School chef Tim Fletcher wins national catering award

Beechen Cliff school chef Tim Fletcher with his award-winning breakfast slice and the Craft Guild recipe book in which it features

Tim Fletcher, head chef at Beechen Cliff School, Bath has been presented with one of the most prestigious awards in a national catering competition.

His triumph came in the BPEX Foodservice Pork Product of the Year competition 2012, which recognises quality pork products and dishes that can be found on menus in pubs, restaurants, schools and hotels.

Fletcher picked up a gold award for his unique 'Breakfast Slice', which was also selected by judges as one of the top three products in the Best Innovative Pork Product category.

The competition is held in high esteem by the food industry and drew in products from chefs, butchers, bakers and manufacturers across the six categories: Fresh Pork Cut, Pork Ready Meal, Best Cold Eating Product, Pork and Pastry, Best Cured Product and Best Innovative Pork Product.

The top 18 products, three from each category, were showcased at a special awards luncheon at Butchers Hall in London.

Fletcher developed the recipe after he was approached to contribute to the new Craft Guild of Chefs recipe book; A Great British Celebration.

He said: "The Breakfast Slice is a twist on the traditional cooked breakfast and showcases three separate breakfast favourites – sausage, bacon and black pudding – all in one.

"Because it's such an original product we thought it would be ideal for the Best Innovative Pork Product category and were absolutely delighted the judges agreed.

"To get an award for it is incredible. I will be introducing it onto our school menu in the near future. Our kids are great when it comes to food, they are keen to learn about where food comes from and willing to try new dishes.

"Occasionally I serve offal and they've also had frog's legs before, so I'm sure The Breakfast Slice will go down well."

BPEX foodservice trade manager, Tony Goodger, said: "We received a fantastic array of entries this year, demonstrating outstanding quality and innovation, which made judging very tough indeed.

"Gold awards are only given to products that satisfy the judge's strict criteria, which make these accolades important to not only the product manufacturers but also customers who eat them.

"To have a school chef represented in the final and be selected as having one of the best products in the catering industry is an incredible feat. We hope they boys at Beechen Cliff enjoy it as much as the judges did."

Words: David Foad

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