Seniors Win Master Chef Dorm Room Challenge

2026 Master Chef Dorm Room Challenge: The final installment of college transition programming for the soon-to-be graduates of the Class of 2026 featured a fun and fast-paced cooking competition! Three senior teams competed in a “Master Chef”-style dorm room cooking challenge with one goal: create a delicious, nutritious, and budget-friendly meal for two for under $20 using only the kinds of kitchen items they could realistically have in a college dorm room.

 

Teams had just 20 minutes to prepare and present their dishes to a panel of judges that included Jane Roth, nutritionist Nicole Tass from FLIK Dining Services, and alumni Mark Jung '16 and Peiru Yu '16 (visiting from Atlanta for the 10th anniversary of their graduation from TJ). Dishes were evaluated on creativity, taste, presentation, teamwork, and staying within budget.

 

Congratulations to the winning team—Rebecca George, Lydia Do, and Shirley Zhang—for their impressive Thai chili-style chicken skewers with rice, lemonade, and prebiotic yogurt dessert. They officially mastered the art of dorm-room cuisine!