AN OLDBURY chef has beaten off competition from Gordon Ramsay’s chefs at his London’s swanky Claridge’s restuarant to win a top food competition in London.

Sudha Shankar Saha, executive chef at Saffron Indian restaurant, Wolverhampton Road, triumphed in the Alaska Seafood Recipe Challenge, at Covent Garden.

He walked away with a trophy, a voucher for a set of professional knives and a day’s work experience at one of the world’s top restaurant kitchens.

He has also been invited to cook and present his winning dish at the Craft Guild of Chefs skillery at Hotelympia in London on Monday.

The competition invited professional chefs to devise new and innovative recipes for sustainable and wild Alaskan seafood.

Saha's winning dish featured pan-fried spice-scented Alaska Salmon, Kasoori Methi-flavoured baby spinach, and assorted mushroom Bhaji, tomato Achar and Moilee sauce.

Sudha, who has worked in restaurants across the world, said: “My style is more of a modern approach to traditional Indian cooking.

“I try to break conventional boundaries, opening our eyes to multicultural cuisine.”

He added: “I prefer to use local and seasonal produce, flavoured with authentic spices and give a Western presentation.”

Aklasul Momin, Director of the award winning restaurant, said: “The judges seemed to really enjoy Sudha’s dish, and were very complimentary.”

Saffron restaurant, which offers Asian food featuring the freshest ingredients and the finest seafood, was listed in the 2010 Good Food Guide.