Samson Dorcas Happiness
Home Cook · Kosofe
8+ years cooking experiencePersonal information
- Full name
- Samson Dorcas Happiness
- Location
- Kosofe
- Gender
- Female
- Age
- 21
- Phone
- 09022725478
- samsonoheha@gmail.com
- Residential address
- 28 Salawu Onikoyi Street
- Social handles
- Tiktok:selftaughtchef_dorcas, _dorcassamson. Instagram:_dorcassam, Kabodculinary. Facebook: Dorcas Samson
Applicant profile
- Applicant type
- Home Cook
- Applicant type other
- —
- Current occupation
- Student
- Cooking experience
- 8+ years
Competition experience
- Prior competitions
- No
- Competition details
- —
Competition readiness
- Available throughout competition
- Yes
Entrepreneurship and impact
- Runs a food business
- Yes
- Business name
- Kabob Culinary
- Business type
- Event Catering
- Years in operation
- Less than a year
- Business challenge
- You do not have to come from a family of affluence before you can make it. That has been my biggest challenge. I had the urge to start Kabod Culinary for two years, but I did not have the courage to take that first step. I have stayed in the shadows for most of my journey, working quietly without the platform or recognition to match my skill. It was only recently that I found the courage, and I established Kabod Culinary this month, right before coming across Eko Flavours. It feels like the right moment to step out of those shadows. I want the spotlight, not for myself alone, but to build my food business into something that can stand and grow.
Culinary journey
My culinary journey started when I was just seven years old. I was brought from the village to live away from my family, and food became the one thing that kept me connected to comfort and home. There was a season when my father fell ill and my mother had to take him to another town for treatment. There was no one left to cook for us, so I attempted cooking for the very first time. I remember mixing different ingredients just to get the right sweetness. From that moment, cooking became rooted in me. Over the years it grew from a childhood necessity into a genuine passion, and since 2015 I have been cooking daily as a household cook, mastering Nigerian dishes and learning to trust my own instincts in the kitchen.
Cooking inspiration
Food has always been my comfort and my companion. Growing up far from my family, cooking gave me a way to express emotions I could not always put into words. My late father inspires me deeply, and I carry his memory into every dish I make. My faith in God has also been a source of comfort through it all. I believe that when there is a will, there is a way, and cooking has taught me that I have no limitations. Whenever a dish turns out well, it lifts my mood instantly. That connection between food and feeling is what drives me to keep creating.
Signature dish
My signature dish is anything I do with rice. It can be Fried rice, Jollof rice, Suya rice, or my own personal recipe, Pork rice, a taste I invented myself through years of experimenting with flavors. Rice is where my creativity comes alive, and no two versions I make are ever quite the same. But if I trace my roots back to my village, my heart always returns to pounded yam and egusi. I hold that dish close because it shows me. It talks about where I come from and who I have become, and it reminds me that every recipe I create today is still connected to that little girl who first learned to cook out of necessity.
Why I want to participate
I want to participate because I never went to culinary school. Everything I cook comes from my own mind, my own invention, built through years of practice and instinct rather than formal training. I want to show the world that my story is still being written, that it is still in chapters, and that God is not done with me yet. This competition is my chance to prove that talent shaped by life experience deserves a seat at the table too.
What winning would mean
To me, winning already started the moment I submitted this application. It means I believed in myself and in God enough to put my story forward. That, to me, is winning. I trust God to take it further from here, and whatever happens next, I know I showed up fully and honestly.
