A TORRUMBARRY couple hopes to put the town on the map when they appear on this year’s season of My Kitchen Rules.
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Jodie-Anne and Mick Barlow spent five months filming last year before the first episode screens later this month.
‘‘It was amazing. I just loved the whole thing. To get to travel around Australia. We’ve certainly come back better cooks than when we left,’’ Jodie-Anne said.
The couple describes their cooking style as champagne food on a beer budget.
‘‘This is how we became homeowners in our 40s,’’ Jodie-Anne said.
‘‘Rather than having a set plan for dinner, whatever was marked down at the supermarket, we ate. Create menus out of what produce you’ve got.
‘‘And we pair that with what we’ve got in our own vegie and herb garden.’’
On the show they were somewhat limited to what they cooked depending on the challenge, but their theme revolved around country cooking.
‘‘We’re happy with what we did. We wanted to do the country people proud,’’ Mick said.
And while making it on MKR was a dream come true, it wasn’t without its challenges and hardships, including disasters in the kitchen.
‘‘It was extremely rigorous. Very hard yakka,’’ Mick said.
‘‘It’s 16-17-hour days at times. The average is a 14-hour day,’’ Jodie-Anne said.
And the occasional days off were spent practising the 70 recipes Jodie-Anne came up with during the show.
‘‘You have to try it and make sure you can cook it in the timeframes,’ she said.
‘‘You’re pretty much dedicated to it every minute.’’
Which they were able to do after selling their Echuca business Rapid Tool Repairs in July 2017.
Jodie-Anne — the cook of the two — is no stranger to celebrity, having appeared on Ready Steady Cook 10 years ago but this is a first for Mick.
‘‘I’ve learnt a lot and you learn from your mistakes,’’ Mick said.
‘‘They put you in an environment that makes it really hard.’’
Despite all the pressures, they say their relationship is stronger than ever — thanks somewhat to having worked closely together for 17 years.
‘‘We actually coped really well. Sure there were tough times but I think we had each other’s backs 100 per cent,’’ Mick said.
‘‘We got along with most people really well. It’s a diverse group of people, which they obviously do for a reason.
‘‘I found it interesting. Of course there’s controversy. You put 20 people together in that sort of situation and you’re always going to get controversy.’’
As well as controversy, there was utter confusion as judges Manu Feildel and Pete Evans turned up to the wrong house.
‘‘They turned up to our neighbour’s house,’’ Jodie-Anne laughed.
‘‘Manu is a class clown and a born performer. Pete is more reserved.’’
And Jodie-Anne said she took their criticism as an opportunity to improve.
‘‘I take criticism positively because it’s something to learn from,’’ she said.
‘‘I probably improved on cooking for big numbers of people. (Celebrity chef) Colin Fassnidge is a very good teacher so he taught me the professional way to go about things.’’
The Barlows said they hoped their appearance on the show would put the Torrumbarry and Echuca foodbowl region on the map.
‘‘We want to showcase how hard farmers do it up here to put food on Australian tables,’’ he said.
‘‘We went on the show as an adventure. It was on Jodie-Anne’s dream board. And she would ideally like to have a cooking show at the end of this.’’
The couple will feature in group one, with the first episode airing on Monday, January 28, on Channel 7.
Torrumbarry Hotel will air it on the big screen at 7pm.
■The couple’s Instagram handle is #champagnefoodonabeerbudget