Jaime Tan, a 27-year-old Malaysian-American content creator, mispronounced the popular Malaysian dish roti canai as "roti kanai" with a hard "k" sound during the June 3 episode of MasterChef: Global Gauntlet Season 16 in the World Cup Cookoff challenge [1, 2, 3].
Tan prepared roti canai from scratch along with Malaysian coconut curry, coconut rice, and cucumber-pineapple salad under a 60-minute time limit, representing the Asia-Pacific region [1, 2, 3]. Judge Gordon Ramsay praised her dish, calling the curry "fragrant, warm and sour" and saying, "It feels like you’ve been making it for the last six hours. Well done" [1, 2, 3]. Tan’s dish was named the best entry from the Asia-Pacific region and she went on to win the overall challenge against three other regional winners [1, 2, 3].
For her victory, Tan received an immunity pin protecting her from the next elimination round and a US$2,500 gift card from Home Depot, a nod to her father’s past employment at the company [1, 2]. Tan said the win was personally meaningful because her late grandparents once ran a kopitiam in Johor, Malaysia, and the recipes were family treasures [1, 2, 3].
Despite the praise, Tan faced criticism for her mispronunciation of roti canai, a dish she did not grow up with but has family roots in Malaysia [1, 2, 3]. On June 9, she posted apology videos on TikTok and Instagram, saying, "It makes me sad to disappoint so many South-east Asians. I know how important it is to people, so I just wanted to say I’m sorry. It was not intentional at all. I do not mean to misrepresent a national dish on television" [1, 2, 3]. She lightheartedly added, "Much love to Malaysia. And I’m sorry I butchered roti canai. And guys, I might not be able to say roti canai properly, but I can open a durian with my bare hands. And I think that’s pretty Malaysian" [3].
Tan also shared that she felt emotional pressure during the challenge and cried because she knew her roti canai was not perfect given the time constraints [1, 2].
The MasterChef episode aired on June 3, and Tan’s apology videos followed six days later on June 9 [1, 2, 3]. Tan will continue competing in the season with immunity through the next elimination round.
