2011Competitions

• a . Lift your day with Nescafe Original

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  • ‘Lift your day’ with NESCAFÉ® Original, the nation’s favourite coffee (IRI 19th July 2010), and win the ultimate Samsung 3D TV package throughout February 2011.
• Every day of the month one foodservice customer will win a 40” 3D HD TV, 2 pairs of 3D glasses and a 3D Blu-ray player. Entering couldn’t be easier! Simply buy any catering tin of NESCAFÉ® Original* and enter your Foodservice Rewards® code at www.npextra.co.uk during February to find out instantly if you’re a winner!
  Neil Stephens, Managing Director, Nestlé Professional®, said: “This promotion is underpinned by our commitment to sharing value and rewarding loyalty. Made from 100% pure and natural coffee beans and with a full, rich flavour, NESCAFÉ® Original is undeniably the nation’s favourite brand. This campaign looks to remind our customers why they can rely on it to provide that daily ‘lift’ that it does so well.”
• Did you know? NESCAFÉ® Original contains naturally occurring antioxidants.
  
  For more information, please call Nestlé Professional® on 0800 745 845.
  For terms and conditions, please visit www.npextra.co.uk.
  *Excluding 500g NESCAFÉ® Original Granules.

• b . Are you up for the culinary challenge to win a trip to New Zealand?

• The Craft Guild of Chefs & NZ-UK Link Foundation Culinary Challenge 2010
  In association with the Craft Guild of Chefs and NZ-UK Link Foundation, entries are once again being sort for one lucky chef to win an amazing all expenses paid three-week tour of New Zealand, working in the country’s best restaurants and lodges and visiting food producers and wineries as part of the annual UK-NZ Culinary Challenge.
  Taking place at Westminster Kingsway College on Monday 15 November 2010, the UK-NZ Culinary Challenge is open to young UK chefs who are keen to show off their culinary talents by designing a three-course gourmet menu. Eight lucky finalists will then go into a cook-off, which will take place on Monday and be judged by a panel of judges including the founder of the competition Peter Gordon, Chef/Proprietor, Providores and Tapa Restaurant. The winner will later be announced that evening at an official awards ceremony, hosted by the NZ High Commissioner in the Penthouse Suite of New Zealand House, London.
  Entries for the competition can be made by nominating and entering a candidate(s) or by entering directly. Restaurants or Colleges of each of the eight finalists will receive a complimentary case of Trinity Hill Wines.
  Chefs entering the competition must be aged between 18 and 23 years old as of 1st December 2010, in training or employment and hold a British passport.
  For more details on how to enter, visit the Craft Guild of Chefs website: www.craftguildofchefs.org or the UK-NZ Culinary Challenge website: www.uknzculinarychallenge.com

• c . 'Kent Young Chef Award' 2010

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• ‘Kent Young Chef Award’ 2010 looks set to inspire another generation of budding young chefs. The brainchild of local food and drink champions – Produced in Kent – the competition is aimed at encouraging the county’s secondary school children back into the kitchen to create an imaginative main course recipe, using seasonal and local ingredients.
  Following its successful debut last year, with close to 200 entries, Produced in Kent is expecting an even bigger response second time around and the eight best recipe authors will once again be invited to compete at an electric live cook off in November at one of the country’s leading catering schools - Thanet College.
  The competition has also attracted another prestigious judging panel for the live cook off at Thanet College. The judges will include Richard Phillips, star of BBC TV’s ‘Ready, Steady, Cook’ and owner of four restaurants including multi-award winning Thackeray’s, The Hengist and Richard Phillips at Chapel Down; Claire Wood the talented head chef at Woods Restaurant, Produce Store & Bars in Tunbridge Wells; and Roger Phillips, head of catering and hospitality at Thanet College.
  Celebrity chef Richard Phillips said: “Last year Produced in Kent gave young chefs a fantastic platform to show their skills and craft. This year looks set to be even bigger and better with some amazing prizes to win and I can’t wait to judge the competition again to find the best young chefs in Kent.”
  As well as the Junior and Senior ‘Kent Young Chef Award’ 2010 titles, the winners will enjoy two hands-on chef experiences as part of their prize. The first will be with Richard Phillips at one of his restaurants in Kent and the second will challenge the two winners to help Woods Restaurant’s head chef, Claire Wood, devise a menu for the ‘Kent Young Chef Award’ Charity Dinner at which the two winners will be guests of honour.
  The competition is open to all secondary school children in Kent, in Year Groups 7-11. Entrants simply need to dream up and write a main course recipe to serve two people, which uses seasonal autumn ingredients and produce that is widely available in Kent.
  Competitors should fill in an official entry form available on Produced in Kent’s website (visit www.producedinkent) and email their entry to youngchef@wac.uk.com before the closing date of Friday 29 October.

• d . World Food Awards Reveals 2010 Nominees

• London, UK – The World Food Awards 2010 (WFA) is proud to announce its list of nominees ahead the second annual awards ceremony on Saturday 23rd October at London’s prestigious Park Lane Hilton.
  This year Madonna and Demi Moore’s favourite Vita Coco coconut water is among the list of nominees, as well as the widely acclaimed Japanese eatery Zuma for Restaurant of the Year; Walkers Sensations ‘Let Flavour Unfold’ for Best Marketing Campaign; Tesco for Best National Retailer and Dragon’s Den entrepreneur Levi Roots Reggae Reggae Chilled Caribbean Ready Meals in a double nomination.
  Currently busy deliberating the winners, this year’s high-profile judging panel comprise of celebrity chefs Anjum Anand and Ravinder Bhogal; Simon Numphud, Head of AA Services; Tony Matharu, Managing Director of Grange Hotels; Bob Fox, Managing Director of Nationwide Caterers Association; Humayun Hussain, Editor of Tandoori Magazine; David Jago of Mintel; Adam Leyland, Editor of The Grocer and Sheel Gill of KPMG.
  The World Food Awards 2010 is being supported by Sony Entertainment Television (SET) Asia. Neeraj Arora, Executive Vice President & Head of International Business, Sony Entertainment Network said:
  “World food is more popular now than ever before and with the tremendous success of last years awards we are incredibly excited about making this year’s event even bigger and better.
  “With a big name line up of nominees like Walkers, Pataks, Zuma, Vita Coco and Levi Roots, we hope to drive world food further into the mainstream and celebrate the people who have worked so hard to help it evolve into a thriving and compelling industry.”
  The World Food Awards 2010 will be broadcast on SET Asia in over 100 countries to an audience of millions. Sponsors include ASDA, HSBC, Shazans, Humza, Patak’s, Rajah and Rational FX.
  Visit www.worldfoodawards.com for a full list of nominees, judges and further details.

• e . Greene King hosts first ever MasterChef style competition for pub trade

• Following a cook-off against five other finalists at the Food Innovation Centre in Bicester, head chef Matthew Halls (27) from the Bridgewater Arms in Hemel Hempstead was crowned Greene King’s very own MasterChef. The winning recipe is his take on beef carbonade (beef and onions braised in beer), with horseradish and chive mash.
  In the competition, organised by Old English Inns – Greene King’s inns and hotel division – chefs were asked to create a simple, cost-effective recipe for a new dish in 90 minutes.
  Mike Jeffrey, food and development manager at Greene King, one of the judges on the panel, felt that Matthew’s recipe and preparation of the dish on the day was top-notch. He said, “Although I’m not as harsh as food critic Gregg Wallace from MasterChef, Matthew’s unique recipe, cooked in Guinness, won all of the judges over. It tasted great.”
  Other recipes which made it into the Old English Inns Chef Incentive final included:
  ❦ Smoked haddock with bubble and squeak and a poached egg
  ❦ Princess chicken and sweet red pepper sauce
  ❦ Harvest pie
  ❦ Beef stroganoff
  ❦ Drunken beef and crispy dumplings
  ❦ Gluten free almond and orange cake
  Jonathan Webster, managing director, Greene King Destination said: “Having great food is an important part of the pub experience for customers, and we always ensure our chefs are producing the best possible meals they can. Thanks to this MasterChef style competition, we have a new and exciting way of ensuring our menus are the highest quality.”
  
• For a list of Old English Inns in your area, please visit
  http://www.oldenglishinns.co.uk.
• Matthew Hall’s recipe for carbonade, horseradish and chive mash:
• Directions
  Cube the stewing steak
  Cut mushrooms in half
  Finely slice the onions and garlic
  Roughly chop the rosemary and parsley
  Brown the meat
  Saute the mushrooms and garlic in butter
  Cook onions, brown sugar and rest of the butter in the pan, and add a splash of water
  Mix in flour, chopped rosemary, beefstock and Guinness
  Mix in nutmeg and bay leafs
  Cover pan and cook on hock / or in the oven for 80 minutes