Five Professional Cookery students from West Lothian College have reached the regional finals of the UK Young Risotto Chef Competition 2021.
Lauren Cameron, Nathan McCrimmon, Jennifer Forgrave, Mark Sneddon and Ruaridh Crawford beat out the competition to make it into the regional heats set to take place in 2021.
In the next few rounds of the competition students will be judged by top chefs like Paul Gayler MBE and Masterchef Fabio Pisani. They will be reviewing risotto dishes created by students, this will be done either online with video or if restrictions are eased at an event in London.
Nathan McCrimmon, who studies HNC Professional cookery student, said: “I couldn’t believe I was through, but I’m really ecstatic to be in the next heats and can’t wait for the next round.”
Level Six Professional Cookery student Ruaridh Crawford added: “I was surprised when I got through. I didn’t think my dish would get picked to be honest. I feel proud to represent the College though, at the same time a wee bit nervous, but excited!”
Lecturer Audrey Buckley said: “The students were thrilled to make it through to the next stage and loved the in-house competition we created to help them prepare for the competition. They are keen to keep practicing and hoping to make it through to the next stage and a trip to London.”
The finals will be held later in 2021 with dates being confirmed once the decision is made to hold the competition in person or online.