LYON (AFP) - An American team led by Mathew Peters, sous chef at the acclaimed New York restaurant Per Se, has clinched the gold medal at France's most coveted cooking competition.

Peters and his colleagues beat out the chefs Christopher Davidsen of Norway, who earned a silver, and the bronze winner Viktor Andresson of Iceland.

It was the first gold for an American chef at the Bocuse d'Or culinary showdown, held every two years in Lyons, France.

The best showing previously for a US team was a silver won in 2015 by Philip Tessier - the trainer of Peters's team this year.

Twenty-four teams from Europe, Asia and Latin America were competing for the top prize, which comes with a check for 20,000 euros (S$30,000).

Each group had five hours and 35 minutes to revisit "Bresse chicken and shellfish", a version of Paul Bocuse's classic "chicken with crayfish", as well as an all-vegetable dish.