Poh Ling Yeow knows that surreal is an overused word, but there's simply no other way she can describe the feeling of being a Masterchef judge.

"I never really thought in my wildest dreams that I would find myself here," she says.

It's been 15 years since Poh first stepped onto the Masterchef set as a season one contestant.

Coming back from the dead (elimination) mid-season, Poh went all the way to the end before being bested by Julie Goodwin in the season finale. Since then Poh's been back as a guest judge, a mentor, a celebrity contestant and now, finally, a main judge.

"Obviously, it comes with great tragedy, this has occurred because of Jock's passing," Poh says.

In April last year, shortly before the premiere of Masterchef season 15 Jock Zonfrillo, the lively UK chef that had become a Masterchef mainstay since 2019, died suddenly at age 46. In October, fellow judge Melissa Leong announced she wouldn't be returning in 2024.

But there was a bright spot in the darkness.

Three new judges would be gracing the Masterchef kitchen: food journalist Sofia Levin, French chef Jean-Christophe Novelli and beloved Australian icon Poh.

From contestant to judge

The key to Masterchef Australia's decade-and-a-half-long run could be boiled down to: come for the food, stay for the drama.

Who can forget the iconic moment when former judge Matt Preston smashed a contestant's plate on the ground, before incredulously christening it "disgustingly good"?

In her time as a contestant, Poh didn't escape the heightened emotions. Her audition dish of pan fried chicken was declared "Messy, oily. No," by Gary Mehigan.

Given a second chance, Poh rushed back to her mother's house (while being followed by a camera crew) to raid her cupboard in order to produce a traditional Chinese dish that would grant her entry into the competition, and a brand new life.

Knowing exactly what it's like to be on the other side of the bench has created a great sense of empathy inside Poh for the contestants she now judges.

"I can take a look at their cook and I know what's happened and whether they've had a bad day or they over-thought it, or they over-complicate things too much. I can relate to what's happened," she says.

"I also think I can also push them out of those more intense, hairy moments because everyone has them and they don't get any easier — so it's headspace stuff too, teaching them how to manage that."

2024 marks the first time in Masterchef history that four judges will ultimately decide this year's winner. But that doesn't mean there'll be cahoots among the judges when it comes to scoring.

"I think a lot of people fall victim to thinking that there's conspiracies, but there's really not. I think that's one thing that I have found surprising because — shocking — I'm gonna admit that I was one of those people as a contestant," Poh says.

"Now that I'm in the judging seat I see how thoroughly we make the decision, and we sometimes go hard at it. I think now more than ever, it is a more fair decision, because it's four of us [they] have to pass through.

A multiverse of lives

Masterchef has opened doors for Poh that she would never have dreamed of walking through — from hosting multiple cooking shows, to sitting next to King Charles during a dinner at Admiral house.

"He was incredibly calming and very, very easy to talk to. He kept talking to me about his son and I was like 'Yeah, I'm aware of Prince Harry'," laughs Poh.

Not bad for a runner-up.

Which is why she's also quick to point out that an early exit doesn't mean the end of a contestant's journey, with Masterchef alumni of all levels going on to start product lines, write books and open restaurants.

"I want to infuse the contestants with a sense of empowerment, that they are in charge of their destiny no matter how they placed in the competition," Poh says.

"We're just one platform. If you really want to do it, go out there and get it."

Poh  who immigrated from Malaysia to Australia when she was nine, adopted then abandoned a Mormon mission, found herself in Canada, was an artist in Adelaide and more, all before she set foot in the Masterchef kitchen — says this advice extends beyond reality TV.

"When something terrible happens I like to think this is a sign that you need to reassess everything that you actually love. The universe is giving you a little nudge into something new," she says.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is, when you lose everything, that is the time when you should be the bravest, because you've got nothing to lose."