MasterChef NZ contestant Ben Sheehan as walked out of the competition.
MasterChef NZ contestant Ben Sheehan as walked out of the competition.
MasterChef contestant Ben Sheehan says he's not sure quitting the reality show was fair on other contestants, but for the most part people have been "ridiculously supportive" of his decision.
"I wasn't expecting that," he said. "Ninety-nine per cent of feedback from people has just been like, 'Good on you'
"It's really humbling actually."
Sheehan, a top eight competitor in the TV3 reality show, walked out at the beginning of last night's elimination episode, despite being told by top chef Marco Pierre White that he deserved to be in the top two.
Ben Sheehan has walked out of the MasterChef NZ competition.
Sheehan wasn't sure if his decision to leave was fair on those who had been eliminated but still wanted to compete.
"It's really tough to come up with an answer [to that]. I feel kind of sorry and I feel kind of bad about it, but it's just one of those things," he said.
He said his "MasterChef family" - fellow contestants Glenda Clark, Richard Harris, Tim Read, and Gemma Wynne-Lewis - had all been "so, so sweet and so supportive" of his decision to leave.
As yet he had only heard from one eliminated contestant, Amy Calway, but she had been supportive as well.
"I came to the conclusion that I was ready to go home about the time Chris [Smith] and I were in the bottom two," he said.
"To see him go home, I sort of wished it was me."
At that point, Sheehan said he knew he was "over it" and the prospect of a career in hospitality was not appealing to him.
"I came to the conclusion that cooking ... is something I enjoy doing in my kitchen for my friends and family and it's not something I want to turn into the daily grind."
Being away from home for so long in the high pressure world of MasterChef was also incredibly difficult.
Ben Sheehan leaves the MasterChef kitchen.
"I think a lot of people don't realise it's a huge, huge commitment. It's away from home, it's away from work, it's away from life.
"You're placed into this huge high pressure environment and you know everything's on camera ... and you know if you stuff up it's going to be shown."
Sheehan said he wouldn't change a thing about his time on MasterChef, bar two week five dishes which landed him in the bottom two - beef cheek tacos and eye fillet steak.
"I'm still known as two-taco Ben, which is annoying."
When asked to pick a favourite to win the competition, Sheehan said he thought it would be a tough call between Read and Harris.
