FROM being on the panel of judges of MasterChef Malaysia Season 2 and MasterChef Selebriti to manning the kitchen of his own restaurant, The Canteen, celebrity chef Adu Amran Hassan can now add television host to his profile.
The 46-year-old chef from Kluang, Johor, will co-host TV3’s new TV reality cooking competition — Versus 1001 Rasa Babas — with Chef Dr Kamarul Hasni Che Rose, 42.
“When I was offered the hosting gig, I was nervous as I am no expert at TV hosting.
“From my experience on TV shows, it’s a lot more work than just being a judge of a cooking show.
“During my time at MasterChef, I offered my culinary expertise, critiquing and tasteing dishes made by the participants, whereas being a TV host means I need to steer the show well.
“I’m used to being a critic and judging dishes, so this is a new experience for me.
“During one of Versus 1001 Rasa Babas’s recordings, there were times when I was at a loss of words in front of the camera. There wasn’t a script for us, but thankfully, Chef Kamarul was there to help. I had a great time working with him,” said Adu.
So, what was it that prompted producers of Versus 1001 Rasa Babas to select Adu as the co-host?
“I previously worked with Chef Kamarul for an episode of the Cu-Bit culinary show, also by Babas, where he was the host.
“Perhaps the producers saw great on-screen chemistry between us, and figured that I’d be able to pull hosting off easily,” he said.
Versus 1001 Rasa Babas is a cooking competition that spans 13 episodes. In each episode, two contestants will compete against each other to produce great dishes.
They will be guided by their mentors, who are made up of award-winning chefs.
The contestants will be judged by a jury of food bloggers, celebrities and culinary magazine editors. Four contestants will make it to the final culinary showdown and take RM10,000.
Versus 1001 Rasa Babas airs every Thursday beginning Oct 26 at 5.35pm, with repeats on Mondays starting Oct 30, also at the same time.