“Chocolate Queen” Kirsten Tibballs was eliminated during the November 28 episode of Dessert Masters much to the shock of not only her fellow competitors but fans around Australia.
After her chocolate Birdcage crumbled in front of our very eyes, the Australian pastry royalty admitted that it was punishing to see that her hard work had fallen to pieces and to see her hopes of the Grand Finale slip away.
Speaking with Mediaweek after her exit, Tibballs, said that “it was pure devastation” that she wasn’t able to put the dish up as she wanted.
“As soon as it smashed, I knew with the time left there was physically nothing I could do,” she recalled. “It was the devastation that when you get into the semifinals, and I was comfortable with the way I was going throughout the cook, you start to think about the Finale. So there was that as well, that I wouldn’t have the opportunity to compete in the finale coming this far that had ended.”
Kirsten Tibballs, Anna Polyviou and Kay-Lene Tan, Dessert Masters. Ten
For the 50-year-old, while a competition with a huge $100k cash prize, the irony was not lost on her about what the competition was actually about and why they all take it so seriously.
“A lot of people were there to compete against themselves to do the best they possibly could,” she said. “Rather than actually seeing it as competing against somebody else.”
Kirsten Tibballs didn’t think she had an advantage going into Dessert Masters
Even though she has set her own Pressure Tests in the MasterChef Australia kitchen throughout the years, Tibballs revealed that she didn’t have any sort of advantage going into the infamous kitchen as a contestant.
“I think for me, I thought Reynold [Poernomo] and Jess [Liemantara] being very familiar with the way MasterChef runs and the kitchen and the facilities, that would be a big advantage,” she said.
“In the Dessert Masters kitchen, I’m very much about technique, precision, not cutting corners. But I think there are certain times in the kitchen where you have to say to yourself, ‘You know what? I’m going to have to let go of the fact that I need to check the bricks of the sorbet base with a refractometer before I can serve because I simply don’t have the time.’ I believe that Jess and Reynold would have had an understanding of that straight up going into the kitchen.
“They were a lot younger than me. I thought, you know, they’re probably maybe not got the experience. But they’ve probably got a lot more energy than me and faster, maybe a better memory going into the pantry.”
Jess Liemantara, Tibballs and Tan, Ten
What does Kirsten think about the up-and-coming talent in the industry
Beating out the famed chef to make it to the final round were Liemantara, Poernomo and pastry chef Gareth Whitton — all of whom, she says, puts the industry in “very good hands”.
“I think they’re all so talented in their own special way,” she said. “And for them to get that far and be in the Finale, anyone who does that, they work so hard, practising and learning techniques. There is so much blood sweat and tears in the kitchen to bring them to that point and they’re so deserving of that Finale position. The industry is certainly in good hands.”
Tibballs and Liemantara, Dessert Masters. Ten
Rest assured, Tibballs is not retiring any time soon (thank goodness) and is happy to continue mentoring generations to come.
“It’s what I love doing,” she said. “It’s why I opened a school, Savour, 21 years ago because I love imparting my knowledge and teaching others. Really nurturing other people to grow their skills. So it’s one of the best things about our industry and it’s what I love most.
In addition to this, Tibballs is not afraid to continue learning.
“For me, as a professional, when I stop learning, then it’s time to retire,” she said. “I think that what people need to understand with food is, that food is like fashion. There are trends that go in and out. But when a trend or a fashion comes back in, it changes or it alters slightly, so it’s forever evolving and technique evolves alongside that.”
Dessert Masters 2023 continues with the Grand Finale at 7.30 pm on Tuesday, November 28 on 10 and 10Play.