Kishwar Chowdhury, a Bangladeshi residing in Melbourne, has been making headlines for successfully making it as one of the top 24 contestants of MasterChef Australia Season 13. A mother of two, Chowdhury is pursuing her dream of becoming a cookbook author aiming to showcase recipes handed down by her loved ones (recent one being a macher jhol or fish curry).
So who is Kishwer Chowdhury, whose fish curry caught the attention of MasterChef Australia judges and in a good way? Here is what we know:
1. Born and raised in Melbourne with dreams of sharing Bengali cuisine globally, Chowdhury's passion for food came from her parents Laila and Kamrul Chowdhury, who are the founders of the Bangladeshi community in Victoria.
2. Chowdhury completed a Bachelor of Commerce from Monash University before completing a post-graduate degree in Graphic Design from the University of the Arts in London.
3. Following a stint in Germany and then six years establishing her business in Bangladesh, she returned to Melbourne in 2015, according to her bio.
4. The 38-years-old now aims to put Bangladeshi-Indian cuisine on the map with her passion for cooking.
5. This season, she made her way into the competition with her sardines in green mango broth, served with black lentils, beetroot and blood orange bhorta. In conversation with the Huffington Post, the cook previously revealed she comes from “a big family of cooks” and is proud of using recipes from her large Bengali family to make her own versions of them in the kitchen.
6. During the show, she eventually began her cooking experiments with fish and continues to wow judges and viewers with her own twists to the traditional Bengali delicacies inspired by her mother and grandparents. Her strength lies in making comfort home-style simple food, she revealed on Instagram.
7. Chowdhury is married to Ehtesham and has a 11-year-old son Mikayle and four-year-old daughter Seraphina. She wants to write a book on long-forgotten Bangladeshi flavours and recipes as a legacy for her kids.
8.Chingri Bhorta (mashed prawns), Maach Bhaja (fish fry) with a twist, Bangladesh-inspired beef patty dish or the simple fried Barramundi poached in a tomato broth paired it with a beans and Chingri Bhorta (mashed beans and prawns) and Jeera Rice are her most famous delicacies on the show so far.
9. She said she is also inspired by Poh Ling Yeow, a Malaysian-born Australian cook, artist and author who was also a contestant on MasterChef Australia during one of its early seasons..
Inspiration: "Every time Poh cooks something, it's delicious and it's amazing. And it is, to me, the best food ever in that kitchen. Poh! You're my dream come true," Kishwar said.
Feature Image Credit: Kishwar Chowdhury/MasterChef Australia
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