Chef wows beef and lamb judges
A perfectly cooked piece of lamb or beef is one served up by Freddie Ponder.
The 30-year-old chef at Salt Restaurant has been named one of five Ambassador Chefs in the 2018 Beef + Lamb New Zealand awards.
And he couldn’t be happier to share the accolade.
‘‘It’s not one person is better than the other.
‘‘Everyone’s a winner and I quite like that.
‘‘We’re all working toward the same standard.’’
The annual Beef + Lamb awards recognised more than 170 restaurants throughout New Zealand with the 2018 Excellence Award - eight of which were in New Plymouth.
Arborio, Meat and Liquor on King Street, Gusto, The Orangery, Bella Vita, Juliana’s, Stony River Boutique Hotel, and Salt were all awarded gold plates for their ‘‘level of cookery, creativity and the execution of their beef and lamb cuisine’’.
During assessments the farming industry organisation singled out five chefs who excelled beyond the standard.
Ponder’s ‘‘almost faultless’’ eye fillet with braised beef cheek croquettes impressed judges.
As did his lamb backstrap with crispy lamb shank, olive crumble, onion puree, ‘‘and a few other ingredients’’.
Though the list of components in his dishes are long, Ponder swears by simple recipes.
‘‘We can always overcomplicate things,’’ he said.
‘‘You take a simple dish - your meat and veg - and add a twist.’’
The five Ambassador Chefs will work throughout the year on behalf of Beef + Lamb to pass on their skills through demonstrations and specialty cooking events.
Ponder has had years of experience in kitchens in England, France and Auckland.
He moved to Taranaki more than three years ago to take on the head chef role at the restaurant, working alongside sous chef and twin brother Richard.