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S.Pellegrino Young Chefs Paul Prinsloo and Jerome Ianmark Calayag shared a kitchen at G\u00e5te Restaurant, Stellenbosch, where their four hands created some of the most unique and tasty dishes. <\/p>\n
South African Prinsloo and Swede Calayag, from Portal Restaurant in Stockholm, were finalist and winner respectively of the S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy 2019-21 competition.<\/p>\n
They showcased their talent for food in two 10-course meals, which included mouth-watering dishes such as dry aged trout, warthog, fermented citrus and much more. Just as unique as it sounds, so was the taste of the many different flavours.<\/p>\n Calayag grew up seeing his grandmother and father, cook in the kitchen in the Philippines, and had a love for cooking and eating. He draws his inspiration from it and is creative with his hands. <\/p>\n \u2018\u2019Inspiration for dishes comes from all over. What new ingredient haven\u2019t we put on the menu, how can we make it taste great and look artistic goes hand in hand for me. It needs to be beautiful and taste good. No matter how good it tastes if it can\u2019t be beautiful we don\u2019t use it,\u2019\u2019 said Prinsloo.<\/p>\n Since the competition the chefs\u2019 lives have been impacted positively. \u2018\u2019It gave me tremendous amounts of exposure and good friends across the world that have the same passion for cooking,\u2019\u2019 Prinsloo said.<\/p>\n \u2018\u2019The S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Competition has given me a lot more freedom, and opportunities to cook the food that I really enjoy cooking, it has also given me a lot of different and new ventures,\u201c Calayag added.<\/p>\n The chefs gave advice to upcoming talented chefs, with Prinsloo sharing: \u2018\u2019Trust the process and don\u2019t try and chase the title. Learn from your mentors as much as you can. You\u2019re not in a race with other young chefs. Your time will come to be a head chef one day.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n \u2018\u2019Follow your passion, don\u2019t go after money. And do it before you think that you are ready,\u2019\u2019 Calayag concluded. <\/p>\n