Okanagan realtor fights to become Masterchef

Kaila Klassen, a realtor and amateur chef, is putting her culinary skills to the test on CTV’s hit show Masterchef Canada.

Image Credit: Contributed

January 27, 2014 - 12:39 PM

KELOWNA – A realtor from West Kelowna is putting her culinary skills to the test on CTV’s hit show Masterchef Canada.

Kaila Klassen is an amateur chef who first found out about the open call for auditions in late August of 2013.

“I was watching television, having a glass of wine, and I saw that Masterchef Canada auditions were coming,” she says. “I’m obsessed with Masterchef and all the cooking shows, so I put in a quirky little video and literally got called 11 hours later.”

Klassen was invited to Vancouver to prepare a dish for the judges.

“I left for Vancouver two days later and I ended up renting a cheap hotel with a little kitchen with only one burner, one wooden spoon and one pot. And I had to make a fabulous dish with that.”

The kitchen may have been basic, but the dish she made with it was certainly not.

“I ended up busting out braised beef short ribs with red wine reduction, bone marrow mashed potatoes, and bourbon and maple syrup glazed carrots in my little room,” she says. “The judges loved it.”

The judges informed her that she had made the top 50 and invited her to Toronto to begin taping.

“I was so excited. It was kind of like an out-of-body experience,” she says. “I’ve never really done anything on TV but as soon as I got in front of the camera I didn’t even notice they were there. It was all about the food.”

Klassen says her passion for cooking good food began when she was 17.

“When everyone else was going out I would use my money to go out for a fabulous dinner and order everything on the menu. I realized quickly that I would be completely broke if I kept doing this so I decided to try and recreate some of the dishes myself. It was pretty darn good,” she says. “I got really excited and started watching the food shows and got a little obsessed with cooking.”

Klassen, who has been a realtor for Re/max for four years, believes her bold approach to life and grace under pressure give her a good chance at winning the show.

“I’m really good under pressure and I am not afraid to take risks in the kitchen,” she says. “Give me a whole hog and I’ll butcher it, give me ten lobsters and I’ll go to town.”

Masterchef Canada pits amateur chefs from across the country against each other in individual and team-based cooking challenges. It airs Sunday nights on CTV.

Kaila Klassen's audition tape.