FIFTEEN NATIONS. ONE BOX. MILLIONS OF POSSIBILITIES

21/May/2012

Press Releases

Moffat sponsored the recent Global Final of the Meat and Livestock Association’s Black Box Culinary Challenge competition in Tasmania – a prestigious event that put a big spotlight on the best of local ingredients.

Now in it’s sixteenth year, the event has been dubbed “the Olympic Games of cooking competitions.” It attracts teams from all over the globe and, with Australia played host to the final, the top
fifteen teams arrived in Hobart ready to do battle. The rules are simple. Each team is presented with a black box of mystery ingredients on the first day of competition. They then have one hour to come up with a suitably impressive four-course meal. On day two the meal is prepared, judged and presented at the final gala dinner. The chef’s work is evaluated on taste, skill, creativity and artistic merit.

A lot of preparation is also involved behind the scenes. The MLA has flown 6,000kg of Australian beef to approximately 4,000 chefs around the world since the first competition in 1996.

The final 60 chefs made up fifteen teams. The teams all had no idea what they would be working with, only that it represented the best of local ingredients, potentially including prime Australian
beef, sheep meat or goat meat and seafood, spices, fruit and vegetables, dairy products and stocks.

The results were impressive. The Thailand Culinary Academy won the gold medal with their main of "Braised Australian Beef Brisket and Mushrooms, Crispy Rice Coated Australian Lamb Rump, Cheese and Potato Cake, Sautéed Broccoli and Carrots, Garlic Puree and Natural Jus". Their effort managed to edge past the team from Indonesia’s Bulgari Hotel, with the local Tasmanian team from the Henry Jones Art Hotel taking out the bronze.

Moffat is proud to provide support to such an esteemed and long-running event. The Black Box Culinary Challenge delivers a bright spotlight on local food, and it’s a fantastic opportunity for
emerging talent to gain recognition on a world stage.