A talented chef at Loch Lomond Golf Club is celebrating after cooking up success in the Young Scottish Chef of the Year competition.

Rosie Maguire, who lives in Balloch, won a silver medal at the Scothot event at Glasgow’s SEC, as well as winning best main course for her dish of venison loin, caramelised celeriac puree, roasted onion faggot, pickled berries and scorched purple sprouting broccoli.

The 22-year-old has been working as a demi chef de partie in the fine dining kitchen since graduating from Derby University in June last year and due to her impressive development has just been promoted to chef de partie.

But she admits she was shocked to do so well in the competition last month which recognises the best chefs under 23 and saw her battle it out with others with more extensive restaurant experience to produce a meal in two and half hours in front of a live audience.

She told the Reporter: “It was such hard work getting to the day of the competition and just doing it and managing to finish on time, I was so exhausted and relieved.

“I never set out to come in a certain place, it was more of a personal challenge to reach a standard of cooking and time of cooking.

“I was very surprised and proud that I managed to win best main course, as although we were around the same age, some of them had been in the industry five years longer than I had and I had chosen quite a different route going to university (to study culinary arts), so I thought I was on the backfoot experience wise.”

Rosie’s ambitious menu was inspired by seasonal ingredients and aimed to show these off at their best.

As well as her award-winning venison main, it also included an amuse bouche of pan seared queen scallop, pomegranate and shallot jam and compressed apple; a starter of red mullet, fennel, crispy artichoke, chorizo espuma and black olive crumb; and a dessert of honeyed ricotta, lemon and rosemary pearls, nougatine, brown butter crumble and candied rosemary.

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She added: “Coming off the back of winter, we did use a few winter vegetables and incorporated stuff coming in with the spring time.

“It was very much inspired by what I’ve learned at the club. We do a lot of local, Scottish fine dining cuisine, ingredients like venison and try to make them best with what’s in season.

“I was also thinking about wastage. It’s very important in the culinary industry that we think about using cheaper cuts and trimmings so we are not producing as much waste.

“I’m from a farm background and it taught me about seasonality and sustainability and to be more thoughtful about what we buy and what we are making.”

She is enjoying the freedom she has been afforded in her first full-time restaurant job to set goals, undertake certain work experiences, meet suppliers and go foraging.

And Darren Harrison, executive chef at the club, told the Reporter, he is excited to see how Rosie develops her talent even further.

He said: “We are all delighted. Rosie has only been professionally cooking for eight months and was up against others who are more experienced.

“She basically runs hot and cold larder section within the fine dining kitchen. She’s been doing all the starters for the fine dining and grill restaurant. She’s really competent in that and has exceeded expectations.

“She’s now moving up in training to the sauce corner and hopefully will develop her skills and refine these further in that section and hopefully there is longevity in the company with her.”

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