Will Plymouth take the South West school chef of the year crown?

Talented chefs from school kitchens across the region are heading for Plymouth to scramble for position in a cook-off for the coveted title of ‘South West School Chef of the Year’.

Each year LACA (Lead Association for Catering in Education) organise a nationwide competition to find the best school chef in the country and showcase the high standards and skills that exist within the school meals service.

Once again, Plymouth is serving up the regional finals at the City College Plymouth, which will take place on Tuesday 3 March.
The competition is open to all catering staff involved in the daily preparation of school meals and puts their planning, preparation, cooking, creativity and presentation skills to the test. It requires each chef to produce, in just one and a half hours, a healthy balanced two-course meal comprising a main course and dessert that would appeal to eleven year olds in schools.

The dishes must conform to the principles of the National Food-based Nutritional Standards for school food and can be made up of poultry, meat, fish and non-meat proteins but, here’s the catch, a maximum of just £1.60 pence per head is allowed for the food cost of both courses.

Plymouth’s hopes rest with Sharon Cundell from St Edwards C of E Primary School.

The other 6 chefs from the South West region hoping to take home the title are:

• Katie Cooper - Cornwall County Council
• Jodie Pearce - Devon County Council
• Rebecca Clark - Bristol City Council
• Jackie Hardman - North Somerset Council
• Jane Thomas - Somerset County Council
• Tasha Watts - Somerset County Council

After one and a half hours of heated competition the seven contestants will await the decision of the judging panel before finding out which one of them has taken the South West crown and will then battle it out for the title of School chef of the year 2015 at the National

Final held in May at the Food Services Wing, Defence Logistics School, Worthy Down near Winchester, Hampshire.

Judging is based on eight strict criteria, which range from flavour and presentation to the ability to replicate the dishes en masse in school and seasonality of ingredients.

Councillor Sue McDonald, Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Public Health said: “School meals have changed hugely since I was at school and the food served up for our children and young people is absolutely delicious and it just goes to show what wonders can be achieved with good ingredients, imagination and talent.

"All staff continue to strive to provide excellent quality food that is appetising and nutritious for children and young people in Plymouth by sourcing local produce and developing recipes and menus that are full of fresh, seasonal and local ingredients.”