Putting education catering in the spotlight

Looking back on LACA School Chef of the Year 2024

Congratulations to Jennifer Brown who was the winner of the LACA School Chef of the Year (SCOTY) competition, which is sponsored by Bisto.

This was Jennifer’s fourth year of entering, and she wowed the judges with her inclusion of fish, ambitious flavours and her creativity in making an exciting dish on the small budget allowed per portion.

Jennifer is a school chef at Sarum Academy in Salisbury, Wiltshire, and she won her place in the competition, as a wildcard entry, having come a very close runner-up at the South West regional heat earlier in the year.

The twelve finalists had just 90 minutes to make two dishes that met strict judges’ briefs around nutrition and cost. For her main dish, she cooked ‘Easy like Monday mornay’ – baked pollock with cheese sauce in a potato and spinach case. For dessert, she prepared a rhubarb and custard meringue tart with raspberry coulis.

This year’s runner-up was Richard Hardy representing the North East and Scotland region and in third place was Paul Hardy who was representing the North West region.

The finalists were judged on the use of Premier Food and Bisto products, working practices in the kitchen, creativity, appearance, taste and flavour. They had just 90 minutes to create four portions of their two-course menu that meet the School Food Standards and Eat Well Guide, with a total food cost of £1.60 per head.

Watch the highlights from the competition