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Leek
Chef Wins World Title |
Sanjeev
Kumar of the New Monsoon restaurant in Leek, Staffordshire, walked
off with Tommy Miah's INTERNATIONAL INDIAN CHEF OF THE YEAR 2006
title after a closely fought battle with five other cooks in
Edinburgh on Friday.
The unique
contest, founded in 1991 to promote innovation and quality in Indian
cuisine has attracted worldwide entries from thousands of cooks,
amateur and professional. Finalists are selected on the quality of
their ideal four-dish menu for an Indian meal and cook that menu,
unaided and against the clock, under scrutiny of judges at
Edinburgh's Telford College. The judging panel is headed by Lord
Fraser of Carmyllie QC and includes such well-known figures as SNP
leader Alex Salmond.
Sanjeev won
the £1,000 prize with a menu that included peppery roast leg of
lamb, stuffed chicken breasts, sweet and sour aubergines, and black
lentil dal.
Second place
went to P.C Thakur of 9 Cellars in Edinburgh -- a last minute
replacement for a London chef who dropped out when his employer
refused to give him time off to travel to Edinburgh.
Khaled Miah of
Newcastle took third place and also won the special Lady Fraser prize
of £250 for the best vegetable dish. |
