Round 1: Give us the appetiserwas held by Jewels International Ladies Association on May 1st 2019 in the C7 kitchens. The 11 competitors began prepping their workstations at 2:00 pm. The competition was stiff as each contestant was tasked with churning out scrumptious and inviting dishes made from a “mystery ingredient” that was only revealed at the beginning of the event, through random selection by our master chefs. Each contestant received the following main ingredients: an onion, a carrot, a bell pepper, chicken breast, cabbage, lettuce, garlic and tomato. They were also given various spices as well as cooking oil. The mystery ingredients included dragon fruit, butternut, cheese, pineapple and eggplant.

When the clock began the chefs were given one hour, which was broken down into 15 minutes for prep time and 45 minutes to put together an amazing appetiser.

The thrill of timed competition sizzled in the air as contestants rushed to finish their dishes, working under the keen eye of the judges added even more pressure to the already exhilarating event. The judging panel included Ms Naomi Hamamba, Dr. Adeleke Banwo and Dr. Siba Borah. Each contestant worked diligently, ensuring that they placed a great amount of care, thought and consideration into the preparation of their decadent dishes.

When the clocks had stopped, it was knives down and nerves were high as the contestants presented their dishes to the panel of judges. The judges offered emphatic praise, perceptive feedback and asked thoughtful follow-up questions about each dish. In the end only six lucky contestants were chosen to advance to Round Two of the competition:

 Contestant #2: Gabriela Bell

 Contestant #4: Jaikumar Arivazlagan

 Contestant #6: Siddharth Kumawat

 Contestant #7: Chimwemwe Moyo

 Contestant #8: Selina Tamunoengiofori

 Contestant #11: Imran Khan

The Jewels International Ladies Association would like to extend our most sincere gratitude to our judges, all the participants, the Olive TV crew, as well as those who came out to support their peers.

Photography credits: Utkarsh 恩泽

Olive TV crew: Dennis, Kudakwashe, Tatenda, Isaac, Sisanda, Tanaka, Angel & Walter