Ajao Rofiat Olayinka
Food Entrepreneur · Mushin
4–7 years cooking experiencePersonal information
- Full name
- Ajao Rofiat Olayinka
- Location
- Mushin
- Gender
- Female
- Age
- 27
- Phone
- 08085080884
- ajaorofiat000@gmail.com
- Residential address
- 16, Ogunbowale,Ilasa- Mushin, Lagos
- Social handles
- Fabkuchens1@gmail.com
Applicant profile
- Applicant type
- Food Entrepreneur
- Applicant type other
- —
- Current occupation
- Food entrepreneur
- Cooking experience
- 4–7 years
Competition experience
- Prior competitions
- No
- Competition details
- —
Competition readiness
- Available throughout competition
- Yes
Entrepreneurship and impact
- Runs a food business
- Yes
- Business name
- Fabkuchens
- Business type
- Catering services
- Years in operation
- 6+
- Business challenge
- One major challenge Eko Flavours could help me overcome is limited visibility and access to a wider market. As a food brand owner, I have a product I believe in, but getting it in front of the right audience and building strong brand recognition can be challenging. I believe Eko Flavours would give me the exposure, connections, mentorship, and platform I need to grow my customer base, strengthen my brand, and position my business for bigger opportunities.
Culinary journey
My culinary journey is a story of passion, experimentation, and finding my way back to the kitchen. It hasn’t been a straight or perfect one. It’s been a lot of passion, trial and error, starting, pausing, and starting again.
I have always had a genuine love for baking, cooking, and creating food content. I started with cakes and pastries, and along the way, my interest grew into food content and the idea of building my own food business. I have had plans for shawarma and other food offerings, thought about where and how to sell, worked on my branding, and tried to figure out how to make everything work financially.
But it hasn’t always been easy. There have been times when money, my kitchen setup, or life in general made it difficult to create consistently. I have even had to step back and find my way back to it.
My story isn’t “I’ve built a successful food empire.” Not yet. It’s more like: “I love food, I love creating, and I’m still figuring out how to turn that passion into something sustainable”. I have stopped and started, but I keep finding my way back to the kitchen.
This is the most truthful version of my culinary journey.
Cooking inspiration
What inspires my cooking is creativity and the joy of creating something with my own hands. I am inspired by the idea that ordinary ingredients can become something beautiful, delicious, and memorable.
I also seem to be inspired by people’s reactions to my food, the satisfaction of seeing someone genuinely enjoy something I made.
Most importantly, my inspiration comes from curiosity: trying new ideas, experimenting with flavors, improving my skills, and discovering what I am capable of in the kitchen.
Signature dish
My signature dish is Caribbean Rice
Caribbean Rice isn’t just food to me — it’s color, warmth, and celebration on one plate.
What makes it mine is the balance. I start with fluffy Basmati rice, washed clean and boiled with intention. Then comes the soul: a blend of diced tatashe, chicken fillet, ripe plantain, fresh green bell peppers, onions, and garlic, all sautéed until they smell like home. I add carrots and fresh ginger for that little sweetness and heat, and then the star — Caribbean rice spice. That’s where the magic happens. It’s bold, it’s aromatic, and it turns the whole pot from “just rice” into an experience.
The browning gives it that deep, rich color without overpowering the natural flavors. Every spoonful has something different — tender chicken, sweet plantain, a bit of crunch from the peppers, and the warmth of the spices lingering after.
For me, cooking Caribbean Rice is about bringing people together. It’s a dish that feels festive even on a regular day. It’s vibrant like the Caribbean, comforting like Nigerian home food, and it represents how I cook: with bold flavors, attention to detail, and a lot of heart.
If you taste my Caribbean Rice, you’re not just tasting rice and chicken. You’re tasting joy, culture, and the part of me that believes food should make you feel something.
Why I want to participate
I want to participate because food is how I express myself. I’m still figuring out life and building my culinary journey, this competition is the next step for me.
I want to test my skills, get feedback from real judges, and push myself out of my comfort zone.
Caribbean Rice is where I started, and I believe it’s good enough to stand on a big stage. I’m here to learn, to grow, to show what I can do, and take my cooking to the next level.
What winning would mean
Winning would mean that my hard work and faith finally paid off.
It would mean that the late nights, the burnt pots, and the times I kept cooking even when no one was watching were all worth it.
It would tell me that my cooking, and my story, deserves to be seen. It would be proof that I’m not just "still figuring out life" — I’m actually building something real.
