On last night’s (Sept. 22) Grand Final, cousins Dezi, 41 and Penny, 33 from Team Greece were crowned Plate of Origin champions winning $100,000 with a total judges’ score of 76/90 after an epic three-course meal showdown with Team Vietnam’s Thanh, 31 and Duncan, 30.
With four teams starting the Grand Final cook, Team Greece and Team Vietnam made the final two after Vietnam’s Combination Broken Rice dish wowed the judges securing an instant spot. Team Cameroon were eliminated after their traditional stew included overcooked prawns, meaning European culinary superpowers Italy and Greece faced a fierce dessert showdown. Greece’s Ekmek just topped Italy’s Tiramsu resulting in a monumental three-course menu battle between Greece and Vietnam for the Grand Final title.
Team Greece secured an early lead with their entrée featuring perfectly cooked prawns, while Team Vietnam’s Rice Paper Rolls unravelled with undercooked Morton Bay Bug. Team Vietnam evened the score with a perfect main dish of Pork Belly with Bitter Melon Soup scoring 30/30 while Team Greece lost some points in the main by not resting their lamb after a stressful cook. Team Vietnam had to remake their pastry to avert dessert disaster, but the unbalanced and bitter dish saw Team Greece’s Galaktoboureko secure sweet victory.
Team Vietnam were gracious in defeat with Duncan saying: “I just feel so proud to be able to represent the Vietnamese and the Aussie community.” Thanh added: “Our experience on Plate of Origin has been extraordinary, it reminded us that food is a universal language.”
Dezi said: “We have represented the Australian Greek community and now we’ve just won Plate of Origin! It is mind-blowing. I’m so grateful, this is beyond anything I could have ever dreamed of.” When asked by Matt if Greek cuisine was the best in the world Penny added: “Of course it is!”
