Brakes and John Lewis name the winners of Britdish Chef Competition

Foodservice industry supplier Brakes and department store John Lewis have teamed up again to announce the winners of their Britdish competition.

The entrants were asked to create a dish for one of three categories: a sandwich, main course or dessert. After being shortlisted, three finalists from each category were then invited to Brakes' Food Innovation Centre in London's Covent Garden for a one-hour live 'cook off' recently.

And the finalists got the opportunity to prove that they could perform well under pressure after being given just one hour to prepare, cook and serve their chosen dishes from scratch. The produce the chefs used to create the dishes had to make use of British ingredients and autumnal produce, and be provided by Brakes wherever possible.

Joanne Tandy, chef at John Lewis Nottingham, picked up the accolade for best sandwich after impressing the judges with her dish of trout and beetroot tartine with horseradish cream. Her creation featured an open sandwich that was described as having "delicious ingredients" and standing apart from the other two dishes in the same category.

Winner of the main meal category was Richard Lister, chef at John Lewis Newcastle, for his dish of pork pan haggerty with leek carlings and pear jus. Lister's dish was heralded by the judges for "taking on autumnal flavours" while also having a regional feel thanks to the use of traditional north-east foods such as pan haggerty, which is a popular Northumberland supper dish. Also on the menu from Lister were carling cakes that were made using split peas - a dish known to have been eaten in the north-east during lent.

And in an unusual twist the entries for best dessert were so impressive that all three finalists in this category were announced winners. Robin Benson, chef at John Lewis Liverpool was "highly praised" for his spiced apple tart with blackberry Chantilly cream, that can be served hot and cold.

Meanwhile, also creating a winning dessert dish for the judges was Djamel Hadbouali of John Lewis, Victoria, who presented his autumnal berry trifle, which was described as "a refreshing twist" of a classic British dessert.

Marc Antoine Bochu, chef at John Lewis Kingston, created an autumn fruit cobbler with Cornish clotted cream, which is packed full of Great British fruits such as blackberries, red plums, conference pears and bramley apples.

On the judging panel were Marco Zacharia and Philippe Bacconnier from the foodservice team at John Lewis. Among their criteria were contestants' practical application, working methods, technical skill and organisation. They were also looking for good use of British ingredients, taste, balance, presentation, innovation and menu appeal with the chosen ingredients.

The winners won an all expenses paid trip to the Rungis food market in Paris, which originated in the 10th century and is now thought to be the largest wholesale food market in the world - spanning its own 10-hectare area in the southern suburbs of the city.

Zacharia said: "It was an absolute pleasure to see our chefs' passion for British food, creativity and dedication shine through, and we believe it is this gratification that makes our John Lewis catering outlets so popular with our customers.

"There was such a high standard on the day, and every finalist should be very proud of the dishes they produced. However our congratulations must go to the five winners and we look forward to seeing their dishes on our John Lewis British Food Fortnight menus this autumn."

Brakes development chef Matt Cull said: "We are delighted to be the lead foodservice partner for British Food Fortnight for the 6th year – and the 'Britdish' competition has been an exciting element that we were pleased to run in partnership with John Lewis.

"Our customers are looking for the best seasonal British products. We aim to source and promote the very best. It will be great for us, our valued suppliers and the general public to see innovative dishes from John Lewis' most talented chefs made from the best of British autumnal produce."

Words: Georgiana Ndlovu

« Back to previous page