Military Culinarians Serve Up Their Best for Annual Army Competition
Mar 12, 2007 BY T. Anthony Bell and Mike Strasser
FORT LEE, Va. (Army News Service, March 12, 2007) -- For many participants in the 2007 Junior Chef of the Year competition the
prospect of presenting their best culinary creations to four gray-haired, world-renown master chefs with European accents would be
daunting.
"At first, I must say, I was expecting that my posterior would be handed to me," said Spc. Patrick Alveranga, the U.S. Army Reserve
representative in the competition. "But they were actually very nurturing to us in a sense that they told us what we did right, what we
did wrong and how to improve. To me, that is very good because they did not try to come down too hard."
The entries of these Soldiers, Marines and Coast Guard members are judged by American Culinary Federation certified chefs.
"We've all been competitors, and competitors don't want to hear that their work is no good or whatever," said Klaus Friedenreich, a
German-educated ACF chef with more than 30 years experience. "We try to be encouraging, not discouraging."
Alveranga was one of 14 contestants who faced an equivalent of a culinary firing squad in the junior category. That event
showcases the talent and skills of the military's best junior food service specialists.
The junior event features participants in the grade of E-4 and below, who prepare and cook a three-course meal, typically an
entr�e, dessert and soup or salad in four hour's time. It is graded in two phases - kitchen techniques and tasting - with a grading
weight of 40 percent and 60 percent, respectively.
"I was thinking that four hours is a lot of time to prepare a meal," said Fort Sill's Spc. Rickey Jones, one of several who hurried and
scurried around the kitchen in the last hour to make the deadline. In the end, he said, the four-time limit provided a false sense of
security. "Really, every hour, every minute and every second counts." Some of the junior chefs had the advantage of learning the
importance of time management while assisting their senior counterparts during the Senior Chef of the Year Competition.
With four hours to cook four courses, and 30 minutes to serve each course, the senior chefs were virtually in a pressure cooker for
time. Adding to the pressure, these seasoned professionals were given a mystery basket to create their culinary masterpieces.
"The mystery basket requires them to look at the items they've got and decide what they can create in four hours, knowing their skill
level, their equipment and capabilities," said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Robert Sparks, chief of the culinary craft skills training branch
of the Army Center of Excellence, Subsistence. "The smart thing to do is design a menu they can do reasonably well within that time
limit. You don't want to do more than you can practically do in four hours, and that's where some have a problem."
Fort Bragg's Sgt. 1st Class Bryan Nixon said that time management is the key to winning this event. It requires not only balancing
the preparation and cooking time for each course, but coordinating that time so each meal can be served at the proper interval.
Nixon's menu started with seafood chowder, followed by a chicken salad with raspberry vinaigrette. The entr�e plate included a
savory roasted lamb, whipped potatoes and vegetable medley. Dessert was an enticing trilogy of flavors - Dutch apple pie, lemon
custard and black forest cake. The winners of the junior and senior chef of the year events will be announced March 16 as the
largest culinary competition in the United States concludes with an awards ceremony.
(T. Anthony Bell and Mike Strasser are senior writers for the Fort Lee Traveller.)
Mar 12, 2007 BY T. Anthony Bell and Mike Strasser
FORT LEE, Va. (Army News Service, March 12, 2007) -- For many participants in the 2007 Junior Chef of the Year competition the
prospect of presenting their best culinary creations to four gray-haired, world-renown master chefs with European accents would be
daunting.
"At first, I must say, I was expecting that my posterior would be handed to me," said Spc. Patrick Alveranga, the U.S. Army Reserve
representative in the competition. "But they were actually very nurturing to us in a sense that they told us what we did right, what we
did wrong and how to improve. To me, that is very good because they did not try to come down too hard."
The entries of these Soldiers, Marines and Coast Guard members are judged by American Culinary Federation certified chefs.
"We've all been competitors, and competitors don't want to hear that their work is no good or whatever," said Klaus Friedenreich, a
German-educated ACF chef with more than 30 years experience. "We try to be encouraging, not discouraging."
Alveranga was one of 14 contestants who faced an equivalent of a culinary firing squad in the junior category. That event
showcases the talent and skills of the military's best junior food service specialists.
The junior event features participants in the grade of E-4 and below, who prepare and cook a three-course meal, typically an
entr�e, dessert and soup or salad in four hour's time. It is graded in two phases - kitchen techniques and tasting - with a grading
weight of 40 percent and 60 percent, respectively.
"I was thinking that four hours is a lot of time to prepare a meal," said Fort Sill's Spc. Rickey Jones, one of several who hurried and
scurried around the kitchen in the last hour to make the deadline. In the end, he said, the four-time limit provided a false sense of
security. "Really, every hour, every minute and every second counts." Some of the junior chefs had the advantage of learning the
importance of time management while assisting their senior counterparts during the Senior Chef of the Year Competition.
With four hours to cook four courses, and 30 minutes to serve each course, the senior chefs were virtually in a pressure cooker for
time. Adding to the pressure, these seasoned professionals were given a mystery basket to create their culinary masterpieces.
"The mystery basket requires them to look at the items they've got and decide what they can create in four hours, knowing their skill
level, their equipment and capabilities," said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Robert Sparks, chief of the culinary craft skills training branch
of the Army Center of Excellence, Subsistence. "The smart thing to do is design a menu they can do reasonably well within that time
limit. You don't want to do more than you can practically do in four hours, and that's where some have a problem."
Fort Bragg's Sgt. 1st Class Bryan Nixon said that time management is the key to winning this event. It requires not only balancing
the preparation and cooking time for each course, but coordinating that time so each meal can be served at the proper interval.
Nixon's menu started with seafood chowder, followed by a chicken salad with raspberry vinaigrette. The entr�e plate included a
savory roasted lamb, whipped potatoes and vegetable medley. Dessert was an enticing trilogy of flavors - Dutch apple pie, lemon
custard and black forest cake. The winners of the junior and senior chef of the year events will be announced March 16 as the
largest culinary competition in the United States concludes with an awards ceremony.
(T. Anthony Bell and Mike Strasser are senior writers for the Fort Lee Traveller.)
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| Photo by T. Anthony Bell March 12, 2007 Pfc. Sasha Sanders makes a salad during the Junior Chef of the Year competition March 6. The competition is still going on this week. |
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