From the Judge’s Table to the Garden: A Conversation with Chef Claudia Sandoval
A San Diego native with deep roots in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Chef Claudia Sandoval is a master of storytelling through flavor. Since winning MasterChef in 2015, she has become one of the most vibrant voices in modern Mexican cuisine—serving as a judge on Chopped and MasterChef Latino, and exploring our region’s cultural crossroads in her series Taste of the Border.
In anticipation of Flavors of Mexico Week (July 11–18, 2026), we sat down with Chef Claudia to discuss the culinary adventure awaiting guests this summer. From the bounty of our organic gardens to the enduring traditions of the Mexican kitchen, the week is a celebration of food, culture, and bold, complex flavors.
You grew up in San Diego with deep roots in Mazatlán cooking alongside your mother and grandmother. How did those early kitchen memories shape the way you approach cuisine and cooking today?
Those early memories shaped everything for me. I grew up watching my mother and grandmother cook not from recipes, but from instinct, memory, and love. The kitchen was where stories were told, where culture was preserved, and where we connected as a family. Because of that, I approach cooking today as something much deeper than technique. Food is history. It’s identity. It’s a way of honoring the women who came before me and the traditions they carried across borders and generations. Even when I create something new, those early lessons about respect for ingredients, patience, and cooking with intention are always guiding me.
Winning MasterChef in 2015 changed a lot for you. Looking back, what did that experience teach you not just about cooking, but about confidence and storytelling through food?
Winning MasterChef was transformative in ways I never expected. Of course it sharpened my skills and pushed me creatively, but the biggest lesson was about confidence in my own voice.
For a long time, I didn’t realize that the food I grew up with, the dishes from my family and culture, were powerful stories worth telling. That show gave me the platform to understand that my perspective mattered.
Food is storytelling. Every dish carries a memory, a place, a person. After MasterChef, I stopped trying to cook what I thought people expected and started cooking what was authentically mine.
From your cookbook Claudia’s Cocina to your show Taste of the Border, you’ve shown the world that our region isn’t defined by a line, but by a living, breathing culture. Is there a specific flavor or ingredient that you feel perfectly captures that resilient, “no-boundaries” spirit of the San Diego/Tijuana region?
If I had to choose one, it would probably be chiles, especially roasted green chiles. They carry heat, depth, smokiness, and resilience all at once. Chiles move freely through our cuisine the same way culture moves through our region. You’ll find them in Baja seafood, in home kitchens in Tijuana, in California farmers markets, and in family recipes passed down for generations like in Hatch, New Mexico.
That’s really the spirit of the border region. It’s layered, vibrant, and constantly evolving. Our food reflects that beautiful exchange of ideas, ingredients, and traditions that has always existed here.
When you cook or teach in a place like Rancho La Puerta, surrounded by gardens, fresh ingredients, and people who are passionate about wellness, what do you hope guests take away from the experience?
What I hope people take away is a sense of connection to the ingredients, to the land, and to themselves.
When you walk through a garden and see where your food actually comes from, it changes the way you cook and eat. It slows you down. It makes you appreciate the ingredient before it even reaches the kitchen.
At Rancho La Puerta, that connection is very real. My hope is that guests leave feeling inspired to cook more intentionally, to honor fresh ingredients, and to understand that nourishing food can also be deeply joyful and rooted in culture.
Don’t miss this rare opportunity to savor the soul of Mexican heritage with these world-class culinary masters. Join Chef Claudia Sandoval (MasterChef Winner & Author), Chef Javier Plascencia ((Michelin-Starred Chef & Visionary), Chef Michelle Mathelin (MasterChef Latinos Winner), Chef Vivian Mercado (Head Chef, La Cocina que Canta), and Chef Segundo Romero (Executive Chef, Rancho La Puerta) for a week of gastronomic excellence, July 11-18.
