It seems love is on the menu on this season of MasterChef Australia: Back to Win, with contestants Sarah Todd and Declan Cleary revealing they’ve moved in together since filming wrapped.

Speaking to Stellar magazine on the weekend, Declan explained the pair immediately hit it off and grew close while spending time together behind-the-scenes during filming.

“Nothing was ever rushed or forced – we just enjoyed spending time together,” the 27-year-old explained. “And Sarah, being from Melbourne, knew all the places to go. So we’d go to the beach, or go-karting, and we went out for lots of dinners.”

When 38-year-old Sarah was up for elimination, Declan knew he had to tell her how he felt.

“As she’s walking into the elimination [challenge], I said, ‘Sarah, can I ask you something? Would you like to go on a date with me?’ And she just looked at me and said, ‘You’re a bloody idiot’,” he recalled.

While Declan may not have chosen the best moment to make his move, Sarah soon realised she felt the same way about him.

​​”After I got through the stress of the elimination and had a couple of days to recover, I realised it made sense,” she said.

The pair enjoyed a romantic weekend away in Grampians National Park for their first date and Declan, and his dog Sol, have since made the move from Sydney to Melbourne to live with Sarah and her 14-year-old son, Phoenix.
(Credit: Instagram)
On Sunday, MasterChef Australia also shared a video compilation of the couple’s close relationship on the show on their Instagram account, with Hugh Grant’s Love Actually character’s monologue as the audio.

“I somehow missed this even though it was happening right in front of my eyes but couldn’t be happier for you,” commented MasterChef Australia judge Poh Ling Yeow.

“Like I’ve always said, ‘Find someone who looks at you the way @declancleary looks at seafood’,” added fellow judge Sofia Levin.

MasterChef Australia fans were also delighted that their suspicions about the pair were true.

“I bloody guessed this weeks ago!! You could tell!” one person commented.

“Saaame! The chemistry is so obvious on screen,” added someone else. “It’s lovely. They are obviously very happy.”

“I saw this from the beginning, they seemed to be always hanging out, I’m so happy,” added a third.

Declan first entered the MasterChef kitchen in 2023 as a contestant on season 15 of the popular cooking competition, where he showcased his love of seafood and placed third. He returned this season as the youngest contestant, hopeful his youthful energy will give him an advantage in the kitchen.

This is Sarah’s third time on the show. She first entered the competition in 2014 as a contestant on the sixth season of MasterChef Australia, where she placed 9th. She returned to the MasterChef kitchen in 2022, competing in season 14 MasterChef Australia: Fans and Favourites, and placing third.

Fans believe that Sarah could take home the $250,000 prize money this season, with her tipped to be in the top three along with other fan favourites Laura Sharrad and Callum Hann.

“I think the winner will be Sarah, she’s grown so much since her time on MasterChef, and I can just see it happening,” one fan shared their theory on Reddit. “COMPLETE guess but just to guess I think Laura, Darrsh, Declan, and Depinder, maybe even Sav, will be in the top 5 this time around.”