Malaysian cardiovascular researcher Syabira Yusoff has won Season 13 of the popular British series The Great British Bake Off (2010 to present).
The 32-year-old, who moved to Britain in 2013 for her PhD, was crowned the winner on the final episode on Tuesday night, beating Abdul Rehman Sharif, 29, and Sandro Farmhouse, 30.
London-based Syabira said after her win that it was “the biggest achievement in my life”, saying that she was developing recipes at 5am when she was preparing for the show and looked to Instagram and Pinterest for inspiration.
“All the hard work, the trial and error, it has all been worth it. I am very, very proud,” said the avid home baker and researcher at King’s College London, who started baking in 2017 after feeling homesick.
A fan favourite from the start of the season, Syabira is described on the show’s website as a baker who gives twists of Malaysian flavour to British classics, such as using chicken rendang in Cornish pasties.
One of the show’s judges, celebrity chef Paul Hollywood, said: “Some of the flavours we have never had in the tent before and are unlikely to have again. She is an incredible baker.”
For her final showstopper challenge, she created an ambitious sculpture of a huge orang utan holding up the rainforest for the theme of Our Beautiful Planet.
Her creation was made up of layers of tarragon shortbread and a Genoese sponge flavoured with black pepper and sandwiched with blackberry jam.
Hollywood said: “The orang utan is clever. I think you could have done a little bit more work on the face. It’s not the neatest thing I’ve seen, but it tastes fantastic, nevertheless.” – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
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