TWO young chefs have reached the semi-finals of a prestigious competition to find Britain’s best young chef.

Scott Braithwaite, 25, and 26-year-old Sam Nash, both from L’Enclume restaurant in Cartmel, have reached the semi-finals of The Roux Scholarship.

The scholarship has been running for more than 30 years and is judged by Michel Roux Jnr, Brian Turner CBE and James Martin among many other Michelin-starred chefs.

Mr Braithwaite is planning on putting his own take on the traditional beef wellington by using hogget meat as well as using locally foraged ingredients and modern techniques.

Mr Nash will be taking on a complicated dish creating a hogget moose that is then set in a mould containing diced lamb loin, lamb kidney and lamb sweetbread.

Both chefs highlighted the significance of the competition. Mr Braithwaite mentioned how much it meant to be a part of such a prestigious competition.

"If you do well it can be a direct line to the best chefs in England", he said.

Mr Nash also mentioned how winning the competition could really “open the doors” on both their careers.

"It means so much to be in the competition and is a perfect platform to progress", he said.

The regional finals are run simultaneously in Birmingham and London on March 14 and both will be competing at different venues.