Aaron Brunet, the yoga-practising IT consultant from Raglan, outcooked Paula Saengthian-Ngam by just one point in last night's grand final.
He celebrated with family at the Langham Hotel in Auckland, after keeping his win a secret from them for the past six months.
There was cheers and champagne when the scores were read - but he credits his victory to a calm demeanour created by yoga, exercise, sleep and healthy food.
New Zealanders are guaranteed to see more of Brunet, who not only secured a cookbook deal but has other foodie ideas in the pipeline.
"I'd really love to help people try and enjoy experimenting and really enjoy pushing their own boundaries so they can develop and learn in their own kitchens to be the best cooks they can be," he said last night.
"Part of my preparation was to try to stay as calm and focused as I could and I think that really made a difference. When the pressure came on, I felt like I just went inwards and tried to gather myself and really focus on what was happening rather than letting stress get in the way of being able to cook."
Brunet, 45, had been the favourite throughout the show's 17-episode schedule, beating hundreds of hopefuls and 15 other finalists.
His culinary prowess secured him more than $100,000 worth of prizes, including a Skoda Superb luxury car, $15,000 worth of designer kitchen appliances, $5000 in kitchenware, a year's supply of wine, $20,000 in groceries and the cookbook deal.
In the final, Brunet and Saengthian-Ngam, 35, faced a taste test before cooking a three-course meal.
Brunet took out the first challenge by correctly guessing 14 of the 20 ingredients in a bolognaise sauce prepared by judge Ray McVinnie.
Saengthian-Ngam won the entree challenge, overseen by "the godfather of NZ fine dining", Tony Astle, with her duck salad with Thai influences.
She scored an unprecedented 20 points for a dish the judges described as "exceptional".
The main-course challenge was assigned by Australian star chef George Calombaris. Brunet was victorious in replicating chicken and vegetables from the menu of Calombaris' flagship Melbourne restaurant, The Press Club.
The highly technical dish incorporated a sous-vide chicken ballotine, crispy brined leg, roast shank and smoked chicken oyster, several vegetables, caramelised creme fraiche, fermented garlic and cauliflower cream.
The dessert challenge meant making a "ridiculously fiddly, delicate, fragile, time-consuming, nerve-defying delicious monster", a Croquembouche, to quote the judges.
Overseen by Australian dessert maestro Adriano Zumbo, the extravagant profiterole tower required a nougatine base and two different custard fillings all covered with an elaborate spun isomalt coating.
After a nail-biting points tally, Brunet emerged the winner with 75 out of 100 to Saengthian-Ngam's 74.
