Graduate Success

Culinary Graduate Emily Chiong showed grace and talent as she went head-to-head with reps from some of Vancouver’s premier restaurants.

Dill cured gravlax with honey mustard relish and crisp potato chive dumpling: Just reading this sentence can start mouths watering and tummies grumbling. It’s no surprise then, that when this dish is prepared by Emily Chiong, a student at The International Culinary Schools at The Art Institute of Vancouver, it’s not only delicious, it’s award-winning.

Demonstrating a remarkable talent for pairing food with wine, Emily Chiong took home the 2005 People’s Choice Award at the 8th annual Fetzer “Great Beginnings” Wine and Appetizer Challenge. A graduate of the Baking and Pastry Arts program, Chiong was representing the school’s Culinaria Restaurant when she bested chefs in the popular category. Chiong’s crowd winning entry beat out dishes from such illustrious local establishments as The Cannery Seafood House, Diva at the Met and Vistas Restaurant.

“I didn’t expect to win,” states a modest Chiong. “I just thought it would be good to take a chance and try something new. I also thought I could test my ability to handle stress.” So how does Chiong feel she held up under the pressure of such stiff competition? “I think I handled the pressure quite well thanks to all the support I received from staff instructors Chefs Julian, Tim and Soren and everyone at the school.”

Chiong does not come from a culinary background, and found her love for the profession almost by accident. She was working as a morning cook in a long-term care facility and had received only on-the-job training prior to enrolling at The International Culinary Schools at The Art Institute of Vancouver. Her employer decided she should pursue additional training and Chiong applied for the Culinary Arts program. She enjoyed it so much, that upon completion she decided to continue with the Baking and Pastry Arts program.

“I like the detail involved in pastry,” explains Chiong. “It’s almost neurotic detail but as crazy as it is, I like the pace. I love the creativity and the challenge.” She believes the balance she achieved in her training from taking both programs helped her land a win at the Fetzer Challenge. “It definitely gave me the confidence to take part.”

Chiong was one of only 10 finalists chosen from 30 entries to compete in the competition held as part of the 2005 Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival at the Fairmont Waterfront. Finalists were chosen from a field of 30 entrants by a panel of seven food and wine professionals who judged each dish on creativity and how well it paired with Fetzer Vineyards’ Valley Oaks Gewürztraminer. Fetzer Vineyards, based in California, produces a wide range of wines and is the largest grower of organic wine-grapes in the United States.

Not only did Chiong win the much coveted People’s Choice award, she placed 6th overall. “It was amazing, but I was shocked at the same time,” says Chiong who still seems to possess an aura of disbelief regarding her remarkable achievement.

The finalists’ appetizers will be featured at their respective restaurants throughout the month of March and a collective recipe book will appear in the March issue of Wine Access magazine. Other delectable entries in the competition were seared scallops with apricot lychee chutney, miso cured ahi tuna with sesame and togarasgi crust, and salmon rillettes with chilli and chive oil.

If Chiong thought the Fetzer Challenge was the last competition she would take part in as a culinary student, she received a surprise the week following her win when she was picked to be a member of the first and only Canadian Team invited to compete in the largest culinary competition in Asia – the 6th annual Seoul International Food Expo (SIFE). The Korean Culinary Association conducted an exhaustive search to find an appropriate Canadian entry and on the recommendations of their Canadian industry experts, chose The International Culinary Schools at The Art Institute of Vancouver as their first choice.

Organized by the Food Channel, the Korea Cooks Association and The Korea Traditional Food Tourism Association, the event is expected to draw an audience of over 650,000 people. It will be broadcast live on the three largest Korean Networks, as well as the Korean food channel, and The International Culinary Schools at The Art Institute of Vancouver will be featured in the several well-known Korean Culinary magazines. Teams are gathering from across Europe, Asia and North America to take part. The International Culinary Schools at The Art Institute of Vancouver team members include Instructors/Chefs Simon James McNeil, Tim Muehlbauer and Chiong’s fellow culinary student Connie Petersen.

Now that she has completed the program, Chiong is preparing to enter the world of professional culinary arts. Her ultimate goal is to go into the fine-dining industry, but she hasn’t ruled out the possibility of more training. She gives a great deal of credit to her instructors for her success at school, and says they worked hard to build up her skills and provide her with solid foundation training. “I really enjoy having someone to mentor me, to teach me.”