A student culinary team from Apex High in Wake County won 1stplace in the Southeast Jr. Chef Competition held May 9-10 at Sullivan University in Kentucky. With their Grilled Chicken Street Tacos with Mango Salsa, Seasoned Black Beans and Cilantro Lime Rice, the team of two students, Amanda Marrott and Alyssa Townsend, edged out teams from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, and Mississippi to win the top spot and the offer of a full scholarship to attend Sullivan University.
The Wake County team outcooked seven other student culinary teams last month to win 1stplace in the NC Jr. Chef Competitionand advance to the regional contest.
For the competitions, the high school students were challenged to work with their Family and Consumer Sciences teachers and School Nutrition administrators to develop a creative recipe for a school lunch entrée that meets federal school nutrition standards, includes two North Carolina-grown products and one USDA Foods item, is replicable by School Nutrition Programs, and appeals to student taste preferences. During the cook-off, the teams prepared, cooked and presented their recipes for a panel of judges.
Recipes from the competitions will be made available. Students are encouraged to work with their local School Nutrition Program to feature their recipes on future school menus. The School Operations and Career and Technical Education Divisions at NCDPI partnered with NCDA&CS, NC FCCLA, and the Farm to School Coalition of NC to plan the NC Jr. Chef Competition. More competition info can be found online.