«They have 5 minutes left“warned one of the organizers of the Federal Chefs Tournament that took place this Thursday in Bariloche, while two chefs, very focused, finalized the details of the four dishes.
A few meters away, in another kitchen, two other chefs were rushing the dishes in the last few minutes they had left.
«Time!“, they shouted suddenly and the applause exploded in the room. The chefs representing the Villa Huinid complex provided the details of the chosen dish before the three members of the jury who listened attentively. Immediately after, cutlery was distributed to taste the dishes.
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The jury observes the participating teams. Photo: Chino Leiva
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The teams had two hours to prepare their dishes. Photo: Chino Leiva
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The teams had two hours to prepare their dishes. Photo: Chino Leiva
Six teams registered to participate in the local instance of the Federal Chefs Tournament (Huinid, Lowther, El Casco, Quiven, Madurado and Belek). The winner will compete with another 24 teams in the national round in Buenos Aires in September. Last year, Pablo Quiven from Barilochense won first prize.
“Beyond the fact that they are experienced cooks, by participating in this instance they must demonstrate their cooking skills and must know how to use the different inputs and complement them,” said Gerardo Stocker, vice president of the Bariloche Gastronomic Hotel Business Association.
On this occasion, the condition was to prepare a dish based on ancho bife, pork bondiola or some fish. And regional products had to be used for the sauce and garnish.
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The last details of the dishes. Photo: Chino Leiva
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The public followed step by step the task of the teams. The teams had two hours to prepare their dishes. Photo: Chino Leiva
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«The teams have been working for 15 days. They must present the recipe in advance, although they must prepare the dishes here. They have two hours to do it.Stocker added.
The local instance of the Federal Chefs Tournament, organized by the Gastronomic Hotel Business Federation of the Argentine Republic (Fehgra), has been held for seven years, although it was interrupted by the pandemic.
On this occasion, the jury was made up of three chefs -Mavy Jaichenco, from Lago Pueblo, Julieta Marmorato and Federico Sastre, from Bariloche- who had to qualify more than 25 items (presentation, complexity of work, texture, flavor, regarding the slogan region, among others).
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The last details of the dishes. Photo: Chino Leiva
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The last details of the dishes. Photo: Chino Leiva
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The last details of the dishes. Photo: Chino Leiva
“This is fatal and you have to be here. You are not in your kitchen, there is a large public and something is always wrong. Perhaps the dish turned out well in your kitchen but something is happening here and you want to kill yourself,” Jaichenco explained. And he said that beyond the importance of flavor, the technique is evaluated.
«After the pandemic, gastronomy reemerged with more force. From the chambers and federations, for example from Chubut whom I represent, they emphasize that Gastronomy must accompany all tourism events. The World Tourism Organization named gastronomy as the second most important axis of tourism”, he highlighted.
Milka Iglesias, one of the 25-year-old chefs, represented the Madurado de Quiven restaurant team and proposed the dish “Between the sea and the mountains”. «It is about generating a line throughout the region and connecting the various productions. The idea is to generate a very provincial dish. But here they play against nerves. The times are very marked, one does not know the temperature of the oven or the burners. And even more so when we represent Quiven who is a benchmark, “she said.