Michelin-starred Chef Cooks up a Storm at Cumbernauld College

 

One of Scotland’s top Michelin-starred chefs, Martin Wishart, made a special appearance at Cumbernauld College when he dished up lessons in ‘Culinology’ during the only Scottish heat of the nationally acclaimed Visionary Dining Chef of the Year competition.

The one day event took place at the college’s training kitchen on June 11. Featuring a host of chefs from some of Scotland’s top restaurants including Turnberry, the Sheraton and Blythswood Square as well as catering lecturers and students from Cumbernauld College, the event gave those taking part the chance to learn about the very latest technologies and techniques from one of Scotland’s most highly acclaimed chefs.

Martin’s eponymous restaurant in Leith is one of the UK’s best dining venues, currently holding one Michelin star, 4 AA rosettes and a score of 8/10 in the Good Food Guide.

Speaking after the event, Martin said: “It’s very rewarding being able to show the students, as well as other professional chefs, the latest culinary techniques. Everyone seemed to enjoy the day and I was impressed with how Cumbernauld College worked seamlessly to provide a cutting edge industry event.”

Six lucky students on the college’s Chef 2 City and Guilds Diploma in Professional Cookery course took part in the cutting-edge training using some of the very latest kitchen equipment, such as thermomix, Pacojet, water baths, vacuum packers and nitrous oxide chargers. 

Student, David Carruth, said: “Learning from such a well-known and respected chef as Martin was a once in a life-time experience. It was also great to work alongside other professional chefs and see the work they were doing. It’s definitely a day I will remember.”

Organised by Visionary Dining the one-day course included a morning session consisting of a series of demonstrations by Martin. The afternoon was then set aside for participating chefs to recreate their own dishes using techniques learnt in the morning. The students assisted the professional chefs during this part of the day.

The afternoon session also took on the format of a competition, with the winner automatically selected for the grand final in November 2012. The winner of the Cumbernauld College heat was Danny Mathews from the Blythswood Square.

Cumbernauld College was one of only nine colleges in the UK selected to take part in the training and was chosen due to its state-of-the-art catering facilities.

Chef lecturer Paul Clark, said: “We were honoured to take part in the Visionary Dining Chef of the Year competition. It was fantastic to see Martin’s work first hand and a great experience for our students.

“At Cumbernauld College we want the learning to be as relevant and engaging as possible. Opportunities like this give our students an even greater insight into the world of professional catering and will no doubt put them in great stead for the future.”

Visionary Dining was founded by Chef and ex AA Hotel Inspector Gordon Cartwright to recognise, celebrate and develop culinary excellence within the UK hospitality industry.

ENDS

Issued by PR and Education Consultancy Beattie Communications on behalf of Cumbernauld College.