Danish chef Kofoed wins over palates in Bocuse cook-out

Danish chef Rasmus Kofoed emerged the winner in the European leg of the renowned Bocuse d'Or contest on Tuesday, adding a third win at the competition to his name.

The 35-year-old chef impressed judges with a semi-salted halibut in nut butter, served with morel and flowers of spring onions, and a roast veal in Skagen ham, bacon, cranberries and black bread, served with crispy veal sweetbread, white asparagus, wild garlic and horseradish.

Kofoed, who owns the Geranium restaurant in Copenhagen, had previously won bronze in 2005 and silver in 2007 in the competition's international edition.

Norway's Gunnar Hvarnes came second while Frenchman Jerome Jaegle took third place in the competition which required each team of a chef and an assistant to produce two dishes - a Norwegian halibut and a Swiss veal - in five hours and 35 minutes.

Two garnishes were to accompany each dish.

Bocuse d'Or, dubbed the Olympic Games of cooking, is named after internationally renowned French chef Paul Bocuse, who was among the founders of the contest.

Besides the three chefs, nine others selected to participate in the world finals in Lyon next year are representatives from Germany, Spain, Finland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Poland, Britain, Sweden and Switzerland.

The next European edition of the competition will be held in 2012 in Belgium.

This year's jury is headed by French chef Daniel Boulud. He is accompanied by two Swiss chefs, Fredy Girardet and Philippe Rochat.