Twelve teams of students tested their cooking and teamwork skills at the Student Activity Board’s Charger Chopped competition on Saturday.
Team Slice Slice Baby won first place.
“They were the only group not to use a starch base (rice or pasta) and their tomato cream sauce was delicious with a piece of chicken and agave carrot,” Student Activities Programs Assistant Riley Arlinghaus said. “Many groups struggled using either too little or too much agave, and this team got it right by candying carrots in agave. Their sauce and chicken were top-notch as well.”
Judges Arlinghaus, Lecturer in History Miles Smith, and Bon Appetit Manager Andrew Deike ranked dishes based on presentation, creativity, and appetite appeal.
Team Dart Gang, including sophomores Jonathan Abrantes, Finn McHale, and Josh Warren, placed third with their cajun fried rice dish.
“The secret ingredients were sundried tomatoes and agave,” Abrantes said. “I had fun because the experience of cooking with my comrades, Josh and Finn, was enthralling and exciting.”
Team Peach Kings prepared gourmet rice patties for the judges.
“We took rice and formed them into patties and made three for each judge, each with a different topping, like spicy pork, vegetables, and a dessert one,” junior Meera Baldwin said.
She said she enjoyed bonding with her teammates.
“I had a lot of fun,” Baldwin said. “Because we took an innovative approach, it was fun to be creative and come up with something new, and figure that dish out for ourselves. We were given no recipes so we could do anything. One team even made homemade pasta.”
Baldwin said it was interesting to her friendship dynamics during a competition.
“We worked together and had a hive mind mentality,” she said. “We were all on the same page.”
Arlinghaus said the judges appreciated dishes with varied textures and well-cooked meats.
“All the judges loved seeing the creative attempts to incorporate our mystery ingredients of agave and sundried tomatoes,” she said. “Multiple teams commented that their approach came from how their moms would cook at home.”
