Grand Hilton Seoul team wins Korea's Black Box Culinary Competition

Take a box full of unseen ingredients, give a food and beverage team just 60 minutes to think up a menu and then another 24 hours to fine tune it for expert judges and what do you get? A winning menu that kicks off with a terrine of macadamia encrusted soft cheese with semi-dried tomatoes and ends with a gold medal and a seven-day holiday to Australia for four Hilton chefs.

A team of chefs and service staff from Grand Hilton Seoul won the nation-wide Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) Black box Cooking Competition last Thursday night, beating 11 other teams from Korea's leading upscale hotels. 

Under the direction of Executive Chef, Rolf Jaeggi and the leadership of Chef Kim Hwa Jun, Hilton's team of four chefs and three service staff, was given just 60 minutes to design a menu from previously unseen ingredients, which ranged from bell peppers to beef, to port wine and pistachios, and  then 24 hours to present it to diners and judges.

The result was a gold medal in cooking and second place in service.

According to Chef Jaeggi, a Swiss native who has worked in Hilton hotels for more than 15 years, "The whole judging process was very intensive, with judges reviewing not only the menu and the cooking process but also the table decoration and quality of service. Our team worked around the clock and displayed an extraordinary performance. We are very proud of this achievement."

Team leader, Chef Kim Hwa Jun, believes that the unusual combination of flavours created by the Hilton team resulted in the win.

"We looked at all the ingredients and carefully considered ways to bring the more unusual flavours to the surface, always with the Korean taste preference in mind. As an example, the semi-dried tomatoes and macadamia nut with a vinaigrette dressing cut right across the full cream cheese flavour of the appetizer. 

"Additionally, we opted to retain maximum nutritional qualities by not chopping or grinding the ingredients. 

"Chef Jaeggi has always told the team to 'go beyond people's expectations in quality, flair and perfection. And that's what we did."

The MLA Black box Competition is an annual event held in select countries around the world. A food and beverage team must create appetizers, mains and desserts for 23 diners from previously unseen ingredients. Aside from the team leader, all contestants must be under the age of 30.

The competition has been successfully run in the Asian region since 1996. The Grand Hilton Seoul will participate in the Asian Regional championships next year. In the meantime, the four chefs have plenty of time to study culinary skills in Australia on a fully-paid holiday awarded to them for their efforts.

MLA Black box Championship Winners

1. Hilton Grand Seoul * Overall winner. Gold medal in cooking and 2nd place in service
2. Ritz Carlton - gold
3. Grand Intercontinental