Hāwera High School students claim silver in national culinary challenge

Hāwera High School students Elijah Lucando (left) and Tara Nottage with their teacher Koren Miller.

Two Hāwera High School students have been cooking up a storm on the national stage.

Elijah Lucando and Tara Nottage won a silver award at the National Secondary School Culinary Challenge (NSSCC) in Auckland.

Representing the Taranaki-Whanganui region in the grand final live kitchen event at MIT, Elijah and Tara recreated their original regional entry - a beetroot-infused entree featuring beetroot blini with a beetroot and feta mousse, smoked salmon rosettes and beetroot jelly.

Their main dish was a chicken supreme with pesto, coconut and macadamia stuffing accompanied by spinach, cheese and pine nut sauce, served with seasonal vegetables.

The beetroot-infused entrée featured beetroot blini with a beetroot and feta mousse, smoked salmon rosettes and beetroot jelly. Photo / Supplied

Kerikeri High School students Savanna Munro and Kiera Matich won the grand final.

Chief judge Mark Wylie congratulated all the teams at the awards dinner.

"You are the best of the best. By making it through to the grand final, you are the best secondary school culinary students in New Zealand right now and you should be very proud of what you've achieved."

He also praised their culinary teachers, coaches and supporters.

"The calibre of the entries we saw today is a direct reflection of the effort and commitment you put into these students. And every year, thanks to you, the benchmark is raised."

He said an important part of preparing for the challenge was for the students to consult with the hospitality industry. Each dish presented for judging was innovative, unique, with some top technical skills used, such as making pasta in a live competition, and plating up with precision.

"We're judging aspiring chefs. They may be secondary school students, but they have excellent trainers, and we hope they go on to careers in the industry because our industry needs talented people like these students now more than ever before."

Guest judge Peter Wright, Pacific Rim continental director for World Chefs, said it was "overwhelming how organised, how entertaining the whole competition was; the energy in the room was just electrifying and the results were amazing".