MOUNTLAKE TERRACE — In the last half-hour of preparing meals for the judges the heat was on, literally, as student chefs peeked into their ovens and eyed the foods boiling and simmering on their stove tops.
The stifling kitchen and observant judges asking about their recipes didn’t trip up the teenagers.
Senior Steve Hinkle said he thrived on the pressure while steam rose from his spicy vegetarian stir-fry.
“I like the excitement of getting something done on time,” Hinkle said.
The students competed in the ninth annual Iron Hawk Student Cook-Off at Mountlake Terrace High School on April 29.
Sophomore Melvin Banuelos and his sous chef, sophomore Paulina Corona, won first place with Banuelos’ honey-lemon grilled chicken served with citrus rice, fruit skewers and salad.
The pair are scheduled to compete against other high school students at the Edmonds Iron Chef Competition May 6, at Edmonds Community College.
The remaining six chefs each earned prizes, too, for best presentation, best side dish and the recipe judges most wanted to steal.
Kimberly Nelson, family and consumer sciences teacher, said each team deserves a prize.
“There’s something they’ve done that’s amazing,” Nelson said.
The 14 students — half of them head chefs, the other sous chefs — were required to prepare a soup, salad or appetizer, a main dish and a starchy side dish in 90 minutes. The students were judged on preparation, cleanliness, technique, presentation and taste. Each team was given $25 for their ingredients.
Guest judges were Tana Baumler, co-owner of the Maltby Café; Kary Nelson, award-winning barbecue chef and caterer; and Shawn O’Donnell, owner of the O’Donnell’s restaurant.
Putting the students in a situation where they are being watched and judged brings the class to life, Nelson said.
“It gives a piece of reality,” she said.
Some of the head chefs prepared menus inspired by meals they made with their parents or to pay respect to their cultural roots.
Corona, who would like to become a chef, said her mom enticed her into cooking by promising to teach her all of their family’s secret recipes.
“My mom makes good food,” she said. “But now my family is saying I’m the best.”
Banuelos said he took a cooking class on a whim and decided he wants to pursue a career in the culinary arts.
Freshman Trung Banh chose Vietnamese congee rice soup with a beef and green bean stir-fry over rice because it’s the first meal he ever made with his mom.
“My mom is a good chef,” Banh said.
Banh and his sous chef, freshman Beau Kennedy, plan to open a restaurant when they get older where they will serve big servings of a variety of foods.
“We don’t want people to leave saying, ‘That’s it?’” Kennedy said.
Senior Barrett Rayan said he’s been cooking for 13 years but he unofficially began cooking as a toddler with his grandma and great-grandma.
“I was 2 years old, standing on a stool watching them,” Rayan said.
Freshman Airy Lowery said her tilapia “In the Dark” tacos is a family recipe concocted during a camping trip when her family mixed ingredients in the dark.
“I’m not even kidding,” she said.
Pineapples crushed in chili sauce and bacon-wrapped water chestnuts completed the nod to her Puerto Rican and black roots.
“My family loves to cook,” Lowery said. “We use so many different flavors and tastes. We don’t follow recipes.”
Lowery said she loves everything about cooking, even the criticism.
“If I get criticized then that’s good to know how to do it better next time,” she said. “I love the smiles and the ‘mmm’s.’”
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