Cooking up a Storm with S. Pellegrino!

“If you want to become a great chef, you have to work with great chefs. And that’s exactly what I did.” – Gordon Ramsay

Paving the way for a new generation of gastronomists, the S.Pellegrino Young Chef Award is back for the third year to find the world’s best young chef.

Young chefs in Saudi Arabia, who are aged 30 or below with at least a year’s experience in a restaurant as a chef, sous chef or chef de partie, are invited to submit an application with their signature dish. The deadline for submitting entries in April 30^th, 2017, so put your aprons on to flex your skills with your peers and gain from immense exposure.

What is even more exciting is that this year, the Middle East and Africa region semifinal event will take place in Dubai.

“Saudi Arabia’s hospitality and culinary sector is witnessing exponential growth,” says Luca Antonelli, Area Manager – Middle East, S.Pellegrino. “There are many young, talented chefs with immense potential and inspiration to make their mark in the industry. It has never been so important to encourage and support the development of young talent and also promote culinary innovation. Through this initiative, S.Pellegrino aims to provide a platform to young chefs to demonstrate both their talent and skills to the industry and get recognised for what sets them apart from their peers. It is time to push their creative boundaries to innovate, prove their expertise and help them stand out in a highly competitive industry.”

The third edition will take place over the course of 18 months, with the final event taking place in Milan in June, 2018. The extended duration for this edition will allow candidates more time to work side by side their assigned Chef Mentors to improve their signature dishes and refine their skillset in preparation for the finals. In addition, applications will now be accepted in English, Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, French and Italian.

The international competition is divided into two phases. During the first, applications will be divided into 21 groups based on geographical region, and 10 semi-finalists from each will be chosen by ALMA, the world’s leading international educational and training centre for Italian Cuisine. Their dishes will be judged based on the following criteria – ingredients, skills, genius, beauty and message.

In the second phase, the 10 selected semifinalists of each of the 21 geographic areas will compete in a Local Semifinals round, where live competitions will be held in each region from June to December. This year, for the first time, the Middle East and Africa region semifinal event will take place in Dubai in October 2017.

In June 2018, the 21 Young Chef finalists will gather in Italy for the Grand Finale event to compete for the S.Pellegrino Young Chef 2018 title in front of Seven Sages, a distinguished panel of judges comprised of some of the most celebrated culinary masters of the world.

The complete list of competition requirements is available on the application website.

S.Pellegrino Young Chef is a global competition realized in four phases:

PHASE I – Online Application (February 2017 – April 2017)

From February 1 to April 30, 2017, any young chef in the world will have the opportunity to submit an application and their signature dish at www.sanpellegrino.com. Applying chefs must be 30-years-old or younger and have at least one year of experience working in a restaurant as a chef, sous chef or chef de partie. The complete list of competition requirements will be available on the application website.

PHASE II – Global Shortlist (June 1, 2017)

All qualified candidates will be divided into 21 regions* according to their geographic origin. Submissions will then be evaluated by ALMA, the world’s leading international educational and training centre for Italian Cuisine (www.alma.scuolacucina.it), which will select the top 10 semifinalists for each geographic region, according to five “Golden Rules”:

1. INGREDIENTS: Ability to select the best ingredients that the market can offer in terms of quality, freshness and uniqueness, in order to achieve an excellence of taste.
2. SKILL: Ability to work with raw materials and turn them into a dish that respects their original essence.
3. GENIUS: Ability to explore new, challenging, and innovative perspectives in relation to the culture of fine cuisine with a personal and contemporary style, while maintaining a perfect equilibrium of taste.
4. BEAUTY: Dish presentation, giving an aesthetic enhancement of its contents.
5. MESSAGE: Ability to communicate a clear message through one’s work and vision.

 PHASE III – Local Challenges (June 7^th – December 2017)

The ten selected semifinalists of each of the 21 geographic areas will compete in a Local Semifinals round, where live competitions will be held in each region from June 7 to December 31.  During these events, the semifinalists will cook their signature dishes for an exclusive regional jury, composed of independent top chefs who will evaluate the presented dishes based on the five Golden Rules and select a winner.

By the end of December 2017, the 21 Young Chefs from around the globe will be announced as the official finalists, who will move on to the world finals in Milan, Italy. Each finalist will be assigned a “Mentor Chef” (a member of their regional jury), who will provide guidance on how to improve their signature dishes and support them in their preparation for the finals.

PHASE IV – S.Pellegrino Young Chef Finals (June 2018)

In June 2018, the 21 Young Chef finalists will gather in Milan for the Grand Finale event, hosted by S.Pellegrino. The chefs will compete for the S.Pellegrino Young Chef 2018 title, with the winner selected by the international Seven Sages panel of judges.

The complete contest regulations and application form will be available on www.sanpellegrino.com

Follow the competition on social media via the hashtag #SPYoungChef.

 

*THE 21 GEOGRAPHIC REGIONS

1. Italy
2. France
3. Germany-Austria
4. Switzerland
5. Spain-Portugal
6. UK-Ireland
7. Russia/CIS (ex-Soviet Union)
8. Scandinavia/Baltics
9. East Europe
10. BeNeLux
11. Mediterranean Countries
12. USA
13. Canada
14. Africa-Middle East
15. Central America–Caribbean
16. South America
17. Pacific (Australia/NZ/Pacific Islands)
18. China
19. Japan
20. North-East Asia
21. South-East Asia

 

About S.Pellegrino and Acqua Panna

S.Pellegrino, Acqua Panna and Sanpellegrino Sparkling Fruit Beverages are international trademarks of Sanpellegrino S.p.A., which is based in Milan, Italy. Distributed in over 130 countries through branches and distributors on all five continents, these products represent quality excellence by virtue of their origins and perfectly interpret Italian style worldwide as a synthesis of pleasure, health and well-being. Founded in 1899, Sanpellegrino S.p.A. is the leading company in the beverage sector in Italy with its range of mineral waters, non-alcoholic aperitifs, drinks and iced teas. As a major Italian producer of mineral water, it has always been committed to enhancing this primary good for the planet and works responsibly and passionately to ensure that this resource has a secure future.

 

 

Summer Camps 2015

As we do each year, Jeddah Blog is compiling a list of Summer Camps and activities for 2015. If you are organising a camp and would like us to publish the details, please do get in touch with the details.

My Creative Ramadan Summer Camp

Dates: 21st June – 7th July, 3 days per week: Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday

Time: 12-3pm

Price: SR1200

Ages: 3-7 years

Islamic Hour, Jewelry Making, Arts & Crafts

Ballet – Irish Tap, Cooking, Organic Gardening

Dress-up Story Time and Organic Snacks provided!

Ages 8-15 years:

Islamic Hour, Jewelry Making, Ballet-Irish Tap – Interpretive

Cooking, Organic Gardening, Sewing

Contact 0594846200 or email motion.boutique.jeddah@gmail.com

Summer of Therapies

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Glitter Workshop – 10 Days of Creativeness

For ages 5 years or above.
5 exciting projects. Craft material for each student is included in the package.
Mornings 10am- 12pm
Location: al Hamra, Jeddah
Fee: SR 100
For further details contact 0536330616

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Let’s Start Campaign: Anti-Obesity Drive

Jeddah Blog is delighted to introduce the ‘Let’s Start’ campaign to its readers which is an initiative by Tefal and Dr. Soliman Fakeeh Hospital (DSFH), implemented by Tamkeen Sustainability Advisors.

                    

“Let’s Start” is a campaign which aims to spread awareness and change behaviour among children and mothers in order to adopt a healthy lifestyle in Saudi Arabia.

The campaign organizers say:

“Sahsouh, our healthy character, is your friend who cares about your health and will help you eat well and get active. With Sahsouh you’ll find loads of tips, recipes and advice to make a change for life. Join us and let’s start creating a balance. With us you can simply be healthy..”

Free Annual Membership!
By simply joining their page, you will have the chance to win a free annual membership in the Olympia Fitness Centre of Dr. Soliman Fakeeh Hospital. Read on for the competition details:

“Best Healthy Recipe Contest”
The healthy recipe contest is open for all children and their mothers.

How?

Send the recipe you create along with the ingredients and instructions to their email address: Support@letstart.com

When?
They will receive submissions from 12 October 2011 to 21^st December 2011.

How can you win?
They will analyze recipes based on how healthy & appealing they are to kids. 20 semi-finalist will be selected by the DSFH nutritionist for the final stage of the contest.  Selected recipe submitters will be contacted to attend the ceremony along with her child and the dish she sent in. 3 children will taste the prepared dishes and will judge them based on taste and appeal. The 20 semi finalist recipes will be launched on their campaign website.

What can you get?
The winning mother will get a 1 year membership in the Olympia gym at the Dr. Soliman Fakeeh Hospital. The winning child will get a one year membership in the Olympia gym.

Physical fitness at the Olympia Gym.

Weekly Event
In the weekly event, they invite students from different schools each week to engage them in physical activities, Q&As with the Specialist and impart important tips about their nutrition and well-being. Healthy snacks are provided by Tefal.

The session is conducted every Monday in the Olympia gym, and follows this schedule:

11:00am-11:30am	Registration & height and weight measurements
11:30am-12:00pm	Exercise class (aerobics)
12:00pm-12:30pm	Nutritionist and Educators Q&A , interactive talk with students
12:30pm-1:00pm	Sample healthy snacks provided by Tefal and take pictures with characters
1:00pm	Students leave court

If you would like to register in the weekly event, simply fill in the online form here.

– Sabaa Ali

Kids’ Cupcake Classes with Chef Vivian

Please note, this class is for Arabic speakers only.

 

Delectable Pralines

If you love chocolate and especially praline, then Studio Chocolate’s next course might be just the thing for you. Their PRALINE course will begin next week on Monday, 21 February 2011. It is a 3 day course, lasting for 3 hours each day.

Studio Chocolate says, “The praline course is a three-evening course, where the participants get all the knowledge to create their own pralines. They will also learn how to temper the chocolate by their own. Participants create around 6 to 7 different kinds of pralines from the filling to the covering and decoration. We will show them how to create truffles, in addition to cut-, molded-, and piped pralines.”

For further information email info@studiochocolate.info.