Can you bake?
Yes, I can. I am capable of baking.
What kind of things to you bake?
I usually make things like coconut buns, which is a Samoan thing, like a Polynesian sweet bread bun with coconut sauce at the bottom of it. I make good biscuits, I make good slices – I didn’t really get into bread, I couldn’t do bread in lockdown, I wasn’t that good at the focaccia that everyone seemed to make. I baked a lot as a teenager, and I think the skills of baking never really leave you. I don’t bake as often as I should nowadays, though.
Describe your baking style in one word.
Vibey. Feel the vibes. And chaotic.
What’s your favourite baked good?
Really, really good question. I think my favourite baked good – I’m kind of addicted to cheese straws. I’ve got really good self-control, but I can’t really have then in the house, because I will eat them all. I love pastry, and I love cheese.
After you won the Edinburgh Comedy Award, you celebrated by going out and buying a nice frying pan. Is it fair to say that food plays a significant role in your life?
It certainly does. I do love cooking. I cook for pleasure, I love food, I love eating, I’m very passionate about eating. I’m a good home cook, I think. I live by myself, and I do cook full meals for myself. I’m pretty good at making myself an entire meal that should feed a family of five and eating about three people’s portions of it.
You are of Polynesian, Croatian and Scottish heritage. Has any of that influenced your cooking?
Yeah. There are so many Samoan things I find delicious, like the coconut buns. I think the Croatian and Scottish sides are a bit lacking. Croatians have fritule, which is kind of deep-fried pastry things covered in icing sugar. The Scots have tattie scones, basically. They’re a must – particularly someone in the 20s, when you’re a student.
What’s been your biggest culinary triumph?
I did once make a delicious beef brisket, a slow-cooked beef brisket sandwich that I loved from a place in Auckland that had shut down. Thankfully, they very generously posted the recipe online, so one New Year’s Eve I made that, and it was sensational.
And your biggest disaster?
To be honest, I think they might be happening in the tent. Oh, and an undercooked beef short rib that I once made, and my flatmate very, very sweetly still ate, even though it was disgusting.
What are the strengths and weaknesses you’ll bring with you into the tent?
My strength, I’d say, is that I’ve got a lot of creativity, and I can improvise a bit. My biggest weakness is that I cannot follow instructions, I simply cannot read a recipe properly, and I routinely do not follow some of the rules of baking.
You’ve filmed something called a Mukbang in the past. What’s that?
Mukbang is a Korean genre of videos, mostly on YouTube, of eating copious amounts of food in front of a camera. It is absolutely addictive. I love it so much. I sometimes watch it when I’m hungry and I don’t have any food, which is slightly torturous. I tried to do one, and it’s honestly way harder than it looks. These people are machines. I can’t handle it. I utterly failed when I tried to do it.
Any chance you’ll get all the bakes from the show and plough through them for a special Bake Off Mukbang?
Not if they don’t want to see a 30-year-old woman perish on camera. I think I’d die. Too much sweet. You need a little salty to balance it out, I think.
What aspect of the show are you most nervous about?
I think time. I panic easily and lose my cool. So, I’m worried about time management. And also, that I’ll get so het up about the competition element that I won’t have fun.
Are you a fan of Bake Off?
I am. I haven’t watched every series, but I’ve followed it over the years. I do love it, it’s such a wholesome show, it’s brilliant.
What’s it like, walking into the tent for the first time?
It was nerve-wracking. I was quite blown away to be there. It was like being star-struck by a set. But it’s really fun to see behind the scenes at Bake Off, to look behind the curtain.
Have you sought advice from anyone ahead of the show?
I used the internet. I did a bit of research, bits and bobs, but mostly I just followed my instincts.
Have you done any practice?
Yes, I have. I’d seen so many people on regular Bake Off talk about how things had gone when they practiced at home, I swore to myself I wouldn’t be one of those people who didn’t practice a little bit. So, I did a little.
What’s it like facing the judgement of Paul and Prue?
Terrifying. I met Paul doing Extra Slice, and he’s a tough judge. They are cruel, but they are fair. I’ll take whatever they give me.
What would it mean to you to get a Hollywood handshake?
It would mean the world. I won’t get one, and I will be chasing that dragon for the rest of my days. But then that’s the pinnacle of baking achievement, so where do you go after that? I’d have to give up. What more can you ask for than a Hollywood handshake?
Are you competitive? How badly do you want to win?
Not terribly badly. I just wanted to come here and not do really, really badly. I’ve no delusions of winning this. I like to keep my expectations low, and anything else is a pleasant surprise.
Why is Stand Up to Cancer important to you?
It’s such an amazing charity, the work they do is so important, and it’s such a brilliant way to raise awareness. I was just thrilled to be asked to take part in something that I’m so excited to support.
Channel 4's Stand Up To Cancer Great British Bake Off will start on Sunday, March 19 at 7.45pm. Rose Matafeo is on the first show. Full series line-up here.
- Photographer: mark bourdillon
- Interview aupplied by C4.
