The Irish government food board, Bord Bia, has launched its first online culinary competition, “East Meets West,” in a bid to raise awareness on the high quality, unique taste and versatility of European pork and beef among the Philippines market audience.
The “East Meets West” culinary competition, which started out to be a culinary competition exclusively for chefs, has been successfully implemented in other markets.
This year, Bord Bia decided to open the competition not just to chefs but to food bloggers, foodies and culinary students as well.
A group of internationally-awarded chefs, as well as representatives from Bord Bia, will review all the entries in early September.
The ten participants who will be shortlisted for having the best Filipino/fusion recipes will be announced Sept. 7.
Those shortlisted will be asked to submit a video of their dishes, using both pork and beef cuts from Ireland.
The final selection of the winning recipes will be held in October with the announcement of the five winners who will bag an exceptional culinary tour to Ireland, planned for 2021.
This trip will give the winners a once-in-a lifetime chance to visit Irish food producers and top restaurants in Ireland to get a first-hand feel of the quality of Irish produce.
All five winners will also get the opportunity to attend a cooking class with renowned chef, Billy King, plus other prizes.
Chef Billy, a legendary Irish chef in the Philippines who will sit as one of the jury members, first came to Manila in 1986 as executive chef of InterCon hotel. He became one of the pioneering chefs who brought in fine dining and international cuisine in the Philippines with the opening of Le Soufflé in the 1990s. He is currently the executive chef and owner of Le Chef at Manor Hotel in Baguio City.
Joining Chef Billy is another international Irish chef from Dublin, Chef Mark Hagan, the executive chef of The Grand Hyatt Manila in Bonifacio Global City.
The third panel judge is Chef Philip Golding, founding chairman and president of Disciples Escoffier International Asia – Philippine Delegation. He is also the founding chairman and president of the World Master Chefs Society – Philippine Delegation.
For more details of the European Pork and Beef Campaign in the Philippines, a campaign financed with aid from the European Union, visit https://europeanporkbeef.com/ph and the Facebook page: