Rabbit dish does it for Buckley

Published Jul 25, 2014

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Durban - Kerwin Buckley, 27, pulled a rabbit out of the hat to take the Unilever Food Solutions Masters of Time title, creating two impressive dishes from a mystery basket of ingredients in just 90 minutes.

And it was rabbit that nearly had the Mount Edgecombe Country Club sous chef stumped.

“I was shocked when I opened the mystery basket and was confronted by rabbit, as I had never cooked it before,” he said.

However, he deboned it, stuffed it and served up a roast rabbit saddle with poached tortellini, butternut puree, roasted root vegetables with a dribble of Knorr Jus.

His starter was pan-fried trout, poached mussels, sautéed spinach, exotic mushrooms and tomato emulsion.

“It was a pressurised situation but I was pleased with the result,” he said.

The competition is designed to give young chefs the opportunity to gain experience in coping with the severe time constraints faced in a professional kitchen.

And Buckley rose to the occasion.

Each of the five finalists had a professional chef as mentor. Buckley’s was Dion Vengatass, sous chef at the Mount Nelson Hotel in Cape Town

Buckley, who grew up on Durban’s Berea said he had developed a love of cooking from his mother, Judy, who catered for functions.

“I was her helper and her food was delicious,” he said.

It spurred him on to enrol at the International Hotel School in Westville.

After graduation he worked at Cargo Hold at uShaka Marine World and Royal Palm in Gateway before his present place of employment. His dream is to open his own catering company in the future.

Fine dining is his passion.

“I like to think of cooking as an art form,” he says. “I enjoy the decoration and presentation.”

Michel Mellis, MD of Unilever Food Solutions in South Africa, said Buckley showed remarkable composure throughout the mystery basket cook-off, as well as a flair for flavours and textures in his dishes. He displayed a clear understanding of how to plan and manage time under pressure.

Other KZN chefs among the finalists were Xavier Francis of Coastlands Hotel in Durban and Charlotte Sukharaj of Cargo Hold.

Daily News

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