Chef Stagiaire Award final heat begins

By James Euinton

The Chef Stagiaire Award is a competition that gives young chefs the opportunity to stage with the UK's top restaurants. The last two finalists have just been announced, ahead of the final stage at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal. Where the two chefs will be cooking throughout this week

Finalists Craig Johnston, aged 18 and Emily Greenough, aged 22, beat 20 other competitors, and were separated by only a few points. In the “paper stage”, both chefs had to submit a written menu for the judges.

Craig is the Sous Chef at the Boulters Riverside Brasserie and Bar in Maidenhead, For his Amuse Bouche, Craig designed a cod brandade mousse with roasted cauliflower and a truffle dressing.

For his main, he submitted a cannon of lamb with mashed potato, confit tomato, smoked aubergine and a Provençal jus
Craig wowed the judges with his dish, the Head Chef commenting that he would “hire him tomorrow” and that he cooked “beautiful dishes under pressure”. Craig said that he “only worked in one kitchen since becoming a chef, so it was a great opportunity to see a brand new style of food at L’Ortolan.”

Emily is currently the Chef de Partie at fine dining restaurant 28-50 in London, For her main course, Emily submitted a lamb tagine with smoked aubergine puree, chickpea salad and a lemon and saffron cous cous.

For her amuse bouche, she designed a modern take on fish and chips with whitebait tempura and pea puree presented in fried potato baskets with a caper vinaigrette.

The winning chef will win a once in a lifetime opportunity to stage on an international scale. Spending an all-expenses paid trip to work within the twice Michelin starred Atelier Crenn kitchen.

The winner will travel to San Francisco and work with acclaimed chef Dominique Crenn. In addition to this, the winner will also travel to Oman to work with the award-winning team at the luxury Six Senses resort for two weeks