Philadelphia crowns Young Chef of the Year 2012

Bien Causapin a student from Colchester Institute has been crowned Philadelphia Young Chef of the Year 2012, following a hard fought cook off.
18 year old Bien faced stiff competition from Joshua Saunders from Worcester College of Technology, Shaun Reast from Grimsby College and William Breese from Westminster Kingsway College, but his imaginative dish of Pan fried hake with mussels in Philadelphia Sauce with char grilled red pepper and cheesy potato croquettes took the prize on the day. The competition was judged by Christopher Basten, Vice Chairman of the Craft Guild of Chefs, professional chef and writer, Sophie Wright, editor of Stockpot magazine Sheila Eggleston and Paul Knight, Managing Director of 3663 Catering Equipment.
Bien scooped a £500 cash prize, with Joshua, Shaun and William winning cash prizes of £200. All finalists received a Philadelphia chef’s jacket, and will see their recipes published at www.philadelphia.co.uk/professional. They also earned a year’s free membership to the Craft Guild of Chefs.
In addition for each student who entered, their college was entered into a prize draw to win £500 worth of 3663 catering equipment vouchers. The lucky college who received this great prize on the day was Worcestershire College of Technology.
Kraft Foods has teamed up with the Craft Guild of Chefs, professional chef Sophie Wright, City & Guilds, 3663 Catering equipment and Cheese Cellar to develop the competition, which aimed to reward the innovation and creativity of talented trainee chefs in full and part time education aged 17-23.
Commenting on his win, Bien said: “I decided to enter the Philadelphia Young Chef of the Year to gain some good experience. Winning this competition means a lot to me, as it was the first one I’ve entered it has given me a big confidence boost.”
Sophie Wright added: “Bien’s dish was so tasty you could have happily eaten the whole plate. Not only was it all cooked so well, he also used lots of different cooking techniques and he really showcased the versatility of Philadelphia using it in both his sauce and potato croquettes.”
Susan Nash, Kraft Foods Trade Communications Manager said: “We were really impressed with the quality of all of the finalists’ dishes and the imaginative ways Philadelphia was used in each of the recipes. Thanks to all the judges who were a great help in the kitchen in what was a tense and heated cook off.”
Christopher Basten concluded: “Initiatives like this are vital to the catering industry in the UK – we must nurture and develop our young chefs, encouraging creative cooking from the grass roots up. It was very encouraging to see the huge talent on show throughout the competition, which bodes well for the future of the sector.”

In these challenging times…

The Staff Canteen team are taking a different approach to keeping our website independent and delivering content free from commercial influence. Our Editorial team have a critical role to play in informing and supporting our audience in a balanced way. We would never put up a paywall and restrict access – The Staff Canteen is open to all and we want to keep bringing you the content you want; more from younger chefs, more on mental health, more tips and industry knowledge, more recipes and more videos. We need your support right now, more than ever, to keep The Staff Canteen active. Without your financial contributions this would not be possible.

Over the last 12 years, The Staff Canteen has built what has become the go-to platform for chefs and hospitality professionals. As members and visitors, your daily support has made The Staff Canteen what it is today. Our features and videos from the world’s biggest name chefs are something we are proud of. We have over 500,000 followers across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and other social channels, each connecting with chefs across the world. Our editorial and social media team are creating and delivering engaging content every day, to support you and the whole sector - we want to do more for you.

A single coffee is more than £2, a beer is £4.50 and a large glass of wine can be £6 or more.

Support The Staff Canteen from as little as £1 today. Thank you.