Deaf ears, deft hands: The meatball wizards who are making themselves heard

Eight international deaf chefs to duke it out while focusing on sustainability and food waste

Oct 22, 2015

The top deaf chefs on the planet will descend upon the Danish capital this weekend to take part in Deaf Chef 2015, the world’s only competition for chefs who are sign language users.

The competition, which will take place at Hotel- og Restaurantskolen in Valby on Saturday October 24, will pit eight international deaf chefs against each other among the pots and pans with a focus on gastronomical sustainability and minimising food waste.

Renowned panel
The eight chefs – who hail from Denmark, Sweden, the US, France, England, Spain, Canada and Iceland – are all professional and will prepare three-course culinary delights from raw goods such as rabbit, pork tongue and locally-harvested cod and oysters from Limfjorden.

As they work their magic in the kitchen, the judging panel – featuring renowned chefs such as Poul Cunningham, Francis Cardenau and Mhairi Galloway – will keep an eye on food waste and the chefs’ plan for utilising leftovers.

Incredible response
Simon Sheard, the head of Allehånde – a social enterprise that trains and employs deaf chefs, which is one of the sponsors of the Deaf Chef competition – revealed that the idea began last year as a regional pilot project that turned out to be highly successful.

“The response we received after the first year was incredible,” he told the Copenhagen Post.

Creating opportunities
According to Sheard, the competition will help to create employment opportunities for those with hearing disabilities.

“The networks that developed between the chefs already began during the competition itself,” he said.

“The competition aims to celebrate groups with disabilities in the sustainable labour market. Some 50 percent of people with hearing disabilities in Denmark are not in active employment. For us it’s about inclusion and generating positive role models.”

Free entry to all
The chefs will begin their preparations at 07:00 on Saturday and the competition will be open to the public from 10:30 to about 22:00 at Hotel- og Restaurantskolen, Vigerslev Allé 18, Valby.

Simply follow the signs, flags and tantalising smells to find the venue and the opportunity to sample some of the 24 unique dishes. There is free entry to the event.

Denmark’s contestant Magnus Holstein Madsen hails from Copenhagen and works at the Michelin Star, Thai restaurant Kiin Kiin in Nørrebro.

See all eight contestants below.

TOP STORIES

“Talents, start using AI tools now,” says Siri and Change.org founder

In an exclusive interview with The Copenhagen Post, the founder of Siri and Change.org, and currently VP of AI Experience at Airbnb, gives young talents advice on how to deal with the job market changed by artificial intelligence.
Testing free school meals for 20,000 kids and tax deduction for homeowners in 2025 Finance Act

The government has reached an agreement on next year’s Finance Act with SF and Radikale Venstre. A test on free school meals for a limited number of children will be introduced. Homeowners will get more options for deductions for home improvements
Make your voice heard as an expat

In my last op-ed, I made the case that we, expats living in Denmark, need to step up if we want to tackle the headaches that seem baked into expat life—e.g., counterintuitive laws and endless paperwork. With almost 16% of Denmark’s population made up of internationals, we actually have the numbers to influence real change. But after publishing the last op-ed, several readers contacted me and asked: Okay, but what can we actually do?
Danish politicians will double life science exports in a few years

“Strategy for life science” is a policy agreement to support the pharmaceutical industry’s opportunities to double exports to DKK 350 billion towards 2030
Royal House unveils new portraits of King Frederik and Queen Mary

Ten months after Frederik went from crown prince to king, new civil portraits of the new royal couple have been taken.
“Without internationals, we wouldn’t have the people we need,” says Fujifilm

Fujifilm’s Hillerød facility thrives with a diverse workforce, employing over 1,800 people from more than 65 nationalities. Morten Munk, Director of Global Alliance Management, highlights how the company’s rapid growth relies on attracting international talent due to Denmark’s limited pool of scientific professionals.

Connect club

Connect Club is your gateway to a vibrant programme of events and an international community in Denmark.

5 Dec: A guided tour of Christiansborg

Career

“Talents, start using AI tools now,” says Siri and Change.org founder

In an exclusive interview with The Copenhagen Post, the founder of Siri and Change.org, and currently VP of AI Experience at Airbnb, gives young talents advice on how to deal with the job market changed by artificial intelligence.
“Without internationals, we wouldn’t have the people we need,” says Fujifilm

Fujifilm’s Hillerød facility thrives with a diverse workforce, employing over 1,800 people from more than 65 nationalities. Morten Munk, Director of Global Alliance Management, highlights how the company’s rapid growth relies on attracting international talent due to Denmark’s limited pool of scientific professionals.
“Now the biggest challenge is to retain internationals”, says Ferring

Mads Hougaard, senior HR director at the pharmaceutical company, explains that “it is also a challenge for society itself. I think collaboration between institutions, companies, and stakeholders could be beneficial.”

Want to advertise your job with CPH Post?

Jobs