The 'MILBOURNE-matters'

Ben's Mexico trip with Andy

Ben has always wanted to visit Mexico since he's deeply in love with the Mexican cuisine. So it was his dream to visit Mexico & get a first hand experience of the colour, flavor & taste of Mexican cuisine. At last, his dream came true & who could have been a better person than Andy to accompany Ben while he embarks on his journey of fulfilling his dream!! Last October (2013), Masterchef celebrities Andy Allen (2012 winner) and Ben Milbourne embarked on Intrepid Travel’s Mexican Real Food Adventure. During their trip, they visited places like Oaxaca, Puebla, Mexico city etc.These Mexican-mad masterchefs soaked up a bevy of grassroots food experiences - a Mexican City taco-crawl, tucking into cheese (and grasshoppers!) in Oaxaca, tasting the hottest chilli in the world in a local market and rounding it off with artisanal mezcal shots are just the a tiny part of their Mexico adventure.

Oh..& they also did something very special during their Mexico trip. Ben, together with Andy got the opportunity to cook dinner for the Australian ambassador (in Mexico) & a few of his special guests!! What a moment it was for them....very special accolade!!

Apart from exploring the Mexican Cuisine, they captured the sights, sounds, food and drink of the country on film for an exclusive YouTube documentary series to be released on Andy’s youtube channel sometime in 2014. They have already released a couple of trailor of their Mexico trip through Andy's channel :

MasterChefs feast on food for Day of the Dead festivities in Mexico

Masterchefs Andy Allen and Ben Milbourne have been devouring their way through Mexico on Intrepid Travel’s Real Food Adventure – Mexico, capturing the sights, sounds, food and drink of the country on film for Andy’s YouTube channel.
As the boys prepare to celebrate Mexico’s Day of the Dead festivities from October 31 to November 2, they share their strangest and most interesting food experiences so far, and dare you to try them when in Mexico.
Agave worm tacos. Andy says: “these worms live on the agave plants used to make mezcal. They taste like bacon but their texture is definitely a lot squishier.”
Fried grasshoppers (Chapulines). Ben says: “a delicacy in Oaxaca, where they fry these grasshoppers up in a multitude of flavours for you to choose: chilli, lime, garlic – it’s all there.”
Chicatanas. Andy says: “these are full bodied flying ants, fried – wings, eyes and all. The wings are larger than their bodies and slightly more challenging than Chapulines!”
Tejate. Ben says: “a maize and cacao beverage, a bit like chocolate milk but pastier and enjoyed especially in Oaxaca. I probably prefer good old chocolate milk!”
Pulque. Andy says: “pulque is basically an alcoholic drink made of fermented cactus juice. It’s thick and slimy, and almost has the consistency of porridge. We tried flavoured versions like oats, mandarin and celery. The ‘classico’ is a bit flavourless and tastes like milky vinegar.”
Green Habanero Chilli. Ben says: “This chilli is the real deal. The green chilli is the hottest in the Habanero family, as it has just fallen from the tree so it’s holding its full colour, flavour and heat. I have tried one in Australia before, so I handballed the test onto Andy. Within seconds he couldn’t speak, nor could he swallow. We lost him from the dinner table for about 20 minutes as he went outside to contemplate life with a burning mouth and running nose!”
Street egg taco. Andy says: “This soupy little scrambled egg on a corn tortilla looked good, but took our director out of action for 24 hours. I guess he just got a bad egg.”
Chicken Breast Flavoured Mezcal. Andy says: “I think we’ll be sticking to normal flavoured mescal in the future!”
Clamato beer. Ben says: “I don’t mind this but everyone else struggled. Over here in the local stores you can buy tins of beer with tomato juice added to them for the taste of a Bloody Mary beer. The Mexicans love it.”
(Source: Globaltravelmedia.com.au November 1, 2013)