Paulette Tejada, a 22-year-old chef from the US, has won the inaugural International Tapas Awards in Madrid. Born in New York and raised in the Dominican Republic, she was representing the Cordon Bleu College in Miami.

Her winning dish, named 'los andares del pata negra', tells the story of how the acorn-fed Iberian pig becomes the perfect slice of ham. The ingredients include sliced ham with its fat and thyme, sauteed mushrooms, mashed potatoes with ham, bread made from acorn flour, and Ajoblanco (chilled almond soup) with Iberian pig fat.

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Paulette Tejada from the Cordon Bleu College in Miami poses with her dish after she won the Cinco Jotas International Tapa Award in Madrid Getty
Paulette Tejada
Paulette Tejada's winning dish, named 'los andares del pata negra', tells the story of how the acorn-fed Iberian pig becomes the perfect slice of ham. The ingredients include sliced ham with its fat and thyme, sauteed mushrooms, mashed potatoes with ham, bread made from acorn flour, and Ajoblanco (chilled almond soup) with Iberian pig fat Getty

The competition was sponsored by Cinco Jotas, Spain's top producer of ham. Twelve contestants representing catering schools in China, France, the US, UK, Russia and Spain had 90 minutes to create the perfect tapa using Iberian ham. They were scrutinised by a panel of judges chaired by Basque chef Pedro Subijana.

IBTimesUK looks at the intricate work and precision cooking on display at the awards.

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Mikhail Vinogradov from the Ragout School in Russia works on his tapa Getty
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Russian chef Mikhail Vinogradov's finished tapa Getty
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Alicja Jaroszuk from the Institut Paul Bocuse in France works on her tapa Getty
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Alicja Jaroszuk from the Institut Paul Bocuse in France introduces smoke into her dish Getty
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The tapa of Zhang Junheng from the Beijing Jinsong Vocational School in China Getty
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Garry Katz from the International Culinary Centre in New York works on his dish Getty
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Lea Martin from the Ecole Hoteliere de Bonneveine de Marseille in France fries quails' eggs for her dish Getty
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The finished dish produced by Lea Martin from the Ecole Hoteliere de Bonneveine de Marseille in France Getty
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Varun Thapar from the University of West London works on his tapa Getty
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A tomato is prepared for Jorge Pelegrin's dish Getty
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The tapa of Jorge Pelegrin from the Escuela Superior de Hosteleria y Turismo de Madrid: ham, breadcrumbs, tomato and chocolate Getty
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The competition was won by Paulette Tejada from the Cordon Bleu College in Miami. She is 22, born in New York and raised in the Dominican Republic Getty