Since moving in together just over a year ago, the pair have been cooking up a storm in their

Melbourne kitchen.

Hosting everything from tapas nights to dinner parties, Kane, 28, and Lee, 25, make one formidable duo. “We probably work better as a team than as individuals,” Kane says. “We’re not just team-mates, we’re house mates and good friends.”

They define their cooking style as Asianfusion with a twist. Growing up with a Chinese mother, Lee borrows heavily from her Asian heritage. “I always try to incorporate Asian ingredients into my food,” she says. “Whether it’s something simple like wombok, soy sauce or delicacies like black fungus – I always try and see what I can add to make it different.”

She’s also become well-versed in Polish cooking thanks to her boyfriend Alex’s mother Marie. “I love watching her cook,” she says. “It’s like having my own cooking show in real life. I pick up a lot of tips from her.”

The pair describe themselves as calm and collected in the kitchen. “We’re very organised,” Lee says.

Kane adds: “We’re pretty methodical. We’ll chop things first and have it all ready to go.”

It’s no wonder Kane is so calm in stressful situations. He has his job as a tennis umpire to thank for that. He’s umpired 18 grand slam tournaments, including Wimbledon and the Australian Open, as well as gold medal matches at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

He believes this experience will hold him in good stead in this competition. “It’s a highpressure environment, especially when you’re calling lines in front of a big crowd.”

Lee, who works in fashion as an assistant store manager, says her interest in food began at an early age. “I remember being six or seven and spending the entire year experimenting with eggs,” she says. “I was obsessed. Scrambled, boiled and poached eggs – it’s all I wanted to cook and eat. I went through so many cartons.”

Kane too was quite young when the inspiration to cook struck. “As a little kid, I remember stepping up on a stool and watching mum cook spaghetti bolognese. From a young age, I was always wanting to get up there and get stuck into it.”

He even started working at a local fish and chip shop at age 14. “I was cooking burgers and souvlaki,” he recalls.

Kane, a Jamie Oliver fan, and Lee, a Maggie Beer admirer, both have big aspirations when it comes to food.

“I see myself opening up a restaurant or wine bar or being front of house,” Kane says.

Lee adds: “I want to open a home-style café. I want it to be tapas style; small little dishes of the things I love to create in the kitchen.”