Esperanza Barraza, a senior at the Career Technical Education Center, pours mole sauce into a separate pan during the Oregon ProStart Championships competition on Monday, March 2, at the Salem Convention Center. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)
Three Salem seniors secured victory for their school in a statewide culinary competition Monday.
The team from the Career Technical Education Center, a vocational high school, was one of the smallest to compete in the Oregon ProStart Championships at the Salem Convention Center Monday, March 2.
On the team were Cristian Portillo Larios, Lizzie Lopez and Esperanza Barraza, each supported by family members, teachers and dozens of their peers in the audience. They swept the competition with a shrimp tostada appetizer, a chicharrón and tamale entree and an orange lechecilla brûlée for dessert.
The culinary competition included eleven schools from Salem, Portland, Corvallis, Gresham, Siletz, Yoncalla, and as far as Prineville, three hours east of Salem. Around 50 students competed in total.
Each team made a three-course gourmet meal in 60 minutes using two butane burners pitched on portable tables. Teams of four were managed by a fifth student serving as a team captain.
With just a team of three, the young CTEC chefs did not require a captain. Lopez said “it’s the size that worked for us,” and allowed for easy communication.
Cristian Portillo Larios plates the tostada appetizer. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)
As the CTEC students bustled between cooking meat, stirring sauces and slicing vegetables, they could be heard shouting, “Behind,” “Yes, chef,” or asking for the time.
CTEC also took first place for a culinary management competition that followed the culinary portion. South Salem High School took second in that competition, and did not compete in the culinary competition.
CTEC will move on to compete in the National ProStart Invitational in Baltimore, Maryland set for April 24 – 26.
Cristian Portillo Larios, left, Esperanza Barraza, center, and Lizzie Lopez, right, receive feedback from the judges after the competition. The judges were impressed by the achievements of such a small culinary team. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Lizzie Lopez plates the orange lechecilla brûlée dessert. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)An Oregon ProStart sign decorates the lobby of the Salem Convention Center. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)A ProStart staffer keeps time for the CTEC team. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Lizzie Lopez broils the sugar topping for the orange lechecilla brûlée desert. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Esperanza Barraza plates the mole sauce for the entree. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Edie Rumney, an 11th grade CTEC student, holds a sign supporting the CTEC team. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Cristian Portillo Larios, left, and Lizzie Lopez, right, prepare the plates. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Coco Larios, Cristian Portillo Larios’ mother, and culinary arts instructor Maria Larios Mendoza celebrate the CTEC team after they finish the competition. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Lizzie Lopez places the team’s desert plates on a tray. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)A Crescent Valley High School student prepares meat. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Cristian Portillo Larios holds a tray with all three of the team’s dishes. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)CTEC students hold signs supporting Cristian Portillo Larios. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)The CTEC team’s appetizer is on display in the convention center lobby. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Judges observe the CTEC team. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Marcelo Garcia, 11th grader at CTEC, supports his school’s team. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)The Alliance High School team cooks food on charcoal. The smoke eventually set off the fire alarm. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)A student peels a carrot. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)A Sam Barlow High School student moniters shrimp cooking on the skillet. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)Cristian Portillo Larios, left, and Lizzie Lopez, right, prepare the team’s dishes. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)A Siletz Valley School student arranges plates for judging. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)The Crook County High School team captain monitors the group. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)A young chef prepares micro greens for plating. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)The Yoncalla team raises their hands from their dishes after the 60 minute timer runs out. Each team threw their hands up when time was up, followed by a series of cheers celebrating their completion. (HAILEY COOK/Salem Reporter)
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Hailey Cook joined Salem Reporter in 2025, following the completion of an internship through the University of Oregon’s Charles Snowden Program for Excellence in Journalism. She works as a reporter and photojournalist, with a focus on business and entertainment, among other topics.
5 Comments
Hailey, thank you for this lovely article. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and all of the pictures. I had no idea that we had such a wonderful technical high school and such accomplished students. Well done.
Kate Hager
Amazing. Nice to see positive news. These people are part of our future. Good Luck to all.
Congratulations to this team of Salem seniors. I’m still salivating after the photos of the orange brûlée dessert. I’d love to taste it.
I would love to see the recipes! They all sound so good.
Exciting to see this as an option for students. Working hard but having fun too. Every person will always remember this and hopefully become a chief in the future. YUM…
Hailey, thank you for this lovely article. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and all of the pictures. I had no idea that we had such a wonderful technical high school and such accomplished students. Well done.
Kate Hager
Amazing. Nice to see positive news. These people are part of our future. Good Luck to all.
Congratulations to this team of Salem seniors. I’m still salivating after the photos of the orange brûlée dessert. I’d love to taste it.
I would love to see the recipes! They all sound so good.
Exciting to see this as an option for students. Working hard but having fun too. Every person will always remember this and hopefully become a chief in the future. YUM…