In 2014 S.Pellegrino launched the first-ever global talent search for the next generation’s top chefs, with the intent to highlight the future of global cuisine. Since then, the Young Chef winners have gone on to various accomplishments, including some of them being named in the Forbes list of the 30 most exciting creatives under 30 in Europe. This year the 210 competitors hail from 90 different countries around the world, and are currently competing in local challenges for the chance to represent their region in the grand finale, which will take place in Milan in June 2018.

The S. Pellegrino Young Chef Awards. Photo supplied.

The 2015 winner, Mark Moriarty, dreamed of putting Irish food on the map and has subsequently done so, proving that his home country is capable of more than Guinness and potatoes. He has also learnt from some of the best chefs in the world by working alongside them and cooking for them. “I have learnt so much, in a way that I never could have if I hadn’t won the competition,” says Mark. He, along with 2016 grand finalist David Andrés Morera and 2015 finalist Christian Petersen, was named in the Forbes list.

This year there was a 30% increase in the number of applicants, as young chefs seek to gain the global visibility and professional boost that entering and possibly winning this competition allows them. S.Pellegrino’s Marketing Manager in South Africa, Vanessa Nel, says: “The S.Pellegrino Young Chef competition not only has the potential to change the lives of the individual participants, but is a platform to share cultural culinary creativity across the globe.”

The table setting at the awards ceremony. Photo supplied.

The 21 finalists moving on to the grand finale will be announced at the end of December. Each will be assigned a mentor chef, who will provide them with guidance on how to improve their signature dishes and will support them in their preparation for the ultimate test. Go to the S.Pellegrino website (www.sanpellegrino.com) to find exclusive content and follow the contestants along the journey.

The 2016 S. Pellegrino Young Chef of the Year. Photo supplied.