Winning team announced for glennans chef's challenge

The team from the NEC group, Simon Fisher and Stephen Christopher, won the glennans chef's challenge at the Hotelympia event last week.

The team won with their menu of canapés which included beetroot and vodka shots served with a glennans crisp, goat's cheese and sweet pepper spring roll. They also comprised a seared oriental glazed duck on a cushion of potato and glennans crisp rosti, glazed pineapple topped with plum chutney and seared scallops on belly of pork seasoned with vegetable crisps.

The main dish was a Monkfish coated in glennans crisp crumb, with garlic and thyme tender loin of pork accompanied with a silky smoked pommes puree and seared scallops on a bed of black pudding crumble. Fisher comment on their win: "I really didn't expect to win; I couldn't believe that I had won! I thought the overall level of cooking was very high, I enjoyed working with the crisps and I will definitely be using them in the future."

Paul Newman, executive chef at the Hilton Hotel Heathrow and one of the judges of the competition, was pleased with the results: "The level of cooking has been very good today, in terms of judging we were looking for innovation, presentation, quality and taste and how the product was used in the dishes."

A total of 16 chefs had to compete in teams of two and had 35 minutes to prepare, cook and present dishes that used the glennans vegetable crisps. Two of dishes had to be canapés, and the other dishes could be either two portions of a starter or a main course. 

The other chefs that took part came from a variety of companies, colleges and establishment such as Le Cordon Bleu Cookery School in London, Connaught Rooms as well as Tanners Restaurant.

Words: Maria Bracken

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