L'Albufera, La Lonja and the Central Market of Valencia inspired the menu with which the Valencian Ángela Gimeno was proclaimed winner of the 12th edition of the culinary program 'MasterChef' (TVE), whose final was held last Monday. Around two in the morning, the jury proclaimed the Valencian as the winner. Ángela defeated María in the final duel with three dishes (Perfumadita de Brea, La Albufera en sequence and El Perfume de Amanda), which she dedicated to her mother, who awakened in her passion and affection for the kitchen; her father, who has shown her the importance of loving family, and her partner Amanda, the person who inspires him the most in her daily life. “I am a person who loves Valencia, I have been crazy about my city since I was little and I wanted the beauty of the city to be known,” the Valencian admitted to Levante-EMV, from the same editorial group as this newspaper, hours after her victory. In this sense, Ángela claims that the 'cap i casal' “has everything, since it has a beach, sea, market, orchard, Albufera…”. Therefore, the contestant hHe “honored through his dishes all those moments lived in this very special place.”
For her, this program and, above all, winning the final, It has been “one of the most important moments of my life, which I have experienced with great emotion and joy. It has been a dream.” From the first moment, she felt that she could win this edition, even though she has also experienced hard times. During the different programs, Ángela has shown great evolution in the culinary field and has managed to eliminate each of her rivals. “You just have to see the day I came in to the day I left. The evolution I have had, not only in terms of cooking, but also in how to think about a dish,” she acknowledges. In addition, she also appreciates the relationship with the jury and the rest of her colleagues. “I think that We have been very different companions, but we have fit together perfectly. I have learned a lot from each of them. “I take a little piece of everyone,” she claims.
The Valencian has always been passionate about cooking. Since she was little, she has grown up in the kitchen, since his mother was a restaurant chef, which closed its doors a few years ago. However, she had never dared to take the step and compete in a program of these characteristics. “I was sitting on the couch and saw the ad. It felt like a calling and I thought it was my year,” she remembers.
However, he has had to learn to cope with the pressure and the times set in the program. “At home you cook as you like, having fun, talking… And here time is against you. If something goes wrong, your entire plate is ruined. At first it's hard, but then you learn and now cooking at home is boring,” she says with a laugh. However, this demand and pressure means that the Valencian gives her best. “When they don't give me a deadline for something, I don't deliver it. The same thing happens here. When they give me a few minutes I think I bring out my best version,” adds the Valencian, who considers herself a very competitive person. “I have never liked losing. Not even dominoes. I remember getting angry when I lost Monopoly. Competing in something that is your profession is so much fun,” she says.
Tell a story
After winning the contest, the Valencian is now focused on her future studies. In the coming months, she will travel to San Sebastián to study and train as a chef. “It's always been what she wanted to do,” she claims. The young woman, who studied Advertising, is clear that she wants to dedicate herself to cooking, where she intends to mix creativity and contextual things that I like and that express things about me.” Thus, through her dishes, she wants to “tell a story.” .