I was extremely privileged to be invited to judge at the 2011 Jeune Chefs Chaine des Rotisseurs competition this month in Istanbul, it was the competition I won last year and it was so interesting to be on the judging side this year.
Istanbul is amazing, it never sleeps, there is bumper to bumper traffic at midnight, you only really go the restaurants and 10pm for dinner, and the people are really accommodating.
I walked to Taksim square the one evening and it was hilarious to see Mc Donalds and Burger King slap bang in between all the beautiful Turkish restaurants. Sampling the street food was divine, but there beef is ummmm, interesting, I tried shish kebabs, simit, some sort of cheese and egg baked thing, Turkish delight, fresh and dried dates, spices, fruits, felafel filled with chicken and so much more I cant remember.
But there are 3 things I had that stood out the most, the apple tea - it seems drinking tea is their past time and its served in these stunning little glasses, Turkish coffee which you should definitely not have before you want to sleep and then from this little patisserie i tried what i thought was a savoury bagel type thing with hazelnuts on top but was actually filled with a chocolate, raisin and cinnamon filling, it was divineeeeeee.
I also went on a dinner cruise down the Bosphourous river which was spectacular, we had dinner on board and belly dancing, the bubbles where flowing and it was still boiling hot at midnight.
OK enough about my memorable experience back to the competition, there were 21 competitors from all over the world, their black box was a giant lobster, rack of lamb with 21 bones, figs, aubergines and a leek.
The kitchen I just have to boast held 6 SMEG ovens, in turkey, cool hey. The competitors settled in quickly and then the judging started. There were 4 kitchen judges from Australia, Canada, France and me from SA.
We worked as a great team and they were so willing to spread their knowledge of judging onto me and for that I'm very greatful.
The winner of the young chefs competition was from USA, 2nd from Germany and 3rd from Columbia.
All in all it was an unforgettable experience that I would love to do again...OH YES I forgot to add I was invited back to judge next year, BERLIN, here we come :)
