TV shows encourage excellence among local foodies

Coriander lamb rack, ginger consomme with prawns, tetilla cheese mousse and parsnip puree.
These mouth-watering dishes were prepared by MasterChef New Zealand contestants but Bay residents are lining up for cooking classes to become their own master chef.
The TV1 cooking contest is one of New Zealand's most popular programmes - 444,170 tuned in to watch last Sunday's episode.
And cooking schools in the Western Bay say there's plenty of appetite for foodies here who want to make their own gourmet creations.
James Broad of Cuisine Concepts, who runs cooking classes and workshops, said TV cooking shows had sparked a huge interest in cuisine.
"It's phenomenal. I'm surprised we haven't reached saturation yet, but it's still growing and growing.
"As a trade, no one touches us for coverage on TV. It's great because it's getting everyone back cooking."
Mr Broad's cooking lessons are so popular that a 30-person class was booked out within an hour of sending an email to his database.
"It blows my mind. I'm not saying I'm doing anything special or different than anyone else, it's a very fashionable subject to get involved in at the moment.
"As a chef and as a foodie, I love cooking. A lot of people don't know how to cook and anything that promotes people getting back in the kitchen I'm a big fan of."
Mr Broad said people were keen to learn how to cook new dishes outside their usual repertoire.
"The biggest buzz I get is when people come back to me in a week or a month, or I see them in the street a year later, and they say they are are cooking my recipe."
Mr Broad describes Jamie Oliver an "an absolute champ for getting people cooking" and also enjoys watching the Australian series of MasterChef.
"I don't think a lot of people realise the exposure we are getting to the best chefs in the world [through these programmes].
"I've been cooking 25 years and there's guys on TV who were absolute icons in the trade. They were showing tips and techniques, from a chef's point of view it was huge, absolutely massive."
Virginia Iovine-Turner from Cucina Amore said cooking classes were more popular than ever. She usually does two demonstrations a week and demand is increasing.
"People are excited, they are interested in food. I'm getting emails all the time from groups like book clubs or hens' nights wanting a demonstration.
"We are getting really diverse amounts of different people. Parents are bringing their children to teach them how to cook, husbands and wives are doing it. It's bringing people together."
Mrs Iovine-Turner was blown away by demand for a three-course demonstration and sample of food and wines on Wednesday, which will raise money for the Christchurch earthquake fund.
"I thought 50 people might come but 260 people wanted to come. I could only take 175."
Television cooking shows are influencing what people cook and how they present it, she said.
"Before, you could just slop up macaroni cheese, now a lot of it's presentation.
"People are using different ingredients - things like duck and rice paper rolls - they are getting outside their comfort zone.
"Some of the shows influence me to try different things as well, like quail."
Mrs Iovine-Turner said people were keen to learn how to cook with fresh ingredients, and complex desserts were also popular.
TV cooking shows gave people the confidence to try new dishes, she said.
"If people are afraid to cook, sometimes they think [dishes] are a lot more complex than they are. Then they see how simple it can be."
Although she's usually too busy to watch television, Mrs Iovine-Turner is a fan of New Zealand's Hottest Home Baker and MasterChef's Simon Gault.
Rick Lowe, owner and chef of Somerset Cottage, said cooking classes had become increasingly popular.
"There's definitely demand out there. We have been doing it for 12 years now, it's just got bigger and bigger over the years. It's pretty popular out there."
Somerset Cottage offers a two-hour cooking demonstration, plus lunch, for $90.
"They come in, watch the demonstration, then we all sit down together as a group and have lunch, which is what I've prepared in a class, have wine and a chat.
"Some of the people that come don't even cook. They come because they love the entertainment and mixing with other people."
Mr Lowe said people were interested in meals they could "whip up at home" that were "a little bit different", for both dinner parties and everyday meals.
Ironically, Mr Lowe is not a fan of cooking shows on TV.
"They annoy me, to be honest. People seem to love them, I don't know why, I guess it's the drama that goes with it."
Chef Peter Blakeway has been holding cooking schools at Mills Reef Winery since November.
His classes, which are based around themes such as "A Taste of China", "Food for Friends" or "One-Pot Wonders", are $110 for a lunch class and $125 for dinner.
Mr Blakeway said there had been a huge response from corporates organising cooking demonstrations for staff.
And as the cooler weather approaches, the cooking school is booking up for the winter months.
"People are getting more interested in cooking. It's changed from being an essential part of our lives to being a fun part, which is really neat.
"Both men and women are cooking because they really enjoy it."
Mr Blakeway said TV cooking shows such as MasterChef and Gordon Ramsay's various shows were entertainment, whereas others, like Rick Stein's shows, were informative. "Reality TV is great for the popularity of cooking and food," Mr Blakeway said.
"They are probably getting cooking skills by osmosis and they don't really realise - they are watching it for entertainment value. From my point of view, anything that gets people interested in what they are eating and how it's cooked is a good thing."