At seven, this young little chef cooks up a storm with her elaborate dishes on Man vs. Child: Chef Showdown, a competition series where executive chefs pit their skills against junior cooks like Californian Estie. Estie, or Chef Estie, as we should properly address her, is the youngest chef on the show, but don’t underestimate her culinary skills as you will witness in the 13-episode programme.
8-year-old Estie Kung started cooking at the age of three and was inspired by her mother to whip up dishes in the kitchen. Her favourite food? Not french fries from McDonalds nor dark chocolate ice cream, but caviar, lobster and steak tartare.
InCinemas met with Chef Estie at a press event last week, and the vivacious girl proved to us she rules the kitchen during her victorious cook-off with the chef of Neon Pigeon. She shared with us her experience on the show, her inspirations and her thoughts on her future restaurant.
Despite being the youngest chef on the show, it’s only her height that holds her back. “I am super tiny so I can’t reach any of the spices on the top shelf. I would need a stool and even be on my tippy toes just to like pick them up,” she laughed. “But competing against the adult chefs gives me more advantages because they tend to underestimate me… ‘ESTIE-mate me’! I have my own word now!”
Melting our hearts with her adorableness during the interview, Estie clearly knows what plays to her favour - her charm. You can’t say no to a cute little girl like Estie when she asks for a favour, not even if you’re up against her in a cookoff, which many experienced chef had clearly fallen for it.
“My favourite chef that I ever competed against is Chef Keith. He has a food truck called The Culinerdy Cruzer. He is my favourite chef because he is really, really nice. He looks big and tough… like a giant, but he is super nice! I call him my giant teddy bear!”
In the show, she fixes up all kinds of cuisine imaginable, showcasing her raw talent and technical artistry, but there’s one dish she hopes to master - sushi. “It’s so difficult,” she said, “It’s technically impossible for me!”
“The cutting of the sushi is so exact; I think it’s as difficult as ripping a paper in half in a completely straight line,” she added.
And if there’s one type of food she really hates? It’s uni (sea urchin). “Uni! I really hate uni,” she tells us, coughing away as she explains her answer. “Whenever I think of it, it’s like a blob filled with a bunch of weird little things… ugh!”
She may be young and small, but the 8-year-old chef gives the best advice for any aspiring chefs out there.
“Confidence! You need confidence to make a hamburger or a peanut butter sandwich - if you give up and can’t make that, then you can’t even be a chef,”
Yes, Chef!
Man vs. Child: Chef Showdown premiere on 26 January 2015, Tuesdays at 7pm on Lifetime (StarHub TV ch 514)!