School chef cooking up a plan to be crowned the best in the country - The Rugby Observer

School chef cooking up a plan to be crowned the best in the country

Rugby Editorial 4th Jan, 2019   0

A SCHOOL chef from Rugby is cooking up a plan to be crowned the best in the country.

Tanya Malone, who works at Rugby Free Secondary School, has won through to the regional final of the Lead Association for Catering in Education (LACA) School Chef of the Year competition.

Against the clock and under the scrutiny of a panel of judges, she will have to prepare four portions of a main course and a dessert in just 90 minutes and with a budget of only £1.30.

If successful she will progress to the national final for a chance to win the UK title.




Tanya, who won the regional final in last year’s competition but was pipped to the national prize, says she loves the challenge of the competition.

She said: “Making the West Midlands Regional Final for the second year running is an achievement in itself. I am feeling proud and excited.”


The mum of four has a few tricks up her sleeve which make her meals popular with students.

At the regional final, she will serve up her novel ‘Twist of Fish’ dish – fish crumble with spaghetti, potato, courgette, and carrot puree – followed by ‘Twist Pizza’ – a sweet-topped pizza with a wedge of lime jelly.

“I know what children like,” she said. “The tricks of hiding vegetables and making mealtimes fun is all part of healthy catering for children.

“For example, eating dessert pizza for pudding is intriguing for kids which gives them courage to try different foods and tastes. The fish dish I have created for this year’s competition has a sweet crumble topping which tastes amazing and again tempts children to try.

“I have always received positive feedback from the children at Rugby Free Secondary, and I’m always open to any suggestions they have. In particular, they love Fish Friday and roast dinner served in a giant Yorkshire pudding.”

And although 20 years in the catering industry means Tanya is not daunted by the competition’s time limit, she says the biggest challenge is keeping the cost down.

She said: “The ever-increasing price of food and the high expectation of it being healthy and fresh makes it challenging to achieve within the budget.”

If she goes one better than last year and wins the national title, Tanya says she will use some of the £1,000 prize money to take her family to London to taste some of the finest foods the capital has to offer.

But she says winning isn’t about the money: “It’s about having a say and being heard, teaching kids the benefits of healthy eating and showing that food can be fun.”

Tanya will compete against four other school chefs at the West Midlands heat on Thursday (January 10) at Brooksby Melton College in Melton Mowbray.

The winner will go on to represent the West Midlands against nine other regional champions in the National Final on March 7 at Stratford College.

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