A CHEF at a Bradford district school has qualified for the School Chef of the Year (SCOTY) national final after winning the Yorkshire & Humberside regional heat.

Kirsty McAndrew, from Oakworth Primary School, impressed regional final judges, who assessed entries based on the following criteria: the use of Premier Foods products, working practices in the kitchen, creativity and appearance as well as taste and flavour.

Bradford Telegraph and Argus: Kirsty McAndrew, from Oakworth Primary, is through to the final of a School Chef of the Year competitionKirsty McAndrew, from Oakworth Primary, is through to the final of a School Chef of the Year competition (Image: UGC)

Kirsty’s winning menu was a sticky chicken noodle stir fry, soy glazed chicken with egg noodles, and Chinese-style stir fry vegetables for her main course.

For dessert, Kirsty made banana custard cheesecake with granola.

The regional final was judged by Louise Wagstaffe of Premier Foods and Sharon Armstrong of LACA UK.

The school chefs had just one hour 30 minutes in which to create four portions of their two-course menu.

Kirsty is up against eight other regional finalists and two wild card competitors who will take part in the national final at the LACA Main Event on Wednesday, July 5, and Thursday, July 6.

SCOTY is now in its 29th year and has drawn national attention with the annual winners often appearing on TV to showcase school cooking.

The competition is run by LACA, the School Food People, and sponsored by Bisto, from Premier Foods.