TV chef throws challenge to Leics
Clearly not content with pork pie with a side of Stilton, TV chef James Tanner is challenging local cooks to invent Leicestershire’s signature dish.
The search for a recipe that defines the county’s culinary tastes has already begun, and amateur chefs who come up with the four best recipes will be invited to cook their dishes alongside James at The Leicestershire Cook Off final, held at St Martin’s House, Leicester on August 11.
There, the dishes will be tasted and tested in front of a live audience, before a winner and the county’s new signature dish are announced.
James Tanner
The overall winner will receive £1000 worth of kitchen equipment, donated by John Lewis, Fenwicks and Highcross shopping centre of Leicester. The three runners up will be given a specialist cookery workshop courtesy of Hotel Maiyango
Said James: “Here’s my challenge to Leicestershire – what I’m looking for from the winning recipe is a dish that’s truly captured what Leicestershire has to offer, from using the county’s fantastic selection of fresh local produce to reflecting the area’s wide cultural influences.
“The winning dish needs to be inventive but with the culinary traditions Leicestershire is famous for. I’m sure I’ll be inundated with plenty of ideas.”
The event has been organised by Le-One (Leicester City Centre Management), which exists to “deliver positive outcomes in support of Leicester city centre”. The cook-off and surrounding publicity is being managed by PR agency McCann Erickson of Birmingham.
To enter a recipe, visit the Leicestershire Cook-Off website
