The fiercely contested King Prawn competition at the Durban Prawn Festival at SUNCOAST was once again a major drawcard.
It involved twenty of Durban’s leading hotel and restaurant chefs showcasing their signature prawn dishes for the public to taste and critique, along with a professional judging panel of six accredited senior SACA chefs.
In the end, top honours went to Aqua at Sibaya Casino & Entertainment Kingdom, whose chefs Keshan Rambarun, Petrus Madutle and Siphokazi Ndlovu served up a dish titled Prawnology.
The culinary masterpiece featured a prawn bisque, topped with carrot and ginger foam. It was accompanied by a home-made rice puff biscuit, a roulade of smoked prawn, a chilli prawn bite in a rice crumb mixture and a sauce gabriche finished off with three types of caviar – red pepper, yellow pepper and rice and coriander.
Exquisite Cuisine, which caters for Clairwood Racecourse and Grand Manor Gardens, was placed second with its Thai Prawn and Cream Cheese Cup, served up by head chef Leon Hatton-Jones and his team. This delectable dish featured a quiche casing, sticky toffee rice and a dollop of cream cheese infused with fresh coriander pesto, all topped off with a prawn marinated in green Thai paste and laced with fresh curry leaves and basil pesto.
Third place went to Ballito-based Mozambik, which showcased its popular grilled Mozambiquan peri peri prawns laced in a peri peri marinade, olive oil, lemon juice and butter. The dish was co-created by owner Brett Michielin, sous chef Fabio Mangate and catering manager George Geraldes.
In other categories, The Riviera Restaurant at Suncoast Hotel and Towers won Best Stand Décor for its Eastern inspired stand design, while the category of Best Team Spirit was awarded to Capsicum Culinary Studio based in Umgeni Business Park.
Contact information:Jozi DonjeanyAccount DirectorSimeka TWS Communicationswww.simekatws.co.zaTel. +27 (0) 31 203 9800jozid@simekatws.co.za