Entries are now open for South West Junior Chef of the Year 2024!

An opportunity for young cooks aged 11-16 to demonstrate their culinary skills and creativity.

Invitations are open for young cooks aged 11-16 to enter this year's competition, which aims to help build confidence in the kitchen and learn new skills. Cooks aged 11-16 will compete for the title in their own county initially, and county winners will go on to meet at the South West final.

To enter, simply submit a recipe for a main course dish to serve two people using primarily locally grown or produced ingredients. Based on the recipes submitted, our judges will select competitors in each of the six counties of the South West, who will be invited to prepare their dish for the judges in 90 minutes at their county's catering college. Please see the attached file for more details.

The county competitions will take place as follows:

The winners in each county will then meet at the grand final in October at Exeter College, where the South West Junior Chef of the Year 2024 will be crowned. All six South West finalists will also be invited to take part in the regional final of the Springboard FutureChef competition in January 2025, bypassing the school and county heats, to compete for a place in the national final.

Additionally, all county winners will be offered mentoring with one of our esteemed judges, providing them with an opportunity to enhance their dish, develop their skills, and gain valuable experience of a commercial kitchen before the overall final.

This year, we are celebrating the 20th anniversary of South West Chef of the Year and are excited to have added an entry category for young cooks aged 11 years. We have been highlighting the skills of budding young chefs ever since, with this category continually growing.

The entry closing date is Tuesday 21st May. Please submit your entries via our website. For further information and the entry form, visit our website.

If you need any support with your application, please feel free to reach out to Mr Reay.

Good luck and we look forward to seeing your culinary creations!