Global Kitchen with Brett McGregor

Brett McGregorWhat goes with a festive celebration more than planning a delicious meal to share with family and friends? First MasterChef NZ winner and Massey alumnus Brett McGregor knows the importance of a menu designed to wow. Winning MasterChef, as Brett shares, “was the catalyst for me to follow my bliss... after all, if you do what you love, you won’t work a day in your life.” The inspiration to cook has a family connection, with Brett’s mother a key influence. Drawing on spices and flavours from around the world, thinking globally has always been a part of the McGregor household.

Brett’s studies at Massey in anthropology also shaped Brett’s passion for seeing the world in new ways. “Food wasn’t just a meal – it was an experience of another culture. My studies spurred on years of travelling the globe, eating, and learning the joys of another country’s food.”

Since winning MasterChef, Brett has been on an amazing culinary adventure. He’s the Compass Group NZ Brand Ambassador and Executive Chef at the Strata Lounge at Auckland Airport. The Strata Lounge has enabled him to express his internationally acclaimed culinary skills, feeding up to and over 1,000 people per day. He is also one of the founding members of the Compass NZ Culinary Council where evolving food trends and tastes as well as the health of the industry are discussed with a “Where to now?” attitude with respect to the future of our food world.

Brett has also produced bestselling cookbooks (including one being a finalist in the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards) and has been the host of TV1’s Taste of a Traveller. These are just a few highlights from a bustling and inspiring career.

It’s his work with a Ministry of Education programme that has him back in the classroom. Brett is a former school principal, and it’s always been on his radar to change the way New Zealand’s children eat. The programme has gained national accolades as the best lunch programme in the country.

Brett’s first cooking demo in June for alumni was a lot of fun as we learned how to make dishes for the US July 4 Independence Day holiday. Join Brett for the second demo celebrating Thanksgiving – with a Kiwi twist. Brett says, “My cooking style is tasty, fresh, seasonal, and easily achievable.”

With his vast global travels – having lived in Hong Kong for three years and visited places such as Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, North Africa, and Spain – Brett’s second demo will offer an international menu sure to delight.

To register, please sign up at the following link. You’ll be sent a list of ingredients prior to this exciting live event.

Sunday October 30 NZT 11.00am for Thanksgiving recipes (Saturday October 29 3.00pm Pacific Daylight Time / Saturday October 29 6.00 pm Eastern Daylight Time)

Register