Dara Yu makes history as Season 12 ‘MasterChef’ winner

Dara Yu is making history after being named the “Back to Win” champion on FOX’s MasterChef. Here’s the scoop:

The three finalists who competed in Season 12 “Back to Win” are Christian Green, Michael Silverstein, and Dara Yu. All three finalists cooked a three-course meal that were judged by Gordon Ramsay, Aarón Sánchez and Joe Bastianich. Christina Tosi also appeared as a guest judge on the twelfth season. At 20, Dara served a unique three-course meal that showed her growth as a chef as well as her attention to detail and sophisticated palate. Dara’s appetizer was a crispy-skin red snapper with grilled asparagus and a miso Béarnaise sauce. Her entrée was Chinese-style short ribs with Japanese sweet potatoes, spiced carrots, caramelized onions and a carrot top gremolata. And for dessert, Dara served a vanilla floating island which was plated with a crème anglaise, tropical fruit and caramelized forbidden rice.

After being named the Season 12 winner, Dara Yu is making history. She is the youngest MasterChef finalist and winner. She was also the first runner-up on MasterChef Junior. Dara Yu’s success story shows the importance of not giving up on your dreams. After Christine Hà, Yu is the second Asian-American to win a MasterChef trophy. As an emerging chef and positive role model, Dara Yu shared motivating words for the kids as well as her upcoming culinary adventures:

“I always tell, you know, the kids, ‘Just keep cooking, keep opening cookbooks and watching videos… get in the kitchen with your mom, your grandma, whoever,” Dara Yu voiced. “I have a ton of ideas for, you know, food businesses and different business ventures that I would love to pursue. I am also extremely passionate about teaching and the community aspect of food. So I’m excited to dive into that and see where it takes me.”

Click here to see more culinary updates on Dara’s official Instagram page.