The Craft Guild of Chefs' competition has grown, especially since switching to an annual format, and Gordon Ramsey, Mark Sargeant, Simon Hulstone and Hrishikesh Desai are among the past winners. Frederick Forster was the star of the show in 2011 and became National Chef of the Year at the fourth attempt. "To win the competition was beyond my wildest dreams and such an immense feeling," said Forster, head chef at Nuovo Restaurant in Buckhurst Hill, Essex. "I was up against some tremendous talent, which makes this victory even more special. I love cooking and it's fantastic to have your skills recognised." Celebrating the multicultural nature of the UK is the key aim of the competition and the revised format introduced in 2010 is helping to promote that objective. This year the categories will again be divided up as follows: Asian/Oriental, Modern British/European, and Rest of the World/Other "It's a long road to the final," said David Mulcahy, organiser of the competition and Craft Guild vice president. "Entries need to be submitted by May 1 and, if successful, chefs will then have to get through the challenging semi finals before even getting into the final eight. "The calibre of entries seems to get stronger every year, and I am looking forward to another excellent challenge in 2012. In recent years we've introduced categories to reflect the ethnic diversity here in the UK and it certainly went a long way in reflecting the wealth of different culinary talent in this country. "We'll definitely be carrying on in that vein again this year and urge any chef who thinks they have what it takes to win this coveted prize to enter the competition. It's a celebration of talent, open to all, and we don't want any factor to limit a chef's chance of competing. "Every stage of the competition will feature intense scrutiny by an experienced panel of chefs and I am delighted to welcome Philip Howard as this year's chairman of judges." Advancing through the various stages of the competition will require a well thought out menu, and competitors should pay particular attention to authenticity, sourcing, seasonality, timing and wastage when creating dishes that offer maximum flavour, texture, balance and style. To enter the NCOTY competition, visit www.craftguildofchefs.org and download an application form. Alternatively, for further information contact Clair Bowman on 01293 610329 or follow @NCOTY_2012 on Twitter