We have been seeing the guest who opened the ninth season of 'Planeta Calleja' on television for a decade. Every week it is collected in more than a million homes, those who faithfully tune in to 'Masterchef' edition after edition. Severe, technical and demanding, Jordi Cruz has earned a reputation for being relentless against applicants. But this Wednesday, February 8, the chef has shown viewers a completely different side of him.
The Catalan accepted the defiance of traveling with Jesús Calleja to mythological Greece at the premiere of the new installment of the Cuatro program and gave the presenter a pleasant surprise by showing a personality that has nothing to do with that of the border chef from 'Masterchef '. "I liked you fat," Calleja admitted when he discovered the sensitive, funny and fighting side of his guest.
A great lover of classical cultures, Catalan traveled hand in hand with globetrotters the Pelion Peninsula, where according to mythology the centaurs lived. They trekked through the region's mountains, sailed through the Gulf of Volos (from which the famous mythological expedition of Jason and the Argonauts departed), and fished for sea urchins that Cruz produced from raw material to prepare a succulent platter on deck. Then they descended the eastern slopes of the peninsula, rappelling up to 35 meters high; and visit the spectacular suspended monasteries of Meteora.
And among so much adventure, the chef delved into some of the experiences, anecdotes and memories of his life like never before. Like he has six siblings, four girls and two boys. “We are diverse, I get along well with everyone. Our feral breeds”.
The relationship with his father, Federico, who died a few years ago, was never easy. He had a bad character, but he always heard bad things about him. He "He lived many things that did not let him be happy." They never showed much affection, but he was able to tell him that he loved him two hours before his death. “I always thought that my father would not leave without saying I love you. He had a bestial Alzheimer's, the fact that that look contained nothing made the task easier for me ”.
About starting his own family, he revealed to Calleja that he wants to have children with his current partner Rebecca Lima, with whom he has been for four years. Before her, her love life is not what people think, he said. “I have had a girl 14 years, another 8 years. That Jordi is a gulf is not like that, don't be a gulf”.
This destination FLIIIIPA me: METEORA! #PlanetaCalleja pic.twitter.com/UqsYm3P05s
— Jesus Calleja (@JesusCalleja) February 8, 2023
The other side of success
In addition, the chef opened up about the health problems he has suffered due to the 'super beast' stress levels he has suffered. "I was hunchbacked and medicated." The presenter wanted to know if during the weekends he usually makes quiet plans to rest, to which the guest responded negatively. “Do you know what happens? One of the bad things that stress has generated is that, when I go to calm situations, stress comes over me”.
Regarding his professional career, apart from his success as a chef with six Michelin stars, the ten years at the helm of 'Masterchef', where he has had to learn to cope with his shyness, came to light.
Getting into the skin of a jury demandee, whose fame precedes him, he solved the mystery of which format he enjoys the most. “The one that amuses me the most is the 'celebrity'. It gives me a certain morbet to see figures that I have seen there all my life and to see them so vulnerable, so tiny, and to be able to say 'your plate is shit,' she said between laughs. She also lavished praise on her classmates. "Pepe is wonderful, he is my older brother. And Samantha can sometimes seem like she's a little out of sorts, but she's a good, generous, organized woman, a piece of mother and a person with a big heart”.
