Pots sizzled, faces lit and dimmed, knives aggressively attacked chopping boards, and appetizing scents wafted through the Lee Gore Complex on December 12, 2015, as Chef Latoya Panton hosted her annual Young Chefs Cook-off.

The young chefs, ages ranging from six to teenage years, created mouthwatering dishes as they went head-to-head in a chopped-style 30-minute cook-off. There were two cook-offs, the first being against members of Panton’s cooking club. The main event, however, was the face-off between the Young Chefs and the Wolmer’s Boys’ Culinary Club. The evening, however, opened with an egg demonstration by the youngest chefs, in which they made eggs in several different ways.

The three-tier program made for an enjoyable and exciting evening, as host Yanique Barrett did a great job at keeping the audience engaged and up to speed with what was happening in the kitchen.

The final cook-off was an intense 30 minutes as each duo—two teams each—scurried to get their dishes done before time ran out. The Young Chefs seemed overall more composed than the Wolmer’s Boys and the results would show it. The difficulty of what was the final event on the program was compounded by the power going in the midst of cooking. But the contestants could not let that deter them, as even through the darkness, calls of “Behind you!”, “Can I have a pan?” etc were heard, as with the use of phone lights by those who had them, the cooking continued.

In the end, the Wolmer’s team of Kaheem Gooden and Julian Walker finished fourth with their Shrimp Scampi and Beef Tenderloin Medalion over Penne Pasta; the Young Chefs team of Aman Dhiman, Noah Azan and Kayla Marzouca (the youngest team of young chefs) placed third with their Pesto-stuffed Chicken breast on Penne Pasta with Broccoli and Cherry tomatoes; Wolmer’s again was second, with the Chicken Parmesan over Pasta Sauteed with Broccoli and Cherry Tomatoes, made by Aldane Walters and Elias Fennell; while Kimeberly Panton and Nina Williams won first place with their dish dubbed, “Kina’s Surf and Turf”, consisting shrimp as well as a pan-seared beef tenderloin medallion.

The judges were: Chef de Cuisine, and Lecturerer at Excelsior Community College, Chef Witcliffe Doyle; Cortez Nehru, a past member of Delicious Occasions cooking classes, and Davina Bennett, an audience member.

Even though the Wolmerians did not win, Panton gifted them with four two-burner gas stoves from the Chilean Ambassador to Jamaica, Eduardo Bonilla. This gift will serve as the first pieces of equipment for the Heroes’ Circle boys to start their school kitchen, as they currently have none.

Sponsors were Eve, Smart Eggs, Gore Developments Ltd, Serge Island, Touchstone Ticketing Jamaica Ltd and Delicious Occasions Catering Services and Cooking Classes.