A TEAM of young chefs from the City of Glasgow College have made it to the final of the Country Range Student Chef Challenge.

The City of Glasgow team will now head to London for Hotelympia on Wednesday, March 7 for the live final cook off against Loughborough College, Derby University, SERC, Newbury College, East Kent College, Ayrshire College, Highbury College, Westminster Kingsway and North East Scotland College.

The team, which consists of college students Lee Christie, Jordan McKenzie and Erin Sweeney, will battle it out for the prestigious title at the UK’s largest foodservice event where they will have to once again cook their three-course, three-cover menu in 90 minutes – but this time in front of a live exhibition audience.

While the menus can be tweaked slightly before the final, the City of Glasgow College team’s successful menu comprised of:

- Smoked roe deer carpaccio, beetroot, radicchio, grape, herb mayo

- Seared North Sea coley, cauliflower, roast, pureed and marinated seaweed, vadouvan butter

- Fig tart, coriander salted pine nuts, curry leaf ice cream

Now in its 24th year, the annual Country Range Student Chef Challenge has become the pinnacle for full-time hospitality college students looking to develop skills and showcase their culinary prowess and creativity. This year’s theme is ‘Around the World in Three Spices’ with teams having to use a different fresh or ground spice in each of their courses.

In addition to taking home the much-coveted title, the three victorious students will each win a bespoke set of three Flint & Flame knives, a trip to the 2018 Universal Cookery & Food Festival, and they will be treated to one night’s accommodation and dinner at Michelin-starred restaurant Simpsons in Kenilworth.

Emma Holden, organiser of the Country Range Student Chef Challenge, said: “The standard in the semi-final heats has been incredible with some unbelievable technique, teamwork and dishes on display.

"A huge congratulations has to go to all the teams who made the final as they each produced three amazing dishes. We look forward to seeing the teams again in March at Hotelympia where the pressure is definitely cranked up a notch.”

For further information on the challenge, visit countryrangestudentchef.co.uk