P-CEP students cream of the crop at national culinary competition
Culinary art students at Plymouth Canton Educational Park cooked up a big win at a recent national competition.
The students competed at the 2023 National ProStart Invitational on Wednesday and Thursday in Washington, D.C. ProStart is a nationwide career and technical education program from the National Restaurant Association’s Educational Foundation and state industry partners.
Five students — Mazin Ahmed, Sophie Dorado, Yamir Garver, Carmen Hensley and Charles Salowich — competed for Plymouth Canton. As part of the ProStart program, the students are part of the chef student team at Salem High School’s Rock Cafe.
At the high-stakes event, more than 90 high school teams from 46 states competed in two categories —management and culinary.
For the presentation, the team cooked and presented a menu that included tuna, steak and an orange-almond cake for dessert. The PCEP team wowed the culinary division of the competition, taking home the No. 1 spot, which earned them not only bragging rights but a trophy and a share of scholarships.
For the competition, students on culinary teams had just 60 minutes to prepare a threecourse, fine-dining menu to present to a panel of judges. Under that time constraint, the students could only use two butane burners and had no running water or electricity.
According to a news release, the P-CEP students prepared:
Appetizer: Soy-marinated tuna with h charred scallion mayonnaise, pickled apple, avocado mousse, cucumber beets and black tahini tuile
Main course: Strip steak and braised h short rib with potato dauphinoise and puree, carrot matignon with pickled mustard seed and tomato
Dessert: Coconut Bavarian orange-almond h cake with caramel jam over a coconut, blackberry sorbet and passion fruit curd
Teams competing were judged on taste, skill, teamwork, safety and sanitation.
“The team’s hard work and dedication to their craft is a testament to their talent, as well as the quality education the P-CCS (Plymouth Canton Community Schools) Culinary Arts program offers students who will become tomorrow’s leaders. I could not be prouder of this amazing accomplishment,” P-CCS Superintendent of Schools Dr. Monica L. Merritt said in a post on the district’s website.
The P-CEP students earned a share of $200,000 in scholarships, split among the top 10 teams in the competition. Each student on the P-CEP teamed earned $7,000 in scholarships. Their trophy will be displayed at the
Rock Cafe, according to the school district.
“These talented students worked so hard together as a team,” said Diana Woodward, PCCS chef instructor and coach in a news release. “We couldn’t be prouder of our students, who poured their hearts and souls into their cooking for themselves and each other. I really do believe that unity and teamwork were the secret to their success.”
Students from Wilbur Cross High School in New Haven, Connecticut, won the management portion of the competition.