Taste of Belize

Rules and Guidelines

• The culinary competition is open to any Belizean, born or naturalized, food and beverage students and kitchen apprentices or any cook with less than 2 years of professional experience not over the age of 19 years.
• The competitor must create a unique dish using his/her choice of ingredients. Competitors must prepare a main dish that reflects Belizean and/or regional cuisine.
• Each competitor will be given a mystery basket containing all the ingredients necessary for them to produce a dish. They will have access to the pantry items and equipment which will be used to prepare their unique dish. Any unused pantry items must be returned within that time.
• Competitors have 1 hour to prep, cook, plate and serve (15 minutes prep/write menu and 45 minutes to cook, serve the 3 dishes for the judges and plate 3 tasting plates). 10 minutes will be allotted to each competitor to clean the kitchen area after all the samples are prepared.
• White plates will be provided however, competitors may choose to bring their own plates for service. They can bring and use small ramekins or accent pieces if they wish.
• Any time taken after the assigned finish time will count towards a 1 point per minute penalty. After 5 minutes of overtime, the dish will be disqualified.
• Competition slots will be selected on a first come first pick basis.
• By participating in this event, the competitor acknowledges and agrees that the BTB reserves the right to call upon him/her to represent Team Belize in any future Taste of the Caribbean competitions and any other marketing initiatives deemed necessary to promote Belize, its cuisine and culture.

Judging Criteria

• A total of 8 competitors will be competing in 2 groups of 4. The scores and winner of the competition will be shared after all 8 competitors have completed the competition.
• Competitors will be judged on the floor on skills, techniques, hygienic standards and timing. The dish should reflect modern techniques and Belizean or regional influences.
• All ingredients and garnishes which are a part of the dish should be edible and functional.
• Timeline of service will be critical.
• The dish will be presented to the judges 1 hour after the competition starts.
• Each competitor must prepare 3 identical dishes and 3 tasting plates.

The scoring will be done as follows:

Tasting

Presentation                                                              10 points

Creativity                                                                    10 points

Belizean Ingredients                                                 15 points

Taste/Texture/Flavor Balance                                30 points

Total                                                                            65 points

Kitchen Mis en place

Mis en place – culinary skills                                     5 points

Proper use of ingredients                                           5 points

Organization                                                                 5 points

Total                                                                          15 points

Floor/Cooking Station

Culinary Skills and Cooking Technique                  10 points

Organization and Timing                                            5 points

Cleanliness                                                                     5 points

Total                                                                           20 points

    Utensils

• All utensils will be provided. Competitors may choose to bring their own knife set.
• Pantry items and utensils will be made available to the competitors ten minutes before the competition.
• Competitors must always keep their workstations clean. A more deliberate cleaning should be done after each round to ensure that the continuing competitors start off with a clean workstation.
• All workstations will be identical and will consist of 1 8-foot table and a 6 burner stove.
• A cooler and ice will be provided.
• A bowl will be provided to wash up.
• Cleaning utensils and chemicals will be provided.

The competitor with the highest score will be the Junior Chef of the Year 2018.

Rules and Guidelines

• The culinary competition is open to any Belizean, born or naturalized, who has been employed as a chef in Belize for 3 years or more.
• This cooking competition takes into consideration the chefs’ skills, speed and ingenuity.
• The Master Chef Competition will be a game of passion, proficiency and skill; and in the end, only 1 chef will be named Master Chef of the Year 2018.
• Each round will consist of a ‘mystery basket’. Chefs will use all mystery ingredients to create their dish. They will have access to the pantry items and equipment which will be used to prepare their unique dish. Any unused pantry items must be returned within that time.
• White plates will be provided. Chefs may choose to bring their own plates for service. They can bring and use small ramekins or accent pieces if they wish.
• Any time taken after the assigned finish time will count towards a 1 point per minute penalty. After 5 minutes of overtime, the dish will be disqualified.
• Competition slots will be selected on a first come first pick basis.

By participating in this event, the competitor acknowledges and agrees that the BTB reserves the right to call upon him/her to represent Team Belize in any future Taste of the Caribbean competitions and any other marketing initiatives deemed necessary to promote Belize, its cuisine and culture.

Round 1 –

Eight competitors will compete in Round 1 comprising of 2 groups of 4.  Each chef will have 45 minutes to prep, cook, plate and serve an entrée (10 minutes prep/write menu and 35 minutes to cook and serve the 3 dishes for the judges and plate 3 tasting plates). 10 minutes will be allotted to each competitor to clean the kitchen area after all the samples are prepared.  After all 8 chefs have completed this round, the scores will be presented. The 4 chefs with the highest score will continue on to the next level and the other 4 chefs will be eliminated.

Round 2 – Entrée

Each of the remaining 4 chefs will have 45 minutes to prep, cook, plate and serve an entrée (10 minutes prep/write menu and 35 minutes to cook, serve the 3 dishes for the judges and plate 3 tasting plates). After, each chef has 10 minutes to clean the kitchen area. At the end of this round the scores will be presented. The three chefs with the highest score inclusive of round one results will continue onto the next level and the other chef will be eliminated.

Round 3 – Dessert

Each of the remaining 3 chefs will have 40 minutes to prep, cook and serve a dessert (10 minutes prep/write menu and 30 minutes to prepare a dessert, serve the 3 dishes for the judges and plate 3 tasting plates). 5 minutes will be allotted to each competitor to clean the kitchen area after all the samples are prepared. At the end of this round, the scores will be presented. The winners will be announced for 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rdplace based on total score for all 3 rounds.

Judging

• Chefs will be judged on the floor on skills, techniques, hygienic standards and timing. The dish should reflect modern techniques and Belizean or regional influences.
• All ingredients and garnishes which are a part of the dish should be edible and functional.
• Timeline of service will be critical.
• Each chef must prepare 3 identical dishes and 3 tasting plates.

The scoring will be done as follows:

Tasting

Presentation                                                                10 points

Creativity                                                                     10 points

Belizean Ingredients                                                  15 points

Taste/Texture/Flavor Balance                                 30 points

Total                                                                            65 points

Kitchen Mis en place

Mis en place – culinary skills                                      5 points

Proper use of ingredients                                            5 points

Organization                                                                  5 points

Total                                                                         15 points

Floor/Cooking Station

Culinary Skills and Cooking Technique                  10 points

Organization and Timing                                            5 points

Cleanliness                                                                     5 points

Total                                                                            20 points

Utensils

• All utensils will be provided. Chefs may choose to bring their own knife set.
• Pantry items and utensils will be made available to the chefs 10 minutes before the competition.
• Chefs must always keep their workstations clean. A more deliberate cleaning should be done after each round to ensure that the continuing contestants start off with a clean workstation.
• All workstations will be identical and will consist of one 8-foot table and a 6 burner stove.
• A cooler and ice will be provided.
• A bowl will be provided to wash up.
• Cleaning utensils and chemicals will be provided.

The chef with the highest score will be the Master Chef of the Year 2018.

Rules and Guidelines

1. The culinary competition is open to any Belizean, born or naturalized, who has 3 or more years of professional experience in baking and pastry.
2. This one of a kind cooking competition takes into consideration the chefs’ skills, speed and ingenuity.
3. The Pastry Chef Competition will be a game of passion, proficiency and skill; and in the end, only 1 chef will be named Pastry Chef of the Year 2018.
4. All ingredients for decorating that needs to be pre-made, solely because of the drying time of the items can be brought in pre-made. A description of these items will be shared with the judges and be approved before the competition.
5. Ribbons, tulle, etc., may be used to carry out a design. Non-edible items may not be used in place of sugar mediums; for example, plastic pearls instead of fondant pearls. “Edible Images” are allowed and will be judged in context with the entire entry. All entries must be completely edible except for items such as columns, cake toppers, supports, wires, and stamens.
6. Each chef must supply any other accessories needed for the decoration of the dessert. However, each competitor must have prior approval from the judges.
7. Work stations should always be clean and all contestants must clean their workstations at the completion of the competition. Cleaning utensils and chemicals will be provided.
8. Chefs will have access to the pantry items and equipment which will be used to prepare their unique dish. Any unused items must be returned within that time.
9. White plates will be provided. Chefs may choose to bring their own plates for service. They can bring and use small ramekins or accent pieces if they wish.
10. Any time taken after the assigned finish time will count towards a 1 point per minute penalty. After 5 minutes of overtime, the dish will be disqualified.
11. Competition slots will be selected on a first come first pick basis.
12. By participating in this event, the competitor acknowledges and agrees that the BTB reserves the right to call upon him/her to represent Team Belize in any future Taste of the Caribbean competitions and any other marketing initiatives deemed necessary to promote Belize, its cuisine and culture.

Round 1 – Pastry with Local Infusion

There will be a total of 4 chefs at the start of the competition. Each chef will have 60 minutes to prepare a dessert (10 minutes prep/write menu and 50 minutes to prepare, serve the 3 dishes for the judges and plate 3 tasting plates). 10 minutes will be allotted to each competitor to clean the kitchen area after all the samples are prepared. After all 4 chefs have completed this round, the scores will be presented. The 3 chefs with the highest score will continue onto the next level and the other chef will be eliminated.

Round 2 –Mystery Basket

Three chefs will have 75 minutes to prepare a dessert (10 minutes prep/write menu and 65 minutes to prepare, serve the 3 dishes for the judges and plate 3 tasting plates). 10 minutes will be allotted to each competitor to clean the kitchen area after all the samples are prepared. After all 3 chefs have completed this round, the scores will be presented. The winners will be announced for 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd place based on total score for both rounds.

Judging

1. Chefs will be judged on their skills and techniques and hygienic standards.
2. The dessert will be judged on its taste, texture, and overall presentation.

The scoring will be done as follows:

Cooking Skills / Culinary Techniques

Skills and Craftsmanship                                                       20 points

Creativity                                                                                   15 points

Sanitation/Organization/Accuracy                                        5 points

Total                                                                                           40 points

Taste/Presentation

Flavor and texture                                                                   30 points

Presentation                                                                             20 points

Use of local ingredients                                                          10 points

Total                                                                                           60 points

The chef with the highest score will be the Pastry Chef of the Year 2018.