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Bounding through the baking kitchen of Abode in Exeter chef Seth Ward has a noticeable spring in his step.

He is still tangibly thrilled to have won the contest at the Palais des Congres in Paris inΜύ March 2009 - the panel judging his Rustic Ruby as the winner in the prestigious Delifrance competition.

The sandwich looks as good as it tastes

His entry combined a filling of Red Ruby beef, from hand-reared cows at Piper's Farm in Devon, with garlic and parsley butter, celeriac remoulade, mixed leaves and crispy shallots from Rowswell Fruit and Veg in Somerset.

Chefs from Sweden to Singapore were asked to create a sandwich for the competition using Delifrance bread which was original, nutritious, quick and easy to prepare.

South African-born Seth says he was "quietly confident" that he would win the title - the World Cup of Sandwiches.

So why does he think he was victorious? His answer is emphatic: "It's all about the ingredients and the provenance of those ingredients - and maybe my boisterousness and enthusiasm helped too!" laughs the 29-year-old who is talking while preparing the award-wining sandwich for us to taste.

But his easy manner belies what he must have endured when he lost his right arm in a motorcycle accident in 1998.

He was living in his native South Africa at the time and the head chef where he worked told him about Devon-based celebrity chef Michael Caines and how losing an arm had not stopped him achieving two Michelin stars.

Seth has cooked for as long as he can remember

"I was gobsmacked when I heard that," says Seth. "It gave me the motivation I needed to get on and it really helped my rehabilitation and I made it my goal to work with him."

The two made contact and eventually Seth moved from South Africa to the UK nearly seven years ago and then to Exeter working for Caines, who co-owns Abode.

And watching him assemble the sandwich his myo-electric arm seems toΜύbe a pretty good substitute.

His deftness and speed appear largely unaffected but he says - inevitably - it was something that has taken time to get used to.

"It was pretty overwhelming at the time," he says. "But that is something Michael has really helped me with - that it limits you only as much as you let it."

It's clearly a philosophy he applies to his own life, numbering golf and body-boarding among his interests outside of cooking.

Now married with a young son he is keen to stay in Devon.

"We just love it here, it is the most amazing place I have lived in the UK," he says.

"We love the moors and the countryside. Sure I miss the weather in South Africa but I think we'll be staying here."Μύ

That he has followed a career in cooking has surprised no-one in his family - least of all his mum.

"Mum says I was always cooking, it's just something that all the men in my family have done. My dad even taught my mum to cook!"

As well as a trophy Seth won a weekend in France

He says it took him longer to come up with the name Rustic Ruby than the winning recipe - which took him two days to create.

"We experimented with a few things and I knew I wanted to include the traditional French remoulade but we decided to leave out the mustard."

The original idea was then tested with the chefs in the kitchen before they settled on the eventual winning formula.

"The nutritionist on the judging panel did say that mine was the most calorific but my response was that the ingredients really speak for themselves!

"Attending was a great experience - it was great to meet all these chefs from all over the world."

And he is looking forward to spending a weekend in France with his wife as part of his prize from Delifrance and also looking ahead to next year's competition.

"I am going to have to go back and defend my title aren't I?"

But he hasn't even started thinking about what his ingredients will be.

"The last one didn't take me long to come up with so I think I've got a bit of time yet!"

Have you concocted a winning sandwich recipe? Why not share it by using the messageboard below.