Young commis chef Ellia Faulds won an important victory for The Globe Inn in Dumfries, and for Scotland, when she triumphed in the regional heats of the Young Risotto Chef Competition. Here she shares what drives her, her role in creating some of the most Instagramable food in the region, and the recipe for her winning dish
One of the youngest chefs at 1610, the casual fine dining restaurant at The Globe Inn in Dumfries – famous the world over for being the ‘favourite howff’ of Robert Burns – Ellia Faulds is thriving on the challenge and making the most of working with a team of award-winning international chefs who are on a Michelin star mission.
Keen to push herself to be the best she can be, to learn new things, to hone her skills, improve her techniques and to create dishes that stand out, Ellia, 20, was thrilled to be entered into the Young Risotto Chef Competition alongside fellow young commis chef Sam MacIntrye, 18, with whom she enjoys what she calls a fun, competitive “sibling rivalry.”
“I was still new to the business and was in a pub with some of the chefs one night. There was talk of this competition. I heard Sam was doing it and I wanted to enter, too”
The Scotland regional heat of the Young Risotto Chef Competition, organised by Riso Gallo, was at West Lothian College in April. “Nobody expected me to win. I didn’t even expect to place,” says Ellia. “I did it because I wanted to see what I could do. When they announced my name as the winner, I was in shock. I am so happy that I did it.”
Ellia created a Mediterranean-inspired Roasted Tomato and Red Pepper Risotto with Langoustine and “took a lot of inspiration from the way we plate up at The Globe Inn.”
And although she was almost out of time in the competition, the judges were keen to see – and taste - her finished dish. She has been working hard to perfect it for the national finals at in London in June.
READ MORE: Ellia Faulds' Roasted tomato and red pepper risotto with langoustine recipe
“I’m practising to improving my time management skills. I am a commis chef, and I am still learning. I love learning and I love learning how to be better.”
Ellia knew she wanted to be a chef since she was a young child. Moving to Dumfries when she was seven, she went to Noblehill Primary and Dumfries High, and worked as waitress and a line cook in a café after leaving school. She was studying photography at college when she joined The Globe Inn team a year-and-a-half ago, and loves to use her creative skills and passion for art when it comes to putting the finishing touches to the dishes.
“I get the basis of the dish and that’s when I get to be creative. I feel like I can make them quite pretty. It’s having a basic understanding of art: foreground, background, colour and texture. I want it to be different. You don’t get food in Dumfries that looks like this. ‘The most Instagramable food in the region?’ Yes, I’d agree with that. Your eyes eat the food first.”
The chefs at The Glob Inn are as passionate about their work as Robert Burns was about his, and they strive to create “poetry perfection on a plate: exceptional dishes which take you on an exquisite journey of flavours, textures, and sensations.” Ellia says that she thrives on the pressure in the kitchen and being stressed is what motivates her: “If I don’t feel stressed, I’m not doing my job. It shows I care.
“The most rewarding part of my job is hearing what people think about the food and hearing Chef tell me that I have done a good job.”
