The heats are on....
Those mouth-watering smells of grilling steaks, bubbling curries and zesty seafood wafting through the air at the moment is likely to be The Club Campsite Cook of the Year heats. These regional cook-offs are currently in full swing across the country as many of our Regions, District Associations and Special Interest Sections are hosting their own cook-off competitions. They are competing to win a place in the grand cook-off final at this year’s National Feast of Lanterns (NFOL) from 24-28 August at Hickstead in Sussex.
One of the first to hold their heats was the Boating Group at the meet at Paxton Lakes in Cambridgeshire. The six campsite cooks defied a windy day to rustle up a range of dishes from barbecue Hampshire hog, to risotto and fajitas. The Group’s Webmaster John Bolton told us about the event. He said: “The smell of food was wonderful... after their 30 minutes’ cooking time the contestants set their tables with wine and flowers and served up their dishes. The judges Beric and Jill were very professional in their approach and questioned the cooks about their food before retiring for 20 minutes to discuss and choose a winner.”
John added: “The competition was extremely close but our overall winner was Jane Leedham with her Hampshire hog dish. Jane was delighted with her prize of a Cadac Carri Chef 2.”
On the same weekend, but at the opposite end of the country, our Scottish Region members were also busy at the stoves. This time ten entrants showed off their campsite culinary skills in a hard-fought heat that took place at a meet at Strathallan Games Field in Bridge of Allan, Stirlingshire. The pressure was on as last year's overall winner is a member of the Scottish Region.
The cooks didn't disappoint – the judges were treated to an impressive menu ranging from chicken chili and cashew nuts, a ‘tipsy’ chicken dish, and links and lentils to a ‘Cubby’s caravan chipotle chicken’. The winner, Jan Bain, cooked a fabulous sounding hot smoked hake fajita using fish that was smoked in her village.
These two heats took place in April, with others happening across the country at Region and Special Interest Section meets throughout May while more are booked for June. The winners of Region heats receive a Cadac Carri Chef 2 barbecue kit while the Region Committee also wins one to use at future events, along with a Cadac day shelter. Winners of the heats are then entered into the national competition based on their recipes. Six finalists will be chosen to compete at a grand cook-off final at the NFOL and a chance to win a main prize of a garden barbecue, with other prizes for the runners-up.
If you would like to take part, please get in touch via your local Region website – you’ll find details on the Club website here.