The Craft Guild of Chefs announce the 15 chefs who have made it through to the final of the Graduate Awards 2017 which also celebrates its fifteenth anniversary this year.

The chefs, all under the age of 23, battled for their place in the final at heats which were held simultaneously at the University of West London and Sheffield College on Thursday, June 15, 2017. 

Vice-president of the Craft Guild of Chefs, Steve Munkley said: “When you look at the list of chefs going through to the final exam, I think we’ve got our strongest one yet. We really threw in a curveball as the chefs were asked to create a dish using Quorn, courtesy of our sponsor. It is an ingredient that very few will use regularly in their own workplaces but it was amazing to see the ideas and dishes they came up with. I’m delighted that we have reached our 15th year and have added the Pastry Award into the mix. Over recent year’s we’ve seen former Graduates go on to win Young National Chef of the Year and two of them, Luke Selby and Ben Champkin join the 2018 senior final. It shows what a fantastic platform the Graduate Awards can provide.”

Russell Bateman, chair of examiners added: “We saw some really impressive cooking at the heats. The exam is very focused on chefs’ skills and culinary knowledge and that’s why I am so proud to judge. The list of establishments putting