The intense competition, which was triggered by a black box of mystery ingredients came to an end last night with the announcement of Jumeirah Beach Hotel as overall winner of the Culinary award at the 4th MLA Black Box Culinary Challenge awards ceremony. The Jumeirah Beach Hotel team was among 10 other chefs teams competing this year from various hotels across Dubai including teams from Al Qasr, Madinat Jumeirah who came in second and the Burj Al Arab team who took out the third prize at the Challenge which was conducted by Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA).
Presented again at host venue JW Marriott Dubai, the MLA Black Box Culinary Challenge awards were handed out by MLA Regional Manager, Ian Ross, James Wyndham, Deputy Consul-General, Australian Consulate General, Uwe Miche.el, President of Emirates Culinary Guild and Alan Palmer, Global Coordinator of the Challenge. The other awards of the evening were presented by sponsors Barakat Quality Plus, Food Source International, Australian Quality Plus and Fosters Australia; Best Table Display went to JW Marriott, Al Qasr took home the Best Soup award; Best Entrée went to Radisson SAS; Burj Al Arab bagged the Best Main Course award; and Mina A'Salam won the Best Dessert title.
Much more than a competition, the MLA Black Box Culinary Challenge is one of the world’s most popular and prestigious culinary challenges. Started by the Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA), in 1996, the competition was instituted to provide a platform where young chefs from around the world can showcase their culinary skills as drivers of future culinary trends in a competitive and creative atmosphere. A secondary focus of the competition was to promote the quality and demand for Australian beef products worldwide.
Needless to say, MLA has been very successful on both counts. Over the years, besides, successfully increasing the popularity of Australian beef products, over 1,900 chefs from 27 different countries have participated in more than 50 Black Box Culinary Challenge events held across Asia, Australia and more recently the Middle East.
Supported by the Emirates Culinary Guild, the 2006 rounds were held on October 13th and 14th 2006 at the prestigious JW Marriott Dubai. Featuring 12 teams representing top hotels across the United Arab Emirates, the MLA Black Box Culinary Challenge enjoyed a very enthusiastic response from the hospitality industry in the United Arab Emirates. Each team was made of three members who had to be below 32 years of age and ranked below Chef De Partie. The teams also included a non participating captain as an advisor, for whom there was no limit to age or rank.
The competition structure was simple. On October 13th at exactly 11:00 am, all the teams were presented with a ‘Black Box’ full of mystery ingredients ranging from quality Australian beef and lamb, fruits, vegetables, spices and dairy products. The teams then had one hour to develop a four course dinner menu from the provided ingredients. The menus were then submitted to the judges. After this, all the teams returned to their respective hotels to get down to the actual cooking and preparation so that their four course menu would be Ready for the next day’s gala evening. On October 14, all completed four course meals were presented to a panel of international judges and guests. Judging was done on the basis of taste, skill, creativity and artistic merit. As a special an extra, and special, the finishing and presentation was also judged
with each team’s accompanying service team also judged on their skills in preparing the most elegant table display.
From day one, the competition was intense, with a host of very innovative and creative menus presented to the judges. One of the judges Mr. Alan Palmer from Sri Lanka commented: “I couldn’t wait to see the innovative combinations of ingredients and table preparations that the teams outlined for the gala evening. I think a lot of us were really impressed by the amount of work they put in.”
The 2006 Challenge leads up to next year's event, which marks the regional qualification round of the MLA Black Box Culinary Challenge. The 2007 winning team will represent the Dubai at the Global Final of the Meat and Livestock Australia Black Box Culinary Challenge which is planned for 2008, in conjunction with the WACS World Congress in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
About MLA and Australian meat:
Employing the most advanced international technologies and stringent hygiene standards, Australia is a leading producer and exporter of red meat products with annual exports of 2,500,000 tonnes of meat products, including 910,000 tonnes of beef and veal, 141,000 tonnes of lamb and 141,000 tonnes of mutton. In 2004 – 2005, Australia exported more than 3 million sheep and 81 thousand cattle to the Middle East.
Moreover, Australian processors who export to the Middle East also meet strict regulations on Sharia-compliant slaughter procedures set by GCC countries- these systems are audited by representatives from the GCC to ensure that Halal products
exported to the region meet religious requirements. These regulations are rigorously supported by Australian government legislation.
