Karen picks up a special award on behalf of all school kitchen staff in Orkney

Scotland’s top school chef – Stromness Primary’s Karen Bevan - has accepted a very special award on behalf of all school kitchen staff in Orkney for their “phenomenal” frontline work throughout the pandemic.

At this year’s LACA – The School Food People – Awards for Excellence, Karen was among those to receive the Chair’s Award, presented in recognition to all schools for their hard work and commitment to school meals service during 2020 and 2021.

The awards were part of a double celebration event as for the first time the Awards for Excellence married up with the LACA School Chef of the Year (SCOTY) Awards – of which Karen was a finalist.

The competition was tough, and the eventual winner was named as Rob Chambers from Hampton College, Peterborough but Karen says she still feels like a winner by making it there as Scotland’s top school chef.

“This has been an amazing experience and to receive this really special award on behalf of all school kitchen staff who have gone over and beyond during the pandemic is the icing on the cake.”

LACA immediate past chair Stephen Forster said: “Our frontline workers right across our sector have been phenomenal in their efforts to look after children and vulnerable adults in our local communities. It’s for this reason that this year the Chair’s Award is made to all frontline staff in the supply chain and in kitchens throughout the country.

“I have asked these people (2021 SCOTY finalists) to the stage this evening to accept this award on behalf of all frontline staff. The certificate will be available on the LACA website for you to print to send on or present to your team in your own way as a mark of our support. Thank you to all of you and congratulations to all of your teams.”

LACA was established in 1990 and is the leading professional body representing 550 catering managers in local authorities, private contractors and individual schools and academies.

Karen decided to join the 2021 LACA School Chef of the Year challenge, sponsored by Quorn Professionals, winning her way through and pitting herself against ten other top school chefs from around the country in the finals in Birmingham on 12-13 October.

Competitors had to prepare, cook and present four portions each of a two-course imaginative meal suitable for serving en masse to 11-year-olds in primary or secondary schools. The school chefs had to include Quorn as the protein element of the main course together with a dessert based on 50 per cent fruit content.

Karen’s dishes included a Taiwanese-style steamed bun with sticky Quorn pieces and crunchy vegetables for her main and for dessert she made a filo pastry spring roll case filled with a light raspberry cream cheese filling.

After setting up in the tiny individual kitchens, a judges’ briefing followed and the clock started ticking – competitors had 90 minutes to showcase their dishes.

“I was really nervous up until about 15 minutes beforehand and then it was a case of channelling your energies into what you needed to do. One of the contestants who had cooked before me in the kitchen I was in gave me a few tips about the oven and the hob – which was really helpful, and another loaned me a pot as I was one short. There was a great camaraderie among the contestants too; everyone was in it together so there was a great atmosphere.

“I felt like a celebrity just being there from Orkney – as everyone was raving about how beautiful the place is and how much everyone wanted to visit. They were really impressed at the journey just to get to the competition.”

Karen was not given any critical feedback from the judges and in the end the competition was so close, it came down to the judges’ personal preference.

“The standard was so high, and I am delighted to have been there cooking alongside some very talented chefs. I would encourage others to consider taking part as this was a really fantastic experience. Lots of hard work but you only get out what you give, and I have learned so much. To be asked to come up on the stage to receive the Chair’s Award was a lovely surprise. We have all lived through such a strange time and we are proud to have played a part in ensuring frontline workers could continue to carry out their roles by providing a continued meals service.”

Karen was accompanied by the Council’s School Catering Manager, Scott Pring, who said he could not be more proud of Karen.

He said: “We have an incredible school catering team in Orkney, with everyone has pulling together during these challenging times. This experience is one I will not forget in a hurry - Karen has really done herself and Orkney proud.”