Chocolate is widely loved by almost everybody around the globe. But when this sweetness is combined with delicious pastries, it just gets more exciting and mouth-watering. Moreover, if the variant is Belgian Chocolate, there is nothing more that one can ask for. The Belgian Chocolate brand Callebaut witnessed some amazing creations at their second edition of Patissier of the Year.
Grand Finale of the event was a treat for a chocolate lover and someone who adores fancy desserts. The Belgian Chocolate brand announced Chef Prathna Narang (Lavonne Academy, Bangalore) as the winner of the second edition of India’s Callebaut Patissier Of The Year (CPY), 2019 at Trident, BKC, Mumbai,, where the finale was held. The first runner up at the award was Chef Danish Khan (JW Marriott, Bangalore) and the second runner up was announced as Mayukh Mazmudar (Trident Bandra Kurla).
The event was themed around the ‘Future of Chocolate’ and witnessed some jaw-dropping presentations, from chocolate sculptures to mouth-watering chocolate bars using Callebaut’s Ruby chocolate variant. The competition had conducted a nationwide hunt for gourmet pastry chefs via three boot camps in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore, to gather one of the most talented chefs, who will not only leave you mesmerized but leave you craving to taste their delicious masterpieces.
A jury of seven chefs was invited to judge the five finalists. These included Chef Seung Yun Lee - Head of Chocolate Academy, Singapore, Chef Sarah Todd- Masterchef Australia Contestant Season 6, Chef Vinesh Johny- Co-founder and Executive Pastry Chef of Lavonne Academy of Baking Science & Pastry Arts, India, Chef Avijit Ghosh - Corporate Pastry Chef for Hotel Leela Venture Ltd.), Chef Minette - Head of Chocolate Academy center in South Africa, Celebrity Chef Varun Inamdar, and Chef Vivek Kadam, Pastry Chef at ITC Hotels.
Talking of the criteria to judge the participants, Chef Avjit Ghosh mentioned,
We have a couple of criteria to judge. First, is the interpretation of the theme, i.e. the ‘Future of Chocolate’. The others include the visual aspect and the quality and texture. We also consider the technical skills they are using here, their hygiene with the area they are working in, organization of the materials, the professional attitude they showcase and the weight of the product.
Denis Convert, Vice President for Gourmet, Barry Callebaut Asia Pacific said,
Callebaut Patissier of the Year 2019 in India is much more than a culinary competition. It is an incredible journey for our chefs and chocolatiers in India to create great tasting delights using the finest Belgian chocolate brand. As consumers in India are becoming more sophisticated and educated on all things chocolate, we are excited that Callebaut is working with chefs to fuel the excitement about the future of chocolate in India – which is already one of the fastest growing chocolate markets in the world.
As a visitor, I was personally awe-struck by the creativity of the chefs and felt that it would have been extremely hard for the judges to differentiate between their work, where everything looked delicious and carefully curated.
It is true that the love for chocolate around the world is ever-growing. The future of chocolate is bright with every food brand today focusing on a chocolatey flavour or a variant. Chocolate has become an integral part of a foodie’s lifestyle and to see a world without this brown sweetness is rather impossible. With chefs like these making this journey rather more exciting, chocolates are to touch new heights in the future.
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