MasterChef star Tair Mordoch: "I almost died, I left my husband a list of what to do if I pass away"
For two weeks, Tair Mordoch felt pain in her jaw and had difficulty breathing, until she arrived at the hospital with a 98% blockage in a heart artery and almost died. After surviving, she realized that one must do exactly what causes stress and butterflies in the stomach - and decided to return to "MasterChef: Dream Team": "Life here is not a dress rehearsal."
"I almost died. I thought, 'Why do I need this stress and tension on my heart?'. But then I realized that I stayed alive, so I decided to go for it." Tair Mordoch, a culinary and lifestyle content creator who participated in the ninth season of MasterChef, almost died a few years ago from a heart event. But it was precisely this difficult experience that led her to the decision to seize every opportunity that life places before her. This is how she found herself returning to the kitchen in MasterChef: Dream Team (elimination episode tonight, Monday, after the news on Keshet 12).
In an interview with +12, Mordoch told about the family's reaction when she announced she had decided to return, the difference between chefs in restaurants and social media cooks – and about the heart event that almost claimed her life. "I asked myself a lot why I returned to 'MasterChef'. On one hand, I don't have the energy for the stress, the mess, and the heart palpitations. But on the other hand, I believe, and I also talk about it a lot on Instagram, that you need to do things that give you butterflies in your stomach. I always say that when the stomach tightens and there are butterflies, it's a sign to go for it with all your might," she explained the decision to return.
The full interview with Tair Mordoch is available for viewing now on +12.
And it's not that it was a simple decision, despite the encouragement of family members. After the previous season in which she participated, Mordoch experienced a heart event. "I almost died, I thought to myself 'what do I need this stress and tension in my body and heart for'. But then I realized that I stayed alive, so one must live and also do extreme things," she continued.
In the interview, Mordoch shared the heart event she went through: "For two weeks I felt that I had pain in my jaw, and it is important for me to mention this because it can save women's lives, and it was hard for me to breathe. I have a walk that I do every morning, an 'abundance walk' that all my followers know. During one of the walks, my husband Guy called me and said that I sounded strange, that something in my voice sounded not good. I didn't understand what he wanted, but he called again at noon and asked if I was okay. I told him yes, but after he hung up, I wrote him a message on WhatsApp with an organized list of what I want him to do if I die. Literally how to take care of the girls," she said.
"Guy understood that my subconscious was signaling to his subconscious that I was before death, I arrived at the ER with a 98% blockage in a heart artery, and two more blockages," she continued. "This proves to me even more that one must live, and one must do everything to the maximum. Life has begun, this is not a dress rehearsal."
The heart event was a reminder that life here is not a dress rehearsal. How did family and friends react to the return to the program? "They really wanted me to return. They told me 'you are different, more mature and calm. You have been cooking for many years'. Since then I only do Instagram, I cook every day and all the time new things. I did many courses in Israel and abroad, so they know I am ready."
Is it scary to be in this position again, this time with a brand and an audience behind you? "It is always scary to go first. However, I tried, I was on the field and I played. It is much more than what most people do in life. If you look at it like that, then you say, it is a world of opportunities - I took this opportunity again, I will do the best I can, the rest is from above."
What are you willing to do to win? "It is to learn recipes by heart, and as a senile person, it is a nightmare for me. I also came to enjoy, it is no less important to me. I want to smile, to have fun. I think there are people here who are also more experienced, and also really came to fix their previous experience because none of us won in the end."
Mordoch, who is followed by over 100,000 followers on Instagram, also addressed the difference between chefs in restaurants and chefs on social networks. "It's fun for me to say that I am in the middle. I create content, I am an influencer and I create recipes for Instagram, but in the end, there is a family that eats this food and it needs to be tasty and logical," she explained. "My food is versatile and real, not just food for a photo. I don't create food content, but inspiration. I show the home, the relationship, and raising the girls. First of all, there needs to be inspiration, and if we sell a coupon code while doing so, that's fine but it's not the goal."
Interviewer: Noa Barkai
