UAE chefs battle for top culinary honours

LG Electronics and the Emirates Culinary Guild joined hands in an innovative contest to identify and crown the king of the kitchen, giving the region's professional chefs the opportunity to create some of their best masterpieces and beat their peers in the game.

To make it more difficult, contestants were restricted to prepare their dishes using only the LG SolarDOM lightwave oven.

The chefs, all members of the Emirates Culinary Guild, represented top names of the UAE hotel industry, including Sheraton Deira Creek Hotel, Grosvenor House, Radisson SAS Hotel, Renaissance Hotel, Shangri-La Hotel, Millennium Airport Hotel, Novotel WTC Hotel, Al Murooj Rotana Hotel, Coral Deira Hotel and Jumeirah Emirates Tower Hotel.

Under the watchful eyes of Guild officials including President chef Uwe Micheel, Andreas Kurfurst, well-known food author Rakesh Puri and H. S. Paik, President of LG Electronics Gulf FZE, and appreciative food lovers, the contestants cooked up a variety of dishes, presenting in their own unique styles.

All entries were evaluated in different categories - taste, effective SolarDom usage, presentation, hygiene and preparation skills.

At the end of the two-hour gruelling hunt, Grosvenor House managed to stand up to the challenge with its top chef Bharath Bhat, who works at the hotel's Indego restaurant, being crowned the champion.

Assisted by sous chef Asif Khan, Bhat cooked up a succulent Tandoori Salmon and Butter Chicken with white sauce that earned him the appreciation of the discerning judges.

All contestants received the LG SolarDOM microwave ovens and the first prize winners received a sum of $1,000 while first and second runners-up Chandana Kathriarachichi of Renaissance Dubai and Diyan Manjula of Radisson SAS Hotel were awarded with $800 and $600 respectively.

"It was a tough call to prepare the food in a lightwave oven but we found that it could be done without sacrificing the essential flavours," Bhat pointed out.

"It feels good to be voted as the best in the business since we were competing against some of our very talented friends and role models."

"This competition was a great way to get to know and interact first hand with this unique consumer segment," explained Mr. H. S. Paik, President of LG Electronics Gulf FZE.

"More importantly, it touched the core of an activity that is universally loved and enjoyed by many - cooking. It was also a tribute to the creativity and culinary diversity in this region. We are pleased that both food lovers and the participants had so much fun in preparing the dishes."

The next-generation LG SolarDOM is the counter-top light-wave oven that combines both conventional oven and microwave oven technologies.

The oven outsmarts conventional cooking appliances in terms of design as well; and acknowledgment confirmed by the iF Design Award, one of the world's most pre-eminent design achievements.