By TAMARA ROBERTSON
Cottonwood Extension District
The Ellis County 4-H Food Challenge held on Sunday, February 15, gave 41 local youth a chance to showcase their culinary skills, creativity, and teamwork in a fast-paced cooking contest. Given just an hour to prepare and present a dish using predetermined ingredients, participants demonstrated their knowledge of food preparation, nutrition, and food safety.
Teams of three to four members competed in beginner, junior, and senior divisions. Each team developed a recipe, prepared a dish, and presented it to a panel of judges, explaining preparation steps, nutritional facts, and food safety practices.
Each team received a tray with “key” ingredients specific to their division, which had to be incorporated into the final dish. Additionally, the teams had access to a “pantry” stocked with common household staples like produce, dry goods, spices, oils, and sauces to enhance their creations.
Beginners worked with quinoa, yogurt, and grapefruit, all while being restricted from using sharp utensils. Juniors received brown rice, beans, red pepper, and arugula to work with. Seniors, who had access to hot plates, were given lentils, eggs, mushrooms, and feta cheese as their key ingredients.
Beyond cooking, the 4-H Food Challenge helped participants strengthen their communication and leadership skills. Each team had to collaborate to divide responsibilities efficiently, articulate their process clearly, and confidently present their dish to the judges. Explaining ingredient choices, nutritional benefits, and food safety measures required participants to practice public speaking, active listening, and teamwork under pressure. By working together to answer judges’ questions, members learned how to support one another and present information in an engaging and professional manner, valuable skills that extend beyond the kitchen.
Champion teams were recognized in each division for their creativity, teamwork, and culinary skills by receiving engraved wooden spatulas. Beginner Champion honors went to the Buckeye Junior Farmers team of Melanie Kruse, Karson Lang, and Emery Knight. The Junior Champion team was also from the Buckeye Junior Farmers, with members Emma Wichert, Jessa Fuertges, and Sutton Seib. The Senior Division Champions went to the Gemini Juniors team of Sophia Mills, Serena Ross, Emily Ross, and Janae Ross.
The 4-H Food Challenge is a fun and educational experience, helping youth build confidence while developing teamwork, problem-solving, and a deeper understanding of healthy living, food safety, and nutrition. Events like this highlight the importance of experiential learning and community support in preparing young people for future success.
Tamara Robertson is the 4-H Youth Development Agent with Kansas State Extension, in the Cottonwood Extension District. For more information on this article or other 4-H Youth Development resources, email Tamara at tarobertson@ksu.edu or call Cottonwood Extension District – Ellis County Office at 785-628-9430.