Meet leuan the MasterChef: The Professionals 2023 contestant - Heat One, Week Two

Location: Chippenham, Wiltshire. Originally from Newport, Wales.

Chef Bio: Born and bred in Newport, Wales, 26-year-old Ieuan has been a chef for over 10 years. Having worked his way up in high end pub restaurants, Ieuan has been at his current two AA rosette kitchen for over four years and is currently their sous chef. He currently lives with friends in Chippenham.

Current and Previous Experience: Trained at Crosskeys College and University College Birmingham, Ieuan went into kitchens at 16, gaining experience in such as at Matt Tebbutt’s The Foxhunter, Monmouthshire, and Pennyhill Park in Surrey, before becoming sous chef at The Castle Inn in Chippenham.

How did you get into cooking and what do you love about it?

“My parents both used to work really long hours, so I was cooking from a young age. I taught myself by watching TV shows. I always loved cooking and studied it at school so this was my obvious career path.”

How would you describe your style of cooking and any influences on it?

“I love pub food. Everyone is at the pub, you can have business meetings at a pub, family meetings at a pub, a couple drinks with your mates. So for the food, I’m trying to take it one step further. My style is Modern British. I love trying new things and I’m not afraid to go bold with big flavours.”

Why did you want to take part in MasterChef: The Professionals?

“I quite often use competitions as a way of seeing where I am. Can I handle something a bit different, as well as just adding some excitement to what I’m doing on a daily basis? All the competitions I've done so far have helped me to develop where I am and where I want to be. I’ve been a big fan of the MasterChef: The Professionals for years and this is the ultimate competition for me.”

Outside of cooking what are your passions?

“Chef life doesn’t leave much time for anything else a lot of the time. But I love foraging, swimming and watching Rugby - even if I can’t really play it anymore.”