Student cooking up a storm in the kitchen
An MTU student is set to chop it likes it’s hot and shake things up in the kitchen today, Thursday, as she takes part in a major chef’s competition.
Hannah Conroy is taking part in the Knorr Professional Student Chef of the Year competition which see Hannah and the other student chefs will be hoping to impress the expert judging panel with their culinary creativity and skills.
They are challenged with preparing and cooking 2 dishes based on this year’s theme: classic dishes with a modern make-over. The students will be judged on their chefmanship, creativity and presentation of their dishes.
Hannah, from Lisgoold near Midleton, grew up on Woodside farm where her family rears pedigree Saddleback pigs and also have food stalls at Midleton, Mahon Point and Douglas Farmer’s Markets where they cook and sell the produce from the farm.
Food has been a central point of Hannah’s upbringing and is dedicated to forging a career in the culinary world. Her ethos in cooking is buying from the local producers, creating a more sustainable livelihood for everyone.
The 2nd year Culinary Studies student is one of ten student chefs from culinary colleges around the country who will battle it out in the kitchen to win the highly regarded title. This is a particularly significant year for competition as it celebrates its 25th anniversary.
Commenting ahead of the competition, Audrey Crone, Executive Chef Ireland at Unilever Food Solutions said: “Student Chef of the Year competition is widely respected within the hospitality sector for its reputation for showcasing the talents of our culinary students. Previous winners have gone on to have very successful careers as well as writing recipe books and presenting their own television programmes.”
She added: “Every year, student chefs present dishes that would make the cut menus of many of the world’s top restaurants. As well as the opportunity to represent their colleges, the competition provides a platform for career progression by demonstrating their innovation and talents in using locally sourced ingredients to produce wonderfully tasting dishes as well as their understanding of sustainability in cooking. The judges are really looking forward to experiencing what the next generation of Ireland’s top chefs will serve up.”