The JONGGA Kimchi Blast cooking competition, sponsored by Daesang Corporation’s JONGGA, co-hosted by the world-renowned culinary school Le Cordon Bleu, France’s AMA Association (Association Mes Amis), and SF Ad, Inc., has successfully concluded in France and the U.K.
This year’s JONGGA Kimchi Cook Off held in France recorded the highest-ever competition rate of 32:1 with an unprecedented 382 applicants. Notably, a large number of professional chefs participated, making the competition more intense than last year.
On July 11 (local time), the final 12 contestants competed at the Le Cordon Bleu headquarters in Paris. The judges, including Le Cordon Bleu’s Chef Eric Briffard, Associate Chef Favrice Daniel, and AMA Association President Jung Joo-hee evaluated the entries from multiple angles, including creativity, popularity, artistic value, and compatibility with kimchi, the main ingredient.
The final winner was Paris-based professional chef Lucas Renault’s Baek Kimchi Poire, which received unanimous praise from the judges for its harmonious blend of flavors. The second prize went to Isabelle Weller, a student from Munich, Germany, for her The Kimchitini Serenade. The third prize went to Sina Marie-Line for Kimchi Ravioli, Land and Sea Produce (Reviole de Kimchi, produit de la terre et de la mar), and the special prize, the JONGGA Prize, was awarded to Georges Camille for Contrast Mille-feuille (Mille-feuille de contraste).