In teams of two, the chefs from Armidale, Tamworth and Coffs Harbour produced a two-course meal at Tamworth TAFE campus in a bid to score a finalist spot in the 2016 Nestle Golden Chef’s Hat Award.

Australian Culinary Federation president Neil Abrahams said they were judged on preparation, food handling, cleanliness and hygiene, personal presentation and, when cooking, treating the produce right.

That accounted for 40 per cent of their marks, 10 per cent was on the presentation of the food and 50 per cent on taste.

He said the young chefs had to present dishes that had the correct balance in textures and flavours, appropriate sauce, flavour combinations, menu descriptions and were seasoned well.

The competition has been running for 50 years, but this was the first time a heat was held in a regional area.

“I’ve been pushing for two years to bring it to regional areas,” Mr Abrahams said.

“Coming from a rural background, I think it’s important that these guys get the came opportunities as those in metropolitan areas.”

As well as the competitive aspect, the day offered good camaraderie between the teams, a chance to see what other competitors do, learn different techniques and get feedback from the judges.

One of the most important skills they could take away, Mr Abrahams said, was time management. 

“As a chef, the pressure is absolute,” he said. “Therefore, it’s important that they learn time management.” 

Fellow judge, and Tamworth chef, Graham Manvell said it was interesting to watch so many different techniques at work.

“Even if they don’t win, they will learn so much from others and meet other people in the industry and hone their skills,” he said.

“There was a good nervous tension in the kitchen.”

Mr Manvell said it was fantastic that these young chefs had the “heart” to participate in the competition.

“It gets them thinking about different produce and the chance to go out on a limb,” he said.

“They can maybe do something they don’t do at work.”

Mark Clayton from Nestle said the experience of competitions is very important.

“They learn an amazing amount by doing competitions,” he said.

“They will come away with something that will urge them on hopefully to do more competitions. Because this is a national competition, it is a stepping stone and competitors can go to other competitions. Many of the people in the Olympic team started here.”

The end prize, if they win the national competition, is a trip to the US where they have the chance to work in top restaurants and visit the Culinary Institute of America.

The NSW regional finalist team will be announced today at Facebook. com/goldenchefs