Catering students encouraged to enter Brakes Student Team Chef Challenge

Food distributor Brakes is calling for young chefs and caterers to showcase their talents in the 2011 Brakes Student Team Chef Challenge.

The national challenge, which has been running since 1993, encourages teams to develop real life catering skills by focusing on accurate costing and sourcing local ingredients, and gives them the opportunity to demonstrate their creativity and teamwork skills in producing a three course meal for four covers at a cost of no more than £12 per head.

The winning team will win a five day work experience placement with Christopher Basten, executive chef at the Marriott County Hall London Hotel and vice chairman of the Craft Guild of Chefs. 

A range of other prizes includes Brakes Catering Equipment vouchers and sets of professional Global knives. Placed winners at the grand final will also have their menus featured in Brakes' Seasons magazine, which is distributed to more than 35,000 customers. 

Brakes marketing director James Armitage said: "This competition is specifically designed to recreate the experience and pressures of a typical professional kitchen. Competitors will need to source and cost produce effectively, which we believe is a very important skill to perfect.

"Our Student Team Chef Challenge is a competition we are proud to host each year, knowing that the past finalists from colleges up and down the country have gained long lasting benefits from taking part."

Teams must consist of three catering NVQ level 2 or 3 students and, if shortlisted, the teams will be invited to compete in a live cook off at one of five regional heats. Teams will be judged on their regional menu, taste, presentation, teamwork, seasoning, culinary skills, working methods and overall balance. Winners of the regional heats will be invited to take part in a grand final in March 2011.

• To enter, teams must submit a paper entry, noting down their menu, ingredients, methodology and cost breakdowns. Entry forms can be downloaded from www.brake.co.uk and the deadline for submission by post is October 29 2010.

Words: Sheila Eggleston

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