CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Aspiring young chefs are firing up their grills and putting their cooking skills to the test.
The Capitol Market hosted its fourth annual All Fired Up event as part of the kick off to Charleston’s Sternwheel Regatta on Thursday.
The kid’s cooking competition event pits young chefs against one another to see who can cook the best backyard BBQ.
A total of six kids were competing in the event this year.
One of them was Charleston-based talent Jake Davis who said he was ready to make one of his family’s signature dishes.
“I’m cooking steak and vegetables with grilled peaches with honey on top,” Jake said.
Thursday’s participants were between the ages of 10 to 17 and were selected from a highly competitive process.
Renowned Charleston-based Chef and Owner of the local restaurants 1010, The Pitch and Paulie’s Italian Restaurant, as well as a National James Beard Award-winner, Chef Paul Smith was the MC at Thursday’s cooking competition.
He said this is an exciting event and a great opportunity for young aspiring chefs.
“It really showcases the young talent and really, it’s so cool for me because these kids come up with some awesome ideas, they surprise you, the plating is great, the flavor profiles are great,” Chef Paul said.
For the competition, each kid-led team received a $100 dollar gift card to the Capitol Market where they could shop for fresh, local ingredients for one hour, and then afterwards, they had two hours to prepare a meal using a grill provided on-site. 
Jake Davis said he felt confident his dish was going to turn out good.
“We were going to do chicken at first but we did steak, we already planned the vegetables, so I think that’s going to work out perfect,” he said.
Davis said he has been cooking for about two to three years now and it’s something he just loves to do.
His mother, Larissa Wilkinson said she was excited to see her son compete because she knows he has natural culinary abilities.
“I love it, I’m not much of a cook myself, I think it skips a generation for sure, but he has practiced a lot with his grandmothers and he’s just always loved to cook, he’s really good at it, he has a natural talent,” Wilkinson said.
Sharon Adams, Davis’ grandmother was also there rooting him on. She said she has always taught and encouraged her grandkids to learn to cook and as a frequent shopper at the Capitol Market, she thought this was a great idea when she heard about it.
“What a great opportunity for young children, what a great opportunity, so I’m welcoming this,” Adams said.
A few celebrity chefs and culinary experts around the area were going to be judging the competition, including Steven Keith known as The Food Guy and Chef Otis Laury, owner of Laury’s Restaurant in downtown Charleston.
Chef Paul said he encourages all kids who love to cook to practice at home whenever they can and immerse themselves in every aspect of it.
“Get excited about it, read about it, watch TV, and just have a good time,” Chef Paul said. “This is what I love to do, and it’s really exciting to see the next couple of generations coming,”
The prizes being awarded for the competition included handcrafted glass from West Virginia’s famous Blenko Glass Company for categories “Best Overall,” “Best Use of Local Ingredients,” and “Most Creative Dish.”