The regional stage of the VI Republican Competition of Professional Mastery in the competency "Culinary Arts" was held at the Orshansk State College of Food.

Six students from specialized educational institutions in Vitebsk, Orsha, Polotsk, Gorodok, and Postavy participated in the event. The competition takes place once every two years and is a great opportunity for young chefs to showcase their talents, creative approach to cooking, and exchange experiences.

The competition program began with testing professional skills in cutting potatoes into strips. Then, the chefs prepared three portions of buffet snacks, hot potato dishes, and a dessert that included a baked semi-finished product made from choux pastry. Each chef was assisted by a volunteer who accompanied the cooking process – providing ingredients, washing dishes, and cleaning the workspace.

The process and results of the work were evaluated by nine experts – professionals from the food service industry.

– The requirements for the contestants are very high. The evaluation included the compliance of the prepared dish with the declared menu, organization and management of the technological process, knowledge of culinary processing methods, visual appeal and taste of each dish, quality of presentation, and adherence to safety techniques in the workplace, – said the chief expert Alena Polesova.

Some experts directly observed the cooking process, while three others evaluated the dishes "blindly," i.e., without knowing who their author was.

Our region was represented by a third-year student of the Orsha College of Food Alena Tarasenko. The girl is studying to become a chef-pastry chef. She became interested in culinary arts from childhood. It all started with helping her mother in the kitchen. In the eighth grade, her choice of future profession became conscious.

– I view my participation in the competition as another step in my professional development. Today I prepared a spinach roll with cottage cheese and red fish. The second type of cold appetizer was fish balls in cherry jelly. The hot dish was potato boxes with filling. For dessert, I made a choux pastry filled with orange jam and cottage cheese cream, topped with chocolate sauce, – shared Alena Tarasenko.

As a result of the two competition days, the best chef of the regional stage was Anton Yashkov, a student of the Vitebsk State Industrial College. He will represent Vitebsk region at the republican stage of the competition. Second place was taken by Marianna Storozheva from the Postavy State College, and third place went to Margarita Laminskaya, a student of the Polotsk State Chemical Technology College.

Source. Orshanka.by