Care Food Cooking Competition 2025
This Year's Highlights
The Hong Kong Council of Social Service is organising the 7th Care Food Cooking Competition. The competition aims to demonstrate the ways to modify the favourite foods into Care Food for individuals with dysphagia (swallowing challenges), enabling them to enjoy their favourite dishes at home.
This year, the competition is open to foreign domestic helpers, the participation and support from their employers are most welcome as well.
Competition Process
Preliminary
Pre-competition activities
Final
Ceremony
Format
Online Submission
Care Food Workshop
Care Food Seed Restaurant Tasting Session
Pre-competition Practice
On-site competition
On-site award presentation
Date
6th July, 2025
Submit on or before 5 p.m.
2nd August, 2025
16th August, 2025
13th September, 2025
18th October, 2025
Late November, 2025
Preliminary selection
Theme
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The Flavour of Memories
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If your family member has dysphagia, they may not be able to enjoy the delicacies they loved in the past.
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This competition aims to turn the foods that loved ones at home into Care Food so that they can regain the taste of delicious food.
Items
Description
Eligibility
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Foreign Domestic Helpers
Dish Requirements
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Under the theme “The Flavour of Memory”, contestants are required to submit a recipe and modify a dish favored by individuals with swallowing difficulties into a Care Food recipe after completing the training. The cooking methods are not restricted, and share the story behind it.
Submission Method
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Complete the Application Form and email to goodlife@hkcss.org.hk, or;
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Complete the online Application Form (Google Form), applicants must attach photos/videos to introduce relevant works.
Deadline of Application
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6th July, 2025 (Sunday) at 5:00 p.m.
Finalist Notification
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The list of finalists will be announced on 16th July, 2025 (Wednesday). The finalists will be notified separately and will receive an additional HK$1,800 subsidy for preparing the final. (The subsidy will be distributed in two phases, and only those who have successfully completed the Final and Award Ceremony will be eligible for the full subsidy.) Employers who nominated their domestic helpers will also receive a subsidy of HK$500 if their domestic helpers make it into the finals.
The first 15 successful contestants will receive a HK$100 supermarket voucher
Remark: Successful contestants must complete and submit the required information in the application form, subject to the receipt of confirmation email from the organiser.
Pre-competition activities
Items
Care Food and Dysphagia Workshops
Workshop 1
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Planned to be held on 2nd August, 2025 (The actual time and location will be notified separately)
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The activity lasts about 3 hours
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For shortlisted candidates only.
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Session 1
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Speech therapist and dietitian share knowledge about dysphagia, Guideline of Care Food Standard, nutrition tips and caring skills.
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Session 2
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Professional chef demonstrates and guides Care Food cooking techniques.
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Each shortlisted candidate will be paired and cooperate with a student from the Vocational Training Council (VTC) and try to cook Care Food.
Care Food Seed Restaurant Tasting Session
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To be held on 16th August in the afternoon. (The actual time and location will be notified separately)
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The duration is around 2 hours.
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Allowed contestants taste the existing Care Food dishes in the market.
Pre-competition Practice
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Planned to be held on 13th September, 2025 (The actual time and location will be notified later)
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The shortlisted candidates will try to cook the competition dish together with VTC students and will be guided by professionals.
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Shortlisted candidates have to be interviewed and shoot a short video on that day for public voting.
Description
Final
Items
Competition Time and Venue
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Date: 18th October, 2025 (Saturday)
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Time: 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. (tentative)
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Venue: The International Culinary Institute (143 Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong)
Description
Rules of Competition
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Finalists are required to cook Care Food dishes on-site within the designated time (about 30 minutes), and they will have extra 1-2 minutes to introduce their work.
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Finalists need to prepare their own cooking materials and utensils. Only basic cooking utensils and water will be provided.
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Finalists can prepare and proceed some time-consuming ingredients before the competition, in order to complete the dishes within the specified time.
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Finalists should use the recipe submitted during the selection process. However, finalists can adjust the ingredients, portions, and cooking methods according to the dish requirements after the pre-competition preparation activities.
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All finalists will be invited to the Care Food Cooking Competition Award Ceremony in November when they will also be presented with trophies. They also have to prepare the dish they prepared in competition for display and introduction.
Dish Requirements
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Finalists are required to cook shortlisted dishes and comply with the Guideline of Care Food Standard.
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The dish needs to meet one of the following levels in the Guideline of Care Food Standard:
- Level 4 (Pureed)
- Level 5 (Minced & Moist)
- Level 6 (Soft & Bite-sized)
- Level 7EC (Easy to Chew)
Remark: The Guideline of Care Food Standard will be taught during pre-competition activities.
Award Ceremony
Items
Date and Venue
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Date: Late November, 2025 (TBC)
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Time: To be announced
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Venue: Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre
Description
Content
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All finalists will be invited to the Care Food Cooking Competition Award Ceremony in November when they will also be presented with trophies. They also have to prepare the dish they prepared in competition for display and introduction.
Star Judges
Preliminary Selection
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Ms. June Lei
Accredited Practicing Dietitian (APD), Dietitians Australia (DA)
Accredited Dietitian, Hong Kong Academy of Accredited Dietitian (HKAAD)
Full member, Hong Kong Dietitians Association (HKDA)
MSc. Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Canberra
PG Cert. Community Nutrition, HKUSPACE
BSc. (Hons) Food and Nutritional Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong KongMs. June Lei is a community dietitian of the H.K.S.K.H. Lady Maclehose Centre. She
provides individual dietary counselling service under Enhanced Home and Community Care Services (EHCCS) and at JC Kwai Wah Health and Wellbeing Centre. Ms. Lei is responsible for providing dietetics service for several community-based project including Anti-epidemic community Resilience Program, JC Cancer Survivorship Care Project, JC Empowerment-based Transitional Care Project, JC COPE Project, JC Community eHealth Care Project. She actively promotes Care Food in Hong Kong and was invited by HKCSS to be guest judge of 2022 Care Food Cooking Competition. She helps to write the first local Guideline of Care Food Standard and is now a member of the Consultation Team for the ‘Eat well Live Well Care Food Campaign -Phase 2
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Ms. Carol Yuen
Registered Speech Therapist accredited by the HKSAR Department of Health
Carol is a registered speech therapist with extensive experience providing swallowing, speech, and language therapy in elderly care homes, multidisciplinary outreach teams for older adults, public hospitals, community settings, and long-term care facilities for individuals with intellectual disabilities and mental recovery. She currently provides service in private clinics and NGOs, and serves as a clinical supervisor for master’s programs in speech therapy. Passionate about advancing dysphagia care, Carol is dedicated to promoting the balance between swallowing safety and quality of life.
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Mr. John Rocha
Food Culture Enthusiast, Cookbook Author, TV Cooking Show Chef, Gas Cooking Centre Instructor
John Rocha is a Chinese-Portuguese Eurasian. John devoted himself in the field of marketing upon his graduation from the UK and had his own marketing consultancy. He stepped into the culinary world out of passion but immediately turned into his second career. Sharing his heritage Macanese cooking, John published 4 cookbooks in just five years and one of his books was ranked as Top seller among Lifestyle category at Eslite Bookstore. With over 100,000 followers on social media, John appeared as chef on local tv channels, RTHK radio shows and writing his food & culture column with 2 printed medias.
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Dr Tam Wing Sai, Jessica
Business Director, The Hong Kong Council of Social Service
Dr. Tam is currently the Business Director of the Hong Kong Council of Social Service. She is committed in promoting the development of the local Care Food market and building a sustainable Care Food Eco-System. At the same time, he is the editor-in-chief of the Guideline of Care Food Standard, helping to formulate a set of unified, clear and localized guideline, hoping to improve the quality of life of people with dysphagia.
Final
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Ms. June Lei
Registered Dietitian accredited by the HKSAR Department of Health, Accredited Practising Dietitian (Australia)
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Ms. Carol Yuen
Registered Speech Therapist accredited by the HKSAR Department of Health
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Mr. John Rocha
Food Culture Enthusiast, Cookbook Author, TV Cooking Show Chef, Gas Cooking Centre Instructor
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Mr. YAP Han-phong
Principal of Hotel and Tourism Institute (HTI), Chinese Culinary Institute (CCI) and International Culinary Institute (ICI)
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Ms. Chan Man Yee
Chief Executive, The Hong Kong Council of Social Service
Competition Awards
Awards and Prizes
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Care Food Home Chef
Each awardee will receive prizes with a total value of HK$1,299.
"Gourmet Food" Award
(1 winner)*
"Joy" Award (1 winner)*
"Connections" Award
(1 winner)*
"Compassion" Award
(1 winner)*
Each awardee will receive prizes with a total value of HK$3980.
Public Favorite Award (1 winner)
Awardee will receive prizes with a total value of HK$1,780.
*In order to encourage participants to take part in the competition, various prizes will be awarded. With the exception of the Care Food Home Chef Award and the Public Favorite Award, winners of all other awards will not be eligible for duplicate awards.
Strategic Partners and Sponsors of Care Food Cooking Competition 2025
Venue and Prize Sponsors
