EXCL: "We've never been in a better place": Scots team ready for the "brutally competitive" Culinary Olympics in Stuttgart

EXCLUSIVE

NEWS UPDATE, January 7, 2024: And #TeamScotland only went and won two Silver medals against “brutally competitive” competition from 23 other top-rated global national culinary teams in the @IKAolympics in Stuttgart. Well done all👏👌

SECOND UPDATE, February 10, 2024: Scotland has now been promoted to 10th in the world out of 24 national culinary teams, a move up from 13th.

Scotland’s reputation as a serious player in the field of global gastronomy is set to be put to the test next month when the Scottish Culinary Team of six Scottish chefs head to Stuttgart, Germany, to compete in the IKA Culinary Olympics 2024 against 23 of the world’s highest-ranking culinary countries. 

Scotland currently ranks 13th in an impressive list of national teams comprising Australia, Canada, Cyprus, Czech Republic, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland,  Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

On February 4, the Scottish Culinary Team - organised by the Federation of Chefs Scotland, whose patron is Michel Roux Jr, and which is a member of the World Association of Chefs Societies - will compete against serious rivals Norway, Italy, England, Cyprus and Slovakia. They will create a three-course menu for 110 guests, followed two days later with a Chef’s Table six-course menu for 12 guests. 

The Scottish Culinary Team’s menu sold out within hours of being submitted to the organisers of the Culinary Olympics, the oldest, largest and most diverse international culinary arts competition. Global on-trend movements of fish butchery, nose-to-tail philosophy, sustainability and reducing food waste are all key elements of the Scots menus, which aim to showcase the best of Scottish produce while moving away from the tweed-and-tartan of yesteryear to represent Scotland in a modern way.

Isle of Mull salmon belly and herb pasta (main photo) will accompany salmon with scallop, mussels and seaweed mousse, salmon tartar with apple and roe, chive and green pepper emulsion and salt and vinegar spring cabbage in the first-round starter. The main course of venison from the Balmoral Estate below left) uses the haunch and heart as well as the loin, with beetroot and Isle of Mull cheddar emulsion, torched hispi cabbage and baked barley with truffle and mustard seeds. Dessert comprises preserved Scottish raspberries with bergamot and rose, brown butter sponge and caramel tartlet, yoghurt meringues and Earl Grey tea ice cream.

“We’ve made a conscious effort to use as much of the salmon as possible to minimise waste, and we've explored different cooking and presentation styles for the salmon,” said team captain Craig Palmer, head chef at Wild Thyme in Comrie. “The dish is complemented by delicate acidic vegetable garnishes.

“Opting for venison as our main course, we're championing the most sustainable protein in Scotland.”

Kevin MacGillivray, director of the Scottish Culinary Team, said: “Our team has worked exceptionally hard to develop dishes that represent Scotland in a modern way, reflecting new and traditional cooking methods but not forgetting our grassroots and what Scotland is famous for.

The Scottish team won two Silver medals at the IKA Culinary Olympics in 2020 [which take place every four years], placing it 13th in the world and giving it access to all international competitions. 

The team has spent a year practising honing its dishes, and support from sponsors and the Scottish Government has enabled it to up its game in terms of transport, kit, uniforms and so on.

The team’s budget does not match that of Switzerland with €1m and Norway with around £900,000. But Neil thomson, CEO of Scottish Chefs and a director of World Chefs, said: “You can throw money at a team and not get the returns. The Scotland team has never been in a better place than we are now.

“Competing in the IKA Culinary Olympics is incredibly important for Scotland’s reputation as a serious player in the field of global gastronomy, and we’ve never been so well prepared. 

“The competition is brutally competitive and getting more so every time - although there’s always an underlying camaraderie. If we get two Silvers this year again we’d be delighted, though a Gold is not out of our grasp and certainly within our capabilities.”