Two years after Delhi-born home cook Depinder Chhibber won hearts on MasterChef Australia 13 with her butter chicken dish, another Indian-origin contestant has earned praises from judges for cooking the popular north-Indian dish to perfection in the ongoing season of the show.

Adi Nevgi, a contestant on MasterChef Australia: Secrets & Surprises, cooked butter chicken and jeera rice on Friday night’s episode of the culinary competition, impressing judges Andy Allen, Jock Zonfrillo and Melissa Leong.

During the immunity challenge in the episode, the contestants were asked to cook a dish using leftover roasted chicken, prepared by judge Andy. Adi, a 31-year-old doctor from Melbourne, zeroed-in on butter chicken.

While the 60-minute preparation time was breezy for her, Adi hit a stumbling block when Jock visited her counter. He cautioned her that the chicken lacked the smoky flavour because it was not cooked in a tandoor. Adi then placed a bowl of hot coal on the pan she was cooking the chicken in and put the lid on to render a smoky flavour to the meat.

Adi’s gamble worked in her favour as the judges heaped praises on her. “That’s delicious. It’s really, really, really tasty,” Jock commented. Andy was of the view that the butter chicken was “one of the tastiest flavours” that they had in the competition. Unfortunately, Adi lost her shot at immunity because of the undercooked jeera rice.

Adi is largely self-taught in cooking through cookbooks and cooking shows. She has travelled to 55 countries and is inspired by flavours from cuisines from across the globe. Studying medicine has also helped her understand the science behind cooking, thus deepening her love for the culinary art.