Dan for MasterChef 2025 / BBC
Age: 51
Occupation: Education Welfare Officer
From: Cornwall
How would you describe your style of cooking?
“It’s difficult to define my exact cooking style because I simply love food of all kinds and from all cultures. I enjoy exploring different cuisines, but at the heart of it, I’m drawn to wholesome food, the kind that’s made for sharing and brings people together.
“I love dishes that look beautiful on the plate but are full of comfort and flavour too. A roast dinner, for example, is one of my favourites, not just for the food itself, but because it marks a moment in the week where people come together, sit down, and connect.
“When I’m cooking for guests, presentation matters. I want the food to look amazing but it’s just as important to me that it tastes every bit as good as it looks. For me, good food is about balance: flavour, care, and the joy of sharing.
“I am influenced by many cuisines. I love to cook curries from India and Southeast Asia. I love traditional British cuisine and also fish cookery. I also love South American food and I love to cook outdoors. I also love the tastes of North Africa.”
What is your favourite ingredient to cook with and why?
“It’s hard to choose just one favourite ingredient to cook with, but living by the sea, I have a deep love for cooking with fish. It has to be fresh, ideally caught by myself or a friend, which makes it not only incredibly flavourful but also part of a shared adventure, a story to tell. There’s a whole world of fish and shellfish to enjoy, but above all, I love cooking with mackerel. It’s best eaten on the day it’s caught, fillets of mackerel, cooked over a fire, with the skin cooked to a crisp and seasoned simply with a touch of salt and pepper. Served in a bun on the beach, surrounded by friends as the sun sets over the sea that, for me, is a little slice of heaven.”
Why did you enter MasterChef this year?
“I entered MasterChef this year after years of encouragement from friends who kept telling me, “You should go for it.” I’ve always loved cooking and entertaining and there’s something incredibly fulfilling about sharing food with people you care about. Friends often told me I was pretty good in the kitchen, but I never imagined I’d take it further.
“At the same time, I was no longer happy in the job I’d loved and dedicated myself to for the past 19 years. I knew it was time for a change. So, after years of thinking about it, I finally plucked up the courage, sat down, and completed my MasterChef application.
“I submitted it and thought no more of it until one day, the phone rang. It was MasterChef, and they wanted to take my application further. I was ecstatic and completely lost for words.”
MasterChef continues weekly on BBC One and iPlayer.
