Age: 29

State: NSW

Occupation: Carpenter

A Nonna’s boy through and through, Jonathan Hooper is incredibly close with his Nonna, Sandra. So close in fact, that they live together. Sandra helped raise Jonathan and always looked after the family, ensuring everyone was well-fed and cared for.

Always drawn to food, Jonathan recalls beginning to cook at around 10-years-old. If he didn’t like what was for dinner, he was encouraged to cook for himself, and he did. Largely self-taught as a cook, Jonathan loves the joy food can bring, and gets a buzz out of curating menus and entertaining friends.

A carpenter by trade, Jonathan is hardworking and has boundless energy which he channels into a positive, happy life. He resonates strongly with judge Andy Allen’s story of transforming his life from sparky to chef to MasterChef Australia judge and hopes that by joining the MasterChef Australia ranks this season, he too will change his future.

With a deep love and passion for food, Jonathan is a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. This year, his partner Jasmine pushed him to apply, and the timing was just right.

Inspired by the likes of Matty Matheson, Morgan Hipworth and Jamie Oliver, Jonathan excels at home-style comfort food, strong, bold flavours and slow-cooked meats. With a love of barbecue, Mexican, Japanese and Italian, he is conscious that cooking under time pressure will be tough.

No stranger to digging deep, Jonathan is an amateur Muay Thai fighter, taking out his first bout win last year, having fought his way back to fitness after injury. It’s this kind of determination that Jonathan will call upon during the competition and he plans on playing a strong mental game to deal with the pressure, utilising exercise and meditation.

Ready to give the competition his all, Jonathan hopes to make his Nonna proud of his efforts in the kitchen, and will relish being around a group of new, like-minded foodie mates as they bring their dreams to life. His dream? To do the fit out of his own beach-shack restaurant.