Brooke Silk is off to the World Food Championship Qualifiers in Sydney in September. Photo: Supplied.
Figtree private chef and caterer Brooke Silk is set to compete against Australia’s top culinary talent at the World Food Championship Qualifiers in Sydney this month.
Brooke earned the Australian dessert title last year, going on to represent the nation at the international finals in Dallas.
This year, she’s back to defend her dessert crown and will also showcase her skills in the vegetarian category during the event from 27-29 September at ICC Sydney.
Winners of the Australian qualifiers will earn a “golden ticket” to the World Food Championships in Indianapolis, where they’ll compete against the world’s best and brightest chefs and cooks for the ultimate title of World Food Champion and a $US150,000 grand prize.
“Last year, I had the incredible honour of winning the golden ticket for dessert and competing in Dallas, which was an unforgettable experience,” Brooke said.
“This year, I decided to enter the World Food Championship again because it’s an amazing platform to push my culinary boundaries, connect with other talented chefs, and showcase my growth as a chef.”
Brooke said that during last year’s Sydney competition, she made an orange pudding with orange curd, strawberry pearls and orange gazpacho for round one, followed by a creme brulee cheesecake with blueberry reduction and raspberry dust for the second round.
In Dallas, the theme was sugar and spice, so she chose to cook the orange dessert again.
While she received 93.5 out of 100 for her dessert, it wasn’t enough to get her through to the next round.
She said she had felt relaxed during the Australian competition last year, but found Dallas a “whole other world”.
“I was a little bit nervous when I went over for the Dallas one, because you’re in against 15 other people, and you’ve got to get your tray and race it to the front,” she said.
“There was also a lot of adjustments for the recipe, especially because everything is different over there.”
She said everything from the consistency of the flour to the sugar and butter made cooking in the US more challenging.
“You’ve got different soils over there, so everything is grown differently and there’s different humidity and temperatures,” she said.
“I had to play around for four to five days just to get the recipe to a place I was happy with using the different ingredients.
“We went shopping for products at every store I could find, and then tried to get in touch with different farmers for edible flowers.
“It was a pretty cool experience.”
Brooke said having done her pastry apprenticeship and chefing, she felt she had a broad spectrum of skills to compete in both the dessert and vegetarian categories. Not to mention being a vegetarian for five years.
“I only did it just to teach myself how to cook better for vegetarians or vegans,” she said.
“I thought, maybe if I do that for a bit myself, I’ll understand more about it.
“I was actually a vegetarian until I went to Dallas last year. With their barbecues, I couldn’t not try it,” she said, laughing.
“I’ve basically been eating meat again since then.”
She said while she didn’t mind which category she succeeded in to get her through to the international competition, she felt she had more of an advantage in the vegetarian category.
“I feel with dessert there’s a lot of people who go for dessert from America, so they understand all the products,” she said.
“I think with the flavours of the dessert, they do like a lot sweeter things.
“Maybe I would be better at vegetarian in America, because I don’t know if they would have the style of cooking that I would have.”
She said getting to represent Australia again would be an honour and dream come true.
“It’s not just about competing on a global stage, but also about sharing my culinary heritage and the unique flavours that define my approach to cooking,” she said.
“My culinary journey began in my grandmother’s kitchen, where I first discovered the joy of cooking and the power of food to bring people together.
“Over the years, I’ve honed my skills in various cuisines, always striving to blend creativity with tradition.”
That’s showcased through her home chef service and catering business Dine In, started more than four years ago.
She said having her own business gave her the flexibility to perfect her recipes for the upcoming competition.
In fact, one of the upcoming competition desserts is on her Dine In menu.
“People get to try it before I cook it at the World Food Championships and I can get my practice up,” she said.
Book tickets or learn more about the World Food Championship Qualifiers on 27-29 September at ICC Sydney.
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