A chef won a place in the final stages of a nationwide competition to encourage young chefs in the UK to learn about South African cooking.

Akmol Hussain, 20 who studies at Tameside College, beat contestants from all over the country to reach the last eight chefs in the head-to-head cook off final of the first ever Cook South Africa! competition.

The nationwide contest was launched to inspire in the UK to learn about South African fruit and to take inspiration from South African cooking and traditional dishes.

Students up to the age of 25 years old were asked to submit their own three-course South African menu, incorporating South African peaches, nectarines, plums, apples and pears.

The top prize is training at Margot Janse’s award winning Tasting Room in Franschhoek, South Africa. He and the other finalists were selected by Margot Janse from a paper-based first round, which saw entries from students and chefs already working in industry.

Judges at the cook off final said: “The Cook South Africa! competition was launched to highlight South African fruit, its seasons, delicious taste, as well as the part it plays in the development of the country.

"It was fantastic to see how much research many of the entrants had done on South African ingredients and cooking styles – and how this was reflected in the dishes they prepared.”

The competition was won by Rowen Darlow, a student from Westminster Kingsway college.

He will travel to Franschhoek, the culinary heartland of South Africa’s Western Cape, where he will spend a week in the kitchen of Margot Janse in the Tasting Room at Le Quartier Français.