Poh gets a taste of the Great Southern

Poh Ling Yeow’s enthusiasm for food is irrepressible.

Even through the fog of jet lag and a nasty case of the flu after a recent whirlwind tour of North America, Poh’s love of cooking – and life in general – clearly shines through.

Speaking from Adelaide ahead of her highly-anticipated appearance at several Taste events on March 2- 3, Poh is quick with a laugh, her famous smile easy to imagine on the other end of the line.

The celebrity cook (don’t call her a chef), Masterchef star and ABC TV personality seems thrilled to be coming to the Great Southern for the first time, and to once more be teaming up with a good friend of hers, star local chef Dan Sharp.

“I’m really, really excited, I’m really looking forward to exploring the region and seeing what it’s got to offer,” she said.

“I’ve heard really amazing things from Dan.”

Poh and Dan hit it off last year when they worked together at the Ord Valley Muster event in the Kimberley, and on March 2 will team up again to present a unique barbecue master class at a yet-to-be-advised beach location in Denmark. “It will be interesting because I’m not actually much of a barbecuer to be honest, I’ll definitely do my interpretation of a barbecue,” Poh said with a laugh.

“But I’m so excited, I’ve never done a beach event before.”

You might not expect a celebrity of her profile to admit to not being an expert about something, but that sort of honesty is typical of Poh’s approach to cooking.

“I don’t really call myself a celebrity chef, I just say I’m a TV cook,” she said.

“I’m not trained, there are still lots of holes in my knowledge, but in many ways that is what I like to project because I think people can relate to that.”

Poh said knowing how to use and appreciate good local produce was the key to cooking and she had heard great things about the Great Southern.

When the Albany Advertiser spoke to Poh she had just returned from Los Angeles after a run of work experience with celebrity chef Curtis Stone, which fans will remember was a consolation prize offered to her in 2009 as Masterchef runner-up.

She was also preparing to launch her second book and her own food line, and was also gearing up for her latest art exhibition in her parallel life as a talented painter.