MasterChef Australia’s Hayden Quinn says show changed his life
MasterChef Australia star Hayden Quinn reveals how the cooking show completely changed his life after working as a lifeguard
He was a fan favorite in the third season of MasterChef Australia.
It’s no surprise, then, that Hayden Quinn has paid a touching tribute to the popular cooking series.
In an interview with Yahoo! on Friday, the 36-year-old revealed that his hit show breakthrough gave him a totally new life as a professional foodie.
Hayden, who debuted in 2011 on MasterChef, who currently presents Taste of Australia for 10Play, previously worked as a lifeguard and firefighter.
But his experience in the MasterChef kitchen ended up changing his life and career path forever.
MasterChef Australia star Hayden Quinn has revealed how his role on the show has completely changed his life
Hayden debuted at MasterChef in 2011 and previously worked as a lifeguard and firefighter before rising to fame as a foodie
“Maybe I went on to be a lifeguard or a firefighter or work in an office and loved to eat and cook and did it on the weekends like most people do,” he said.
“But to be able to open up that world to make it a career and a passion and something that I get to do every day and share with so many people is really special,” Hayden continued.
“It was interesting because a lot of opportunities have opened up thanks to MasterChef, especially in the food world. I took those and ran with them and did several little cooking sessions here and there, brushing up on my skills and doing this and that.”
Hayden made such an impact at the 2011 MasterChef competition that the handsome star returned to the franchise in 2012 for an all-star season.
He returned to the ratings blockbuster once again for the Back To Win season in 2020.
Hayden announced his engagement to his model girlfriend, Jax Raynor (R), last December.
Meanwhile, Hayden was a judge on Channel Nine’s short-lived cooking competition Family Food Fight from 2017 to 2018. He also published two cookbooks.
His other credits include Hayden Quinn’s South Africa, a ten-part cooking series on SBS.
Hayden also fronted the ABC cooking series Surfing the Menu: The Next Generation, starring Dan Churchill in 2016.
It comes after Hayden announced his engagement to his American model girlfriend, Jax Raynor, last December.
The couple shared their happy news on Christmas Eve, uploading a sweet photo of them posing with champagne glasses in hand.
“Merry Christmas and Happy Engagement from all of us!!!” Hayden, 36, captioned the post. The couple started dating in 2016.
Hayden previously admitted he wanted to propose sooner, but the pandemic had made it “tricky” to make their engagement plans official.
Raynor moved from Los Angeles to Sydney in the second year of their relationship to be with the MasterChef star.
Hayden made such an impact at the 2011 MasterChef competition that the handsome star returned to the franchise for an all-star season in 2012 and then again in 2020