Asian-inspired recipe wins Water It, Grow It, Cook It competition

20 July 2016

A dish inspired by their studies of Asia has paid off for the winning school in Wannon Water’s 2016 Water It, Grow It, Cook It competition.

St Joseph’s School in Coleraine has taken out first prize in the competition which encourages students to create a recipe using produce grown in their school kitchen garden, cook it and submit photos of the completed dish and the produce growing in the garden.

The recipe, Japanese Gyoza Soup with St Jo’s Home-grown Shiitake Mushrooms and Asian Greens, was awarded top marks by the judges.

The school created its kitchen garden six years ago when teachers decided to invest in a special program to help the children learn in the garden and grow their own food.

Grade 4-6 students used their term two topic on Asia to create a special dish which featured Shiitake Mushrooms grown in a special green house. Part of a Coleraine community project, the children learned how to add spores to logs and create fungus, watching the mushrooms grow. After harvesting, they were dehydrated for use in lots of dishes.

The gyoza soup recipe has earned the school more than $1,000 worth of gardening products, supplied with support from Bunnings Warehouse, which will be used to create a new sensory garden.

Second place and $600 worth of gardening products was awarded to Grade Prep and One students at Woolsthorpe Primary School for their What’s In Woolsthorpe’s Garden Soup.

Year 5 and 6 students at Warrnambool West Primary School for their Baked Parmesan Zucchini Rounds recipe claimed third place and $300 worth of gardening equipment from Bunnings.

Wannon Water Education Officer Catherine Grist said the annual Water It, Grow It, Cook It competition attracted great interest from local schools in 2016.

“Wannon Water continues to be very impressed with the quality of the recipes entered by students in this popular competition,” Mrs Grist said.

“The schools combine water efficiency, healthy living and creative cooking to get the most out of their kitchen gardens. I commend all of those who entered the competition this year.”

The recipes were judged on their creativity, nutritional value and use of local produce by a panel of judges. They were highly impressed with St Joseph’s winning entry, praising its originality and complexity, particularly the use of dehydration methods.

For more about Wannon Water’s kitchen garden program, the Water It, Grow It, Cook It competition and to read the winning recipe, visit www.wannonwater.com.au/education.