The Henderson’s Relish signature dish competition has returned a mouth-watering, but surprising, winner…
To celebrate its 140th birthday, iconic Sheffield business Henderson’s Relish set ten teams of chef students from The Sheffield College a special challenge to create Sheffield’s signature dish.
The cook off took place earlier this month, and Poached Pear Mini Pavlovas, flavoured with Henderson’s Relish, won the day.
Matt Davies, Henderson’s General Manager, said: “If I had £1 for each different dish that Sheffield people tell me needs Henderson’s Relish, I’d have retired years ago!”
“Sheffielders use Henderson’s Relish with everything, which made our 140th birthday competition a unique challenge for the next generation of the city’s chefs.”
Prizes were awarded for teamwork, creativity, the best representation of Henderson’s Relish and Sheffield, and the overall winner.
The competition judges were Alistair Myers, Owner, and Dan Conlon, Head Chef, at Rafter’s, Seymour Millington, Executive Chef at Sheffield United, and Rob Cox, Executive Head Chef at Sheffield Wednesday, Cary Brown, Owner of Neon Social, and Marcus Ashton-Simpson, Head Chef, DN1.
Henderson’s Poached Pear Mini Pavlovas, pictured, were created by Professional Chef Diploma students Ava Bower-Scott, 18, Lilliana Harmes, 18, and Kizzy Bembridge, 18. They not only won the competition overall, but scooped the prize for creativity, too.
Ava Bower-Scott explained: “We knew that vinegar is used in meringue and that it’s an important part of Henderson’s Relish and decided to expand on that idea. We came into college to spend extra time preparing and testing our idea. It was brilliant to do so well!”
Lilliana Harmes said: “It felt really great to win the competition overall as well as the creativity award.”
A meat pie, made from shin of beef marinated for seventeen hours in Henderson’s Relish, won the Sheffield award.
The winners won Henderson’s goody bags for their efforts, and the awards were presented by the judges, and the owners of Henderson’s, at The Sheffield College’s Silver Plate restaurant earlier this month.
Len Unwin, Curriculum Team Leader, Catering and Hospitality, The Sheffield College, said: “It was a great opportunity to provide our trainee chefs with a creative industry brief set by such an iconic culinary brand in the city.”
He added: “I am really proud of our students. All of the dishes were the students’ own concepts and recipes. The winning dish showed a tremendous amount of creativity paired with an excellent balance of flavours and techniques.”
Henry Henderson blended the first batch of his famous Relish in Broad Lane, Sheffield in 1885. This year, the family-owned business celebrates its 140th birthday.
In the summer, Pete McKee created the ‘Relish Life’ mural on the Sheffield Moor Market wall, and this month Henderson’s has launched limited-edition bottles of its famous Relish, which are available across the city.
The Silver Plate offers fine dining lunches as well as gourmet tasting menus and guest chef evenings and is open to the public for bookings during term-time. Its purpose is to enable students to develop their knowledge and skills in a realistic training environment.
The Silver Plate earned a catering industry ‘Oscars’ award for the second year in a row, winning the Craft Guild of Chefs Accredited College Restaurant Award 2025.
The college also has strong links with industry experts who support the curriculum and students’ skills through guest lectures and chef evenings. To make a restaurant booking, email thesilverplate@sheffcol.ac.uk.
Pictured: The Henderson's Relish signature dish competition winners with the judges.
