Malaysia’s Top Young Chefs Unveiled At MAGGI®’S Cooking Competition

In its 26th installment, the MAGGI® Secondary School Cooking Competition (MSSCC) 2022 today unveiled five teams of budding young chefs as its national winners, who triumphed over more than 2,000 participants. They are:

• Camelia Ivana and Irdina Sofiya from SM Sains Rembau, Negeri Sembilan
• Nabihah Auni and Nur Ain Syazwani from SMK Pandan, Kuantan, Pahang
• Alya Qaseh and Qurratul Ain from SMK Pengerang Utama, Johor
• Vanessa Grace and Valentina Ulau from SMK Bandar Sibu, Sarawak
• Aleya Alesya and Damia Batrisyia from SMJK Notre Dame Convent, Melaka

Introduced in 1997, the culinary platform aims to cultivate an interest in cooking amongst secondary school students while raising the awareness on the long-term effects of eating well on health. The campaign is a strategic collaboration between MAGGI® and the Ministry of Education, which has since witnessed the participation of over 341,000 students across 10,000 schools in Malaysia.

According to Geetha Balakrishna, Business Executive Officer of MAGGI®, Nestlé (Malaysia) Berhad, “Over the past two decades, MAGGI® Secondary School Cooking Competition, has gained tremendous support and commendable student participation as many recognise the importance of cultivating talents in cooking and gaining knowledge about nutrition in diet from a young age. Cooking is indeed a valuable life skill for the young generation to acquire, as they will also learn about the planning process, effective time management skills and organisational skills among others.

With the concerted effort from the Ministry of Education and secondary schools across Malaysia, the competition is aimed at creating an equal society where we encourage young boys and girls to pursue their interest and passion in cooking, while opening up greater opportunities for these young talents who may eventually dabble into the Malaysian culinary arena as a career,” said Geetha.

MAGGI Chef, Chef Sharifah Hamidah

With the theme Anda & MAGGI®, “Sajian Seimbang Tanda Sayang” (You & MAGGI®, “A Balanced Bowl is a Serving of Love”), this year’s competition garnered entries from more than 2,000 aspiring young students aged between 13 to 15 years old from 500 schools nationwide. They showcased their cooking talents and demonstrated the right nutritional choices with the ‘Pinggan Sihat Malaysia’ or ‘Suku-Suku Separuh’ (Malaysian Healthy Plate / Quarter-Quarter Half) concepts towards building healthier eating habits. The winners were selected based on a series of evaluations, particularly on the creative use of ingredients, cooking skills, presentation and culinary inspirations via their submitted videos.

This year’s competition also included an educational segment on plant-based meal solutions which has generated more public’s interest and acceptance in recent years, due to their salutary impact on health and well-being. Throughout the competition, guidance from various professionals and culinary experts were provided to the participants via several learning modules. MAGGI® chefs shared tips on creating healthy and balanced meals, as well as imparting knowledge in the areas of food safety and hygiene whilst the MAGGI® nutritionist led in the areas of preparing a balanced, nutritious meal.

MSSCC 2022 participants

Brand Ambassador for MAGGI® CukupRasa, Datin Paduka Eina Azman, shared her personal experiences and insights on self-awareness and ways towards building confidence as one of the learning modules in the competition. She said, “Naturally, many young school-goers are unsure of their future path. Self-awareness is a crucial first step, followed by cultivating self-confidence and eventually staying on course to achieve one’s ambition and dreams.

More often than not, the young ones have their first culinary experience at home where they start to develop an interest in cooking through their parents. Parents and teachers play a significant role in inspiring and motivating students in developing their passion and skills for cooking. I must highlight that cooking also forms an important learning and bonding time that’s both unique and exciting!” said Eina.