Four culinary students from Greenville County Schools recently faced off in the 2023 Healthy Lunchtime Throwdown.
The competition was held on Sept. 17 during euphoria, a food and wine festival based in Greenville. Spectators watched as the students worked with Michelin-starred chefs to cook nutritious dishes on stage during the event.
The winning dish was a sweet and sour grilled chicken poke bowl made by Sawyer Koon, a 12th-grader at Hillcrest High School and Golden Strip Career Center. Koon was assisted by Chef Charlie Mitchell of Clover Hill in Brooklyn, New York.
“I feel great now. I was nervous before,” Koon said. “(Chef Mitchell) was great. He was nothing but helpful. It was awesome.”
The other Healthy Lunchtime Throwdown competitors and their Michelin sous chefs included:
- Jasmine Nabor, an 11th-grader at Southside High School and Donaldson Career Center, and Chef Josiah Citrin of Citrin and Mélisse in Santa Monica made a healthy Asian ground turkey wrap.
- Gracie Gilliam, a 12th-grader at Woodmont High School and Donaldson Career Center, and Chef Juanma Barrientos of El Cielo in Washington, D.C. and Miami made a veggie-packed chicken Greek bowl.
- Kayla Bishop, an 11th-grader at Hillcrest High School and Golden Strip Career Center and Chef Barrientos made a southwest stuffed peppers dish.
A panel of five judges which included GCS Superintendent Burke Royster and Joe Urban, director of GCS Food and Nutrition Services, determined the winner. Urban explained the criteria for judging each dish included eye appeal, taste, texture and the healthiness of the product.
“It was tough because they all could have really been chosen as the winner, but we felt that (Koon’s dish) would be easiest to replicate in our schools,” Urban said. “We felt it probably had the best flavor profile.”
As the winner, Koon’s recipe will be added to the GCS lunch menu rotation for the 2023-24 school year. GCS chefs will work with Koon to adjust the dish before incorporating it into the lunch menus. As an added treat, the other competitors’ dishes will also be included on the menu at their high school.
“These kids elevated their game,” Urban said. “They were just tremendous. They put a lot of work and effort into it.”