Introducing Expo Chef:

So who and what is Expo Chef?

Entrepreneurial Chef Mark Earnden is the presenter of a show called Expo Chef, which helps promote healthy eating in the community. Expo chef is an interactive cooking show that demonstrates how to make food fun, easy and healthy.

Mark left a lucrative career in the IT industry to chase his dream, and ten years later his gamble paid off, as he is now one of the North East’s most recognisable chefs. To reach today’s goals he decided to travel the world and gain as much cooking experience and food knowledge as possible. He returned from his travels as a head chef!

Returning home he was head chef in a number of restaurants but wanted to work for himself. Mark felt passionately about attempting to educate the community about healthy eating, finding the next generation of chefs and to encourage more people to cook at home. In 2005 Expo Chef was born. The shows have been seen by almost 500,000 people in the north east alone. Mark goes into schools and communities to promote healthy eating and tries to steer people away from fast and ready-made foods – making the preparation and cooking fun and appealing to both children and their parents alike. Marks passion has also gained him awards in the North East for outstanding work in the community and was recently short listed for national recognition in The Caroline Walker Trust Award ceremony in London.

The BBC has filmed Mark for factual shows based around this country’s struggle against obesity. Many production companies have expressed interest in Marks quest to make the country healthy and get them back into their kitchens cooking fresh produce.

Recently, Mark became the “community chef” for The Co-operative Group. This exciting opportunity will involve him travelling the country and Ireland taking the road show into many communities around the UK and working with The Co-op brand to deliver key healthy eating messages to their members and customers.

When he’s not cooking and demonstrating Mark like to keep fit by running and circuit training and when time allows, fishing and Extreme Sports.

(Extract courtesy of www.celebritychefsuk.com - for further information or to book Mark email info@celebritychefsuk.com or alternatively you can call Celebrity Chefs on 01270 884544)

You can also learn more about Mark by reading his answers to our questions <click here>

When asked how he got started on the road to being a chef Mark responded:

When I was very young my family was eating at a restaurant and I was eating chicken, although my shoe would probably have tasted better! I distinctly remember thinking "why do we have to pay for such bad food and how does a restaurant stay open when they are serving such awful meals?" I was about seven years old at the time!

Schools back in the Seventies and early Eighties offered a lot more in the way of hands-on cookery then and I used to love getting stuck in. I was very proud of my first dish, Bread and Butter Pudding, which I still love to this day. As I became a rebellious teenager then cookery equalled food fight, so cooking at home was my only chance to practice. I realise now that my behaviour was ridiculous and my dreams of becoming a chef could have happened a lot sooner had I towed the line!

My Granddad was always a keen home cook and I was always fascinated by what he was making, particularly soup. He still does make the best soup. Coupled with the fact my grandparents could make a whole chicken last a week . . . and I was hooked!

My life as chef had begun.

• Expo Chef is a pioneering roadshow designed to help promote and encourage healthy eating to the community of the North East

• Expo Chef emphasises that food is fun for everyone and that it can be affordable when you know how to cook and are educated about the cooking process.

• Expo Chef aims to show you simple, interesting and nutritional food dishes that you can take away to your own kitchen.

• Expo Chef presenter Mark Earnden says: "EXPO Chef inspires confidence into the community, demonstrates that anyone can cook and proves that cooking is fun and not an exact science!"

"Mark's passion for the subject and enthusiasm captivates everyone that attends his presentations. The athletes attending his workshops have already been in the kitchen at home practising" ~ Claire Harrison (Nutritionist, English Institute of Sport)

"I just wanted to extend the warmest thanks to you for the workshops you facilitated. Your message about healthy eating came across loud and clear and your passion for your work is inspirational" ~ Sonia McGough (Deputy Director Corporate Services, Mental Health Matters)

"After 25 years of teaching I love to experience a 'wow day!' when the children were fully integrated into every aspect of the lesson. Today working with Mark was a 'wow day!'" ~ Margaret Hewitson (Our Lady of Lourdes RC Primary School, County Durham)

These Expo Chef pages aim to help you discover more about healthy eating and include recipes plus lots of hints and tips on cooking.

. . . plus celebrity chef Mark Earnden will reply to any questions you would like to send by email!