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Michelin Star Chef to Judge This Year’s Student Chef Competition

This year marks the 21st annual KNORR Student Chef of the Year competition and preparations are well underway for the final cook-off, which will take place on Tuesday, April 17th 2018.

Dundalk Institute of Technology will soon welcome culinary students from across the island of Ireland, with the competition allowing student chefs to showcase their talent, love of food, creativity and innovation in front of some of Ireland’s leading food professionals.

KNORR Student Chef of the Year is the biggest competition of its kind in Ireland and the theme for this year is “A Contemporary Take on Traditional Irish Pub Dishes” in celebration of Ireland’s first Michelin starred pub.

This year’s competition will be judged by a panel comprising Unilever Food Solutions’ Business Development Chef, Mark McCarthy. He will be joined by special guest judge Aidan McGrath, Chef Patron, Wild Honey Inn. Also joining the panel are restaurant critic Katy McGuinness and Chef Lecturer Michael McNamara.

This year’s students are being challenged to create a vegetarian starter and a main course celebrating Irish seafood. Students must demonstrate an understanding of the importance of locally sourced and produced ingredients in the creation of their menu.

Speaking about this year’s competition, Mark McCarthy, said: “KNORR Student Chef of the Year continues to be a leading culinary competition in Ireland. Students get the opportunity to demonstrate their skills and creativity by constructing a menu which expresses their interpretation of the theme to food industry professionals. We’ve had some truly great chefs compete in the competition over the last two decades which is testament to the talent across the country and the culinary colleges that harness and develop their skills.

“Irish pub food has always been a staple in the Irish food industry. The quality and range of food available has expanded greatly and traditional pub dishes are evolving. The challenge in this year’s competition is to present two dishes which not only illustrate the innate pub food tradition but bring it to life with a contemporary twist. I am excited to see what the students bring to the table.”

Guest judge, Aidan McGrath added: “I’m excited to see the different interpretations of the theme. KNORR Student Chef is a wonderful opportunity for student chefs to really show the judges what they’re capable of. My vision of the winning chef will be an individual who celebrates the abundance of wild ingredients on their doorstep, creating food which is rustic and flavourful.”

Besides the much-coveted KNORR Student Chef of the Year title, the winner will receive a fantastic Wild Atlantic Way culinary experience. The 2018 KNORR Student Chef of the Year competition is open to second year students from participating catering colleges, training centres and Institutes of Technology. The winning entrant from each participating college will travel to Dundalk Institute of Technology for the KNORR Student Chef of the Year final on Tuesday,17th April 2018.

For more information, visit ufs.com/knorrstudentchef.

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