Scottish salmon partners with Master Chefs of France
THE Master Chefs of France, in partnership with Label Rouge Scottish salmon, have announced their Best Chef Apprentice of France at the 61st competition for the Meilleur Apprenti Cuisinier de France.
At one of the most prestigious schools of gastronomy in France, the Ecole Ferrandi in central Paris, ten shortlisted finalists from 282 apprentice chef participants across France were given four hours to prepare four settings of each of three dishes including seafood, meat and dessert.
Label Rouge Scottish salmon escalope was the primary ingredient of the seafood dish, which was finished off with scallops.
Label Rouge Scottish salmon’s association with the Master Chefs of France spans well over 20 years.
As a main sponsor of one of Europe’s chef associations, and as Scotland’s largest food export, Scottish salmon continues to fly the flag on behalf of the food industry of Scotland.
The overall winner of the competition was Gwendal Briant, studying at the Ferrandi group in western Paris. Briant works with chef Romain Gicquel at the Ferme de Voisins near Paris.
The winner of the seafood dish was Antonin Buron, who studies in Moutiers (in the Alps) and was supported by chef Stéphane Buron and chef Michel Rochedy, both from the two Michelin star Le Chabichou in the high-end ski resort Courchevel.
The event finished off with Label Rouge Scottish salmon served at the gala dinner in the Grand Hotel Intercontinental Paris.
The recipes were developed by Fernand Mischler, former chef at the two star Michelin Auberge du Cheval Blanc in Lembach (Alsace). He is also former president of the Master Chefs of France and ‘godfather’ of this year’s competition.
Label Rouge Scottish salmon was originally produced exclusively for the French market, but its reputation for high quality and subtle flavours has seen demand from new and emerging markets, including the Middle East and European countries such as Germany and Switzerland.
Annual exports of Label Rouge are approaching 8,000 tonnes.
The Label Rouge quality mark is awarded by the French Ministry for Agriculture and Fisheries only to those products that demonstrate superior quality, particularly in relation to taste.
In 1992, Scottish farmed salmon was the first non-French product and the first fish to receive the mark of distinction.