Depinder Chhibber is a contestant on MasterChef Australia Season 13 & 17. She is placed 8th on Season 13.
Biography[]
Retrieved from 10play.com.au
Season 13[]
Born in New Delhi, Depinder Chhibber moved to Newcastle at the age of 11. Now based in Sydney, she still considers herself a Novocastrian, but her heart and soul remains in India.
Highly influenced by the women in her family, Depinder grew up watching her grandmother, mum and aunties cook, fascinating and inspiring her to cook from a very young age. This involvement has nurtured her style of cooking, learning many traditional recipes from her mother and her passion to cook from her father.
Her biggest supporter is her husband Gurkirat, who she married in 2018. Together they’ve had the opportunity to travel Australia and the world, bonding over a good meal and new scenery, with dining experiences often dictating destinations.
Having followed in her father’s footsteps to become a pharmacist and currently studying for her Masters, Depinder enjoys her career. However, cooking is a passion that she can’t ignore, with much of her free time spent reading recipes and daydreaming about cooking experiments.
Depinder is inspired by Indian and South East Asian flavours. As a self-taught baker, she adores cooking pastry and desserts.
Counting Gordon Ramsay, Donna Hay, Kirsten Tibballs, Kunal Kapur and Gaggan Anand among her kitchen idols, it’s clear Depinder has taken inspiration from each of them.
A keen traveller in pre-COVID times, Depinder is always up for a holiday. Most recently she visited Nepal and completed the Everest Base Camp trek, a dream come true for her.
The ability to adapt, move fast and to take on board constructive criticism will stand her in good stead during her MasterChef Australia journey, as will her ability to multitask.
This unflappable cook hopes her time in the MasterChef kitchen will make Indian food more accessible, with her ultimate dream to write a recipe book showcasing Indian fusion cuisine.[1]
Season 17[]
Since her last appearance in the MasterChef Australia kitchen, not only has Depinder Chhibber become a mother to two young daughters, but the part time pharmacist has also launched a supper club called Ghar – meaning home in Hindi – where she offers diners her homestyle Thali in a home dining atmosphere.
Never for a moment did Depinder believe she would be able to relive the magic of MasterChef Australia twice, but when opportunity knocked, she could not turn it down.
As far as career highlights go, 2023 provided one for Depinder when she was a guest judge on MasterChef India. Born in New Delhi herself and with a huge subcontinental fanbase, Depinder was blown away by the reception she received after her guest spot.
With her love of food stemming from her foodie grandfather, Depinder’s cooking journey was strongly influenced over her life by the women in her family. Growing up fascinated and inspired by watching her grandmother, mother and aunties cook, Depinder soaked in the tales and techniques of their rich Indian culture to carry on traditions.
Supported at home in her latest MasterChef Australia foray by husband Gurkirat and their daughters, Depinder has come Back To Win and plans to honour her Indian heritage, and showcase even more of what Indian cuisine has to offer, showing off technical skills and lesser known dishes.
Depinder’s perspective on both life and cooking has changed immensely in recent years, and while she is sacrificing time spent with her daughters to be here, she is driven to make them proud and be an example of believing in yourself, and to follow your passions. Feeling match-fit from her last season, Depinder knows what to expect of the competition and feels ready for the pressure and the pace.
Knowing that her strength will be her ability to switch between sweet and savoury food, Depinder is inspired by chefs including Gaggan Anand, Gordon Ramsay and Garima Arora.
In the future, Depinder has plans to run masterclasses and would dearly love to put pen to paper on her long-held dream of a cookbook.[2]
Post MasterChef[]
- In 2023, she became a special guest chef on MasterChef India (Hindi) Season 7 where she got paired up with contestant, Gurkirat.
Trivia[]
- She is the third contestant winning Immunity 2 times in a row. First being Reece, second being Reynold.
Season 17[]
- She, Audra, Rue, & Theo won the first Mystery Box Challenge of the season.
Gallery[]
Season 13[]
References[]
Externa links[]
Depinder Chhibber on Instagram