Carp croquette appetizer, Baja-style fish soup enriched with fish milk derelye, and grilled mangalica with beetroot salad, tongue-stuffed potatoes and stuffed cabbage. This menu and its makers, Bence Dalnoki and his assistant Patrik Nyikos, won the Hungarian Bocuse d'Or final in 2021, so they will represent Hungary at the international competition next spring.
On 21 October at Hungexpo, four young chefs, Bence Dalnoki sous chef of the Stand restaurant, Tibor Huszár, creative chef of the Kakukk restaurant in Nyírbátor, Roland Kelemen, chef of the Hunguest Hotel Aqua-Sol in Hajdúszoboszló, runner-up of last year's national final and Balázs Adamek, the head chef of the Diófa restaurant in Székesfehérvár, compared his skills. They were assisted by a young commis (assistant).
According to the competition rules, they had to serve a competition dish of mainly local ingredients, spicy paprika, carp, mangalitsa and mangalitsa tartare, one fish and one meat dish. The obligatory ingredient for the fish course was the Balaton Sudar carp, which had to be prepared on a restaurant-style plate. The fish dish also had to include Bezdan red pepper. The meat dish had to be accompanied by at least three different side dishes and at least one sauce. The teams were also given a surprise ingredient in the morning, chives, and then had four and a half hours to prepare the dish, consisting of a starter, soup and main course. But as well as taste and visual appeal, the judges also looked at and scored the team's harmony, the environmentally friendly and low-waste production of the food, and the workbench and working environment during the cooking process.
The race started at 9.30 a.m., while the food was served from 2 p.m. The tasting jury included Zoltán Hamvas, President of the Hungarian Bocuse d'Or Academy, Lajos Bíró, János Erdei, Tiago Sabarigo, Jenő Rácz, Ákos Sárközi, Ádám Barna and László Jahni. Tamás Széll, Lajos Lutz, Tamás Vajna, Szása Nyíri, Viktor Segal and Csaba Harmath were on the kitchen jury.
The winner, Bence Dalnoki, said before the results were announced that their goal was to show that it is possible to win with a Baja chowder. And although visuals are very important, they believe that food should not be overdone, because a dish can be beautiful simply, simply and understatedly.
According to the description of the Hungarian Bocuse d'Or Academy, Bence joined Szabina Szulló and Tamás Széll's team immediately after his apprenticeship, and in his own words, he learned everything from them. He has not yet competed in a Bocuse d'Or competition, but in 2019 he represented our country at the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs in Calgary.
In the Hungarian Bocuse d'Or final, Roland Kelemen and Noel Fodor won 2nd place, while Balázs Adamek and Marcell Kocsis came third.
For the first time this year, a lifetime achievement award was presented to Lajos Bíró.
Other prizes include:
Best Team Award: Bence Dalnoki and Patrik Nyikos
Special prize of the media jury: Bence Dalnoki
Best commis: Noel Fodor
