A MasterChef contestant from Clapham Common is competing in finals week.

Alex, 40, has made it to down to the final four and will continue her quest to become MasterChef winner 2018 on tonight’s show.

The competition began with 56 contestants on Monday, February 26 and will conclude with the final on Friday, April 13.

Alex said: “I have been cooking ever since I was old enough to be allowed into the kitchen and for as long as I can remember I have always loved cooking.”

She has been an avid fan of the show since the 90s, watching the show regularly with her mum.

After contemplating applying for the show for five years, she decided to take control of her own happiness and with encouragement from her sister, finally had the courage to submit the application form.

Her favourite part of the competition has been the mass catering challenge where she cooked for 120 RAF veterans at their Halton base. As part of a team, Alex cooked a three course meal which included salmon and chocolate ganache tart.

Alex’s Portuguese heritage inspires her cooking, and she loves to cook Bacalhau, a salt cold dish frequent in Portuguese cuisine. She also loves to use as few ingredients as possible to allow the full, intense flavour to shine through.

Before MasterChef, Alex had no professional cooking experience, previously working as a visual merchandising specialist at Monsoon.

Through participating in the programme she has gained high quality experience, working with renowned chefs and now wants to pursue a career in the culinary industry.

She said: “The show has given me the knowledge and confidence to know I can cook and people like my food, so more than anything I aspire to cook my food in a professional environment. Finding a job that pushes me to expand my culinary skills and where I can express my creativity through food would be brilliant.”

In tonight’s episode, Alex along with the other three finalists will be in Peru where they will be cooking at Central Restaurant, the fifth best restaurant in the world and will be learning from Peruvian cuisine expert Gaston Acurio.

To see Alex's Peruvian inspired dishes, watch MasterChef tonight on BBC One at 8pm.