MasterChef – Savindri Perera

Age: 30

State: South Australia

Occupation: Banking Consultant

For Savindri Perera, or Sav as she is best known, working in a bank is a means to an end. Where she comes alive is in the kitchen, working to recreate the Sri Lankan flavours of her mother’s kitchen.

Born in Colombo where she lived until moving to Adelaide aged 18, food permeates Sav’s childhood memories, growing up with older sister Chethanee, her late Mum Chandrika and Dad Chethiya.

Citing her beloved mum as her food hero, Chandrika was an exceptional cook, and the family lived within a culture that valued both the act of cooking and eating together. Memories of eating from roadside stalls with cousins or unforgettable crab curry Sunday lunches are just part of what forms Sav’s “family food map”.

The loss of her vivacious mother in 2017 left a void in Sav that has been understandably difficult to overcome. Accepting her Mum’s passing has been a long road through the many stages of grief, but through this, Sav has built a deep resilience and finally feels ready to take on the MasterChef Australia challenge, in part to honour her mother’s memory and the indelible mark she has left on Sav.

Describing her cooking style as rustic, generous and colourful, Sav’s love of cooking amped up around age 12 after discovering Nigella. She lists onion, garlic and curry leaves as her holy trinity, nothing happens in Sri Lankan cooking without them!

Friendly, fun, strong-willed and sassy, Sav has a steely determination that she will bring to each cook, competitive to the core and born with the will to win. Having quit her job to focus on the competition, she is ready for her next phase of growth which begins now in the MasterChef Australia kitchen.

With a deep understanding of flavour, Sav thinks her use of spices and ability to balance the six tastes will give her an edge, as will her baking expertise. However, she knows she’ll need to keep her overthinking in check in order to stay on track.

Hoping to become a permanent fixture on the Adelaide food scene, Sav’s ultimate dream is to one day have a brunch café celebrating Sri Lankan flavours.