Philadelphia Young Chef of the Year Crowned

A student from Westminster Kingsway college has been crowned Philadelphia Young Chef of the Year 2011, following a hard fought cook off.

Nuannapa Ratanakitsunthorn faced stiff competition from Nicole Waefler, Zoe Lewis and Danny Hoang, but her imaginative dish of breaded lemon sole stuffed with Philadelphia, pea & mint puree and roasted parsley Jersey Royal potatoes, mixed spring vegetables and a Philadelphia clam sauce beat a ravioli, salmon mousse and wild garlic quiche to the prize.

The competition was judged by Mike Allen, senior instructor for craft skills in the armed forces, Martin Bates CEO of the Craft Guild of Chefs, professional chef and writer Sophie Wright and Melissa Neild brand manager Philadelphia Away From Home.

Nuannapa scooped a £500 cash prize, with Nicole, Zoe and Danny winning cash prizes of £200. All finalists received a Philadelphia chef's jacket, and will see their recipes published at www.philadelphia.co.uk/professional and on leaflets in Philadelphia 1.65kg packs.

They also earned a year's free membership to the Craft Guild of Chefs. Nuannapa's college, Westminster Kingsway College, London will receive £1,000 worth of Continental Chef Supplies vouchers to put towards equipment of their choice.

Kraft Foods teamed up with the Craft Guild of Chefs, Sophie Wright and City & Guilds to develop the competition, which aimed to reward the innovation and creativity of talented trainee chefs in full time education aged 17-23. The four finalists were selected from entrants who uploaded recipe ideas to the website in the first round of the competition.

Commenting on her win, Nuannapa said: "My friend won the competition last year, and she inspired me to have a go myself! I love cooking with Philadelphia and was really happy with how my recipe turned out on the day – it was a huge surprise to win and it was amazing to see my hard work pay off."

Sophie Wright added: "I loved Nuannapa's winning recipe – it was the perfect dish for a girly lunch! She really showcased the different ways you could use Philadelphia in the sauce and stuffing, and the flavours combined beautifully in the final dish."

Melissa Neild, Philadelphia brand manager said: "We were really impressed with the quality of all of the finalists' dishes and the imaginative ways Philadelphia was used in each of the recipes. Thanks to all the judges who were a great help in the kitchen in what was a tense and heated cook off."

Martin Bates concluded: "Initiatives like this are vital to the catering industry in the UK – we must nurture and develop our young chefs, encouraging creative cooking from the grass roots up. It was very encouraging to see the huge talent on show throughout the competition, which bodes well for the future of the sector."

Words: Clare Riley

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