South Carolina Student Chefs Competed to Create a New School Lunch Menu Item

A school district in South Carolina just held their annual competition for a new lunch menu recipe — and the chefs were teens.

The contest took place on Sunday, Sept. 21, and was part of Greenville County’s yearly “Healthy Lunchtime Throwdown” at the Euphoria Greenville Festival. During the competition, four students — who applied to compete ahead of time — were paired with professional chefs. The professional chefs then acted as sous chefs while the students provided the recipes and directives, according to the festival’s official website.

The winning recipe is “added to the Greenville County School menu rotation for that school year,” per the site.

And the winning dish? An “outstanding” Hawaiian chicken poke bowl created by student chef Alexander Kreider, per an Instagram post shared by School Food Rocks, a South Carolina organization that promotes nutrition in school lunches.

“With grilled chicken, brown rice, fresh veggies, pineapple, and a touch of Sriracha mayo, it was balanced, flavorful, and exactly what a healthy school lunch should be. The best part is that it will soon be added to the Greenville County Schools cycle menus for thousands of students to enjoy,” the post stated.

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They added, “Major kudos also go to Elijah Raines, Lucy Thomason and Jillian Nance. Each one brought their own creativity and delivered dishes that impressed everyone watching.”

While speaking to local news outlet WYFF 4 Chef Dayna Lee, owner of a local Greenville restaurant and one of the chefs who volunteered their time for the challenge, said that she chose to participate this year because she genuinely cares about the Greenville community and wants Greenville students to have the “best” experience” possible while at school. 

“I care about the food that our kids are consuming. I care about the way they think about food. I care about the way they think about their community,” she told the outlet.

She went on to sing the praises of her student partner.

“He knew exactly what he needed to me do, made that happen, and just — it’s cool to see people care. It’s cool to see younger — our younger generations — care,” she said.

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Matt Critell, principal of a Greenville elementary school, told WYFF 4 that Greenville County serves over 80,000 student meals a day, including breakfast, lunch and after-school snacks.

“It’s not just putting good food in front of them, but putting good food in front of them in an efficient and highly effective manner,” he said.