from FUTHI MBHELE in Durban
KwaZulu Bureau
DURBAN, (CAJ News) – GROWING up, Tracy Norton was not a fan of bobotie, a South African dish consisting of spiced mince meat baked with an egg-based topping.
Yet, she took a risk, when she included elements of the dish in an entry for the Global Pizza Challenge 2023.
The risk has paid off with her announcement as the winner of the worldwide competition. Her Cape Malay-inspired bobotie pizza was adjudged the winner.
What stood out were the blend of authentic local flavours, delicious taste and easy adaptability to produce at scale making it commercially viable.
The chef from City Lodge Hotel Victoria and Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town is elated.
“This is the first time in my life that I have entered a competition and won,” Norton said.
“I haven’t won anything before nor won something so big. I have been working for City Lodge Hotels for five years now,” she continued.
Norton shared a motto for other enthusiasts interested in entering culinary competitions.
“Take the risk, do the best that you can, nothing is impossible and if you put your mind to it you will succeed.”
This year’s Global Pizza Challenge took place during the Hotel and Hospitality Show at Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa, last month.
Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo, the Chief Operating Officer at City Lodge Hotel , said they used this event as an opportunity to showcase the growth in food and beverage offerings at their hotels and to expose their kitchen teams to the exciting world of cooking competitions.
“By inspiring and motivating our staff to enter and attend events such as these, we spread the learning from such exposure as they go back to their kitchens and share their enthusiasm with their co-workers,” Sangweni-Siddo said.
– CAJ News