AS CELEBRITY chef George Calombaris might say it was time to “boom, boom, rock the room”, and the latest pan-master to spring from the Nambucca Valley was up to the ask.
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In the large footsteps of Clayton Donovan and MasterChef Australia winner Billie McKay, 20-year-old gun Jonathan Beattie is fast making a name for himself in the trade.
A 3rd year apprenctice chef at the Federal Hotel, Bellingen, Jonathan has had his cooking skills recognised in Australia’s longest running culinary competition.
Jonathan went all out at the 2017 Nestlé Golden Chef’s Hat Award regional heat at the TAFE NSW Tamworth campus, winning a bronze medal.
One of nine heats across the country, the NSW regional cook-off saw 10 teams step up to the plate, delivering their best dishes on the day to be judged against nationally recognised culinary standards.
Jonathan and teammate Joshua Lovett-Cragg created a two-course menu of pistachio and mushroom stuffed saddle of lamb with a potato and herb rosti for their main and mocha mousse with an orange tuile for their dessert course.
Jonathan, who entered the Nestlé Golden Chef’s Hat Award to see how he would stack up against other young chefs said, “I’ve never done anything like this before and I thought that it would be a great opportunity for me to showcase the skills that I have learned over the past few years working in the industry and prove to myself that I have what it takes to be a great chef”.
Jonathan told the Guardian he’d started in the industry as a “dishie” at Opal Cove, and had worked in a couple of other kitchens before finding himself at the Federal.
“This was my first major competition and it was good to test myself with some mates from TAFE. It’s just a great experience,” he said.
“The lamb saddle was the key protein and head chef Rocky (at the Federal) gave me some tips, although most of the ideas were my own.”
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Executive chef at Nestlé Professional, Mark Clayton said competing in the Golden Chef’s Hat Award makes you push to the next level.
“Putting yourself up to be judged on your culinary talent is tough, but this is ultimately how you hone your skills, build your networks and get your name out there,” Mr Clayton said.
The Nestlé Golden Chef’s Hat Award has been running for 52 years and is Australia’s longest running culinary competition for young chefs. 2017 has seen more chefs enter across the country than ever before, with this year’s finalists set to go on to be some of the industry’s brightest talents.
