Freeport girl tackles Junior Master Chef challenge

Anjelica Elizabeth Espinoza – “AJ” to her friends and family - is a whiz in the kitchen. The Fox TV show MasterChef Junior has named her Chef AJ, where the 11-year-old appeared as a contestant in Season Three. MasterChef Junior features children between the ages of 8 and 13 who prepare food before a panel of celebrity chefs. The applicants go through a round of eliminations until one child wins the title of MasterChef Junior.

“I was cast for Season Two, but ended up on Season Three,” AJ explained. She learned about the auditions while looking online and applied. The audition took place before a bevy of casting scouts. “They watch you do the basic things, like using a whisk or measuring, and they talk to you at the same time,” she said. “They want to make sure you don’t get flustered. They need to see that you have a big personality and that you can cook.”

For as long as AJ can recall, she has been in the kitchen cooking. “I think I was four,” she said. “I’d sit on the counter and watch my mother and grandmother cook. I learned some of my best dishes from them.” AJ smiled. “Now I like to add a little something of my own.”

One of AJ’s specialties is empanadas. “I make a variety of empanadas – blueberry with cream and service with Savannah Smile cookies; chicken, and one with mozzarella – that’s my favorite,” AJ said. “My family says I’m the Cheese Queen.”
In addition to empanadas, AJ makes a “salmon curry and jasmine white rice with mango and grape seed oil,” she said. AJ made this for the judges on MasterChef Junior. “I like the idea of the mango and grape seed – its savory but also has a nice sweetness to it,” she said.

AJ was chosen to become a contestant and flown out to LA where she was required to prepare several meals for the judges. “I also made grilled chicken wraps with my secret sauce,” AJ said. “It’s not just how the food tastes, they also want to see how you present the food. It’s also about math – do you use a cup or four ounces? And it’s about science, about chemistry.”