Congratulations to Samantha Warena who has been awarded a Certificate of Participation in the 2021 Nestlé Golden Chef’s Hat Awards.
Representing the North Island in the grand finals held at the QT Hotel in Queenstown, Samantha battled it out in the virtual competition against ten other top young chefs from across Australia.
Each of the finalists competed simultaneously across their regions in commercial kitchens, with two NZChefs or Australian Culinary Federation expert judges onsite to assess professional practices, presentation and the all-important test factor. At the same time, the young chefs’ creations were live streamed to a panel of remote judges who calibrated the results.
Warena’s three-course meal comprised an entrée of cream pumpkin puree seres with black bean and CHEF black Garlic Paste patters with fresh basil, smoked paprika feta and a pistachio and parmesan wafer.
The main was a rosary and mushroom stuffed chicken roulade, serves with duchess sweet potatoes, capsicum and a courgette and raspberry sauce.
To finish, dessert was a no-bake citrus cheesecake with sweet panic crumb, blueberry powers and a rich dark chocolate sauce.
Tightly contested, the 2021 winner was Kimberly Tang from Melbourne, taking out the winners crown and AUD$10,000 to further her culinary career.
Kimberly Tang
“We attracted an outstanding level of talent this year,” noted Executive chef and Nestlé Professional head judge Mark Clayton.
“Female chefs dominates in the finalist line-up and an unprecedented five gold medals were awarded.”
