J’AIME JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022

F O O D & D R I N K
A foray into the unknown
STAFFORDSHIRE-BORN CHEF MATT WILLDIGG TALKS ALL THINGS
MASTERCHEF: THE PROFESSIONALS, FORAGING AND FINDING BALANCE
THROUGH HIS NEW BUSINESS WITH KATY EDGINGTON
Chef Matt Willdigg impressed
judges, critics and audiences alike
when he made it to finals week as
one of the last six contenders in
MasterChef: The Professionals
2021, which aired on BBC One last
November and December.
With stages at the likes of Hibiscus,
The Fat, Duck, Quay and Whatley
Manor under his belt, as well as
stints at Murano and Hipping
Hall, Matt’s culinary pedigree is
impressive and fine dining has
taken him to the other side of the
world - a long way from his roots in
Staffordshire.
Matt grew up in the creative county - he still has
family living in Burntwood and Birmingham - and
his first time in a professional kitchen was at The
Moat House at Acton Trussell, aged just 16. His
apprenticeship there was a stepping stone to a career
behind the pass, opening his eyes to the world of
gastronomy.
“I really enjoyed the atmosphere in the kitchen. I was
a bit crazy and hard to control growing up, but the
kitchen environment seemed a perfect match. I could
FORAGING IS AT THE HEART OF
MATT AND OLI’S CULINARY ETHOS
MATT HAS SET UP FORAY CATERING
WITH CLOSE FRIEND AND FORMER
MASTERCHEF FINALIST OLI MARTIN
be myself, the hours didn’t bother me, and I got to
try new things all the time,” Matt tells us.
“I was quite fussy when I was growing up, so it was
quite hard for my mum to feed me. It’s only through
being in the kitchen - trying things how they’re
meant to be cooked and seasoned - that I fell in
love with cooking and the history of food. I can lose
myself for hours down rabbit holes about fermenting
or pickling or old plants that have been forgotten.”
Matt moved to London at 18, where his experiences
at the height of the molecular gastronomy trend blew
him away. His early days as a chef were
heavily influenced by the two colossi of
the time: Heston Blumenthal - “I was a
bit obsessed with him for a while” - and
Gordon Ramsay.
“I remember watching him on Boiling
Point and The F Word before I was
a chef, swearing and shouting, and I
thought he was amazing. Obviously
times change and that’s not the way
kitchens should be anymore, but he was
a big inspiration for sure,” says Matt.
Five years spent working in Australia
inevitably impacted Matt’s development
as a chef, too, particularly given the
38 www.jaimemagazine.com