A particularly famous fast food eatery offers a mashed potato bowl option on their menu. This meal in a bowl has gained popularity over the years, but why limit
yourself to their version when you can make your own? In this Mashed Potato Bowl Challenge, students will create and market their own version of a mashed potato bowl to a panel of judges based on specific criteria. Let the challenge begin!
Notes to Teacher
- Be sure you’ve covered the basics of potato cookery. If you need lessons for this, I have an Interactive Potato Lesson & Lab already created.
- Also, since the gravy or sauce needs to be made from scratch, be sure your students are familiar with making roux. Here is my All About the Roux–One Pager lesson and lab incase you’re in need.
- Since this is a cooking competition, you will need to have a panel of judges. Be sure to send out invitations to the faculty and staff you wish to ask. I always kept the judges a secret so students couldn’t try to influence or persuade them ahead of time!
Materials
- iPads or Laptops
- Projector & Screen
- Colored Pencils
- Peelers (affiliate link)
- Bowls (affiliate link)
- Food Supplies for the Challenge
Directions
- Introduce the challenge and project the mashed potato bowl challenge planning sheet onto the screen. Go over the directions and criteria.
- Once students know what they are to do, give them time to meet with their kitchen group to plan out their bowls. They may use their iPads or laptops to look for ideas or gain inspiration.
- When they know what they want to do for their bowl, have them fill out the planning sheet with their information and give them colored pencils to design their bowls using the provided template.
- Students need to provide you with their shopping order so it’s important for you to be circulating and in communication with them to be sure that they select ingredients you can get wherever you do your shopping.
- Plan the days students will be in the lab to prepare their bowls. Some parts of the challenge can be prepared in advance such as peeling/cooking and mashing the potatoes. Others ingredients such as meat and vegetables can be cooked ahead of time along with grating cheese(s).
- On the day of the challenge, students are to heat up their ingredients and prepare their bowls for the judges.
- Kitchen groups need to divide up the presentation of their bowls among their group members. One person can share the name of the bowl, another the slogan, someone else can describe the ingredients and the other can serve the judges.
- After groups have presented their bowls to the judges, allow them to make mini-bowls out of remaining ingredients so they can sample their creations.
- Announce and award the winning group and feature their mashed potato bowl in the school newsletter or better yet, see if the cafeteria would make and serve that as a lunch one day to the entire student body!
Attachments
Other Cooking Challenges
- Can Do Struggle Meals
- Cupcake Wars
- Meal Kits from the Army
- Grain Bowls–A Glo-Bowl Affair
- Chicken Tender Chopped
- Grilled Cheese Cook Off
- Deviled Egg Duels
