Catherine Truitt 24th North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction | Official Website
The Northern High School team, known as the "Knights of Culinary," emerged victorious in the 2025 North Carolina Jr. Chef Competition. Their winning dish, a chipotle beef and sweet potato skillet, earned them first place and a silver medal in this year's cook-off.
The competition required high school teams to create unique school lunch entrée recipes. The Northern High team crafted a recipe using North Carolina-grown ingredients such as beef, onions, peppers, collard greens, and sweet potatoes. They combined these with cheese and homemade avocado jalapeno crema.
Second place went to Martin County High's "Cloudy with a Chance of Pasta" team for their Chicken Parmesan Pasta recipe. Thomasville High's "Blazin’ Bulldogs" secured third place with their Chicken Philly Cheese Bowl. Ashe County High's "Gordon Ramsey’s Minions" also received recognition for their Baked Chicken Empanadas.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Mo Green congratulated all participants: “Congratulations to each of the NC Jr. Chef teams,” he said. “The NC Jr. Chef Competition is a wonderful collaboration among school and community partners to offer students an opportunity to explore future career options.”
Participants were tasked with developing recipes that met specific criteria including compliance with nutrition standards and the use of local products. The competition included an application process requiring submission of recipes, photos, nutrient analysis, cost analysis, work plans, and presentation videos.
Rachel Findley from NCDPI highlighted the educational aspect: “In working with their local school nutrition programs, students learn about and appreciate all that goes on behind the scenes to create recipes for school meals."
Finalist teams were recognized during a virtual awards ceremony where they received chef coats, hats, certificates, medals, and plaques for display at their schools. Sullivan University will offer scholarships to members of the top three teams.
The NC Jr. Chef Competition aims to inspire future culinary professionals while promoting locally produced agricultural products and healthy eating habits through School Nutrition Programs.
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