun evening with her at Grand Hyatt, Santacruz (East).

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Anyone who has followed MasterChef Australia Season 6 would know that Model-turned-Chef Sarah Todd loves Indian cuisine, and that she regularly whips up Indian food for her partner Devinder Garcha and their three-year-old son, Phoenix. Sarah was on her maiden trip to India, enjoying her tryst with Indian cuisine, which she says reflects the rich cultural heritage of the country. She also visited New Delhi, Goa before coming to Mumbai.

Sarah Todd with Fiance Devinder Garcha and their three-year-old son, Phoenix

Sarah demonstrated three appetizers with an India twist, that she also whipped up during her stint at MasterChef Australia.Thinking of Indian cuisine, one of the first things that would come to anyone’s heart is piping hot Pakoras. The first dish that Sarah made for us was ‘Zuchini & Pea Pakora’ served with Corn Relish and Pickled Raddish. I loved the unique combination of Zuchini and Peas.

Zucchini and pea pakora with a mango relish and pickled radish

The next was the Salmon ceviche, crispy poppadum and mint chutney. This was my favorite of all the appetizers Sarah made that evening. The Salmon went so well with the crispy poppadum. The tangy raw mango flavored mint chutney was definitely the icing on the cake for me. My mouth’s watering while I’m writing.

Salmon ceviche, crispy papadum and mint chutney

I’m not too much of a Lamb person. But the very description of the next dish Sarah cooked for us, was so tempting. The dish I’m talking about is the ‘Slow Roast Lamb Shoulder, beetroot chutney on crisp bread’. The meat was well cooked and flavored evenly. I love the idea of slow cooking; adds so much yummyness to the dish.

Slow roast lamb shoulder, beetroot chutney on crisp bread

Sarah also played as a bartender for us that evening, mixing up some interesting cocktails for us. The first one was the ‘Pink Lady’ and I’m not at all embarrassed to say that I loved the Pink Lady! Rich yet refreshing, this drink combines American apple brandy, gin citrus and grenadine. Feminine in name, but definitely not just for the fairer sex 😉 The next drink was the Bellamy Scotch Sour. I found this drink very creative. Monkey shoulder shaken with fresh lemon & orange and honey, served with crystallized ginger, making this drink a complete flavor-riot. The last and the favorite of many other foodies present, was the Rosemary Cooler. As the name suggests, this was a complete refresher.

(l-r) Rosemary Cooler,Pink Lady,Bellamy Scotch Sour

All in all, this was a fun evening with so much food, cocktails, fellow foodie friends and the gorgeous & so-down-to-earth Sarah Todd. Look out for the Sarah Todd recipes and other interesting culinary experiments of my kitchen, on the blog soon! 😉

Me with the gorgeous Sarah Todd