For self-taught Kiwi cooking duo Karena and Kasey Te Awa-Bird, the world is their oyster – and a lot of other foods as well.

The 2014 MasterChef New Zealand winners from Maketu in the Bay of Plenty packed their bags and headed off on a hectic tour of the globe for the series Karena And Kasey's Kitchen Diplomacy.

Karena and Kasey Te Awa-Bird filming in India for their new show Kasey And Karena's Kitchen Diplomacy. Photo: stuff.co.nz

"We went to Korea, Italy, Vietnam, India, USA, Japan, Chile, New Caledonia, China and Indonesia," says Karena, who admits the trip was a bit different to most holidays overseas.

"Usually there are no cameras following us around filming us eating everything – and we do eat a lot on the show. We have to squeeze a lot of eating into filming time."

At the start of each episode the girls sit down with the local New Zealand ambassador to discuss connections between the two countries, any cultural similarities and, of course, the cuisine.

They are then set a cooking challenge by the ambassador, ranging from canapes for a group of chefs and food writers, to running a food truck, to catering for a wedding.

The pair also tours markets and food spots to learn about local dishes before splitting up, with one going to a top restaurant to learn while the other goes into a family home, visits a local restaurant or tours local foodie hotspots.

They were initially a little apprehensive initially about mixing in diplomatic circles, says Karena.

"I think in our first country we were quite intimidated to sit down with an ambassador. We thought it would be quite formal, but actually they're just like normal Kiwis in different countries doing an amazing job."

"You were talking to someone who was going to tell you the right places to go, give you really great advice and an understanding of the relationship New Zealand has with that country. It was a really, really surprisingly great part of the show."

Jetlag, language barriers, attention from locals – in India, crowd control held back onlookers – and food challenges were taken in their stride.

"My sister and I will give anything a try. We ate so many strange things, like we had dehydrated lungs, brains and all that kind of stuff," says Karena, adding that she loves working with Kasey.

"People can't believe it but we hardly ever fight and, if we do, it's never verbal. It's more in the eyes. I can look at her and know if she's annoyed at me...

"We have the same values and views on life but we have very different personalities. I think that combination works really well. I know that I couldn't travel around with someone like myself. Because we are so different, it just works."

Or, as Kasey says, it's great to have someone you can trust.

"We are just always trying to do our best for this common goal – I'm not sure what the goal is – just enjoy food?" says Kasey, laughing.

The TV series is the latest of the new experiences the girls have shared since winning MasterChef.

"Our lives have completely changed," Kasey says. "I was studying to be an accountant and now all of our days are filled with learning about food, writing about food, doing lots of differing events around food, travelling the country, travelling the world, cooking, speaking about food," she says. "We self-published our own cookbook – now we're publishers and we can do that. There's all these different skills we've been picking up."

And the best part of their world trip is, returning home to Maketu and tucking into their mum's roast chicken dinner.

"We love that. Just the simple things," says Kasey. "When we make our recipes, we open up the fridge and pantry and go, 'What can we make from what we have?'."

"We cook with what we see and what we have available," says Karena. And that's their approach wherever they are in the world.

Karena And Kasey's Kitchen Diplomacy, TV One, starts Sunday July 31.

– Kerry Harvey/Stuff.co.nz