The South African team wins the LG Home Chef Championship 2012 in Dubai

Using LG’s new mirror-type Lightwave Oven, Donovan and Hayley van Rooyen Took home the Master Home Chef Prize

South African amateur chefs Donovan and Hayley van Rooyen have been crowned the winners of the 2012 LG Home Chef Championship after impressing the judges yesterday in Dubai with their delicious dish, lamb potjie with rice, apricots and toasted almonds.

The husband and wife team also enchanted the audience with their personal memories, recalling how they refined their culinary concoction for family and friends over a period of five years. The dish combined the Van Rooyen’s proud South African heritage with distinctly modern flavours.

LG Electronics (LG) successfully concluded the fifth annual LG Home Chef Championship (LG-HCC) Middle East and Africa Masters Competition in the United Arab Emirates yesterday.

The couple picked up the LG Master Home Chef Prize, which included round trip tickets and five nights’ accommodation in Paris, two LG smartphones and lessons at the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu.

The Iranian team, Zahra Nasri Majd and Mohammad Javad Firouz Jani, were awarded the World Association of Chef Societies (WACS) Prize for their stuffed lamb fillet, while the Le Cordon Bleu Prize went to Sheelu Tharian from the United Arab Emirates for her grilled chicken with kuboos chips. Both runner-up prizes included round trip tickets to Paris, three nights’ accommodation and lessons at Le Cordon Bleu.

This year, a total of twelve amateur teams from six different countries – the UAE, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, South Africa, and Jordan – competed in the event, creating a diverse range of innovative dishes and sharing poignant personal stories. With the theme of ‘Reflect Your Life on Cuisine,’ contestants showcased their cooking skills, introducing deliciously creative meals and relating them to memories from their lives. The competition was a great success, with judges from the prestigious World Association of Chef Societies and Le Cordon Bleu, all extremely impressed with the creative recipes and well-presented dishes.

“This year’s Middle East and Africa Regional Masters Championships was a resounding success; again demonstrating the smart, nutritious and tasty international dishes that can be made using LG’s Lightwave Oven,” said Moon-bum Shin, Executive Vice President and CEO of the LG Electronics Home Appliance Company. “With the aid of the Charcoal Lighting Heater™, the contestants served up some incredible meals, which were as healthy as they were delicious. The 2012 event was made even more special with the personal stories shared by the chefs, drawing attention to the significance food plays in our lives and memories.”

All the culinary delights cooked-up by the amateur chefs at this year’s LG-HCC were created using LG’s Mirror-type Lightwave Oven. Featuring the innovative Charcoal Lighting Heater™, this unique oven cooks food more naturally and efficiently than conventional models, locking healthy nutrients in, and keeping harmful fats and sodium out.