SUNY Delhi Student Kathryn Eurich Wins National American Culinary Federation 2015 Student Chef of the Year Competition in Orlando, Florida
St. Augustine, Fla., August 17, 2015—The best student chef in the nation, according to the American Culinary Federation (ACF), is Kathryn Eurich, student at SUNY Delhi, Delhi, New York. Eurich received the 2015 ACF Student Chef of the Year award, sponsored by Custom Culinary, Inc., after winning a competition at Cook. Craft. Create. ACF National Convention & Show held in Orlando, Florida, July 30-Aug. 3.
“Thank you to everyone who helped through my journey to nationals,” said Eurich. “It is truly an honor to have competed at that level.”
In 1987, the late Baron H. Galand, CEC, AAC, HOF, established the ACF Student Chef of the Year award to help student members establish their position within ACF. In 2003, a culinary cook-off for student chefs was introduced at the national convention, and, for the first time, regional finalists competed for the national title. The award recognizes a talented student or recent graduate who possesses a high degree of professionalism, culinary skill and passion for the culinary arts.
ACF chapters first nominated students for their ability to cook, level of skill, strong understanding of cooking fundamentals and classical cooking foundation. Then, students competed and won their regional competitions. At the national competition, five finalists had 1 hour, 25 minutes, to prepare, cook and serve four portions of their course, which had to include duck.
Eurich’s winning menu was a Maghreb-inspired duck trio of pan-seared breast, petite roulade and Moroccan-inspired braise served with buttery potato, carrot-orange puree, Mediterranean vegetables, orange sauce and red pepper-harissa cloud.
A senior at SUNY Delhi, Eurich is also a teacher’s assistant for the culinary competition class and a line cook at Landmark Inn, Warwick, New York. She is an active member of the campus’ culinary club and assists the school’s culinary hot-food team during competitions. In addition, she has received both a gold and a bronze medal in 2014 at ACF-sanctioned competitions. Her goal is to move to New York City after graduation and someday own her own restaurant. Eurich is a member of ACF Chefs and Cooks of the Catskill Mountains.
More than 1,000 chefs, cooks, students and foodservice professionals attended Cook. Craft. Create. ACF National Convention & Show, hosted by the ACF Central Florida Chapter. The event provided attendees with numerous opportunities to advance their professional development and enhance their culinary skills through informative workshops and seminars, cutting-edge demonstrations, a trade show featuring nearly 100 exhibitors, national competitions and ACF’s annual national awards.
Sponsors of Cook. Craft. Create. ACF National Conference & Show are: Allen Brothers; American Technical Publishers; BelGioioso Cheese, Inc.; Canadian Lentils; CaterSource® Magazine, Conference & Tradeshow; Custom Culinary, Inc.; Ecolab®; J.R. Simplot; Johnson & Wales; Lactalis Foodservice; Minor’s; National Watermelon Promotion Board; NEWCHEF Fashion Inc.; Par-Way Tryson, makers of Vegalene; Plugrá® European-Style Butter; PolyScience®; RATIONAL USA; Roland Foods; Taylor Shellfish Farms; Unilever Food Solutions; US Foods; Valrhona; Victorinox Swiss Army; Villeroy & Boch; Vitamix® Corporation; Western Region State Beef Councils; and Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.
About the American Culinary Federation
The American Culinary Federation, Inc. (ACF), established in 1929, is the standard of excellence for chefs in North America. With more than 17,500 members spanning nearly 200 chapters nationwide, ACF is the leading culinary association offering educational resources, training, apprenticeship and programmatic accreditation. In addition, ACF operates the most comprehensive certification program for chefs in the United States, with the Certified Executive Chef®, Certified Sous Chef®, Certified Executive Pastry Chef® and Certified Culinary Educator® designations accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies. ACF is home to ACF Culinary Team USA, the official representative for the United States in major international culinary competitions, and to the Chef & Child Foundation, founded in 1989 to promote proper nutrition in children and to combat childhood obesity. For more information, visit www.acfchefs.org. Find ACF on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ACFChefs and on Twitter @ACFChefs.
View all American Culinary Federation Chefs on Chef’s Roll: www.chefsroll.com/american-culinary-federation
