Hats off the the chefs of the future

IOL News

a day ago

Blesbok tartare with sourdough bread and hummus.
Image: Frank Chemaly
Jackie Cameron School of Food & Wine
Where: 241 Old Howick Road, Worlds View, Hilton
Call: 076 505 7538
It will be a special day today as 13 young students celebrate their graduation. And these being the budding chefs of the future, they will be celebrating in style - with great food and lots of passion.
11 of the students have completed the 18 month course. Two, the three year course. They do an intensive year's training under Chef Jackie's guidance and then go out to get experience in the industry, many finding their way into the top kitchens in the country. They come back and present their final exam - a masterful meal designed and executed by the young chef themselves.
A 'salad' of seafood with grapefruit wedges.
Image: Frank Chemaly
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Roast Karoo lamb with potato bake
Image: Frank Chemaly
I was fortunate to be invited to two of the meals this year, and am always impressed in the enormous growth in often encountering them on their first wine tasting dinners they produce - often when they're still getting used to using knives. It's a growth not only in culinary proficiency, but personal confidence. A tribute to the intense journey they have been on and a sign of hope for our promising young chefs of the future.
I was fortunate to enjoy two very different meals from two talented chefs (yes I can call them that now). Shannon Atkinson and Megan Maistry certainly produced dinners that impressed Chef Jackie and their proud parents whom they invited.
A milk bun with olive butter.
Image: Frank Chemaly
Seafood bisque with butter poached crayfish.
Image: Frank Chemaly
Shannon, who did her work experience at Belly of the Beast in Cape Town, tantalised us with a lovely Blesbok tartare (Daddy had been hunting), served with a good rustic sourdough and interestingly hummus. They are not a combination I would have thought of, but worked well. Then there was her very fresh seafood 'salad' - this is not quite the right description - livened up for fragrant greens and grapefruit wedges.
For mains she went more traditional than all out cheffy with a lovely Karoo roast lamb, good jus and a comforting potato bake. On a cold nice day this was a real winter warmer.
For a dessert there was an inspired grapefruit sorbet with tonic - yes those flavours too work really well. Another surprise.
Kingklip and chocca with fresh chilli. That calamari was sliced to resemble noodles.
Image: Frank Chemaly
Wagyu fillet with a tantalising array of different ways with mushrooms
Image: Frank Chemaly
Megan who studied at Cape Town's Fyn, got us started with milk bread and a good olive butter. And then, possibly the highlight of the two evenings - a really deep seafood bisque with pieces of pan seared lobster. And then a second fish course of kingklip with chokka. This was seared kingklip matched with an almost spaghetti of calamari (or calamari noodles if you want) topped with a sauce that had a good and brave hit of fresh chilli, pulling the elements together nicely.
Mains was a beef wagyu fillet done with three of four different treatments of mushrooms. A lovely and confident plate.
A "trifle" of caramelised popped millet.
Image: Frank Chemaly
A palate cleanser of I think Yusu sorbet had a kick before a dessert of caramelised popped millet done almost as a trifle with cream, ice-cream, custard etc. It was a substantial dessert served on a raised tazza and went well with the dessert wine chosen.
Both finished the meal with delightful little petit fores.
While I can only tell two stories here, my congratulations got to the 225 gang of 13. They all know the work and headache they have put into getting tapped on the head today. And hopefully you will soon be able to taste some of their offerings at restaurants around the province and country.
Well done team.