Chef Joe Clinton wins the New National Irish Dish Competition

A Donegal Based Chef has Won the 'Failte Ireland' New Irish National Dish Finals

at the So Sligo Food Festival 2011.

In celebration of Irish food and the talent of our people and the glorious ingredients that are natural to us, amateur and professional chefs fought in the kitchens of Sligo today to create a new signature dish for Ireland. 

The aim of this competition was to create a new Irish national dish, suitable for service in all of Ireland's  finest restaurants.

This prestigious competition was open to all chefs and cooks – professional and amateur and the winner of the New Irish National Dish Final was Joe Clinton, who works with his wife Dee, out of the kitchens at Smuggler's Creek Rossnowlagh, in County Donegal.

Chef Joe Clinton

Two hours were allowed to prepare, cook and present an innovative modern Irish dish, two portions of each, of competitor’s choice.

Local produce had be used in the completion of the dishes, proof of ingredients sourced locally had to be submitted prior to the competition with the chef's competition application. Competitors had to provide all ingredients and service plates.

Joe Clinton's dish consisted of Saddle of Venison with a fresh horseradish & prune cheese, marinated Venison Liver with a wild mushroom stew, mustard seed infused celeriac cream

and an orange flavoured roast beetroot.

The Winning New Irish National Dish created with Wild Irish Venison

Marks were given for creativity, plate presentation and proper professional, preparation, presentation and service of the dishes.

Joe, a long time member of the Irish Culinary Team Leader won the World Professional Irish Stew Championships last year and has been a leading, though sometimes controversial, member of the Panel of Chefs of Ireland for over a decade.

He has been a Multi-winning Gold Medal achiever for many years on the International Culinary Championship Circuit and is recognised as one of the world's top competition-level masters of the culinary arts.

Don't forget to feed the fish at the bottom of this post!