Some 900 chefs competed in the hotly contested 3-day event…

Putting the impressive skills of some of the UAE’s top culinary talents to the test over a three day event, the 27th annual Emirates Salon Culinaire took place last week. Presented by the Emirates Culinary Guild (ECG), the competition was held at Expo Centre Sharjah, alongside the Expoculinare exhibition, and saw more than 900 chefs from the UAE take part. With representation from 11 countries around the globe, the event saw the chefs partake in 39 classes from across all disciplines.

The diverse line-up of events covered everything from practical cookery to cake decorating and Emirati cuisine. Each of the participants was judged by a line-up of 23 eagle-eyed judges from around the world, in what is known as one of the largest culinary competitions in the Middle East and Africa.

The winners of the trophy’s this year came from hotels and industry caterers alike. A gold medal with distinction – the highest honour – was awarded to a chef from The Chinese Chefs Association, with a further 149 gold medals, 200 silver medals and 277 bronze medals handed out across the three days. Additionally, 167 merit certificates were also awarded during the showcase, a true testament to the high-standards demonstrated across the competition.

Alongside many returning categories, this year saw the introduction of a new practical cookery competition, The Sounbula Artisan Bakery arena. Here, eight teams of bakers were tasked with making a selection of bread and pastry using only Sonbula flours, with no pre-mixes of chemicals or yeast. Gold medals were awarded to the teams from The Westin and Jumeirah Al Naseem.

A huge congratulations to all the winners.