Cordon Bleu contest final

Ten young cooking students are competing in Madrid on April 14 in the final of Le Cordon Bleu Madrid’s XIV Premio Promesas de la alta cocina. (cordonbleu.edu) The jury is led by Paco Roncero, the Madrid chef with two Michelin stars, and includes Rafael de Bedoya, another two-Michelin-star chef who won the contest’s fourth edition. Adrián Delgado of SpainMedia and Le Cordon Bleu Madrid chef-instructors are also judging. (origenonline.es) The live final lasts four hours at Le Cordon Bleu Madrid on the Universidad Francisco de Vitoria campus. Finalists must build an original dish from a shared base of chicken and lobster, with free choice of techniques, garnishes, and extra ingredients. (origenonline.es) The contest is open to students ages 18 to 25 who are in the last year of a cooking program. This year’s process started with applications, narrowed to as many as 50 preselected candidates on November 27, 2025, and then to 10 finalists after a recipe-and-video round due January 15, 2026. (cordonbleu.edu) That earlier round asked candidates to submit a three- to five-minute video and a written recipe. The common dish in that phase was stuffed quail with soufflé potatoes, plus a sauce and garnish of the student’s choice. (cordonbleu.edu) (excelenciasgourmet.com) The 10 finalists come from 8 Spanish provinces and 10 different training centers. They are Laura Gil Saracho, Óscar Moreno Gutiérrez, Gabriel Navarro Oliveros, Aina Perelló Rojas, Marc Atroche Beleta, Andreu Berenguer Gandía, Clara Ibarra Rey, Martina Puig Tormo, Luis María Casado González, and Ana González Carrillo. (origenonline.es) Le Cordon Bleu Madrid says the prize is aimed at students still in training, not established restaurant cooks. The school describes the award as a national competition meant to recognize academic performance and “potenciar el talento” of future chefs studying around Spain. (cordonbleu.edu) The winner receives a full scholarship for a diploma at Le Cordon Bleu Madrid worth more than 24,000 euros. The runner-up receives a full scholarship for a certificate worth more than 9,000 euros, and the first winner’s school can also receive 1,500 euros if it submitted that student’s candidacy. (cordonbleu.edu) The judging panel also links the student contest to the professional kitchen world. Bedoya’s place on the jury gives finalists a direct line to a chef who moved from winning this competition to earning two Michelin stars at Aleia. (origenonline.es) By the end of Tuesday’s cook-off, one student will leave Madrid with the top scholarship and a résumé line judged by Michelin-starred chefs. For the other finalists, the format still puts their names, techniques, and schools in front of some of Spain’s best-known figures in fine dining. (origenonline.es)