Prince Charles with "MasterChef Australia" judges Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris and Matt Preston
Prince Charles with "MasterChef Australia" judges Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris and Matt Preston Twitter/masterchefau

Prince Charles has been served green ants by one of the “MasterChef Australia” season 10 contestants. On Wednesday, the Channel 10 cooking show invited very special royal guests, including Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.

On Wednesday’s episode, the remaining contestants were asked to cook for the future king of England. And to help them prepare for the task, Camilla gave them tips on what Charles liked in his food and what royals would avoid. She said Charles loved local cheeses and was a “huge cheese fan.” She told the contestants that they would make the prince smile if they served him with cheese and “anything with eggs, with a bit of local vegetables of some kind.”

When asked by Gary Mehigan what ingredient the contestants should never serve, Camilla answered, “I hate to say this, but garlic. Garlic is a no-no.”

“Because you’re talking, chatting?” Gary asked. “Exactly. You just have to lay off the garlic,” she replied.

Camilla also had a casual chat with the show judge what food she absolutely must have in her fridge. It turns out the duchess is a fan of olive oil and tomatoes. “I have to have, if I haven’t got fresh tomatoes, I’ll always have tomato puree,” she said. “And I’m afraid to say, even ketchup. My grandchildren are rather addicted to ketchup.”

Camilla has five grandchildren from her son, Tom, and daughter, Laura. She is also the step-grandmother of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, the children of Prince Harry and Kate Middleton.

Prince Charles said he was “particularly partial about local ingredients” as they present diversity. But while he appeared to be appreciative of the dishes he was served, he couldn’t hide his shock when he was served with a rather exotic delight.

“Green ants!” Charles exclaimed after Matt Preston told him the dish was local green ants on canapés.

Later, when he met the contestants, he asked who had served that dish. It was 25-year-old DJ Khanh Ong, who won the challenge with teammates Reece Hignell and Chloe Carroll.