Samantha Vallejo-Nágera

Samantha Vallejo-Nágera
Born (1969-10-27) 27 October 1969 (age 55)
Madrid
NationalitySpanish
Occupation(s)Chef and businessperson
FatherJosé Ignacio Vallejo-Nágera Botas

Samantha Vallejo-Nágera Déroulède (born 27 October 1969 in Madrid, Spain) is a Spanish chef, television host and businessperson. She is best known for being a judge on Spanish MasterChef.[1]

Life and career

Vallejo-Nágera was born to a well-known Spanish family close to the Franco regime; her grandfather Antonio Vallejo-Nájera was a psychiatrist with an interest in eugenics. She is the daughter of engineer José Ignacio Vallejo-Nágera Botas and niece of psychiatrist and university professor Juan Antonio Vallejo-Nágera Botas. She is the sister of Nicolás Vallejo-Nágera, better known as "Colate," and the first cousin of the writer María Vallejo-Nágera.[2]

She began her culinary career studying and working with Spanish chef Carlos Horcher in the 1980s, then moved to London and New York. She started her catering company "Samantha de España" in London in 1990. In 1995 she trained in Lyon with French chef Paul Bocuse and Spanish chef Juan Mari Arzak.[3]

She launched the restaurant Casa Taberna in Pedraza, where she spent her childhood summers. She won a Sol Repsol award in 2023 for the restaurant's authentic Segovian cuisine.[4][5]

Since 2013, she has been a judge on the program MasterChef with Pepe Rodríguez and Jordi Cruz. She has written several cookbooks and hosts regular workshops and talks.

Television

Works

  • ¿Cenamos en casa?
  • La cocina de Samantha Vallejo-Nágera (2011)
  • Samantha Las recetas con chocolate
  • Samantha y Roscon. Party.com (2016)
  • Formula Samantha (2016)

References

  1. ^ Gomar, Ignacio. "El éxito de Samantha Vallejo-Nágera, la chef más mediática" [The success of Samantha Vallejo-Nágera, the celebrity chef]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  2. ^ Carreras, José (25 September 2021). "Mar Torres: "En Medjugorje notas la presencia de la Virgen en todos los lados"" [Mar Torres: In Medjugorje you notice Our Lady's presence everywhere]. American Broadcasting Company (in Spanish). ABC (Edición nacional). Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  3. ^ Espada, Blanca (18 April 2023). "Así es Samantha Vallejo-Nágera fuera de cámaras: su vida más personal" [This is Samantha Vallejo-Nágera off-camera: her more personal life]. okdiario (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  4. ^ Bianchi, Martín (24 March 2023). "Samantha Vallejo-Nágera: "Los españoles tenemos muchos complejos y nos cuesta vendernos. Yo lo hago a lo bestia"" [Samantha Vallejo-Nágera: "Spaniards have many complexities and struggle to promote themselves. I do it in a big way"]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 May 2024.
  5. ^ "Casa Taberna en Pedraza, séptimo Sol Repsol de Segovia" [Casa Taberna in Pedraza, seventh Sol Repsol of Segovia]. El Día de Segovia (in Spanish). 28 February 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2024.