Meet Kent's finest food and drink producers

Above: Mark McEachran, young chef of the year

MARK MCEACHRAN

WINNER: YOUNG CHEF OF THE YEAR

Mark McEachran


Tell us about the competition
I have taken part in a few competitions in the past, but was still a little apprehensive beforehand. However, you draw confidence from the fact that you know your products and how to prepare and cook them. If you don't know what you are doing you will soon be found out.
The chefs all qualified for the final after submitting a recipe of their own design, which had to be based on local ingredients while sticking to a budget of £5 per head. In the final, we had to cook the recipe as well as produce a dessert from two mystery ingredients - rhubarb and stem ginger. In addition to taste and presentation, the judges were looking at cooking techniques, food knowledge
and seasonality.

What do you think made you a winner?
The mystery element of the pudding added a little extra pressure, but as soon as I saw the ingredients I thought about a crumble, but wanted to do a more modern version.
It's great to have come out on top in an event like this especially as the judging panel contained two really excellent chefs - Mark Rossi, from The Abode, Canterbury, and Neil Wiggins, from Eastwell Manor, Ashford. It's good to impress those types of people.

Where do you see yourself in the future?
At the moment, I'm combining studying with working at The Bohemian in Deal.
I am not sure where I will start off but working, but in a well-established restaurant environment is certainly where I want to be.
In years to come, I have ambitions to travel, but after finishing college, I want to remain quite grounded and start somewhere locally where I can gain experience and learn as much as possible.
Food has been a passion for much of my life, and I always enjoyed cooking
as a youngster. I have been working within the catering industry since I was 16 and a few years ago, I decided to make a professional career out of it. It's long, hard hours within this profession but that doesn't mean that I don't enjoy a great social life with family and friends. When you are inspired by what you
are doing as well as the people around you, work doesn't feel like a chore. It's where I belong.

More information

Thanet College
Ramsgatre Road
Broadstairs
CT10 1PN

Tel: 01843 605040