Masterchef judge Matt Preston is a God among people.
That swash-buckling hair. The smacking lips. His penchant for blazers and cravats. Matt Preston is night-time TV crumpet.
He exudes strength and power and a command of language that means somehow, after seven seasons of describing food on a plate, he still manages to think of something more eloquent to say than “yummo”.
But this week, he outdid himself.
In this week’s Taste column he dropped a sizeable truth bomb on the cult of Thermomix by saying the robot God they worship can’t compete with his wooden spoon and pot.
Talking about the useless appliances that collect dust in our kitchens, he laughs at the popcorn maker, the ice cream machine, and the pie warmer, before dropping this like it’s no big thing:
The Thermomix, if you don’t know, is a sort of medical-labratory of a device that is (supposedly) the be-all-end-all of kitchen appliances. It has a cult following with dedicated forums, blogs, cookbooks and cooking classes. It’s found in both the top kitchens of the world (including the Masterchef kitchen) and on suburban bench tops.
At around $2200, Preston says – well – that’s a lot of coin to blow on what’s ostensibly a “fancy blender”.
The whole article is magnificent. It’s all about how we fill our cupboards with blast chillers and expensive gadgets when really you only need a few essential items: wooden spoons, non-stick frypans, a good slotted spoon, a few different mixing bowls and a decent knife.
Not $2200 contraptions that make pizza dough in eight seconds.
The cult item was also the subject of a hilarious review from The Katering Show: (post continues after video)
Good luck to you, Matt Preston. Because DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU SPEAK ILL OF THE THERMOMIX?
You practically get lynched. Like this blogger who dared to say she wasn’t that thrilled with hers and faced a barrage of abuse.
The honest judge has spoken. Tighten your cravat, Matt.
DEBRIEF DAILY