Olivier Roellinger cooking competition

In 2015, I read a special cooking competition announcement that was based on the sustainability of marine life and was aimed at two age categories (student/pupil and chefs under 35). I was probably already missing international competitions after a year’s break…, so among the students who performed well during practice, we organized a selection for this European competition named after and organized by the 3 Michelin star French chef Olivier Roellinger. Fanny Czompa became the contestant in the student category, and I even recruited Petra Tischler as help, who herself thought she would also participate as a chef in the competition. Unfortunately, this did not happen due to Petra’s heavy workload—she was working as Péter Palotás’s right hand at the Budaörs Fish Market at the time.

Fanny and I prepared for the competition for half a year. If anyone wants a delicious spinach gnocchi, Fanny could easily make it in her sleep. Two fish dishes had to be prepared in portions of four each, one fitting a restaurant concept and one a housewife concept, with 2.5 and 0.5 hours available respectively. Péter Palotás immediately supported us by providing ingredients, expertise, and the opportunity to practice filleting for the competition. The competition for Central and Northern European contestants took place in April 2016 in Poland. Here is the material I wrote then, with some modifications:

“Third place in the Olivier Roellinger French cooking competition

Fanny Czompa, a third-year student specializing in hospitality and hotel management at BGE KVIK, achieved third place in the Olivier Roellinger French fish cooking competition, the theme of which was the use of sustainable marine fish and seafood within the framework of sustainable development.

The competition, previously held with French and Spanish contestants, was expanded this year for the first time to a European level with participation from 30 countries and was conducted at four locations.

Applications took place last October, and the entry had to be submitted by December 31, including both professional and housewife recipe descriptions, ingredient quantities for four servings, and photos of the dishes planned for the competition.

Fanny prepared for the competition for half a year and on April 20, 2016, achieved third place at the location designated for Hungary in Poland, where Northern and Eastern European contestants participated. Two and a half hours were available to prepare the professional recipe dish, and half an hour for the housewife dish.

The professional dish: Poached halibut and garlic tiger shrimp with spinach gnocchi, vegetable spirals, and citrus sauce.

The housewife dish: Poached halibut with curry and chive-flavored mashed potatoes, and citrus sauce.

Professional dish

Housewife dish

With this result, Fanny was included in the International Team of Chefs for Marine Fish and Seafood. Petra Tischler, sous chef at Costes Downtown and a graduate from six years ago, Laurent Lemal, the 2015 French Bocuse d’Or winner, Hedvig Hidvégi, Anikó Balog Siposné Szőcze, and Dr. Dénes Sándor helped Fanny prepare. The fish and tiger shrimp were sponsored by Péter Palotás, who also provided the opportunity to practice filleting the fish. The ceremonial award ceremony took place on June 8, 2016, in Paris at the UNESCO headquarters on World Oceans Day”

Fanny Czompa with the award

In 2017, Dániel Szűcs, a third-year student specializing in hospitality and hotel management, won first place in the Eastern European region of the Olivier Roellinger cooking competition. The press release from that time reads as follows.

“A STUDENT FROM THE BUDAPEST UNIVERSITY OF ECONOMICS WON THE RENOWNED FRENCH COOKING COMPETITION

Budapest, June 13, 2017 – Dániel Szűcs, a third-year student specializing in hospitality and hotel management at the Faculty of Commerce, Hospitality and Tourism of the Budapest University of Economics (BGE KVIK), won first place in the student category of the Eastern European region in the Olivier Roellinger cooking competition. The prestigious competition focused on marine fish and seafood that can be used within the framework of sustainable development.

The Olivier Roellinger cooking competition, named after the world-famous French chef who holds three Michelin stars, was initiated by SeaWeb Europe, FERRANDI Paris, the Yvon Bourges Catering School in Dinard, and Relais & Châteaux organizations. Their goal is to promote sustainability and preserve endangered marine life, fish, and other species. Although previously only young chefs from France and Spain participated, in 2016 the organizers expanded the competition to a European level for the first time, with participation from 30 countries.

Dániel had been preparing since last autumn to present his envisioned and rehearsed dishes and on April 6 of this year, he won the student category of the Eastern European regional competition held in Poland. Contestants from four European regions competed, where the same dish had to be prepared in two different ways. Two and a half hours were allowed for the professional recipe dish, while half an hour was available for the housewife dish. Dániel chose turbot among the marine fish and Sicilian shrimp for his seafood.

The prepared professional dish was Turbot and Carabineros (Sicilian shrimp) with cauliflower, shrimp tartare served in a pasta basket, Bisquet, and salad sauce, while the housewife dish was Turbot with roasted sweet potato, carrot purée, and lemonade sauce.

Dr. Dénes Sándor, deputy head of the Hospitality Institute at BGE KVIK, participated in Dániel’s preparation, and the fish and shrimp used were provided by Péter Palotás, owner and manager of the Budaörs Fish Market.”

Professional dish

Housewife dish

Dániel Szűcs at the award ceremony at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, 2017

In 2018, the Eastern and Northern European student competition of the Olivier Roellinger cooking contest was held and organized by us at the BGE KVIK Teaching Cabinet on Alkotmány Street.

In 2018, Barbara Ramocsai placed second and Norbert Csukás third at the Olivier Roellinger cooking competition held at BGE. The press release about the competition reads as follows:

“Budapest, March 13, 2018 – For the first time in Hungary, the Budapest University of Economics Faculty of Commerce, Hospitality and Tourism (BGE KVIK) hosted the Eastern and Northern European finals of the Olivier Roellinger cooking competition. The prestigious international contest focused on marine fish and seafood that can be used within the framework of sustainable development, with representatives from six nations competing, including Finnish, Polish, Swedish, Slovenian, Serbian, and two Hungarian students from BGE.

The Olivier Roellinger cooking competition, named after the world-famous French chef holding three Michelin stars, was launched in 2010 by Ethic Ocean/SeaWeb Europe, FERRANDI Paris, the Yvon Bourges Catering School in Dinard, and Relais & Châteaux. Their goal is to promote sustainability and preserve endangered marine life, especially fish populations.

The top three winners of the Eastern and Northern European competition were automatic participants at the award ceremony in Paris, which took place on June 8, 2018, World Oceans Day, at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris.

The international jury included internationally recognized chefs and experts from France, as well as leading chefs and specialists from the local gastronomy scene.

International jury members:

Stephane Jakic (Ferrandi-Paris)

Jean-Pierre Boudin (Dinard Catering School)

Fanny Czompa (Hungarian delegate appointed by the French, bronze medalist in 2016)

Michel Mouisel (Ferrandi-Paris)

Marjorie Mongodin (Ethic-Ocean)

Elisabeth Vallet, director (Ethic-Ocean)

Hungarian jury members:

Károly Bokor, vice president (Hungarian National Fishing Association)
Árpád Győrffy, executive chef (Kollázs Restaurant, Hotel Four Seasons, Budapest)
Ágnes Horváth, editor-in-chief (Hospitality Magazine)
György Lipták, chef (former student of BGE)
Szása Nyíri, owner chef (Arany Kaviár Restaurant)
Péter Palotás, managing director/owner (The Fishmarket)
Ákos Sárközi, executive chef (Borkonyha Restaurant)

“After the successes of the past two years, this year as well… Our current achievements also prove that outstanding training is taking place at our university on an international level. In the future, we will continue to pay special attention to sustainable hospitality, as well as its education and research,” emphasized Dr. Andrea Lugasi, dean of BGE KVIK.

“That BGE can host such a prestigious international cooking competition is an international recognition in itself. We are proud that the competition took place in our recently renovated teaching kitchen, equipped with internationally competitive technology,” added Dr. Dénes Sándor, retired university associate professor at the BGE KVIK Hospitality Institute.”

Photos from the 2018 Olivier Roellinger competition:

Photos from the 2018 Olivier Roellinger competition award ceremony in Paris:

Norbert Csukás, Olivier Roellinger, Barbara Ramocsai

With Barbara Ramocsai and Norbert Csukás

Click on the picture to watch the video of the “Mangalica pork neck with Catalan ratatouille, roasted potatoes, and grilled Padron peppers” prepared at the Joy Cooking event! You can find the recipe below the video!

You can watch the interview with Fanny Czompa on YouTube by clicking here.

You can watch the interview with Dániel Szűcs on YouTube by clicking here.

Mangalica pork neck with Catalan ratatouille, roasted potatoes, and grilled Padron peppers

Recommended ingredient quantities for 4 people:

for the mangalica pork neck:
600 g mangalica pork neck (boneless)
salt
60 g mangalica lard
20 g garlic
thyme

for the stew sauce:
the fattier trimmed pieces of the pork neck
40 g mangalica lard
40 g red onion
10 g garlic
paprika powder to taste
80 g kapia pepper
80 g tomato
salt

for the roasted potatoes:
300 g small yellow potatoes
30 ml extra virgin olive oil
salt

for the Catalan ratatouille:
30 ml extra virgin olive oil
40 g red onion
10 g garlic
150 g kapia pepper
salt

for the roasted padrón peppers:
8 padrón peppers
sunflower oil for frying
salt

for garnish:
microgreens

Preparation steps:

The washed, dried, and cleaned (trim the overly fatty parts from the edges of the slices) pork neck slices are salted, placed in a baking tray greased with lard, topped with halved garlic cloves with skin and thyme, then baked in an oven at 180 degrees until done.The meat can also be sous-vide cooked—if so, vacuum seal the meat in a bag with lard, garlic, and thyme, sous-vide for 16 hours at 65 degrees, cool it down, and finally sear it in lard before serving.
Prepare the stew sauce by searing the trimmed small meat pieces in lard, then continue to sauté with finely chopped red onion and crushed garlic. Remove from the heat, sprinkle with paprika powder, add water, and bring the mixture to a boil with diced kapia pepper and peeled, seedless tomato cubes, adding salt.
Boil the potatoes in salted water until soft, cut them in half, then sear them in a bit of oil.
Prepare a Catalan ratatouille by sautéing the halved red onion, then sliced garlic, and finally the kapia pepper cut into half-moons in oil, add salt, and pour in some of the stew sauce that doesn’t contain meat. The sauce can be strained or pureed before use.
Fry the padrón peppers in plenty of hot oil.
For serving, place the meat in the center of the plate, add the roasted potatoes on top, then the ratatouille, followed by the padrón peppers, and finally garnish.

Preview

Dr. Sándor Dénes “Pro Gastronomia” award.

The 2018 youth award ceremony for Petra Tischler can be viewed, along with a preview of the thank-you videos from the international “Pro Gastronomia” award recipients.

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