Ventura teen chosen to compete on ‘Top Chef Junior’

Things are heating up for 13-year-old Carson Peterson.

The Cabrillo Middle School student was chosen from thousands of kids to compete on season two of ‘Top Chef Junior’ airing on Universal Kids.

He is 1 of 11 contestants competing for $50,000 and the title of Top Chef. Peterson applied to be on the show in January and made it through two rounds of eliminations.

The teen left Cabrillo Middle School for three months and enrolled in online schooling while shooting the show in Los Angeles this past Spring.

“It’s such a good feeling to know that you made it,” said Peterson. “It was a lot of hard work and more hard work to come, but I was really happy.”

Peterson credits his grandmother for teaching him how to cook when he was younger.

“She is a really big inspiration for my cooking and she’s taught me a lot,” said Peterson.

He says his favorite dish to cook is fish en papillote and enjoys the French cuisine.

“The only way to be better as a chef is to cook and this was an experience where I got to cook all the time, so I think its made me a better chef as well,” said Peterson.

The finale is already in the can and Peterson and his family know who won, but until that episode airs, the results are under wraps.

“It’s been hard to keep it a secret,” said Peterson.

Cabrillo Middle School Principal, Lorelle Dawes says students will watch the first episode of the show this Thursday at school.

You can follow Carson on his culinary journey through his Instagram page.