Winterton farm sisters Rox and Spoen Green the winners of the second season of My Kitchen Rules SA on M-Net.

The Winterton country sisters Rox and Spoen Green from the little town of Winterton was announced the winners of the second season of My Kitchen Rules South Africa on Sunday evening on M-Net (DStv 101), scooping up the R1 million prize.

The farm girls Rox and Spoen Green clinched the title after beating the newly-engaged couple Kim and Pashi from Durban in KwaZulu-Natal in the second season finale of the series produced by Picture Tree.

The last two teams had to create a gourmet five-course meal for the eliminated couples, the judges resident judges David Higgs and J’Something and the guest judges including "spice prince" Reza Mohammad of The Food Network (DStv 175); editor of Pick n Pay's Fresh Living magazine Justine Drake who has her show Just Cooking on BBC Lifestyle (DStv 174); food stylist and Wedding Bashers judge Zola Nene; and the South African filmmaker and presenter and judge of Ultimate Braaimaster SA on e.tv, Justin Bonello.

In the second season finale the finalists had to create an appetiser, a soup, a pasta dish, a main meal and a dessert. Adding to the pressure of five courses, they were required to prepare 20 plates of each course for the grand finale – 100 plates in all.

The judges tasted their dishes blindly and the show's other participants returned to My Kitchen Rules SA headquarters for the final episode.

Despite Kim and Pashi’s impressive effort, Rox and Spoen’s dishes won over the show's judging squad, with their combined score across the five courses giving them a clear edge.

The farm sisters scored a total of 47 out of 60 points, beating Kim and Pashi by eight points. “Yeah! I don’t even know what to do right now,” Spoen said.

M-Net on why it renewed My Kitchen Rules SA for a 2nd season in 2018: 'The decision was an easy one, one we made very early on in the series actually'.

M-Net (DStv 101) has renewed the amateur home cooking competition show My Kitchen Rules South Africa for a second season and says the decision to renew it for another go in 2018 "was an easy one".

Auditions for the second season of My Kitchen Rules SA produced by Endemol Shine SA will start in January 2018.

TVwithThinus asked M-Net why the pay-TV broadcaster decided to renew the show.

"As you know it's not a format that has been done as a local show in South Africa before or that Endemol Shine SA had done before, so it was a risk even though we knew the Australian version was on M-Net," says Kaye-Ann Williams, M-Net's head of local content.

"When we initially decided to do this format as a M-Net team, we decided that it was something that was authentically South African and that we could make it that."

"The brief was to cast people who are authentically themselves, and every couple in MKRSA were exactly that."

"The decision to renew the format was an easy one. It's a decision that we made very early on in the series actually. I think it was episode 4 or 5 that was on-air and then we made the decision," says Kaye-Ann Williams.

"It was because M-Net as a brand want our subscribers and South Africans to feel that they are being represented authentically and that's what I feel My Kitchen Rules SA affords to our viewers".

"Hopefully the second season will be on-air by winter next year."

Kaye-Ann Williams expressed thanks to the Endemol Shine Africa "dream team".

"You guys are creative, you guys are collaborative; you are an absolute dream team and I appreciate every hour that you've put into this, every minute that you've spent away from your families, all the travelling, all the time in edit, all the lovely collaboration and feedback sessions and working together and venting to each other, we absolutely adore you. I honestly feel that you got the heart of the show right".

The finale of the My Kitchen Rules South Africa first season also dazzled and surprised when several celebrity chefs showed up in the last episode as judges.

South Africa's first Michelin Star chef Jan Hendrik flew from Nice, France, with chef Margot Janse whose stint at Le Quartier Francais in Franschhoek that earned the restaurant 8th place in the World’s Top 50 Restaurants who also appeared.

Also making appearances were the Cape Malay cuisine chef Cass Abrahams and the Carte Blanche investigative journalist Devi Sankaree-Govender.

TVwithThinus asked executive producer Anton Burggraaf about the casting coup and what it took to get these 4 high-profile people together, diary- and logistics wise for the filming of the finale.

"M-Net and us discussed who we thought could be on the show for the finale and add value and we explored all options."

"This is a monster of a show and shouldn't be under-estimated. I've done Survivor SA, Fear Factor SA - a lot of shows. But this particular show requires an extraordinary amount of work because as you can see from the instant restaurants, people are inviting 4 other couples into their homes."

"But what you don't realise is there are 75 people running around in somebody's dining room. It's mad. It's really, really a crazy show. And then of course it changes gears in studio, where you have to rely on a whole lot more mettle actually," said Anton Burggraaf.

Co-presenter and co-judge David Higgs says "there were tears, there were emotions, there was laughter. And I think the audience felt it and that's why My Kitchen Rules SA did so well."

M-Net held a special media screening of the My Kitchen Rules SA first season finale on Sunday 10 December at the MultiChoice City headquarters in Randburg, Johannesburg where at the end of the episode the Bloemfontein couple Jamandi (31) and Machiel Bekker were announced as the winners with the top score.

Several TV producers, M-Net executives, on-air talent, stars, and media covering television, showed up to watch the 90-minute episode together, followed by a press conference afterwards in the MultiChoice City cinema venue.

MKRSA co-presenter and co-judge J'Something, Carte Blanche presenter Devi Sankaree Govender and Jan du Plessis, director of M-Net channels

Actor and model Arnu De Villiers and entrepreneur Marnus Broodryk appearing on kykNET's Winslyn

Radio presenter and Survivor South Africa: Panama winner Vanessa Marawa, MKRSA co-presenter and co-judge David Higgs and MKRSA series director Jane Kennedy

M-Net’s My Kitchen Rules South Africa couple Machiel and Jamandi after their R1 million win: 'We’re going to have sex tonight'.

After winning R1 million in the first season finale of My Kitchen Rules South Africa on M-Net (DStv 101) on Sunday night, the overjoyed Bloemfontein couple Jamandi (31) and Machiel Bekker (36) talked about boob jobs to the press and said they’re definitely having sex to celebrate their win.

After taking home the title of South Africa’s best home cooks, beating out best friends Charnell and Kerry from Johannesburg in a tense five course cook-off in the final episode of the Endemol Shine South Africa produced show, husband Machiel at the post-show press conference held at MultiChoice City said "me and her tonight are probably going to make love – with the cheque next to us".

"We're going to start dreaming about that money only now because you can't dream of something that's not yours. We were up against very, very tough competitors and very strict judges."

"The thing that's most amazing about what's happened to us now is we didn't expect it. We never in a million years thought that we would get to this point. And Machiel and I have been crying for the past three days, preparing to lose," said Jamandi. "I'm just so overwhelmed."

About the experience Jamandi said the testing and grueling kitchen cooking experience against other teams "were worse than matric".

"On the day that the final episode was filmed, it was our 10 year wedding anniversary. And you know what's so amazing – my mother and father passed away when I was still young but to win today is amazing because it's my father and mother in law's wedding anniversary as well," said Machiel.

Jamandi said "this was the first wedding anniversary we didn't have sex on. So ja, it was difficult."

"For us being common, everyday people, the attention was a lot, but when we got a challenge we stuck together and did what Jamandi and Machiel wanted to do," said Machiel.

"Do you think in a lifetime you would experience something like this?" said Jamandi. "We're this plain, platteland [rural] Kurt Darren, Nicholis Louw people. Yes. Common. We are common," she joked to laughter. "But that's the way we are."

Jamandi said Machiel wanted to marry her "and I just got a boob job – that was the first thing he saw actually", after which Machiel interrupted and said "there was a second boob job as well!"

Jamandi said "until today and winning you never get that confidence that you are good enough. And until today, it's amazing that we won and I still can't believe that we've won. And this is going to change our lives."

"For us it is important to stay humble. And for us the most important person in our life is God and we just give all the thanks to Him because we wouldn't be anywhere without Him. And we have found the purpose for our lives. We have found the purpose why we are here."

Meet the second 5 teams of My Kitchen Rules South Africa: Working moms, a gay couple, brothers-in-law, foodie friends and a married couple.

The second batch of contestants (here's the first group of teams) of My Kitchen Rules South Africa have been revealed and they include a gay couple, working moms, soon to be brothers-in-law, a married couple and foodie friends.

The food reality competition show produced by Endemol Shine Africa continues on M-Net (DStv 101) on Sundays at 18:00 in which several teams of two each are battling it out in their kitchens to come up with the best meals.

J'Something and David Higgs are the judges critiquing every dish being served up.


Here's the second group of 5 My Kitchen Rules SA teams:

Charnell and Kerry (Weltevredenpark, Johannesburg)
These friends from Weltevredenpark in Johannesburg are creative, working moms.
Kerry who used to be an accounts manager, recently resigned from her job in order to pursue a career in food and photography.

Andrew and Brent (Dainfern, Johannesburg)
This gay couple from Dainfern in Johannesburg are enganged and are living as a self-confessed "modern family".
Andrew and Brent say they are a confident and vibrant duo who loves to entertain and are passionate about friends, family, food and drinks.

OG and G (Cape Town)
OG and G are soon to be brothers-in-law from Cape Town.
On the surface these Capetonian cooking brothers are your typical "meat and two veg" guys, but those looks can be deceiving as beneath the surface lies some serious creative flair.

Jamandi and Machiel (Bloemfontein)
This married couple from Bloemfontein brings humour to the competition with their flamboyance and honesty that has no filters.
Jamandi and Machiel have been married for a decade and decided to enter My Kitchen Rules SA in order to challenge themselves and to take their relationship to the next level.

Nicole and Zamatonga (Durban)
These foodie friends from Durban are self-assured women who like to immerse themselves in different culinary worlds, fusing traditional fare with exotic ingredients and creative experiments.


The batch of episodes about the second group of 5 teams kicks off on Sunday 17 September, with the episode revolving around Charnell and Kerry.

These working moms get their turn to host an Instant Restaurant in Johannesburg and try to impress the other teams and the judges.

Meet the first 5 teams of My Kitchen Rules South Africa: Water polo players, book club friends, Bloem besties and a Cradock mom and daughter team.

The first batch of contestants for the first season of My Kitchen Rules South Africa have been revealed and they include water polo players, besties from Bloem, book club friends and a mom and daughter team from Cradock.

The food reality competition show produced by Endemol Shine Africa will start on M-Net (DStv 101) from Sunday 13 August at 18:00 in which several teams of two each, will be battling it out in their kitchens to come up with the best meals.

The knives are out and the kitchens are about to heat up in the latest TV culinary showdown, with J'Something and David Higgs as the judges who will be critiquing every dish served up.

"This competition is about team work for me," says David Higgs, owner of Marble restaurant.

"When one team member is down, it's up to the other one to pick up the pieces and vice versa - that is essentially what a kitchen is all about. And obviously these contestants need to be able to put good plates of food together - consistently. It's going to be fun to watch."

Musician J'Something says he's looking for "South Africans who take home cooking and give it a big helping of finesse - people who are passionate about food and people that can simply put love on a plate".

My Kitchen Rules South Africa will have 18 episodes and there will be 5 teams of 2 people each in the first round of Instant Restaurants. Later there will be 5 more teams of 2 in the second round - exactly like the Australian version.

In the competition each team has a turn to host the judges and the other teams in their group at their own homes which they turn into "Instant Restaurants" - serving up a 3-course meal against the clock.

At the end of each Instant Restaurant evening, the other teams and the judges score each dish out of 10 and at the end of the 5 Instant Restaurants, the team with the lowest score goes home.

What this means is that once My Kitchen Rules SA has gone through all 10 (both groups of 5 pairs), 8 teams will progress to the next round of the competition which will take place in the “Kitchen Headquarters”.

Here couples will compete against each other in various challenges until there are only 2 teams left to battle it out in the finale of the series.

Here's the first 5 My Kitchen Rules SA teams:

Mr & Mrs Bruce (43)  and Claudia (33) (Midrand)
"I am extremely competitive," says Bruce, a multiple world champion in martial arts. He says his mom had a large influence on his passion for cooking "and her Asian roots have also played a big part in our style as a team".

Claudia saw Bruce at a Kung Fu function and "fell instantly in love" with him. "Now we are married with two beautiful boys". She says she's "addicted to trying out new recipes all the time".

Book Club Besties Kelly (46) & Claire (43) (Kyalami)
These two who have been friends for 10 years met at a book club that was organised by a mutual friend.

"Both Kelly and I are competitive," says Claire. "I learnt from an early age that first is everything, second is nothing!"

Mother & daughter Lani (51) & Louzel (26) (Cradock)
"She sometimes let out a swear word or two. But I am her mother and I can tell her not to do that!" says Eastern Cape mom Lani of her daughter Louzel who lives in Cape Town with her husband.

"I think the fact that I'm cooking with my mom is not only an advantage, but a massive privilege," says Louzel.

"We have the same basic understanding and respect for food and our different abilities compliment that. The fact that we're from a small farming community has also created opportunities for us to think outside of the box when it comes to cooking."

Water polo buddies Rein (33) & Rowan (35) (Krugersdorp)
"Rein and I have known each other since high school, where we met playing water polo," says Rowan. "After a 7-year stint when Rein was galivanting around Holland, we met up again and been greatest of mates ever since."

"We're both very competitive since we've been playing competitive sport all our lives. We plan to take that straight into the kitchen and this competition."

Rein says during his 7 years in Holland "I had the privilege of experiencing some amazing chefs. I was exposed to a lot of great restaurants and food when I was there and it ignited my passion for food."

Bloem Besties Liz (37) & Leanne (32) (Bloemfontein)
"Leanne and myself have known each other for just over two years now, but it was a friendship at first sight," says Liz.

"Finally I found someone who shares my fussiness about food, someone who thinks in food language, someone who plans her week around food ... I met my match!"

Liz says she's "a serious competitor" and very hard on herself. "I love Leanne's craziness and her strong will. What's right is right and wrong is wrong. With Leanne everything is very clear, there are no grey areas."

Leanne says she's a very emotional person. "I wear my emotions on my sleeve, so everyone always knows exactly what I am feeling and where they stand with me."

She says she "loves Liz's determination and her ability to create magic from nothing. She will do anything for me as a friend and will carry me when I need help."