Taste Cheshire will sponsor the Young Chef Challenge at the 2017 Chester Food Drink and Lifestyle Festival.

The contest, which will take place at Chester Racecourse on Easter Sunday, April 16, will be judged by Masterchef star, Gregg Wallace.

Festival organiser Stephen Wundke said: “This is a major boost for the festival to be able to showcase the best young cooking talent across the region. Taste Cheshire general manager Lisa Edwards explained that this competition, open to all young chefs below the age of 18, would help to continue to raise the profile of the food and drink offer in the county and show the UK some of the outstanding talent working within our premises.

She said: “We believe that the industry needs to invest in the future and there is no doubting that the contestants who have entered this competition have the ability and skills to be able to keep Cheshire at the very top of the hospitality sector, making us the home of Food and Drink. We look forward to crowning this years winners and seeing them deliver as future stars of the industry.”

The competition will begin with qualifiers being held at West Cheshire, Mid Cheshire and South Cheshire Colleges with the quarter final being staged on February 3 at West Cheshire College.

On this day the quarter finalists will be reduced down to just four, under head judge, Brian Mellor, of Harthill Cookery School and chief judge of the UK Springboard Competition for Young Chefs. These four finalists will then cook on the main stage on Sunday, April 16, in front of packed crowds, judged by none other than Gregg Wallace.

Chefs are encouraged to use local produce within their dish which must be completed within 45 minutes from start to finish. The winner will be announced on the day by Gregg and then crowned at the Taste Cheshire Food and Drink Awards to be held at the Pavilion at Chester Racecourse on Wednesday, April 19.

For more information or an entry form for this competition call 01244 956412 and ask for Lisa Edwards or email lisa.edwards@tastecheshire.com