City of Liverpool College crowned Country Range Student Chef winners

Three talented chefs from the City of Liverpool College have been crowned the winners of the 2019/2020 Country Range Student Chef Challenge, run in conjunction with the Craft Guild of Chefs which took place at the Hospitality, Restaurant and Catering Show (HRC) last week.

The three students, Chi-Hin Cheung, Talent Sibindi and Beth Disley-Jones, alongside their lecturer Ian Jaundoo impressed the judges with their inventive menu, skills and techniques and ability to stay calm under the watchful eyes of the live audience.

Asked to follow a theme which required the students to demonstrate classic techniques and skills to maximise the use of ingredients, the City of Liverpool College students’ menu was first scrutinised by Craft Guild of Chefs chairman of judges Chris Basten before being recreated in a live semi-final heat at the City of Glasgow College earlier this year.

Basten commented: “The City of Liverpool College menu showed fantastic creativity, flavour and taste, whilst also ticking every box on this year’s theme by maximising their ingredients and reducing their food waste while working.”

Student chef Cheung, said: “We weren’t expecting to win but I think that helped us in the end as it calmed the nerves and allowed us to focus on our tasks. Cooking in front of a live audience was daunting at first but as the final progressed, we all really embraced the support of the crowd and enjoyed the experience. It’s been a fantastic competition to be involved in and we’ve all learnt a lot. Whether that’s better time management, menu planning, teamwork or use of ingredients and flavours, we’ve all picked up skills along the way which will prepare us for a future career in the industry but winning is the cherry on top.”

The City of Liverpool College winning menu consisted of:

• Starter – Filets de sole Bretonne with beurre blanc sauce, vegetable julienne, turned mushroom and lace tuile (pictured)
• Main – Cajun spiced pork medallion with savoy Milanaise, pork and apple croquette, buttered mash and sauce Robert
• Dessert – Lemon tart with sesame sable, Italian meringue, lemon gel and raspberry foam

In addition to competing for the Country Range Student Chef Challenge 2019/20 title, all the finalists who competed at HRC were also marked by the Craft Guild of Chefs to international judging standards with Gold, Silver, Bronze and Merit certificates awarded. The full list of teams and awards was as follows:

• City of Liverpool College – Silver – Best In Class
• City of Glasgow College – Silver
• Ayrshire College (Kilmarnock Campus) – Bronze
• Peterborough Regional College – Bronze
• University of Derby – Bronze
• Newcastle College – Bronze
• South Eastern Regional College – Merit
• Carlisle College – Merit
• Loughborough College – Merit
• West Suffolk College - Merit