We’re taking you behind the scenes again, this time to talk with the Head Development Chef of family favourite fish brand, Young’s:

Can you give us a brief bio of who you are and what your job entails?

My name is Serge Nollent and I’m the Head Development Chef at Young’s. I’m responsible for new product recipe development – both for the products themselves and the serving suggestions that we have on our packaging, website and social channels.

What does a typical day look like for you?

No day is the same, but of course I spend a lot of time in the kitchen, developing recipes for new products and creating easy-to-cook, exciting serving suggestions for our consumers. As part of the new product development team, we’ll often do several internal tasting sessions, for the wider team and the trade, and work on the recipes by responding to feedback.

I also travel a lot, doing various talks and demonstrations for trade shows and food organisations, plus marketing activity that we organise too.

Where does your inspiration come from?

As a classically trained chef, I’ve a real passion for food, and I’m always visiting restaurants to taste food cooked by different chefs and from different places around the world. We also regularly monitor food trends which has a big influence on new product design.

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Can you give us an overview of the process of developing a new product, what are the stages?

The process starts with insight, really understanding what our retail customers and consumers want. We then start the design process in the kitchen with the New Product Development team. They then work closely with our Technical team to make sure what we create can be replicated in the factory, and all along we taste and test with consumers to make sure we bring them the best possible product.

How do you identify which food trends aren’t going to last very long and which food trends will work well for your customers?

Understanding consumer insights and working closely with our Brand and Sales teams to understand what our retail customers would like is incredibly important, and of course, we use our chefs’ culinary inspiration.

Can you go into a bit of detail about how new recipes are chosen?

Our recipes are influenced by our 200-year heritage, and seafood expertise. They’re influenced by our personal culinary training, and our passion for food. And they are influenced by feedback from our retail customers and consumers. 

What’s your favourite product that you’ve developed and why?

My favourite new product that we’ve developed recently is our Gastro Haddock range. We’ve co-created the Haddock range of products with Tesco to bring their shoppers restaurant quality haddock at home.

What are the benefits you find from working with frozen?

Frozen food is quick and easy to cook, making it incredibly convenient for busy lives. A lot of fish is frozen at sea, it holds the nutrients, capturing freshness and can mean less food waste.

Do you have any tips or advice on how consumers can incorporate more frozen food into their daily diets?

By choosing Young’s of course! Think of the freezer as a fresh food frozen store cupboard. We’re proud of the frozen food we produce, making the best fish imaginable, and inspiring people to love fish now and for generations to come. For your own inspiration, have a look at our website for quick and easy meal inspirations and accompaniments. We’ve something for everyone, from natural fish filets to classics like our Chip Shop range. We’ve restaurant quality Gastro products and everyday favourites such as Scampi, Fish Fingers and Admiral’s Fish Pie.

Find out more information www.youngsseafood.co.uk.