Hunter Zampa holds a title that many young chefs only dream of: youngest teen Chopped champion.
In case you aren’t familiar with Chopped, it’s a Food Network show that requires chefs to cook three different courses (appetizer, entree, and dessert) using a variety of mystery ingredients given to them right before they are allowed to start cooking. Each course must be created in exactly 30 minutes, requiring the chefs to think on their feet, utilizing every ounce of skill and creativity that they have. One chef is eliminated each round, until the Chopped champion is crowned at the end of the dessert round.
In December 2013, Hunter won a special episode of Chopped, Teen Talent where four teenaged chefs, ranging in age from 13-16, competed for the title of Chopped Teen Champion and a $40,000 scholarship to The International Culinary Schools at the Art Institutes.
At the young age of 14, he’s already made a number of impressive strides in the culinary world other than winning Chopped. He was on Food Network’s Rachael vs. Guy: Kids Cook-Off, he has cooked on “The View” with Padma Lakshmi and Nicole Wallace, and was named one of the 10 Chefs Under 25 You Need To Know About.
Despite all of this early success and recognition, Hunter is extremely grounded and has a passion for cooking that is infectious. We sat down with him to see what it was like cooking on Chopped, get his thoughts on why it’s important for children to cook, and get the details of his favorite recipe!
Foodstirs: What was it like competing on such an intense competition show like Chopped?
Hunter: It was one of the scariest yet best things that has ever happened to me in my life. At every moment, I was trying to watch the clock while managing several food items, and there were millions of things going on in my mind. Check the meat. Make sure the sauce isn’t burning. Try not to cut yourself. Fortunately, I was able to stay focused. It was really crazy but really fun. Talk about adrenaline! Oh, and the fact that I was cooking for my idols….that crossed my mind a few times.
F: Has winning Chopped inspired you to work with other children and inspire them to cook?
Hunter: After being on Rachael vs. Guy: Kids Cook-Off and winning Chopped, I felt so fortunate and decided that I would like to give back to my community. I partnered with a charity called Go4theGoal and started a different version of a “Kids Cook-Off” to benefit Pediatric Cancer. I worked closely with 8 kids and 8 restaurants to create 8 dishes. I’m not sure who was more inspired, me or the other kids, but in the end we created wonderful recipes and raised $15,000 for Pediatric Oncology.
I have several other events planned for this year, all working with kids that I’m looking forward to. I like working with kids I guess because I’m really still one myself!
F: Can you share anything with us that you’ve learned from cooking that can be applied to other areas of life?
Hunter: Cooking is a mixture of many things, like math and science. I learned how to use things like chemistry in cooking with liquid nitrogen and xanthum gum. Although some cooking is taste and skill, some of it involves strict measurement. Knowing math helps with this. Also, I learned time management and organization from cooking, which help with daily life.
F: How do you see cooking fitting into your future?
Hunter: I’ll definitely go to the Art Institutes with the scholarship I won on Chopped, but also plan on getting a degree in business. My dream is to have a culinary empire with several restaurants around the world, and I feel that it will be really important to learn the business end of things to achieve that goal.
My Dad always tells me to be patient and just keep having fun cooking. Everything else will fall into place. I feel more comfortable in the kitchen than anywhere else so regardless of where life leads, you’ll always know where to find me.
Returning to our kitchen?