Ever dreamed about becoming the next Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay or Nigella Lawson? Yes, with celebrity chefs becoming rich and famous, many of us are interested in becoming chefs!

KDU College Penang recently held its Power Chef Competition 2010 (finals) at its premises which was organized by the School of Hospitality, Tourism and Culinary Arts. Dr. Chong Beng Keok, Principal of KDU College highlighted that, “It takes dedicated teachers to go the extra mile to guide students to explore and experiment their options as they find their niche in life”.

As the leader in culinary arts and chef training in the Northern Region, KDU College, Penang campus is constantly upgrading its facilities to enhance the learning experience of students. In 2007, KDU College invested RM 1.5 million in renovating a training kitchen. The kitchen comes furnished with the latest culinary equipment that enables students to enhance and perfect their culinary skills. Since the upgrading of kitchen facilities, the School has become an energetic place of learning, balancing academic rigor with practical experience. It has been recognized for its quality training and unbeatable study experience. To accommodate the growing needs of the students, the College has completed yet another bold vision of delivering significant improvement to culinary practice by setting up another state-of-the-art new kitchen.  This investment will give students more opportunity to practise even more effectively and generate innovative cooking techniques and recipes.

To complete the learning experience, there is also a fine-dining training restaurant and café that offer students practical experience in operating a restaurant or a deli. Students can get hands-on lesson in managing a food and beverage outlet, and at the same time, they are also presented with the opportunity to interact, understand and serve customers.  Through this way, they will learn valuable tips for operating a restaurant.  The SHTCA has a long tradition in winning culinary competitions; from local state competitions to international culinary competitions. 

Our hats off to our inspiring champion Chefs from KDU PJ who had also achieved winnings in multiple categories in the recent Food & Hotel Asia (FHA) 2010 Culinary Challenge, the internationally acclaimed competition. Here at KDU, we believe that champions are inspired, not born, and it is our aspiration to inspire people to greatness. KDU will continue to pledge to add-value to enriching students’ determination and aspiration with the recent Silver Putra Brand Award, the people’s choice award. This shows that the department maintains a high standard and keeps with the tradition of producing award-winning chefs.

For secondary students who have great interest and aptitude for the culinary arts, the Power Chef competition will provide them with opportunity to showcase their talent, encouraging them to bring their culinary magic to life.  It is a talent-discovery avenue for those who wish to be a “chef” for a morning and a unique opportunity for those who inspire to be a chef in the future.

Among the Honorable Judges  are--- Chef Nazeri Ismail - Executive Pastry Chef at Shangri-La Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa,  Chef Peter Chan Weng Seng PJM,  Hon. Secretary of Chef Association Malaysia, Chef Amir Hamzah – Vice Chairman Penang Chef Association Malaysia, Penang Chapter General Committee, Mr. Albert Goh See Pheng – Culinary Advisor HORECA Unilever Foodsolution, Madam Helen Ong – Writer and food columnist from The Star, and Madam CK Lam - Blog Writer and Columnist and Chef Darren Tan from KDU College.

SMK Raja Tun Uda, team Ratu La’viva – Nurul Shafinaz and Ummu Amalina M. Noor bagged top prize, by winning RM800.00 cash with trophy and the Shield which will be displayed at their school for a year until the next challenge. First runner up went to SMJK Union Khoo Chia Yee and Au Chia Yen with RM500.00 cash and trophy, while the second runner up went to Penang Chinese Girls’ High School – Kok Yuen Lin and Lee Xin Ee taking home trophy and RM300.00 cash.

Guest of Honour -- Yang Berhormat (YB) Raveentharan, MP for Kawasan Batu Uban and Mr. Marco Battistotti  - Chairman of Malaysian Association of Hotels – Penang Chapter,  General Manager of G Hotel, Chairman of SKAL and Young SKAL Organizations – Penang Chapter emphasized that it is important to strive and continue to grow the talents in order to make Penang a top food haven in Asia.

This competition, opens to Form 4 and Form 5 students from secondary schools attracted over 60 teams during the preliminary round. It takes dedicated teachers and eager minds who have the vision of creating a platform for secondary school students to gain more exposure in culinary arts. With their experiences and expertise, there is no doubt that students would have received constructive and valuable advice about their dishes. We hope that students can continue following the development of the School and taking advantages of the many opportunities available in order to remain involved with the field of culinary arts.

Winners:

Champion from SMK Raja Tun Uda - Nurul Shafinaz, Ummu Amalina M Noor RM800.00

1st Runnerup from SMJK Union - Khoo Chia Yee, Au Chia Yen, RM500.00

2nd Runnerup from Penang Chinese Girls; High School - Kok Yuen Lin, Lee Xin Ee RM300.00

4th Winner from SMKJ Chung Ling Penang - Teoh Kai Wen, Loh Ji Xiang

5th Winner from SMK Air Itam - Teh Sue Fern, Koay Bing Sen

Most Creative Cake Decoration from St George

Most Appetizing Breakfast from SMJK Chung Ling

YB Raveentharan presenting the shield to the Power Chef 2010 Champions : Team Ratu La’viva of SMK Raja Tun Uda (Nurul Shafinaz & Ummu Amalina M. Noor)	Winners posing with judges during Prize Presentation Ceremony
Winning entrée from SMK Raja Tun Uda	An array of creative cake decoration from students