Findlay Wood of the Queen’s Head in Belton diced, sliced and sautéed his way to victory in the Young Chef of the Year competition sponsored by Harvey Ingram LLP at Loughborough College’s Radmoor Centre earlier today.
As part of the Leicestershire and Rutland Restaurant Awards sponsored by business advisors, Cooper Parry, the Young Chef of the Year competition is an aspirational category open to young hopefuls across the two counties and aims to recognise and reward the region’s talent and, more importantly, retain it within the area’s restaurant industry.
Competinjg fro the title this year was…
From The Red Lion at Sibbertoft, Tim Sandercock, currently second chef
From The Queens Head at Belton, Findlay Wood, currently a senior chef de partie
From Firenze at Kibworth, Max Faulkner, currently a comis chef
From newcomer Saffron Blue, Rama Yadar, currently a comis chef
From Fusions, David Flannery, currently a senior chef de partie
Each of the 5 finalists was required to prepare 2 courses; either a salad for starter or dessert to accompany their own unique take on the classic omelette for main course from a basket of ingredients supplied by Rungis Market Direct and, up until the morning of the competition, not yet seen by our finalists. This year’s winner, Findlay Wood, won over the judges with a chorizo salad with fried quail egg, Parma ham and blanched asparagus followed by poached Haddock and dill omelette.
The final was staged at Loughborough College’s Radmoor Centre which was opened in 2006 at a cost of more than £6million and now boasts some of the best catering facilities in the country.
This year’s hotly contested award was judged by Hambleton Hall’s Michelin star chef, Aaron Paterson, NVQ Course Manager at Loughborough College’s Radmoor Centre Darren Creed, and Frank Whale and Pina Mazzotti of award sponsors, Harvey Ingram LLP.
Frank Whale, Partner and Head of the Food and Drink Group at Harvey Ingram LLP commented ‘We’ve had a fantastic day, it’s been a totally different experience and certainly not something we at Harvey Ingram get to do often! It was clear to see just how much each of the five contestants wanted to win, they each seemed rather nervous to begin with but you could see them relax into it once they got cooking and subsequently produced some superb food. Findlay’s recipe ideas were unique but simple and the two dishes combined were what won him the Young Chef of the Year award.’
Held in conjunction with the Leicestershire Food Week and one of the largest provincial festivals in Europe, the East Midlands Food Festival, this year’s Young Chef of the Year will attend the glitzy Leicestershire and Rutland Restaurant Awards at Stapleford Park on the 3rd October to pick up his well deserved award. Findlay has also been invited to cook alongside celebrity chef Jean Christophe-Novelli at the East Midlands Food Festival on Sunday 7th October where he’ll be demonstrating his culinary skills to everyone attending the show.
All other award winners and nominees will be announced at the grand Awards Ceremony to be held once again at Stapleford Park Country House Hotel on the 3rd October. The black-tie event includes a drinks reception, three-course dinner, entertainment and a charity raffle in support of Children’s Choice Campaign - an initiative launched by Leicester Royal Infirmary and the Leicester Mercury which aims to raise £300,000 to introduce a kitchen for the ward which will be able to provide a range of food at short notice to meet the needs of the children.
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