Qualifications aren't all that counts, says self-taught celeb chef Lorna Maseko

Former ballerina Lorna Maseko is making up for all the years of eating very little to fit into her tutu with a new career as a celebrity home cook. But how did she go from mastering plies to being queen of sautes?

"I am making up for all the years of not eating," laughs the Top Billing presenter. "I've always enjoyed hosting people at home and that comes with some level of cooking but being on Celebrity MasterChef ignited my passion to become the quintessential home cook."

Her personal food journey includes her upbringing in Alexandra, Johannesburg,
Prix de Lausanne ballet competitions, travels and being on some of SA's biggest cooking shows.

This year the self-taught chef has been part of festivals like Taste of Dubai and London, Eat Forum in Stockholm, as well as Fire and Feast and the DStv Delicious Festival in Johannesburg.

Her new cookbook, Celebrate with Lorna Maseko, also hits book shelves this month. 

"Some people would say I am not a proper chef but learning how to do things in your own kitchen is a trial-and-error situation. It's like dancing because of the repetitiveness
- working at something until you perfect it.

"The days of being without a qualification holding you back are gone. Now there's a level of craftiness you have to have naturally to do the job."

She describes her days as filled with researching, trying out innovative recipes and diets, reading, burning, fixing and shooting for her Instagram and YouTube cooking show Lorna with a Pinch of Salt.

"It's more than just cooking. I was at Food Forum with key leaders and spoke at the Chef's Manifesto panel - a global group around the world made up of all kinds of chefs working at changing the face of food around the world.

"People are more aware of what they put in their mouths and how they enjoy food. They think about wastage. Lots of people in this country take part in meat-free Mondays, first because they couldn't afford meat, now as a conscious thing."

Though she travelled the world from the age of 16 as a ballet dancer, there are many things she's only discovering now - like pork trotters, a popular South African dish.

"I was reluctant because they're pigs' hooves but the gelatinous extract was kind of nice, and I have eaten caviar and oysters which are in a similar category for me, and I've eaten tripe and pig heads in India."

"People around the world have eaten these things, for example during wars because there was insufficient food, so you had to eat every part of the animal. You had to find ways to make it interesting and that's created some of the best dishes today. I might do a pork trotters and samp for my Instagram page soon."