Kraft Foods has started the search for the Philadelphia Young Chef of the Year following the success of its first competition in 2011.
The contest is open to all trainee chefs aged between 17 and 23 who are in full-time or part-time education and is supported by food writer Sophie Wright, the Craft Guild of Chefs, City and Guilds, 3663 and the Cheese Cellar Company.
As an extra incentive this year, colleges will be entered into a prize draw to win £500-worth of 3663 catering equipment vouchers for every student they submit.
To enter, students must submit an original recipe for a starter or main course using Philadelphia cream cheese - a brand worth more than £90m and growing at 15.9%, according to the Nielsen MAT Value Sales to the week ending 6 August 2011.
The dish must use ingredients costing no more than £5 per cover and meet nutritional guidelines that limit each serving to a maximum 1500 calories, 52g of fat (with no more than 15g of saturated fat), 4.5g of salt and 67g of sugar. Entrants should also include a full list of ingredients, costings, and preparation/cooking times.
They can register online at www.philadelphia.co.uk/professional until the deadline of midnight, 30 March 2012. Four finalists will then battle it out for the title in a live cook-off.
The overall winner will walk away with a £500 cash prize, while runners-up will be consoled with a £200 prize each. All finalists will also receive a Philadelphia chef’s jacket, 12 months complimentary membership of the Craft Guild of Chefs and the publication of their recipes.
“Philadelphia offers great quality and versatility to the professional kitchen – it’s a must-have ingredient,” said Susan Nash, trade communications manager at Kraft Foods UK.
“It’s great to be able to celebrate young chefs once again after the success of our first competition, and we’re looking forward to seeing even more creativity from this year’s contenders!”
Nuannapa Ratanakitsunthorn, a student chef at Westminster Kingsway College, was the winner of last year’s competition for her dish, which included Philadelphia-stuffed lemon sole and a Philadelphia clam sauce.
By Angela Frewin
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