Are you looking for a great way to have fun in the kitchen with the kids? If yes, host a top chef showdown in your kitchen! All you’ll need are secret ingredients, a judges’ panel and be in the mood for daring cooking! Read now to learn how you can get all the kids involved in your top chef extravaganza!
You can bring the action from Iron Chef and Top Chef to your very own kitchen by hosting your own culinary showdown with your kids. This activity is not only fun but also educational for your future top chefs!
Columbia Kitchens is here to help you and the kids enjoy this activity by giving you a few tips on how to transform your kitchen into your very own kitchen stadium and get you and the kids eager to say ‘Ready, Set, cook!’ in no time. Here is how:
Form The Teams
Before you start your cooking competition, you need to form your cooking teams. Make sure all your little chefs have aprons. Let them put designs on their aprons to make them feel like special chefs. The aprons will also keep them clean.
Each team should have a least one teen or adult guardian to act as sous-chef and handle heavy knife work and stove usage.
The best team numbers to make sure all are involved are three teams of two or two teams of three. Do what works best for you.
Make The Rules And Check Them Twice
When you have kids in the kitchen, the last thing you want to do is wing an activity. Give your teams a game plan. You can do this by creating cards with simple recipes on them. Have a main dishes and desserts they should make on the cards. Let the teams decide which recipes they want to cook using the theme ingredients.
For example, you can have a theme of eggs. The kid chefs could cook classic cheese omelets or bacon and egg cups. A dessert theme could be indoor s’mores and cozy cocoa rice pudding.
Always try to pick easy recipes with familiar ingredients so you can keep introducing the kids to new dishes and flavors in a fun way.
Pick The Right Secret Ingredient
One of the best parts about having a top chef contest is revealing the secret ingredient. Unlike top chef, you will have to be careful about what secret ingredient you will use during your competition. Remember, children have diverse taste preferences and nothing is guaranteed to satisfy them all.
Some kid-friendly ingredients that rarely go wrong are apples, cheese, and bread. Have themes like smoothie showdown or a no-bake cookie contest. Tell your chefs to make quick applesauce, grilled three-cheese sandwiches, or no-bake chocolate crackles.
Form The Judging Panel
Lastly, form your judging panel by allowing the kids to take turns judging their food. Don’t forget to have an objective judge or two to keep the competition fair. Award points for the dishes based on creativity, out-of-the-box thinking and presentation. The best scoring method is to use two 10-point scales. One scale will judge taste and the other creativity for a total of 20 points.
No matter who wins by point scales, make sure everybody knows they are winners. This cooking activity is sure to bring your family closer, while teaching the kids the basics of food preparation and kitchen safety. You can also use this activity to teach healthy eating and nutrition habits.
Start creating happy and tasty memories with your kids today! Columbia Kitchens is here to help.
Let us create a kids’ zone in your kitchen today for your top chefs!
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