Leah Rossis in creation mode
The Northern Territory and Charles Darwin University (CDU) was recently represented at Golden Chef’s Hat Award cooking competition in Melbourne.
The competition, held from 18-20 September, saw Kim Wilson and Leah Rossis, from SkyCity Casino, representing the NT with Bharat Desai as team manager. Bharat is a lecturer in commercial cookery at CDU and vice-president of the Australian Culinary Federation NT Chapter.
The team was selected from regional finals held in the Palmerston campus kitchen where ten teams competed for a place in the national finals.
There were seven teams represented at the finals, one from each state and territory. Each team was given a mystery box of ingredients and required to cook a three-course meal of four portions each.
The finals were tough with top Australian chefs judging the competition. The NT team were impressive with their relaxed and calm attitude. The difference between the overall winner and all the other teams was very close according to the chief judge. The NT team won two bronze medals; one each for the entree and main dish.
The competition was sponsored by Nestlé Food Service and coordinated by the Australian Culinary Federation. Charles Darwin University’s Palmerston campus was also a major sponsor.