Round one of Young Chef Olympiad held in city

Young chefs got 3.5 hours to impress judges with a skill test – a vegetarian dish paired with a dessert

Vasudha Zora | NT

Bengaluru: The first round of the International Young Chef Olympiad (YCO) took place at the International Institute of Hotel Management (IIHM) on Tuesday here. Nine chefs from Scotland, Singapore, Iran, Armenia, Luxembourg, Wales and Kenya participated in the Bangalore chapter of the contest.

The culinary battle was flagged off at 9 am. The young chefs were given 3.5 hours to impress the judges with a skill test - a vegetarian paired dish with a dessert. Willy Linardy hailing from Indonesia said, “I am very pleased to meet chefs from across the world. I was very stressed with time management but I am grateful I was able to plate just in time.

''With joy, he added,” I have been cooking since junior high school, as I was getting better at it, my mother suggested I join a culinary school. I will be through with my final semester and look forward to winning.”

The competition was judged by culinary experts comprising Chef Andreas Muller, Program Director (International Cuisine) at VTC, Hong Kong, Chef Anupam Gulati, Director Culinary, Ritz Carlson and Vijaitha M R Reginal HOD, Food Production, South IIHM.

“I actually f inished serving five minutes early. I tried to express the elements of Persian cooking which is comparatively bland in comparison to Indian cuisine.  I prepared veggie balls with sides complimenting the vegetarian dish.” Said Behnaz Zobeiri from Iran. She also said that she is taking many Indian Spices for some fusion experiments.

Director of IIHM Bangalore, Sanchari Chowdhury, said the competition is focused on testing culinary skills, creativity, knowledge and sustainability. “We have taken food waste into consideration and have not used any form of plastic in the process of this competition to promote the idea of sustainability,” she said.

Technical Judge and International Judge Chef Sarah Hartnett Pastry Chef and Chocolate, Consultant and Creator of Hartnett Arisan Chocolate said, “It is difficult to adapt to a new country, their flavour profiles and fusion of cultures. The peer pressure and stress were very evident in the kitchen as many had their formal experience with time management in this setting.”

Chef Andreas Muller said,” Cooking is all about getting the basics right and adapting to the situation. The urge to quit comes to everyone at one time, but chefs need to shrug off the nervous energy and remain focused. Do what you love doing and we will taste it.”

The Grand Finale will be held on 4 February in the base city of Kolkata. The first top 10 contestants will be eligible for the same, the next group of 10 will compete for the Plate Trophy and the remaining will be taking part in the first edition of the YCO Dr Suborno Bose Challenge.

Gold winners will receive a cash prize of USD $5000 followed by Silver with USD $3000 and Bronze USD $2000. In view of the International Year of Millets, the competition is promoting the idea of milletbased dishes as well.