Book review: 'Today's Special: 20 Leading Chefs Choose 100 Emerging Chefs'

The majority of the chefs making their choices are from the US, including Daniel Boulud, Dominique Crenn and Marcus Samuelsson, with three representatives from the UK – Skye Gyngell, Margot Henderson and Yotam Ottolenghi.

These three produce-driven chefs unsurprisingly pick out some with styles similar to their own: Henderson plumps for Menu of the Year 2020 Catey winner Neil Borthwick from London's the French House; Gyngell advocates Merlin Labron-Johnson for being "committed to the bigger picture – sustainability, food security and food waste issues"; while Ottolenghi promotes protégé Ramael Scully.

They also take some less typical turns. Henderson highlights Mia Christensen, with her "modern take on classic Nordic food", including sourdough pancakes with mussels, elderflower and caviar; while Ottolenghi reports being "breathlessly impressed" by Australian Dave Verheul, who shares frozen ricotta, rhubarb, rose geranium and fermented blood plum.

Perhaps most exciting for a UK audience are the chefs that are lesser known on these shores but certain to be future leading lights. One such is UK chef Daniel Calvert, who is to open Sézanne, at the Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Marunouchi this June – suggested by Canadian chef May Chow, who also picks out Rosetta Lin from Shenzhen, China, for her "creativity and forwardness". In fact, that description could be credited to every chef in this book, whose inspirational dishes are accompanied by equally colourful and inventive photography.

Today's Special: 20 Leading Chefs Choose 100 Emerging Chefs (Phaidon, £39.95)