Chef John Koplimae wins round four of Discovered Culinary Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 14, 2011
TORONTO – Chef John Koplimae of the Drake Hotel in Toronto won round four of the new Discovered Culinary Competition, held last night at Nella Cucina in Toronto. Chef Koplimae will join the winners of the first three rounds, Chef Arron Carley of Volos, Chef Trish Gill of Beast and Chef William Tolentino of Celestin restaurants, to compete in the semi-finals at the CRFA Show, March 4 – 6, 2012 at the Direct Energy Centre in Toronto.
The Discovered Culinary Competition is a four-month search for the best of Canada’s up-and-coming culinary stars. The winning chef will get the opportunity of a lifetime: an all-expenses-paid trip to spend a week cooking at a Michelin-star restaurant in northern Spain.
In a mystery box challenge, the Discovered Culinary Competition features four Canadian chefs competing against the clock each week to create an appetizer, entrée and dessert. In addition to Chef Koplimae, last night’s competitors were Jesse Vallins, chef de cuisine at Trevor Kitchen and Bar in Toronto; Debu Saha, chef/owner at Debu’s Nouvelle Indian Cuisine in Toronto; and Tyler Smith, sous chef at Whistle Bear Golf and Country Club in Cambridge.
The judging panel comprises three local chefs. Last night’s panel included Tom Field, corporate chef for Alto-Shaam Canada; Craig Harding, executive chef and owner of Campagnolo; and Emanuela Costantini, private chef, caterer and instructor at George Brown Culinary School.
The mystery boxes included lime, cilantro, cherry tomatoes and a whole sea bream for the appetizer round. The chefs had an extra 10 minutes to work with the whole fish. The entrée round included pork belly, fresh cranberries, vanilla bourbon and celery root; and eggnog, fruitcake, canned pumpkin and pecans for the dessert round.
“I didn’t have time to be nervous,” said Chef Koplimae. “The fruitcake was the only really hard one. Mostly the plates just formed themselves.”
For the appetizer round, Chef Koplimae pan seared the sea bream with chili flakes and oil, and used the other ingredients for a pico de gallo sauce.
“John demonstrated good filleting skills with his appetizer,” said Chef Field. “His fillet was expertly cut and perfectly clean.”
Chef Koplimae incorporated hoisin, maple and vanilla bourbon flavours into the pork belly for the main course, with an apple and cranberry puree and blanched celery root.
“John’s main was the best,” said Chef Harding. “His dishes were really well executed, with great flavours and good seasoning.”
For his dessert, he pureed the fruitcake into a mousse and stuffed it into a pumpkin crepe, with eggnog crème Anglais and toasted pecans.
“He had the most creative dessert,” said Chef Costantini. “It was a very clever idea.”
The competition will resume on Monday, Jan. 9. Applications are still being accepted. For more information and to apply, go to the Discovered Culinary Competition page on Facebook at www.facebook.com/discoveredchefs.The Discovered Culinary Competition is open to all Canadian chefs employed in the hospitality/foodservice industry. You must be at least 19 years old to compete. There is no entry fee.The competition is sponsored by Discover and presented by Nella Cucina and the CRFA Show.
Chef Koplimae will next compete on March 4 or 5 at the CRFA (Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association) Show, Canada’s largest event for hospitality professionals. The four semi-final winners will then compete on March 6 to determine the overall winner.
Registration for the CRFA Show (trade only) is open now at www.crfashow.ca and those who register before Jan. 16 are entered into a draw to win a professional espresso machine worth $1,500.
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