Masterchef sisters sure know how to treat us

Our new food darlings Kasey and Karena.

Maketu sisters Kasey and Karena Bird, winners of New Zealand's MasterChef Duo 2014 title, will hold centre stage at the annual Food Show Auckland. The sisters became overnight stars with their big smiles and even bigger culinary talent as they popped up on our TV screens during the MasterChef competition. I asked them a few questions.

WHAT WAS A NORMAL DAY FOR YOU PRE MASTERCHEF?

Kasey: I would get up, go to lectures, do some study. Then I would go to the clothing store I worked in.

Karena: I would be up at 5am and at the gym by 6am at least six days a week. Then I would go to my job as a quality co-ordinator and then home again. I had a very repetitive routine.

AND NOW?

We don't really have normal days anymore. They range from recipe testing and writing to cooking demonstrations and working on our cook book.

HOW HAS TV FAME CHANGED YOU?

Kasey: I still feel the same but everything I am doing now is completely different, I do feel a lot more comfortable with myself though.

Karena: I have become a lot more tech savvy. I am better at using social media and I am getting better at writing down the recipe as I cook.

YOU WERE KNOWN AS COOL, CALM AND COLLECTED ... IS THAT REALLY YOU?

Kasey: I think so, I think one of our greatest assets through the show was being able to remain calm under pressure.

Karena: What you see is what you get with us.

WHAT CONVINCED YOU TO ENTER MASTERCHEF?

Kasey: We entered on a whim, we were actually just at home one day and I came across the application form when I was browsing online.

We decided to fill it out and the rest is history.

Karena: We didn't really put much thought into it. Didn't really think about what a huge decision it was until we arrived at the airport on the first day.

WHAT WAS THE MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT ON TV?

Kasey: It is all pretty embarrassing really but the stand-out moment for me was when we were in Samoa. We were a sweaty mess and we didn't do that well in the challenge either. So it was a bit of a disaster for us.

Karena: At first it was all unbearably embarrassing but you get used to it (kind of) after a while. I agree with Kasey, I can't watch the Samoa episode.

WHAT WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU LEARNED FROM YOUR THREE MONTHS AWAY FROM HOME?

Kasey: The most important thing I learned was to treat people how you want to be treated. There are definitely times when your patience is tested.

Karena: I learned that you should open your ears and shut your mouth. You can learn so much if you listen properly.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE TV PROGRAMME?

Kasey: Not much time for TV anymore but when I do watch I love Game of Thrones.

Karena: It changes, at the moment I am addicted to a series called Suits, about lawyers in New York.

HOW DO YOU RELAX?

Kasey: Cook or go out for a nice meal.

Karena: I take a whole day to cook whatever I want and not worry about having to write down the recipe as I go. I haven't done that in a while to be honest.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE FOOD?

Kasey: I like everything but probably Mum's roast chicken and stuffing.

Karena: I don't have one. I go through phases. Right now I am obsessed with black vinegar.

WHAT INGREDIENT CAN YOU NOT DO WITHOUT?

Both: Salt.

WHO TAUGHT YOU TO COOK?

Kasey: Mum taught us the basics, the internet and eating out is where I started to learn some of the more technical skills I guess.

Karena: I used to watch the Food channel religiously. I would recreate recipes I saw on programmes.

I loved eating out and coming home and trying to recreate the dishes I enjoyed by figuring out what ingredients I thought they had used.

WHAT WAS THE FIRST THING YOU EVER COOKED?

Kasey: The first thing I remember cooking by myself was a potato bake when I was about 6.

Karena: I mixed together jam and milo and coated it in milo and microwaved it. It exploded everywhere. Does that count as cooking?

IF YOU COULD PICK ANYONE IN THE WORLD TO COOK FOR WHO WOULD IT BE?

Kasey: Karena.

Karena: Karena [laughs].

TELL US THREE THINGS ABOUT YOURSELVES THAT WILL SURPRISE.

Karena: My front tooth has been knocked out (I have a fake one now), I don't like runny egg yolks, I am a taekwondo champion.

Kasey: My second toe is longer than my first, my favourite cats are British blues, when I was younger I used to be allergic to sea water.