Caleb
Age: 24
Job: Telecommunications – Service desk
Locations: “I was born in London but moved to Birmingham eight years ago, which is where I live now.”
Family Life: “I live at home with my mum.”

What is your earliest cooking memory?

“My earliest cooking memory was when I was around 12 and my mum was teaching me to cook basmati rice. Growing up was fun for me. I was always around family and friends, we would play out at the park across from my house or all my friends would be at my house. Food was a big part of this.”

How would you describe your style of cooking?

“My style of cooking is pretty laid back, I tend to cook quite slowly. I do want to get faster on my feet though! Every Saturday, I sell food from home, I have a set menu of Mains and sides, and there was one day when I had a high demand for the food, I ended up selling out within a few hours and the customers loved the food. I was extremely proud, it feels fulfilling when lots of different people can try my food. A massive part of my food style is cooking food that brings people joy.”

What do you think you bring to the competition that’s unique?

“I feel like my flavours are unique to the competition as well as my versatility. As a person I would say that’s I’m really resilient, when I face challenges, I always like to find a solution to overcome it in the future and keep pushing forward. Hopefully this will help me in the competition.”

Who is your cooking idol and why?

“My cooking idol is my mum for teaching me the fundamentals of cooking, and also Marcus Wareing for his focused, tunnel vision approach to being a chef. Another idol of mine is TheGrubWorksKitchen, a food influencer on social media. He has a lot of creativity in his dishes and his methods of cooking are efficient.”

What inspired you to apply for Young MasterChef?

“The inspiration for applying to be on Young MasterChef was to showcase my cooking skills to a wider audience. I want the world to know about me and my cooking.”

What does it feel like to be cooking in the MasterChef kitchen and in the competition?

“It is a great experience, extremely uncomfortable in a good way, and takes you out of your comfort zone. Pressure makes diamonds for sure!”

What is your food dream?

“My food dream is to have a little restaurant. Something small so I can make sure the quality is perfect and be fully booked on a daily basis.”

Storming back to BBC Three, Young MasterChef returns for a second series, as nine of Britain’s best young foodies press pause on their day jobs to put their cooking skills to the test. Judging their every move is Michelin-trained social media sensation Poppy O’ Toole, who is joined by new judge – chef, author and YouTube food star, Big Has.

This year’s foodie hopefuls are hungry for success and are paving their own way outside of their day jobs; from running their own at home takeaway businesses, creating pop-ups and cooking for their growing social media followings. Now, they are taking another leap into the MasterChef kitchen to prove they have what it takes to reach the endgame. The stage is set for the ultimate kitchen battle, as Young MasterChef returns to shake things up for 2024.

The first episode of Young MasterChef airs 8 January on BBC iPlayer at 6am and BBC Three at 8pm with episodes airing weekly. All episodes of Series 1 of Young MasterChef are available on BBC iPlayer.