Cooking competition heats up for young chefs
North Side cook-off champions Amber McLaughlin (left) and Mohyndra Brown (right) flank Amber’s mother, Courtney
(CNS Local Life): North Side’s budding chefs faced off Saturday, 26 November, as part of the 2016/17 National Youth Cook-Off, with teams from East End and Cayman Brac having already battled to enter the finals to be named best in the kitchen. “Team Mo”, comprising Mohyndra Brown and Amber McLaughlin, won over the judges’ taste buds, with the adjudicators noting their “great restaurant-like presentation”, according to event organiser the Youth Services Unit. The competition was held at the Clifton Hunter High School kitchen.
The winning cooks took home $100 and personalised chef jackets to wear at the finals.
The next district cook-off will be Saturday, 10 December, from 6:30-9:30 pm at the Stacy Watler Pavilion in Lower Valley, Bodden Town, with two teams already registered.
Three more district cook-offs are slated for Bodden Town, George Town and West Bay, with the National Youth Cook-Off Final set for the 50th annual Agriculture show, Saturday, 1 March 2017.
The North Side district cook-off, held 26 November, took place in the Clifton Hunter High School kitchen. Won by “Team Mo” (Mohyndra Brown and Amber McLaughlin) the judges noted their “great restaurant-like presentation”. The team won $100 and personalised chef jackets to wear at the finals.
The other two previously held cook-offs, at East End Civic Centre (Saturday 24, September) and Cayman Brac’s Layman E. Scott High School (Saturday, 29 October), were won by “Team Jaeda” (Jaeda and Kristin Kirchman) and “Team Straight out of Spott Bay” (Eugenio Myles and Ronaldinho Vassel), respectively. The Brac event attracted the largest crowd to date with around 60 people attending.
January’s district cook-off will be held in George Town Saturday, 23 January 2017) in Heroes Square at 1p.m.
The final district event in West Bay will be Saturday, 18 February at 6:30 pm, at the Cayman Turtle Centre.
James Myles, acting Head of the Youth Services Unit, said of the competition so far, “The calibre of teams in this year’s National Youth Cook-Off District competition has been very high. With the event heading now into the more populated districts, we are anticipating larger crowds and a nail-biting finale.”
The winning team of the National Youth Cook-Off, apart from getting a year’s bragging rights as ‘Top Young Chef 2016/17, will receive $500 and an as-yet-undisclosed prize from the Cayman Culinary Society.
To register to take part, call (943-1127 ) or email James Myles
